Pride Spotlight: DEERE
Hey Tumblr, this Pride Spotlight is no fluke—she’s serving you lewks, kooks, & spooks! DEERE is a partnered Twitch broadcaster with a focus on drag content and scary video games. As a proud TwitchCon Ambassador—someone from the community selected for showcasing positivity and diversity—DEERE founded the Stream Queens team. Ready to learn more about this lady-gamer extraordinaire? Read on.
How do you bridge gaming and queer interests in your streams?
As a kid, gaming was an escape for me. Naturally, I would go for the super powerful, badass women in fighting games. My parents are huge fans of drag and queer culture like Divine and Rocky Horror, so I started to be super inspired by the attitudes, fashions, and storylines of queer characters and strong women. I’m very lucky because not everyone has an upbringing like that, and I am forever grateful and indebted to my parents for instilling values of acceptance in my upbringing. I was encouraged to express myself authentically from a young age, so I thought, hey, why not play video games in drag—effectively intertwining my two favorite passions! Bam!
What does Pride mean to you?
First and foremost, Pride means unapologetically being yourself and being happy with yourself. When you are happy and kind, others feel it, and it can rub off on them too. It’s also about showing appreciation and giving back. I’m lucky to have supportive family, friends, and fans because I know there are people out there who have it much harder. That’s why Pride is also about supporting your community. This year Twitch is partnering with The Trevor Project, a non-profit organization aiming to provide crisis intervention and suicide prevention services for young members of the LGBTQ+ community. I am supporting this cause in my streams for the whole of June.
How can we continue to support the LGBTQIA+ community?
We can all make this world a better place to live in by showing kindness and understanding. When it comes to the queer community, representation and visibility are key. Pride is about equality, something the LGBTQ+ community hasn’t quite reached yet. So, when given the chance, we need to prop each other up so we can say, “we are HERE!” It’s important to showcase the fact that many different types of people enjoy fun activities, such as gaming—especially if the avenue is dominated by a certain ethnicity, gender, orientation, or class. That way everyone has a role model and can be inspired to pursue their passions. I’m hoping that through my drag and video game interests, I’m showing lots of people that you can play games and be authentic about your identity at the same time!
Is there a gaming-inspired drag cosplay you always wanted to do but haven’t yet?
I have cosplayed as the Pokémon Jynx, the Great Fairy from Zelda, and Poison from Street Fighter so far. I would love to do more Pokémon, Birdo from the Mario series, and Jeanne from Bayonetta 2!
How can others follow you?
Do you like video games? Do you like drag? Never fear, DEERE is here! You can check out my livestreams, and while you’re at it check out my Stream Queens family—a whole network of drag content creators on Twitch! Or check out my Twitter and Instagram. Thank you so much for having me!
Thank you for the interview, DEERE! Want to check out some more amazing LGBTQIA+ gaming content creators? Check out our other Pride Spotlights here!
