1st Edition
RuPaul’s Drag Race and the Cultural Politics of Fame
This book explores the connections between drag stardom and contemporary sexual and cultural politics in the RuPaul’s Drag Race franchise. With Drag Race alumni achieving fame in fields such as music, fashion, theatre and beyond, this edited collection interrogates the relationships between gender, sexuality, performance, identity and celebrity culture that lie at the very heart of the show.
RuPaul’s Drag Race has recently completed its 15th season after having won 26 Emmys. The show is a popular culture phenomenon, broadcasting drag into the homes of middle America, spawning spin off shows and an ever-expanding international franchise. Its success has made global stars of its host, guest judges and contestants alike. This edited collection explores the connections between drag stardom and contemporary sexual and cultural politics that RuPaul’s Drag Race stages and dramatizes. Alumni of Drag Race have gone on to become globally famous. Adore Delano and Sharon Needles have launched music careers. Violet Chachki is the first drag model to become the face of Bettie Page Lingerie whilst Jinkx Monsoon has achieved success as a Broadway star. In 2017 RuPaul was named as one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People. Above everything else RuPaul’s Drag Race is a show about celebrating the glamour, artifice and the labour of fame. Whilst Drag Race has already attracted scholarly attention (Brennan & Gudelunas eds. 2017) the relationships between gender, sexuality, performance, identity and celebrity culture that lie at the heart of its dynamic and appeal remain to be explored.
RuPaul’s Drag Race and the Cultural Politics of Fame will be a key resource for academics, researchers, and advanced students of Media and Cultural Studies, Gender Studies, Performing Arts, Media and Film Studies, Communication Studies and Sociology. The chapters included in this book were originally published as a special issue of Celebrity Studies.
1. ‘Charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent’: RuPaul’s Drag Race and the cultural politics of fame
John Mercer, Charlie Sarson and Jamie Hakim
2. From Paris is Burning to #dragrace: social media and the celebrification of drag culture
Zeena Feldman and Jamie Hakim
3. ‘Assume the position: two queens stand before me’: RuPaul as ultimate queen
Hazel Collie and Gemma Commane
4. Drag Celebrity Impersonation as Queer Caricature in The Snatch Game
Hannah Andrews
5. Rewriting ‘herstory’: Sasha Velour’s drag as art and activism
Renee Middlemost
6. ‘Labouring in the image’: celebrity, femininity, and the fully commodified self in the drag of Willam Belli
Rachel O’Connell
7. ‘No one is trash, no one is garbage, no one is cancelled’: the cultural politics of trauma, recovery and rage in RuPaul’s Drag Race
Debra Ferreday
8. Fifteen Seconds of Fame: RuPaul’s drag race, camp and ‘memeability’
John Mercer and Charlie Sarson
Biography
John Mercer is Professor of Gender and Sexuality at Birmingham City University, UK.
Charlie Sarson completed his PhD at Birmingham City University, UK and researches representations of gender and sexuality.
Jamie Hakim is a lecturer in culture, media and creative industries at King’s College, London, UK and researches digital media and queer cultures of embodiment, intimacy and care.
