20 Queens Not (Yet) On "RuPaul's Drag Race" To Watch Out For
Some fabulous queens that obviously aren't on this list
We're all having a lot of fun with season 7 of RuPaul's Drag Race. And even though we each have our favorites (#TeamKatya cough cough) some of us have already moved on to speculating about the recently green-lit season 8.
Great as it is, drag doesn't begin or end with Drag Race and we've been keeping our eyes out for some local and international queens. Below, check out our list of legends, statements, stars, and up-and-coming children in the drag world. These are the queens to keep an eye out for. And who knows, maybe some day a few of them will even grace RuPaul's stage!
Heroin chic is old news, meth-head chic is the hot thing now. Or, at least it is for Austin-based Christeene, self-described as "a human pissoir of raw unabashed sexuality; a gender-blending, booty-pounding, perversion of punk." Christeene's look and live-shows are beyond abrasive, her music is indescribable, and her videos are decidedly nightmarish. Somehow, this artist's terrifying vision of beauty landed her featured spots at SXSW and she's been touring steadily ever since. Like a David Lynch character complete with smudged lipstick and thigh bruises, Christeene is equal parts comedy, glamour, and terrorism.
Skim Burley
The world is only catching up to the avant-garde genius of Milk. But if you like dairy products, perhaps it's time to check out Milk's drag sibling, Skim Burley, whose similar brand of genderfucked glamour and kitsch will have you wishing you weren't lactose intolerant. Originally a Bostonian, Skim's tagline "99% brainless, 1% Fat" says it all. Her most notable appearances are alongside the other Dairy Queens, gallivanting about New York's party scene.
Affiliated with the notorious Haus of Haunt (made famous by Sharon Needles and Alaska Thunderfuck, of course) Cherri Baum comes with her own uniquely Pittsburghian looks. Not afraid to shy away from the transgressive and punk (much like her spooky sisters) Baum has a growing fanbase in the Steel City. We always love a little bit of working class realness from our queens, and some GOREgeous looks couldn't hurt anybody either.
This Chicago queen was heavily rumored to be a contestant on RPDR season 7, with many conspiracy theorists still holding out hope that she'll be popping out of a box at some point down the road. Kim Chi would be a perfect addition to the cast, to be fair, and she'd do a great job representing the largely under-represented Asian population. Considering her friendship with the (spoiler alert) eliminated Trixie Mattel, it makes sense that her looks are somewhere between Saturday Morning Cartoon Realness and straight-up fish.
Less of a drag queen and more of a hyper-psychedellic fantasy oracle, Muffinhead has been carrying on the torch of avant-garde club kids like Leigh Bowery for years in New York's underground. His parties are infamously arty and bizarre, filled with fetishy neon demons, voguing space aliens, and plenty of uncensored genitalia. Unlike every other queen on this list, Muffinhead is a (wait for it) heterosexual -- a fact recently revealed on his episode of James St. James' Transformations. If his looks aren't devastatingly strange enough, check out his visual art and design for some Takashi Murakami inspired surreality.
Brooklyn based performer Ariel Italic rose to fame as the winner of the Lip Sync For Your Life Reddit competition, where she competed against other YouTubers to show off her Charisma Uniqueness Nerve and Talent. Styled like the kooky guest character on an episode of The Cosby Show, Miss Italic can be regularly seen participating in Bushwick's DIY art scene at Morgan Avenue Underground or alongside DJ Accident Report. (Internet super-sleuths will realize that the writer of this post is DJ Accident Report, but in Ariel's words: "If you can't promote yourself, how in the hell you gonna promote somebody else?")
Girls Will Be Girls star Coco Peru has become an unlikely YouTube hero for her series of videos where she turns the blatantly banal into the sublimely comedic. How will Coco ever find her tension tamer tea? Will she ever beat Grand Theft Auto? Coco's Jewish lady schtick is almost uncanny. I consistently have to pause her videos because they sound like phone-calls from my mother. Not that that's a bad thing!
Originally a back-up singer for legendary countertenor Klaus Nomi, Joey Arias has achieved international acclaim as a cabaret act. Decked out in custom made Mugler lingerie and sometimes accompanied by a plethora of sci-fi puppets (created by collaborator Basil Twist) Arias' operatic appeal is touched with hints of both melancholia and ecstatic silliness. For example: her one-woman show had her re-enacting scenes from Attack of the 50 Foot Woman while power-belting smooth jazz tunes.
Another NYC legend, Bob's brand of ultra-witty humor bounces playfully between the outright controversial and the harmlessly glamorous. Plenty of RPDR fans have been buzzing about this queen after RuPaul herself tweeted about one of her shows, but New Yorkers have been familiar with Bob for a while now, largely because this bitch seems to be throwing a different party every night of the week. Her monthly talent search, Look Queen, is not to miss if you're breezing through the Big Apple for a weekend. Fun fact: her boy name is not actually Bob.
People look for a lot of things in a drag queen: glamor, fashion, wit, fierceness, bravery. Panti has all those things, and she's also a staunch fighter for justice and equality. This Irish queen's meaningful speeches (one of which was featured as a TED talk) about the role of inequality on the emotional lives of gay men have practically changed the discourse of LGBT rights discussions in the UK. This self-described "gender discombobulist" could become the face of a growing movement. Most importantly, Panti's speeches focus not on the legal ramifications of inequality, but of their effects on the psyches of gays across the globe.
Somewhere between Marilyn Manson and Amanda Lepore, Duo-Raw are Sweden's premier avant-garde nightlife duo. Their music videos are both terrifying and opulent, with intense industrial dance music to match. Reminiscent of the queer underground of the late 80's (think Liquid Sky), these intimidating sparkle-demons have been lurking about clubs all over the globe. Their update on Electroclash is sure to catch anyone's eye.
Rhea Litre is the drag daughter of Drag Race Season 3 champion Raja Gemini and her looks, although sometimes less experimental, are equally as stunning. With her own small cult following, Litre has been on the sidelines of Drag Race alum for a while now, appearing with Willam, Alaska, and Kelly Mantle in a handful of videos. Might it be time for this West Hollywood queen to shine on her own?
The art of Whitney Houston impersonation is a complex one and this Minneapolis queen has mastered her craft. Having been in the game for decades, Cee Cee shines bright in a city not necessarily known for its gay culture. That being said, many a Twin City resident has assured me of their hometown's vibrant drag culture, with Miss Russell standing proudly as their monarch. Billing herself as "the illusion that creates confusion" Cee Cee isn't just a one trick pony.
Host of Dublin's weekly Space N Veda show, Miss Reves has been a solo vocalist and the lead singer of a handful of bands including LadyFace alongside fellow queen Davina Devine. Her indie-rock group, Daddy's Little Princess, even toured alongside the Scissor Sisters in the early 2000's. Veda's looks, like her music, have been described as "cheeky, glam and often cheesy, but also a lot of fun."
Analogous to the 1970's art group The Cockettes, The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence are a loosely knit group of artists, performers, and activists across the globe. Satirizing the imagery of the evangelical moral majority, The Sisters have been protesting the religious right for decades. Alongside their work as community activists and sex educators, their most recent actions against Facebook's anti-drag queen policies lead to a series of highly publicized negotiations, with the group speaking on behalf of genderfuck performers and radical fairies everywhere. Although the process for joining The Order is a bit draconian, involving a complex initiation mirroring that of actual nuns, the group is clearly a force of artistic and aesthetic good in a world overrun by religious intolerance.
Misty Maven isn't yet a household name but her series of YouTube tutorials have essentially made her drag mother to baby queens around the world. Many a millennial have learned from her helpful videos, which teach the basics of face beating and pad-cutting. Currently residing in Chicago, Misty's live performances mix trendy and futuristic realness with pop music fun.
Those less familiar with San Francisco's drag scene might recognize Peaches Christ (not to be confused with Peaches of "F*ck The Pain Away" fame) from her innumerable shows alongside Drag Race alum, including her recreation of Grey Gardens with Jinkx Monsoon and numerous re-workings of The Rocky Horror Picture Show with Sharon Needles, Alaska Thunderfuck, Willam, and Michelle Visage. As a local and national hero, Ms. Christ has hosted movie screenings as part of her touring Midnight Mass series, with her own film projects receiving numerous awards and accolades.
Although being a drag queen and being a transsexual or transgender person should definitely not be conflated, the overlap between these two identities is also undeniable. Munroe Bergdorf is the poster-child for this experience. A cast member of the UK reality TV show The Drag Queens of London, Bergdorf used to work as a drag queen before deciding to transition and become a model and high society It-girl. Her high-end lifestyle shocked British audiences, as did her decision to pursue over £15k worth of surgery.
Uriel Yekutiel first caught my eyes as the lead dancer for the Israeli synth-pop band The Young Professionals (whose lead singer, Ivri Lider, made our list of 50 Great Gay Musicians). His dance moves in the video for "D.I.S.C.O." are imminently lovable. Rocking a full face of make-up with a mustache and muscles is no easy task and Yekutiel's stage presence is undeniable.
Intersex, genderqueer performance artist Vaginal Davis is on the fringes of drag, creating compelling performance art about the nature of beauty and sexuality. Currently residing in Berlin, Davis has been associated with the Queercore punk zine scene and art director Bruce LaBruce. Later, she would go on to work with artists like Antony Hegarty, Kim Gordon, and Joel Gibb of The Hidden Cameras. Davis' art directly and aggressively confronts the mainstreaming and co-opting of African, Hispanic, and LGBT culture.
Which queens do you have your eyes on? Tell us about your favorites -- both on this list and off -- in the comments, below!
