Scroll To Top

People Are Roasting Frank Ocean's PrEP-Themed, Invite-Only Nightclub

It didn't go over so well...

cornbreadsays

Late last night in a New York City nightclub, reclusive singer Frank Ocean threw an exclusive party called PrEP+. According to a press release, the party is the first of an invite-only series dedicated to creating safe spaces for queer people to meet and dance. The name is "an homage to what could have been of the 1980s' NYC club scene if the drug PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis)—which can be taken daily to prevent HIV/AIDs for those who are not infected but are at high risk—had been invented in that era.”

But the concept and theme didn't go over quite as well as Ocean thought it would. LGBTQ+ people took to Twitter to express their grievances and, of course, make memes:

\u201cThe Frank Ocean PrEP+ Party bout to be all white gays since they\u2019re the only ones who can afford it\u201d
— Phillip (@Phillip) 1571352522

\u201cFrank Ocean planning PrEP+\u201d
— Dominic (@Dominic) 1571409800

For some who lived through the peak of the AIDS crisis, NYC nightclubs were sanctuaries for LGBTQ+ people and the party's revisionist erasure feels disrespectful.

\u201cActually, the NYC club scene was amazing during ACT UP\u2019s heyday. It was our escape from some hard shit, and our way to bond as we changed the world. Oh, and everyone was invited.\n#FrankOcean @PrEP4AllNow\u201d
— Peter Staley (@Peter Staley) 1571403129

\u201cso I\u2019m at the frank ocean prep party and I guarantee you nightlife during the epidemic was far better than this. \n\nmind you there\u2019s no sex, no prep navigators, no community orgs. not sure what he was trying to do here.\u201d
— Jason Rosenberg (@Jason Rosenberg) 1571371497

None
— MJC \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08 (@MJC \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08) 1571408998

\u201cwe love you frank, but 80\u2019s nightlife was revolutionary because of people living with HIV and their caretakers. let\u2019s uplift our elders and honor their legacy. https://t.co/rRdattak17\u201d
— ACT UP NY (@ACT UP NY) 1571342849

\u201creading that frank ocean's prep party was full of straight people and gay socialites is so....expected\u201d
— \u02b2 \u1d43\u02e1\u1d49\u02e3\u1d43\u207f\u1d48\u1d49\u02b3 \u1d50\u1d43\u02b3\u02e2 (@\u02b2 \u1d43\u02e1\u1d49\u02e3\u1d43\u207f\u1d48\u1d49\u02b3 \u1d50\u1d43\u02b3\u02e2) 1571401517

\u201cIsn\u2019t it kind of perfect that PrEP+ is super exclusive (while getting a shit ton of press)? I mean it is like PrEP itself \u2014 by design, most people who need and want it can\u2019t get it \u2014 despite the facade of accessibility.\u201d
— James Krellenstein (@James Krellenstein) 1571366007

Ocean's missteps were best-driven home by Dr. Steven W. Thrasher, who pointed out you can't separate the vibrancy of 1980s and '90s queer nightlife without the AIDS crisis and that using it as a party theme is distasteful and an ugly capitalistic money-grab at it's worst.

\u201cThis is a weird flex. \n\nIt imagines *universal* access to PrEP at an "exclusive" party?\n\nIt imagines the club scene in the 80s MADE BY ppl living with HIV as if...if would have been better without them?\n\nAnd what good is PrEP access to ppl who were homeless, jobless?\u201d
— Dr. Thrasher (@Dr. Thrasher) 1571376230

\u201cPpl living with HIV in the 80s faced almost certain death. Which formed "futurity," queer theory & NYC culture (including NYC night club culture). These things couldn't have happened withOUT people living with HIV.\u201d
— Dr. Thrasher (@Dr. Thrasher) 1571376230

\u201cLike, it's great to imagine the early 20th century without racism. \n\nBut you can't imagine the blues coming into being by non-Black ppl, nor by Black ppl who didn't endure Jim Crow. \n\nIt was Black brilliance AND Black abjection that forged music out of pain that made the blues.\u201d
— Dr. Thrasher (@Dr. Thrasher) 1571376230

\u201cI was thrilled to see that, after hearing from @actupny (active now for 32 years & going), @angiecthomas changed the name of her production company. While AIDS has sadly been a cash cow marketing opportunity for drug companies, it needn't be for artists. https://t.co/LpummM9Ghq\u201d
— Dr. Thrasher (@Dr. Thrasher) 1571376230

\u201c@actupny @angiecthomas And it shows a lack of imagination for an artist to think of eradicating AIDS with just one (mostly privately controlled and for profit) tool like PrEP. As Zoe Leonard put it so well,\u201d
— Dr. Thrasher (@Dr. Thrasher) 1571376230

We have four words for Ocean:

[iframe https://giphy.com/embed/yS9mN1Ok2R008 allowfullscreen="" class=^{{"giphy-embed"}}^ frameborder="0" height="364" width="480"]