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An Evening With Women 2011: Linda Perry, Chely Wright, Juliette Lewis and more

The annual “Evening With Women: Celebrating Art, Music & Equality” event was held this past Saturday at the International Ballroom of the Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills. The night was made possible by singer/songwriter/producer Linda Perry, event producer Brent Bolthouse and the Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Center. The event benefits the Center’s services for women, including legal assistance, domestic violence services, health and mental health services and cultural arts programs. According to the Center’s Communications Manager Stevie St. John, this year’s event raised over $360,000.

Showing up on the red carpet to show their support this year’s event included Chely Wright and fiancée Lauren Blitzer, singer Grace,actress Jodie Sweetin, Kat Von D (with boyfriend Jesse James) and Queer as Folk alum Peter Paige. The show itself was a great mix of raunchy/hilarious comedy by Sarah Silverman and performances from Cat Power, Juliette Lewis and headliner Cyndi Lauper. AfterEllen was there for the entire night.

AfterEllen: This is the third year for this event. Why does it continue to be so important to the LGBT community?

Linda Perry: I think it’s important that everyone just get involved because basically this is a human event, it’s not just a gay event. It’s about parents who throw their kids out on the street for being gay.

Some of these parents – you see them in the courtroom when their kid committed murder and they’re crying “How did this happen to my son?” but they throw the child out for being gay! I have a hard time with that. I don’t understand that. It’s the parent. They should support who they choose to be.

That’s my number one reason that I’m involved with this not to mention all the wonderful things they do for the community. It’s a human event about people supporting people.

AE: Tonight we’re celebrating women. What is it about the power of women when we come together for a cause?

LP: Women – we have the feline, we have the instinct and the intuition and men are not as clued into stuff like that. When women go to the movie theater they group together, sharing popcorn but when guys go to the movie theater they sit apart, skip a seat, and it’s like “Who wants to see that?” Guys don’t want to be connecting. Women are connected and they’re chatty and they talk and it’s fun. They’re strong and powerful and it’s fun to see women in their element.

AE: We’re also celebrating women in music tonight. How is someone like Lady Gaga changing images for women in her music?

LP: I don’t know her well enough, to be quite honest. I’ve heard some songs [but] I feel that she’s really going out there and doing stuff and being supportive and that’s all that really matters. What is she doing for the women community? Hell, I don’t even know what I’m doing!

AE: From where you stand, is it harder for women in the music biz?

LP: It depends on the time of year and what trend is in. Sometimes the trend is women are hot. Sometimes the trend is they’re not. A few years ago you had Sara Bareilles, Amy Winehouse, Lily Allen – it was like a trail of women taking over and then it stops and then another whole breed comes in. The music business is always fickle. It doesn’t know what it wants because it doesn’t really choose things that last.

AfterEllen: Why is it important for you to be here tonight?

Chely Wright: I’m here because Linda Perry asked me to be here. We’ve developed a good friendship over the past year and we’ve written some songs together. I know this is a big deal of hers [and] when you think back 20-30 years to some very strong women in music I can’t think of anyone more prominent than Linda Perry and Cyndi Lauper.

AE: Do you think women – gay or straight – have it tougher than men in the music business?

CW: When I started out making records in the early ’90s, Loretta Lynn was a big hero of mine and became a mentor and we talked about that. She was one of the biggest pioneers. She was one of the first women to write her own material and have hit records.

We were talking about the good ol’ boy ways of entertainment and record making and show business, if you will, and she said “Honey, it’s harder for a girl. We have to get up earlier and stay up later but don’t fixate on it. If you get fixated on that you’ll get mad and you won’t prosper.” She said, “You can’t change everything. Just get in there and get done what you can get done” and I really appreciated that advice from her early on. If you focus on “Oh, it’s harder for me,” you’ll become a bitter, angry person and that’s not my style.

AE: The press has a heavy on eye on you both as you plan your upcoming wedding. Is there a pressure knowing there are so many keeping tabs on the event?

Lauren Blitzer: It’s tough when people ask “Did you get this? Did you get that?” [Laughs]

CW: That’s stressful when people point out, “At this point in wedding planning, you should have this, this and this” but as far as the fans and people looking, I’ve been a public person for the greater part of my life so I don’t mind it. It’s new for Lauren. [to Lauren] Does it bother you?

LB: No!

CW: She handles it so well. She’s a published author so she’s experienced this before but I will tell you this: I do feel a great responsibility as a role model for young people and not just LGBT people – young people in general. I want all young people to get out there and take the bull by its tail and swing it around and have fun. Honor themselves, keep their heads on straight.

But, no, I don’t feel a lot of added pressure. It’s always been who I was.

AE: Have you ever sung “True Colors” in concert? I would imagine you could sing the hell out of it!

CW: I never have but I’ve sung it at the top of my lungs at my house or in the car. I almost recorded “Time After Time” for my Lifted Off The Ground record. Maybe I should revisit that, what do you think?

LB: Maybe we should talk to Cyndi.

AfterEllen: How important is an event like this not just for women and music but for equality? Juliette Lewis: It’s so exciting. This is the third year for this fundraiser for the Gay and Lesbian center. It’s a big one in Los Angeles, but what you hope with a fundraiser like this is that it shines a light on the necessity to have a center in every major city because it does so much for the youth community and all of those who have been cast aside. I’m excited that I’m not touring and I can lend my voice and my energy to this cause.

AE: What is Lady Gaga contributing to the message? JL: She’s done a lot! Particularly in the gay community. She’s loud and proud. I just respect anybody who raises their voice and does something with it and can also write fun little pop songs on the side. It’s really about shining a light on things you believe in. I come from a different generation so my heroes — one of them is here tonight — Cyndi Lauper, Grace Jones, Tina Turner. I’ll be covering the Ike and Tina version of “Proud Mary” tonight. Those are my heroes. Even though this year’s “An Evening With Women” event was the third annual, there was no shortage of excitement and enthusiasm during this evening dedicated to celebrating art, music and women in the International Ballroom at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills.

While there were many repeat appearances from last year’s show like Sarah Silverman, another familiar face, Kat Von D, turned heads not only for the tattoos adorning her body but for being joined by controversial fiancée (and Sandra Bullock ex) Jesse James. (It was no surprise that the twosome skipped talking to reporters on the red carpet).

There were just as many new faces such as all-grown-up Full House star Jodie Sweetin, Russian rock singer Grace and Fashion Police‘s George Kotsiopoulous and Chely Wright with fiancée Lauren Blitzer by her side. (After having such a great chat with them on the red carpet, I was more than a little bummed Chely didn’t sing! Maybe next year.)

The theme of the night, besides the obvious support for women and the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center, seemed to be women who rock. That’s understandable when event co-chair Linda Perry called up some of her best friends in the business to come and entertain the packed ballroom at the Beverly Hilton.

The show started with a bang when Cat Power burst onto the stage and sang three pulsating, hard-rock songs that made the crowd want to hurry up and finish eating their chicken or vegetable dinner and get out of their seats and dance.

CEO of the Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Center Lorri L. Jean next came to the stage and, instead of merely talking about the work that the Center does day in and day out, she brought 15-year old Syd Fox and her mother Franne Golde onto the stage. Fox talked firsthand about the profound direction she’d received from the Center from the time she was 12 years old. Fox’s emotional and powerful speech was matched only by Golde’s, who broke into tears talking about the time when she’d drop her child off at school (which she compared to a war zone) knowing that her daughter would be picked on and ridiculed merely for being true to herself.

Thanks to the Center, they’ve both been able to overcome the animosity and turn it into strength. After a standing ovation for both of them, Lorri L. Jean returned to speak proudly about the 40th anniversary of the Center, which opened its doors in 1971.

All that sentiment aside, it was time to raise some money and Linda Perry led the live auction, which offered up items such as an amazing house rental in Kauai, a ticket to the American Idol finale taping in Los Angeles and a tattoo done by none other than Kat Von D, at item which fetched $12,000 for the Center.

Next up was a rocked out performance by Juliette Lewis. Having never seen her perform her music before, Lewis is definitely not the same kid who captivated film audiences in Cape Fear. Instead, wearing tight white pants, a mid-drift top and bandana, Lewis channeled the energy from the room and thrust it back ten-fold. In fact, her closing number of “Proud Mary” was pretty damn amazing and brought the room to its feet. Tina Turner would’ve been proud.

A break from the music came when comedian Sarah Silverman stepped out for some comedy where, like last year, she brought the subject of her parents’ genitalia into the conversation. Regardless of how inappropriate and crude the fearless Silverman can get, the audience always ends up laughing and that’s what it’s all about, right?

For example, she talked about the fact that a kid’s main wish in the Make A Wish Foundation has gotta be “not to die,” so the organization should actually be called “Make Another Wish Foundation.” So, so wrong but the laughter in the room was uproarious. (This reporter had heard the joke from her before and still couldn’t help but laugh at its inappropriateness!)

Finally, nothing closes out a night like the amazing Cyndi Lauper coming to the stage with her Appalachian dulcimer, which she played to perfection during that song that gets everyone crying — “True Colors.” She then ventured into the blues arena with her moving song “Shattered Dreams” before ending the night on a high note with the entire ballroom singing and dancing to her huge hit, “Girls Just Want To Have Fun!” That was the end of another great event that raised over $360,000 for the Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Center. If you’d like to get involved in the Center or make a donation, go to www.lagaycenter.org. Until next year.

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