Pray Tell: A Tell-All with Billy Porter

Award-winning actor, musician, and style icon is always looking for an opportunity to make an impact on others. Earlier this year, he was able to do that with two young siblings, 9-year-old Clint and 8-year-old Josey.

Inspired by the kids’ unlimited imagination, Porter revealed a show-stopping, rainbow, LEGO crown, which is made from more than 12,000 LEGO bricks and features purples roses, giraffes, skyscrapers, and rainbows. The crown is part of the Rebuild the World Campaign, an initiative that celebrates the creativity of children, inspires them to imagine a better world, and showcases how play helps them develop skills such as self-confidence, resilience, and collaboration.

In a film released by the LEGO Group, Porter gives viewers a glimpse into the design process. He first met Clint and Josey in the United Palace Theater on Broadway and explored creative ideas for the headpiece through LEGO play. The trio inspired each other as a vision for the crown was born. 

Porter took some time to chat more about his most ambitious headpiece yet with OFM, as well as being an influential LGBTQ artist, what fuels his creativity, and upcoming projects.

Can you begin by telling us more about your recent partnership with the LEGO Group on a new fashion creation?
The LEGO Company asked me to collaborate with them on this project to show how creative children can be and bring that to the forefront of people’s minds. It is also a reminder to everybody that imagination is one of the greatest building blocks for children to survive in the world. Creativity and storytelling feeds into all forms and facets of life. 

I read a book a couple years ago called A Whole New Mind by Daniel Pink, and he talks about how the traditional business world moving forward is going to need to embrace their creative, right side brains to be successful because the market now requires a story. People want a story; people want to be emotionally connected, and one can only be emotionally connected through creativity. So, for me, that is what this whole partnership has been about. 

This was also part of the Rebuild the World campaign?
Yes! I believe that to rebuild the world, we all need to come together with compassion and love. Those are two fundamental, founding principles of art and being an artist. For me, it is exciting to have a platform that feels useful. I can be of use in some way to help heal our civilization. 

You got to work on this project with the help of two young builders, siblings Clint and Josey. How much fun was it to create this with them?
They were so sweet and so into it. I am 51; my childhood days are so far behind me, so it was wonderful to be reminded of the nuances that exist in naïveté in our children. They are free. They come out free and unburdened from those of us who are already living and who already have our own prejudices. We place our values and our fears on our children, and it was just so beautiful to see these kids so free and so encumbered by the trials of life. Their imagination can go anywhere.

What did you take away from this experience, and what do you hope Clint and Josey took away from it?
I hope Clint and Josey took away the idea of just simply being yourself. Being your authentic self is the best choice to always make, even when it looks like it is not such a good choice. As for me, I took way the reminder that imagination is power. 

I read that the crown conveyed the message of self-love and acceptance. What other messages do you hope it sends?
I think that was a pretty big one. ‘Love yourself’ is the big message. Love yourself first. Therefore, others will be able to love you and possibly learn how to love themselves as well. Through your example, when you liberate yourself, you automatically liberate others. That is what I hope.

I can also see it sending a message of pride. What does Pride mean to you?
Oh, yes! Pride is also always there. That is a given to me, but I sometimes forget to say that because I am proud all day, every day, and I do not need a crown to give me that. Pride in oneself is also under the umbrella of loving yourself. 

How does fashion impact your work process and fuel your overall creativity?
I am a first-generation, post-Civil Rights Movement, and I also grew up in the Pentecostal Church. Any time you went to church, it was a fashion show. I have always been into fashion. It is all about first impressions. You should always look sharp for your first impression. I came into this business, and I have been an observer of the different facets of creativity and how they all feed into themselves.  

I noticed a void on the Red Carpet, especially for men. In my experience, I have found there to be the masculinity game, the masculinity conversation, and the masculinity requirement in this business. There are a lot of men who are bound in chains in terms of how they express themselves through their clothing. It is art. Clothing is art. Fashion is art. I am an artist, and I am going to express myself through my art. That is one of those facets. So, that is how I approach it, and that is why I love it so much. It is an extension of my artistry.

In addition to fashion, you are known for your work on Broadway, TV, and film, and you are an outspoken advocate for LGBTQ and racial issues. Did you ever think you would become such an influential LGBTQ artist?
Yes. I say that with no ego; I say that as a fact. When I grew up, there was nobody. There was nobody who looked like me; there was nobody reflecting back to me that I was enough; there was nothing. So, everything I do is intentional. I try to make everything that I do intentional. Yes, I know that I am an example. I know that I represent something that has not existed before in the mainstream in this way, and I want to harness it and use my powers for good as best as I can. You have to know what the power is so that you can wield the power. I have a power now that I know I have, and I am consciously choosing when to use it for good.

Being a Black, gay man, what do you think needs to be done to ensure that we move toward a brighter future for marginalized people?
I think we all must turn inward and look at ourselves as individuals, and as a collective. Gay people are the most racist people I know. They are just as racist as everybody else. I sat on the board of the Empire State Pride Agenda for six years trying to get marriage equality passed. We got that shit done, and within six months, when the focus of the organization turned to transgender rights, all those white boys with their big, thick checkbooks stopped writing checks, and the entire organization had to fold after 25 years of existing. 

Black people marching for George Floyd while a whole group of Black men beat up a transgender girl in a 7-Eleven, while marching for George Floyd! Get your houses in order. Everybody has to get their house in order. Period. We are at a reckoning, and it is either going to work or not. That is where we are. Insurrection or not? You see it right there. It is right in front of you. You can keep lying and fall, and we will fall if we keep lying. We will keep going down this road. Rome fell, y’all. Remember, we are not too big to fail. Sorry, you got me going [laughs]. 

On a happier note, we cannot wait to see you as the Fairy Godmother in the remake of Cinderella. How significant is this role for you?
Yes! When I was a kid, my biggest dream was to be the male Whitney Houston, and it is happening! I am playing the Whitney Houston part, y’all. I have arrived, honey. Come July, I will have arrived! 

What more do you hope to accomplish with your platform?
I just want to make sure that our queer youth, and queer people in general, are being taken care of. We need examples and representation in the mainstream so we can see ourselves reflected back. That we know that we are OK, that we are not alone, and that we are enough just as we are. My hope is that my presence can create a space for people to live in the joy and peace of that.

Before we wrap up, are there any other upcoming projects or anything else you would like to mention our plug?
Look out for my memoir. It is coming out soon. I also started a new record deal, so I have some good music coming out this year, too. So, keep your eyes and ears open. I am always doing something!  

Stay up-to-date with Porter by following him on Twitter and Instagram, or visit his official website.