Krylios Clarke Jr. is a pre-show announcer for “The Ask Rayceen Show,” a monthly, D.C.-based series and one of many it takes to pull off the production each month.
“I saw they needed volunteers on Twitter, so I reached out and the rest is history,” the 24-year-old Jamaica native says.
“The Ask Rayceen Show,” now in its eighth season, returns Wednesday, May 1 for an episode devoted to community forum: intergenerational dialogue, a panel discussion in which Clarke is one of the panelists. It’s at the HRC Equality Center (1640 Rhode Island Ave., N.W.) at 7 p.m. The series runs the first Wednesday of each month March through November. It’s free and open to the public. Look for the series on Facebook or other social media for details.
“I warm up the crowd before Rayceen arrives, I do general announcements about Team Rayceen’s upcoming events and projects as well as promote the vendors that are on the show that day,” Clarke says.
Clarke is a Howard University graduate and works as a digital and social media associate with AARP. He came to Washington five years ago to study. He’s in a relationship and lives in Silver Spring, Md.
Clarke enjoys cannabis, reading, writing, TV, travel and music in his free time.
How long have you been out and who was the hardest person to tell?
That’s a tricky question. I was out to my closest friends between 16 and 18. However, I was also outed in high school at 18. I was outed to my father in 2017. And I came out to my mom in 2018. But to me, I feel like I’ve been living my life as an out and proud gay man since I moved to D.C. in 2014. The hardest person for me to tell was my mother, because she’s very religious and openly homophobic.
Who’s your LGBTQ hero?
Author/novelist Marlon James. As a queer, Jamaican writer and the first Jamaican to win the Man Booker Prize for his critically acclaimed novel “A Brief History of Seven Killings,” his success has inspired and motivated me to achieve my dreams despite whatever perceived obstacles that may be in my way.
What LGBTQ stereotype most annoys you?
When people equate sexual positions with a personality. It undermines individuality.
What’s your proudest professional achievement?
Being a panelist on the EducationUSA LGBTI International Students panel with the U.S. State Department. It was live streamed and broadcast to U.S. embassies all over the world and I felt proud that I could connect with other LGBT students from various countries. My favorite moment from that experience was when we received calls and questions from the U.S. embassy in Jamaica; I actually felt like a true ambassador for my nation.
What terrifies you?
I’m claustrophobic so being trapped in tight places with no point of escape.
What’s something trashy or vapid you love?
“The Real Housewives.” I would never describe them as trashy but I’ll cop to vapid. I watch every iteration of the franchise.
What’s your greatest domestic skill?
I think I’m a good cook.
What’s your favorite LGBTQ movie or show?
“Paris is Burning,” hands down. It’s the film I’ve watched the most in my life. If I meet a queer person of color and they’ve never seen it, I instantly recommend it. Every time I watch it, I fall in love with it some more and I learn something I never noticed in the first 6,000 watches.
What’s your social media pet peeve?
Trolls. Just the act of trolling in general. I avoid comments sections now because I can’t stand to see trolls.
What would the end of the LGBTQ movement look like to you?
Ideally it would be a society where all members of the spectrum have achieved ultimate equality and equity socially, politically and legally in all political jurisdictions around the world without the loss of our queer
Published at Sun, 28 Apr 2019 00:27:31 +0000