The Week in Drag – Ru talks Drag Race Season 12, Willam Puts the Beatdown on Some Fellow Ru-Girls, Meet the Queens of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK and More!

RuPaul's Drag Race UK

Hello, hello, hello! I guess we should add “Cheerio!” this week, as we finally get our first look at the queen-testants hoping to be crowned the UK’s RuPaul’s Drag Race champion.

Also this week, in news that shouldn’t really be a surprise to anyone, VH1 officially announced RuPaul’s Drag Race season 12 and All-Stars season 5. With the announcement and the Emmys drawing closer, RuPaul has been making the rounds, even getting a chance to chat with Judge Judy.

Are you ready to get caught up with all of the goings-on in the world of drag? 

Mama Ru was the subject of an interview by her idol, Judge Judy, for Interview magazine. Along with some stunning photos (with makeup by Raven), we were treated to wonderful exchanges like this:

JUDGE JUDY: If I had to define you in two words, they would be “honest” and “flamboyant.” That’s who you are. The fun of you is who you are. And that’s why I think we like each other, because I, too, know who I am. Our messages are the same, really, which is that you have to really like yourself.

RUPAUL: It’s the only game in town, honestly, because when you find your own rhythm, when you find your own frequency, that is your gift to humanity. It’s your life’s work.

This is the interview I never knew I needed in my life until now. I would love to have lunch with these two. 


Ru talked with The Hollywood Reporter about, among other things, season 12 of Drag Race. After sharing the advice he gives to the queens after they appear on the show and giving props to season 11 champ Yvie Oddly, Ru said of the alums, “Some of them are better at it than others. Some fade away, and that’s show business, but some have been able to parlay it into a really, not only lucrative business, but have championed certain causes that are important.” He went on to add, “And they represent so many people out there. Our show is on VH1 in America, but around the world it streams on different platforms and so people in the most remote places you can imagine, or can’t imagine, are watching this thing. And they’re getting what they need to get out of bed every morning and say ‘You know what, I can do this.’ And that alone is so valuable.”

I think it’s finally time I got a subscription to WOW Presents Plus. The ten queens for the inaugural season of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK have been announced, and I can’t help but be excited. Of course, Twitter had immediate feedback on the cast, both good and bad. You can meet all of the queens here:

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Follow Drag Race UK on Twitter to meet the queens and get updates in advance of the series’ premiere in October.

Over on the pods, Mano Agapion welcomed guest Eliot Glaser to talk about the girl group challenge (and, as always, so much more) on All-Stars season one on the latest episode of “Drag Her.” Willam and Alaska spilled some teavana on “Hot Goss” – including Willam’s snub at a recent Billboard panel on drag queen music – and recapped the “RuPaul-a-palooza” episode of Drag Race season 3. Check out both episodes on Forever Dog.

If you want to check out the panel that Willam was referring to, Billboard posted the full panel presentation, titled “Drag & Music: From ‘Drag Race’ To The Top of the Charts” online. Willam’s “Race Chaser” co-host Alaska was on the panel. along with other chart-topping queens, including Blair St. Clair, Manila Luzon, Peppermint, Ryan Aceto and Trixie Mattel.

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Willam’s Beatdown series is hilarious when she takes down aspiring influencers and crazy internet videos, but this week, she turns her attention to her fellow Drag Race queens, Silky Nutmeg Ganache, Gia Gunn and Kimora Blac (along with some Trixie stanning twins and the requisite random weirdo caught on camera) with equally funny results.

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Speaking of Willam and Trixie, as part of her ever-expanding entertainment empire, Willam released a video showcasing the makeup in Trixie’s new collection and basically covering herself in glitter – but, hey, it works for her (and I want all of the makeup.)

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Want more Willam? Who doesn’t? Check out the latest episode of “Cómo Se Dice?” with Rhea Litré for more cutting up and a couple of new words of Spanish…but mostly cutting up. We need more Rhea in our lives.

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Speaking of two queens who excel in making funny, it’s the season finale of Trixie Mattel and Katya‘s hilarious web series, “UNHhhh.” Enjoy ten minutes of randomness that is sure to crack you up.

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It seems like great drag comic duos are coming to you in threes this week. Check out part two of Bob the Drag Queen and Monét X Change‘s “Cook Out” featuring an interview with New York drag legend Sherry Vine. Congrats to Bob for winning the ramen challenge!

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Monét brings back her Maya Angelou impersonation from Snatch Game for the latest episode of “Herstory X Change”, where she gives you the tea on those nursery rhymes that could have potentially traumatized you as a child. After watching this, you’ll never hear “Ring around the Rosie”, “Rub-a-Dub-Dub” and “Mary, Mary Quite Contrary” the same way again.

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Alyssa Edwards shares “secrets, stories and charades” and takes us through her beauty process, creating her signature “pretty in pink” look. I know I can never pull off the fierce look she serves, but I can totally get behind her commitment to skin care and a good primer.

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Ariel Versace once again gives us another stunning makeup tutorial. This week, she dips into the Jeffree Star x Morphe Collection and passes the vibrant pinks in the (gorgeous) palate for a “Bronze Goddess Drag Transformation”. I love the finished look…it’s a definite “Unnnhhh yasss” from me. 

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Violet Chachki takes us behind the scenes at couture week in Paris. She attends shows by designers including Schiaparelli, Ralph & Russo, Giambattista Valli, and Jean-Paul Gautier and reunites with her fellow season seven queen-testant, Miss Fame. So much glamma…

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Well, that wraps up this week’s recap of all of the latest news from the world of drag. Who else is psyched for Drag Race UK? Until next week, everybody say LOVE!

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