Julian Talamantez Brolaski is a poet and country crooner but, above all else, is a careful curator of traditional country music. Brolaski’s album It’s Okay Honey comes out today, replete with yodeling, cowboy guitar and, of course, heartbreak. Brolaski was also on the ground floor of Brooklyn’s queer country scene in the 2010s. They’re too modest to say it, but that makes them an integral part of the current queer country movement.
In our interview, we discuss gender, yodeling, and the development of the queer country scene. Julian also shared with me a number of YouTube videos and recollections of their bands from their Brooklyn days: the Invert Family and Juan and the Pines. I’ve given them a home here, on The Trans Roots of Queer Country Music.