Kevin Aviance will have an upcoming DJ set as part of the Ladybear party at Smartbar, 3730 N. Clark St., on Aug 8 at 10 p.m. alongside Lucy Stoole, Shaun J Wright, and Rika B.
Aviance is a New York City-based drag queen, a part of the iconic House of Aviance, and a DJ and ballroom artist. He said the’s always enjoyed Chicago parties, and plans to bring his all to the upcoming performance.: “Chicago always gives you realness when it comes to these parties, and they don’t play around with the parties,” Aviance said.
The set is also to include performances by Neutral Gena, Rachel Slurrz and Stephanie, along with go-go dancers Devante, Sean De Garçon and Shay.
Although based in New York City, Aviance has some ties to Chicago, such as longtime friend and fellow performer CircuitMOM aka Matthew Harvat.
He has been active in music since the 90s and has worked with a variety of artists, among them Whitney Houston and Janet Jackson. But Aviance is perhaps most known for when his song, “CUNTY,” was sampled in Beyoncé’s song “Pure/Honey” in 2022 on her album Renaissance.
The song, “CUNTY,” came from when he saw two kids playing together using the word “cunty” repeatedly and had no idea what the word meant at the time. Now, to him, that word means feeling loved and cherished.
For Aviance, the sampling changed his career for the better, which he described as an “anointment from God.”
“It has rejuvenated my career,” Aviance said. “And Bee is such an amazing person. She sampled my music, but she took care of my baby and handed it back to me.”
Aviance said that prior to the song coming out, he had just undergone two hip replacements within a three-year span and was making various attempts to regain the spotlight, but to no avail—until he got to work with Beyoncé on the song.
He emphasized how important it was for someone like Beyoncé to sample the song and show Black queer culture to a new generation.
“She did it properly, honey, and brought in everybody,” Aviance said. “It was just incredible to be recognized for your work, in your community, by someone who is appreciative of it because of who she is and what she does.”
Aviance recently came out with a new song with SEVNDEEP entitled “THAT PART” with an accompanying music video. The song showcases themes of Black queer joy, with the music video having scenes of people in the club taking HIV prevention medication PrEP.
Through it all, Aviance tries to keep himself busy with various projects, always trying not to let anyone tell him that he can’t do anything or that it’s not his time. As he says, he is “undeniable” and “unbothered.”
“You won’t find me sleeping a lot or just taking things lightly,” he said. “I participate in my life with the lives of our family, of our people.”
