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The Ultimate Gay NYC List to Close Out the Summer

Somehow, we’ve blinked and summer’s already slipping through our fingers, but it’s not over yet. There’s still plenty of gay magic to be had, and I’m determined to squeeze every last drop out of it. These final weeks can feel like a blur of beach trips, rooftop hangs, and “we’ll do it next weekend” plans… until suddenly it’s fall. So I’ve rounded up the best LGBTQ+ events happening in New York City before summer takes her final bow.

From sweaty dance parties to fantastic film screenings, here’s your end-of-summer guide to celebrate, connect, and send off the season in style.

🪩 Summer Soirees & Discos

For the nights you want to sweat it out on the dance floor, flirt under neon lights, and do it all for the plot.

17th Annual Madonna Worship Night

  • Friday • August 15, 2025 • 10pm
  • 3 Dollar Bill

Kate Bush: The Dreaming (full album spin)

  • Friday • August 15, 2025 • 7:30pm
  • C’mon Everybody

Celebration: A Madonna Party

  • Saturday • August 16, 2025 • 10:30pm
  • C’mon Everybody

PLANET YES: GAGA NIGHT w/ Dirtyfinger

  • Thursday • August 21, 2025 • 10pm
  • House of Yes

💖 Community Hangs & Low-Key Fun

From dance lessons to drag bingo, not every night has to be a rager. Find connection, creativity, and time together.

Queer Ride Club Summer Series Kickoff

  • Friday • June 27 – Friday September 26, 2025 • 6:30pm
  • Trek Bicycle Forest Hills

The LGBT+ Male Figurative Drawing Group

  • Saturday • August 16, 2025 • 10:30am-1:30pm
  • The LGBT Center • 208 W. 13th St, NY, NY 10011

Queer Tango Lessons

  • Saturday • August 16, 2025 • 4:30pm-7:30pm
  • The LGBT Center • 208 W. 13th St, NY, NY 10011

🎬 Outdoor Films & Art Exhibits

Dreamy summer nights under the stars or creative inspiration inside air-conditioned galleries to feed your inner cinephile and art lover.

REVERB | Queercore – A Queer History Experience

  • Thursday • August 14, 2025 • 7-10pm
  • Culture Lab LIC • 5-25 46th Ave, Queens, NY 11101⁠

Movies in the Square: 13 Going on 30

  • Thursday • August 14, 2025 • 6:30pm
  • Union Square Park – North Plaza

Continuum: A Celebration of Ballroom

  • Saturday • August 16, 2025 • 4-9pm
  • Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art

Paramount+ Movie Nights

Fort Greene Park

  • Clueless • Thursday • August 14, 2025
  • Dog Day Afternoon • August 21, 2025

Julien Ceccaldi – Adult Theater

  • March 27–August 25, 2025
  • MoMA PS1

Pier I Picture Show: Bend It Like Beckham

  • August 20, 2025 • 8:30pm
  • Riverside Park South, Pier I @ 70th St.

Summer’s not over yet, babes and there’s still plenty of time to pack your calendar with queer joy. Whether you’re chasing one last rooftop sunset, hitting the dance floor, or keeping it low-key with friends, make the most of these final golden weeks. What’s on your gay end-of-summer agenda?

August 12, 2025
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In Entertainment/ Life

The Big Gay List of NYC Pride Month Events 2025

Hi gay. It’s officially Pride season and what better way to kick off the summer than by turning up the volume on queer joy. I still feel new to New York City, and so every year I promise myself I’m going to celebrate our month more than I did the year before. TBH, it can be overwhelming with the amount of events going on. So, to make the most of Pride 2025, I’m getting seriously prepared this year.  

From raving dance floors to reflective exhibits, here’s a curated list of the best NYC Pride month events to celebrate, connect, and show up all month long.

🌈 The Main Event(s)

Get into the celebratory mood with these festivals, marches, and markets happening in NYC.

New Queens Pride

  • June 1, 2025
  • 12pm
  • 37th Avenue in Jackson Heights

The Wonder Market: Pride at Carroll Hall

  • June 12, 2025
  • 7:30pm
  • Carroll Hall

Brooklyn Pride Street Festival

  • June 14, 2025
  • 11am
  • 5th Avenue between Union and 9th Street

Brooklyn Pride Comic Book Fair

  • June 21, 2025
  • 12pm-6pm
  • Brooklyn Pride Center

Queer Soup Night x Pride Night at Brooklyn Botanic Garden

  • June 25, 2025
  • 6pm-8:30pm
  • Brooklyn Botanic Garden

NYC Pride March

  • June 29, 2025
  • 11am

NYC PrideFest

  • June 29, 2025
  • 11am
  • Greenwich Village

Queer Liberation March

  • June 29, 2025
  • 11am
  • ​NYC AIDS Memorial Park at St. Vincent’s Triangle

🪩 party 4 u

From rooftop raves to sweaty basements—here’s where to dance, flirt, and serve all month long.

Dirty Circus Variety Show: Pride Edition

  • June 6, 2025
  • 6:30pm
  • House of Yes

Bailamos Juntos – Pride Fundraiser

  • June 7, 2025
  • 6pm
  • Sound Mind Center

Night at the Museum: Pride

  • June 13, 2025
  • 8pm-12am
  • MoMA PS1

Pride Night at the Museum

  • June 13, 2025
  • 7pm-10pm
  • Gilder Center for Science, Education, and Innovation

Dyke Beer: Pride Party

  • June 13, 2025
  • 7pm
  • Brooklyn Art Haus

The Library After Hours: Pride

  • June 13, 2025
  • 7:30pm-11pm
  • Stephen A. Schwarzman Building

Pride Above the Park 2025

  • June 18, 2025
  • 6pm
  • The Rooftop at Deutsche Bank Center

It’s Giving Brunch: NYC Pride Drag Fundraiser

  • June 21, 2025 
  • 11am
  • Stella 34 Trattoria

The Official Pride Bar Crawl

  • June 21, 2025
  • 4pm-11pm
  • Puttery

Fagtasia Pride: Hobbitfest

  • June 21, 2025
  • 6pm
  • 3 Dollar Bill

MoMA Pride Celebration 2025

  • June 25, 2025
  • 6:30pm-10pm
  • MoMA

PLANET YES PRIDE: Tom Peters James Patterson

  • June 26, 2025
  • 10pm
  • House of Yes

Pride At The Pink Pony Club

  • June 26, 2025
  • 10pm
  • 3 Dollar Bill

LadyLand Festival

  • June 27, 2025
  • 7pm
  • Under the K Street Bridge

🎭 Queer Culture Club

Shine a spotlight on queer stories with comedy shows, concerts, readings, and more.

Department of Gay Ecstasy: Pride Edition

  • June 5, 2025
  • 8:15pm
  • Brooklyn Comedy Collective

Pride Comedy Show

  • June 11, 2025
  • 7:30pm
  • Gotham Comedy Club

East Village Queer: Writers & Writing Below 14th Street

  • June 12, 2025
  • 6pm-7:15pm
  • Tompkins Square Library, Basement

Super Gay Poems with Stephanie Burt and Special Guests

  • June 18, 2025
  • 7pm-8pm
  • The New York Public Library, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building

LGBTQ Pro Wrestling: Fight for Pride 2

  • June 22, 2025
  • 3pm
  • Alewife Brewing 

Book Talk: Queer Happened Here

  • June 25, 2025
  • 5pm-7pm
  • Housing Works Bookstore Cafe
@gaysandconfused

Spent a rainy Saturday walking through NYC’s queer past 🌈

♬ Disco (Instrumental) – Hellboii Music

🏙️ Museum Gays & History Baes

Discover LGBTQ+ history though walking tours and special exhibits.

Out of the Closets! Into the Streets!: New York City’s Pride March 1975-1976

  • May 8, 2025 – August 31, 2025
  • The Hispanic Society Museum & Library

Queer History Walks

  • Select weekends
  • The Whitney

Defying Norms: A Queer Self-Portrait Journey

  • June 4, 2025
  • 3:30-5pm
  • Washington Heights Library

Walking Tour: Gay Bars That Are Gone

  • June 7, 2025
  • 5pm-6:30pm
  • Meet at 105 2nd Ave

Walking Tour: Lesbian Herstory of Greenwich Village

  • June 17, 2025
  • 6pm-7:30pm
  • Washington Square Park

Walking Tour: LGBTQ History in East Village

  • June 18, 2025
  • 6pm-8pm
  • Bayard-Condict Building

West Village Pub Tour Traces Roots of LGBTQ Culture – Pride Walking Tour

  • June 21, 2025
  • 2:30pm-5pm
  • The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center – New York

Walking Tour: Un-Erasing Stonewall

  • June 24, 2025
  • 6pm-7:30pm
  • Stonewall National Monument

Walking Tour: Upper West Side

  • June 25, 2025
  • 6pm-7:30pm

I made it home: A Solo Exhibition by Golden

  • June 27, 2025
  • 6pm-8pm
  • Pen + Brush

Pride month isn’t just about celebration, it’s about visibility, community, and finding joy even when the world feels depressingly chaotic. I’ll see you out there dancing, learning, and loving every minute of it. 🏳️‍🌈 Which events are you planning to attend?

June 2, 2025
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In Life

Powerful Tips to Boost Your Queer Joy Daily

Look, life is a lot. And if you’re a queer adult trying to balance work, relationships, joy, grief, and maybe even a houseplant or two—same. Over the years, I’ve built a few rituals and routines that help me manage my mental health in a real, sustainable way. Nothing perfect or prescriptive here—just what’s worked for me, in hopes it might help you too.

My morning routines

Creating daily rituals really helps me stay grounded and slow down a bit. I’m a heavy coffee drinker and it’s one of my favorite ways to start the day. I make pour over coffee every morning, which can be a bit of a slower and manual process. It’s a moment to breathe, reflect, and let the caffeine slowly summon my personality. While I’m drinking my first cup of coffee, I like to sit and journal for a few minutes. Sometimes I use prompts from a workbook, other times I just word-vomit into a freeform journal. Either way, getting my thoughts out on paper helps me clear my head and feel a little less like a browser with 87 tabs open.

@gaysandconfused

I’ve been leaning into journaling lately as a way to set my intentions for the day and reconnect with myself. I’ve been loving the @Me-est Me Journal which has so many prompts and has been a really valuable tool in my daily routine. I’m also on a journey to support more LGBTQ+ founded brands and I’m so happy to have discovered this one. #sponsored

♬ Aesthetic Chill Vibes – Jim Rocks

Let’s get physical

While I would love to reveal that I wake up every morning at 4am, the truth is I’m not a morning person at all. Even waking up at 7am is a struggle. But I do my best to get some kind of movement in early-ish. It sets the tone for the day and gives me a chance to be fully in my body—not just in my feeds. 

Spin classes or a boot camp are my fave because you have to be present. It’s 45 minutes of music, sweat, and forgetting about your to-do list. I do a lot of travel so in a pinch, a short walk or stretch session can do the trick. The goal isn’t perfection, it’s all about keeping movement a consistent part of my life.

Time with Rider

If you were following my dog Tripp on Instagram, I hope you’re now following my pup Rider on the gram and the clock app. My time with Tripp was very important to me and when he passed away, I was devastated but I knew that he lived a long life full of love. When Rider came into my life, I knew I wanted to be really intentional about our time together. Thankfully, I work remotely, so I build plenty of playtime into my schedule.

We do a long midday walk and another shorter one in the afternoon. It breaks up my day, gets me outside, and gives me something to look forward to. Plus, it’s truly calming having a dog curled up next to me while I work.

Entering the group chat

I’ve always leaned hard on my friendships—especially during tough times. Making friends as an adult in NYC isn’t always easy (even when you’re surrounded by 8 million people), but I’ve found a few solid groups I see regularly. Most of my friends are also queer and I think having a chosen family is vital. And in this day and age, I’m so grateful for the group chats with my friends who live all over the rest of the country.  

Whether it’s a spontaneous hangout or sending 47 memes in a row, staying connected to my chosen family has been one of the most important and practical mental wellness tips for queer adults I’ve discovered.

Exploring sobriety

I love a good glass of wine or a very complicated cocktail. But I also love waking up without hangxiety and existential dread. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized alcohol doesn’t always vibe with my mental health. So lately, I’ve been experimenting with a more mindful approach to drinking.

 It’s far-fetched to say I’m eliminating alcohol completely from my life. Instead, I’ve started limiting alcohol to one or two days a week and mixing in non-alcoholic and functional beverages. Even swapping one cocktail for a mocktail on a night out makes a difference. It’s all about allowing myself to enjoy the moment and still feel good the next day. 

Getting creative

I’m a big fan of continuous discovery—whether that’s exploring a new neighborhood, hitting a museum, or trying something random like learning to DJ (yes, really). I’m especially obsessed with queer history walking tours, and with the weather warming up, you’ll definitely catch me out and about (follow along on TikTok if you’re into that kinda thing). I don’t see myself living in New York City forever, so I’m also determined to hit up as many sites as I can.

Giving myself time to explore and nurture my curiosity has become one of my favorite ways to protect my peace and reconnect with what makes me feel alive.  

I’m no mental health pro but I hope these can function as practical mental wellness tips for queer adults and offer a little inspiration. In times like these—when the world feels especially heavy—queer joy isn’t just nice to have, it’s essential. Building small, supportive routines can help us not only cope, but also make space for joy, connection, and moments that feel genuinely good. What are the ways you protect your mental health? Let’s chat about it.

May 17, 2025
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In Life

7 LGBTQ+ Mobile Apps For a Better Life

Gays & Confused is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

From healthcare to travel to education, there’s always an app to help make your life easier, keep you entertained, or better inform you on the go. While plenty of dating apps are geared toward our community, what about the other facets of modern queer life? Here’s a list of mobile apps for the queer community.

misterb&b

Airbnb and Vrbo popularized the concept of staying like a local by helping you rent homes and apartments for your vacation. misterb&b connects you to gay-friendly rentals while donating a percentage of the profit to LGBTQ+ nonprofits.

When the company’s co-founder & CEO, Matthieu, and his partner booked a shared apartment in Barcelona, they found their host uncomfortable renting to a gay couple. The experience inspired him to start a short term rentals site focused on the gay community. misterb&b aims to connect the global gay community and offer a safer travel experience.

GeoSure

Traveling in any of the 71 countries where homosexuality is a crime may be risky, but queer people, especially trans and gender nonconforming, can be at risk in far more places. GeoSure offers neighborhood-level real-time LGBTQ+ safety ratings for more than 40,000 places worldwide. By combining local statistics and data feeds, the app offers safety ratings on a scale from 1 (Very Safe/Cool) to 100 (Very Dangerous/Hot) across seven categories: overall safety, women’s safety, physical harm, theft, health and medical, LGBTQ+ safety, and political freedoms.

Lex

Before the internet and smartphones, many queer people found romantic connections and friendships through personal ads in their local newspapers and zines. Throwing it back, Lex started is a lo-fi, text-based social app for the LBTQIA+ community to discover events and groups to hang out with online or IRL.

Kelly Rakowski, who also founded the lesbian culture Instagram @h_e_r_s_t_o_r_y, started Lex as a way for people to find each other without the frustration of dating apps. While curating historical photos for her Instagram account, she came across an online archive of personal ads from On Our Backs, a lesbian erotica magazine. Intially posting them on @h_e_r_s_t_o_r_y, her followers fell in love with these mementos from lonely hearts so she began soliciting personal ads for a new project that would become Lex.

Kalda

Developed by LGBTQIA+ therapists, Kalda offers self guided therapy programs to help you strengthen your mental health. Studies have found that the LGBTQ+ population is more likely to experience depression, anxiety, and substance misuse than heterosexuals. And LGBTQ+ individuals are more likely than heterosexuals to use mental health services. Co-founder Charlotte Fountaine had struggled with questions around her identity as a bisexual woman, leading to panic attacks. She found group therapy helpful and was inspired to create a supportive space for queers. 

This colorful app offers video therapy sessions, quick meditations, and daily reflection journaling. Therapy can come with an expensive price tag creating a barrier for many, so Kalda offers affordable monthly and yearly subscription options.

Rally

Rally is a social app for LGBTQIA+ sports and fitness communities. While it can often be tough to build connections within the LGBTQ+ community outside of nightlife spaces, Rally offers a platform to connect with new friends, discover local events, and join local sports teams. 

Queer athletes can often face homophobia and discrimination, founder Duncan Campbell created Rally to promote inclusion and help foster safe spaces for queer and trans athletes to practice sports.

Quist

As I’m sure most of you have gathered from being avid readers of this blog, I love music and history. I especially love learning about moments in history that are often forgotten or rarely told, which happens to be the case when it comes to minority groups. Quist is an app that aims to educate the world about the history of LGBTQ+ communities, the struggles we have overcome, and the allies that supported us. Every day Quist presents a notable event in queer history that happened that day with interactive media and links to more information.

Since 2013, the app has mostly been created through the help of volunteers with the non-profit the Quistory Project, Inc. The organization was founded by Sarah Prager, the author of Queer, There, and Everywhere: 23 People Who Changed the World.

Our Bible

While the LGBTQ+ community is usually pushed away by most mainstream Christian religions, plenty of queer people continue to hold deeply religious beliefs. Our Bible is an app that aims to bring the progressive Christian community together. The platform offers the largest collection of devotionals, podcasts, resources, and other media content that are pro-LGBT, pro-women, and encourage interfaith inclusivity.

Writer and activist Crystal Cheatham felt devastated when she was told she couldn’t be gay and Christian. She started Our Bible to offer the LGBTQ community a space to pursue their spiritual practice without sacrificing any part of their identity.

What are your favorite mobile apps? Is there one you wish had a gay friendly equivalent? Share your favorite queer mobile apps with me!

August 22, 2024
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In Entertainment/ Life

Get a History Lesson from These Queer Podcasts

Chances are very high that your history education skipped over a lot of queer history. Probably all of it. I’ve blogged extensively about my passion for history and podcasts for which I’m not sorry. To add to the list, here’s a collection of podcasts sharing tales about LGBTQ history.

Making Gay History

I’ve mentioned my love for Eric Marcus’ Making Gay History podcast and project many times on the blog before. You haven’t subscribed yet, in each episode Eric reaches into his vault of first-person interviews for some queer retellings of history.

Bad Gays

You’re not gay if you don’t love the villains in your favorite Disney movies. That’s because most villains have been queer coded but you might be fascinated to learn that many of history’s actual villains have complicated sexual identities. Bad Gays tells the stories of evil and complicated queers. But unlike your favorite Disney villains, you might not be dressing in drag as these bad guys.

Closeted History: LGBTQ Stories of the Past

Destiny Clarke is an educator with a passion for LGBTQ+ history. The Closeted History podcast came out of sharing LGBTQ+ History Trivia on Fridays with the community. The episode embedded above is one of my favorites, chronicling authentic tales of real life cowboys. As a small town Texan, cowboy culture is innately part of my identity and something I’ve struggled with being queer and Mexican. Learning about the reality of the old west has been really comforting and affirming for me.

Lost Spaces: Memories from Gay Bars, Lesbian Clubs, and LGBTQ+ Parties

Much of queer culture has existed in bars and night clubs, some of the only queer only spaces. While not a traditional history podcast, I’ve really enjoyed listening to these first person interviews documenting lost queer spaces and their impact on the people who danced and drank there.

Gay History 101

One of the things I love about history podcasts is hearing honest reactions to the hosts’ research. I’ve only listened to a few episodes of Gay History 101, but I loved hearing John and Conor learn along with their listeners and offer hot takes. It’s fun commentary to go along with the lesson.

Queer as Fact

Queer as Fact features a panel of history buffs taking a more international look at historical events and more of a queer discussion. You can also follow their social accounts to dive deeper into their research.

History is Gay

History is Gay features fun conversations between hosts Gretchen and Leigh, self identified queer nerds. Every episode includes a segment where the two rate how gay notable people in history were, which is one of my favorite parts of this show.

One From the Vaults

While most of the other podcasts look at events and people from throughout the LGBTQ spectrum, One From the Vaults takes a look specifically at trans individuals. The host Morgan M Page does a great job uncovering little known stories from even very recent history. I loved diving into stories about Andy Warhol’s muses, Lou Reed, and Marsha P. Washington and Sylvia Rivera.

Gay of the Day

If you’re looking for some bite size history lessons, Gay of the Day is perfect. Each episode focuses on one queer person in history and tells their life story in under 20 minutes. I especially love the host Frank Howard’s dramatic storytelling style.

Got any favorite history podcasts to share? Let me know!

June 25, 2024
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