The feel-good nostalgia that the summertime can drum up is not lost upon Kalen Allen.

The award-winning actor, producer, singer and TV personality spoke to Blavity and reminisced on everything about the season that had him ready to be #BlackOutside

Allen recalled his memories of summer, TV and how the lack of queer representation helped mold him into who he is today.

“I think we all have to take into account that I was born in 1996. And so, that was really in the time of the AIDS epidemic,” he said to Blavity. “So when you ask me who were the queer people in media I looked up to, I would say the lack thereof.”

The content creator said he saw the representation when personality and runway coach Miss J. Alexander stormed network television on America’s Next Top Model and media mogul RuPaul began breaking down doors by presenting himself as an open LGBTQ individual on mainstream TV.

“I think the fact that RuPaul was able to be on all these different shows and have all these guest spots as a drag queen during that time is absolutely phenomenal,” he said. “And I would love to one day be able to unpack that with Ru, but those are the people I immediately think of in my mind.”

Kalen Allen

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