Hear our full chat on my podcast “Beyond the Fame with Jason Fraley.”
You’ve seen him heal minds, bodies and souls as the mental-health makeover expert on the Netflix reality series “Queer Eye.”
On Tuesday, Karamo Brown will participate in the 36th annual 17th Street High Heel Race, which kicks off at 6 p.m. near Dupont Circle at 17th and Church streets in Northwest D.C.
“It’s supposed to be a lot of fun,” Brown told WTOP. “I’ve seen videos of it several times from friends who live in D.C. and I’ve always wanted to participate, so to be there this year is pretty exciting. Just to interact with people and raise money for a great cause I think is just amazing. I almost did one in New Orleans when were there shooting ‘Queer Eye,’ but I had to shoot one of my scenes, so I missed it and I was so upset, but this will be fun.”
He’s still strategizing which heels to wear, but he’s not worried about falling on his face.
“I do not know what type of heel,” Brown said. “I’m thinking something with a chunky heel would be best, just because a stiletto would probably break on you, a kitten heel won’t give you what you need, I feel like a good girthy, chunky heel would work.
“I played football all through high school, I also ran hurdles, so I’m used to face-planting and falling down. … If you fall, it doesn’t mean that you failed, you get yourself back up and keep going.”
Growing up and making it on TV
He graduated in 1999 from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, which would later become infamous as the site of a horrific mass shooting in 2018. He announced he was gay at age 15.
“I don’t use the term ‘coming out,'” Brown said. “I’m trying to very fervently destroy that term. I think it’s an antiquated term. The term that I think people should use is when you ‘let people in,’ because that’s the actual act. ‘Coming out’ gives other people the power to feel like they can deny or accept you when actually the power comes from you letting people in and saying, ‘I trust you and love you enough to be in my circle.’ That’s just a human trait.”
After becoming television’s first openly gay Black man on the MTV reality series “The Real World: Philadelphia” (2004), Karamo became one of the five hosts of the Netflix revival of “Queer Eye” (2018-present).
“My dream was always to be on television again,” Brown said. “I was watching ‘Watch What Happens Live’ one night with Andy Cohen, talking about how ‘Queer Eye’ was coming back. I was like, ‘I’m gay. This is my shot!’ I figured out how to get in [to audition]. Everyone else in my category of culture was talking about the arts, Broadway and paintings, but I was like, ‘I can’t do any of that, but I’m a mental health expert, let’s dive into feelings.’ Because I stayed true to myself and didn’t try to change — I shined.”
The Fab Five
While Karamo provides the mental-health elements of lifestyle and culture, his fellow “Fab Five” hosts include Jonathan Van Ness (hair, makeup, hygiene), Bobby Berk (interior design), Antoni Porowski (food, wine) and Tan France (fashion).
“We’re like ‘Captain Planet,’ the five of us combine — you need all five!” Brown said.
“Jonathan [is] courageous, intelligent and fabulous. [Bobby is] super creative, super down-to-earth and also super loving. [Antoni is] super hilarious, he has very sweet dad jokes, super vulnerable and super motivated, which is really beautiful. It’s ironic because the word that I would use to describe Tan France is the ‘stitch,’ the thing that holds us together.”
The Fab Five also appeared in the music video of Taylor Swift’s “You Need to Calm Down.” In fact, Karamo even joined Swift at the Los Angeles premiere of her blockbuster new concert film “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour.”
“Taylor sat right in front of me,” Brown said. “She’s one of the kindest and most honest people that I’ve ever met in my life, and if I had a daughter, I would want my daughter to be Taylor Swift. I mean that in the sense of not just the talent, but in a genuine human being who has never shown anything but honesty and kindness.”
Traffic closures for High Heel Race
There will be multiple street closures and parking restrictions Tuesday in conjunction with the High Hell Race in Northwest D.C.
From 12 p.m. until 11 p.m., the following streets will be posted as Emergency No Parking:
- 17th Street from New Hampshire Avenue to O Street, NW
- R Street from 16th Street to New Hampshire Avenue, NW
- Corcoran Street from 16th Street to New Hampshire Avenue, NW
- Q Street from 16th Street to 18th Street, NW
- Church Street from 16th Street and 18th Street, NW
- P Street from 16th Street to 18th Street, NW
From 2 p.m. until 11 p.m., the following streets will be closed off to vehicle traffic:
- 17th Street from New Hampshire Avenue to O Street, NW
- Riggs Place from 16th Street to 17th Street, NW
- R Street from 16th Street to New Hampshire Avenue, NW
- Corcoran Street from 16th Street to New Hampshire Avenue, NW
- Q Street from 16th Street to 18th Street, NW
- Church Street from 16th Street and 18th Street, NW
From 2 p.m. to 11 p.m., P Street from 16th Street to 18th Street NW will be intermittently closed to vehicle traffic, D.C. police said.
Listen to the full conversation on my podcast below:
