Under the K Bridge at LadyLand Festival

It’s true…Madonna judged the Vogue House Ball.

Photo by Ricardo Gomes

There aren’t many instances where being underneath a bridge can feel like paradise, but LadyLand Festival changed our minds. To end Pride Month with a bang, the two-day festival brought out some of the LGBTQ+ community’s most iconic names at the Under the K Bridge Park along Brooklyn and Queens’ Kosciuszko Bridge. Every year, LadyLand continues to expand as a staple during Pride. This year, it spanned three stages — which inevitably meant more dancing, showing out, and a stronger sense of community that the festival has fostered since it began in 2018.

Hosted by Paul’s Dolls, two dozen artists at LadyLand performed each day. They racked up almost 50 artists over two days in six hours on the Fist Stage, Resist Stage, and Red Bull’s Truck Stage. On Friday’s first night, thousands of people showed out for Jon Ali, Kim Anh, Kandy Muse, Mahmood, Aliyah’s Interlude, HORSEGIRL, Miss Twink USA, Griffin Maxwell Brooks, and many more. The showstopper of the night: the Nasty Girl herself. The crowd matched Tinashe’s freak as she closed the night with a packed crowd at 1 a.m.

Photos by Matteo Prandoni and Ricardo Gomes

Despite the rain on Saturday night, the anticipation was even higher, with more people bearing the fluctuating weather. The energy was palpable as thousands of people gathered to see Julia Fox, Tokischa, Arca, LSDXOXO, Concrete Husband, Tama Gucci, Sevdaliza, MJ Nebreda, Bob the Drag Queen, A.G. Cook, Bearcat, Papi Juice, and more. Our highlight of the night was the Vogue Ball House Battle judged by Arca, Tokischa, Sevdaliza, Bob the Drag Queen, and the Madonna.

There were tens across the board: the House of Balenciaga, the House of Champions, the House of Alpha Omega, and the House of Aviance. “Aside from my birthday, New York Pride is the most important day of the year,” Madonna emphasizes to the starstruck crowd.

Photos by Matteo Prandoni

Festival goers dressed to impress: They bravely dressed in leather and layered dresses at 90 degrees. Meanwhile, others dressed in Poster Girl-esque mini dresses and bodysuits, jock straps, fashionable masks, glammed makeup, exorbitant jewelry, laid wigs, platform boots, and of course, rainbow apparel.

LadyLand quotes the late William Munro to describe the festival: “An army of lovers will never be defeated.” Created by Ladyfag, the festival is intended to be an unapologetically queer safe space. It’s a commemorative coming together free of homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, fatphobia, racism, sexism, ableism, aggression, and violence. It’s home to some of the community’s favorite drag queens, ballrooms, DJs, and performers — making LadyLand one of the most anticipated events during Pride. We already can’t wait to see what LadyLand 2025 will bring us.