Brontez Purnell

Brontez Purnell (born July 2, 1982) is an American writer, musician, dancer, and director based out of Oakland, California. He is the author of several award-winning books, including Since I Laid My Burden Down, 100 Boyfriends (2022), which won a Lambda Literary Award for Gay Fiction, and the punk zine Fag School. Purnell is the frontman for the punk band The Younger Lovers

Early life and education Purnell grew up in Triana, Alabama. Purnell created his first zine, Schlepp Fanzine, at the age of 14. he created Fag School His punk band The Younger Lovers started in 2003 as a bedroom demo project.

Purnell has created music under his own name since 2020. On July 19, 2023, Purnell released his solo album No Jack Swing. When asked to describe the album, he said that "I [...] allowed myself to just be a pretty Black boy making a pop record—and like, why the fuck shouldn't I?"

Awards In 2018, Purnell was awarded a Whiting Award for fiction.

In 2022, Purnell was awarded the Robert Rauschenberg Award for Performance Art/Theater, and the Lambda Literary Award for Best Gay Fiction.

On June 1, 2021, he was named a winner of the Jim Duggins Outstanding Mid-Career Novelists' Prize from the Lambda Literary Foundation.

Themes Much of his work focuses on sex and sexuality. "In my work I try to use 'sex' or the body as this thing that does not create boundaries or separation with an audience, but instead gives my audience back their humanity." He is gay. 10 Bridges I've Burnt (2024)