PrideFest Entertainment

PrideFest 2023 Entertainment. Trixie Mattel, Sheila E., and Shangela

Get ready to dance, laugh and sing! Capital City Pride is elated to announce the headliners for this year’s PrideFest, taking place from June 9-11, 2023 in Des Moines’ Historic East Village!

The lineup includes drag superstar Trixie Mattel (DJ set), percussion goddess Sheila E., and the fierce performer Shangela. Leslie and the LYs and Haiku Hands will also be performing. This year’s entertainment is in partnership with 80/35 Music Festival.

While you eagerly await Pride Month, Capital City Pride offers year-round programming and activities. Check out our exciting line-up of upcoming events!

Entertainment Schedule

Friday, June 9

Kiss 107.5 Main Stage

5:00 p.m. – PrideFest kickoff
5:15 p.m. – DTF Productions
6:45 p.m. – Haiku Hands
8:00 p.m. – Sheila E.
9:45 p.m. – Trixie Mattel (DJ set)

DSM Music Coalition Community Stage

5:00 p.m. – PrideFest kickoff
5:15 p.m. – Fiona Kills
6:00 p.m. – Soultru
6:45 p.m. – Miss Christine
7:30 p.m. – Silent Disco

Saturday, June 10

Kiss 107.5 Main Stage

12:00 p.m. – Girls Rock! Des Moines
1:15 p.m. – Quinn Trilk
2:00 p.m. – Alyx Rush
3:00 p.m. – Jenny Kohls
4:30 p.m. – DTF Productions
5:00 p.m. – Landon Cider
5:45 p.m. – Caleb Elliott
7:00 p.m. – Glory Hole
8:15 p.m. – Pageant Winners
8:30 p.m. – Leslie and the Lys
9:30 p.m. – Shangela

DSM Music Coalition Community Stage

12:30 p.m. – DTF Productions
1:45 p.m. – LINE
3:00 p.m. – Satin Dollz
4:00 p.m. – MFKS & J’Main
5:15 p.m. – Worst Impressions
6:30 p.m. – DTF Productions
8:00 p.m. – Allegra Hernandez

Sunday, June 11

Kiss 107.5 Main Stage

9:00 a.m. – Free Yoga
10:00 a.m. – Pride Worship
** Break for PrideFest Parade **
3:00 p.m. – PrideFest Parade Winners
3:15 p.m. – Des Moines Gay Men’s Chorus
3:45 p.m. – DTF Productions
4:45 p.m. – Ending Ceremony

Trixie Mattel

Trixie Mattel is a drag performer, author, and recording artist best known for competing in the seventh season of RuPaul’s Drag Race and the winner of season three of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars.

She has traveled the world touring with her hilarious comedy sets (Ages 3 and Up, Now With Moving Parts) and has appeared on television (American Horror Story: Roanoke, Larry King Now) and film (Trixie Mattel: Moving Parts), released her own make-up brand (Trixie Cosmetics), and co-wrote a book (Trixie and Katya’s Guide to Modern Womanhood).

She currently co-hosts the hit podcast “The Bald and the Beautiful” with Katya and appears on the award-winning web series “UNHhhh” serving her unique brand of humor and over-the-top doll-like beauty.

Photo of Trixie Mattel
Photo of Sheila E.

Sheila E.

One of life’s constants for Sheila E. comes down to a simple phrase: follow the beat. And her impeccable inner rhythm is the pulse behind a trailblazing career that still knows no bounds.

Family, faith and music were guiding forces for Sheila E. growing up in the Bay Area. In addition to percussionist dad Pete, the Oakland,CA native counts former Santana member/Azteca founder Coke Escovedo and The Dragons front man Mario Escovedo as uncles. Fellow Latin star Tito Puente was her godfather. In addition to being weaned on Latin jazz and Motown, Sheila E. was exposed to a diverse array of Bay Area acts. Those influences ranged from the rock of Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead to the R&B/pop of the Pointer Sisters and the funk of Sly & the Family Stone. “I used to sit on the corner outside of the local community center with Twinkies and 7-Up listening to Sly and Larry Graham rehearse,” remembers Sheila E. “The sounds of the Bay Area molded me.”

So it’s no surprise that after such a music-immersive childhood, the gifted, world-class drummer and percussionist began amassing an impressive string of credits playing not only with her dad but also with pioneering talents like George Duke, Herbie Hancock, Marvin Gaye, Diana Ross, Lionel Richie, Prince, Ringo Starr, Gloria Estefan, Beyonce and Jennifer Lopez. Grammy Award-nominated singer/songwriter behind the seminal hits “The Glamorous Life” and “A Love Bizarre.” A fearless multi-instrumentalist,equally proficient on guitar and bass, actress, mentor and philanthropist.

Following a Bay Area gig in the late ‘70s, Sheila E. met Prince backstage. Their Purple Rain recording sessions—including her vocals on the 1984 classic “Erotic City”—morphed into launching her solo career that same year. Debut album The Glamorous Life spun off the Grammy Award-nominated top 10 hit of the same name plus a second top 40 single “The Belle of St. Mark.” Between her ‘80s tenure as drummer, songwriter and musical director for Prince’s backup band, Sheila E. released two more solo albums (Romance 1600and Shelia E.)and scored another classic hit with “A Love Bizarre.”

Sheila E.’s fierce, dynamic verve onstage has made her a major concert draw since the ‘90s. Along the way, she has acted in the films “Krush Groove”,“The Adventures of Ford Fairlane”, “Chasing Papi”and launched various music projects (E-Train, C.O.E.D., E Family Band). She added to her arsenal of credits performing on the 2012 Academy Awards with pop hitmaker Pharrell Williams and composer Hans Zimmer. Sheila E. was also among the roster of stars chosen to perform at the 2013 Kennedy Center Honors whose honorees included artists Herbie Hancock, Billy Joel and Carlos Santana.

Sheila E.’s producing, arranging, and performance talents have been showcased throughout the music and film industry with appearances on, The Academy Awards, The Latin Grammy Awards, BET Awards, The American Music Awards, The Kennedy Center Honors, The Summer Olympics, WOW Awards, ALMA’s, and The Image Awards just to name a few. In 2010 Sheila was nominated for an Emmy Award for “Outstanding Music Direction” in recognition for her leadership as musical director for President Obama’s Performance at The White House: Fiesta Latina and again more recently in 2020 for “Let’s Go Crazy” Grammy Salute to Prince. Other projects, include The E Family Now and Forever, Pete Escovedo Live at Stern Grove Festival with her father Pete Escovedo, and brothers Juan and Peter Michael Escovedo, Sheila E. Live from Lugano Switzerland DVD, Silk Road from the group Heavenese hailing from Japan, a literary biography released by Simon & Schuster Publishing Titled The Beat of My Own Drum,ICON Sheila’s 2014 solo album and the single release Girl Meets Boy in memory of the late, great, Prince.

Away from the spotlight, music doubles as a source of healing and giving back for Sheila E. And that was part of the inspiration for penning the autobiography “The Beat of My Own Drum”. Playing a perceived male instrument and working in a male dominated industry exacted a personal price—several years ago Sheila E. publicly acknowledged she was an abuse survivor.“The book was the beginning of the healing”,says Sheila E. “I’d talked about working in a male-dominated industry in my ministry and addressed it in some of the song lyrics I’d written. But it was challenging to sit down and write about it in detail for the book. No one in my household told me I couldn’t play drums because I was a girl. It wasn’t until I was outside of the house and playing sessions. But through pain comes realization, understanding and the opportunity to help others overcome those challenges”.Sheila E. continues to produce and perform music throughout the world. Her last studio project and tour, ICONIC, was Sheila’s effort to bring awareness to social issues and humanitarianism. Her 2020 single releases, “No Line” with the legendary Snoop Dogg, “Lemon Cake” & “Bailar”are Sheila’s continued contribution to the music industry. The Queen of Percussion plans to release new music in 2022Sheila E. is CEO of the entertainment company StilettoFlats Inc. located in Los Angeles California.

With no Google or YouTube artist script to follow back then, she says her career drive was propelled by one thing: “I just did it because I loved it. And that’s what Icon represents. I started all this as Sheila Escovedo then became this persona named Sheila E. Now Sheila E. and Sheila Escovedo are the same person, still making music that comes from the heart.”

Shangela

Actor and Performer, D.J. “Shangela” Pierce, can currently be seen starring as a co-host and producer of the Emmy-nominated HBO series “We’re Here.” Famous for his phrase “Halleloo,” Pierce has created a number of live drag shows combining his performance and comedy talents.

As Shangela, she has performed on six of the seven continents and is recognized as the first contestant to compete on three separate seasons of the Emmy award-winning reality series “Rupaul’s Drag Race.” Shangela has also guest starred on network television series including “Glee,” “The Mentalist,” “X-Files,” “A Black Lady Sketch Show” and “Katy Keene” and has appeared in several feature films, including A Star Is Born with Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper.

In 2019, Shangela was recognized as part of the prestigious TIME 100 Next List and named one of “The Most Powerful Drag Queens in America” by New York Magazine.

D.J. remains involved with various charities including his own Feed The Queens initiative which provided over $100,000 in food grants to out of work drag entertainers in 2020. In addition, he was the keynote speaker and performer at the SMU LGBTQ Symposium, which provides a platform to spotlight the voices, experiences, research, and creativity of the LGBT community on the SMU campus and beyond. 

A native of Paris, Texas, Pierce graduated with honors from Southern Methodist University where he currently serves as an advisory Board Member.  He resides in Los Angeles and is a very proud gay Uncle.

Photo of Shangela

Leslie and the Lys

Leslie and the LYs is the project of Leslie Hall, Iowa’s #1 Sweetheart and keeper of the gems. Rising to fame with her first album Gold Pants, Leslie and the LYs toured the country and built a loyal fanbase through their music and videos. Learn more at lesliehall.com.

Photo of Leslie and the Ly's

Haiku Hands

Based across Melbourne and Sydney, the core of Haiku Hands is Beatrice Lewis, Claire Nakazawa and Mie Nakazawa. Together, they curate, perform and work as a collective of artists, engaging and exploring social norms with their lyrical and visual content. Their influences range from hip-hop to pop, electronic to dance, and everything beyond.

Haiku Hands brought their singular, rebellious, and outright fun sound across multiple continents over the past two years. On the heels of their breakthrough performances at the UK’s Great Escape, Haiku Hands has been touted by NME as “Australia’s most electrifying pop prospect” and “a thrilling pop hybrid” who combine the pure pop attitude of Charli XCX with the energy and swagger of The Beastie Boys.

The group recently released their debut self-titled album in September 2020 on Spinning Top Records (AUS/NZ) and Mad Decent (US). Their album received rave reviews from Rolling Stone, the Guardian, Clash, NME, and more. In 2020, Haiku Hands wrote an exclusive song for Blumhouse Production/Universal for their blockbuster Freaky with Vince Vaughn. Most recently, Haiku Hands announced the release of their digital deluxe debut album along with new track ‘Conclusions’, available now for pre-order on limited edition black vinyl.

Haiku Hands is eager to get back on stage to present to you their new material along with all of their old favorites. Their fun and ecstatic live shows include special guest appearances from collaborators, DJs, and rappers across Australia. With lighting and production unlike anything you’ve seen before, Haiku Hands’ live performance is not one to be missed!

“This band feels like a music and art community. The “Hands” in Haiku Hands represents the many different people who add to this project,” says Beatrice Lewis. “It wouldn’t be what it is without all these people mentioned plus many more performers, photographers, designers, videographers to name a few. We are very lucky to get to collaborate and work with so many amazing musicians and artists.”

Photo of Haiku Hands