On Thursday night in Manhattan's West Village, British ballader Sam Smith hosted a private party at Julius', said to be New York's oldest gay bar. His friends and fans cooled off inside the tavern, sipping vodka tonics and waiting for a late-night performance by Smith and rumored special guest Alicia Keys.
Smith, who uses the pronouns they/them, chatted with fans next to an old wooden bar. Approximately 6ft 7ins tall wearing Vivienne Westwood platform boots paired with a tartan kilt. The Grammy Award-winning singer, with her big belt, towered over those who asked for selfies.
The gathering celebrates the 10th anniversary of Smith's debut album, 'In the Lonely Hour,' which included the slow-moving hymns 'Stay with Me' and 'I'm Not the Only One.' A small menu at the bar advertises cocktails named after Smith songs, such as “Good Thing” (cosmo) and “Life Support” (margarita). And they noted Julius's relevance as a historical site, detailing the 1966 Sip-In incident, an act of civil disobedience that occurred several years before the Stonewall Uprising.
With Pride celebrations in full swing throughout the West Village, Smith chose Julius precisely because of its association with the Sip-In. Members of the Mattachine Society, a then-nascent gay rights group, visited Julius and challenged his lack of service. Gay customers. The incident made the news after activists refused service after intentionally revealing that they were 'homosexuals'., This attracted the attention of the Human Rights Commission.
“Why did I choose Julius?” Smith said, leaning toward the reporter. “Because I’ve never felt safer in any bar in the world than here.”
Drag artist Lady Bunny played a DJ set while servers wearing Julius T-shirts pushed into the crowd serving trays of burgers. Helen Buford, owner of Julius', commented on the responsibility of running a historic gay bar.
“New York’s historic gay bars need to survive, so we need to give them all the attention we can,” she said. “It doesn’t matter whether that bar is Henrietta Hudson, Cubbyhole, or even Stonewall. What Sam is doing here tonight is really helpful to us. This is also the busiest time of the year. Pride is our Christmas.”
Several patrons looked back on Smith's artistic development over the past decade, from a British import initially packaged as a replacement for Adele to a bona fide pop star who pivoted to “Unholy” on the Grammy stage in sparkly red boots and a top. Hat with devil horns.
Influencer Dylan Mulvaney remembered the release of “In the Lonely Hour” fondly.
“I used to dance to every song when that album came out,” she said. She said, “As someone who has embarked on her own gender journey, it has been great to watch Sam develop as an artist, and they have inspired me.”
Actor and director Brendan Burns married his husband on Julius in 2014.
“I think Sam initially had reservations about what he thought the recording industry should be,” Mr. Byrnes said. “But ten years later, Sam knew exactly who they were. Sam is now a queer icon.”
“My husband and I were chatting to Sam by the bar and we told him how we ended up getting married here,” he added. “We love that Sam loves Julius as much as we do. It’s not as on the map as Stonewall, but that’s what makes it great.”
Nightlife photographer Andrew Tess recalled the album's impact on him.
“When that song came out, Sam was exploring in a subtle way the strange moments of love in that song,” Tess said. “But the world has changed in 10 years, and the way we convey queer love has also changed. I think Sam is a suggestion as to why that happened. “It’s beautiful to see them continue to evolve, like Bob Dylan and Madonna.”
As midnight approached, a black SUV appeared outside Julius'. Mr. Keys came out, entered the bar, and joined Smith on a small stage for “I'm Not the Only One.” The sweaty audience included Prabal Gurung, Kim Petras and Smith's partner, designer Christian Cowan.
Ms. Smith provides piano accompaniment. As Keys sang along, her crowd sang a familiar chorus.
you say i'm crazy
'Cause you don't think I know what you did
But when you call me baby
I know I'm not the only one.