Why was Joy nightclub so special for Toronto?

Once upon a time in Toronto, there was a place in a back alley, filled with some of the city's fiercest nightlife creatures. It was fashion, it was sexy, it was freaky, it was art, it was messy, fun, unexpected and it was about the music.

In a scene of clubs heavily geared towards more commercial, white, cis-gendered Queer As Folk-loving gay ass men, Joy was different. It was in a lane on it's own in a raw, warehouse style space.

Because we've been around the block, we knew about Joy, and many of its stars still walk among us in Toronto, but we learned so much more about it from Denise Benson's Then & Now article. Check it out and read more about the scene, the time and the gritty details. We also got a lot of visual help from our pals at the Arquives who help us get a sense of the visual vibe of the club. We took inspiration from JOY and what it meant to the community back then for our own Pride party by packing a night filled with DJs (include Mark Falco, an original Joy resident DJ!), drag artists, visual artists, hosts and... Y'all!

John Wulff, founder of club also helped direct us and give us some inside tea on the club and it's impact on queer nightlife in the city. We asked John (who graciously let us take inspiration from the JOY logo for our JOY party during Pride, thanks John!) a few questions about JOY to wrap our heads around where things all started.

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Yohomo: Can you tell us how JOY started? What was the ethos and vibe of the bar?

John Wulff: My partner at Joy, Jet Payumo, wanted to open an after hours club and knew of a warehouse space at 16 Phipps Street.  It was a 6000 sq ft space that was a gay nightclub in the 70’s/80’s (Club David and Mistique respectively) which was an old Eatons warehouse and connected to Colby’s (nightclub) on St.Joseph Street's via an underground tunnel. 
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Jet needed a partner to handle the promotions, thematic events and ensuring the club was full and together we set out to create a safe space for the LGBTQQIP2SAA family. 

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16 Phipps was run down with all the left over mirrored ceilings/ walls broken and fallen down from Mistique and we decided to strip everything and paint the walls black and shine a pinspot on a lone disco ball. We wanted a dark warehouse feel where people could be themselves free from examination…safe and protected. 

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Patrick Lightheart was my marketing/graphic design partner and came up with the name and logo about 30 mins before we went to press with the flyer and street posters. 

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We spent a long money on creating a visuals that were almost art installations and were presented as such around the Village. 

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We opened ‘JOY’ Saturday March 18th, 1995 with resident DJ Scott Cairns and me hosting. Tommy Smythe was the back room VIP and Jason Ryde (Barbie) was responsible for bringing hot men and Rommel bringing glamour. 

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DJ Scott Cairns was the only choice for resident and it was his thought that some of the best house was coming out in 1995 to ’96. Big records for him at JOY included tracks from Farley & Heller a.k.a. Roach Motel, like ‘Wild Luv‘ and ‘Work 2 Doo.’ The dub of Joi Cardwell’s ‘Jump For Joi‘ was massive, as was H2O’s ‘Satisfied (Take Me Higher),’ and Robbie Tronco’s ‘Walk for Me.’ Tracks from producers like Danny Tenaglia, Roger S., MURK, Angel Moraes and Mousse T. were really big mainstays at JOY during that time. 

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We've heard it was a super queer and more inclusive club than a lot of other clubs at the time, is this true?

At that time, and equally true preceding this, being gay, out and yourself was dangerous. After the clubs closed at 2am people needed a place to go as the protected strip outside of Komrads and Badlands on Isabella wasn’t as safe.  JOY was a membership club only and we could track patrons and protect them and provide a fabulous time at a reasonable cost. All monies earned were invested into the party. 

What made JOY standout from the pack at the time?

The talent involved in the operation. Jet Payumo my partner was the operations backbone, Scott the DJ was so talented and no matter what the attendance was, always had incredible energy and made sure it was the best party. 

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Jennstar and her crew got involved shortly after the official opening and crafted the Friday night parties under the veil ‘Jennstar Will Make You Famous. This night fostered an environment of international DJs playing to a room of gays and straights and no one caring but having a great time. It was a further community build that the LGBTQQIP2SAA needed.

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What were a couple of your favourite nights that happened?

I have a few. My favourite was New Years Eve 1995/1996. Scott played to a room of 1400 people in a space that legally was allowed 472. The energy was something I hadn't seen before and it rained from the condensation in the air. 

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Frankie Knuckles played for Jennstar’s night, Deep Dish did too and Jennstar’s night was an attraction for international DJs in town who wanted to come by and just play.

No booking, no cost, just for love of house music. Jennstar and her Partners created this environment and helped legitimize Toronto as a major hub for house music and really helped bridge our community into the larger whole with supportive allies. 

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Are there any characters who were always there?

Here are some videos from JOY Summer of 1995 - you can see for yourself :)

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What's missing in today's queer nightlife scene in Toronto in your opinion?...

I don’t think anything is missing. Newer generations bring a different complexion and a response to the times we’re in and are equally relevant and fabulous. In this business, I encourage irreverence, belief in yourself and action.

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Thanks John! And thanks to all of you who came out to JOY.