Mid-Atlantic Leather Weekend is always one of the biggest weekend events for Washington DC, but this year, the team at KINETIC Presents have partnered with the Centaur Motorcycle Club to bring KINETIC: Kink to our nation’s capital. Over four days, there will be four official events headlined by seven of the world’s biggest festival DJ’s. KINETIC is known to bring the stellar performances, so for KINETIC: Kink they’re bringing a performance from RuPaul’s Drag Race dynamo Katya as well as the legendary Boomer Banks!
I sat down to chat with one of the people behind the KINETIC team, famed event producer Dougie Meyer recently and he gave me some insight into the magical weekend that KINETIC has planned for MAL Weekend. Whether it’s the house/disco sounds of DJ’s Alexis Tucci & Dan Slater or the classic sounds of DJ’s Abel & Alex Acosta, there is truly something for everyone this year at KINETIC: Kink!
Michael Cook: What initially brought one of our favorite New York City nightlife mainstays to our nation’s capital of Washington DC?
Dougie Meyer: I actually got a job offer in D.C. to run the famed Town Danceboutique and they brought me down to run the venue as their General Manager. That is when New York City nightlife was at that lull moment and I just thought would just pull the trigger. When I first moved down to run Town, I was still jumping on the train every week to meet Steve Sidewalk in New York City, then would take the train back at 4:30 in the morning and have to be at Town the next day! I am glad I don’t have to do that much traveling any more, but DC has treated me well. It has only just blown up from there since Town closed, and I have been very fortunate.
MC: Tell me about what the KINETIC Presents team has in store for Mid-Atlantic Leather Weekend…
DM: MAL Weekend is Mid Atlantic Leather Weekend, it’s a four day weekend event for the leather and kink enthusiasts and it continues to grow in popularity. They all come into the district for this spectacular weekend. This group come into DC for the weekend and they have famous events at the host hotel. KINETIC is very proud and fortunate to have once again partnered with the Centaur Motorcycle Club, who are in charge of this weekend for years. We have partnered with them to produce the nightly events for the weekend.
We have the kick-off event on Thursday at Bunker and that is everyone coming into town ready for the weekend and we are going to kick things off. We have Uncut on Friday night and then we do the main event with is Saturday at Echostage, one of the most famous nightclubs in the entire country. We are fortunate enough to have Katya from RuPaul’s Drag Race hosting and performing at that event. She is one of the most popular queens and we are so exited to have her, we have gotten so much positive feedback on social media that we are having her performing for this event. Then we have the close out party on Sunday which is the final big blowout for the weekend. That is when I think everyone is exhausted and ready to sleep again (laughs)!
MC: The music for these weekend events is so crucial and the music you have curated for this event is truly eclectic. How do you choose the DJ’s that are going to perform at the weekend events?
DM: The music and the DJ’s are absolutely crucial to these types of events, especially one like Mid Atlantic Leather. Not only do you want to appeal to the leather and kink community, but you also want to appeal to the local DC clubgoing fan base. We want them to feel comfortable coming, you don’t have to own leather to attend MAL events. It is an open and welcoming environment for everyone. We want to make sure that we are keying in the DJs and the music for these events tp a very wide range of crowds. We do that by choosing the best of the best in the industry.
MC: You have selected Alexis Tucci to spin discoVERS XL, the closing party at Zebbie’s Garden. She is helping lead the charge to bring in a brand new sound to circuit events that is very disco/house inspired.
DM: it is interesting that you ask that because that is something that we have absolutely caught onto in the past couple years. This new sound is becoming a very valued part of the industry. When the boys see Alexis’ name on the advertisements, they go crazy. They know that they are not only going to get an incredible set of music with these high energy disco sets of vocals, but it’s Alexis herself who brings her own energy to the dance floor. They just gag for her and it’s so incredible when we can incorporate her style into some more of these classic DJ’s into the weekend.
MC: DC is definitely its own distinct market, and many of the nightlife offerings in the district are spread out across town. What is the reaction that you get from the local DC community when KINETIC Presents throws an event?
DM: I think that anyone in general is excited when a big event like MAL comes to DC. It’s bringing more people into the DC community. As a result, you’re not only getting the thousands of people who are coming in to take part in the events that we as KINETIC produce, but you are also bringing thousands of people into DC who for example don’t want to go to the main event on Friday or Saturday but will go to the smaller venues like JR’s, The Little Gay Pub, Number Nine, or Trade. I think in the end, all of the smaller establishments are benefitting from a festival weekend such as this.
MC: For people that have never been to Washington DC, how would you describe the vibe as a whole to them?
DM: I think that DC in general is a very welcoming community. I think because it’s a very transient city. It’s very rare that someone says “I grew up in DC”. If you’re in DC you’re there for a job, you’re working on the hill or you’re in the service. It means that at some point in time, they came to DC as a new person who wanted to feel welcomed into the community. As a result, i think that that is reflected back to other new people. They want to treat others the way that they wanted to be treated when they first came to DC.
MC: From New York City to now DC, you are one of the predominant promoters in the industry. When you look back, is there a pivotal moment that you remember where you realized that this would be the path you would follow?
DM: I think really what truly was the turning point for me is when Town closed. What happened was, I was bought up in New York City by the best of the best; John Blair, Greg Jones, and I have worked with so many amazing people. Then to come to DC and work with the best team at Town down here, then Town all of a sudden wasn’t here. I went back to New York City, because Town was the big thing to do in DC. When it closed, you only had the smaller bars; someone needed to bring something big back.
When I started Avalon down here, that was the first step in making something new happen post Town era. Avalon became so successful and that is when I partnered up with my business partners Zach (Renovátes) and Jesus Quispe (Q) and they were doing similar things. We all just thought, we’re all doing something similar but different. If we come together and do this together, we can make this a much larger scale. That is what we did and that is how KINETIC came about.
MC: This weekend is a truly magical weekend. For someone coming for the fist time, what do you want someone to get out of it?
DM: I want them to come for their first time and say “Wow, I had no idea that DC had that type of nightlife experience”! I want the “Wow” factor. Here’s the cool part; I guarantee you the events that we produce as the KINETIC team, we are going to give them that wow factor,. This is going to be one of the largest MAL events in history and I am so excited for it. It is so cool in the end, to know that we are working with the Centuar MC and they are an organization that gives back to the community. Just last year alone they gave 150,000 back to LGBT organizations and charities. It is so cool to know that what we are doing helps give money back.
All Event Photos Courtesy: KINETIC: Kink
For tickets and more information, visit KineticPresents.com
For information about MAL Weekend including hotels, day passes, and other events, visit www.leatherweekend.com. All MAL “Full Weekend Package” pass holders have access to the discoVERS XL Sunday Closing Party.
