The underground community that originated in New York City has found its way to Scandinavia. What makes it different from its roots?
“A little more watered down” and “a little more kind” are the words that Aaliyah-Axelle Nkuriza used when contrasting the Queer Ballroom community that exists in Scandinavia from the one she familiarized herself with in Toronto.
The now 23-year-old Swedish born, Black trans woman, walked into her first ball in Toronto in 2020. She was instantly overtaken with the amount of love and joy that filled the space. “I’d never been in a space where there was just so much queerness, but also liberated, queerness,” she explained passionately.
The Ballroom community or Ballroom culture can be defined as an underground subculture created by Black trans and queer individuals, where they can perform in different categories and receive trophies and prizes.
And while the community is still quite underground, Nkuriza acknowledged that her community is evolving and expanding further than many imagined. “You don’t really expect it to expand to this degree,” she said during a recent interview.
Setting themselves apart
With that expansion came innovation. When the now 23-year-old Nkuriza spontaneously returned to Örebro, Sweden, in 2024, she had no idea what to expect from the ballroom community in nearby Stockholm and Oslo—only one thing: that they “could never compare” to the stakes in North America.”
When she stepped into the scene here, she described the “aura” as being a lot calmer, and less competitive than its North American counterparts. She says this is attributed to many factors; primarily being that Scandinavia doesn’t have the same history and the “core pillars” that were established in Harlem in the 80s, restricting them from passing similar judgment.
The absence of cash prizes is another reason that she uses to explain the calm nature of the Scandanavian ballroom community. “In the states you can get up to 10k, here you’re lucky if you can get 2k [Swedish Crowns],” Nkuriza explained.
The best of both worlds
Although vastly different, Nkuriza described this change as both refreshing and welcoming. She says that in Scandinavia, the overall uncompetitive nature makes her feel more connected to her community. “You kind of have someone to lean onto,” she explained.
With that, she also misses certain aspects of her community in North America. She said the cutthroat nature of their community really nurtured her competitive side, and forced her to grow and evolve as a performer and individual.
Nkuriza says she is happy to see how underground Queer POC spaces have travelled and cemented themselves in countries far from their origins, and is eager to see what the community will look like in Latvia, Belgium, and especially Paris.
“To see that so many people who are all brought up with the same kind of ideologies are coming together to express themselves fully and freely and openly, it’s beautiful to see,” Nkuriza said.