Raw Power by Iggy and the Stooges is arguably the most aggressive, dynamic album in rock history, and inarguably one of the most influential. Looking past the myths and into the true story of the Stooges, Michael S. Begnal illuminates the creation of this recording in the context of the cultural zeitgeist of the early 1970s, the American War in Vietnam, and the ways in which punk rock came snarling into existence. This is an in-depth, definitive account that will challenge the assumptions of even the most knowledgeable Stooges fan.

Available from The University of Chicago Press

Michael S. Begnal is associate professor of English at Ball State University, Indiana. His previous books include The Music and Noise of the Stooges, 1967–71.

The post Death Trip: Iggy and the Stooges, 1972–74 – discovering how the “Raw Power” album ignited the punk rock movement appeared first on PinkPlayMags.

Michael Rancic situates these developments within a broader story about technology, creativity, and politics. Drawing on archival research, interviews, and decades of music journalism, he reveals how early electronic music was shaped not only by breakthroughs in engineering but by collaborative communities spanning avant-garde composition, psychedelia, reggae, disco, hip-hop, and experimental pop. What appears, at first glance, as solitary tinkering emerges instead as a profoundly social practice rooted in shared curiosity, improvisation, and play.

The book also examines the pivotal moment when public support receded and the free market took hold, reshaping both the tools available to musicians and the visibility of Canada’s inventors on the world stage. This shift produced lasting consequences: instruments once made in university labs or independent workshops struggled to secure mass production, even as electronic sound became central to mainstream music.

By illuminating the work of overlooked engineers, composers, and scene-builders, Rancic shows how their innovations paved the way for contemporary electronic and pop artists—from Caribou and Grimes to The Halluci Nation and Kaytranada—and for the digital production environments that shape the music of Drake, The Weeknd, and Justin Bieber. In doing so, A Nation of Tinkerers reframes electronic music as a key site for understanding Canada’s cultural identity, technological imagination, and artistic legacy.

Expansive, incisive, and richly detailed, the book provides an essential account of how Canada’s early electronic musicians and inventors helped build the sonic world we now take for granted.

Michael Rancic is a freelance arts and culture journalist based in Toronto. He’s the co-founder of multistakeholder music journalism cooperative New Feeling and has written for Maisonneuve, The Walrus, Hazlitt, Spacing, CBC Music, and Bandcamp Daily, among other outlets. His work often looks at the intersection of emerging art, public policy, and technology.

Available from Invisible Publishing

Michael Rancic is a freelance arts and culture journalist based in Toronto. He’s the co-founder of multistakeholder music journalism cooperative New Feeling and has written for Maisonneuve, The Walrus, Hazlitt, Spacing, CBC Music, and Bandcamp Daily, among other outlets. His work often looks at the intersection of emerging art, public policy, and technology.

Listen to Michael Rancic on 101.5 UMFM’s Turning Pages with Michael Elves

The post A Nation of Tinkerers: A History of Electronic Music in Canada from 1945 to 1985 – the untold story of Canadian electronic music from post-war labs to global pop appeared first on PinkPlayMags.

When Ryan and Shawn Sullivan’s socially ambitious father enrolls them in the prestigious Novato Towne School for Boys, the brothers unwittingly uncover the strange legacy of Charles Steven Kaye, a student who, expelled two decades prior for “lewd and disgusting acts,” became the notorious and universally reviled queer pornographer John Dark. Obsessed with the enigmatic figure of Dark, Shawn rejects the stifling expectations of his upper-class upbringing, leaving his affluent family home and disappearing into the underground queer scene in California. Ryan follows his older brother into this hidden world, seeking to capture Shawn’s life on film and make sense of his unravelling.

The story is set against the backdrop of a parole house, to which Ryan was released after three years in jail.

Available from Cormorant Books

Darren Greer is the author of five award-winning, critically acclaimed novels. Still Life with June won the 2004 ReLit Award, and was a Now Magazine’s Top 10 pick for 2005. Just Beneath My Skin won the Thomas Raddall Atlantic Fiction Award in 2015 and his novel Advocate won the Dartmouth Book Award. His short fiction, poetry, and journalism have appeared in journals internationally. He is also an accomplished singer‑songwriter and visual artist. He is originally from Nova Scotia but now lives in Toronto.

The post The Range Rules is an exploration of transgressive queer pornography, prison culture, twelve-step recovery, and a search for redemption, connection, and compassion appeared first on PinkPlayMags.

It’s the night before a much-needed vacation, Jack, a former playwright mourning his failed career, catches his husband, Randy, packing his mother’s urn. They had agreed: no mother on this trip. Parents, living or otherwise, aren’t the ideal guests for romantic getaways. But Randy has been carrying his mother’s remains everywhere since her death, and he isn’t ready to let go now.

Despite its natural beauty and kitschy charm, the Oregon coast does not provide the respite the couple seeks. Instead, their surroundings and encounters with locals grow increasingly surreal as the days pass. An overly dedicated Method actor, tantra-obsessed neighbours, and a child environmentalist who may be able to communicate with the dead are but a few of the characters whose presence exposes long-simmering tensions that threaten to undo Jack and Randy’s marriage—to say nothing of their hold on reality.

Told with sly, irreverent humour, and shot through with dark currents of envy and longing for something other than what one has, The Disappointment explores the mutual exhilaration and terror of being placed centre stage in one’s own life.

Available from Penguin Random House

Scott Broker  is a queer writer based in Los Angeles. A Lambda Literary Fellow and Tin House Scholar, he has been a finalist for the Iowa Review Prize in Fiction, the New England Review‘s Emerging Writer Award, and a nominee for three Pushcart Prizes.

His debut novel, The Disappointment, is out now from Catapult. Other writing has appeared in Ecotone, New England Review, Guernica, Fence, the Idaho Review, the Cincinnati Review, Joyland, and the Adroit Journal, among other publications.

He holds a BA in English and Philosophy from Seattle University and an MFA from Ohio State University, where he was awarded the Helen Earnhart Harley Creative Writing Fellowship Award.

The post The Disappointment explores the mutual exhilaration and terror of being placed centre stage, as seen through one married gay couple’s view appeared first on PinkPlayMags.

Now open and accepting reservations, The Clayfield brings together striking architecture, destination dining and wellness rooted in clay and wine culture, with every aspect of the hotel drawing inspiration from Niagara. More than a place to stay, The Clayfield gives visitors new reasons to stay longer and return throughout the year.

Two Complementary Visions

For David Feldberg, founder of Stratus Vineyards, the idea took shape after opening the winery, where design and hospitality became as much a part of the visitor experience as the wines themselves. He imagined creating a hotel guided by the same philosophy while providing guests another way to immerse themselves in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

At the same time, John Hawley and his family were completing an award-winning New Urban neighbourhood with a village centre now known as Clayfield Commons. When Hawley and Feldberg met in 2019, they quickly discovered how closely their ideas aligned, despite originating from opposite sides of the road. Their shared values and passion for excellence, creativity and design created an ideal blend. Together, they could realize their respective visions while creating something greater than either could have achieved alone. The Clayfield is the architectural centrepiece of Clayfield Commons, and is one of the most significant additions to the town in years.  

Inspired by Niagara

Designed by Montreal-based Sid Lee Architecture, The Clayfield commands attention with its sculptural form and sweeping curves, which draw inspiration from the escarpment. Slender vertical timber elements echo the orderly rows of neighbouring vineyards. The outcome feels both unexpectedly novel and firmly connected to its setting.

Rather than relying on traditional wine country motifs, the design interprets Niagara through material, light, landscape and craftsmanship. Floor-to-ceiling windows bring the surrounding vineyards, gardens and changing skies into the hotel. Warm oak, natural stone and woven textiles create interiors that are richly layered, tactile and welcoming

Stay, Savour and Unwind

Dining and social spaces extend throughout the hotel, including The Rooftop at The Clayfield, Niagara-on-the-Lake’s first rooftop patio. Cocktails and small plates are served against a backdrop of surrounding vineyards.

The Clayfield’s culinary offering is anchored by Terrain, the hotel’s signature restaurant from The Ascari Group, led by Executive Chef Joel LaBute. With a distinctly Niagara expression of food and wine, it draws  inspiration from the farms, orchards and vineyards that surround it. Seasonal, ingredient-driven menus will put the region’s bounty at the forefront, complemented by an exceptional wine program celebrating local producers. Poised to become a destination in its own right, Terrain is designed to appeal to locals and visitors alike by bringing an exciting new dining experience to wine country.

The Clayfield’s 102 guestrooms and suites include 42 residential-style accommodations designed for extended stays, with spacious layouts, kitchenettes and separate living areas. At The Spa at The Clayfield, wellness is shaped by the winemaking tradition of assemblage. Rituals bring together clay, botanicals, therapeutic touch, and advanced skincare expertise. 

For meetings and events, more than 5,400 square feet of flexible space encompasses an elegant ballroom with state-of-the-art audiovisual capabilities, accommodating everything from intimate executive gatherings and private dinners to larger meetings and celebrations.

The Vision for Clayfield Commons

Clayfield Commons brings together an existing grocer, bank, drug store and medical centre with a growing collection of independent retailers, makers and creators, restaurants, a café and neighbourhood services surrounding a landscaped public green.

The vision has always been to showcase the character and creativity of Niagara entrepreneurs, with businesses including The Garrison House Restaurant, LoveBee Natural Products, The Organic House Chocolate Co., Bloom & Co., Handmade Presence, Southern + Bel Restaurant, and Oliv Tasting Room, alongside the long-running weekly much-loved seasonal Farmers’ Market. Together, with more to come, they create a vibrant new place to shop, dine, gather and explore Niagara.

“We saw a unique opportunity to create a special place that celebrates the abundant creativity of Niagara-on-the-Lake and becomes part of the everyday life of residents, while giving visitors a fresh way to enjoy all that our wonderful community has to offer,” says Hawley.

A New Reason to Experience Niagara-on-the-Lake

The Clayfield welcomes guests as Niagara enters one of its most beautiful seasons, with harvest and fall giving way to the year-round experiences that increasingly define the region. To celebrate its opening, The Clayfield is introducing exclusive offers for stays through April 2027. Learn more here.

The post The Clayfield Boutique Hotel and Spa Ushers in a New Era of Luxury Hospitality in Niagara-on-the-Lake’s Wine Country appeared first on PinkPlayMags.

Acclaimed music and culture journalist Rachel Brodsky has announced that her debut book titled Lessons & Lace, a Stevie Nicks biography is due out September 15, 2026 via Harmony/Penguin Random House. Revered for meticulous reporting and unparalleled creativity throughout Rachel’s career, Lessons & Lace is a completely unique take on a biography. Structured according to different themes — rather than chronologically — each chapter centres on a different life lesson that Stevie has absorbed and later dispensed wisdom on.

Stevie Nicks is rock’s own Patron Saint of Lessons Learned, but in order to reach this point she had to endure a world that underestimated, misunderstood, dismissed, and mocked her. She battled sexist narratives, helped popularize a struggling mid-level rock band, became a successful solo act, and beat addiction, all while staying connected to her creativity, authenticity, and mysticism. Drawing from archival first-person interviews and insights from people in Stevie Nicks’ world, Lessons & Lace chronicles her remarkable story with notable quotes to inspire hard-learned, life-changing lessons.

Brodsky shares, “Very few artists have maintained their cultural relevance and appealed to multiple generations like Stevie Nicks. Lessons & Lace recounts Stevie’s path to becoming the wisdom-dispersing fairy godmother we know her as today. I think sometimes we forget how much skepticism she faced from the music industry and her peers (even her friend and collaborator Tom Petty!), the uphill climb she faced to be taken seriously as a true artist and writer, what it took to overcome her struggles with addiction, and how she inspired new generations of musicians to write with their own combinations of vulnerability and strength. That is why I love Stevie. She is as layered in meaning as her most memorable songs. Like the book’s namesake, “Leather and Lace,” Stevie is soft and hard, romantic and practical, sensual and sensible. I genuinely hope readers walk away feeling inspired to live their lives with Stevie-style authenticity, bravery, and truth.”

Illustrated with gorgeous full-colour line drawings, Lessons & Lace is a tribute to a woman, style icon, prolific writer, and unapologetic romantic who chases happiness and values the space to honestly and authentically be herself. Through Stevie’s life and lessons, you’ll feel encouraged to embrace your own wild (and perhaps witchy) heart.

“Just dance. This will pass. Love will find a way. It always does.”

Rachel Brodsky is a culture and music journalist, critic, reporter, and author living in LA. She has held staff positions with Stereogum, The Independent, Grammy.com, SPIN, CBS, and MTV. Her writing about music, TV, comedy, podcasts, film, gender, and lifestyle has been published by outlets including TIME, The Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, Rolling Stone, Nylon, The Ringer, InStyle, Bustle, The Guardian, Vulture, GQ, and others.

theBUZZ had an opportunity to chat with author Rachel Brodsky to find out more about her first book publication, her decision to go with Stevie Nicks, and

You’ve worked as a journalist in the music industry and have contributed to many publications, so you’ve obviously had an opportunity to speak with many musicians. What was the inspiration behind you wanting to write your first book as a biography on Stevie Nicks, and how did you make that dream come true?

I’d been thinking about writing a book for a while. Every now and then, a colleague or someone who’d written a book before would say to me, “If you ever have an idea for a book, I could probably connect you with an / my agent.” And I would think, “Gosh, I don’t even know where to begin.”  So I started brainstorming. Initially, I wrote a few sample chapters of a personal memoir, and doing that actually landed me an agent, the wonderful Kara Rota.

But ‘Lessons & Lace’ started in a more kismet fashion. One day, early in the new year of 2025, I checked my email and noticed that an editor from Harmony Books / Penguin Random House had reached out wanting to know if I’d have any interest in working together on a “prescriptive biography” of Stevie Nicks. I sent back the fastest, easiest “yes” email I’ve ever sent. If I had to write a biography of anyone in the music industry, Stevie would’ve been in the top 5. I’ve been a huge Fleetwood Mac fan for my entire life, and a couple of years prior to starting on this project, I’d written liner notes for a vinyl reissue of their 1975 self-titled album.

After working through the concept of this biography, which was intended to shape Stevie’s life across the different lessons she’s needed to learn in order to arrive where she has as an icon of pop/rock/fashion, I really just took the initial idea and ran with it. My editor, Donna Loffredo, seemed really cool with my injecting my voice and a few personal anecdotes as it related to Stevie’s life into the manuscript, and I so appreciated that.

What’s behind the title “Lessons & Lace”, and what direction did you take as a writer to give a fully rounded composite of an extraordinary musician?

I have always loved tinkering with song titles and lyrics to express a point or craft a headline. So when my editor described the “prescriptive” angle of this biography, I started sifting through solo song titles by Stevie Nicks (as opposed to Fleetwood Mac). I kept landing on her 1982 duet with Don Henley, “Leather and Lace,” which I tweaked to “Lessons and Lace.” In addition to just sounding cool – alliteration! – I liked how the song’s lyrics describe Stevie as a person so well (I search only for something I can’t see/ I have my own life/ And I am stronger than you know). I realize it’s a love song describing two people who seem so different but ultimately compliment one another (Give to me your leather/ take from me my lace), but I also feel like the contrasts capture Stevie as a person, someone who is a gentle romantic but also highly pragmatic and firm in her intentions.

In terms of directions, I think after solidifying the full chapter outline with my editor, the rest sort of took care of itself.

With an artist with so much history behind her, how did you ensure that you were able to gather the content you needed to fulfill your overall concept of the book?

I’m grateful to the archivists who have posted 50+ years’ worth of interviews and reviews with Stevie online. I spent a lot of time on The Nicks Fix, which has archived nearly every print and radio interview Stevie ever did!

I also spent a lot of time on The Wayback Machine, YouTube, and Rolling Stone’s website. Rolling Stone has archived nearly every piece ever published – or at least, the pieces concerning its most revered artists, Stevie and Fleetwood Mac included.

To round things out, I purchased existing Stevie biographies, including Stephen Davis’ Gold Dust Woman and Zoë Howe’s Visions, Dreams, and Rumors, plus Simon Morrison’s Mirror in the Sky, which goes a little deeper on Stevie’s music. I even bought a DVD player for the first time in years to watch the 2013 In Your Dreams documentary, which isn’t streaming anywhere.

Finally, I purchased a few books on Fleetwood Mac, including Fleetwood Mac on Fleetwood Mac author Sean Egan, which compiled multiple band interviews across the decades. (Though most of these were on The Nicks Fix.)

This is all to say, I just went crazy with research. I totally immersed myself and then looked for patterns and recurring themes in stuff Stevie said about herself and her life and tried to form story arcs for how those patterns continued, or changed.

Without giving too much away, are there things that you learned while researching that surprised and/or shocked you about her personally and/or her career?

The main thing I keep coming back to is the dissonance between how I was raised in the ‘90s to think of Stevie Nicks versus how she was initially perceived by male rock critics in the ‘70s, and even by her idol-turned-collaborator Tom Petty in the early ‘80s.

When I was growing up, Stevie Nicks was already a rock icon. Up-and-coming singers like Sheryl Crow, Sarah McLachlan, Courtney Love, and – much later – Taylor Swift looked to Stevie as a huge source of inspiration in their careers. I think much of this reverence started in earnest after Fleetwood Mac released The Dance live album in 1997. It reignited the cultural conversation around Stevie, Lindsey Buckingham, and the whole of Fleetwood Mac. A few years prior, when Stevie released her Street Angel album, it felt like the industry was sort of finished with her, because it was not a critically acclaimed record, Stevie appeared less engaged and (naturally) did not look the same as she had in her younger years, and she was coming off of a paralyzing addiction to Klonopin. But after the success of The Dance, it was like people couldn’t get enough of her or Fleetwood Mac.

Anyway, my research revealed that even in the ‘70s, as Stevie was joining Fleetwood Mac, rock critics (mostly male) were confused by her. They didn’t “get” her California-coded look or the way she talked about witches, or described things as being “very Rhiannon.” Legendary rock critic Lester Bangs called Stevie “an airhead” and “a puffball” in a 1977 issue of Creem.

Even Tom Petty was skeptical about working with her at first prior to Bella Donna, her 1981 debut album. Petty and the Heartbreakers saw themselves as being kind of punk rock – grittier, not a corporate, money-making machine – compared to the commercial appeal of Fleetwood Mac, which is all they knew Stevie from prior to embarking on her solo career. Stevie had to convince Tom and his bandmates that she was a “legitimate” artist, as opposed to the more “corporate” idea they had of her and Fleetwood Mac.

Now that you’ve completed your first book, do you have aspirations to write other biographies? If so, are there any potential artists of interest to you that you might reach out to?

Yes, now that I’ve written this biography, books are all I want to do! I am actually working on a new proposal, but I don’t want to jinx anything by talking about it too much, haha. I’ve also thought about other “Lessons”-themed music biographies – I think Dolly Parton would make for an incredible one. I’m also super interested in co-writing a bio with an artist. I’ve written so many band bios, it just feels like a natural extension. I love diving into someone else’s life and helping them / their fans to make sense of it.

Lessons & Lace is available from Harmony/Penguin Random House

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Nestled along Costa Rica’s Pacific coast, Manuel Antonio enchants with its lush rainforests, pristine beaches, abundant wildlife, and thrilling jungle adventures. The property is designed to sit between mainstream hotels and ultra-luxury resorts, while delivering curated programming, thoughtful design, community-focused amenities and genuine inclusion at price points that make quality gay travel accessible to more people.

Lounge by the expansive pool, savour diverse culinary delights at the onsite restaurant, and enjoy amenities like the swim-up bar, the Royal sauna, and luxurious jacuzzis. The dedicated team of Royal Boys will be available day and night, ensuring every moment feels personalized and carefree. When you are done with relaxing and being pampered poolside, you can experience the thrill of zip-lining through lush rainforests, explore hidden waterfalls on ATV adventures, or indulge in sunset sailing cruises. The property was carefully developed and designed based on extensive research of gay male travel statistics to ensure every fine detail is in place to make each guest’s stay memorable.

Some interesting facts of note include, the global LGBTQ+ travel market was valued at approximately $218 billion in 2021 and is projected to continue growing at a compound annual growth rate of more than 15% through 2030. Gay and bisexual men also represent the highest-spending sub-segment within LGBTQ+ travel, with research consistently showing above-average trip frequency and per-trip spend compared to both heterosexual travellers and other LGBTQ+ sub-groups, Kania noted. Additionally, research shows that gay travellers also strongly prefer destinations and properties with visible, year-round LGBTQ+ inclusion. Properties perceived as engaging only during Pride events are consistently rated lower on trust and loyalty metrics. Word-of-mouth and community reviews are also the primary booking influence for gay male travellers, outranking traditional advertising and brand marketing.

Stanley Kania, Owner, Royal Grand Resorts stated, “The research is unambiguous: gay male travelers are among the most valuable, most loyal, and most underserved guests in hospitality. Royal Grand Resorts was built in direct response to that gap — to create welcoming, high-quality spaces where gay men feel genuinely centered, not just accommodated. Costa Rica exemplifies exactly the kind of destination we had in mind: safe, breathtakingly beautiful, deeply sustainable, and ready for a new generation of gay travelers discovering it.“

Reservations are now available via the website. The resort is beautifully secluded, yet it’s only a 30-minute flight from Quepos airport in San José, with private transfer options available. Book your flight today, and be among the first to discover this Costa Rican gem.

The brand’s vision is grounded in a growing body of independent research from Community Marketing & Insights (CMI), the International LGBTQ+ Travel Association (IGLTA), Out Now Global, MMGY Global, and the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) — all pointing to a market that is large, loyal, underserved, and evolving rapidly. Read on to learn more about the trends that help spearhead the development of this unique property.

TREND #1 — MARKET SCALE: A $218 BILLION OPPORTUNITY
The global LGBTQ+ travel market is one of the most significant and consistently underpenetrated segments in hospitality:

• The global LGBTQ+ travel market was valued at approximately $218 billion in 2021 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of over 15% through 2030.
  Source: Coherent Market Insights / UNWTO, 2022

• Gay and bisexual men represent the highest-spending sub-segment within LGBTQ+ travel, with research consistently showing above-average trip frequency and per-trip spend compared to both heterosexual travelers and other LGBTQ+ sub-groups.
  Source: Community Marketing & Insights (CMI), Annual LGBTQ+ Tourism & Hospitality Report, 2023

• LGBTQ+ travelers take more international trips per year on average than non-LGBTQ+ travelers in the same income bracket — a pattern that has held consistent across CMI’s annual research for over a decade.
  Source: CMI, 18th Annual LGBTQ+ Tourism & Hospitality Report, 2023

• The United States alone accounts for an estimated $100+ billion in LGBTQ+ travel spending annually, with gay men representing the largest share of that spend.
  Source: National LGBTQ Task Force / Out Now Global estimates, 2022–2023

TREND #2 — TRAVELER PREFERENCES: INCLUSION IS NON-NEGOTIABLE
Gay male travelers hold brands to a high and specific standard of authentic inclusion — and they make decisions accordingly:

• Over 80% of LGBTQ+ travelers say that a destination’s LGBTQ+-friendliness is a significant factor in their travel decisions.
  Source: IGLTA / UNWTO, LGBTQ+ Travel Research Report, 2021

• 72% of LGBTQ+ travelers research a destination’s legal protections and social climate before booking — a figure that rises among older and higher-income travelers.
  Source: CMI Annual LGBTQ+ Tourism & Hospitality Report, 2023

• Gay travelers strongly prefer destinations and properties with visible, year-round LGBTQ+ inclusion. Properties perceived as engaging only during Pride events are consistently rated lower on trust and loyalty metrics.
  Source: Out Now Global, LGBT2020 Research Programme

• Word-of-mouth and community reviews are the primary booking influence for gay male travelers, outranking traditional advertising and brand marketing.
  Source: CMI Annual Report, 2022–2023

TREND #3 — WELLNESS TRAVEL: A DEFINING PRIORITY
Wellness is among the fastest-growing categories in gay travel, driven by demand for experiences that support mental health, community connection, and holistic self-care:

• The global wellness tourism market was valued at $814 billion in 2022 and is projected to reach $1.4 trillion by 2027. LGBTQ+ travelers are a disproportionately high-value segment within this market.
  Source: Global Wellness Institute, Global Wellness Economy Monitor, 2023

• Mental health and stress recovery consistently rank as top wellness motivators for gay male travelers — above physical fitness or beauty treatments — reflecting documented higher rates of minority stress within the gay male community.
  Source: CMI Annual LGBTQ+ Tourism Report; American Psychological Association minority stress research

• Gay-specific retreat programming — including wellness weeks, community connection retreats, and mindfulness experiences curated for gay men — is an underserved and rapidly growing niche within the broader wellness travel market.
  Source: IGLTA Market Intelligence, 2023; Out Now Global LGBT2020

• Access to LGBTQ+-affirming health services near or at properties is an emerging expectation among younger gay male travelers, particularly in markets with established LGBTQ+ health infrastructure.
  Source: IGLTA Foundation research notes, 2022–2023

TREND #4 — SUSTAINABILITY: VALUES-DRIVEN SPENDING
Gay male travelers over-index on sustainable and community-conscious travel behavior, connecting environmental values to broader principles of equity and social responsibility:

• LGBTQ+ travelers consistently over-index on sustainable travel behavior relative to the general travel population — including preference for eco-certified properties, locally owned businesses, and community-reinvestment-focused brands.
  Source: Out Now Global, LGBT2020 Research Programme; Booking.com Sustainable Travel Report, 2023

• 76% of global travelers intend to travel more sustainably, a figure that skews higher among LGBTQ+ respondents, who also report greater willingness to pay a premium for verified sustainable practices.
  Source: Booking.com Sustainable Travel Report, 2023

• Gay travelers place particular emphasis on brands that actively support local LGBTQ+ communities in destination markets — through employment, partnerships with LGBTQ+-owned businesses, and support for local advocacy organizations.
  Source: Out Now Global LGBT2020; CMI 2023 Annual Report

TREND #5 — DESTINATION INSIGHTS: ESTABLISHED FAVORITES, AND WHY COSTA RICA IS DIFFERENT
Destination selection among gay male travelers follows a clear hierarchy — led by legal safety and social visibility — while an exciting new tier of values-aligned destinations is gaining serious momentum:

• Legal protections for gay men are the single most cited factor in destination selection across all major LGBTQ+ travel surveys — consistently outranking price, climate, and cuisine.
  Source: IGLTA / UNWTO LGBTQ+ Travel Research Report, 2021; CMI Annual Report, 2023

• Top established gay travel destinations globally, based on booking volume and traveler surveys, include: Puerto Vallarta (Mexico), Mykonos (Greece), Sitges (Spain), Lisbon (Portugal), Amsterdam (Netherlands), and Bangkok (Thailand).
  Source: IGLTA Destination Reports; CMI Annual LGBTQ+ Tourism & Hospitality Report, 2023

• Circuit travel events — including White Party, Matinee Barcelona, XLSIOR Mykonos, and Black Party NYC — continue to anchor high-value gay travel itineraries, with many attendees extending into multi-night premium resort stays before or after events.
  Source: Industry reporting; IGLTA event impact assessments

• Private villa rentals and boutique resort experiences are the fastest-growing accommodation preference among higher-income gay male travelers, reflecting a broader shift toward privacy, exclusivity, and curated group travel.
  Source: Out Now Global; Airbnb Luxe and villa rental market trend data, 2023–2024

Spotlight: Costa Rica as a Strategic Emerging Destination for Gay Travelers
While established circuit destinations dominate booking volume, Costa Rica represents a uniquely compelling opportunity — and one that aligns directly with where gay traveler values are heading:

• Costa Rica became the first Central American country to legalize same-sex marriage in May 2020, signaling a meaningful shift in legal protections and social climate that directly affects gay traveler confidence in the destination.
  Source: Human Rights Watch; IGLTA Destination Updates, 2020

• Manuel Antonio, on Costa Rica’s Pacific coast, has an established reputation as one of Central America’s most gay-welcoming destinations, with a visible and long-standing gay hospitality scene that has grown steadily over the past decade.
  Source: IGLTA member destination reports; Out Now Global destination intelligence

• Costa Rica’s world-leading eco-tourism infrastructure — it generates over 99% of its electricity from renewable sources and has committed to carbon neutrality — makes it an exceptional fit for the sustainability values that gay travelers consistently report prioritizing.
  Source: Costa Rica Tourism Board (ICT); National Geographic Geotourism data
• The destination offers premium-quality nature, adventure, and wellness experiences at accessible price points compared to European and Southeast Asian circuit destinations — making it well-suited for Royal Grand Resorts’ upscale, non-ultra-luxury positioning.
  Source: Costa Rica Tourism Board market positioning data; IGLTA market intelligence
• Costa Rica is seeing growing interest from the North American gay travel market specifically, driven by direct flight access from major US cities, short travel time, and the combination of natural beauty, legal safety, and established gay-welcoming infrastructure.
  Source: IGLTA Americas region market updates; Google Trends LGBTQ+ travel search data, 2023–2024

The post Royal Grand Resorts opens in Costa Rica, offering premium resort experiences designed exclusively for gay male travellers appeared first on PinkPlayMags.

When author Daniel Gawthrop laced on his first pair of skates as a twelve-year-old Peewee house league player in 1975, he never imagined he would grow up to start a gay men’s hockey club. Nor that his mainstream media musings about the beauty of “Russian Rocket” Pavel Bure would prompt “straight” commentary by everyone from Don Cherry to The Village Voice. These stories and more form the heart of Cutting Edge, a fascinating probe into the role of gender, masculinity, and sexuality in defining—and too often demeaning—Canada’s national sport.

Examining the game through a queer lens, Gawthrop reveals how hockey has evolved from the bastion of straight white male machismo it used to be into a sport where women and players of all ethnicities are welcome and where gender-diverse people now have safe places to play. At the same time, hockey’s powers that be—from scandal-ridden Hockey Canada to the overly cautious NHL—have been reluctant to embrace change, especially in light of the growing social pushback against queers in sport.

And then there’s Heated Rivalry, whose unexpected mainstream success has led to questions about whether it will encourage queer professional players to finally come out, all while introducing the sport to new generations of fans. With great insight and verve, Cutting Edge explores this phenomenon and more, pointing the way to a better, more modern, and more inclusive kind of hockey.

Available from Arsenal Pulp Press

Daniel Gawthrop (he/him) is the author of six non-fiction books, including The Trial of Pope Benedict and The Rice Queen Diaries (both Arsenal Pulp Press), and one novel, Double Karma (Cormorant Books). A co-founder of the Cutting Edges, Vancouver’s LGBTQ+ hockey association, he has written extensively about hockey for numerous publications. He lives in New Westminster, BC.

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In 1956, lonely teenager Teddy is drawn to the water and woods surrounding his small town, where he meets bad boy Wade and becomes overwhelmed by his attraction to him. During the rapturous early period of their friendship, the two range over the area’s mountains and waterways before falling out after high school over Teddy’s sexuality. In the years following their separation, Teddy—now going by Ted—struggles to live openly as a gay man, finding and losing lovers at parties, dance clubs, and cruising spots in a surprisingly wild pre-Stonewall gay Vancouver. He is befriended by a lively crew of eccentrics—a new chosen family—who aid him in finding fulfillment both as a gay man and as an artist. Returning to his hometown nearly a decade later, Ted must decide whether or not to reunite with the one who once meant so much to him: the sexy and mercurial Wade.

Confluence is a collaboration between late author Alex Turner and his husband, Lucian Childs. Drawing on his sixty-year history with his beloved West Coast home, Turner wrote much of this beautifully rendered novel before he passed away in 2019. Childs, an award-winning author himself, completed the work, a novel that is simultaneously poetic, humorous, and exuberantly down to earth.

Available from Arsenal Pulp Press

Alex Turner (1940–2019) (he/him) graduated from the Vancouver School of Art and the University of British Columbia and subsequently taught in Toronto at the Art Centre of the Central Technical School. After retirement, Alex turned to fiction, and his short fiction appears in the literary magazine Prairie Fire. Confluence is his debut novel.

Lucian Childs (he/him) is a writer whose debut novel-in-stories, Dreaming Home (Biblioasis), won the Fred Kerner Book Award and was shortlisted for the Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prize. He is a contributing editor of Lambda Literary Award finalist Building Fires in the Snow (University of Alaska Press). His work appears in Grain, Ex-Puritan, Prairie Fire, and other publications. He lives in Toronto, ON.

The post Confluence – coming of age story about growing up queer in small town B.C. during the 1950s and 60s appeared first on PinkPlayMags.

In this book, interviewees include people who have worked with the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Public Enemy, Taylor Swift, Bob Dylan, P!nk, U2, Emmylou Harris, Willie Nelson, Wu-Tang Clan, David Bowie, T.Rex, Johnny Cash, Aretha Franklin, Amy Winehouse, Paul McCartney, Dolly Parton, Duran Duran, the Replacements, Christina Aguilera, Alicia Keys, Kendrick Lamar, Tom Petty, and Sabrina Carpenter, plus more. And that’s just the beginning of the credits these producers—Brian Eno, Finneas, Glyn Johns, Hank Shocklee, Jack Antonoff, Joe Boyd, Jon Brion, Lee “Scratch” Perry, Linda Perry, Mark Ronson, RZA, Sasami, Steve Lillywhite, Susan Rogers, T Bone Burnett, and many others—collectively hold.

All of these interviews come from the pages of Tape Op magazine, founded in 1996 by editor Larry Crane. Over the last thirty years, along with publisher John Baccigaluppi, Tape Op has become the world’s deepest archive of conversations about the art and science of recording music, and is still an active, print-based magazine with the highest circulation of any recording magazine in the world.

Available from Akashic Books

John Baccigaluppi is a producer, engineer, and studio owner; he met Larry Crane when he produced Vomit Launch’s third and fourth albums. He came aboard Tape Op in 1999 as the publisher, designer, and co-owner. Since then, Tape Op has become the largest-circulation recording magazine in the world. Baccigaluppi currently runs Panoramic House Studio and has worked with My Morning Jacket, Devendra Banhart, Kurt Vile, Cate Le Bon, Hurray for the Riff Raff, Feist, Deftones, Thee Oh Sees, Ty Segall, 7 Seconds, and Little Wings. Crane and Baccigaluppi have worked with some of the most important artists of the last thirty years, while also running a magazine that discusses the art of making records. His latest book is Making Music.

The post Making Music: Conversations with Record Producers – includes interviews with those who worked behind the scenes with the biggest names in the music industry appeared first on PinkPlayMags.