Sunday Service, a queer dance party first launched by underground event producer and Atlanta-based DJ Vicki Powell in 2010, will host its last bash — “The Last Supper” — at Sister Louisa’s Church of the Living Room & Ping Pong Emporium, aka Church, on Sunday.
For 14 years, the beloved event has been a meaningful space for the LGBTQ+, Black and marginalized communities to connect. For one Sunday every month between Easter and Pride, revelers gather to hear Powell and her collective of DJs, Deep South ATL (Brian Rojas, Alexis Curshé and Wild Cherry), spin gospel house, dance, dress, indulge and find camaraderie.
The concept for Sunday Service was first inspired by its venue, Church — the kitschy bar by Grant Henry (artist name Sister Louisa) on Edgewood known for its rebellious play with religious iconography (think plastic Jesus statues, Pee-wee Herman dolls affixed to crucifixes and religious paintings scrawled with tongue-and-cheek phrases). The idea of church, however, took on more meaning throughout the years. The event has become, in a sense, like the ideal church — a space where all can find acceptance, inclusion and joy.
Credit: Royce Soble
Credit: Royce Soble
“Church doesn’t have to be about religion,” said Dallas Oliver, who has faithfully been coming to Sunday Service since 2012. “It’s more about the gathering of people. I remember the first time I came. … It felt like home.”
Since its beginning, Sunday Service has grown from roughly 150 people to 600. The loyal fan base, called the “congregation,” and its members, dubbed “the parishioners,” use Church to revel in their own uniqueness and find community.
Parishioner Oliver found his longest and best friends, he said, while attending Sunday Service. Those friends took on even greater meaning while he was battling cancer.
“They all really stepped up when I was going through this,” Oliver said.
Credit: Royce Soble
Credit: Royce Soble
As soon as he was well enough to return, Oliver went back to Sunday Service. He fondly remembers his first party back.
“I had my big huge hoop skirt on with this crazy flower pattern skirt over it and this shirt that said ‘Fighting esophageal cancer and still a sexy b----.’ It had a rainbow and a unicorn on it,” Oliver said. “It was a safe space for me to go and see a bunch of my friends.”
Powell created the party for just this reason. She wanted to play uplifting house music and create a comfortable space for people who might feel too eccentric even for the more mainstream queer culture.
“Not everyone who identifies as queer wants to go to a really male-dominated gay bar playing pop music, where everyone’s taking their shirts off. A lot of body shaming goes on in that world. Sunday Service is a different world,” she said. “It’s a place for people to wear a caftan or sparkly shorts or wigs … wear lots of makeup, when you wouldn’t want to walk into some other bars with these looks or you might feel too weird. I’m a weirdo, so I just wanted to create a place for the other weirdos.”
Royce Soble, a parishioner and photographer who has been documenting Atlanta nightlife and LGBTQ+ culture for 30 years, said what makes Sunday Service special is Vicki.
“Vicki is this light that people are drawn to,” Soble said. “She is the heartbeat.”
If Powell is the heartbeat, then music is the blood. Powell, 55, has been a veteran DJ in Atlanta and New York City for more than 30 years. At Sunday Service, she hearkens back to her Southern Baptist childhood to find spirited gospel house music. Music, in general, has been a driving force in her life since kindergarten.
Growing up, Powell’s mother was an audiophile who listened to vinyl constantly. As a member of the Columbia House Records Club, a new record would arrive at Powell’s door weekly.
“That was the best day of my life when the new record was going to arrive in the mail,” Powell said. “My mom had turntables and this hi-fi stereo system. Because the record would not fit in the mailbox, the mailman would come to the door. … It was just so exciting to hear that knock or the doorbell, knowing that it was going to be music delivered. And then sharing that experience with her,” she said, referring to her mom.
Credit: Royce Soble
Credit: Royce Soble
When she was 13, Powell got her first taste of DJing. She was a figure skater at the time and at the ice rink where she practiced, called Sparkles, there was a DJ. Powell said she would harass the booth to play her tunes.
“I’m sure I annoyed the DJ to death until finally, they were like ‘OK, just let Vicki play a record because she’s not going to leave us alone’,” Powell said, laughing. “They definitely took me in and let me stand in the booth and play records.”
In her teens, Powell started sneaking out and found Atlanta’s queer nightlife. She fell in love with it immediately.
“It was like, I have found my people and I am not alone any longer,” said Powell, who started DJing and throwing her own parties in her 20s. “I have been kind of running with that ever since.”
Powell’s DJ collective, Deep South ATL, which is made up of DJs who Powell has mentored over the years, has been the brains behind many queer dance parties, mostly on Edgewood. Sunday Service has been the longest running of them all.
Credit: Royce Soble
Credit: Royce Soble
The decision to end Sunday Service was difficult. The crowd, Powell said, has outgrown its space. For a while, Church expanded, doubling its size and cleverly nicknaming itself Megachurch. Recently, however, the establishment has decided to go back to its more intimate, dive-bar roots and reduced its space. Plus, Powell said, she is ready for a new chapter.
“We’re definitely not finished,” she said. “This is just another pivot and another evolution of our island of misfit toys looking for another safe space to celebrate our lives.”
IF YOU GO
Sunday Service: “The Last Supper”
6 p.m. Sunday. No cover, but space will be very limited. Arriving early is highly encouraged. Sister Louisa’s Church of the Living Room & Ping Pong Emporium, 466 Edgewood Ave. SE, Atlanta. instagram.com/sundayserviceatlanta, sisterlouisaschurch.com.
To keep up-to-date with DJ Vicki Powell and her collective, find them on Instagram at @vickipowell and @deepsouthatl.
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