The Out100 list comes out (queer pun!) today, and as a teaser, earlier this week they named their Icon of the Year: Niecy Nash-Betts! I love this for her, and for the world at large! Niecy is iconic in so many ways, from the divine lewks she always brings to the red carpet, to her unrelenting determination that she belonged in the room, even when others didn’t recognize her talent. Who could forget her epic Emmys acceptance speech where she thanked herself for believing in herself! It was touching and ebullient, without being conceited. In the accompanying profile that came with the honor, Niecy opened up to Out Magazine about the different kinds of pride she feels both professionally and personally:

“It feels amazing, I’m basically queer of the year,” she said. “It means an awful lot for me to be a role model for the LGBTQ+ community.”
She added, “I love being Black. I love being a woman. And now I’m a Black queer woman in a relationship with another Black queer woman, and it matters.”

Nash-Betts recently celebrated five years of marriage with her partner, singer Jessica Betts. The duo first met on social media in 2015 and reunited in 2018 when Betts worked with Nash-Betts on an episode of “Claws.”

They tied the knot in 2020 and made history in 2022 as the first same-sex couple to appear on the cover of Essence magazine.

In 2024, Nash-Betts received the Stephen F. Kolzak Award at the 35th annual GLAAD Media Awards in Los Angeles. The award was named in honor of Kolzak, a casting director who amplified LGBTQ+ and HIV activism efforts.

During her acceptance speech, Nash-Betts opened up about how she was always an ally and how she protected her relationship from outside noise.

“My relationship was never a secret, but it was private at the beginning because I was protecting it until I could give it to the world,” she said.

She added that she and Betts “have been breaking barriers ever since” and have been outspoken about defending marriage equality, LGBTQ+ visibility in television and more.

“When it comes to Hollywood and LGBTQ+ representation, I think as an artist you always have to have hope,” she told Out. “You always have to remain at a place of being optimistic. Sometimes a role is created for you and sometimes you have to create the engine that you want to star in.”

She continued, “And whether it’s on a big screen, a small screen, you just have to keep showing up because we’re not going anywhere. You don’t stop being, you don’t stop thriving, you don’t start surviving. You get in where you fit in and find the people who love you for exactly who, what, and how you are.”

[From Good Morning America]

“I love being Black. I love being a woman. And now I’m a Black queer woman in a relationship with another Black queer woman, and it matters.” Yes. This woman exudes joy from her pores! And she’s right, it does matter, now more than ever. Niecy has worked so hard for the career high she’s riding right now, and I’m so glad she gets to enjoy it all with Jessica by her side. I think the first time I really perked up and took notice of Niecy was on HBO’s bonkers and short-lived series Getting On, a dark comedy set in the ladies geriatric wing of a hospital. Niecy and co-leads Laurie Metcalf and Alex Borstein simply sang together. Niecy’s performance in particular was so subtle and nuanced; she made the character so real I bet a lot of people watched it without realizing all the work she was doing. (Sidenote: Only Laurie Metcalf could play someone so earnestly proud of her contributions to the field of fecal matter research.) Next up for Niecy is being part of the ensemble of All’s Fair, the Ryan Murphy helmed series about an all-female divorce law firm. While I don’t always love a Murphy production, I appreciate that he’s a champion for Niecy.

And finally, “Queer of the Year” is brilliant.

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