BONUS: What Would You Look Like as a Drag Queen?

Hello, and welcome to this bonus episode of America A History recorded straight after our recently published episode, how has RuPaul's Drag Race changed America? I'm joined now by the guests from that episode, Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato, to discuss this a little bit more. Thank you both for hanging on. Thank you for having us back. In the 10 seconds between stopping the last recording. I just wanted to just quickly touch on because I think it got a little bit heavy in our.

In the main episode, but I do really just want to know, what are your favorite ever Drag Race seasons and contestants? Oh, my God. You can't. You can't. I've got to ask. It's like Sophie's Choice. Are you kidding? Are you kidding? There are so many. There are so many. You know, it's only like 700 to choose from. Like, you know, my favorite is. My favorite is Rue. Sorry. You know, just. He's an amazing, inspiring. You know, he's just fantastic.

I mean, I have some favorite moments, like Kennedy Davenport's Little Richard and Snatch Game. Sasha Velour's petal reveal, Roxy Anderson's wig reveal Roxy's story on the Runway. It's a very tragic story about being left at the bus stop Angina in season one, revealing her HIV status. Oh, God. Yeah. I mean, there are just so many moments. Oh, my God. I was just thinking this morning of the Batonka Dunk grayscale look at the finale.

Do you remember that Fenton Detox's, you know, Violet Chachki's reveal in the autumn fashion show? I mean, everything that Bianca Del Rio did, basically. I mean, you know, there are no favorites. It's endless. Ru is always the winner, right? Ru wins. Exactly. I mean, you've been doing this for a long time, and you've been surrounded by drag queens, you know, throughout the show's making.

Have you ever been tempted to try drag yourself? Oh, I thought you'd never ask. Fenton has the most incredible cheekbones. Fenton is. I have the evidence here. If you're watching this. This is me at boarding school 16 playing Titania, Queen of the fairies in Middlemanight's Dream. I mean, that. Look at the cheekbones. Look at the cheekbones. I didn't even have to contour them. I think I peaked early, but Randy and I. Randy, we also did. Remember, what was it? Wigstock.

Yeah. Yeah. You were the Jersey Shore. No, I. Yeah. No, I thought I was. We both went and dragged to some concert in the East Village. Really? Fenton looked amazing. I think he had two Batman pins on your breasts. I Had bat nipples. Yes, it was bad drag. So. But, you know, you know, I think we hung up our makeup brushes when we realized there were many people far, far better at doing it than us.

But I do think gay and straight men alike need to get into drag at least once. It's always so amazing, especially watching straight men in get into drag, because it just. Something happens. Something happens when a straight guy puts on a wig and puts on stockings and they. It's just so much so satisfying to watch. That's always one of the greatest episodes, isn't it? When it's the crew makeover or, you know. Yeah, it's so revealing. Revealing.

Especially it's the episodes, those transformation ones where you get, you know, a bunch of like butch, you know, kind of like straight men that have never even seen drag before that just by the end of the episode, they are. They are so into it. Yeah, they're whores. Most of them turn into. But it just goes to show that in terms of, you know, this sort of obsession with. You've got, you know, this kind of.

Because I think one of the things we're seeing right now is this very ultra macho, on the one hand, posturing, and then on the other, you've got the. The women of Mar a Lago who actually, personally, I think they all look like drag queens. The look is so harsh. You know, they could do with some tips. Actually.

A friend of ours, an artist named Ashley Longshore, she's a New Orleans based artist, she's just this past week completed a series of artworks that are all the presidents of the United States portraits, and she puts them in drag, which actually makes me think, Liam, for this podcast, I think your wife needs to put you in drag. And that needs to be the artwork that goes out to promote this episode. Challenge accepted. I will. I will see what you want numbers. You want numbers. There you go.

Exactly. By the way, Randy, I was just thinking also about that Instagram site, Rupublicans Republicans, where they take. They use AI, I guess, to put these sort of bigots and homophobes and the sort of. The sort of leaders of the Turd Reich in drag. They make them over into drag. And it's priceless and hilarious. And you just go to Rupublicans on Instagram. It's the GOP glammed up. It's really good, really funny. That is going straight in the show notes for anyone listening.

Thank you for that, Fenton. Well, before.

Before my toddler starts screaming at me to run her a bath, I'M gonna. I'm gonna let you all go. Um, and I. I thank you both for not only recording this, but also the main episode as well. And we'll link to it as well in the show notes. For anyone who hasn't already listened to the main episode, go and do that right now. And again, if you like what you hear, do check out all the info in the show notes. You can support the show as well. Fenton, Randy, can't thank you enough.

Thank you so much for joining me. Thank you. It's been really great. Thank you.