Speaker 1: It's in the news today, but it was actually on
Speaker 1: TV Reload, the podcast.
Speaker 2: Last Weep Thebine.
Speaker 1: Welcome back guys to TV Reload. As you may know,
Speaker 1: my name is Benjamin Norris and this is your podcast
Speaker 1: to get all the inside goss all the popular TV
Speaker 1: shows you may be watching from around the world. Undeniably,
Speaker 1: our TV set's are a major part of our home entertainment,
Speaker 1: and yet very little is known about how our favorite
Speaker 1: shows get made. So each episode I've been finding guests
Speaker 1: they'll want to dive just that little bit deeper into
Speaker 1: the shows they're currently making, so that you can hear
Speaker 1: all their exclusive stories and gain access to the biggest.
Speaker 3: Names in Australian television.
Speaker 1: I want to thank you for downloading all subscribing to
Speaker 1: this podcast however you've found me. I love hearing your feedback,
Speaker 1: so make sure you leave a review or a comment
Speaker 1: on your chosen podcast platform. This chat, I'm joined by
Speaker 1: RuPaul's Drag Race down Under season two runner up Queen Kong,
Speaker 1: fresh from her logis nomination for the Graham Kennedy Award
Speaker 1: Most Popular New Talent. We are lucky enough to get
Speaker 1: some piping hot tea from her experiences at the Australian
Speaker 1: TV Awards Night of Knights. Kong will also share their
Speaker 1: thoughts on Season three and the New Queens. There's a
Speaker 1: few spoilers for episode two in the chat, which happens
Speaker 1: at the back end, so make sure you have watched
Speaker 1: this week's episode, which you can catch up on STAN.
Speaker 3: Australia.
Speaker 1: Queen Kong is the stage name of one of New
Speaker 1: Zealand's most prolific drag performers who now calls Australia home.
Speaker 1: They are based in Adelaide and also they managed to
Speaker 1: win the Drag Nation Australia Award. Kong is of Samoen
Speaker 1: and Tong and descent and has been an amazing ambassador
Speaker 1: talking about people of color and the importance of their
Speaker 1: recognition right across New Zealand and Australia. I will find
Speaker 1: out how Kong's nomination went down with her fellow contestants
Speaker 1: and why she thoughts Fanky Jackson might have missed out.
Speaker 1: Kong shares their thoughts on season three and why she
Speaker 1: thinks this season is actually quite different to her season.
Speaker 1: We will discuss if Australian Queens will ever be considered
Speaker 1: for American All Stars and why Kong would say no
Speaker 1: to returning to the work. And plus we will get
Speaker 1: plenty of exclusives from behind the scenes of Ruepoul's Drag
Speaker 1: Race Down Under, which you can now catch up on
Speaker 1: on Stan Australia. Anyway, guys, let's bring Queen into the
Speaker 1: podcast and I hope you really enjoy this special look
Speaker 1: at RuPaul's Drag Race down Under.
Speaker 3: Like, Queen Kong, how are.
Speaker 4: You hey, I'm good? Thanks? Any Well, I didn't want
Speaker 4: a LOGI.
Speaker 2: Or a Crown, but hey, I'm one of the bookings.
Speaker 4: I'm one of the bookings, so suck on that, Amy Shark.
Speaker 1: I thought it was really amazing that you got this
Speaker 1: LOGI nomination. But I also was talking about this amongst
Speaker 1: my friends. Is it a little strange that you get
Speaker 1: the LOGI nomination when you weren't the winner? Or do
Speaker 1: you think it has a lot to do with the
Speaker 1: fact that you're from Australia or that you've done a
Speaker 1: lot more with your time?
Speaker 3: What do you think the rationale is?
Speaker 4: Oh? Well, I think my work speaks for itself. The
Speaker 4: past year, I.
Speaker 5: Think, out of all the girls, like I've kind of
Speaker 5: streamlined like a loss until winning everything. I think outside
Speaker 5: of the show, and I mean that in the most
Speaker 5: obnoxious way possible. Like I've had all the book, Like
Speaker 5: I've been the ambassador of like pretty much every festivals
Speaker 5: sort of Sydney Wood Pride, I sort of Adelaie French Festival,
Speaker 5: did lots of like endorsements, And I think in terms
Speaker 5: of what I spoke about on the show, in terms
Speaker 5: of POC representation, like in my own sort of platform,
Speaker 5: I'm just trailblaze that kind of platform here in Australia,
Speaker 5: even more so with the momentum of drag Grace. So
Speaker 5: I think the acknowledgment from the you know, the nomination
Speaker 5: was definitely well deserved on my part.
Speaker 4: But also it's so great to see drag.
Speaker 5: I was the only drag queen on that red carpet
Speaker 5: and in that room, so you could have missed me
Speaker 5: because I'm seven foot five beasts, So I'm happy that
Speaker 5: we could be there represent Do.
Speaker 1: We know if RuPaul was invited to the logis and
Speaker 1: could you imagine if Rue had gone.
Speaker 5: Oh my god, I I would imagine that they would
Speaker 5: have definitely invited a Roue and Michelle definitely she wouldn't
Speaker 5: have come. She busy they're doing like a hundred seasons
Speaker 5: of drag Race, like in five weeks.
Speaker 4: I I don't actually love it.
Speaker 3: So they're in Bangladesh right now.
Speaker 5: Yeah yeah, literally, soon they're going to be drag Race.
Speaker 5: It'll be like drag Race suburbs soon, like the big
Speaker 5: thoughts still the country, that'll be like drag Race Banks to.
Speaker 1: Well, you know, I was this is how I knew
Speaker 1: how you'd penetrated with the Australian audience was when I
Speaker 1: was driving past my bus stop over the last twelve months.
Speaker 1: From a large part of the year, you were on
Speaker 1: the billboard. You were the bustle on the billboards.
Speaker 4: So well, that's spitting.
Speaker 5: It's part of my brand because I was a struggle
Speaker 5: bus for my season and since the show, I'm now
Speaker 5: just the bus.
Speaker 4: So makes sense.
Speaker 1: Can we talk about the logis in this sense of
Speaker 1: was it a fun night? Like you know, you would
Speaker 1: have had a huge expectation of what it was going
Speaker 1: to be, but then what was the reality?
Speaker 5: Oh, I actually had no expectations. Because the thing is,
Speaker 5: it's like, and I said this on Susan, I was
Speaker 5: like in your press, I was just like, I actually
Speaker 5: had no idea what the logis were before I was
Speaker 5: nominated because AI am from New Zealand originally, but also
Speaker 5: with streaming sites and everything, I don't necessarily watch TV anymore,
Speaker 5: and so this has been such a crash sort of
Speaker 5: course in New Zealand means in Australian media.
Speaker 4: So yeah, I.
Speaker 5: Think this whole experience has been wild being there on
Speaker 5: the night, like I didn't necessarily know how big it
Speaker 5: was and like how big of a deal it was
Speaker 5: until sort of seeing that I needed a pass to
Speaker 5: get onto the red carpet. I was like, I'm Queen
Speaker 5: Congo was nominated. They're like, no, you need to pass,
Speaker 5: and I was like, oh, this is legit period. I'll
Speaker 5: be right back.
Speaker 4: I'm going to get my path.
Speaker 1: Bitches getting dressed up like this for no reason, let
Speaker 1: me onto the red carpet without.
Speaker 5: The Oh well, look, I think we both saw this
Speaker 5: stuff about Susan Mattessi's.
Speaker 3: The shade is real. Do you know what is so?
Speaker 1: Do you know what really makes me sad is that
Speaker 1: I don't didn't know who she was before she was
Speaker 1: on the Challenge. Then I watched on the Challenge, I
Speaker 1: was like, you know, you're great on the show, but
Speaker 1: then ever since then, I watched her dough Facebook lives
Speaker 1: and she's supposed to have like a million followers, but
Speaker 1: only three people turn up for her lives.
Speaker 5: Oh my goodness, that's true. It's so tricky because it's like,
Speaker 5: oh my god, like just just I don't know if
Speaker 5: you heard what happened with the logis, but like the partner,
Speaker 5: she had run onto the red carpet without that invitation
Speaker 5: after buying a general admission ticket allegedly and and a
Speaker 5: storm to.
Speaker 4: Take a photo.
Speaker 5: And it's so trigging because there's that side of the industry.
Speaker 5: But I'm just starting to understand because for me, it's
Speaker 5: like all of it's new, like you know what I mean, Like,
Speaker 5: and I think I'm always going to stay humble in
Speaker 5: the regard that I just don't take myself seriously and
Speaker 5: don't think like, no, I don't like ego, so that
Speaker 5: there was a lot of egos there on the night,
Speaker 5: and I just ignored the egos that I could see.
Speaker 5: And you know, it's just a it's a tricky and
Speaker 5: a slimy industry in some regards, but it was amazing
Speaker 5: to be there to celebrate Australian medium or the people
Speaker 5: that were nominated and won.
Speaker 1: It's nice to be on the side where you're invited
Speaker 1: and you're not the crazy person who has not just
Speaker 1: on the red carpet. It happened to me with my
Speaker 1: series of Big Brother. One of the other girls that
Speaker 1: came in the top three, she wasn't invited, and she
Speaker 1: got a press organized. She turned up the logis and
Speaker 1: the thing was, they only invite the winner of back
Speaker 1: in those days. And then it happened that this girl, Laila,
Speaker 1: who came second, she was on a celebrity apprentice, so
Speaker 1: she was invited for a different show. Why this girl
Speaker 1: of Stelle was disappointed. But I couldn't imagine buying the
Speaker 1: dress and just getting on the red because they walked
Speaker 1: aroun off the red.
Speaker 5: Harbet, holy crap. That would I would? I would, but
Speaker 5: also I would die, But also I would. I just
Speaker 5: wouldn't go if I wasn't, you know what I mean,
Speaker 5: I because you know Hannah and Spanky, I would would have.
Speaker 4: They're both my best friends, and obviously we're the top three.
Speaker 5: They're my best friends in the whole world, and we
Speaker 5: all wanted to be there, and so they obviously couldn't
Speaker 5: come because they couldn't get an inby because it's so
Speaker 5: limited in this capacity. So they were there in spirit,
Speaker 5: and me and Hannah did a massive drinks in my
Speaker 5: hotel room, had the start before I went down to
Speaker 5: the red carpet. So, yeah, it was so tricky seeing
Speaker 5: that side of the industryhere people just trying to get
Speaker 5: in front of the camera and being in the front.
Speaker 4: You know, I'm kind of learning that.
Speaker 5: You know, there's a there's a strategy to it, but
Speaker 5: it's also just like very My soul dies every time
Speaker 5: I hear things like that, running into a red carp
Speaker 5: and being discorded.
Speaker 1: What is the magic though, between the three of you,
Speaker 1: because Hannah and Spanky and yourself, I mean, individually you're
Speaker 1: all fierce queens and you're so at the top of
Speaker 1: your game, and normally when you find people in a
Speaker 1: position like that, there'd be some competitiveness or you would
Speaker 1: have fallen out by now. But we all know that
Speaker 1: the three of you have this real sisterhood. What's the
Speaker 1: magic behind that?
Speaker 5: Oh, you know, I think above above the trauma bond
Speaker 5: that we sort of tiloped on drag Race, I think,
Speaker 5: you know, aside from the riot fate, it was so fair.
Speaker 5: But I think aside from that, like we all just
Speaker 5: genuinely aside from love, you know, I think it's easy
Speaker 5: to love people. Like for the most part, we have
Speaker 5: such a like an utmost respect for each other. You know,
Speaker 5: we know who we are individually. We've also been around,
Speaker 5: like Spank has been around longer than us. Obviously she's
Speaker 5: just way way older, but like weg Yeah, definitely she
Speaker 5: sees interest stripes, that's sure. But the three of us,
Speaker 5: we've been doing our things in our own fields, you know,
Speaker 5: for over decades, and so you know, we know what
Speaker 5: we what our strengths are, We know all those kinds
Speaker 5: of things.
Speaker 4: So like when we're around each other, you know, I
Speaker 4: was just with.
Speaker 5: Such a Colby like a couple of weeks ago, and
Speaker 5: like she's like my soul sister. We're both from the
Speaker 5: from the spacific, you know, and we just like get
Speaker 5: each other. But she said it to me perfectly, She says,
Speaker 5: Goddess sees Goddess, you know, like you understand each other.
Speaker 5: You know that you're different. And I don't ever feel
Speaker 5: threatened by anyone that's talented in their regard because I
Speaker 5: don't think they're talent Trump's mind, and I think the
Speaker 5: three of us really kind of believe in those values
Speaker 5: and just love each other. You know, we know that
Speaker 5: drag Race was such a pervotal part of our career,
Speaker 5: but I think it was more like a bonding experience
Speaker 5: for us personally, which I think is more rewarding than
Speaker 5: winning a crown or a LOGI I just do.
Speaker 1: What I keep thinking of is I remember when they
Speaker 1: were gossiping about who was going to be in season
Speaker 1: two of down Under and your name came up a
Speaker 1: few times. And obviously I've been in your audience before
Speaker 1: you're on drag you know, you had been around for
Speaker 1: a while, and I just remember everyone who was in
Speaker 1: the industry, your industry, saying how lovely you were, and
Speaker 1: I was like, it's a hard thing to stay humble
Speaker 1: in such a competitive industry, but you have that integrity
Speaker 1: somehow maintained.
Speaker 3: I don't know how you're doing it. I'd be I.
Speaker 5: Think, you know, like, I think that the trick is
Speaker 5: and I think this is like really good text for
Speaker 5: the season three girls, and I've been trying to help
Speaker 5: them whenever they needed things. I think, you know, the
Speaker 5: trick is to keep your circle very tight because you know,
Speaker 5: all kinds of people are going to come out of
Speaker 5: the woodworks and want to jump on the success train,
Speaker 5: especially if you do well. Just be weary of like
Speaker 5: the energy that you keep around you. I literally, on
Speaker 5: like two hands can count how many friends I would
Speaker 5: call friends and people that I actually like have around
Speaker 5: me at all times. And Spanking and Hannah definitely two
Speaker 5: of those people. My family are very humble. So as
Speaker 5: soon as I walk through the toils and the house
Speaker 5: that I bought us in Melbourne, like, doesn't mom Yeah, literally,
Speaker 5: my mom doesn't give.
Speaker 4: A shit who I am.
Speaker 5: She's like, yeah, do the ditchers or like I've got
Speaker 5: a decent a nephew, and it's like nappies, you know,
Speaker 5: Like I'm literally not the celebrity in my house.
Speaker 3: I'm just like Mom, I don't leave here anymore.
Speaker 5: I know literally, I'm not just chaking cooked in out.
Speaker 4: Like you know what I mean.
Speaker 5: So I think all that kind of stuff really like helps,
Speaker 5: But also I just think naturally, like I don't check
Speaker 5: myself like that seriously outside of drag.
Speaker 4: I think I take my drags.
Speaker 5: Seriously, but I don't really take myself seriously because I'm
Speaker 5: just a kad like to be honest.
Speaker 1: Sometimes want to tell people though when you when you're
Speaker 1: winning in life, you want to tell everyone to get
Speaker 1: in the boat. You know, you get this boat, And
Speaker 1: what people don't realize is that the boat is actually
Speaker 1: really flimsy. It looks beautiful and it's very trucking. So
Speaker 1: you want to like tell everyone to get in the boat,
Speaker 1: but the boat will sink if you.
Speaker 3: Absolutely people, you know.
Speaker 4: So true. I love that.
Speaker 5: Oh my god, such a great analogy. And it's and
Speaker 5: it's also true.
Speaker 4: I think.
Speaker 5: I think, I think like with something like reality TV
Speaker 5: or like something like yeah, it is very like it's quick,
Speaker 5: you know what I mean, Like you do this definitely
Speaker 5: get your fifteen minutes of fame. And I think with
Speaker 5: some of the girls somehow season and also the previous season,
Speaker 5: I think most of them were kind of bidding on
Speaker 5: drag race to bring things in for them. And with
Speaker 5: the reality is it's like you've got the public eye
Speaker 5: on you. Now you have to work ten times harder.
Speaker 5: And so you know, if anyone that knows me and
Speaker 5: is around me, like how do Spanky can.
Speaker 4: Attest to this? That's why we're still friends. Up to
Speaker 4: the local.
Speaker 5: Nomination, you know, because I was thanking been like that
Speaker 5: you last I wipe the ground spanky goes you know
Speaker 5: what I mean, like spank you seeing me work like
Speaker 5: an absolute slave, like you know, and sees that like
Speaker 5: everything that I that I've wanted, like I'm not letting
Speaker 5: anyone are waiting on anyone to bring it to me.
Speaker 5: And I think that comes down to being a queen
Speaker 5: of color in Australia and always having to create my
Speaker 5: own opportunities. And I think the thing about Drag Race,
Speaker 5: it's like it's short, it's filmed over a short period
Speaker 5: of time, and like I think, if you're in the
Speaker 5: right alignment hid like.
Speaker 4: Mentally and emotionally, like you can go really fine. I did,
Speaker 4: I do. I did well for the most part.
Speaker 5: But I think, you know, my version of where I
Speaker 5: was at at the time was just like I was
Speaker 5: so in my head, like there was a lot of.
Speaker 4: Things going on for.
Speaker 5: Me personally and mentally before I'd even gone into the show.
Speaker 5: And then they put us in isolation for two weeks,
Speaker 5: which killed me. And that's why me, me and many
Speaker 5: were fucking nuts because like sitting in our fucking little
Speaker 5: room like of isolation before going into drag Race, like
Speaker 5: Spanky walked in happy because that bitch didn't have to
Speaker 5: sit there and look at a box and get.
Speaker 4: Custofied two going so like I think for me, like
Speaker 4: I was so.
Speaker 5: Proud of spanking pointing because before all of us and Hannah,
Speaker 5: Hannah won two.
Speaker 4: The three of us were equally deserving.
Speaker 5: But Spanky did so well on the show, and I
Speaker 5: think her like seeing someone like her when Drag Race
Speaker 5: at the time when she won, Like you know, up
Speaker 5: until then, it's just always been about how much money
Speaker 5: you spend, how many designers you were, you know, how
Speaker 5: many like how amazing your wigs are. Like Spanky literally
Speaker 5: walked in the trash bags and like from day one,
Speaker 5: episode one, people were like, what the fuck is there?
Speaker 5: And then like by episode two, RuPaul got it and
Speaker 5: through Paul understands, she goes, but that's Spanky Jackson. Then
Speaker 5: all the little children like writing in her comments need
Speaker 5: to quiet because mamas the one that signed the check.
Speaker 1: So yeah, it does sort of happen though, like in
Speaker 1: a lot of reality shows, you know when someone might win,
Speaker 1: but it's like if you come second or third, you
Speaker 1: have more fire.
Speaker 3: In your belly.
Speaker 1: I think I think, you know, I'm going to try,
Speaker 1: and you know, I think it was a missed opportunity.
Speaker 1: But I'm going to get away from the logis, but
Speaker 1: I just want to say it was a real missed
Speaker 1: opportunity to not have the three of you perform. I
Speaker 1: would have preferred that over Amy Shark, and I felt
Speaker 1: so bad. And this is no shade to Amy. I've
Speaker 1: interviewed her a number of times and she's an incredible person.
Speaker 3: But it's a beautiful person, a beautiful person. But that
Speaker 3: before Romans.
Speaker 4: Yeah, look, look.
Speaker 3: It just wasn't It's not a spanky Hannah queen performance.
Speaker 5: Like, well, look like if they had us, I was like, apparently,
Speaker 5: like new talents these days, there's six arias and a
Speaker 5: few albums.
Speaker 4: So look great for that. If I knew that, I
Speaker 4: was like.
Speaker 5: Well, listen, give me a couple more years because we're
Speaker 5: definitely developing new music. But I think also too with
Speaker 5: with with missing out on like just being there obviously
Speaker 5: to represent not only the drag community, but the queer community,
Speaker 5: especially in a political time like this when drag is
Speaker 5: being so like fucking drug through the mud with so
Speaker 5: many people just attaching all of this propaganda, and it
Speaker 5: is coming from you know, the governments, like and this
Speaker 5: is like definitely.
Speaker 2: A cup and copy of what's happening in the US.
Speaker 5: You know, all of the fearmong green drag queens agreements
Speaker 5: and drag queens this, and it's like, you know, the
Speaker 5: last thing we want to do is groomy kids like
Speaker 5: spanking Billy wants to groomers out. How the fuck are
Speaker 5: we going to do that, you know what I mean?
Speaker 5: But so I think, you know, like just being there,
Speaker 5: I think.
Speaker 4: From the logi's perspective, it was good that they.
Speaker 2: Acknowledged like me and acknowledged my community, and you know.
Speaker 4: They're seeing us as artists.
Speaker 5: But I think it would be ridiculous dumb of them
Speaker 5: not che acknologust because we're not going anywhere and my plans,
Speaker 5: you know, at one point we're going to be back
Speaker 5: there winning a LOGI and the people that didn't want
Speaker 5: to start, Yeah, Gold, they will be wanting to come.
Speaker 3: Yeah it's yours, queen class.
Speaker 4: I would just dress as a Gold Logi.
Speaker 5: But it was Nonetheless, it was amazing and Amy Shark
Speaker 5: did a great job, and she has.
Speaker 4: Been around for a while, so she deserved to she's.
Speaker 3: Been around for a while. That's right.
Speaker 1: She doesn't deserve a new new talent get out of
Speaker 1: a category, mate, Like I know.
Speaker 4: I was like, wow, look that is what it is.
Speaker 5: And bless her and her little the sil LOGI and
Speaker 5: I'm sure to look nice next to this areas.
Speaker 3: That's all she got to shelf for it. Yeah, exactly right,
Speaker 3: there you go.
Speaker 1: I want to talk about season three because it's in
Speaker 1: full screen, and you know, is it weird when a
Speaker 1: new season starts. I remember with Big Brother there was
Speaker 1: a season started after mine and I was still on
Speaker 1: the ride, so I wasn't upset about it. I was like, great,
Speaker 1: bring more people in. But then when I knew that
Speaker 1: the and the series after me was full of assholes
Speaker 1: by then, the third time the series that came up
Speaker 1: after that, I was really nervous. I was like, oh God,
Speaker 1: what are these new fuckers going to do now?
Speaker 4: Right?
Speaker 3: But for you, when.
Speaker 1: It started, did you feel any jealousy or did you
Speaker 1: feel excited? But the emotions going through your mind?
Speaker 5: Well, that's the thing, Like, I definitely didn't feel jealousy.
Speaker 5: I think most of the other girls in my season
Speaker 5: were like I think the ones that quite a little
Speaker 5: bit threatened the ones that posted it's been the year
Speaker 5: since I walked on the work, and I was like,
Speaker 5: give it up.
Speaker 4: Let the girls have their time.
Speaker 5: Like I was so excited to see another group of girls,
Speaker 5: but also just excited that we getting more drag race
Speaker 5: and I hope we get more because you know what
Speaker 5: we're trying to do now, and me and Hannah's had
Speaker 5: this conversation you know, a lot recently. It's like, I
Speaker 5: think every step that we're taking, every set that I'm taking,
Speaker 5: definitely like being the first in these spaces.
Speaker 4: It's like creating.
Speaker 5: We're creating the infrastructure for us here in Australia that
Speaker 5: America is like fifteen seasons ahead of. And so you
Speaker 5: know what I mean, Like it's our responsibility to build
Speaker 5: the respect of the industry for drag and also to
Speaker 5: create a career pathway that goes beyond just performing in clubs.
Speaker 5: So I think seeing more girls on that platform come
Speaker 5: in and have more stories and you know, speak about
Speaker 5: their experiences, it's really exciting and I just want to
Speaker 5: want us to be able to continue this and hopefully
Speaker 5: the people that are watching down Under will encourage their
Speaker 5: friends and family to a subscribe to stand so that
Speaker 5: they can watch it, but also just so we need
Speaker 5: to support so that we can continue bringing Drag Race
Speaker 5: and bringing Group Paul down Under. Even though people don't
Speaker 5: necessarily like that she's judging. I'm like, it's her appranchise
Speaker 5: and I would not want to compete in another season
Speaker 5: if Group Paul wasn't judging. So yeah, I think it's
Speaker 5: great and I'm really excited for these girls.
Speaker 1: I feel like though it's coming, and that is that.
Speaker 1: I mean, have you ever heard anything, because I feel
Speaker 1: like with all these All Stars versions that they do, now,
Speaker 1: surely one of the Australian queens, you know, the down
Speaker 1: Under queens, I should say, so New Zealand are going
Speaker 1: to get asked to be in one of these American
Speaker 1: All Stars versions.
Speaker 3: Is that going to happen? Do we know if that's
Speaker 3: closer happening?
Speaker 1: Oh?
Speaker 4: Look, potential, Okay, that's not an nswer.
Speaker 1: There's people out there pasting those American All Stars versions.
Speaker 1: We that's season two down Under and granted we haven't
Speaker 1: really seen enough of season three yet, but that season
Speaker 1: two is just gold.
Speaker 4: Oh.
Speaker 5: I feel like the show, the show, like even I
Speaker 5: haven't watched it back because I just don't want to
Speaker 5: do that to myself again. But also like every time
Speaker 5: every time someone posts a clip or something of like
Speaker 5: you know from my season, it's like, I really don't
Speaker 5: even recognize that girl anymore, you know, I think in
Speaker 5: so many regards like like, and the thing about me
Speaker 5: is like, rather than just pretend to be something like
Speaker 5: if I'm not in the right hit space, I'm just
Speaker 5: not on the right hit space, and I have to
Speaker 5: acknowledge it.
Speaker 4: It's part of my process.
Speaker 5: And I think, you know, all of the conversations that
Speaker 5: I had through all the conversations that's banking and me
Speaker 5: and Hannah had like those kinds of things really like
Speaker 5: helped me. And the thing about me too is that
Speaker 5: I don't make the same mistake twice. And so when
Speaker 5: I do go back into the work room, like at
Speaker 5: some stage, I hope that which is already because I'm
Speaker 5: not going to lose again.
Speaker 4: I'm going to go I want to be the villain
Speaker 4: next time. I'm just kidding a lot of.
Speaker 1: Pressure though, because if you think about Art Simone, Art
Speaker 1: Simone in Australia was like underneath cordeyact like is in
Speaker 1: everyone's life. She was such a recognizable name. You know,
Speaker 1: we kind of imagine the pressure of what Artsimo must
Speaker 1: have gone through being in that season one and not winning.
Speaker 1: I mean she's done great things afterwards, of course, yes, yes,
Speaker 1: but I mean the.
Speaker 4: Definitely I think the Blo pressure is definitely massive.
Speaker 5: But I also think, like, you know, when you're signing
Speaker 5: up with drag Race, there was like and this is
Speaker 5: not against art but it is definitely against like queens
Speaker 5: that have gone in with the big name. Like it's like,
Speaker 5: I think the thing about drag Race, regardless of what
Speaker 5: you've done outside the show, like you.
Speaker 4: Are not at square one, but you're like.
Speaker 5: On level playing field with queens that have been doing
Speaker 5: it for about five minutes in comparison to your you know,
Speaker 5: ten year And so I think there was like for
Speaker 5: me knowing that I was walking in with people having
Speaker 5: like this attachment to who they expect I am, like
Speaker 5: rather than actually knowing who I am, I had to
Speaker 5: just go boil myself.
Speaker 2: Down and go, look, there is a potential.
Speaker 5: For to be eliminated, and if it does happen, I
Speaker 5: want to handle it with grace, and I don't want to,
Speaker 5: you know, I don't want to eliminate anyone else's experience
Speaker 5: and also downplay who these other queens are.
Speaker 4: So I think definitely it's hard when you're when you're.
Speaker 5: Feeling the expectations, but I also think like there's definitely
Speaker 5: space to go. All Right, I know who I am,
Speaker 5: and I'm just going to be who I am. If
Speaker 5: I don't make it, I don't make it. It doesn't
Speaker 5: mean I'm a shit dragqueen. It just means I wasn't
Speaker 5: good on this episode. So I feel like it's it's tricky.
Speaker 5: It's tricky to navigant, and especially when you're not worth
Speaker 5: people or not surrounded by people that you love, but
Speaker 5: you can't talk to people that you talk to when
Speaker 5: you're in a bad hit space. But I think it
Speaker 5: does teach you. It boils you down and teaches you
Speaker 5: a lot about yourself. And I think anyone that leaves
Speaker 5: that show, if you've done it correctly, goes down into
Speaker 5: the world and kind of you know, creates magic and
Speaker 5: does amazing things and you know, really homes into their
Speaker 5: starting which is I guess what we always say is
Speaker 5: like your individuality.
Speaker 4: So yeah, that's a tricky thing.
Speaker 1: It is a tricky thing. I want to quickly talk
Speaker 1: to you about the season three that's been going on.
Speaker 3: Are you up to dates? What are you up to?
Speaker 3: You watch an episode one and two?
Speaker 5: Yeah, I've seen episode one and I haven't seen episode
Speaker 5: two yet, so I'm waiting for it to air.
Speaker 1: Oh my gosh, this is crazy. I feel like, you know,
Speaker 1: top three of the previous season should just be sent
Speaker 1: the whole season in advance, right, like this seems.
Speaker 5: Look, I'm such like a like A, I'm really bad
Speaker 5: at holding secrets. And then B I was also like
Speaker 5: I just want to watch it in real time and
Speaker 5: see what's happening. And even last night I was talking
Speaker 5: to one of the queens from season three and she
Speaker 5: was like, oh, am I going to go because I
Speaker 5: made it to a Twitter just to stir up some
Speaker 5: shit because I was like, I wonder which dry hetero
Speaker 5: anthem they're going to be unperforming for today's I think.
Speaker 3: I saw that, you know, I think that's amazing.
Speaker 1: Well, I think, okay, Well I'll ask you a sea,
Speaker 1: I'll ask you a few quick questions. So, yes, did
Speaker 1: you think Amil deserved to go home in the first episode?
Speaker 4: Ah?
Speaker 5: Look, I don't think this is my my general opinion,
Speaker 5: I'll say, like the general opinions that about her, I
Speaker 5: think generally speaking, I feel like episode one, no one
Speaker 5: should go home, Like I think it's it's great for
Speaker 5: like the TV aspect, but I think you literally just
Speaker 5: get to know you don't even really get to know somebody.
Speaker 4: And I think someone like Amil, like I know Amil personally.
Speaker 5: And I think strength outside her Obviously her strength isn't
Speaker 5: performing and she knows that she said this, but like
Speaker 5: she is one of the funniest queens, and her humor
Speaker 5: is really like dry kind of dark.
Speaker 4: Humor that I think RU would have loved.
Speaker 5: It's obviously why she what got her there, because her
Speaker 5: orders would have been hilarious. So I think, you know,
Speaker 5: I think Amial definitely needs a bit more time to cook.
Speaker 5: In that regard, I do feel bad for her, But
Speaker 5: also I think the performance challenge in general is a
Speaker 5: little bit like Blackluster. They only had about what two
Speaker 5: lines to deliver in that song, so they're like.
Speaker 4: We need to know who you are, what your dragon
Speaker 4: is about?
Speaker 5: Everything within two lines Hollywood and nold it in the
Speaker 5: in the arts. But I think, you know, Aimal kind
Speaker 5: of struggled and didn't really necessarily give me.
Speaker 3: You've only got two lines.
Speaker 1: You need to be so impact that need to like that,
Speaker 1: I need to explode every word in a two line.
Speaker 3: Yeah, who's favorite so far?
Speaker 4: Oh? So cooky?
Speaker 3: Only what one?
Speaker 1: So I know that the queens will come for your online,
Speaker 1: but that's that's a part of the magic of this crime.
Speaker 5: Yeah, they won't come for me, but if they do.
Speaker 5: I think Episode one definitely, like I think looking at it,
Speaker 5: Hollywood for sure is my favorite because I think she's
Speaker 5: bringing something to down on the drag that hasn't been
Speaker 5: seen before. She's definitely got the African American sort of background,
Speaker 5: and also like that's what really feels her pro boys.
Speaker 5: But there's a confidence in her that can be read
Speaker 5: as arrogance, like as I'm hearing from most people that
Speaker 5: I love because it's like she's unapologetic. It says it
Speaker 5: in her name. She's Hollywood star, and that Birch just
Speaker 5: fucking fears like that girl as a supermodel.
Speaker 1: So that's loving the fact that you gave me an answer.
Speaker 1: So many people come on the podcast and I give
Speaker 1: them that kind of a question and they're like, how
Speaker 1: can I get around it? And say everybody right, it
Speaker 1: feels like this season has shifted gears, and I feel
Speaker 1: like it would be remissive me not to talk to
Speaker 1: you about this. And I'm not being shady to say
Speaker 1: it's good or bad, and I'm sure you're not going
Speaker 1: to go into that either. But I wondered whether or
Speaker 1: not you heard from insiders about the way in which
Speaker 1: they put it together. Is were they trying to do
Speaker 1: something different? Because season one one was great, Season two
Speaker 1: was fantastic. I think they really leveled up, and then
Speaker 1: now season three kind of feels like the screen three
Speaker 1: of the series, like it feels like I know what
Speaker 1: you mean, and like.
Speaker 5: I definitely felt that to watching the I'm gonna be honest,
Speaker 5: the tone and the pacing of the of the show
Speaker 5: feels really like dragged out and kind of dry and
Speaker 5: a little bit boring, to be honest, Like I was
Speaker 5: trying to find it, like they made drama out of
Speaker 5: Ashley Madison's nipples be joking and the mortal words of
Speaker 5: fucking Courtney Kardashian people are dying, Kim nipples be joking
Speaker 5: Onotom three nipples pants coming down. I was like God,
Speaker 5: and now season Mini Cooper had already gone off on
Speaker 5: like everyone and the crew and the cruise families by
Speaker 5: the point, what they're doing with what was.
Speaker 1: The deal with She's I've become friends with Minnie Cooper
Speaker 1: after the series, and I love Mini and I loved
Speaker 1: on the show, but he behind the scenes because I
Speaker 1: heard so many different things.
Speaker 3: About it, like was really yeah, I just heard that she.
Speaker 1: Was she wild or something in between, like what we was,
Speaker 1: what we saw, what happened or was there more?
Speaker 5: Oh look, no, look like if there's one queen that
Speaker 5: I love, I love Mini Cooper and I'll always be
Speaker 5: on her side and stand her. I think people definitely
Speaker 5: like to exaggerate and say, oh, she was a nightmare
Speaker 5: and she did this. Everything that you saw on the
Speaker 5: camera pretty much was like what happened she They definitely
Speaker 5: like softened some of the edits, but also they kind
Speaker 5: of left out big chunks of context in terms of
Speaker 5: like her reactions and also her resolution, you know what
Speaker 5: I mean, Like they kind of left her in the
Speaker 5: space of looking like this mainiac person that would just
Speaker 5: pop off at like two in two seconds. What she
Speaker 5: can be, all of us can be. But I think no,
Speaker 5: definitely everything that you saw is what happened. I just
Speaker 5: wish they would have let her get the arc of
Speaker 5: like the result. She never resolved with Palmara, that's for sure,
Speaker 5: because they still haven't to the stage for someone's still
Speaker 5: definitely real and alive.
Speaker 1: Last night on her Instagram at about one thirty in
Speaker 1: the morning, it was late. Let me tell you, it
Speaker 1: was who crap, And for some reason I left my
Speaker 1: phone on and he notification went off, and so I
Speaker 1: was like, what the hell is going on? I was like, well,
Speaker 1: I need to watch this video because this could be
Speaker 1: the result, this could be oh wow, No, it was nothing.
Speaker 1: She was basically turned it off. Turned after three seconds.
Speaker 1: I sort of playing with her wigs and look like
Speaker 1: look like me at that time, and thenight googling my
Speaker 1: watching myself on YouTube.
Speaker 3: No one wants to see that.
Speaker 4: I love it.
Speaker 1: I'm disappointed that you haven't seen this, and I'm going
Speaker 1: to go with you live. Yeah, I'm going to do something.
Speaker 1: So at the end of episode two, we have an incident.
Speaker 4: So this is when I passes out.
Speaker 3: Yes, okay, great, so you know this. So have you
Speaker 3: seen the footage yet?
Speaker 4: No? No, tell me what happens.
Speaker 1: So it kind of to me looks like it's a
Speaker 1: genuine faint, and I believe that. I just think, are
Speaker 1: people going to come for her about whether or not
Speaker 1: it's real? And what's the what's the conversation at the
Speaker 1: moment amongst the Rue girls about this faint? Are we
Speaker 1: believing the faint? Is the consensus real? I mean, what's
Speaker 1: going on?
Speaker 3: Oh?
Speaker 4: Look for me?
Speaker 5: Like I think, you know, if I refriended she painted
Speaker 5: like obviously from episode one she was in a tricky place,
Speaker 5: like mentally, I definitely know what it feels like.
Speaker 4: I never wanted to faint.
Speaker 5: I wanted to make other people faint for sure, watch
Speaker 5: episode five or six.
Speaker 4: But I think for the most part, I do think
Speaker 4: it's real.
Speaker 5: I know no people are going to come for her
Speaker 5: because they're going to think it's a stunt. And if
Speaker 5: it is a stunt, well plaid, bitch, capitalize, capital live,
Speaker 5: you look at an extra episode, you get an extrapisode.
Speaker 2: B we love you.
Speaker 1: It's got you know, like sometimes when there's Oscar buzz
Speaker 1: for someone because they've got a really good performance, but
Speaker 1: it wasn't a good performance.
Speaker 3: For the whole movie, but they had the Oscar moment, right,
Speaker 3: was that the Oscar moment there's an oscar.
Speaker 1: It does look like maybe, but then there's there is
Speaker 1: a clip there's a split second of it which you
Speaker 1: can't fake. And I think people need to just say
Speaker 1: that it is what it is and yeah, yeah, go
Speaker 1: with that.
Speaker 3: That's mine.
Speaker 5: Oh look, I totally agree with that. Like that's the
Speaker 5: other thing too. It's like it is reality TV. Like
Speaker 5: people the fans, like the Drag Race fans are ridiculous,
Speaker 5: like they were literally say, oh my god, the things
Speaker 5: that they come to you. And I actually wrote to
Speaker 5: Ivy this week saying to her because she was making
Speaker 5: responses and I think some of the other girls are too.
Speaker 5: And it comes down to age. This is really where
Speaker 5: it does come down to age. Like you can be
Speaker 5: the most you can be the tastiest piece of pie
Speaker 5: like on the planet, and there's going to be like
Speaker 5: twenty people in a room that's going to fucking hate pie.
Speaker 5: I want to tell you to your face and tell
Speaker 5: your mum that she's a horrible like jib, you know
Speaker 5: what I mean. So's there's no point in focusing on
Speaker 5: the ten people that live under bridges and right hate
Speaker 5: and they will be coming for her after this faint
Speaker 5: but look.
Speaker 1: Will they are literally going to come for her. Do
Speaker 1: you know what, I'm the biggest hypocrite of all time.
Speaker 1: I say to people all the time, do not troll people,
Speaker 1: do not say anything bad on Twitter. But I woke
Speaker 1: this morning and saw some tweet from some real housewife
Speaker 1: of I don't know wherever, Orange County, and I then
Speaker 1: tweeted that, and I was like who, Because for years
Speaker 1: I've said because people would put my name in the tweet,
Speaker 1: they'd be like, oh, Ben Norris, you know such something whatever,
Speaker 1: you know what I mean, son, And I'd write back
Speaker 1: to them and I'd be like, I don't care that
Speaker 1: you have this opinion. I don't care that you've put
Speaker 1: her online, but why have you tagged me in it? Anyway,
Speaker 1: I tagged his housewife and wrote back and threw shaded her,
Speaker 1: and I just thought to myself, we're all guilty, oh
Speaker 1: being shit?
Speaker 4: Oh my god.
Speaker 5: Well that's the thing too, Like I totally agree that
Speaker 5: there are days where I can where I can be
Speaker 5: Michelle Obama and writes a bar. But then there are
Speaker 5: days where I wake up and I si a comment
Speaker 5: and I'll be like, don't you know what Auntie's got
Speaker 5: time today? You're going to get it. So I'll open
Speaker 5: the library and I'll read them for felt. I'll put
Speaker 5: it in my story and tag the person and be like,
Speaker 5: everyone send this person love, and then I just let
Speaker 5: everybody else do the like you're you're horrible, You're you're
Speaker 5: a debt FU you your dragon sucks like we're just
Speaker 5: so you were to say, we listen, like some people
Speaker 5: deserve to get that kind of stuff. That's what they're
Speaker 5: putting out. So I just called myself calm upon them
Speaker 5: that point.
Speaker 3: We need a Queen cond T shirt.
Speaker 1: When they go high, I go no, what is it?
Speaker 1: When they go low? I go high? But tomorrow is
Speaker 1: the difference.
Speaker 2: There's my Real Housewives of Sydney into Flames amazing.
Speaker 1: Well, look, I'm just running out of time, so I
Speaker 1: got one last question for you, which is, actually, have
Speaker 1: you noticed? This is actually? And I'm going to tell
Speaker 1: you that offline because people are going to come for me.
Speaker 1: I was just actually, I'll say it now because people
Speaker 1: be like, you can't say something like this. But is
Speaker 1: Raven who does RuPaul's makeup and travels with RuPaul? Am
Speaker 1: I saying that right?
Speaker 3: Raven?
Speaker 1: Oh?
Speaker 4: Yeah? Yeah? Rape?
Speaker 3: Is Raven turning into Thorgy thor like, have you noticed
Speaker 3: that I have?
Speaker 2: Well, is she like, has she got some bad work timee?
Speaker 3: It's not yeah, yeah no, because it sounds like yeah,
Speaker 3: so yes, maybe I don't know. Look I don't.
Speaker 1: I love Thorgy thor as well, so it's fine, it's
Speaker 1: fine for me. But I just was like, people who
Speaker 1: have watched episode two, well understand what I'm saying.
Speaker 3: I'm pretty sure. I'm sure it's a think.
Speaker 1: But before you go, the last question I have for
Speaker 1: you is, what is something from behind the scenes of
Speaker 1: the LOGI something that we didn't see that we won't
Speaker 1: see from your time.
Speaker 3: And you know, the first.
Speaker 1: Drag queen representing Australia representing the world at the logis like,
Speaker 1: I want.
Speaker 4: You on something. Oh my god. Okay, So like when
Speaker 4: we were I was sending.
Speaker 5: To Reese and Tan Hennessy and so we were at
Speaker 5: the standtable and I think, you know, they obviously feed
Speaker 5: you as much alcohol as you want. And I think
Speaker 5: the tricky thing about that is like when you're really
Speaker 5: really drunk and they've got a camera in your face
Speaker 5: waiting for your reaction, I literally like under the table
Speaker 5: was squeezing and pinching recently so that I could keep
Speaker 5: a smile on my face because and they were like
Speaker 5: Amy Shark, I was like.
Speaker 4: I want the way mother.
Speaker 5: I wanted to like in my brain, I was like
Speaker 5: I was I was like replaying like my reality TV
Speaker 5: moment of standing up and throwing the table and dorming
Speaker 5: out and it's like absolutely cussing Amy park out, but
Speaker 5: in camera in the face, I was smiling, going, yes, yes,
Speaker 5: community congeniality, Fitch.
Speaker 1: It's do you know what I think it's safe to say.
Speaker 1: And I'm not saying this because you're here, and I
Speaker 1: think it's safe to say from any that I've read online,
Speaker 1: a lot of people were extremely disappointed. Oh, we have
Speaker 1: that result and you are the people's Loki's choice for
Speaker 1: that for sure.
Speaker 5: Oh I appreciate that only thank you. Well, look, I
Speaker 5: campaigned like a motherfucker. And also it was just it
Speaker 5: was actually just really nice to be there in the
Speaker 5: night and also be there on the drag queen there,
Speaker 5: which was really odd.
Speaker 4: I had a couple of people of the Junker that
Speaker 4: they got.
Speaker 5: You could definitely see what where people voted and what
Speaker 5: people will be voting for the referendum.
Speaker 2: I'll tell you that.
Speaker 5: I won't name names, but there were definitely half half
Speaker 5: of the room from the major networks.
Speaker 4: You do the mouth, we'll say.
Speaker 3: That Quen Kong. I am obsessed with you.
Speaker 1: You are so funny, you are so smart, and it
Speaker 1: will be in your audience. Australia is going to be
Speaker 1: in your audience for an extremely long time. So anyway,
Speaker 1: thank you, thanks for talking to me.
Speaker 5: No, I can't wait to see episode two now, but
Speaker 5: I think it's out tonight at five pm, so I
Speaker 5: might missage. Susan Be like, can you said to me now,
Speaker 5: I need to watch it.
Speaker 4: I want to see poorg for.
Speaker 3: And then we'll talk about it offline.
Speaker 4: Okay, amazing, Thank you so much. Be I took you soon. Bye.
Speaker 4: Yeah