Boy George Denied U.S. Visa

Boy George has been denied a visa to enter the U.S. for his upcoming tour. Read the story from Towleroad here.

In addition to his touring, George was to perform a free concert for the NYC Department of Sanitation, for whom he performed community service as a result of a minor drug conviction in 2006 (see picture below).

Boy George also happens to have been my boyhood idol. I was the HUGEST Culture Club fan in high school – which allowed me to be a little bit gay without being officially GAY. Discovering Boy George and Culture Club was like a breath of fresh, gay air to a closeted boy living in Central Pennsylvania.

I once had a Boy George sighting here in NYC – and almost lost my friggin’ mind. My best friend and I were in the middle of the dance floor at the legendary (and now closed) Roxy nightclub. We were awaiting a “surprise” performance from non other than her Madgesty herself – Madonna. Back in the day, Madge liked to hit the big gay clubs before releasing a new CD to get the queens talking and generate media interest – and this was one of those performances. So here I was, waiting for the biggest pop star in the world to come on stage, and I look to my right and see Boy George in a roped-off VIP area.

I lost my mind and became a complete nervous wreck. I wanted to go over and say something SO badly, but didn’t. Eventually George noticed me staring, and looked over at me – and I practically started crying. At that point, I could have giving a shit about Madonna, I just saw BOY GEORGE!!!!!

I was considering buying a ticket to Boy George’s tour this summer, but decided that seeing Yaz next month more than satisfied my concert quota. I’m glad I didn’t get my hopes up.