Mr. Sissy Gripp
Mr. Sissy Gripp - Tampa, FL
Black Rose Photography (Instagram: @blackrosephotog) Morgan Le Shade
Mr. Sissy Gripp is the gender bending drag clown of Tampa Bay, Florida. Whether she is eating fire, juggling pins, or hooping with MoodHoops Future Hoop Designer, one thing is certain, you will want more of this Gripp. Outside of drag Mr. Sissy Gripp is an attorney at a non-profit lawfirm where he fights for the rights of LGBTQ+ individuals and other minority communities. Her flow journey has always been about using flow to express emotion and create change through her performances. Mr. Sissy Gripp has performed all over Florida, at music festivals, and all around the world including Las Vegas, New Orleans Costa Rica, and Mexico. No matter where she goes, she always brings her hoops, her sass, and a good time!
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My main props are my LED Hoops and my LED pins. I taught myself how to juggle when I was 10 and continue to develop my juggling skills. LED Pins are props I can easily travel with and perform anywhere. My favorite prop, and the thing I cannot live without, is my hoops. No matter where I am in life, my hoops are always there. I love hooping because you can get lost in it and, for a few moments forget about the world. Whether I am hooping to Lauryn Hill getting my emotions out after a hard day, or throwing down to some drum and base, the posibilities are endless.
It sounds cliche, but I want to inspire people to be confident and try something new. Flow and circus arts have allowed me to perform in shows where drag queens wouldn't normally be featured. In almost every show I am in, there are a handful of people who have never seen someone in drag and almost every in the audience has never seen a juggling/hooping drag queen. I like to think I have a unique style of hooping with how fast and powerful I hoop, often to hardcore edm and drum and bass. With every show, I like to change peoples ideas of what drag is and what hooping is.
My flow journey began in 2017. I was at an edm event and watched this graceful, but powerful, man hooping. HE had a whole crowd enchanted by his flow, and I knew then that is exactly what I wanted to do. As I got more into hooping, I began to learn fire, juggling, and other flow props. Eventually I decided I wanted to share my love for flow and circus arts with the LGBTQ+ community, so I started drag! Combining these art forms has allowed me to bring flow arts to clubs, music festivals, and venues all around the world in a way that most people have never seen before.
When moving to Gainesville in 2016 and St. Pete in 2019, I only had myself. By hooping alone at the beach, the pier, or at flow meet ups, I started to meet other flow artists like myself. This led to me meeting some of my closest friends, future partners, and even developing professional connections that continue to help my flow and professional careers. The flow community is a place where you can develop your own unique flow, while connecting with other like-minded people. Without it, I dont know where I would be.
The flow community saves lives. I found flow at one of the lowest points of my life and it saved me. This story is more common than you think as people who find their flow and their flow prop, begin to heal and work through things they didn't even know were holding them back. You instantly become a part of a community that is bigger than yourself, spread across the globe and you are no longer alone. Personally, I have been able to use drag performances and flow arts to tell stories about social justice issues, heartbreak, anger, sobriety, and more. It is a way to express stories that words cannot always do.
