Given that Waterloo Region has a rich history of live music and concerts, a local trans musician felt it was time to create a safe and welcoming space for queer and transgender musicians and performers. Ashley Thoms is the founder of Harmony Replacement Therapy (HRT), a KW-based music community. Michaela Rose, the Director of Operations at HRT works alongside Thoms to make this space a reality. Their next open stage will be hosted on Oct. 20.
“Before this upcoming weekend, not for a very long time, in a rock band that played like a pop rock band that played the bars when I was in high school, I played saxophone, and I miss it. I miss it so much. I’m playing bass in a punk band that has formed recently,” Rose said.
The arts collective hosts monthly open mic nights for community members to gather and share in creativity and artistic talents. While allies can enjoy and support, the shows will only feature transgender and gender non-conforming artists. The events operate on an open-mic basis, and no training or experience is needed for performers.
“You know, it’s about making that space so that all of my trans siblings can, can come and be, be that rock star, be that performer, that they’ve always been and have always wanted to be,” Rose said.
As an experienced musician, Thoms hopes to provide a stage that is gender-affirming. She has felt unsafe and bullied in musical environments herself and hopes to create a space where others can avoid that.
“[I’ve been] not being able to get my music out to the world. I love performing, and I missed it so so terribly. And there have been a lot of people that have been telling us how long it’s been that they’ve had a place to play, and they finally feel that they get to share this really important aspect of their being with other people,” Thoms said.
In February of 2022, Betty Anne Keller produced a documentary called Rock This Town, which brought to life the exciting history of live music in KW from the 1960s and 1970s.
Thoms and Rose hope to bring back the live-music scene in the Region but make it more inclusive to the queer, trans and gender non-conforming community. HRT hosts their open-mic nights at the rehearsal space of 44 Gaukel St., Kitchener.
To promote community building and solidarity, participants of the open mic may request accompaniment as backup vocals or instruments.
“In [my] pre-transition era, performing was the only place that I felt like I could be myself, that I could not be shy, and I could just let the music speak for me during transition in the early years, especially, I felt that I wasn’t safe to do that,” Thoms said.
HRT open stages contain a variety of different acts. Musical acts have up to nine minutes while non musical acts have up to four minutes. To accommodate people who have over-stimulation needs, there is a quiet space down the hall.
Thoms and Rose hope to keep things accessible, so they are sticking with a pay-what-you-can (PWYC) model. Community members who cannot afford to contribute anything, are still welcome to attend. The HRT shows are being funded out of pocket by the administrative team and are supplemented by donations from patrons and performers.
“I never experienced anything like that. I was dancing and moving and singing with big flowy movements, or a song that I’ve been playing since I was in high school, and I realized how much more of this that I need,” Thoms said.
For many who attended it was the first time they performed as themselves. HRT hopes to inspire and encourage more trans and gender non-conforming people to perform across the region and beyond.
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