never forget

Trinity The Tuck’s guest appearance with Madonna has a powerful & heartbreaking backstory

By · Updated on March 2, 2024
Trinity The Tuck and Madonna
Trinity The Tuck and Madonna (Photos: Shutterstock)

Drag Race superstar Trinity The Tuck got up on stage with Madonna this week. At each of her Celebration greatest hits shows, Madonna brings a celebrity guest up from the audience to sit beside her and judge a ballroom dance-off while “Vogue” is playing.

Guest stars already brought up to the stage include Jean Paul Gaultier, Donatella Versace, Stella McCartney, and Julia Garner (reportedly cast as Madonna in a postponed-but-planned biopic).

Madonna performed on Tuesday and Wednesday at the Chase Center in San Francisco.

On Wednesday, Trinity The Tuck was the “Vogue” guest. However, it was not their only connection to the show that night.

When Madonna sings “Live To Tell”, she screens a montage of images of people lost to AIDS. Fans have spotted that some additional images have been added as the tour has continued.

According to the AIDS Memorial Instagram account, Trinity The Tuck, lost their mom to AIDS when they were eight years old. Trinity was born December 10, 1984, in Birmingham, Alabama to April Renee Dunaway. Following their mother’s death, Trinity was raised by their grandparents.

Trinity is nonbinary and uses she/they pronouns.

The AIDS Memorial highlights a photo of Trinity’s mom that Madonna included in her AIDS memorial section.

Trinity was among the first to respond, saying, “It was amazing! Such an honor! ❤”

It’s worth noting Madonna also lost her mom at a young age. She was just five when her mother, also named Madonna, passed from breast cancer.

Trinity also posted a video clip to her own Instagram. It shows Trinity joining Madonna on stage.

Trinity also reshared the AIDS Memorial posting to their Instagram stories.

Madonna tells audience San Francisco looked like heaven when she saw it for first time

Madonna treated fans at the show to her own early memories of San Francisco. She told them she’d roadtripped from Michigan in the 1970s with her stepmother. Her stepmom grounded her when she discovered Madonna had snuck some tampons into her sleeping bag.

“She said wearing tampons was like having intercourse,” Madonna said. “Now look here: I’ve worn tampons and had intercourse, and there’s absolutely no similarities.”

Madonna says that despite this grounding, San Francisco had a tremendous impact on her.

“My mind was blown. People were walking around the streets in their bare feet. Girls were wearing flowers in their hair, they didn’t have bras on. Guys had long hair. There was a sense of freedom and happiness, and joy,” she said. “San Francisco looked like heaven to me.”

Remembering those lost to AIDS

The “Live To Tell” section of the Celebration show has received widespread praise. Many regard it as one of the highlights. However, it’s also caused some controversy.

Last Saturday, in Sacramento, eagle-eyed fans noted that an image of Luther Vandross had been added to the section.

Luther Vandross died in 2005 at the age of 54. He found fame with his solo material in the early 1980s. He rarely talked about his private life but it was widely known within the industry that he was gay.

The estate of Luther Vandross later said they had asked representatives for Madonna to remove his image.

“Luther Vandross passed away in 2005 due to complications from a stroke suffered two years earlier,” a rep for his estate told Page Six in a statement.

“While we appreciate Madonna’s recognition of those lives lost to AIDS, Luther was NEVER diagnosed with AIDS or the HIV Virus,” they added.

“We’re not sure where she or her production team received false medical information claiming otherwise. We’re currently in contact with her management to remove Luther Vandross from the tribute.”

According to Page Six, representatives for Madonna say the image of Vandross has been removed.

If you’re not up on your Drag Race her-story, enjoy some of Trinity The Tuck’s most memorable moments below.

Related:

Madonna adds, then awkwardly removes, Luther Vandross from the AIDS memorial part of her show

Vandross died in 2005 of complications following a stroke two years earlier, says his estate.

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