Diversity Rules Magazine

5 Diversity Rules Magazine November 2017 Denise Huxtible i knew and loved and this movie was even further than the world present to me on e Cosby Show. Lisa Bonet's character in the movie name was Epiphany and all I knew was I wanted to be her from that moment on. Later I found out the true definition of the word. An intuitive grasp of reality through something (such as an event) usually simple and strik- ing which made it all more organic in my eyes, like it was destiny and the name chose me. It also means the manifestation of a divine or supernatural being. In my reality I am a God, so it fits. JRK: You have a new single coming out called "Fix Yo Face." Can you tell us about that and what meaning it has for you? EM: My current single "#FIXYO- FACE" is a labor of love and also one of my proudest moments. Not only is it my debut single but it's my first solo effort. I've only done fea- tures in the past so this is a chance for the world to get a private audience with me uncut and unfiltered. It means so much for me to actually show the world who i am and the message I came to give. I write all my ma- terial even my features so this is a chance for the world to hear even more of my voice. e song comes from observing people in the club and nightlife. You go out to turn up and have fun. You finally get to the function a no one is dancing (outside of the few who are already too drunk to care). Everyone is just standing or sitting around posing with these "I'm so much better than this" look on their face. e kicker is while they are looking like " Don't look at me, don't dare speak to me, and I'm so above this scene" they are looking around to actually see who is watching and wanting to speak to them. It's all so silly to me. It's like everybody has some- thing to prove but haven't even convinced themselves they are the image their projecting. Get over yourself. You came out to have a good time, have fun. I mean why so serious ? It's life and nobody makes it out alive anyway so you might as enjoy yourself when you can. Plus people don't realize how attractive they are when they smile and how infectious that good energy is. JRK: Your father was a gay man and he harbored a dislike for transgender people. How did you deal with that? EM: My father is always a sensitive spot for me . A true testament to the human condition. He was the first man that I loved and hated all at the same time. I don't want to paint the picture that my parents abused me because that is not the case. We were all victims of a circumstance that at the time was beyond our own personal comprehension. True indeed my father had a strong contempt towards transgender people and did all he could with- in his power to shame, guilt, and beat me into to submission. He thought if he made me fear him and his reactions to me being me that I would eventually suppress who I am out of fear of the circumstances that came from it. My father's homosexu- ality was never discussed or displayed in front of me as a child. My dad was a chef by trade and extremely cultured. At the same time he was a "man's man" ( no pun intended). He always had one par- ticular "friend" that was always around, they lived to- gether. His friend was an effeminate male who always made himself scarce when I would come stay with my daddy. Much of my childhood I only saw him in pass- ing. It wasn't until I was older that I realized that was my dad's boyfriend. I bring that up to show that my dad grew up in a time where you weren't allowed to be yourself. It was something to be hidden away , never spoken about, and most definitely not acted upon. My father's dad was a military man who ran his house with an iron fist. Although he passed before i ever met him you could hear the fear in my dad's and his siblings voices when they spoke of him. at and they con- stantly told me that there's no way i would be able to be me if he was still alive. is meant my father was forced into a closet for most of his life. Trained to not " be." ere were things that were expected of him and he met those expectations. Two of them being a career and creating his own nuclear family. My parents di- vorced when I was 2 and my father immediate moved to the east coast where I would go live between his and my mother's home in Missouri. Still I know now his purpose for moving away from his family was because that was the only way he could be himself. Where the Epiphany - Con't on page 6

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