Dina Delicious Wants The Community To ‘Reverse The Beat'

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Dina Delicious’ latest dance song, “Reverse The Beat,” celebrates pride of self.  The voluptuous trans singer penned the song at a particularly low point in her life when she was struggling with emotional demons.  

“I was in a dark place trying to figure out the purpose of my existence and if the world would be a better place if I just gave up and gave in,” she remembers.   Something inside Dina answered “no” and convinced her there was still time to ‘Reverse The Beat’ of life and find purpose.  “I could have written a gloomy, sad song but I chose to go the other way with an empowering dance/pop anthem that will make listeners feel good and inspire them to thrive,” she explains. “I have always fought life’s struggles with a smile and a sunny attitude.”

She says that throughout her life, she has had experiences of feeling lost and frustrated.  “As a young kid in Brooklyn, I was teased mercilessly, beaten and bullied.  I never fit in and the trauma from being isolated and alone still haunts me.  I think it does for anyone that has been perceived as different.  There is always that lump in your throat when you just want to scream and escape, but to where?”

Dina Delicious is an NYC-based transgender nightlife personality and recording artist and actress.  She grew up in a single parent home in Bensonhurst Brooklyn with her mom and brother.   “We didn't have much but I was loved and my mother was fabulous and never made me feel that I was anything less than perfect.”

Her earliest music memory is of her mom dancing around the house while listening to Donna Summer.  She recalls being fascinated by how music could stir all kinds of emotions.   Dance music became an escape from the neighborhood bullies for young Dina.  Then, as a teen, she attended Manhattan’s High School of Performing Arts which led to Dina discovering a downtown nightlife that offered her an even larger sense of freedom. She underwent dozens of surgeries to become the buxom art form she is today, and alongside Amanda Lepore and Bianca Del Rio, whom Dina counts among her closest friends, she became a staple in the velvet rope scene.

“I’m a child of nightlife so when I decided to pursue music, I, of course, chose to do it in the club genre.  My music is an extension of my personality: wild and unpredictable.”  She describes her sound as fun and flirty dance/pop. Her number one aim is to inspire people to release their problems and turn a move on the dance floor.  “Ultimately, I want my music to give fans a gorgeous party experience that everyone’s invited to.” 
Dina’s first track, “Bubble Wrap,” was about breaking free from suffocating people. “I hate when people try to stifle my creativity,” she says.   Her next single, ”Black Widow,” was about a backstabbing friend. “I love singing about evil bitches,” she laughs. She then released a cover of Stacey Q’s 80’s hit, “Two of Hearts,” followed by the break-up track, “Tick Tick Trick”.  “Reverse The Beat” is Dina’s first track with a deeper message.

“‘Reverse The Beat’ represents my growth as an artist,” she says.  “I’m doing me better than ever and I'm allowing myself to shine.”

Last month, she performed for her largest audience ever at NYC Pride.  The show aired live on ABC-TV, the first time the station has featured a live performance by a trans artist.  “I'm beyond honored and grateful.   It was all incredibly emotional for me and the experience will live inside me forever.”

Dina has begun to see herself as an activist.  Candy Magazine recently named her as a leader of the Trans revolution, alongside Laverne Cox and Janet Mock.  The magazine also counted her as a “Pioneer” with Amanda Lepore.  “I realize now that every artist is an activist to some degree,” she says.  “We all have a message we hope to share; causes we believe in.  I learned from Laverne Cox that with visibility comes great responsibility.”

Her wish is that everyone in the LGBTQ community would come together.  “I see how, at times, we are so separate.  I guess its why I love performing pride festivals and marches.  I feel the unity there and it’s gorgeous.”

As a trans artist, she is waging a fierce battle across many different fronts:  the fight for proper healthcare, housing discrimination, education, the right to go to the bathroom, and now the right to be in the military.   “It really gets me upset when I think what trans youth are going through on a daily basis.  Now, more than ever before, they’re scared about what the future may bring. They feel ostracized and devalued.”

There’s a line in “Reverse The Beat” where Dina sings: “it ain’t over, we ain’t finished, not even close, just the beginning.”  That one line explains why Dina does what she does.  

“People matter. I feel so blessed to be a part of the trans community. We’re going to make it through this latest trans ban.  We’re getting through this together, as a family.”

“Reverse The Beat” by Dina Delicious is available on iTunes now and every where music is sold or   streamed .Follow Dina Delicious on Facebook and Twitter, Instagram @DinaDelicious