Whorechata Doesn’t Play It Safe

Friday June 27th, Submission is teaming up with NYC queer collective Whorechata, bringing our glitter bar to their Pride event at the Ace Hotel. 

It’s a night for bliss, sweat, and liberation. A space for strangers to kiss in the lobby, for chosen family to hold court, for radical love to pulse through every beat. Ahead of the party, we caught up with the collective to talk about what fuels their mission, why celebration is resistance, and why thriving together becomes its own act of power - in a world that keeps trying to look away

PHOTOGRAPHY MIGUEL MCSONGWE @mcsongwe.m

“I want to see strangers meet at the lobby and make out”
- Ian

“Everyone is off their phones, dancing, and being present in the moment”
- Cassandra

“People on a bliss and sweating from their liberation on the dance floor”  - Roman

In a sea of copy-paste club nights and rainbow-washed corporate Pride, Whorechata is a revelation. The NYC-based party collective centers queer, trans, and Latinx joy - loudly, proudly, and with zero interest in diluting the message. Known for fusing tradition with chaos (think: mariachi bands after techno sets), Whorechata doesn’t just throw parties - they build worlds.

If you’ve ever been to a Whorechata party, you already know: this isn’t just nightlife - it’s a manifesto. Born out of New York’s need for something wilder, queerer, and more expansive, Whorechata is a Latinx, queer, and trans-led collective pushing back against the sterilized, commodified version of “inclusive” club culture. Their events center underground talent, community care, and unfiltered joy, with an attitude that’s all sweat, spit, and sparkle.

Whorechata makes space for people who are usually erased from the story and they have done so since their beginning. From MCs making sure the party’s intentions are heard loud and clear, to discount codes and guest lists that prioritize queer and trans people of color, everything they do is in service of the people they party for. And they’re not just staying in NYC. Whorechata is on a mission to take this energy on the road, Florida, Texas - wherever QTBIPOC joy is not just rare but politically urgent. As Whorechata’s Ian Kumamoto  told us, “If the outside world isn’t valuing us right now, that’s fine. We’ll create our own mini universe and ecosystem where we can thrive.”

Celebration and resistance go hand in hand because the people oppressing us want to make our lives harder, they want to isolate us, and they want us to think we have no power. So just getting queer and trans people in a room and giving them permission to dance with each other without thinking about anyone else going on in the outside world is resistance to me. - Ian

This is why our collaboration makes sense. Submission Beauty and Whorechata share a deep belief: That celebration and resistance can - and must - coexist. That glamour doesn’t have to be soulless. That Pride isn’t a single story, but a riot of them.

Whorechata's vision for this event at Ace was clear from the start: no cover charge, no velvet rope, no gatekeeping. “Sometimes you don’t want to be out raging until 6am just to be around other gay people,” Ian shared. “Sometimes you just want to hang out in a chic hotel lobby with your friends.” So we’re turning the Ace into exactly that: a sanctuary for connection, curiosity, and hotness.

I’ve been following Submission Beauty for a while and just like Whorechata, Submission celebrates queer and trans people all year, every year. This year especially, we saw a lot of corporations drop out of Pride celebrations because it is no longer convenient or financially safe to support LGBTQ people under this administration. With what is currently happening in the country, it’s so essential to collaborate with brands that are advocating for our communities in a way that is not performative - we are so tired of that, and we’ve seen that it doesn’t work or make things better for us. When you collaborate with people who are true advocates, you’re creating a movement that doesn’t shift in its values when the culture changes. - Ian

And yes, the goal is joy. Unapologetic, untamed, and deeply felt. This is what Pride should feel like in 2025. Not just a parade or a playlist, but a chance to carve out room for queer people to be seen in their full complexity - latinx, trans, femme, masc, nonbinary, undocumented, loud, quiet, and everything in between. Whorechata doesn’t flatten queer experience. They widen it.

If this event could whisper one thing into the ear of every person who shows up - what would it say?

“You are free to be your fullest, most vibrant self - exactly as you are.”  - Roman 

@whorechata.world @oyystersauce @broke_n_boujee @romansensation