Denali Was the First ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ Queen to Lipsync to a BLACKPINK Song

She's icy and a little bit spicy, as well as being a fan of BLACKPINK and K-pop. In fact, Denali showcased that admiration during the reunion episode of 'RuPaul's Drag Race.'

by Julia Dzurillay

Published on April 17, 2021

2 min read

Denali was a contestant on ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ season 13

She shared her charisma, uniqueness, nerve, and talent on this series, showcasing her love for ice skating, Disney characters, Jonathan Van Ness, and drag.

Denali Foxx, also known as Denali, was a contestant on the award-winning reality competition series, RuPaul’s Drag Race, even making a name for herself as a “lipsync assassin of the series.”

With only a few contestants remaining, RuPaul virtually invited the eliminated queens to discuss their time on the reality competition series. During this reunion episode, Denali shared that she’s a serious fan of K-pop and even spent a year in South Korea.

Denali lipsynced to ‘How You Like That’ during the ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ reunion

As one of the lipsync assassins of the series, she also has a chance to perform part of a solo song for fans. It was only fitting that her solo lip-sync performance was a BLACKPINK song. That was “How You Like That” from THE ALBUM, to which Denali danced, flipped, and lipsynced while ice skating.

Although this wasn’t an official “lipsync for your life” or “lipsync for your legacy,” this drag queen became the first contestant to lipsync to a BLACKPINK song on the reality competition series.

However, some fans noticed that Rosé from season 13, follows Rosé of BLACKPINK on Instagram. (Rosé from BLACKPINK does not follow her back and there’s no word regarding if these two have ever met.)

Denali shared her love for BLACKPINK songs like ‘Pretty Savage’

She’s icy and spicy, but she’s also a huge fan of K-pop, sharing her love with Drag Race fans. When Denali made a playlist in conjunction with her Billboard interview, she included the BLACKPINK song, “Pretty Savage.”

“I spent a year in South Korea studying Korean language and in turn falling in love with K-pop,” she said. “Although I will forever be a Blackjack and 2NE1 mega-fan, the girls of [BLACKPINK] have softly healed a few of the wounds from 2NE1’s disbandment for me.”

“This song stuck out to me this year because it’s very rare that K-pop lyrics really push a lot of b*tchy, diss-track style boundaries considering its conservative musical history,” she continued. “I love this message to their haters and play it whenever I need to feel untouchable.”

Music by BLACKPINK, including the song “How You Like That,” is available for streaming on platforms like Spotify and Apple Music.