After numerous performances in the great outdoors as part of Philly Pride celebrations over the years, Jade Starling — of hit dance group Pretty Poison — will perform indoors as part of Triumphant Pride at Mad River.
The singer and LGBT-rights activist said she is looking forward to celebrating Philly Pride in a more intimate venue.
“This is a new party for me,” she said. “Although it’s a smaller venue and I usually play with the band, this time I’m bringing in my dancers and a phenomenal light show. It’ll definitely be more like a club show.”
Starling’s performance will feature her Pretty Poison hits and serve as a video shoot and live debut for her new single, “8 Daze.”
“It’s dark and tribal,” she said of the single. “It’s definitely going back to our club roots. It will definitely have a harder flavor to it, but it’ll be dramatic and fun as well.”
Aside from Pretty Poison and her solo work, Starling also writes for other artists, such as Joss Stone. She said the process of writing for others isn’t too far removed from how she writes for herself.
“If I’m writing for another artist, I try to get into their head a little more and live it vicariously through them,” she said. “If I’m working with an artist that has an idea or direction they want to go, it gives me more of an idea of what kind of song they want to write. But for me, writing a song is just the way I’m feeling.”
Aside from music, Starling is especially committed and heartfelt in her efforts as a gay activist, something she says she’s done since the start of her career.
“As soon as I established any type of profile in the music world, it seemed like the gay, lesbian and transgender people have always been more in touch with what [Pretty Poison] were trying to do,” she said. “I’ve really believed that my gay following has been more open to anything that was more artistic. I feel more acceptance there. I think that it stems from my childhood and feeling like an outcast and bullied at the time. I feel like I found my family and more acceptance in the gay world … They have been most loyal to me over the years as friends and fans.”
Jade Starling performs at Bruce Yelk’s Triumphant Pride, which runs from 4-8 p.m. June 12 at Mad River, 126 Chestnut St. For more information, visit www.myspace.com/jadeshouse or www.nightlifegay.com.