Did Dua Lipa, Charli XCX, and Caroline Polachek Get Exposed to Covid?
Bunny is a breakthrough case
Jordan Firstman, Benny Drama, Charli XCX, Dua Lipa
Hi girlies,
This is The Deviant Dispatch. I’m Mo, your guide to the underground. I write about NYC-based events, gay shit, and cool kid gossip. There will be snark, typos, and lots of Charli XCX updates. If you like what you see, become a paying subscriber, share this with someone, or hit the heart button at the top of the post.
Rumors abound this week! The hysteria around breakthrough Covid cases has spilled over into stan twitter, who are convinced the alt pop elite are threatened by the delta varient. While you peruse this newsletter, please listen to the new B2B mix from Australia Hyperpop producer Donatchi and LA’s Cowgirl Clue, herself an aspiring pop star.
So last week there was a troubling story published by a website called FOTP. “Marina has tested positive for COVID-19 after attending a party.” the site tweeted out before continuing “Dua Lipa, Charli XCX, Kim Petras, Tove Lo, Phoebe Bridgers and Caroline Polachek were all also at the party.” Cue a scream from every gay under 30 with a Spotify account. Marina was an alt-pop elite back when “and the diamonds” was part of her stage name, but she’s not quite at the center of the zeitgeist anymore. Still, the idea that all these people would be partying together is just plausible enough to be true
FOPT, the rumour’s source. claims to be a news site but seems to function more of a reddit-style forum for fans of pop music. Despite the flashy tweet, it seems that their evidence is…… skinny. Below is a quote from their post, emphasis mine.
“Although not directly confirmed, it's very likely that she (marina) caught the virus after attending influencer Jordan Firstman's star-studded 30th Birthday Party”
The site then goes on to say that dozens of people confirmed they got Covid at the party, but fails to quote or name any of them. They posted several photos of the celebrities in question, most from Firstman’s instagram account. Marina’s photo on the other hand, isn’t on Firstman’s instagram currently. There are also no photos I can find of her with anyone else pictured at the party last night. AKA There’s no proof that I can find that she was even at Firstman’s party at all.
Chris of Christine and the queens, Jordan Fristman, Caroline Polachek
At the end of the day, even if this rumor was true it’s an advertisement on why vaccines are so great. Let’s say it was Firstman’s birthday where Marina got covid. the vaccinated stars who were there would have just had a cold for a few days and been good to go. The future of music is safe, and we can all go on stanning.
At least Grimes is out of harms way! The problematic fave posted a new song snippet to TikTok. She captioned the clip with “My label thinks this isn’t a single what do y’all think?” Well we here at The Deviant Dispatch think the label is wrong! The song sounds like a 2.0 version of her single “Violence” which is fitting since Grimes was originally going to release that song on her next album instead of last year’s Miss Anthropocene.
“Witness your own tragedy, I look like a flower but I’m a serpent underneath, 100% tragedy” Grimes trills before an epic house breakdown. The video is made even better by the accompanied DIY visual: Grimes dancing in slow motion with a fan and a flowing hoodie. She’s in front of the kind of folding bamboo divider that my sister had when she lived in SOHO. Not exactly a high budget production, but Grimes has always had a scrappy asthetic. She took the time to explain to someone why a label was even necessary for someone with such an established fanbase, although the local writers on Twitter were not impressed with her failure to properly exploit her babydaddy Elon Musk.
In the MOST local news, Charlene got called a racist by Qween Amor. The former, a longtime fixture of the Brooklyn drag scene, star of Wig on HBO. The latter, a east village legend who is can be spotted during any parade or march dancing ontop of a speaker she wheels behind her like a piece of luggage when she’s on the move. Qween Amor called Charlene a racist for her number during a recent Venono Tribute Show. It seems that Queer Amor (who also goes by Mary Magdalene) was equating Charlene putting on a red wig and a purple dress with brownface.
Charlene herself just had this to say.
That’s it for gossip this week!
XOXO
Mo
SKSKSKS : with Moist Breezy.
When: Friday 10pm
Where: H0L0
What: While hyperpop’s main stars seem to be either stuck in recording studios or their childhood bedrooms, Brooklyn’s Moist Breezy is breaking out into the world . She’ll be performing live at frequent Bubble_T DJ THELIMITDOESNOTEXIST alongside longtime scenesters like Alex Chapman and the producer cute boys. The party is hosted by the clothing brands LeakYourSexTape and SYRO, ensuring the crowd will be the appropriate level of sexy and trendy .“In a queer nightlife scene dominated by techno, I feel there’s some room for a hyperpop sound and vision, especially one that focuses on queer/trans/non-binary people” DJ THELIMITDOESNOTEXIST shared to me in the DMs.
How much: Tickets may be available at the door.
BLIXWORLD FEST ft. Water From Your Eyes
When: Saturday, 6:30
Where: @ Jake's Place (rsvp for address)
What: An outdoor show benefiting south Brooklyn mutual aid. Buzzy genre polymaths Water From Your Eyes (who currently vibing in a a indie pop direction) headline the show. The evening also includes Horror Movie Marathon and Flotsam, who are supposedly a “revival of a classic flatbush project”. There will also be an art gallery in a nearby garage.
How much: $5 suggested donation
Blossom
When: Next Thursday, the 29th
Where: Nowadays, a dance music stronghold in deep Bushwig where the sun rises and shines on a warehouse filled with vines and ravers.
What: The techno parts so good I couldn’t wait till next week to post it. “Please pull a look, the theme is pink metallic club utopia” DJ and Discakes founder Pauli Cakes says on Instagram. This is the queer POC collective’s first IRL party since the pandemic, so expect big things. Longtime readers of the newsletter will recognize names like Gotha Jafar, Pushpin, Murderpact, and best of all Bronze Goddess. The whole bash is a fundraiser for Tivali AKA Tomcat Purr’s transition.
How much: $15-50 for queer / trans identifying non-white people, $25 - $100 for General Admission
That’s it for this dispatch. If you liked it please consider hitting the heart button on this post or forwarding this email to a pal! If you’re the pal please subscribe. I write once a week about upcoming worthy events underground, news & gossip, and gay shit. You can send me tips about those things by emailing thedeviantdispatch@gmail.com. If you care about drag queens, illegal parties, independent music/art/film/fashion, Charli XCX, and rebellion, you need to support The Deviant Dispatch.