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Wayne Holtz helped cultivate a queer music scene in San Antonio. Credit: Zachary Smith<\/p>\nWayne Holtz helped cultivate a queer music scene in San Antonio. Credit: Zachary Smith<\/p>\n
I\u00a0don\u2019t think any of us were\u00a0ready for the ceiling to\u00a0open up and witness a celestial being descend upon\u00a0the crowd in a shower of neon rainbow\u00a0lights and pulsing bass drum kicks,\u201d I\u00a0wrote in 2016 for the Current\u2019s LGBTQ+\u00a0sister publication, Out in SA.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m at a Wayne Holtz show at Paper\u00a0Tiger, and a single thought has established itself the leader of all other\u00a0thoughts firing through my consciousness: \u2018This motherfucker is jump-roping on stage.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Now, nine years later, that stellar\u00a0performer is gone. Late last month,\u00a0news trickled in that Holtz, who\u2019d since\u00a0relocated to Saranac Lake, New York,\u00a0had died unexpectedly on a West Coast\u00a0trip to visit friends.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Many in San Antonio are still trying\u00a0to make sense of the loss.\u00a0With a baritone croon that echoed Joy\u00a0Division\u2019s Ian Curtis\u2019 Holtz commanded\u00a0the stage as a solo performer, delivering\u00a0full-throttle shows no matter the size\u00a0of the venue. Each was accompanied by\u00a0a whirlwind of costume changes that\u00a0could rival your favorite drag queen,\u00a0VMAs-ready choreography and an\u00a0electronic-pop soundtrack that could\u00a0teleport you straight to famed Berlin\u00a0nightclub Berghain.<\/p>\n
At the point I wrote my Out in SA\u00a0piece on Holtz, I had only met him as\u00a0a choreographer and a photographer\u00a0who documented the city\u2019s indie-rock\u00a0landscape. That night, however, I\u00a0witnessed the sheer star power he possessed as a performer.\u00a0<\/p>\n
That understanding grew deeper as\u00a0I became part of an emerging queer\u00a0music scene in San Antonio that included not just Holtz but singer Alyson\u00a0Alonzo, electro outfit Pink Leche andvogue performance collective House of Kenzo. We regularly collaborated and booked each other for events at venues such as the now-shuttered La Botanica, Brick at Blue Star and Paper Tiger.<\/p>\n
No question, Holtz made a huge impact as we worked to build that community.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe did something that nobody else was doing,\u201d Alonzo said of our late friend. \u201cI\u2019ll always think of him as someone who just had it. People talk about [having] that thing, and he had it. He was such a star.\u201d<\/p>\n
Unabashed and androgynous, Holtz radiated brilliance wherever he was. Even when he wasn\u2019t onstage, he boasted a wardrobe worthy of his concert performances \u2014 dresses, elaborate headpieces, ensembles fit for a Disney villainess. But it wasn\u2019t just his art and fashion that made a lasting and glittering imprint on San Antonio. Holtz\u2019s charm, humility and determination to lift up other artists made him someone you could easily fall into a friendship with.<\/p>\n
\u201cWayne was such a sweetie, you know? Humble,\u201d said Travis Buffkin, vocalist and guitarist for country act The Texases and one-time music editor for the Current.<\/p>\n
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Wayne Holtz\u2019s shows often incorporated multiple costume changes. Credit: Erik Casarez<\/p>\n
Buffkin befriended Holtz after writing an article about him for the Current and went on to feature him in a music video for the song \u201cDoin\u2019 Life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Buffkin likened Holtz\u2019 larger-than-life stage persona to the discipline of drag artists, performers who are expected to put on a multifaceted show drawing on many talents.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou just see these queens that are really brilliant and they have all these skills,\u201d he said. \u201cThey\u2019re comedic geniuses and they\u2019re making their own costumes and doing their own makeup, you know? They\u2019re like pop culture polymaths. And that\u2019s to me what Wayne was. Capable of doing a fucking podcast, getting huge stars on there, being compelling, doing pop and doing it really well, you know?\u201d<\/p>\n
Beyond that, Buffkin recalls his friend as a \u201ccheerleader for the whole San Antonio scene.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m like oh my God, we didn\u2019t deserve him.\u201d<\/p>\n
San Antonio Poet Laureate 2020-2023 Andrea \u201cVocab\u201d Sanderson remembers Holtz\u2019 generous spirit. Even amid the chaos of producing his elaborate shows, he hung onto an admirable calmness and was able to offer encouragement to others.<\/p>\n
\u201cSomewhere in between all of this, you would find him in a greenroom giving a pep talk to someone having a minor meltdown or some seasoned life advice for an artist questioning their value. Myself included,\u201d she said. \u201cI was at a show with Wayne one time where he danced so hard he split his pants right at the crotch seam. He kept right on working, split pants and all.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, Holtz\u2019s legacy extends beyond his charisma and pop-star prowess.<\/p>\n
His role in queering Alamo City culture demands recognition and reverence. As an unapologetically queer Black man writing pop music in South Texas, Holtz used his music to tell stories of his intersecting layers of identity and marginalization. His performances and persona carved out space for others like him to live freely and openly.<\/p>\n
\u201cGoing out looking glam in a good dress \/ Boys thinking that I\u2019m looking like a hot mess,\u201d Holtz sang on his tune \u201cBlack Attack.\u201d \u201cThey\u2019re saying, \u2018Hey isn\u2019t he Black?\u2019 \/ dressed up like a sissy, and isn\u2019t that wack?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWatching him inspire and encourage people to be themselves, especially in the queer community has been an ongoing formative experience,\u201d said Bobby Rivas, Holtz\u2019s former guitar player and current member of self-described \u201cparty punk\u201d outfit HoneyBunny. \u201cHis life was one of the greatest things I\u2019ve ever witnessed, and I can\u2019t believe I was a part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Girl in a Coma\u2019s Nina Diaz told the Current that Holtz actually helped choreograph the music video for her pop-leaning 2016 solo track \u201cTrick Candle.\u201d At the time, she was struggling<\/p>\n
to find her footing without a guitar in hand, and Holtz\u2019s guidance helped her feel grounded and sure of herself.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe helped me get in touch with my body again,\u201d Diaz said. \u201cHe just made you feel you\u2019re doing exactly what you\u2019re supposed to be doing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even after Holtz relocated to New York, he continued to be supportive of the San Antonio musicscene. After starting up music gathering Fall Fun Fest in his newly adopted town, he invited Diaz, Rivas, Alonzo and Nicky Diamonds of Lonely Horse to play the festivals\u2019 2024 and 2025 installments.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was on a mission to do what he does best: to bring the community together,\u201d Holtz\u2019s cousin Alex Jefferson Daring said. \u201c[Fall Fun Fest] was just one example of this.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cultural architect, fashion maven and beloved friend to so many, Holtz\u2019s memory will remain with those whose lives he touched. That includes not just friends and family but anyone lucky enough to witness the extraordinary spectacle of a live performance.<\/p>\n
Diaz recalls watching Holtz\u2019s set at the inaugural Fall Fun Fest and being struck again by just how extraordinary he was, especially against the beautiful natural backdrop of the stage.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe forest and fall leaves were behind him,\u201d she said. \u201cThe sun was beautiful and he\u2019s dancing, and there\u2019s little children around and it\u2019s like, \u2018This is Wayne! He is a magical creature
and he\u2019s here in his element just being amazing and out of this world.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
A public memorial celebrating Holtz\u2019s life will take place at 8 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 22, at Brick at the Blue Star. The gathering will include live music and displays of Holtz\u2019s art in addition to food and drink. For more information, contact Alexandra Jefferson Darring at alexjdarring@gmail.com or Kat Trujillo at music@kattrujillo.com.<\/p>\n
Subscribe to SA Current newsletters.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Follow us:\u00a0Apple News<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Google News<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0NewsBreak<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Reddit<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Instagram<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Facebook\u00a0<\/a>| Twitter<\/a>\u00a0| Or sign up for our\u00a0RSS Feed<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Related Stories<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\tThe singer, dancer and \u201ccreative socialite\u201d was known for his exuberant, larger-than-life performances.\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t![\"San](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/514760583_24572103655724340_969136561863760334_n.jpg\")
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