Throughout history, countless notable artists and celebrities have left their mark on Kentucky. In 1882, while on tour, Oscar Wilde faced protests in Louisville over his “sodomite lifestyle.” In 2013, Beyoncé closed out her show at the YUM! Center by dropping her surprise self-titled album at midnight. Now, in 2025, two “gay-famous” comedians performed at a lesbian-owned art gallery in hopes of wooing drag superstar Trixie Mattel into producing their stand-up comedy show.

Best friends Michael Henry and Tim Murray, known for their queer-centered humor on social media and comedy club stages, are traveling across the country for their new original OUTtv series, “Wish You Were Queer.” 

Mattel, serving as a mentor on the show, tasks the pair with connecting to and performing for small-town American audiences to prove that people outside their West Hollywood bubble are invested in them. As many know, Mattel loves Kentucky, so the Bluegrass State was a natural stop on the show and the pressure is on.

Image provided by D’Marie Productions

“Louisville is actually one of my top three favorite cities in the country,” Murray told Queer Kentucky. “The first time we played Louisiville was because it was an in-between city on our tour, and we sold-out our show at the Bard’s Town. We had such a good time.”

During the “Wish You Were Queer” Louisville episode, landmarks along Main Street made appearances, including the shiny gold butt of the statue of David at 21c Museum Hotel, the larger-than-life baseball bat outside the Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory, and of course, several horse statues.

“Hey, Louisville Slugger, you swinging that thing towards me?” Henry quips as they stroll downtown.

The duo also stopped by two of Louisville’s well-known gay bars, Big Bar and Chill Bar, where they downed Bourbon and gingers with local bartenders. However, their visits took place during the day, so they missed out on experiencing the city’s true queer nightlife this time around.

“We only had about eight hours in the city,” Murray said. “This was our shortest timeframe, and we struck gold being there, and it’s our favorite episode.”

Even with a short amount of time, the pair found a moment to get their zen on by working with Cha Cha, a queer medicine woman and ceremonialist, through a relaxing sound bath meditation before their show.

Michael Henry and Tim Murray pose with Cha Cha after a sound bath. Photo provided by D’Marie Productions.

With their favorite venue, Bard’s Town, now closed, Henry said he found a lesbian-owned art gallery—Aurora Gallery, complete with animal skulls and bones, and queer-made crafts for sale—to host the performance.

Although the comedians considered the show a success, with an engaged audience bantering back and forth with them, they remain on edge about whether they’ve impressed Mattel.

“I feel pressure in every city we perform,” Henry said. “Trixie is one of the funniest people in the world.” 

Photo: ‘Wish You Were Queer,’ OUTtv

But, when it comes down to it, the show encapsulates the love two best friends have for each other, even if one frequently accuses the other of being a messy, messy bottom during press interviews (we’ll let you guess who says it and who it’s about).

“Michael and I have been touring together for years making each other laugh. Every time we’ve been on the road exploring what’s gay in each city we’ve said ‘someone should be filming this’ and now they are!,” Murray said. “Yes! And Middle America gays are wild, and thankfully Trixie Mattel also wanted to be a part of this gay mayhem.” added Henry.

From Columbus, to Louisivlle and now Nashville, the comedians continue their journey through Middle America cementing their “gay-famous” titles in the hearts of every queer they meet along the way.

 All six episodes of “Wish You Were Queer” are available to stream now on OUTtv.