Jun. 10, 2009 - Issue #712: Hot Summer Guide 2009

Kate Reid

Funny girl: 'Homofolkie' Reid sees the humour in life

There may be a lot of cultural factors that weigh into the stigma, but there's a long-running stereotype that women just aren't as funny as men, especially when it comes to straight-up stand-up. Despite the loads of hilarious exceptions out there—try Tina Fey, Sarah Silverman or Margaret Cho—there aren't a lot of gals who make it doing "women's comedy."

The vibrantly faux-hawked, multiply-pierced Kate Reid, on the other hand, takes her routine one step further. The self-professed "homofolkie" is one funny lady. And she's not afraid to be funny about being a woman, or being a dyke.

"Most people say lesbians are not funny; they would say we're really serious and feminist and hardcore," Reid says. "When I was younger I was one of those kids who sort of blended in. Now I have a sense of humour about life because I know that it helps in times of difficulty and challenge."

Reid's brand of folk music is a meld of spoken word poetry tinged with witticisms about lesbian culture, Canadiana and, of course, just a little bit of good-natured man-hating. It might not seem like a style that's palatable to a wide audience, but her songs have a certain resonance beyond her own demographic, and that's something that still surprises the Vancouver-based songwriter.

"I've had incredible responses to my music, from kids to older people in their 60s and 70s, from straight to gay and everyone in between," Reid says. "It's been shocking to me—I expected it to be a women's music kind of thing. I expected to have a fanbase of women and lesbians, and the majority of it is, but I am seeing a lot more straight audience as well. I did want it, but I didn't expect it. When I started out, my goal was to bridge the gap between the communities, and sort of bring lesbianism out to the forefront, to get it noticed and out there. So this is all going along with my plan," she laughs. "My master plan of world domination. But it shows me that people are getting it, that we're getting there as a society, as a culture."

Her tune "Ex-Junkie Boyfriend"—about stopping at a traffic light and seeing an ex drive by in a car—has an honesty to it that anyone with any ex might relate to. Then there's "I'd Go Straight for Ridley Bent" (who wouldn't?), which could work as a template for explaining any cross-orientation crush—try "I'd Go Gay For Portia De Rossi," as just one example.

But being an out lesbian on the radio (or trying to get on the radio), isn't easy. Inevitably, the Katy Perry question comes up. Last summer, when "I Kissed a Girl" was overplayed on every mainstream pop station, Reid wrote a response to it in one of her own songs.

"I don't begrudge her. She's definitely an intelligent woman—she sees a good thing and nails it," Reid explains. "I got to give her credit for that. I had a friend once say to me, 'At least we're getting exposure on the radio,' and I said, 'No, we're not getting exposure because of Katy Perry. This is not about us being more visible, this is about straight chicks who pose as lesbians to get male attention [being] more visible.'

"She might have had a lesbian experience or a same-sex experience, and it's titillating for people, [and] that's what it's really about. I'm not bitter," she chuckles, "but I am pissed a bit because I'm an out dyke on the radio and I'm not getting played. They don't play real gay/lesbian stuff on mainstream radio, that's what most people don't want to hear." V

Kate Reid
Fri, Jun 12 (8 pm)
Prism, $10

Sat, Jun 13 (1 pm)
Winston Churchill Square, free 

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