From the incomparable Emmy, Grammy, and Tony Award winner, a powerful and revealing autobiography about race, sexuality, art, and healing
Billy Porter is an actor, singer, director, composer, and playwright from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He is the winner of the 2019 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for his portrayal of Pray Tell in Pose—the first openly gay Black man to be nominated and win in any lead acting category. Porter is also the winner of the 2013 Tony, Grammy, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle Awards for his groundbreaking performance as Lola in Kinky Boots. As a director, among other shows, Porter helmed the revival of Suzan-Lori Parks’s Topdog/Underdog at Boston’s Huntington Theatre, where he was awarded the Elliot Norton Award for Best Director.
“There is only one Billy Porter. He is blazing a trail where none
existed. Whether you noticed the brilliant blaze early (for me, it
was his brilliant 2005 live album, At the Corner of Broadway and
Soul) or his transcendent portrayal of Lola in Kinky Boots or the
unforgettable Pray Tell on Pose, once you see the light, there’s no
going back. And it turns out his voice rings just as true on the
page as it does on the stage. How lucky we are to witness it in our
time.”
*Lin-Manuel Miranda*
“Angels show us the way through even the darkest tunnels. In this
heartbreaking and hilarious tell-ALL, Billy lights a torch so
bright he can save us all!”
*Renée Elise Goldsberry*
“At once harrowing and triumphant, relevant and necessary,
Unprotected takes us on a journey of using art to heal trauma. What
a magical journey to behold, and one that cracks open the space for
others to heal too.”
*Ryan Murphy*
“I have had the honor of knowing Billy since I was eighteen and
just arriving at our mutual alma mater, CMU, where he walked into
our classroom and showed enough strength and charisma to fill ten
Radio City Music Halls. Unprotected is an opportunity for everyone
to feel the same inspiration, love, awe, and explosiveness that I
felt.”
*Josh Gad*
“Collaborating with Billy has been one of the greatest joys of my
career. Billy embodies everything a true artist really is. His
passion for being his authentic self is something most should
aspire to. Just to experience his presence is an absolute honor. He
is a real class act, and I’m lucky to be able to create for such an
iconic and empowering person.”
*Christian Siriano*
“Bold, hilarious, honest, and singular. Words once assigned to
Billy as an entertainer will now be attributed to him as a writer.
Unprotected is a record of survival, commitment to authenticity,
and healing; a road map out of hell.”
*Leslie Odom, Jr.*
“Haunting and inspirational, this is both a powerful indictment of
the lasting harms of bigotry and an immensely moving account of
moving forward.”
*Publishers Weekly STARRED Review*
“In Unprotected, Porter’s voice on the page aptly matches his
go-for-broke vocal instrument. He holds little back, never shying
from raw emotionality, but avoiding histrionics… This is not just a
memoir, saints; this is a testimony. He is telling a story and he
is spilling the tea and he is working through deep wounds in
pursuit of a clearer path to a full experience of personhood.”
*New York Times Book Review*
"Stirring… not just a show business tell-all… though there’s a full
helping of that… Porter delivers a searing indictment of how
America treats race, sexuality and anyone outside the norm. Clear
and piercing, his justified indignation is as defined as his
singular singing voice and flashy fashion.”
*The Washington Post*
“An unfiltered look at many of Porter’s highest and lowest moments…
Much of Porter’s story has been out there for years, but never
presented in such a raw and concentrated manner… Porter did what he
does best with Unprotected: Slay.”
*Pittsburgh Post-Gazette*
“as exceptional as Porter himself”
*Library Journal (starred review)*
“Overcoming racism, homophobia, bullying, and abuse, a theatrical
star is born.”
*Kirkus*
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