Tom Goss rings in the Holidays with new EP 'Big Fat Gay Ass Christmas'

Tom Goss released a new holiday album in mid-November – no eggnog, but plenty of spice.

The album, titled Big Fat Gay Ass Christmas, features four original songs:  “Santa Slay,” “Put that Ass in Christmass,” “Sassy Santa,” and “Ho Ho Homo.”  Goss is joined for the seasonal songs by some of the biggest names in gay hip-hop, rock-and-roll and country music, including Benjamin Koll, Big Daddy Karsten, Keith Lawrence, and de ROCHE.

“The album was fun to write and even more fun to collaborate on,” Goss said. “It was an honor to work with Benjamin Koll, Big Daddy Karsten, Drake Jensen, Roxy Wood, Ryan Satyr, Keith Lawrence and de ROCHE. To me, it feels like a big, fat, gay ass group of caroling, bringing donuts and rainbows to every willing ear. 

“The collaborations and energy really stand out. It feels fresh, unique, inclusive and fun. It feels like a new way to celebrate Christmas.”

The record was produced in late-September and early-October in Los Angeles, Norway, Mexico, Canada, San Francisco, Palm Springs and Fort Lauderdale. “Even that list seems like a gay who’s who of places,” Goss said. “I wrote and produced demos, then sent files off to my collaborators, where they recorded in their respective cities. I then sent the files to Ned Douglas, who mixed and mastered the EP.”

Goss is still working on visual content for the EP’s videos.

“I got thinking about the kind of Christmas I wanted to have: one filled with love, joy and acceptance,” he said. “Embracing my queerness is a big part of what makes me happy, so I thought it would be fun to make an EP about what Christmas looks like to me and my chosen family.”

Each song brings a laugh, if only just for the names”

SANTA SLAY

Goss co-wrote this song with Jake Castro and it was the last song written for the EP. “I really wanted to write something that was fresh, sexy, fun and unapologetically queer,” Goss said. “We thought it would be fun to paint the picture of a Santa who was not only manning his sleigh, but also slaying in the bedroom. We knew we needed some sexy femininity on this track, so we enlisted Roxy Wood for lead vocals and she killed it. She really delivers the energy this track deserves. Ryan Satyr comes on to help create soft and airy vocal stacks and  Drake Jensen is the gruff, daddy Santa who creates a welcome contrast to the piece.”

PUT THAT ASS IN CHRISTMASS

“I asked Twitter what their favorite Christmas puns were and someone wrote ‘put the ass in Christmass.’ I laughed and knew that had to be an unapologetically beefy hip-hop Christmas track,” Goss said. “I produced the track and wrote temp verses to send out to collaborators. Big Daddy Karsten was the first person I reached out to. I love his style, flow and how he carries himself. I was excited he agreed to a verse. Keith Lawrence is a friend of mine, and as a lover of a ripe, rotund rear, I knew he would kill it. This track is so much fun to twerk to.”

SASSY SANTA

Was the first track written for the record. “Before a note was written, I knew I wanted Benjamin Koll on the EP,” Goss said. “He’s such a bright and joyful star in the gay bear world. Also, he’s super cute and looks like Santa. So, I wrote the demo, sent it (to him) and crossed my fingers. He loved it. He took the helm of the song and spent a lot of time adding instrumentation, mixing and producing the track. It blossomed into something really fantastic.”

HO HO HOMO

“This is the sweet song of the record and, in many ways, the sequel to my 2017 release ‘Gay Christmas,’” Goss said. “Five years have passed since that single and although much has stayed the same, much has changed within me. I really wanted to embrace my holiday queer. de ROCHE is a long-time collaborator, my band mate and my best friend. I want her on every project that I do. She really brings the heart to this EP with her vocal performance on ‘Ho Ho Homo.’

Goss, 41, who lives in Los Angeles, has self-released five studio albums, one live album, multiple EPs and multiple non-album singles. He has a new record set to release by the spring of 2023.

Goss was raised in Kenosha, Wisconsin, so naturally has plenty of fond memories of Chicago.

“I think back fondly on my upbringing in Kenosha,” he said. “Although I was a troubled teen, I don’t believe it had anything to do with the town itself. It’s a very family-oriented and sporty place. Luckily, I love sports and excelled at them. I loved my summers playing baseball and basketball, my spring and fall playing soccer, and my winters doing gymnastics or wrestling. When I wasn't being sporty, I loved long summer nights of kick the can or exploring the rock caves along the lake. I often miss the lakeshore breeze, freshly cut grass, and the smell of rain in the air. You don’t get much of that in Los Angeles. 

“Chicago has always been wonderful to me. I was not out until after college, after I moved to Washington, D.C. So, my experiences in Chicago as a gay man are all as an adult. Chicago was one of the first places to embrace me as an artist. I attribute that to the friends I made in the arts community, specifically Marc and Fausto at the Feast of Fun Podcast who were the first people to ever give me a platform to talk about what my music meant to me; Gary Ward who ran the epic Flesh Hungry Dog Show; David Fink, the founder of the Outspoken storyteller series; and Jeffrey Altergott who was an open and welcoming fellow songwriter very early on. It helped make Chicago another Midwest home.”

Goss said he has a host of holiday memories tied to Chicago. After all, his mother grew up on Chicago’s West side. “There is nothing I loved more than hopping in the car and heading down to my grandpa’s house for Christmas Eve. I even wrote a song about it, called ‘Christmas, Chicago Time,’ which was released in 2010. (https://open.spotify.com/album/1N4UwQvJ6glkfUaPS1IzUz?si=h1X70jWMSGSVCTuPJcaClw)

“I have always, and will always, love Chicago. The people, the food, and the vibrancy of the city.”

Goss is currently on a TV show airing on HereTV, written and directed by Billy Clift. https://www.here.tv/series/not-so-straight-in-silver-lake

For more about Tom Goss, go to: http://tomgossmusic.com