Interview with Amanda Elstak

 

Today I would like to introduce a truly remarkable guest, Amanda Elstak, a proudly transsexual singer, performer, and dedicated activist. Amanda has left a lasting mark not only in the Hungarian music scene with her 2007 album Szükségem van a szerelemre (“I Need Love”), but also in civil society. She is the creator of the Hungarian Tolerance Award, the Hungarian Charity Award, and the Hungarian Equal Opportunity Award, and since 2010 she has served as president of the Together for Tolerance Foundation and the Hungarian Tolerance Association. Through her work, she promotes social acceptance and equality, with particular attention to supporting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and Roma communities.

 

Amanda is equally at home on stage and in the media. For years she hosted shows at Budapest venues such as Limo Caffe, Capella Caffe, Angyal Bár, and Club Bohemian Alibi, as well as events like the Hungarian Porn Oscar Awards, the Erotica Parade, and the Mr. Gay Hungary beauty pageant. After a long hiatus, she revived the Amanda Elstak Show in 2021, which now welcomes audiences at two Budapest nightlife locations, the Black Unicorn Bar and the Crush Budapest Club. In addition, Amanda teaches alternative therapies, Reiki, crystal healing, and psi-surgery, and as a life coach she helps people find their inner harmony. Her career and life are both inspiring and exemplary. In this interview, Amanda shares how she became one of the most recognized and influential voices of the Hungarian LGBTQ community, the challenges she faced along the way, and what continues to motivate her to work for her community today.

Interview with Emilia

Monika: Today I am taking you on a journey to Budapest, a beautiful capital of Hungary where I have the pleasure of talking to Emilia, a Hungarian model, and transgender activist. Hello Emilia!

Emilia: Hello Monika and everyone! Thank you for having me!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Emilia: Since I was a preschooler, I know I don’t feel good myself in my own body and I don’t feel the role I have to play as a boy. In fact, that’s the point of it all, I felt like I was playing a role if I wanted to act like a boy. As early as the age of four or five, playing house in kindergarten - when you pretend to be a family in the household with your friends, acting out housekeeping and different family roles and stuff - I’ve always assigned the roles of the mother or the daughter to myself, and my friends have also assigned them to me. It just felt right you know.