These LGBTQ+ and Black Artists are BADASS! | The Platform - Episode 7
- K Enagonio
- Jun 30
- 4 min read
Updated: Jun 30
Every month I will be giving a select group of independent bands my platform to share their music! This is Episode 7! June is Pride Month as well as Black Music Appreciation Month so I wanted to give my platform to these LGBTQ+ and black artists exclusively this month!
If you'd like to submit your music, fill out This Form.
Each artist will be forevermore added to a public Spotify playlist, known as "The Platform."
Each band featured in this blog submitted their music through the form linked above. You can find each of their individual music videos and social media links below if you'd like to support them further.
Artist 1:
Blastcap (Michigan City, IN)
Song - "Die Alone"
I asked Blastcap, "what makes your band unique?" This is what they had to say;
"Blastcap is Michigan City, Indiana's favorite Queer Metal band! (We're about to play for the 6th time at Michigan Cit Pride fest!)
We play primarily as a two-piece band, using multiple amps and effects, to make an explosive sound that cannot be ignored! Genre wise we are QueerCore / Doom / Sludge / alternative metal.
I make it a point to "come out" to the audience at our shows to give representation to those watching that need it, and for those who might need a little push to realize that there are Queer people in all spaces and they deserve to be heard! We've even had people come up to us after our show telling us that we've inspired them to come out in their own lives, and that has been the greatest honor for us. That's our main goal as a band, to make people know that they can be fully themselves and be proud of it!
We're in the recording phase of our new album titled "Dust & Death" which will be mixed by Juno Award winner Siegfried Meier and we could not be more excited about this project!
Lyrically the album was my diary as I was battling and eventually winning against my alcohol addiction (2 years sober now!). My hope for the album is to let people know that they are not alone in their struggles, whatever they may be, and that there is hope in all of the darkness."
A bit more about Blastcap (taken from their Spotify):
"Blastcap delivers satisfying, ear-melting eclecticism with a fistful of glitter."
- Vero Rose Smith, Middle Music
Formed in 2013, Blastcap is a two-to-three-piece Queer Metal band based in Northwest Indiana consisting of vocalist and bassist Jake Lawless, drummer GUMBa, and on special occasions guitarist Andrew Wohead.
Support Blastcap
Artist 2:
Earthbound (Melbourne, AUS)
Song - "Petrichor"
I asked Earthbound, "what makes your band unique?" This is what they had to say;
"For the purpose of this month's criteria, our drummer Ollie is openly LGBTQ+.
What makes us unique as a band is we've based the majority of our musical catalogue around video games (for example, our song Continuum could be another track about believing in yourself in the face of overwhelming adversity, but if you dig a little deeper you'll find plenty of easter eggs relating to The Legend of Zelda).
We all love digital media to the point where we've taken a DIY approach to our music cycle we're currently in and our vocalist Tom leads our efforts in filmmaking and content creation.
The music video for Petrichor was a team effort by Tom who lead the charge in filming, directing and editing the music video, while Ollie wrote the script and developed the initial concept around growing up watching your loved ones succumb to dementia."
A bit more about Earthbound (taken from their Spotify):
Support Earthbound:
Artist 3:
Fera (St. Louis, MO)
Song - "Run"
A bit more about Fera (taken from their Spotify):
"fera is an alt rock artist / singer-songwriter from St. Louis, MO. Currently creating in Los Angeles, fera combines soft vocals with heavy music and piercing lyrics, exploring a sound that ranges from post-hardcore to folk. ★ fera signed with worker-owned music management and production company question culture in 2023, and is dropping her first EP, riddance in 2026."
Support fera:
Artist 4:
Pinknoise:
Song - "Rain"
About Pinknoise (from their Spotify):
"the future is 𝐏𝐈𝐍𝐊"
Support Pinknoise
Artist 5:
Defences (UK)
Song - "Shadowlight"
About Defences song "Shadowlight"
"Shadowlight was born from a period of solitude and deep reflection, exploring what it means to accept your inner darkness—acknowledging, understanding, and ultimately accepting it for what it is, and learning to sit with it or use it to change your outlook. The album delves into these themes, paralleling the artistic process itself and the nature of creation. It touches on the fear that you may not achieve what you believe you deserve or reach your full potential, a cycle of disappointment and self-sabotage that many face, with the pursuit of absolution and validation often feeling forever out of reach. To live in The Almost.
Shadowlight addresses this sense of yearning for ever-elusive fulfillment, using the concept of self-reflective Shadow Work to give form to the hidden aspects of ourselves and the parts we wish we could change. By confronting these fears and internalising them as part of ourselves, we become whole."
Support Defences:
Artist 6:
S.W.A.R.M. (Baton Rouge, Louisiana)
Song - "Disease"
I asked S.W.A.R.M., "what makes your band unique?" This is what they had to say;
"We're a queer punk band that meshes a bunch of genres together!! We have a few songs with latin grooves, grunge like songs, emo songs, and of course punk sounding songs!! Our influences are System of a down, Stone Temple Pilots, and MCR!!"
A bit more about S.W.A.R.M. (taken from their Spotify):
SWARMS gonna infect you with PUNK REALNESS!! We explore plenty of genre's so start streaming to get SWARMED!!
Support S.W.A.R.M.:
Thank you for taking the time to learn a bit about these amazing independent artists! They deserve the support and opportunity to grow and I am grateful to be able to share my platform with them!
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Your donations will help with website maintenance, future giveaways for these bands and for those who subscribe to the newsletter, and for marketing opportunities.
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