2024 Season of Events (Press Release)
Grass Roots Gay Rights Foundation Announces 2024 Season of Events, Non-Profit Beneficiaries, and DJs for REAL BAD 35
The Grass Roots Gay Rights Foundation is proud to announce the 2024 DJs and non-profit beneficiaries. The all-volunteer organization looks forward to welcoming you home to 1015 Folsom twice this year to dance into the night as we come together to celebrate our circle of friends and raise funds for a number of excellent organizations serving the broader Bay Area's LGBTQ community.
On Friday, July 26, 2024—opening Up Your Alley weekend—GRGRF will be hosting REAL BAD: RITUAL at 1015 Folsom. With the move to Friday night primetime, RITUAL will feature enhanced and expanded production, elevating the weekend event lineup. REAL BAD DJ alumni Matt Effect (REAL BAD 32) and Alfonso Tan (REAL BAD 34) return for an unforgettable night.
Our infamous marquee event, now in its 35th year, closes out Folsom Weekend on Sunday, September 29, 2024 at 1015 Folsom. Following tradition, the GRGRF committed to donating 100 percent of the general admission ticket price of the historically sold-out REAL BAD, as well as 100 percent of net proceeds generated by RITUAL After Hours to six worthy LGBTQ nonprofits. Last year, the Grass Roots Gay Rights Foundation donated $265,000, and has given back more than $3.9 million to the community since 1989.
This year’s non-profit beneficiaries are Bay Area Girls Rock Camp, Give Us The Floor, Leather & LGBTQ Cultural District, Lyon-Martin Community Health, LYRIC Center for LGBTQ+ Youth, SF LGBT Center.
Non-Profit Beneficiaries
The four LGBTQ non-profit organizations named as Tier A 2024 beneficiaries of the Grass Roots Gay Rights Foundation represent diverse causes within the community. The beneficiary organizations selected to receive new or continued unrestricted Tier A grant funding this year are:
LYRIC Center for LGBTQ+ Youth (2024 & 2025)
LYRIC’s mission is to build community and inspire positive social change through education enhancement, career trainings, health promotion, and leadership development with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQQ) youth, their families, and allies of all races, classes, genders, and abilities.
SF LGBT Center (2024 & 2025)
The mission of the SF LGBT Center is to connect the diverse LGBT community to opportunities, resources, and each other, aiming for a stronger, healthier, and more equitable world.
Bay Area Girls Rock Camp (2023 & 2024)
Bay Area Girls Rock Camp is a nonprofit organization that empowers young people through music, promoting an environment that fosters self-confidence, creativity and teamwork. The camp centers the experiences of girls, trans and/or non-binary youth in their explicit commitment to gender justice and creating an inclusive environment that supports a wide range of marginalized gender identities and expressions.
Give Us The Floor (2023 & 2024)
Give Us The Floor (GUTF) is a San Francisco-based non-profit organization. GUTF provides LGBTQ+ teens in distress with the peer-positive human connection that they are too often missing. GUTF helps LGBTQ+ teens deal with distress through inclusive, innovative and unique online peer Supportive Group Chats that provide constant contact and anonymity in a safe teen-only community, breaking the isolation and shame cycles they are experiencing.
Tom Tarn, Beneficiary Committee Chair said, “I want to thank my fellow members of the Beneficiary committee for thoughtfully reviewing every one of the grant applications. It was a very fulfilling, but sometimes difficult task to shortlist from a pool of so many worthy Bay Area nonprofits. In awarding the SF LGBT Center and LYRIC Center in 2024, GRGRF is demonstrating a balanced interest in supporting programs for both queer youth and queer art in our community.”
Tier B 2024 beneficiaries are:
Leather & LGBTQ Cultural District
The Leather & LGBTQ Cultural Disctrict's vision is to commemorate and protect the contributions of our predecessors, contemporaries, and successors rooted in the Leather & LGBTQ community, including all its diverse and marginalized peoples. The cultural district memorializes the past through commemorative plaques at sites of historic significance, place-making features and murals, Leather Pride street banners and pole wraps, and the Cultural District's forthcoming custom street signs.
For 45 years, Lyon-Martin Community Health has been the heartbeat of San Francisco’s queer community. Their mission is to provide compassionate, trauma-informed healthcare services that are responsive to the unique needs of the overlapping communities of trans, non-binary, gender non-conforming, intersex (TGI) people, and LGBQA+ women, regardless of immigration status or ability to pay. Their clinician training program is one of the only programs in the country focused on TGI healthcare.
REAL BAD 35 DJs
Deanne (Tampa) - Main Room Headlining DJ
A dynamic DJ from Tampa, has thrilled clubbers for over two decades with her infectious rhythms and unique blend of Tech, House, Afro, and Progressive House. Known for her pulsating beats, strong synths, dramatic arrangements, and soulful vocals, she captivates audiences in both intimate and expansive venues. Deanne, a standout in the LGBT scene for over 10 years, relocated to South Florida in 2013 and quickly ascended, headlining major events like Masterbeat, WE Party, and Miami Beach Pride, and performing at iconic venues like Club Space Miami and Eagle NYC. As a producer and #1 Billboard remixer, her music, released on labels like Queen House Music and Pump Records, continues to resonate globally.
The Perry Twins (Los Angeles) - Main Room Opening DJ
Based in Los Angeles, The Perry Twins originally started DJing while in high school in their home state of Rhode Island. Identical twin brothers Derek and Doug have spun at events all over the world including White Party Bangkok, White Party Palm Springs, Winter Party Miami, NYC Pride Pier Dance, Purple Party Dallas, Ascension Fire Island, Provincetown Carnival, Sunland Puerto Vallarta, Infinita Madrid, Seattle's Red Dress Party and at parties including Distrkt C, Brüt, Megawoof, DILF, and for The GlamCocks at Burning Man. Doug & Derek are resident DJs at The Chapel and The Abbey in West Hollywood and have reached #1 on Billboard with original songs they write and produce as well as remixes they've produced for Calvin Harris, Dua Lipa, Janet Jackson, Troye Sivan, Jennifer Lopez, Kristine W, Beyoncé, Kelly Clarkson, Justin Bieber, Axwell ^ Ingrosso, Christina Aguilera, Drake and Rihanna.
Peter Napoli (New York) - Underground DJ
Driving, soulful, sexy. Three words that encapsulate the musical essence of New York City based DJ/Producer Peter Napoli. Peter's professional journey began in 2009 in the vibrant metropolis of CDMX. From there, his unique talent has propelled him onto stages across Europe, South America, and the iconic grounds of Burning Man. Renowned for his legendary Brüt parties at Santos Party House and across the U.S., Peter co-founded and managed three LGBTQ+ nightlife brands over the last 10 year’s. As he now focuses on an ambitious solo career, Peter can be found alongside top artists such as Jamie Jones, Blond:ish, Roger Sanchez, and Victor Calderone. Known for his versatility in spinning a range of House genres, while maintaining his signature sound, Peter Napoli is a one-of-a-kind artist who possesses the innate ability to create an immersive and captivating atmosphere through his music.
REAL BAD 35 will also feature world-class lighting, laser, and video production. The lighting and laser show will be designed and executed by Robert Sanders of RAGERLAZER.
Learn more about our REAL BAD 35 DJs and the latest event info here.
