Whether you’re crowned America’s next drag superstar or not, going on RuPaul’s Drag Race is a transformative experience. TV Insider caught up with the final four of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 15 just before they learned who would win the season. They shared how going on the show changed their lives, both in drag and out.
“I don’t think my drag has evolved. I think my outlook on certain things has definitely changed,” Mistress Isabelle Brooks told TV Insider at the April 14 finale screening at New York City’s Hard Rock Hotel. “Going on Drag Race has taught me that drag is supposed to be fun. Before I was on Drag Race, I was in a very different place than most queens because I’ve always done drag full-time. It’s always been my career. I think that when something’s your job, it’s work when you do it. Going on Drag Race and having the opportunity to travel and meet so many different people, it just reignited the creativity in me and made me fall in love with drag all over again.”
Sasha Colby, a seasoned drag legend and Season 15’s winner, surprised herself this season. The first surprise was “that when asked to be funny, I’m not.” She’s referring to the comedy challenge, which saw her paired with Anetra. It was the only challenge where Sasha came remotely close to being in the bottom two for the week. However, the most unexpected part of the season was realizing how much room she had to hone her craft further.
We caught up with the Queens of season 15’s @RuPaulsDragRace to celebrate the finale episode and crown the winner. Check out what the gorgeous darlings had to say!@sashacolby @luxxnoirlondon @MistressIBrooks @iamanetra pic.twitter.com/P23CTEEI65
— TV Insider (@TVInsider) April 19, 2023
“I knew the worst thing that could happen is I’d perform, or I’d do my job that I’ve been doing for years, but I really did want to get to that point,” she explained. “So, I really tried hard to do the things that just had to do with me, the challenges ahead. Could I act? Could I sew? I was actually really surprised some of the times. You just kind of go for it, and you see if you sink or swim.”
Her runner-up, Anetra, realized that win or lose, it’s how you spend your time that makes the most impact.
“The thing I learned was to trust your inner heart, trust your inner mind, and just let yourself go,” she explained. “You’ll be happy with the result if you just really put your effort into it.”
As for Luxx Noir London, the season’s youngest queen, she learned that actions speak louder than words.
“It was kind of looking from the outside, in. Looking at myself on Drag Race, I really need to let my talent speak for itself because my talent shines brighter than any word I can say about it,” the New Jersey queen said. “Kind of going into a room and resting in the iconic-ness, I think that that’s what I’m going to be doing from this point on.”
Of all the Season 15 challenges, the final four queens saw the “Wigloose” Rusical (below), the House of Fashion, and the Daytona Wind Reboot Acting challenges.
“It was just so much fun to let go, and it was a really fun day on set,” said Mistress of the challenge she won. Luxx, who won the House of Fashion challenge, said it was memorable because “a big part of life, and a big part of drag, and a big part of being queer, is ‘resilience.’”
“I use resilience as a loose term for taking a topic at hand, a challenge, and really making something out of nothing. Those unconventional challenges, they’re really a test on what can you do at the drop of a dime to make something out of nothing? I’ve had to do that so much in my career — turn an outfit that I get from Forever21 to look like couture walking down the runway.”
For her, it was a test to see if she still had the resilient chops. “And I did,” she proclaimed. The Rusical — a spoof of Footloose where it’s drag, not dance, being banned by local governments (sadly, that’s become an American reality since the episode was filmed) — was also a highlight. “I think that that Rusical and story is more prevalent now than ever.”
“When we first did it, there were some rumblings of drag being a no, no, which is so dumb,” she said. “But now it’s an exact mirror of what’s happening in society.”
The Rusical was also Anetra’s favorite. “Everything that’s going on right now is very, very important,” she said. “It’s crazy because we didn’t even know what the state of the world would be a year from now. I think it has aged really well, and it’s going to be educating a lot of people.”
— Reporting by Ennica Jacob
RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars, Season 8 Premiere, Friday, May 12, Paramount+