Our Lady J | |
---|---|
![]() Our Lady J in 2018 | |
Born | 1978 (age 45–46) Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, US |
Occupation |
|
Website | |
ourladyj |
Our Lady J is a screenwriter, producer and director, best-known for her work on Pose , Transparent , and American Horror Story . [1] [2] She is the first out trans woman to perform at Carnegie Hall, as well as the first out trans writer to be hired in a television writers room. [3]
From 2000 to 2010, Our Lady J freelanced as a collaborative pianist and musical director in New York City for multiple classical and musical theatre institutions, including American Ballet Theatre, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and the Mark Morris Dance Group. [4] In 2004, Lady J met Lady Gaga at the CAP21 musical-theater conservatory in New York, where she served as an accompanist and music director. [4] [5] [6]
Our Lady J made her Carnegie Hall debut with the New York City Gay Men's Chorus in 2004, and continued to perform as their pianist until 2007. [7] In 2008, she returned to Carnegie Hall to perform with Justin Vivian Bond in The McGarrigle Christmas Hour concert. [8]
Our Lady J toured and performed with pop singer Sia from 2012 to 2014. [4] [9] [10]
Our Lady J released her first studio album in 2013, titled Picture of a Man. [11]
From 2014 to 2015, Our Lady J performed as a guest musician on RuPaul's Drag Race seasons 6 and 7. [12] [13]
In 2014, Our Lady J coached Andrew Garfield for Arcade Fire's music video "We Exist". [14] The video is described by Arcade Fire as telling "the story of a young person's struggle with gender identity", depicting Garfield as a gender-nonconforming person who is assaulted at a bar, but later finds acceptance at an Arcade Fire concert. [15]
In 2014, Joey Soloway hired Our Lady J as a staff writer for the hit series Transparent , making Our Lady J the first out trans person to be hired into a Hollywood writers' room. [16] Our Lady J's episode, "If I Were a Bell", drew international critical acclaim for its authentic portrayal of a trans childhood. [17] [18] [19] [20] During her four seasons working on the series, she was promoted from staff writer to story editor, to co-producer, and then to producer. [21]
In 2017, Ryan Murphy hired Our Lady J to write and produce the television show Pose . [22] Her contributions to the HIV/AIDS storylines [23] went on to become the center of both critical and audience acclaim. [23] [24] [25] [26] [27]
On two seasons of Transparent and on all three seasons of Pose, Lady J made on-screen musical cameo appearances, performing with Billy Porter, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, Patti LuPone, and Sandra Bernhard. [1]
In 2020, New Regency teamed with Our Lady J to develop a pilot based on the life of Dante "Tex" Gill, called Rub & Tug. [28] The story had previously been set up as a feature film with Scarlett Johansson attached, [29] but after outcry from the LGBTQ+ community, [30] Johansson left the project and Lady J was brought on to reimagine the story with authentic casting. [31] [32]
In 2022, Lady J continued her collaboration with Ryan Murphy by writing an episode for season two of American Horror Stories . [33] She then went on to executive produce and write season eleven of American Horror Story , entitled NYC . [34] Our Lady J made her directorial debut on AHS: NYC episode nine, "Requiem 1981/1987: Part 1". [35]
In late 2022, it was announced that Our Lady J would develop a comedy series at Hulu with comedians Holmes and Caleb Hearon, on which she will serve as executive producer and showrunner. [36]
In 2024, Our Lady J made a return to music with her single, “Future Of Us,” featuring the New York City Gay Men’s Chorus. [37] The song made a notable debut at the 2024 Met Gala. [38]
Our Lady J was born in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania in 1978, growing up in an Amish and Mennonite community. She attended Interlochen Center for the Arts from 1994 to 1996, studying in classical piano and composition during her junior and senior years of high school. [4]
In 2004, Our Lady J came out as transgender and adopted the name "Our Lady J" as a nod to Jean Genet's subversive novel, Our Lady of the Flowers . [39]
In 2008, Our Lady J garnered the attention of Dolly Parton by performing her songs, and the two struck up a friendship. In 2010, Parton helped fund Lady J's top surgery, along with Jake Shears, Rosie O'Donnell, Margaret Cho, Tori Amos and others. [40] [41]
In 2009, Our Lady J became the subject of tabloid fodder for her relationship with actor Daniel Radcliffe. [42] [43] [44] [45] The two were featured in Out discussing their friendship and careers. [46]
During Lady J's first appearance on RuPaul's Drag Race in 2014, RuPaul drew public criticism for using the term "she-male", quickly starting a firestorm about trans-inclusive language within the LGBTQ community. [47] In an article for The Huffington Post, Our Lady J defended RuPaul, saying "As an artist, I love language, and I cherish free speech. Drag is punk and should never be subjected to politically correct ideals." [48]
From 2015 to 2016, Our Lady J successfully spearheaded the initiative to include gender affirming care in the Writers Guild of America's health insurance coverage, [49] [50] the first arts guild to cover transgender healthcare. She was quoted in The New York Times as saying, "Having to battle for insurance and having to battle with doctors is overwhelming. Taking care of your health as a trans person can feel like a full-time job". [49] [51] About the season finale of Pose, Lady J said, "I was able to take my own experiences and bring them into this space. It was a challenge, but it was also healing to be able to give that knowledge. And I do hope that viewers are encouraged to get tested and to not be so afraid of what HIV once was." [52] [53] [54] In 2019, she was featured on POZ Magazine's POZ 100 list of HIV/AIDS activists. [55]
In 2019, Our Lady J joined the board of GLAAD. [56] That same year, she slammed the LA Times for body-shaming her at the Golden Globes, thus ending the LA Times's long-standing history of criticizing women's appearances on red carpets. [57] "When you judge women for what they're wearing, you're not only judging the fabric on their bodies — you are judging their actual bodies, the medical history of their bodies, and the emotional struggle they have with their bodies because of articles like this," Our Lady J said. [57] [58]
Lady J was a featured speaker at 2021's World AIDS Day National Observance, alongside Anthony Fauci, Office of National AIDS Policy Director Harold Phillips, U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock, and Congresswoman Barbara Lee. [59] That same year, she was awarded the National Leadership Recognition Award by the National AIDS Memorial. [23]
Year | Title | Writer | Director | Producer |
---|---|---|---|---|
2015-2017 | Transparent | Yes | Producer | |
2018-2021 | Pose | Yes | Co-Executive Producer | |
2021 | Fantasy Island | Yes | ||
2022 | American Horror Stories | Yes | ||
2022 | American Horror Story | Yes | Yes | Executive Producer |
Year | Show | Season | Episode | Episode Number | Original Airdate | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2015 | Transparent | 2 | "Mee-Maw" | 5 | December 11, 2015 | Written By |
2016 | "If I Were a Bell" | 3 | September 23, 2016 | Written By | ||
2017 | 4 | "Pinkwashing Machine" | 3 | September 22, 2017 | Written By | |
2018 | Pose | 1 | "Pinkslip" | 3 | July 15, 2018 | Co Written with Steven Canals |
"Giving and Receiving" | 7 | June 17, 2018 | Co Written with Janet Mock | |||
2019 | 2 | "Butterfly/Cocoon" | 3 | June 25, 2019 | Written By | |
"Love's in Need of Love Today" | 6 | July 23, 2019 | Co Written with Brad Falchuk | |||
"Life's a Beach" | 9 | August 13, 2019 | Co Written with Janet Mock | |||
2021 | 3 | "Intervention" | 3 | May 2, 2021 | Co Written with Steven Canals | |
"Series Finale (Part I)" | 7 | June 6, 2021 | Co Written with Steven Canals, Janet Mock, Brad Falchuk, Ryan Murphy | |||
"Series Finale (Part II)" | 8 | June 6, 2021 | Co Written with Steven Canals, Janet Mock, Brad Falchuk, Ryan Murphy | |||
Fantasy Island | 1 | "His and Hers/The Heartbreak Hotel" | 2 | August 17, 2021 | Story By and teleplay by Jane Espenson | |
2022 | American Horror Stories | 2 | "Milkmaids" | 4 | August 11, 2022 | Written By |
American Horror Story | 11 | "Bad Fortune" | 5 | November 2, 2022 | Written By | |
"The Body" | 6 | November 2, 2022 | Co Written with Brad Falchuk and Manny Coto | |||
"The Sentinel" | 7 | November 9, 2022 | Co Written with Manny Coto | |||
"Fire Island" | 8 | November 9, 2022 | Co Written with Charlie Carver and Ned Martel | |||
"Requiem 1981/1987: Part 1" | 9 | November 16, 2022 | Written By/Directed By |
Year | Show | Episode | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
2014 | RuPaul's Drag Race | "Shade: The Rusical" | Self | Musical Appearance |
2015 | RuPaul's Drag Race | "Divine Inspiration" | Self | Musical Appearance |
2015 | Transparent | "Kina Hora" | Yorna | Musical Appearance |
2015 | Transparent | "Oscillate" | Yorna | Musical Appearance |
205 | Transparent | "Man on the Land" | Yorna | Musical Appearance |
2017 | Transparent | "Born Again" | Miss Pico-Union | Musical Appearance |
2018 | Pose | "Love Is the Message" | Sherilyn | Musical Appearance |
2019 | Pose | "Love's in Need of Love Today" | Sherilyn | Musical Appearance |
2019 | Pose: Identity, Family, Community (Inside Look) | Various Episodes | Self | |
2021 | Pose | "Series Finale (Part I)" | Sherilyn | Musical Appearance |
2021 | Pose | "Series Finale (Part II)" | Sherilyn | Musical Appearance |
Year | Title | Artist | Role |
---|---|---|---|
2024 | "Days of Girlhood" | Dylan Mulvaney | Pianist |
Our Lady J has received two Peabody Awards, [60] [61] three American Film Institute awards, [62] [63] [64] three Emmy nominations, [65] three Writers Guild Award nominations, [66] and two NAACP Image Award nominations. [67] As a producer, her shows have garnered a combined total of 48 Emmy nominations, 12 Emmy wins, [68] [69] 13 Golden Globe nominations, 3 Golden Globe wins, [70] [71] 20 Critics' Choice nominations, and 3 Critics' Choice wins, [72] [73] [74] among others.
Award | Year | Work | Category | Result | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Primetime Emmy Awards | 2021 | Pose | Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series | Nominee | [75] |
2021 | Pose | Outstanding Drama Series | Nominee | ||
2019 | Pose | Outstanding Drama Series | Nominee | [76] | |
Writer's Guild Awards | 2019 | Pose | New Series | Nominee | [77] |
2017 | Transparent | Comedy Series | Nominee | [78] | |
2016 | Transparent | Comedy Series | Nominee | ||
NAACP Image Awards | 2022 | Pose | Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series | Nominee | [79] |
2017 | Transparent | Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series | Nominee | [80] | |
GLAAD Media Awards | 2022 | Pose | Outstanding Drama Series | Won | [81] |
2020 | Pose | Outstanding Drama Series | Won | [82] | |
2019 | Pose | Outstanding Drama Series | Won | [83] | |
2018 | Transparent | Outstanding Comedy Series | Nominated | ||
2017 | Transparent | Outstanding Comedy Series | Won | [84] | |
2016 | Transparent | Outstanding Comedy Series | Won | [85] | |
2015 | Transparent | Outstanding Comedy Series | Won | [86] | |
Golden Globe Awards | 2022 | Pose | Best Drama Series | Nominee | [87] |
2019 | Pose | Best Drama Series | Nominee | [88] | |
2017 | Transparent | Best Musical/Comedy Series | Nominee | [89] | |
2016 | Transparent | Best Musical/Comedy Series | Nominee | [90] | |
2015 | Transparent | Best Musical/Comedy Series | Won | [91] | |
Peabody Awards | 2018 | Pose | Entertainment | Won | [92] |
2015 | Transparent | Entertainment | Won | [93] | |
American Film Awards | 2018 | Pose | Top 10 Television Programs | Won | [94] |
2019 | Pose | Top 10 Television Programs | Won | [95] | |
2014 | Transparent | Top 10 Television Programs | Won | [96] | |
Critic's Choice Awards | 2020 | Pose | Best Drama Series | Nominated | [97] |
2019 | Pose | Best Drama Series | Nominated | [98] | |
2016 | Transparent | Best Comedy Series | Nominated | [99] | |
2015 | Transparent | Best Comedy Series | Nominated | [3] | |
American Film Institute Awards | 2014 | Transparent | Television Programs of the Year | Won | [1] |
Black Reel Awards for Television | 2020 | Pose | Outstanding Drama Series | Winner | [4] |
GALECA: The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics | 2019 | Pose | TV Musical Performance of the Year | Winner | [4] |
International Online Cinema Awards (INOCA) | 2021 | Pose | Best Writing for a Drama Series | Winner | [6] |
Outfest Legacy Awards | 2018 | Pose | Trailblazer Award | Winner | [7] |
Gold Derby Awards | 2021 | Pose | Drama Episode | Nominated | [5] |
Pena de Prata | 2021 | Pose | Best Drama Series | Nominated | [8] |
Ryan Patrick Murphy is an American television writer, director, and producer. He has created and produced a number of television series including Nip/Tuck (2003–2010), Glee (2009–2015), American Horror Story (2011–present), American Crime Story (2016–present), Pose (2018–2021), 9-1-1 (2018–present), 9-1-1: Lone Star (2020–present), Ratched (2020), American Horror Stories (2021–present), and Monster (2022-present).
Alexandra Scott Billings is an American actress, singer, and teacher. Billings, a trans woman, played one of TV's first openly transgender characters in 2005 made-for-TV movie Romy and Michele: In the Beginning. She is also known for portraying the recurring character Davina in the Amazon series Transparent and has played transgender characters in ER, Eli Stone, How to Get Away with Murder, Grey's Anatomy and The Conners.
Justin Drew Tranter is an American songwriter, singer, and activist. Frequently co-writing with Julia Michaels, Tranter has written songs for artists such as Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani, Linkin Park, Kelly Clarkson, Sara Bareilles, Selena Gomez, Justin Bieber, DNCE, Citizen Queen, Kesha, Imagine Dragons, The Knocks, Fifth Harmony, 5 Seconds of Summer, Ariana Grande, Lady Gaga, Raye, Bea Miller, Demi Lovato, Dua Lipa, Måneskin, and Fall Out Boy. From 2004 to 2014, Tranter was the lead singer of Semi Precious Weapons, a rock band based in New York. Since February 2017, they have been a board member of GLAAD, an organization that promotes LGBT acceptance in the entertainment and news industries. Tranter's songs have garnered over 50 million single sales and 40 billion streams on Spotify and YouTube as of May 2021.
Alexandra Jordan Grey is an American actress, singer, songwriter and producer. She is best known for her roles as Melody Barnes on the Fox music drama series Empire (2015–2020), Elizah Parks on the comedy series Transparent and Parker Phillip's on the CBS action/adventure series MacGyver (2016-2021). She also portrays Denise Lockwood on the NBC TV medical drama Chicago Med, and had guest roles on Code Black, How to Get Away with Murder, Drunk History and the period television drama series The Alienist.
Trace Lysette is an American actress whose most notable roles include Shea in the television series Transparent (2014–2019) and Tracey in the feature film Hustlers (2019). As a trans actress, she also featured in the Netflix documentary Disclosure as herself.
The GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Comedy Series is an annual award that honors comedy series for excellence in the depiction of LGBT characters and themes. It is one of several categories of the annual GLAAD Media Awards, which are presented by GLAAD—an American non-governmental media monitoring organization founded in 1985, formerly called the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation—at ceremonies in New York City; Los Angeles; and San Francisco between March and June.
The GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series is an annual award that honors miniseries and anthology series for excellence in the treatment of LGBT characters and themes. It is one of several categories of the annual GLAAD Media Awards, which are presented by GLAAD—an American non-governmental media monitoring organization—at ceremonies held primarily in New York City and Los Angeles between March and May.
Pose is an American drama television series about New York City's ball culture, an LGBTQ subculture in the African-American and Latino communities, throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Featured characters are dancers and models, who compete for trophies and recognition in this underground culture and who support one another in a network of chosen families known as Houses.
Michaela Antonia Jaé Rodriguez, formerly known as Mj Rodriguez, is an American actress and singer. Born in Newark, New Jersey, Rodriguez attended several performing arts schools in her youth before being cast in a theater production of Rent as Angel Dumott Schunard, winning the 2011 Clive Barnes Award for her performance.
The GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Kids and Family Programming is an annual award that honors children's and family programming for excellence in the treatment of LGBT characters and themes. It is one of several categories of the annual GLAAD Media Awards, which are presented by GLAAD—an American non-governmental media monitoring organization—at ceremonies held primarily in New York City and Los Angeles between March and May.
Matthew López is an American playwright, director and screenwriter. His play The Inheritance, directed by Stephen Daldry, premiered at London's Young Vic in 2018, where it was called "the most important American play of the century." It transferred to the West End later that year, and opened on Broadway In 2019. The Inheritance is the most honored American play in a generation, sweeping the "Best Play" awards in both London and New York including the Tony Award, Olivier Award, Drama Desk Award, Evening Standard Award, London Critics Circle Award, Outer Critics Circle Award, Drama League Award, WhatsOnStage Award, and the Southbank Sky Arts Award.
Brittani Nichols is an American producer, actress, comedian, and writer. In 2016, Nichols wrote, produced, and starred in the film Suicide Kale, which won the Audience Award for Best U.S. Dramatic Feature at 2016 Outfest. She has written for the television programs A Black Lady Sketch Show, Take My Wife, Strangers, and Drop the Mic. Nichols is a writer and producer for Abbott Elementary and won the Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series award at the 54th NAACP Image Awards for the episode "Student Transfer". As part of the producing team of Abbott Elementary, Nichols was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series in 2023.
A Black Lady Sketch Show is an American sketch comedy television series created by Robin Thede for HBO. The show consists of comedy sketches performed by a main cast of Black women, consisting of producer and creator Thede, Gabrielle Dennis, and Skye Townsend. Alumni cast members include Quinta Brunson, Laci Mosley, and Ashley Nicole Black. The show has featured guest stars such as Issa Rae, Vanessa Williams, Angela Bassett, Laverne Cox, Nicole Byer, Amber Riley, Miguel, Omarion, Raven-Symoné, Kelly Rowland, Tia Mowry, Tahj Mowry, Gabrielle Union, Kyla Pratt, Wanda Sykes, and Patti LaBelle.
Rain Valdez is an American actress, writer, and producer who rose to prominence with her award-winning short film, Ryans. She stars in the web series Razor Tongue, which she created and which has earned her a Primetime Emmy nomination in Outstanding Actress in a Short Form Comedy or Drama Series.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link){{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link){{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link){{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link){{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link){{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link){{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)