Mic Check: Honoring the Out Hip-Hop Vanguard

Before Lil Nas X had the Billboard crown, before Saucy Santana had festival crowds screaming his lyrics, there was a queer hip-hop movement the industry didn’t want you to see.

I know—because I was part of it.

The Hip-Hop Era That Pretended We Didn’t Exist

In the early 2000s, “No homo” wasn’t just slang—it was a weapon. Being openly queer in rap was treated like career suicide. Labels ignored us. Pride stages booked everyone but us. Mainstream media acted like we weren’t even there.

So we built our own damn stage.

The Radio Show That Made Us Believe

One of our biggest lifelines was DJ Baker, whose daily countdown show gave queer rappers real shine long before Spotify or TikTok. Hearing your track on his show wasn’t just a spin—it was a lifeline. Today, Baker is still amplifying voices, now through WERU Radio.

At the same time, Camilo Arenivar created OutHipHop.com, the first site dedicated to our scene. My single I Got Him (later the lead track on my debut mixtape Sneak Preview) got covered there, and suddenly it felt like my name belonged in hip-hop history.

OutHipHop.com went on hiatus in 2011, with Camilo admitting the one-man operation had “lost its passion.” But he also wrote that the scene had made “long strides” and urged others to “pick up the ball.” He was right. Others did.

The Artists They Don’t Tell You About

By then, Tim’m West and the Deep Dick Collective had already made headlines as one of the first queer rap collectives to get mainstream press. I was lucky enough to share stages with them and others who helped shape our sound:

• BoneIntell, pure lyrical fire.

• Kin4Life, a soloist turned duo putting on for the lesbians.

• Sonny "Lou Bangs" Lewis, gone too soon but unforgettable.

• LASTO (Last Offence), one of the sharpest pens of our time, long on hiatus but still legendary.

• Bry’nt, whose lyricism and style made him one of our most visible faces.

• Foxjazell, all glamour and grit, smashing boundaries as the original transgender diva.

• Kaoz, with his midwest flair

• Medino Green, the NYC is still pushing boundaries and reinventing himself.

• Later came Fly Young Red and the Freaky Boiz, who carried us into the viral video era.

You won’t see most of these names in history books. But without them, there is no Lil Nas X. There is no Saucy Santana. Period.

This wasn’t just a handful of rappers passing around mixtapes. It was a movement. Sites like gayhiphop.com, launched by Chris Mckenna in 1998, gave us forums, artist bios, and music links years before Facebook or SoundCloud made that mainstream.

Gayhiphop.com also helped launch the first gay hip-hop music events in Oakland in 2000 and 2001, and later supported international showcases like PeaceoutUK in London with QBoy. The documentary Pick Up The Mic even captured that era on film, proving what we already knew: queer hip-hop was global, organized, and unstoppable—even when the industry pretended we didn’t exist.

Pride Before the Corporate Takeover

Back then, Black Gay Pride stages were ours. Indie queer acts headlined. Pride was about activism first, music second, and corporate branding dead last.

Today? Those same stages mostly go to washed-up divas or whichever queer-friendly act comes with a big sponsor check. And even stars who do break through aren’t safe—just look at how the narratives around Jussie Smollett and Lil Nas X have overshadowed their artistry and philanthropy. If the industry can discard them, what chance do indie queer artists have?

Why I’m Telling This Story Now

Because if we don’t write this history down, it’ll vanish. That’s why I’m dedicating an entire chapter to this era in my upcoming memoir, Rainbow Soul. We can’t let anyone erase what we built—or the sacrifices it took to get here.

#FunnyMoneyRock: The Rebirth

That’s also why I’m relaunching #FunnyMoneyRock—to honor the past and spotlight the future. The playlist will feature the pioneers Baker and Camilo helped elevate, right alongside today’s new voices carrying the torch.

Over the next few months, expect features, playlists, and stories that prove queer hip-hop has always been here—and isn’t going anywhere.

🎧 Artists, want in? Whether you’ve been hustling since the mixtape days or just dropped your first track, you can sign up now for playlist spots and features.

👉 Join the Show Here — because the industry might ignore us, but we’ll never ignore each other.

The Beat Goes Underground Again

Here’s the truth: the attacks on diversity aren’t slowing down. If anything, we’re headed for another cycle of erasure. And when that happens, Pride and queer hip-hop will likely return to their roots—the grassroots, the underground, the circuit where we started.

Or, as Beyoncé might put it, back to the “chitlin’ circuit.” And honestly? That’s not defeat. That’s a reminder: when the world shuts us out, we don’t stop—we just build a new stage.