Next up in our Pride of Place column, Melissa Carper teaches us about the queer magic of Eureka Springs, Arkansas, where she spent her first few years after coming out. Carper has spent the last little while tearing up the country with her widely praised solo projects and her old-time supergroup wonder Women of Country. Carper is readying her new album Borned In Ya on July 19th.
We’re running this column because queer country is everywhere, and Pride is every day. Stay tuned for more reflections on pride and place throughout June!
I’d love to hear more about the places that artists feel their most joyous and free — especially in relation to queer country music. This could be a town, a neighborhood, or even a venue. What is that place for you?
Eureka Springs, Arkansas was a great little town for me back when I was coming out. I lived there on and off in my 20’s-30’s and it was a very accepting environment for me to feel comfortable and normal as a gay person. It has a very diverse population and, having grown up in a town in which I knew absolutely no one who was out, and then coming to a town with a large LGBTQ population was good for me.
Do you have a favorite memory there?
A favorite memory would be moving there from Nebraska and, for the first time in my life, meeting so many beautiful people of all ages who were LGBTQ+ and so friendly and welcoming. I actually hung out mostly in bars that weren’t ‘gay’ bars, but bars that were full of straight and gay and everything in between. I liked that it just felt perfectly ‘normal’ to be gay — as it should.
What should visitors know about Eureka Springs?
Go try to find the local night life in the cool spots. The locals are really wonderful. It’s been awhile since I have lived there, so I’d say it’s always changing where the good hangs are, but just walking around downtown would be a good place to start. It’s a beautiful town nestled into the Ozark hills.
What do you think it is about the town that helps it feel so special?
Eureka Springs is a healing place; people would go for the healing springs, and it was also a sacred Native American site. I think you can feel the magic of the place because of this. This town will teach you lessons and also “kick you out,” ha, as in it will let you know when it is time for you to move on to other places.
Do you have any plans for Pride?
I am doing a lot of touring in June and getting ready for my album release in July. And, my single, “Somewhere Between Texas and Tennessee,” is out on June 28, which is International Pride Day.
(Hey, you! You can read more about Melissa Carper and her beloved van in Issue 3 of the Rainbow Rodeo zine!)
Borned in Ya by Melissa Carper will be out on July 19 via Thirty Tigers Records