Entertainment*
Bearded Ladies

The 6 Best Queens You Won’t See on Drag Race

By Matt Slusarenko May 24, 2011 at 4:01pm

 

As much as we love our Drag Race, we can’t help but get a little tired of the same flawless beauties, gussying it up to make the mainstream judges believe that they are, indeed, the most crown-worthy cows of them all. But what of the Queens whom we know and love for their imperfections? The messy queens with stubble who, night after night, provide us with the inspiration to laugh at them, ourselves, and our culture. They won’t show up on Drag Race anytime soon, and we wouldn’t have it any other way. Here at Queerty, we take men in ill-fitting attire and bad makeup as seriously those blessed with the beauty of Aphrodite! Here’s our list of the top drag performers who don’t need RuPaul’s approval.
Specimen 1: PrimaDonna Reed We’ll start with Ms. Reed, or “Primie” as she is known for similarity to a prematurely-born child. This captivating beauty has graced stages in LA, San Francisco and New York, which she will soon call home. While ever-beautiful and charming, she is perhaps best known for her hilarious portrayal of everything from a county cousin to a sophisticated heiress, always with a self-deprecating humor that is infectious.
Specimen 2: Christeene Vale Christeene is getting more acclaim than ever, with chart-bottoming hits like “Fix my Dick” that seldom play anywhere, especially on your local radio. This Austin performer is so funny, she makes audiences think twice about bathing and learning. Instead, she encourages them to indulge in the sick-filthy underbelly she calls home: Texas.
Specimen 3: Drew Droege, aka Chloe Sevigny Need to know the season’s must haves? Or the ins and out of hosting a special holiday? Well, look no further than Drew Droege, addressing us all seasonally as Chloe Sevigny with startlingly obvious observations about how we should be living our lives. For example, how ever would we have thought to wear partonizing chunk wedges from Nine West to complete our witches costume? As a culture, we all owe Drew a huge debt of gratitude.
Specimen 4: Ambrosia Salad This San Francisco Drag favorite is no more than a lazy, out-of work immigrant-imposter collecting from numerous generous pockets and social welfare programs. Lucky for her they allowed such a HUGE foodstamp budget to this mother of 23. Ambrosia has led the underground scene for years, paying homage to her Latina culture as well as the counter-cultural pop-icons that fly under the radar and influence style around the world. Roisin Murphy, anyone? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLWdxIowgwY&feature=related
Specimen 5: Dina Martina When even Joyce DeWitt admits that you rock her style better than she does, you know you have cemented you star status. With Dina, its three’s company, wig’s a crowd. Her performances are a hit on the YouTubes, or less frequently out and about on the Seattle scene.

Specimen 6: Lady Bear

One of our most beloved queens, Lady Bear has made quite an impression on the entire west coast. When not starring in failed cable-pilot vehicles, she can be found frequenting the finest airport restaurants in California! Watch out Terminal 2! Lady Bear’s fabled appearances are most often seen on Greyhound buses and McDonald’s locations, or every so often as the den mother of L.A’s Cub Scout.

Head on over to GayCities to find some drag shows near you, from San Francisco to London to Miami to New Orleans to Atlanta, but not Peoria.

Don't forget to share:

Help make sure LGBTQ+ stories are being told...

We can't rely on mainstream media to tell our stories. That's why we don't lock Queerty articles behind a paywall. Will you support our mission with a contribution today?

Once Monthly Annually

Cancel anytime · Proudly LGBTQ+ owned and operated

13 Comments*

  • Riker

    I like Lady Bear, but the rest of them were just a hot mess. Why not show some real queens with charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent? I could name so many just in the New York drag scene alone that are severely underrated and could use some publicity.

  • Alfonzo

    What about Jackie Hell?

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QW0hKMB4-F0

  • m

    There are so many queens that could be included, but they sadly can’t name them all! My bid goes out to Hoku Mama Swamp

  • Hysterical Lesbian

    My bid goes out to ChiChi & Chonga! Love those girlz! http://chichiandchonga.blogspot.com/

  • pickles

    I agree, the RDR show has some well-honed showgirls, yet the real tooth, the inventiveness of the drag movement is much better documented in your collection and beyond. Big credit goes to the SF scene. None tops it (sorry NY). WIth the veterans like Vicki Marlane and Collette Le Grand, Gina La Divina- that’s some rich sparkle. Add in Hoku Mama Swamp, Glamamore- all awesome. The best thing about drag is the layering of talent, the diversity of ages, backgrounds and the love for show. Drag is great! More coverage please.

  • Shannon1981

    This gives me an idea, Queerty. Why don’t you start a weekly/monthly column promoting under rated, under exposed, drag queens and drag kings? Help get their careers off the ground.

  • Travis

    @Alfonzo: Yeah! JACKIE HELL!

    http://youtu.be/oNDEIbABMAk

  • m

    @pickles: THANK YOU PICKLES! You must be dill.

  • Scott L

    I live in SF and have never seen Lady Bear with “ill-fitting attire and bad makeup”. She is always original and flawless with perfect makeup.

  • Jonathan

    @Scott L: Seriously. Lady Bear rocks. I love that she’s featured and getting attention, but ill-fitting attire and bad make-up DO NOT describe her at all.

  • ladybear

    @Riker:

    Hey Riker. Thank you for your kind words, but just let me say, that while I can’t dispute the “hot mess” claim, I’m a big fan of all these bitches. i think we should have a reality show where we all have to live in a house together. Real world: Trannytown!

  • ladybear

    @Scott L:

    @Jonathan:

    You two keep on sweet talkin’ me like this and you won’t even have to buy me dinner to get in my panties. Up for some DP/Spit roast action later?

  • Dr. Dick

    @ladybear: LOLLZ LB is my MAMA,
    ain’t no bitchez servin like she’s servin.
    ppfffff, “ill fitting attire”.

    HOW DARE YOU?!

Comments are closed.

More in Entertainment*

Latest*