RuPaul on her comeback with Drag Race: “I never went anywhere!”

In the summer of 2009, Winq editor Martijn Tulp spoke with RuPaul about her then brand-new reality show RuPaul's Drag Race. Here is the full interview from our archives!

In 1992 RuPaul re-introduced everyone to drag with her hit single 'Supermodel (You Better Work)' and scored a major hit the next year with 'Don’t Go Breaking My Heart', a duet with Elton John. We haven’t heard a lot of RuPaul in The Netherlands since then, except for a dazzling performance at last year’s Mirrorball party. That is all about to change, as the spectacular TV-show RuPaul’s Drag Race will start airing in The Netherlands in October. 

First of all, how did you come up with the idea of RuPaul’s Drag Race?

“Well, it had been an idea that has been around for many, many years. But I really needed to prepare myself to do reality TV. Lately we have been very fearful of everything in this country, socially as well as culturally. In times of heightened fear, gender issues, especially as they pertain to men who are effeminate, have to go underground. So we had to wait until the time was right. Something changed in the past year, in the way people see men who are feminine. Even gay people in our country have been obsessed with everything that’s ‘straight acting’. We’ve been trying to put on this face that would seemingly not offend straight people. Which of course left drag queens in the dust. But things have changed.”

During the show you take on different roles; in drag you’re the host and one of the judges and out of drag you’re coaching the girls during their assignments. Which role do you like best?

“I prefer being out of drag, because I can really be myself and take the armor down. I can really be a mentor and get to know people. When I’ve got my ‘Superman’-outfit on, it’s hard for people to get close to the inside, because it’s super-huge. It generates a high level of electricity. It’s fun to watch, but it’s hard to come really close. Out of drag, I get to see who these people really are, I get to see their creativity and touch them.”

We reviewed your album Champion a couple of issues ago. Is it true that some of the songs were inspired by the contestants of the show?

“Oh, absolutely! The whole album was inspired by the experience of doing the show. The idea of being a champion is more than being number one, it’s really about owning your power and understanding that you are the power that created the universe. You’re already a winner. The song 'Ladyboy' was inspired by one of the contestants, Ongina. And 'Never Go Home Again' was inspired by Akashia, she said she had to run away from home, because her mother chose her boyfriend over her. Her boyfriend didn’t like being around gay people, so Akashia had to leave home. I felt the album says a lot of things that need to be said to young gay people. To say that you have to own your power, and that you need to be the best that you can be.”

I read on an internet forum that you had already worked with one of the contestants, Rebecca Glasscock, before. Is that true, and did it influence her part in the show?

“[laughs] It’s so funny that people do that! No, the first time I met her was on the show, on camera, when everybody else met her. Apparently she was in a movie that I did earlier, but I didn’t meet her then, I don’t even think we had scenes together. Apparently she’s an extra in a scene that I’m in. But I didn’t know that - I found out afterwards.”

How did people react to the show?

“People were so happy! In America we love comeback stories. And of course the show has been promoted to the media as my comeback. That’s fine - I’ll take it. But the truth is; I never went anywhere! There were times when I went away from the spotlight, and focused on my personal life. But for the most part I’ve always worked. The reaction has been amazing, because people love drag. Drag had gone underground for about ten years, during the Bush administration. But people who love drag welcomed it back and love the show.”

Did you take any cues from people like Tyra Banks, Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn?

“No, not really. First of all, the whole reality show template has been cast for years. There’s the eliminations, the heartfelt confessions, all that stuff. It’s all been done. If anything, they stole from me! [laughs] Definitely Miss Tyra! Please, I mean those hairdo’s and all that stuff? I looked at some of her billboards and I thought: is that me?”

During a lot of reality shows you also get to see the contestants in their hotel, not being able to sleep at night, going out. Why did you decide to leave that part out of the show?

“We wanted to focus on their creativity and what they do backstage. We felt that that’s where the drama was. I wanted to make sure that the show wasn’t mean-spirited and wasn’t cheap in a way where they got laughs out of people’s despair. I wanted to place drag where it belongs in pop culture. And the tendency with other production companies is to make drag really cheap, to make it slapstick-like. To make buffoons out of these courageous, creative people. And I didn’t want to do that.”

There are some great guest stars on the first season of the show, like Michelle Williams from Destiny’s Child, Tori Spelling and Bob Mackie. Can you give us any scoops on the second season? 

“Well, we’re going to have twelve contestants instead of nine this time. So there will be more episodes. We’re upping the anny with some of the challenges, making them even more challenging. I can’t reveal the guest stars yet. We’ve got a lot of great people lined up, but things change. We’re still in pre-production at this point. And I’m also on tour at the moment. There’s no rest for the wicked or the ugly, we must always work! [laughs] But I like to work.”

What would you like to say to all the people who will finally get to see the first season of RuPaul’s Drag Race in The Netherlands in October?

“The time has come for you to lip-sync for your life! [laughs] Hopefully the show will inspire people to want to see me again in Amsterdam. I had a lot of fun when I was there last time; we rode bicycles, did the canals and all the touristy stuff, and I bought tons of clothes. And I didn’t smoke any weed this time!’

As opposed to your previous visit to Amsterdam?

“Exactly! It’s been over ten years, and I quit smoking weed. I barely remember what happened the first time I went to Amsterdam. I was like a zombie, walking around from café to café. But hopefully I’ll get to come back again, I loved it.”

This interview first appeared in Gay&Night Magazine #137, August 2009.