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Capital Pride entertainment focuses on local community, diverse talents
ZACK ROSEN
Friday, June 08, 2007
As if the throngs of colorfully dressed men and women weren’t entertainment enough, this year’s Capital Pride Festival features two stages full of dance, music and comedy acts. Led by hometown divas Crystal Waters and Rachel Panay, the lineup at Capital Pride was chosen to reflect pride in the Washington community.
“We were really looking to capitalize on local or homegrown talent,” says Pride Director David Mallory. “It fits with our theme of making Pride more community oriented.”
Headliner Crystal Waters, a Silver Spring native, is perhaps best known for a song that was directly inspired by her life in Washington. While working at the D.C. Parole Board, she was inspired to write her signature tune, “Gypsy Woman (She’s Homeless),” by the “la da dee, la da da” chant of a woman soliciting change from passersby on Connecticut Avenue. ??Dance/pop artist Rachel Panay is another bridge between Pride and the local community. Raised in Washington, Panay moved to New York City last January, but has not forgotten her D.C. roots.
She performed at last year’s Pride festival and is slated to take the stage toward the end of this year’s entertainment lineup.??“I climbed the stairs to the stage and saw this sea of humanity,” Panay says of her performance at Capital Pride 2006. “There were 122,000 people on Pennsylvania Avenue. I’d performed for large audiences before, but nothing can prepare you to come on that stage and know you’re delivering to that many people.”
Panay will showcase songs from her soon-to-be-released album “Back to Love” as well as some of her older singles, and she’s invited some of her drag queen friends to join her onstage.
“I know a lot of people look at Pride as an opportunity to party and see DJs and go crazy, but it strikes me on a deeper level,” Panay says. “There was a time when a closed-minded, bigoted attitude was the norm. We have a long way to go, but at the same time we’ve made progress. Fifty years ago my gay friends wouldn’t be able to openly celebrate who they are. Today they can and that’s amazing.”
- Washington, D.C.
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Discography
"LIVE AT EUPHORIA" JAZZ EP Spring 2008
"CHANGE IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER"
Proceeds benefitting the Obama campaign, digitally released September 2008 on www.perfectbeat.com
"EPIC"
Released December 2008 to rave reviews from DJ's and Dance music lovers!
"REPEAT PERFORMANCE"
Maxi Single, #30 on Billboard Chart, June 2008
"BACK TO LOVE"
Full Album including 3 Top 10 Billboard Hits and 12 New Tracks on iTunes!
June 2007
"IT'S GOT TO BE LOVE" REMIXES
#15 on Billboard Dance Chart, November 2007
Remixes from Guido Osorio, TNT, Georgie Porgie, Lenny B. & Brian Reyes
"THE REAL THING"
#6 on Billboard Dance Chart, December 2006
Remixes by Josh Harris, DJ Escape, Mynt & more!
"I STILL BELIEVE"
#7 on the Billboard Dance Chart, December 2005
Mixes by Josh Harris, Friscia & Lamboy, Mike Cruz, & Georgie Porgie (Act 2 Records)
"BACK TO LOVE"
#2 on the Billboard Dance Chart, March 2005
Mixes by Josh Harris & Friscia & Lamboy (Act 2 Records)
Licensed for the Queer as Folk Soundtrack on Tommy Boy Records, David Knapp's White Party CD on Centaur Records, the URB compilation of Dance hits 2005, and Jazzercise.
THE WALK OF SHAME
Fireball Compilation mixed by Rosabel
Angelo Kortez Palacio Edit
Centaur Records
GET OFF
Verano 2003 and Power Latin Grooves 2003
BMG Latin America
MonsterTaxi Mixes
YOU MAKE ME FEEL
Recently on 3 Oprah Winfrey episodes!!!
Risque Records
Doug Laurent Radio Remix
Cathe dot Com Exercise Video Series 2003
"SHINE ON"
Dance Files 2003
SFP Records
The Observer Remix
"YOU MAKE ME FEEL"
Loungin, Clubin Compilation
Doug Laurent Remix
BoleroLifestyle, Switzerland
www.bolerolifestyle.ch
LET GO!
Single, Paradise Records, France
DJ Tibo Radio and Club Edits
"YOU MAKE ME FEEL"
Crunch Minidisc Series
Melodylab Mixes
Distributed by Crunch Gym (NY, Boston, Miami, LA, Chicago)
VENUS
Break beat cover version commissioned for video game series, Kombat Bikini Barbie
"GUN OF LOVE"
Washington, DCs WPGC theme song for its "Stop the Violence" campaign
Made available through the radio station and at campaign events throughout the city
Photos
Bio
"Change Is Just Around the Corner" takes America's clamoring for CHANGE to the dancefloor with an international flavor lent by hot remix team, The French Players. Inspired by Barack Obama's message of CHANGE and HOPE, the bridge says it all, "Don't give up, don't give in, never stop, you can WIN!"
Those very words tell the story of Rachels journey as a young artist beginning with her childhood and teen years training in the classical dance, piano and theater. At Duke Ellington High School for the Arts in Washington, D.C. as a Musical Theater major and Bostons prestigious Berklee College of Music as Vocal Performance and Commercial Arranging major, Rachel excelled and emerged a seasoned, sophisticated professional ready to take on the world!s
Her interest in diverse musical styles lead her to experiment in the Dance/Electronica genre where she was embraced by audiences and critics alike with several releases under the umbrella of Act 2 Records and Music Plant.
Spanning from 2004 to 2008, Rachel's consecutive hit singles include underground club anthem, "The Walk of Shame" and Billboard Club Play smash hits, "Back to Love" "I Still Believe", "The Real Thing" & "Its Got To Be Love" and Repeat Performance.
In addition to "Change Is Just Around the Corner", Rachel also celebrated the release of Epic, Ranny featuring Rachel Panay, with remixes by Ranny, Manny Lehman, Brian Reyes, and a stellar roster of Latin American DJ/remixer talents!
Rachel received a WAMMY for Best Electronica Vocalist in 2005, and was nominated twice for Best Breakthrough Artist at Winter Music Conference's International Dance Music Awards in Miami for 2005 and 2006.
As an accomplished Billboard charting songwriter, she was one of 8 writers worldwide invited to attend BMIs writer's retreat in conjunction with The Royalty Network in 2007. Rachels songs provided musical backgrounds for mainstream television shows like the Oprah Winfrey show & Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous & as well as edgy indie films like "Signage" and "A Four Letter Word" which debuted at the most recent Sundance.
Rachel has written with and been produced and remixed by some of the biggest names in US Dance music including Josh Harris, Guido Osorio of the legendary remix & DJ team Razorn'Guido, Mike Cruz, Georgie Porgie, Friscia & Lamboy, Twisted Dee, and Monster Taxi, most recently concentrating on European based collaborations.
Having electrified stages of clubs, festivals & events from Miami to New York, LA to Washington, D.C. Chicago to Memphis, and many more cities in between, Rachel went global starting with the Amsterdam Dance Event in October of 2008. During this month-long stay in Europe, Rachel had several writing and recording dates with noted writers and producers and is looking forward to several overseas releases as a result of these collaborations.
Back in the states as of December 2008, Rachel is gearing up with all of Washington, D.C., the nation and indeed the world to ring in a new year and a new era of CHANGE!
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