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Leisha Hailey and Camila Grey of Uh Huh Her Perform for Breast Cancer Awareness

Leisha Hailey and Camila Grey are on a special tour with Keep a Breast Foundation to help beat breast cancer for good.

Last year, breast cancer cut short the lives of 40,000 American women. Though we have yet to develop the miracle cure for cancer, there are organizations out there that are committed to raising awareness and finding a way to beat this disease for good.

In honor of National Breast Cancer Prevention Month, the Keep a Breast Foundation and House of Blues Entertainment have come together to host the Breast Cancer Prevention tour starring none other than Leisha Hailey and Camila Grey, the lovely ladies of the band Uh Huh Her.

Sponsored by Emergen-C Pink, which has donated more than $450,000 to the cause since 2007, the yearlong tour will visit colleges, music festivals, and events throughout the United States and Canada to raise awareness of preventative measures against breast cancer.

On October 10 in New York City, Leisha and Camila performed songs from their latest album, Nocturnes, for a packed venue of fans chanting their names. And with their tuned vocals, sultry looks, and fearless attitudes, the two definitely succeeded in making the night unforgettable.

As they introduced their new song, “Criminal,” to the crowd, Camila told supporters, “This is for people like us”– a possible reference to their recent experience of being thrown off a Southwest airlines flight for kissing each other.

During the show, we caught up with Erica Leite, the event’s coordinator, as she sold packets of Emergen-C Pink and the foundation’s bracelets, totes, and tees to a slew of eager guests. When Leite joined the Keep a Breast Foundation six years ago, she was a dedicated volunteer, eventually quitting her job and moving her every possession out of her apartment and into storage to hit the road with the organization.

Why? To help promote an important message to young people: the message of prevention. Many teens and twenty-somethings believe they don’t have to worry about breast cancer, but Leite wants them to know that this deadly disease can strike anyone at any time.

“One of the most heartbreaking and empowering e-mails I’ve received was from a 22-year old woman,” Leite said. “She had attended one of our events and was inspired to examine her breasts. She found five lumps and ended up undergoing a double mastectomy. Our outreach helped her seek treatment before it was too late.”

Though Southwest Airlines has yet to offer the couple behind Uh Huh Her an official apology, it hasn’t stopped Leisha Hailey and Camila Grey from rocking out to promote breast cancer awareness. These gals were all smiles when we got a chance for a quick meet in their dressing room.

We know your experience with Southwest was far from positive. Do you have any final thoughts on the situation?

Camila Grey: We did receive a refund for our tickets, but the airline hasn’t offered an official apology. And you know, while I’d like to believe this was an isolated incident, there have been more and more stories popping up about gays and lesbians being discriminated against by certain companies. The silver lining in our experience is that people have been coming forward and speaking up about incidents like these.

Leisha Hailey: We’d just like to move on from the whole thing. Unfortunately, one homophobic stewardess tried to speak for the entire airline and it’s such a shame that homophobia is still out there.

You’ve been performing to raise awareness for preventative measures against breast cancer. Have either of you been personally affected by breast cancer?

CG: Both of my grandmothers are actually breast cancer survivors. They both had mastectomies in the 1980s. I was definitely inspired by them to try and reach out to young people and help educate them on what they can do to take care of themselves.

LH: Especially since the focus is usually on what people do when they have breast cancer. Survivor stories are so important, but we also need to focus on prevention and lifestyle choices.

CG: Young women need to know about being healthy, and this organization does it in a cool way– it’s not textbook. Women should get tested and I think it’s definitely promoting that message in a creative and new way.

For fans who weren’t able to score tickets to your performance, how is your new album different from your previous work?

LH: Our new work is definitely more rock driven. Before, we were more electro pop focused. This new music is more organic rock. We were really inspired by Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd.

CG: Yeah, there are lots of drums –it’s pretty epic.

How would you describe your personal style –has it evolved over the years?

LH: We both shop a lot of vintage, and that really hasn’t changed. I go for pieces that are interesting and make me feel comfortable. I guess I don’t have a set style, but if I had to pick I favorite designer it would be Miu Miu.

CG: Alexander McQueen clothes and Marc Jacobs jewelry for me!

We know you’ve toured the country, but what do you like most about New York?

CG: We love New York in general– people have such an appreciation for music here!

LH: And the after parties are pretty great, too.

You both look so confident on stage; have you had any slipups or embarrassing moments recently?

CG: I’m the clumsy one. I’m actually really, really clumsy. The last show, I dropped my ear pack in the toilet. They’re really expensive, so I ended up drying it out. I still use it. Also, there was this show in London where I wore two different heels. I didn’t even realize it until I got on stage! I was standing there in two different colored shoes and heels were different heights, too!

（Photo by Brittany Morgan）

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