2. Taylor Swift kicked off a new era by using imagery of a snake -- effectively reclaiming the symbol. Drag Race superstar Alaska Thunderfuck -- who also wears her ‘snake’ label as a badge -- weighed in: “You have to take the tragic and turn it to magic,” she told Fader. “People used to call me a horse face. Then I adopted the horse as my spirit animal. Something that brought me pain and anguish ended up bringing me strength and joy. So when I got bombarded with snakes I got a new spirit animal. Lucky me.”
3. The weird and wonderful Jaymes Mansfield has released the latest episode of her Drag HerStory series. The clip is a lesson on drag queens who make music, including Pussy Tourette, Jorbriath and her Drag Race season 9 sister Peppermint.
4. Dance duo Oliver dropped their debut album Full Circle and it’s a full of exciting collaborations: Yelle, Sam Sparro and MNDR all show up. The standout -- in our completely biased opinion -- is the ice cold “Love Like This,” which features (Sia-approved) gay hottie Leon Else.
5. Another cool combo? Nashville-based Super Duper tapped queer alt-pop gem Remmi for “Never Gets Old.”
6. Electro-rock darlings PVRIS have released their highly-anticipated All We Know Of Heaven, All We Need Of Hell and it’s a stunner. Ahead of the release, out-and-proud frontwoman Lynn Gunn talked to Channel 4 about her sexuality, the white supremacist rallies across America and President Trump. When asked about Trump’s, Lynn quickly responded “can I swear? It’s complete bulls--t.” Last month, Lynn joined Sia, Dua Lipa, The Chainsmokers and a slew of other stars to speak out against the ban in a power video message from Billboard and GLAAD.
7. MTV invited transgender members of the US military to the 2017 VMAs this Sunday. “Any patriot who is putting their own life at risk to fight for our freedom and stand for equality is a hero at MTV," network president Chris McCarthy said in a statement.
8. Adam Joseph, the genius behind the house mix of Maxine Waters’ infamous “Reclaiming My Time” takedown, has released a new club banger, “The Rent.” The track features Hey Qween! co-host Lady Red Couture wailing over a cool, bouncy beat.
9. AT&T Audience Network’s detective-thriller series Mr. Mercedes is getting rave reviews. The show, based on the Stephen King novel of the same name, features UnReal alumna Breeda Wool in another queer role. The actress told Billboard: “I think right now it's critical to have as much LGBTQ representation on the small screen as possible. As artists we have a duty to reflect back to people the beauty of human variation and bring forward stories that may otherwise be silenced. Lou Linklatter on Mr. Mercedes is a resister, putting forth good lessons for everybody.”
10. We’re ending on a high note this week! Ariana & The Rose has released the stunning self-directed video for her dark “How Does That Make You Feel.”
