Downtown Los Angeles was pulsing with color when we set up our mics at DTLA Proud Festival. The air was thick with basslines, drag queens strutted past the fountains at Pershing Square, and somewhere between the main stage and a churro stand, we spoke with actor and activist Milton Darnell Smith, a man who carries pride in his bones. This is Episode 24 of The Gay Rugby Podcast, and it’s all about diversity, visibility, and what it means to belong.Milton’s energy is magnetic. He talks about his roots in the church, the grind of becoming an actor in Hollywood, and the urgency of creating space for queer joy, not just on stage, but in everyday life. Sitting with him, it felt like we were talking to someone who’s lived a dozen lives and somehow managed to stay open-hearted through them all. He embodies what inclusive sports and queer culture both aim for: a world where authenticity doesn’t have to be negotiated.DTLA Proud, now a staple of Los Angeles Pride season, has become more than just a festival, it’s a mirror for what queer LA looks like right now. There’s sweat, laughter, flirtation, activism, and art happening all at once. It’s a love letter to the city’s LGBTQ+ heartbeat, where the rugby field and the dance floor somehow share the same rhythm. Standing there with Milton, surrounded by thousands of people celebrating who they are, we couldn’t help but feel like this is exactly what we’ve been talking about all season: inclusion that moves from words to action.We talk about inclusive sports culture, the gay rugby community, LGBTQ pride in Los Angeles, and how events like DTLA Proud push conversations forward. Milton opens up about his creative journey, his advocacy work, and the ways he’s seen representation shift in Hollywood. It’s an interview that feels both intimate and electric; part festival recap, part cultural checkpoint, part love letter to the people who show up as themselves, no matter the space.DTLA Proud isn’t just another Pride festival; it’s a reminder that inclusion isn’t something we talk about once a year; it’s something we live. From the rugby pitch to downtown LA’s streets, from athlete activism to queer storytelling, this episode is a snapshot of a movement in motion.

Rugby has its own language. Every scrum, ruck, and knock-on carries meaning, rhythm, and history. In this episode of The Gay Rugby Podcast, hosts Jack Higgins and Ozzie Luna from Los Angeles Rebellion Rugby unpack the slang that runs through the sport — and what it says about identity, culture, and belonging.It’s part translation guide, part cultural study. The guys break down how rugby’s coded vocabulary connects players across continents while still leaving outsiders guessing. They look at how queer players make that language their own, and how inclusive rugby communities flip tradition into something more open, and a little more honest.The Gay Rugby Podcast is born from the scrums and sidelines of the Los Angeles Rebellion, an LGBTQ+ team that’s rewriting what toughness and teamwork look like. Each week, Jack and Ozzie talk rugby, queerness, and everything that happens in between; no filters, no PR polish.Stream the full episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen. Subscribe if you’re into rugby, language, or just good conversation that doesn’t pull its punches.

His decision didn’t just ripple, it detonated. In Episode 22 of The Gay Rugby Podcast, we sit down with R.K. Russell, the NFL player who, in a moment of courage and clarity, became one of the first active players to publicly identify as bisexual. What follows is equal parts locker-room confession, cultural reckoning, and hard-won tenderness: a story about leaving silence behind, about masculinity and vulnerability on the field, and about what it means to be bisexual in the NFL while still loving the game.R.K. brings the kind of candor that rewrites the playbook. He talks about the pressure cooker of professional sport, the complicated dance between team loyalty and personal truth, and why he believes representation matters for LGBTQ athletes who are still figuring out how to balance identity with ambition. This is essential listening for anyone searching “bisexual NFL player interview,” “coming out in pro sports,” or “what it’s like being queer in the NFL.”There’s a symmetry here we can’t ignore: rugby and football are cousins - collision sports that prize toughness, camaraderie, and ritual. On our show (born from the Los Angeles Rebellion Rugby community) we explore that overlap: how locker room culture shapes men, how inclusive sports can heal, and why queer players in both codes wrestle with similar stakes. If you care about inclusive rugby stories, bisexual athlete stories, or the future of LGBTQ representation in pro sports, turn this up.R.K. Russell tells his full story in his powerful memoir The Yards Between Us: A Memoir of Life, Love, and Football. It’s more than a sports book — it’s about identity, family, love, and what it costs to live authentically on the biggest stage in American sports. If you want to go deeper into his journey as the first openly bisexual NFL player, you can pick up The Yards Between Us wherever books are sold, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and independent bookstores.In this conversation you’ll hear R.K. Russell on mental health, activism, and the moment he decided to be public, plus practical messages for young athletes: how to come out as an athlete, how to navigate team dynamics, and how to find allies in sport. Subscribe to The Gay Rugby Podcast for more interviews that sit at the intersection of sport, identity, and community.