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Queer dance artist Ari Gold has died after a “long battle” with leukemia. He was 47.
Soon after his passing, several of his friends and fellow artists shared tributes to the late star and thanked him for his contributions to the LGBTQ community.
“So many memories. Some of my favorites would be when we would be at the club back in the 90’s talking intersectional feminist and queer theory in a corner for far too long,” wrote actressLaverne Cox. “You played your demos for me at your apartment on West 16th Street before you released your first album. It’s endless. You were there for so many many moments in my life.”
“So many people have come and gone from my life over the past 25 years but you have been a constant. As I’ve grown and evolved, you evolved with me,” she added. “The spiritual journey we’ve both been on has made it clear why we’ve remained in each other’s lives for so long. I’m so utterly devastated that you’ve moved on today. But I know you’ll be watching over me as you always have.”
Meanwhile, RuPaul — who starred alongside Gold in the 2007 filmStarrbooty— shared a previousinterview between the twowhen Gold went into remission for his cancer in 2019, according toOut Magazine.
“Until we meet again, dear friend,” RuPaul wrote. “@SirAriGold Love always, Ru.”
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Peppermint — a drag performer who competed onRuPaul’s Drag Raceseason 9 — also shared a tribute for the late star.
“You came into my life before I even knew who you were. Listening to you on some of my favorite morning cartoons as a little kid,” she wrote. “I never would have dreamed that we’d not only become close friends later but be tied together through our love of music Madonna and Wonder Woman.”
“You inspired and mentored me in ways that you will never know. Right now I so desperately want the world to know everything you did,” she added. “I want them to celebrate you. You understood and were open and you got it before anyone else ever did and I love you for always centering me.”
source: people.com
