With the latest season of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars becoming the franchise's highest rated and most sampled season to date, drag is making its way into mainstream pop culture (though Ru claims this is not possible). The stars have been featured consistently in Entertainment Weekly, People, Vulture, and Huffington Post. The drag queen spirit, however, extends far beyond this single season of Drag Race. For decades, drag queens have been a source of excitement, enlightenment, and escape from the formulaic popular media. Mainstream recreation takes itself way too seriously. Drag personalities, music, and movies are self-aware, unpredictable, and damn entertaining. Let's compare.
PERSONALITIES
Hillary Clinton (@hillaryclinton) on Twitter
"The decision we make in four days will affect our country for decades."
vs
Alyssa Edwards (@AlyssaEdwards_1) on Twitter
"What if the hokey pokey really IS what it's all about?"
Stephen Hawking on Facebook
"The study of pathology has been at the fore of science since antiquity, from Hippocrates' humors to the Victorians' vapors, to the thorough diagnostic abilities of modern medicine."
vs
Delta Work on Facebook
"It won't change your life but one of my absolute favorite things to eat in the world is chips and salsa."
Connor Franta on YouTube
"The good part about moving is you get to go somewhere new. Who knows? Maybe the next couple years are gonna be my most important years."
vs
Coco Peru on YouTube
"Oh my, God, a box of boogers. A box of boogers. Boogies. Ha ha ha. A box of boogies. I'm gonna have to write a letter. That bothers me."
MUSIC
Adele in "When We Were Young"
"Cause you feel like home / You're like a dream come true"
vs
Detox in Willam's "Starf*cker"
"Shoot my butt up with silicone / Make you wanna save my number up in your phone"
Ariana Grande in "One Last Time"
"I know that this is my fault / I should've been more careful"
vs
Katya in "Read U Wrote U"
"Lenin in the streets / Destoyevsky in the streets / Baby, are you ready for this Cold War?"
Whitney Houston in "I Will Always Love You"
"I wish you joy and happiness / But above all this I wish you love / And I will always love you / I will always love you"
vs
Alaska Thunderf*ck in "This Is My Hair"
"This is my hair / This is my hair / This is my hair / This is my hair / I don't wear wigs"
MOVIES
Plot of "Titanic" starring Kate Winslet and Leo DiCaprio
"A 101-year-old woman recounts her time aboard a sinking ship when she was 17. She met a man from a different class that changed her life, opened her mind, and liberated her from the social construct of her upper class. He risks his life for her, and she holds onto him until his last dying breath."
vs
Plot of "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" starring Guy Pearce
"Two drag queens and their transgender friend travel across the barren Australian desert in a beatdown bus. Their destination is a remote resort where they have been hired for a cabaret gig. Priscilla is the name of the bus."
Plot of "The Shawshank Redemption" starring Morgan Freeman
"A man does goes to prison for a crime he did not commit. He befriends a wise inmate and the two find redemption in being decent human beings."
vs
Plot of "Pink Flamingos" starring Divine
"Divine and her family are known as 'the filthiest people alive' until a married couple starts selling drugs to kids and impregnating hitchhikers. The two families begin to compete for the title by committing unspeakable acts of filthiness."
Plot of "Citizen Kane" starring Orson Welles
"Following his death, news outlets recount the life of a millionaire and his rise and fall while trying to decipher the meaning behind his last words."
vs
Plot of "Hurricane Bianca" starring Bianca Del Rio
"A gay man is fired from his teaching job in Texas after one day. He returns as his drag persona to seek revenge on the staff and students that did him wrong."
So there you have it. Definitive proof that drag creations are far more original and captivating than mainstream popular media. Now I'm not saying drag queens are funny all the time and should never be taken seriously. Adore Delano has a long line of heartbreak anthems on her setlist, and Kelly Mantle has a very impressive acting resumé. All I'm saying is that the songs on the radio and the movies in the theaters and the celebrities in the magazines aren't the best sources of creative genius. Do yourself a favor and follow a drag queen or two on Instagram. Subscribe to their YouTube channels. Buy their music on iTunes and stop taking everything so seriously, damnit.
