Pride Celebration Recap: Panel Hosted by Jason Lee

Bigo Live, a global leader in live streaming and entertainment, was proud to celebrate Pride Month this year with a plethora of activities happening around the world.

On June 18, a multi-guest panel discussion took place hosted by entrepreneur, founder of Hollywood Unlocked, and Wild ‘N Out star Jason Lee. Consisting of the streaming service’s most notable LGBTQ creators, the panel also included Hollywood heavy hitter Tiffany Haddish, reality TV royalty Tiffany Pollard, and a special guest appearance by rap goddess Cardi B.

“While diversity, inclusivity, and tolerance should be practiced every day, Pride Month helps shine the spotlight on LGBTQ causes, and I couldn’t be happier to host a powerful panel on Bigo highlighting LGBTQ streamers and issues,” Lee says. “I’m excited to partner with Bigo who gives everyone a voice and a platform, and I hope as they grow, they continue to find ways to make Bigo the place where creators of color and the LGBTQ+ communities can truly control their individuality and profitability through their culturally conscious content.”

Additionally, Haddish contributed all earnings from her appearance to the She Ready Foundation, a nonprofit organization Haddish founded that empowers, supports, and encourages children living in the foster care system, and Bigo Live made a $10,000 donation to the National Center for Transgender Equality, a nonprofit, social equality organization founded in 2003 by transgender activist Mara Keisling in Washington, D.C.

Lee took some time to talk about the event with OFM.

Can you begin by telling us about the panel discussion you hosted on Bigo Live and how the audience response was?
I was asked to partner up with Bigo, and I was honored to do so to celebrate Pride. I asked my friends Tiffany Haddish and Tiffany Pollard to help by elevating and amplifying the voices of those in the LGBTQ community on different topics that range from mental health to people’s coming out stories. It went very well. I think people really enjoy having celebrities and creatives connect on a platform that is bringing both worlds together.

What did you personally enjoy the most about hosting this panel?
I always enjoy hearing people’s stories because I am a storyteller. That is what I do with Hollywood Unlocked. So, I loved being able to interview people about their experience, specifically in my community. Being the first openly gay, nationally syndicated radio host in urban radio is an honor, so to use my platform to pull the veil back on some of these stories, it has been a great opportunity.

How beneficial of a platform do you believe Bigo is for LGBTQ streamers, entertainers, and content creators?
I think it is great. In the midst of a pandemic, a lot of people have figured out how to create captivating content on digital streaming platforms like Bigo. I think they will still have a lot of work to do in keeping the community safe and being able to protect those voices, because as much as you are giving them a platform, you also need to have the guardrails that do not allow it to become a distraction to the progress that we are doing as an overall community. Ultimately, you have these creators who make content from their bedrooms and living rooms making upwards of $20,000 a month. Hopefully, they will reinvest and help build our platforms.

How exciting was it to have Tiffany Haddish and Tiffany Pollard participating on the panel?
It was very exciting. Tiffany Pollard is a reality star icon; I have known her for about 15 years, and Tiffany Haddish is one of my closest friends. Her story of how she came up and broke through the ranks of comedy, TV, and film is inspiring. She is all about putting other people on, specifically creators of color. It is amazing to see her do that and stay true to the Tiffany Haddish brand.

The panel even had an appearance from Cardi B. Can you talk more about that?
That was a big moment. One of the things I was most proud of when it came to the Pride panel was inviting Cardi B. She has been a huge supporter of the LGBTQ community, and I think she also does a great job with inclusion and visibility of the trans community. Her hair stylist and makeup artist are both trans women; the person who does her clothes is gay, and her sister is a lesbian. She has shown so much support, and I think that is very important. When I called and asked her to do it, she couldn’t wait to say yes.

What does Pride mean to you?
To me, Pride means just having that overall confidence and standing in who you are. I am very proud to be gay; I am very proud to be Black; I am very proud to be a business owner and entrepreneur, and I am very proud of all the trials and tribulations I have worked through. How I have been able to push through it all and my ability to survive. I outline in my book, God Must Have Forgotten About Me, I am still standing, and I stand for other people to see me as a testament. I think Pride is something that we all should have. It is easier said than done, but events like this help.

What do you believe are some LGBTQ issues and topics we should be paying more attention to?
There is a story that we posted recently on Hollywood Unlocked of this kid who was bullied by his parents. There was a video that went viral of them shaving his head and calling him all types of negative names and comments, just trying to humiliate him. We must continue to highlight stories like those so people like that can be shamed into the abyss, and incidents like that do not reoccur. I am really sensitized to seeing kids being bullied for being gay.

I think what Michelle Obama did for Zaya Wade, daughter of Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade was a big thing, amplifying her movement as a 12-year-old, transgender kid. I also think that platforms like Bigo are making sure they step up and hold creators accountable to walking the talk that they stand for. You cannot have a platform with no guardrails. Right now, on the platform, we have a huge LGBTQ presence, but again, I think we can do more for trust and safety to keep the community safe.

What more do you hope to accomplish with your platform to ensure queer stories are being told and brought to the forefront?
Being a face for the LGBTQ community and being on nationally syndicated radio, I have been talking with lots of people about doing a national talk show. That would be something I would want to do. I would love to partner and host events in the LGBTQ community, and I recently donated $50,000 between The Trevor Project and the Los Angeles LGBTQ Center to help with their fight against bullying of kids and to make sure that they are continuing their programs. I want to continue to do more and inspire others to do more with my platform.

Stay connected with Lee by following him on Instagram, Hollywood Unlocked, and Bigo Live. Click here to watch the full panel discussion.

Photos Courtesy of Jason Lee and Sham