Houston’s Weaux Brings ‘Bubblegum Funk’ Sound to Queer Across America: Houston

Allow me to (re)introduce Weaux (pronounced “Woah!”), the Houston-raised, nonbinary queer pop sensation turning heads with their distinctive “bubblegum funk” sound. Seamlessly blending a queered-out Gen Z sense of humor with an infectious ‘80s vibe, Weaux crafts an irresistible pop party that you’re cordially invited to attend. On Saturday, September 14, Weaux will host and headline Queer Across America: Houston, a music-and-drag extravaganza at Montrose’s beloved AvantGarden.

“I grew up here in Houston as a devout theater kid in the early 2000s, and then I moved to New York to study acting at Fordham University,” says Weaux. “At Fordham, I discovered that I’m actually a music artist and a songwriter, so my life kind of took a left turn there.”

This wasn’t the only awakening that New York City offered. “I had this huge culture shock moment, where I went from this very restrictive, heteronormative upbringing in Houston to this extremely liberal theater school in New York,” Weaux recalls. It was during this time they realized they were queer, and leaned into what that meant.

“As soon as that happened, I started being able to write songs that really resonated with people,” Weaux adds. “I also figured out what I wanted my mission as an artist to be: empowering queer people around the world, creating a community that’s intersectional and includes everyone, and creating work that would have helped the younger me be okay with who I was.”

Weaux graduated from Fordham in 2020, during the COVID-19 lockdowns. Unwilling to let the pandemic stifle their creativity, they teamed up with Quemoción Productions to create Weaux Is Me Live, a livestream solo musical performed in their Brooklyn bedroom. The show, which brought to life the coming-of-age story behind their album Weaux Is Me, received rave reviews, with audiences moved by Weaux’s raw and vulnerable music. Since then, Weaux’s star has been steadily rising.

“Within the last year or so, I started really popping off in terms of my music and getting everything up to the quality and style that I want it to be, especially in my new queer-as-funk era,” states Weaux. Their latest singles—“Serious/Delirious,” “Greatest Hit,” and “Queer As Funk”—showcase their signature ‘80s sound inspired by Prince and Michael Jackson, blended with their uniquely queer Gen Z humor.

“I’ve done a few shows in New York that were really successful at venues like Brooklyn Music Kitchen, the Delancey, and C’mon Everybody,” they add.

Now, Weaux is bringing the party back home to Houston. “I realized that I left where I came from because I felt like I didn’t belong in Houston,” admits Weaux. “I wanted to come back and prove that I do belong here.”

Despite being willing to fight for their place in Houston, Weaux’s Queer Across America: Houston performance promises to be a lighthearted and joyful love letter to LGBTQ existence. “I am very much an auteur, and I love creating and curating whole experiences. So I’m producing this show, and I chose everyone in the show,” they explain. “As soon as I got back here, I started reconnecting with the Houston music and art scene by going to different open mics and jams.”

To build out their Houston show, Weaux tapped local artists for the lineup. “I met Immanie at the Axelrad open mic. She’s a really awesome neo-soul singer and allied performer,” Weaux reveals. “I met Urethra Burns through hanging out in Montrose, and I’m such a huge fan of the performance art and really weird, alternative drag they do. They then recommended La Malinche to me. And I discovered Sugar Joiko through an OutSmart article.”

“It’s been awesome to come back here and see how much art, music, and queer performance is happening in Houston,” says Weaux. All of this has shaped their artistic vision for their Queer Across America series. “I want to give people a unique combination of music and entertainment with performers who can be as unapologetically political or emotional as they want, while also bringing together communities that often don’t come together,” they explain. “I want to create this space where we have a queer live music scene, drag artists, and also allied live musicians who could attract people who maybe wouldn’t usually come to a queer event.”

Despite having many venues to choose from, AvantGarden was their dream venue. “I’ve always been kind of an old soul, so I love delving into history and connecting with historical things and places like AvantGarden,” Weaux explains. “I did some of my very first music performances while I was still discovering so much about myself, both in 2017 and in 2019.”

AvantGarden provides Weaux with a true homecoming for their concert. “I just wanted to start at a venue that felt very familiar to me,” adds Weaux. “AvantGarden is a very generous community space. Just being in the heart of Montrose, it has that rich queer history to it. And I love the rainbow crosswalks that are directly in front of it. I want to do some promotional videos where I’m walking on them, and just make it an iconic moment.”

What: Queer Across America: Houston
When: September 14
Where: AvantGarden, 411 Westheimer Rd.
Info: weauxisme.com