HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Under the inclusive motto of “Come As You Are,” FHM — Flaming Hearts Media, the company co-led by Kristel Penn and Foxxy — and Grooby, plus the generous support of a who’s-who of industry and creator sponsors including XBIZ and Pornhub, hosted the first annual Queer Prom at the historic Avalon ballroom in the heart of Hollywood.
This inaugural Queer Prom was a resounding success, with LGBTQ creators and their industry friends enjoying a “do-over” of their high-school years’ most iconic events, this time showing themselves as they authentically are.
Entering the event attendees were led to a rainbow carpet to be photographed in all their glitz and glamour, followed by an interview with carpet host extraordinaire Banksie.
“A year ago, Foxxy and I did this random TikTok trend where we got to see what we would look like as our most authentic selves, and we talked about what it would be like to go to prom as our most authentic selves,” a dapper Penn in an impeccable prom suit told XBIZ, taking a second away from making sure that everything was running smoothly. “I threw around the idea of doing our own prom, and Foxxy said, ‘Why don’t we just do it?’ And it was that simple — so we’ve been planning this for a long time.”
Penn added they got to go to their high-school prom but, crucially not as their most authentic self.
“I got bullied a lot,” they explained, “so I didn’t get to dress how I wanted to, or look like I wanted to, or go with whom I wanted. Tonight it is an opportunity to make this right for me and my community, in a fun and wholesome way.”
Everyone mingled at the massive Avalon ballroom, in a safe, queer-friendly atmosphere that was inclusive of everyone, regardless of their sexual identity. Trans women in particular could flaunt their fashion expressions in a relaxed environment that allowed for maximum fabulousity, as DJs spun a crowd-pleasing playlist of current and nostalgic dance and pop hits.
“We are here just to have fun,” a radiant Foxxy, a dead-ringer for J. Lo in her iconic green Oscar dress, told XBIZ. “We do so many awards events, and expos, but we wanted this event to be just dress up and have fun. It’s all of the industry and friends and supporters coming together to have a night of pure, pure fun.”
And yes, without the undercurrent of competition that is baked into awards events, the attendees enjoyed a purely social affair, perfectly executed by the organizers.
“We want to support the queer community,” enthused industry veteran Rae Threat, representing Queer Prom sponsor APClips. “I’m a huge advocate for more representation and I just love that this is happening. We are here as allies. AP Clips has a lot of queer creators and we love to support them with events like this.”
Over by the bar, creator Bea York, another event sponsor, was receiving endless compliments about her eye-catching princess dress, which she described as “a cake-topper.”
“I look like a cupcake! I fell in love with this dress — it’s buttercream color, fluffy with a train and floral print. I look like a fairy-tale princess — who also does porn!”
York said it was really important for her to support Queer Prom.
“I wanted to make up for all the shitty proms that myself and some of the other people had during high school,” she added. “Despite how I present myself now, I did not go to my own high school prom — I was one of the outcast kids! So this was a nice do-over. To have a good, happy experience and to present themselves as their authentic selves.”
Another head-turner was Brittney Kade, a vision in layers upon layers of pink, who arrived to the event escorted by PornCrush’s Austin King.
Kade told XBIZ that her outfit was an original collaboration between herself and a designer.
“It has a butterfly in the very back corsetted down. It’s meant to represent my transition and I’m obsessed with it! It represents everything I went through to be where I am today.”
Kade added she picked pink because she loves Barbie.
“I think Barbie would be proud,” she added. “I actually went to my high school prom a few years ago, but I didn’t have enough money for the prom dress I really wanted. So this year I splurged, and went out and designed the perfect dress.”
On a lighter note, Kade confessed her favorite prom scene is in the movie “Carrie,” when Sissy Spacek has pig’s blood poured all over her.
“I’m so ready for my bucket of blood!” she joked.
Also a Carrie fan was another standout attendee: Chanel Santini in a much admired green princess dress topped by a tiara.
“I thrifted it from It’s a Wrap,” Santini confessed, name-checking the traditional Burbank store that recycles costumes worn in film and television.
“It was in a movie or something, it was gorgeous and I grabbed it off the wall and I had it altered to fit me,” she explained. “I wanted to have my Cinderella moment. I never got to go to prom in high school.”
Foxxy stressed the main theme of the evening: how this newest event in the adult industry social calendar allows the LGBTQ community, friends and allies to re-live their prom night.
“A lot of us never got to go to prom as we are now,” she explained. “Some of us were transitioning, some of us didn’t feel comfortable, some of us got disowned with family, or were teased in high school for being who we are.”
Foxxy herself did get to go to prom in high school, but the experience did not reflect her authentic self.
“I was a very feminine boy and I had girls wanting to come with me, because I was known for being a dancer in high school, and I was in the newspapers and local magazines, on the news,” she reminisces. “A lot of people in my community knew me as a dancer. What they didn’t know is that I was very bisexual. But I still needed to know who I was. Back in my day, I didn’t even know what trans was! And in my community there weren’t a lot of trans people.”
Wednesday night at the Avalon, the reality could not have been more different, as everyone really “came as they are.” Looking around, Foxxy admitted she “always loved the cheesy, slow-dance sequence at the end of a movie, where the romantic leads come together in this syrupy kind of moment.”
“I want all the cheese!” she declared.
Right on cue, the DJ started mixing up the current hits of a 2024 queer-friendly prom with what she called “all the great 80s love songs, especially for slow-dancing.”
The dance floor filled up to the strains of KD Lang’s “Constant Craving,” today’s biggest cult-gone-mainstream banger “Pink Pony Club” by newly-minted LGBTQ royalty Chappell Roan, Miss Lana Del Rey’s “Summertime Sadness” culminating in now revered LGBTQ elder George Michael with his timeless, irony-proof “Careless Whisper.”
The zenith of the evening: a group photo where all the industry photographers captured the joy and freedom of a community’s authentic expression.
“Look at this — queer youth should always remember it gets better,” Penn reflected. “It really, really does, but you gotta be around for it. You gotta stick around for it. And here we are! We did it! This outcome is so fabulous. It means so much for everyone not only to support the event, but each other. We are here as a community.”
