Affectionately dubbed, THE Dyke Diva, in part because of her complete command over any audience and because simply, she is the whole package, singer, songwriter, activist and showstopper, Lori Michaels, grew up in the small town of Fairview, New Jersey. In her youth, she began training professionally at Broadway Dance Center in New York City. She later graduated from New York University with a pre-law degree.
Lori’ efforts with numerous charitable organizations remain the heart and soul of all that she does. She is an entertainer and an activist for causes that she truly cares about. With numerous awards and accolades, hundreds of events (most of which she organized/helped produce herself) and scads of events on Lori’s upcoming calendar, including headliner for this year’s South Florida Pridefest—she shows no sign of slowing down anytime soon. She keeps solid commitments to programs/projects such as H.E.R.O (raising awareness and funds for breast cancer), A.N.G.E.L. (an initiative promoting mental health awareness and suicide prevention), Dance for Health and O.U.T. Proud! (promoting equal rights for all, helping in the opposition of human rights’ violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity). She is also the founder and president of the non-profit organization, Reach Out, Inc,. as well as an honorary board member of the Joey Dipaolo AIDS Foundation.
In honor of Women’s History Month, we were thrilled to be able to catch up with our good friend and history-maker, Lori, while on a very short break from her current tour and bring her to you as this month’s cover story...