GLAAD TO ANNOUNCE NOMINEES FOR THE 32ND ANNUAL GLAAD MEDIA AWARDS WITH LGBTQ STARS JOSIE TOTAH, SHANGELA, AND JONATHAN BENNETT IN TIKTOK LIVESTREAM ON JANUARY 28

Contact:
Spencer Harvey
Communications Manager, GLAAD
sharvey@glaad.org

The exclusive livestream will take place at 12pm ET on Thursday, January 28 via GLAAD’s TikTok page

Los Angeles, CA – Tuesday, January 26, 2021 – GLAAD, the world’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) media advocacy organization, today announced that the nominees for the 32nd Annual GLAAD Media Awards will be announced in a livestream on GLAAD’s TikTok page on Thursday, January 28 at 12pm ET. This marks the first time TikTok has ever live-streamed a nominations announcement for an awards show.

During the livestream, actress Josie Totah (Saved by the Bell, Big Mouth), actor and performer D.J. ‘Shangela’ Pierce (We’re Here), and actor Jonathan Bennett (The Christmas House) will help to reveal the nominees for several of the GLAAD Media Awards categories, with the full list to be revealed after the livestream concludes. The livestream will also feature highlights from previous GLAAD Media Awards ceremonies, as well as clips from celebrity interviews.

GLAAD is also working with TikTok on a special recognition titled “TikTok Queer Advocate of the Year.” TikTok will highlight those who have accelerated acceptance and taken LGBTQ visibility to new heights. Several TikTok advocates will be nominated and fans will then be able to vote for their favorite. The winner will be announced the night of the GLAAD Media Awards ceremony later this year.

The 32nd Annual GLAAD Media Awards honor media for fair, accurate, and inclusive representations of LGBTQ people and issues. Since its inception in 1990, the GLAAD Media Awards have grown to be the most visible annual LGBTQ awards show in the world, sending powerful messages of acceptance to audiences globally. The 32nd Annual GLAAD Media Awards are presented by Gilead and Ketel One Family-Made Vodka.

Josie Totah is a multi-talented actress, writer, and producer. Most recently, Totah can be seen in NBCU’s Peacock reboot of Saved by the Bell where she stars as Lexi, a sharp-tongued cheerleader and the most popular girl at Bayside High. She is also a voice on the fourth season of Netflix’s hit animated series Big Mouth alongside Nick Kroll, John Mulaney, Seth Rogen, and Lena Waithe. Totah will soon appear in Netflix’s feature film Moxie, directed by Amy Poehler.

D.J. “Shangela” Pierce is an actor and performer best recognized as the only contestant to compete on three separate seasons of the Emmy-award winning reality series RuPaul’s Drag Race (Seasons 2, 3 and “All Stars” 3). In March 2019, Shangela brought down the house at the GLAAD Media Awards in Los Angeles performing a Beyoncé medley, and in May 2019, she hosted the GLAAD Media Awards in New York. Shangela can most recently be seen starring alongside Bob the Drag Queen and Eureka O’Hara in the Emmy-nominated HBO series We’re Here, a six-part unscripted series that recruits small-town residents across America to participate in a one-night-only drag show.

Mean Girls heartthrob Jonathan Bennett is all grown up and recently appeared on Shondaland’s Station 19 for which he’ll reprise his role in Season 4. He also released a best-selling “Mean Girls” Burn (Cook)book which paired nicely with his appearance in Ariana Grande’s latest “thank you, next” video.  More recently, he starred in the Hallmark Holiday original telefilm, The Christmas House, hosted the official Times Square NYE ball drop, and will next be seen in the indie feature Potato Dreams of America which will premiere at SXSW.