Anyone who is familiar with drag performance, is likely also familiar with the reality TV show, RuPaul’s Drag Race. In the show, fourteen drag queens compete each season to win the title of America’s Next Drag Superstar along with a cash prize of $100,000. The host, RuPaul Charles, is a gay, black man who is a professional drag queen himself. RuPaul’s Drag Race is known for not only the incredible talent of the contestants but the humor, drama, and ability to spread awareness of aspects of the LGBT+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and all other genders and sexualities) community. Through the show breaking the barriers of gender and sexuality, RuPaul’s Drag Race has become a central and powerful force in society’s shifting perceptions of drag performance and LGBT+ equality.
Many people believe that gender bending, or even more specifically drag, is a new phenomenon, but it has been around for as long as there has been performance (Necati, 2018). The first historical documentation of drag queen performances are from England in the early 1700s. At this time, it was illegal to be gay and all drag was hidden behind closed doors, and performed exclusively in front of audiences of gay men. Drag kings are a much newer phenomenon from the early 20th century in New York City. Despite the lengthy history of drag, acceptance has been a slow process. The LGBT+ community has experienced centuries of ostracization, harassment, and even arrest for their sexualities and gender identities, thereby forcing them to depict cisgender personas to keep themselves safer. This means that drag culture has only seemed like a recent phenomenon because it was forbidden for most of recent memory. The United States has come a long way, but there is still quite a bit of work to be done across the world (Moncrieff & Lienard, 2017).
Drag performances are comprised of an enormous range of acts and talents. The apparel of the performers is not designed to represent what a normal female would wear as is seen with transgender women; drag queens seek to portray an exaggerated and theatrical stereotype of what it means to be a woman (Moncrieff & Lienard, 2017, p. 2). Drag kings and queens can do anything from comedic bits to acting skits to musical performances to dances and everything in between. Though the acts are very different, they all explore and challenge what is normally expected in terms of gender. One thing that is so important about RuPaul’s Drag Race is the fact that the gay men are primary characters and roles in the show. Unlike most television where LGBT+ individuals are typically secondary characters, RuPaul himself is an openly gay man and the star and creator of the show (Gamson, 2013). Drag presents the opportunity for performers to move past the gender binary that society has normalized and expand into what some researchers are discussing as a third gender (Egner & Maloney, 2016, p. 880). Many drag performers find that their work allows them to identify with more than one gender at once. It is a vast gray area where performers can be all genders as well as no genders, and this reinforces the idea that gender is not fixed but rather is something that an individual does and accomplishes in whichever way they find most comfortable. Depending on the context, scholars have discovered a crossroads between viewing drag as “destabilizing gender categories,” “reinforcing hegemonic perspectives of dichotomous genders and sexualities,” or “both destabilizing and reinforcing traditional views of gender” (Egner & Maloney, 2016, p. 878). This shows that there is no single, correct way to look at drag. The analysis of the culture can be as fluid as the performance itself. Still, it is important to study drag because, when scholars examine how performers break through society’s gender barriers, audiences can learn about how gender has been constructed and that it is not as strict and dichotomous as the media often portrays. Drag teaches viewers that gender is something you do, not something you are (Shultz, 2018).
RuPaul’s Drag Race presents a new and unique environment where, contrary to most other television programming, gay is normal and straight is other. Most TV shows feature heterosexual characters and include LGBT+ individuals seemingly as afterthoughts or background characters. Drag is not just entertainment because it allows straight audience members to expand their thoughts and opinions on all aspects of LGBT+ rights and lives. Though the show does express ideas on politics and the current state of the LGBT+ community in society, it never gets too political in the sense that the focus is not on current events or social issues. Instead, performers represent the community in a more real and digestible way. There are numerous other TV shows out there that depict different aspects of the LGBT+ community, but RuPaul’s Drag Race stands out in the fact that it is reality TV. This is important because the queens on the show are not scripted, and, therefore, the show is more authentic, as compared to other reality television shows. In shows like Will & Grace, Queer as Folk, Queer Eye, and The L Word, there are certainly LGBT+ characters, but they are just that: characters. RuPaul’s Drag Race presents individuals who are representing their authentic selves, not something created in a writer’s room.
Even though the show directly represents LGBT+ individuals, it is intended for all kinds of viewers. Drag is an artform that can be recognized and appreciated by everyone. RuPaul’s Drag Race does not exist to appeal exclusively to the people it represents because drag is not exclusively about identity. According to RuPaul himself, it is about making fun of the social construct that is gender through all sorts of comedic genres, particularly irony (Carey-Mahoney, 2016). One of the biggest successes of the show is that it has brought aspects of gay subculture into media, popular culture, and everyday vocabulary. Even people who have never watched an episode would likely be able to recognize some of the phrases that originated in drag culture, such as "yas," "throwing shade," "serving realness," and "___ gives me life".
According to Moncrieff and Lienard (2017), drag is not to be confused with transgender, “Drag queens explicitly distance themselves from individuals who use either hormones or undergo gender reassignment surgery. These individuals are considered as not ‘playing fair’ and are banned from participating in drag competitions” (p. 2). Though the majority of drag queens are gay men, many drag performers are straight. Therefore, it is vital for audiences to understand that gender identity and sexuality are completely separate things, something that is discussed fairly often in RuPaul's Drag Race. Gender identity references how an individual wishes to present themselves, whether that be in line with or contrary to what gender they were assigned at birth. Sexuality exclusively applies to whom the individual is attracted to. Though gender identity and sexuality can often play off of each other, they do not always go hand in hand.
As of 2018, RuPaul Charles found himself in some hot water with the media when a comment he made regarding transgender contestants was met with heavy controversy. In an interview with The Guardian, RuPaul said that he would not allow transgender drag queens to participate in the show. He said, “once you start changing your body… [drag] takes on a different thing” (Shultz, 2018). He also tweeted after the interview, comparing transitioning or transitioned contestants on the show to athletes who use performance enhancing drugs. Though this analogy does make sense on the surface because plastic surgery can add feminine features to any masculine-looking man, RuPaul does permit contestants who have gone through plastic surgery. There are numerous superstar queens who have gone through extensive body-altering procedures, but are not transgender. Basically, in his interview, RuPaul was exemplifying a common misconception that birth-assigned sex and gender are the same thing. It is true that most of the population identifies with the same sex that they were assigned at birth, but this is clearly not always the case. RuPaul is restricting contestants based on biology, rather than identity or even talent. The entire premise of the show is to judge drag queens on their “charisma, uniqueness, nerve, and talent,” not their bodies (Shultz, 2018). Aside from this controversy, RuPaul’s show has started a cultural movement that cannot and will not be stopped. He has helped society make enormous strides in terms of gender perceptions and equality.
Though people who practice drag are, overall, underrepresented in media, the specific subgroup of drag kings, individuals who identify as female but perform under the male gender, are even more underrepresented, and often forgotten entirely. Though drag kings are just as entertaining as drag queens, they are booked and paid far less. One drag king, Zayn Phallic, says, “Unfortunately, part of the reality of drag kinging is that sexism is still very much present within [LGBT+] spaces. As most drag kings have bodies that are read as female out of drag (regardless of how they personally identify), they face the same glass ceiling that women face in any genre of performance” (Necati, 2018). Still, the drag king community is very supportive of one another
and remains optimistic for a more equal future. Drag king competitions are on the rise around the world with Europe’s “Man Up” competition in particular gaining more popularity every year. As of 2018, all 400 available seats were sold out (Necati, 2018). At the end of the day, drag is about the performance, regardless of the gender being portrayed. Though RuPaul's Drag Race exclusively shows male drag queens, they are judged based on their performance as a whole, not just outward appearance.
The Internet has greatly expanded the ease and availability for drag to bring itself more into the mainstream. For the kings and queens themselves, it is easier than ever to purchase and access the supplies necessary to practice drag. The entertainment industry influences American culture, and people are known to imitate what they see on TV. The Internet has also provided more people the opportunity to be exposed to drag culture. This has inspired lots of new talent to eventually become drag kings and queens themselves (Necati, 2018). This can be seen with Desmond, a 10-year-old drag queen who has gained Internet fame primarily for his makeup videos. He has even admitted that his inspiration for doing drag came from watching RuPaul’s Drag Race (Lane, 2018).
According to Taylor and Rupp (2006), “Drag queens do indeed work to make the world a better place” (p. 17). Drag shows and performances bring people together and spark conversations surrounding gender and its possibilities. For many, drag shows are the only place they are exposed to gay politics. Drag kings and queens themselves have certainly noticed changes in increased representation and equality over the past few years, but they remain hopeful that more changes will be made in the future. All members of the drag community as well as its fans hope that one day they will be known as drag performers, not kings and queens, and accepted entirely for who they are, regardless of how they identify.
Source List
Carey-Mahoney, R. (2016). ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ is more than a TV show. It’s a movement. The Washington Post. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2016/08/24/rupauls-drag-race-is-more-than-a-tv-show-its-a-movement/?utm_term=.596d4bc12c53
Egner, J. & Maloney, P. (2016). “It has no color, it has no gender, it’s gender bending”: Gender and sexual fluidity and subversiveness in drag culture. Journal of Homosexuality. 63(7). 875-903. doi: 10.1080/00918369.2015.1116345
Gamson, J. (2013). Reality Queens. American Sociological Association. 12(2). 52-54. doi: 10.1177/1536504213487699 http://journals.sagepub.com.proxy18.noblenet.org/doi/pdf/10.1177/1536504213487699
Lane, G. (2018). A 10-year-old drag queen and Hollywood’s pedophile hypocrisy. CBN News. Retrieved from https://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/2018/march/a-10-year-old-drag-queen-and-hollywoods-pedophile-hypocrisy
Moncrieff, M., & Lienard, P. (2017). A natural history of the drag queen phenomenon. Evolutionary Psychology. 15(2), 1-14. Doi: 10.1177/1474704917707591 http://journals.sagepub.com.proxy18.noblenet.org/doi/full/10.1177/1474704917707591
Necati, Y. (2018). King, queen or in between: Changing the face of drag. The Independent. Retrieved from https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/drag-kings-man-up-lgbt-non-binary-expression-queens-ru-paul-a8246446.html
Shultz, Z. (2018). RuPaul is reinforcing the very thing his show is supposed to rebel against. Huffington Post. Retrieved from https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/opinion-shultz-rupaul-drag-race-trans_us_5aa05785e4b0e9381c15039d
Taylor, V., & Rupp, L. (2006). Learning from drag queens. American Sociological Association. 5(3), 12-17. Retrieved from http://journals.sagepub.com.proxy18.noblenet.org/doi/pdf/10.1525/ctx.2006.5.3.12
Many people believe that gender bending, or even more specifically drag, is a new phenomenon, but it has been around for as long as there has been performance (Necati, 2018). The first historical documentation of drag queen performances are from England in the early 1700s. At this time, it was illegal to be gay and all drag was hidden behind closed doors, and performed exclusively in front of audiences of gay men. Drag kings are a much newer phenomenon from the early 20th century in New York City. Despite the lengthy history of drag, acceptance has been a slow process. The LGBT+ community has experienced centuries of ostracization, harassment, and even arrest for their sexualities and gender identities, thereby forcing them to depict cisgender personas to keep themselves safer. This means that drag culture has only seemed like a recent phenomenon because it was forbidden for most of recent memory. The United States has come a long way, but there is still quite a bit of work to be done across the world (Moncrieff & Lienard, 2017).
Drag performances are comprised of an enormous range of acts and talents. The apparel of the performers is not designed to represent what a normal female would wear as is seen with transgender women; drag queens seek to portray an exaggerated and theatrical stereotype of what it means to be a woman (Moncrieff & Lienard, 2017, p. 2). Drag kings and queens can do anything from comedic bits to acting skits to musical performances to dances and everything in between. Though the acts are very different, they all explore and challenge what is normally expected in terms of gender. One thing that is so important about RuPaul’s Drag Race is the fact that the gay men are primary characters and roles in the show. Unlike most television where LGBT+ individuals are typically secondary characters, RuPaul himself is an openly gay man and the star and creator of the show (Gamson, 2013). Drag presents the opportunity for performers to move past the gender binary that society has normalized and expand into what some researchers are discussing as a third gender (Egner & Maloney, 2016, p. 880). Many drag performers find that their work allows them to identify with more than one gender at once. It is a vast gray area where performers can be all genders as well as no genders, and this reinforces the idea that gender is not fixed but rather is something that an individual does and accomplishes in whichever way they find most comfortable. Depending on the context, scholars have discovered a crossroads between viewing drag as “destabilizing gender categories,” “reinforcing hegemonic perspectives of dichotomous genders and sexualities,” or “both destabilizing and reinforcing traditional views of gender” (Egner & Maloney, 2016, p. 878). This shows that there is no single, correct way to look at drag. The analysis of the culture can be as fluid as the performance itself. Still, it is important to study drag because, when scholars examine how performers break through society’s gender barriers, audiences can learn about how gender has been constructed and that it is not as strict and dichotomous as the media often portrays. Drag teaches viewers that gender is something you do, not something you are (Shultz, 2018).
RuPaul’s Drag Race presents a new and unique environment where, contrary to most other television programming, gay is normal and straight is other. Most TV shows feature heterosexual characters and include LGBT+ individuals seemingly as afterthoughts or background characters. Drag is not just entertainment because it allows straight audience members to expand their thoughts and opinions on all aspects of LGBT+ rights and lives. Though the show does express ideas on politics and the current state of the LGBT+ community in society, it never gets too political in the sense that the focus is not on current events or social issues. Instead, performers represent the community in a more real and digestible way. There are numerous other TV shows out there that depict different aspects of the LGBT+ community, but RuPaul’s Drag Race stands out in the fact that it is reality TV. This is important because the queens on the show are not scripted, and, therefore, the show is more authentic, as compared to other reality television shows. In shows like Will & Grace, Queer as Folk, Queer Eye, and The L Word, there are certainly LGBT+ characters, but they are just that: characters. RuPaul’s Drag Race presents individuals who are representing their authentic selves, not something created in a writer’s room.
Even though the show directly represents LGBT+ individuals, it is intended for all kinds of viewers. Drag is an artform that can be recognized and appreciated by everyone. RuPaul’s Drag Race does not exist to appeal exclusively to the people it represents because drag is not exclusively about identity. According to RuPaul himself, it is about making fun of the social construct that is gender through all sorts of comedic genres, particularly irony (Carey-Mahoney, 2016). One of the biggest successes of the show is that it has brought aspects of gay subculture into media, popular culture, and everyday vocabulary. Even people who have never watched an episode would likely be able to recognize some of the phrases that originated in drag culture, such as "yas," "throwing shade," "serving realness," and "___ gives me life".
According to Moncrieff and Lienard (2017), drag is not to be confused with transgender, “Drag queens explicitly distance themselves from individuals who use either hormones or undergo gender reassignment surgery. These individuals are considered as not ‘playing fair’ and are banned from participating in drag competitions” (p. 2). Though the majority of drag queens are gay men, many drag performers are straight. Therefore, it is vital for audiences to understand that gender identity and sexuality are completely separate things, something that is discussed fairly often in RuPaul's Drag Race. Gender identity references how an individual wishes to present themselves, whether that be in line with or contrary to what gender they were assigned at birth. Sexuality exclusively applies to whom the individual is attracted to. Though gender identity and sexuality can often play off of each other, they do not always go hand in hand.
As of 2018, RuPaul Charles found himself in some hot water with the media when a comment he made regarding transgender contestants was met with heavy controversy. In an interview with The Guardian, RuPaul said that he would not allow transgender drag queens to participate in the show. He said, “once you start changing your body… [drag] takes on a different thing” (Shultz, 2018). He also tweeted after the interview, comparing transitioning or transitioned contestants on the show to athletes who use performance enhancing drugs. Though this analogy does make sense on the surface because plastic surgery can add feminine features to any masculine-looking man, RuPaul does permit contestants who have gone through plastic surgery. There are numerous superstar queens who have gone through extensive body-altering procedures, but are not transgender. Basically, in his interview, RuPaul was exemplifying a common misconception that birth-assigned sex and gender are the same thing. It is true that most of the population identifies with the same sex that they were assigned at birth, but this is clearly not always the case. RuPaul is restricting contestants based on biology, rather than identity or even talent. The entire premise of the show is to judge drag queens on their “charisma, uniqueness, nerve, and talent,” not their bodies (Shultz, 2018). Aside from this controversy, RuPaul’s show has started a cultural movement that cannot and will not be stopped. He has helped society make enormous strides in terms of gender perceptions and equality.
Though people who practice drag are, overall, underrepresented in media, the specific subgroup of drag kings, individuals who identify as female but perform under the male gender, are even more underrepresented, and often forgotten entirely. Though drag kings are just as entertaining as drag queens, they are booked and paid far less. One drag king, Zayn Phallic, says, “Unfortunately, part of the reality of drag kinging is that sexism is still very much present within [LGBT+] spaces. As most drag kings have bodies that are read as female out of drag (regardless of how they personally identify), they face the same glass ceiling that women face in any genre of performance” (Necati, 2018). Still, the drag king community is very supportive of one another
and remains optimistic for a more equal future. Drag king competitions are on the rise around the world with Europe’s “Man Up” competition in particular gaining more popularity every year. As of 2018, all 400 available seats were sold out (Necati, 2018). At the end of the day, drag is about the performance, regardless of the gender being portrayed. Though RuPaul's Drag Race exclusively shows male drag queens, they are judged based on their performance as a whole, not just outward appearance.
The Internet has greatly expanded the ease and availability for drag to bring itself more into the mainstream. For the kings and queens themselves, it is easier than ever to purchase and access the supplies necessary to practice drag. The entertainment industry influences American culture, and people are known to imitate what they see on TV. The Internet has also provided more people the opportunity to be exposed to drag culture. This has inspired lots of new talent to eventually become drag kings and queens themselves (Necati, 2018). This can be seen with Desmond, a 10-year-old drag queen who has gained Internet fame primarily for his makeup videos. He has even admitted that his inspiration for doing drag came from watching RuPaul’s Drag Race (Lane, 2018).
According to Taylor and Rupp (2006), “Drag queens do indeed work to make the world a better place” (p. 17). Drag shows and performances bring people together and spark conversations surrounding gender and its possibilities. For many, drag shows are the only place they are exposed to gay politics. Drag kings and queens themselves have certainly noticed changes in increased representation and equality over the past few years, but they remain hopeful that more changes will be made in the future. All members of the drag community as well as its fans hope that one day they will be known as drag performers, not kings and queens, and accepted entirely for who they are, regardless of how they identify.
Source List
Carey-Mahoney, R. (2016). ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ is more than a TV show. It’s a movement. The Washington Post. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2016/08/24/rupauls-drag-race-is-more-than-a-tv-show-its-a-movement/?utm_term=.596d4bc12c53
Egner, J. & Maloney, P. (2016). “It has no color, it has no gender, it’s gender bending”: Gender and sexual fluidity and subversiveness in drag culture. Journal of Homosexuality. 63(7). 875-903. doi: 10.1080/00918369.2015.1116345
Gamson, J. (2013). Reality Queens. American Sociological Association. 12(2). 52-54. doi: 10.1177/1536504213487699 http://journals.sagepub.com.proxy18.noblenet.org/doi/pdf/10.1177/1536504213487699
Lane, G. (2018). A 10-year-old drag queen and Hollywood’s pedophile hypocrisy. CBN News. Retrieved from https://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/2018/march/a-10-year-old-drag-queen-and-hollywoods-pedophile-hypocrisy
Moncrieff, M., & Lienard, P. (2017). A natural history of the drag queen phenomenon. Evolutionary Psychology. 15(2), 1-14. Doi: 10.1177/1474704917707591 http://journals.sagepub.com.proxy18.noblenet.org/doi/full/10.1177/1474704917707591
Necati, Y. (2018). King, queen or in between: Changing the face of drag. The Independent. Retrieved from https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/drag-kings-man-up-lgbt-non-binary-expression-queens-ru-paul-a8246446.html
Shultz, Z. (2018). RuPaul is reinforcing the very thing his show is supposed to rebel against. Huffington Post. Retrieved from https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/opinion-shultz-rupaul-drag-race-trans_us_5aa05785e4b0e9381c15039d
Taylor, V., & Rupp, L. (2006). Learning from drag queens. American Sociological Association. 5(3), 12-17. Retrieved from http://journals.sagepub.com.proxy18.noblenet.org/doi/pdf/10.1525/ctx.2006.5.3.12