‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’: Which Season 13 Queens Are From New York City?
Though it seems like season 12 aired literally just yesterday, RuPaul’s Drag Race is back again! Out of the many queens for the season, several of them are from New York City.
The season 13 premiere of ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ aired Friday night
RuPaul’s Drag Race kicked off with a bang this week and has a new experimental format for the first few episodes. The thirteen entered the stage in pairs (and one group of three) for immediate lip-syncs. Six queens won while seven were given the “Porkchop,” referencing Victoria “Porkchop” Parker, the very first queen to be eliminated from the show.
However, they soon learned that it was not all over. Both groups will perform separately before the entire group is brought back together. Given the twisty nature of this season, there is no telling what is about to go down in the workroom and on the main stage.
Four New York City queens are competing this season, including Tina Burner and Olivia Lux
Tina Burner is a New York City drag legend and was frequently referred to during her first episode on the show. She’s a comedy and camp queen and has already been compared to Nina West, though it looks like she may have the upper hand on the season 11 queen when it comes to lip-syncing. She was raised in Upstate New York and is the oldest queen in the competition, cementing her “most-seasoned” status. Burner credits New York City for sharpening her skill. “New York City is like the competition of all competitions,” she told amNewYork. “I had to fight to be at the top of my game. I spent every dollar I had to prepare myself to being a drag queen. I would live gig to gig … It prepared me, being a New Yorker.”
Olivia Lux is the antithesis of Burner. She’s only been doing drag for about two years but don’t let her newbie status fool you. Lux appears to bring the full package and ousted Rosé, a New York drag legend during their lip-sync. Lux loves to bring a live drag experience and often plays the piano during her shows.
In an interview with Decider, Lux spoke about the experience of getting ready to go on Drag Race during the pandemic.
“It was very difficult before I got the call [to compete on Drag Race] to even do drag,” she said. “I feel like a lot of artists can relate to the fact of [doing] living room lip sync shows. So I think the biggest adjustment for me was being able to put it all together, get shipped out, and do [the show] when I wasn’t even in that mindset of, “Oh my gosh, this is even a possibility.”
Kandy Muse and Rosé are also competing on season 13
Kandy Muse is already a Drag Race icon. Going into the premiere, she was the second-most followed queen, only behind celebrity makeup artist Gottmik. Muse is a member of the former House of Aja and is one of Aja’s (RuPaul’s Drag Race season 9, RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars season 3) drag daughters. Her sister, Dahlia Sin, competed on season 12 and was the first out. Muse talked about how safe the set was, especially during COVID.
“I think it’s been the safest set I’ve ever been on,” she told Decider. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a set so safe, the way Drag Race is. I had a really good time. Being one of the first shows to film during COVID is monumental as it is, so—icons!”
Last but not least, Rosé, known for being the sister of Drag Race alumna Jan and a member of their girl group Stephanie’s Child, is the fourth New York City queen in the competition.
She was first an actor before really becoming a drag queen. “I kind of wasn’t vibing with the whole scene, and I felt like my artist was really struggling because I wanted to express things that were really related to me and my personality,” she told amNewYork. ” I started really coming into my queerness about four years ago…drag entered my life at the right time.”
RuPaul’s Drag Race airs Friday nights on VH1.
