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Arts and Entertainment

Queen Latifah Will Headline Long Beach Lesbian and Gay Pride Festival

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Photo by Urbanworld Film Festival via Flickr
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Long Beach Pride has its own queen: Dana Owens aka Queen Latifah will be heading the 2-day festival next weekend.

"For Queen Latifah to make her worldwide pride debut here in Long Beach is a tremendous testament to the popularity of our celebration and the strength of our community," Pride co-President Pat Crosby said, in a statement.

It's a big deal for the Long Beach festival, but it's also putting the rumormill about the actress/singer's sexuality into overdrive: some see her choice to headline the pride festival as a sign that she's ready to come completely out of the closet (or not).

Queen Latifah will perform on-stage on May 19 around 8:30 pm, and pride organizers suggest you get there much, much earlier. The festival and parade could draw as many as 75,000 revelers over two days, the Long Beach Press-Telegram reports.

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The event goes from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on May 19 and May 20. It will be held along Shoreline Drive at Rainbow Lagoon and Marina Green parks. Admission is $20. The parade will be at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday May 20, and it will go from Redondo Avenue to Alamitos Avenue. Visit the festival's website for more info.

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