Currently, the extremely popular reality TV competition show, RuPaul’s Secret Celebrity Drag Race, has fired up the engine for its second season, which started earlier this year. The original series, RuPaul’s Drag Race, is a stylishly successful competition that easily laid the foundation for what makes this celebrity version so thoroughly enjoyable.
Celebrity contestants undergo the same marvelous metamorphosis as the regular contestants from the original series, with the hopes of strutting their stuff in their high-heeled shoes and stomping out the competition. The first season was formatted to resemble the original program, in that the competitors would go through a mini-challenge, a thematic group task followed by the “maxi challenge,” and finally an on-stage lip-sync battle to determine that episode’s winner. The second season changed things up a little and runs in a “last queen standing” format, episode to episode. It currently has the celebrities performing solo, followed by a “lip sync for their lives” to determine who’s out of the running, which also results in their true identity being revealed. Think The Masked Singer, which shares a similar concept.
Win or lose, each contestant comes away with at least $10,000, but as much as $30,000 for a charity of their choice.
From the very first episode, here is every celebrity who strutted their stuff on the stage of RuPaul’s Secret Celebrity Drag Race.
Episode One: Babykins La Roux vs. Miss Mimi Teapot vs. Olivette Isyou
In the first episode of the series premiere, three contestants went through the “gauntlet” with style and ended with a lip sync performance of the legendary song “Express Yourself” by Madonna. Out of the three, the contestant “Babykins La Roux” earned herself the top spot. She was played by Canadian actor Jordan Connor, who’s best known for playing “Sweet Pea” in the CW supernatural crime drama Riverdale. In his short career, he has also appeared in Supernatural, Lucifer, and his most recent work came in a Canadian medical drama called Nurses.
As the runners-up, “Miss Mimi Teapot” was revealed to be American actor Jermaine Fowler, who’s probably best known right now for his role in the comedy sequel Coming 2 America as King Akeem’s long-lost son Lavelle. In addition to that role, he was Franco Wicks on the CBS sitcom Superior Donuts for two seasons from 2017 and 2018.
“Olivette Isyou” was the persona of Nico Tortorella, who audiences would remember from the television comedy Younger as a regular cast member during all seven seasons. He was even a guest judge on RuPaul’s regular competition during season 10. Before that, he was seen in crime thriller The Following on Fox and had a small role in the horror sequel Scream 4 in 2011.
Episode Two: Mary J. Ross vs. Miss Shenita Cocktail vs. Vanqueisha De House
The second episode featured a trio of new celebrities facing off against one another to perform the popular 1978 disco hit, “You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)” by Sylvester. After the judges deliberated, the victor was declared to be “Vanqueisha De House.” Embodying this character was none other than the legendary and beautiful Vanessa Williams.
After winning the Miss America crown in 1984, Williams soon thereafter got into music and acting and released the first of eight career studio albums, The Right Stuff, in 1988, while also finding success with several small roles, mainly on television, during the rest of the eighties. In 1992, she had a notable role as entertainment producer Suzanne de Passe in the TV biopic The Jacksons: An American Dream. In the mid-1990s, Williams would begin a string of memorable roles throughout her career in well-known feature films like Eraser, Soul Food, Shaft, and Johnson Family Vacation. On TV, she would guest star in numerous shows and eventually star as a main cast member of the popular ABC sitcom Ugly Betty for four seasons from 2006 to 2010, followed by two seasons on Desperate Housewives. She also managed to fit into a guest judge role during season three of RuPaul’s Drag Race. She is currently on the panel of judges for a separate drag queen competition show, Queen of the Universe, currently in production of its second season.
Following up Williams was “Mary J. Ross,” played by actress and comedian Loni Love. Originally doing stand-up comedy in the nineties, Love would start out with appearances in the popular VH1 comedy series I Love the ’70s and I Love the ’80s Strikes Back. From there, she’s built most of her resume on television, with lots of work on sitcoms, reality, and talk shows, most notably in Wild ‘n Out, Netflix’s Is It Cake?, and as a co-host of the award-winning talk show, The Real. Love’s also been a familiar face to RuPaul after competing for her in 2020 and with recurring appearances as a guest judge in seasons 13 and 14 of RuPaul’s Drag Race. Love is currently the co-host of the daytime talk show, E! Daily Pop.
Also falling short in this episode was “Miss Shenita Cocktail,” played by Tami Roman. Roman appeared as a cast member of The Real World: Los Angeles in 1993. After that, she tried a short-lived music career but also stuck to things in front of the camera, mostly with lots of work in television, rather than film, for nearly 30 years now. She was seen in The Parkers, The Steve Harvey Show, and Sabrina the Teenage Witch. However, her biggest claim to fame has come from her time as part of the main cast of the hit reality show, Basketball Wives, from seasons two through eight. Her appearances on that show kept the door open for ongoing TV stints here and there. She was last seen reuniting with her old roommates in 2021’s The Real World Homecoming: Los Angeles.
Episode Three: Bette Bordeaux vs. Madam That Bitch vs. Rachel McAdamsapple
For the third episode, mystery celebrities clashed again and finished up their battle by singing the popular Celine Dion hit, “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now.” However, for the first time, all three competitors were locked in a three-way tie, resulting in each celebrity winning $20,000 for their respective charities.
The first celebrity was Matt Iseman, who played “Bette Bordeaux.” Iseman was a regular on the home makeover show, Clean House, from 2003 to 2011. He’s had a few small side roles as an actor, but most of his work has consisted of hosting duties on TV shows like Home & Family and Today. He’s most known as the current co-host of American Ninja Warrior, a gig he’s been at since 2010.
American actor and singer Alex Newell played the role of “Madam That Bitch.” They first appeared as a recurring character on Glee, from 2012 to 2015 and also appeared in episodes of Resident Advisors, followed by a main cast role as “Mo” in the musical dramedy, Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist. Newell’s also been excelling with a successful music career, recording popular cover songs and even a small number of original tracks. They released an EP entitled Power in 2016, which made it as high as fourth on the Billboard U.S. Dance/Electronic charts.
The third competitor, Canadian actor Dustin Milligan, played “Rachel McAdamsapple.” Working since 2004, he first appeared in TV shows like Andromeda, The Dead Zone, and Supernatural before his time as a regular cast member of the CW reboot of 90210, during the show’s first season. In movies, he had roles in Final Destination 3, The Butterfly Effect 2, and Extract. In recent years, he became pretty popular as Ted Mullens in the award-winning comedy Schitt’s Creek from 2015 to 2020. Earlier in 2022, he wrapped filming for a feature film called The People We Hate at the Wedding and is also currently working on the Peacock sitcom Rutherford Falls, which is in its second season.
Episode Four: Cocotini vs. Coral Fixation vs. Queen Eleza Beth
In the final episode of the first season, three celebrities were once again competing for charity as the action was capped off with the lip-sync stage finale that featured “California Gurls” by Katy Perry. There was no tie of any kind this time around as “Queen Eleza Beth,” played by Hayley Kiyoko, claimed victory.
Kiyoko got started as a child actor, appearing in various TV commercials, and in 2007, broke into music with the all-girl singing group, The Stunners. That same year, she appeared in her first television role in Nickelodeon’s Unfabulous. Two years later, her first film role came in Scooby-Doo! The Mystery Begins. On the big screen, she’s had roles in Insidious: Chapter 3, Jem and the Holograms, and XOXO, while on TV, she’s been in Wizards of Waverly Place, The Vampire Diaries, and a regular role on the short-lived CSI spinoff, CSI: Cyber from 2015 to 2016. Right now, she’s back to focusing on music and is currently touring with Lauv on the All 4 Nothing Tour.
American singer Madison Beer just missed the top spot with her portrayal of “Coral Fixation.” She was discovered by Justin Bieber in 2012 after posting covers of popular songs on her YouTube channel. In 2013, her first single, “Melodies,” was released, followed by “Unbreakable” in 2014. Around this same time is when Beer tried her hand as an actress but has mainly stuck to making guest appearances as herself on various television programs, keeping music as her primary focus. In August of 2022, she released “Dangerous,” the first single of a new upcoming studio album.
And lastly, “Cocotini,” played by Phoebe Robinson, was the second runner-up to Kiyoko. Robinson is a comedian, writer, and actor with a foundation based behind the camera on popular past projects like MTV’s Girl Code, Broad City, and 2 Dope Queens. On TV, she’s made several appearances in shows such as Last Comic Standing, Late Night with Seth Meyers, and Totally Biased with W. Kamau Bell. In July 2022, Robinson began starring in Everything’s Trash, a sitcom loosely based on her own adulthood, that debuted on Freeform.
Celebrities that have been revealed during season two
In this drag race’s second season, each celebrity contestant faces the possibility of getting knocked out, episode to episode. These celebrities are also earning money for their desired charities and have each won $5,000 for their efforts.
After the first episode, veteran stage and screen actress Loretta Devine was sent home first after giving it a go as “Fabulosity” in the first episode. With hundreds of acting credits to her name, she’s most known for her award-winning roles in Waiting to Exhale and The Preacher’s Wife on the big screen, along with more high praise for appearing in Boston Public, Grey’s Anatomy — for which she won a guest-starring Primetime Emmy — and The Carmichael Show. Devine is currently working on the third and final season of the Netflix sitcom Family Reunion.
Award-winning American singer Taylor Dayne, who performed as “Electra Owl,” was the next celebrity that was revealed, in her most recent appearance of any kind in her ongoing career. She came to popularity back during the late eighties with numerous hit singles like “Tell It to My Heart,” “Love Will Lead You Back,” “With Every Beat of My Heart,” “Prove Your Love,” and “I’ll Always Love You,” all of which were U.S. top-10 singles. Dayne won an American Music Award, along with a couple of Grammy nods. Billboard magazine also ranked her as one of the most successful dance artists of all time. In addition to her amazing music, she’s also done a fair amount of acting in a few indie films such as Stag, Fool’s Paradise, and Jesus the Driver.
Also departing from the competition is “Jackie Would,” who was personified by Thom Filicia in his most recent television appearance. He is most known to audiences from his time as part of the award-winning Queer Eye for the Straight Guy cast, winning a Primetime Outstanding Reality Program Emmy in 2004. He has also co-written a best-selling book based on the mega-popular reality design show titled, Queer Eye For The Straight Guy: The Fab 5 Guide To Living Better. In addition to appearing in Queer Eye, he’s also hosted other design-related shows such as Dress My Nest and Tacky House for the Style Channel.
