 |
 JUSTIN
TIMBERLAKE IS STRAIGHT--
BUT "POP ROCKS" IS A GAY OL' TIME!
by Jed
Ryan
Oh, those pranksters at "HX" Magazine! "HX," the ultra-hip
and all-inclusive free weekly mag covering gay New York City
nightlife, warned its readers that it's April 5th issue would
be loaded with April Fools jokes. Trying to separate the "true"
from the "Is this true?!" was part of the fun. In its weekly
listings, "HX" declared that April 4th would be Justin Timberlake's
Official Coming Out Party at Pop Rocks, the ultra-fun Thursday
night 18-and-over gay hot spot. According to the magazine,
Justin left his girlfriend Britney Spears because he's "one
of ours." And to celebrate, Justin vowed to make out with
every cute boy at the club that night. Whoa! All right, all
right, I know that the curly haired one-fifth of N'SYNC coming
out of the closet is every gay guy's fantasy-- but was it
true? It was like that Richard Gere gerbil anecdote-- hard
to believe, but too hard NOT to believe. After all,
if I had Britney as a girlfriend, I just might even turn straight
myself. Then again, Justin seemed to be dabbling in queer
culture quite a bit lately-- appearing as a fey hairdresser
in that N'SYNC clunker of a movie, "On the Line;" channeling
gay pop royalty Elton John in a music video; and being seen
partying at New York's hottest gay nightspots like Asseteria
No matter what, I wasn't going to miss the opportunity to
verify this rumor-- and to help Justin celebrate his sexual
awakening that night!
Pop Rocks is THE young gay Manhattan nightspot. Located
at 219 Flamingo (219 Second Ave. at 14th), the club is unassuming
from the outside and unpretentious on the inside. Yet it's
not the decor that makes this place so fabulous. It's the
MUSIC! Although some cynical music critics mercilessly
lampoon 80's and 90's pop music for it's simple lyrics and
perceived lack of creativity, they miss the point: it's FUN!
At Pop Rocks, the DJ's play ripped-from-the-current-charts
top 40 plus up-and-coming pop hits of tomorrow. (This night,
the new single was George Michael's "Freeek") There's
Britney, Christine Aguilera, N'SYNC, the Backstreet Boys,
Destiny's
Child, P!nk, Janet, Madonna,
Ricky Martin, and everyone in between. There's two floors,
with the top floor usually dedicated to "special events"--
CD release parties (For Madonna's banned video "What
It Feels Like for a Girl" a while back, Pop Rocks played the
banned video every hour on the hour, plus all of Maddy's
classics
in between!) and whole nights dedicated to both 80's pop
icons (like Pat Benatar, Stevie Nicks, and even La Toya
Jackson!)
and current favorites. Downstairs, it's just a mix of pure
pop: new stuff with an occasional classic like Madonna's
(remake of) "American
Pie" or Janet's "Nasty" thrown in. No remixes,
just original radio and CD versions. Think you can't
dance to Top 40? Just
watch the crowd of cute college boys, lipstick lesbians,
and trendy straight girls get wild on the dance floor
and shriek
in delight as their favorite song comes on. When there's
no special event, the music on the two floors becomes
almost
indistinguishable. A recent club-goer joked, "If you miss
your favorite song on one floor, don't worry... you'll hear
it again on the other floor later that night!"
On April 4th, the club was packed-- but amidst all the perfect
hairdos, unblemished faces, and trendy fashions, there wasn't
a shred of attitude. There were 18- and 19-year old gay NYU
boys in tank tops showing off their budding biceps. A straight
girl with a lunch box purse dances on top of a table. And
a mixed group of twenty-something male and female friends
dance in a circle to "Bye Bye Bye." A giant birthday card
for Mandy Moore is in the corner for everyone to sign. But
no Justin. Not even a look-a-like. Later, I casually ask the
bartender what the "theme" that night was. She jokes, "Justin
Timberlake's Coming Out Party," barely able to keep a straight
face. Yes, boys and girls, it was a hoax! As they say, if
it sounds too good to be true... I drown my sorrows in Cosmo's
as N'SYNC plays in the background.
Pop Rocks is every Thursday night at 219 Flamingo. There's
a $5 cover, and doors open at 10 PM. The next big thing will
be the Annual Pop Rocks Prom on May 16th. Boys, start looking
for your dress. For more info, check out their web site, PopRocksNYC.com,
regularly.
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