Hello, hello, hello! Welcome to another edition of the Week in Drag. Have you watched Mama Reu’s new Netflix series, AJ and the Queen yet? I must admit that life has gotten in the way of my binge, but the episodes I’ve seen so far are fantastic – and it’s great to see so many of the queens from Drag Race on the small screen again.
We’ve got interviews from the red carpet and behind the scenes dish from Ru and co-star Izzy G. as well as updates from some of your other favorite runway strutters. Let’s raise the curtain and get into it!
The red carpet for AJ and the Queen saw the stars of the show decked out in their finest ruby red couture. Mark Freeman of Afterbuzz TV got some great interviews with the fabulous and talented Raven, Trinity the Tuck (and her beau Leo Llanos), and Ongina.
Seeing them rocking the rouge proves that red looks good on everybody. (I covet Trinity’s hair.) Mark also got to say “halleloo” to Shangela, who is one of the few queens who didn’t make a cameo on the series – and she told us why.
Another queen who dazzled on the red carpet is our favorite wig mistress, Jaymes Mansfield, who takes us along as she films her cameo on AJ and the Queen, does a little post-production ADR and attends the star-studded premiere.
A very excited Ru takes us on a tour of the AJ and the Queen set, showing off the details of his NYC apartment set, talking about kissing the incredibly handsome Josh Segarra, who plays his boyfriend on the show (color me jealous) and reveals what he dislikes the most about getting into drag. Later, Izzy G. joins Ru to tour the RV set, while Ru shares more stories from the filming of the series (including how she did her own stunts.)
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Ru and AJ co-creator Michael Patrick King discuss why they chose Netflix as the platform to air their show. It’s pretty much why you would think (and Ru does admit that the show is “bingeable” – he’s not wrong there.)
Izzy G. and RuPaul interviewed each other for Entertainment Tonight. They talk about how Izzy got cast in the role of AJ, and how much of AJ is based on her (she admits she’s a “girly girl” and not at all like the thug she plays on TV) and Ru says how she’s different than Ruby. The two also discuss what might happen on season two, which I certainly hope is happening. They are just too cute together.
In addition to the 22 Drag Race queens who make cameos in AJ and the Queen, there are lots of Easter eggs that will delight the diehard fans of the show. NewNowNext lists some of the references you may have missed.
Ru’s been making the talk show circuit to promote the show and showed up on The Late Late Show with James Corden. RU, James and fellow guest Rachel Brosnahan (the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel herself) play a game of “Getting Wiggy With It” in which a lineup of 5 men come out, and the trio much guess which of the lineup is wearing a wig. It’s goofy, but it’s really funny and I love Rachel as a blond.
Another queen who you won’t be seeing on AJ and the Queen is Nina Bo’Nina Brown, who shares her “Rawview” of the show and toots and boots the red carpet fashions at the premiere – sans any sour grapes, because she says she’s not mad that she didn’t participate in the show or attend the festivities.
Last week, Logo released the teaser for a new web series starring the legendary Miss Coco Peru and this week, have announced the arrival of “Madame Coco Knows.” Each Monday, starting this week, the clairvoyant Coco will deliver horoscopes for all 12 signs of the zodiac each month. This past week, she shared personality profiles for all of the signs. I’m a Taurus, and her description is pretty darned accurate. I don’t know about you, but I am so glad I have Coco to fill in that Miss Cleo-shaped hole in my heart.
Season nine’s Valentina appeared on “Hey Queen” and revealed that she is non-binary. She also discussed the backlash that occurred after a post on social media accused her of being unprofessional and dismissive of her fans. She told host Jonny McGovern that “I was not grateful, I was not level-headed, I was not happy. I was being overworked and I didn’t know how to vocalize it. I didn’t know how to tell my manager, you know? I had the entire drag community coming for me.” She talks about this in part three (which you can see below) and make sure to watch part one and part two.
Netflix and chill with Katya and Trixie Mattel as they watch and hilariously dissect the new ice skating series Spinning Out on the latest episode of “I Like to Watch.”
Speaking of Trixie, as someone who uses “Mattel” as part of her stage name, it’s probably no surprise that she is a fan of Barbie. What you might not know is that she has amassed a pretty impressive collection of vintage dolls and, in this video from AV Club, she shows off some of her favorites.
Over in podcast land, Willam and Alaska once again dropped some “Hot Goss” and set sail for adventure as the revisited the “Hope Floats” challenge (a/k/a the one with the boats) on “Race Chaser” Classique. And, on “Drag Her”, Mano Agapion put the funny Justin Martindale from E! television’s What the Fashion? in the hot seat as the latest contestant on ‘Who Wants to Be a Fake Drag Race Winner?”
If you enjoyed Drag Me Down the Aisle (and miss Drag U), you’ll be happy to know that Thorgy Thor, Jujubee, Bebe Zahara Benet and Alexis Michelle are back to work more makeover magic on some deserving women. On Dragnificent!, which premieres on TLC in April, the queens help women recover their lost self-esteem and transform them into the beautiful creatures they’ve been all along. Think Queer Eye with drag queens instead of the Fab Five. I’m really looking forward to this one, especially speaking as a woman who was not accepted into Drag U (and not for lack of trying.)
Mrs. Kasha Davis and Brock McGillis venture into the dreaded comments section of an article about Brock’s coming out (in the very straight male world of hockey) and check out shady comments aimed at Kasha and other queens while discussing cyberbullying and the importance of self-acceptance on “This is S**t.”
Another queen has entered the world of ASMR videos – season seven champion Violet Chachki. In the latest “Violet Does”, our favorite fashion queen shares her pet peeves while putting you into a state of pure relaxation.
What do Derrick Barry and Kimora Blac know about the military? The queens put their knowledge of the armed forces to the test on the latest episode of “Wait, What?” Stay for the humor (and Derrick’s fab auburn wig) and stick around for Darienne Lake roasting her BFF Pandora Boxx in the ad for DragCon LA.)
Real-life throuple Derrick Barry, Nebraska and Nick San Pedro discuss their relationship and discover how much they really know about each other (while winning some cash) on “Throuples for Cash.”
If you can’t wait to catch up on the many, many web series we cover here – and even discover some new ones, subscribe to WOW Presents Plus. Here. You can access shows like “UNHhhh” with Trixie and Katya (which is about to kick off its fifth season), “Morning T & T” with Baga Chipz and The Vivienne from Drag Race UK and “Alyssa’s Secret. In addition, you can catch up on Drag Race UK and Drag Race Thailand and watch fascinating documentaries about topics vital to the LGBTQ community. Don’t miss a thing, sign up now!
With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, you might be wondering what to get that special someone. Well, fret not, because World of Wonder has you covered. Inspired by Gwenyth Paltrow’s internet-breaking candle, WOW is here to make your space smell fabulous. For real. Emulating the scents of the four iconic qualities needed to snatch the Drag Race crown is the “This Smells Like My Charisma, Uniqueness, Nerve & Talent” candle. The candle, which retails for $25 USD can be pre-ordered on the World of Wonder website. Show them how much you care!
Lastly, with the crazy success of RuPaul’s Drag Race, we sometimes forget the pioneers, the OG season one queens. Bussy Queen has uncovered the “Meet the Queens” videos from those nine unforgettable queens, from Victoria “Porkchop” Parker, who holds the distinction of being the first-ever queen to sashay away to Bebe Zahara Benet, the first to be crowned ‘America’s Next Drag Superstar.” Travel back to 2009 and enjoy this walk down Drag Race memory lane.
Whew! It’s been a busy week, and we will be back next week with all of the latest tea and updates from the RuPaul’s Drag Race queendom. Until then, everybody say LOVE!
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FROM OUR PARTNERS
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