RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars is back, back, back, back again! The stunning Shea Coulee took her deserved place in the “Drag Race Hall Of Fame” just last July, but the spin-off returns for its sixth iteration this week on Paramount+, giving eager queens their second—or third—chance to claim the Drag Race crown. The fun and feisty cast of All Stars 6 includes earlier-season queens looking to reintroduce themselves to a growing fan base (Kylie Sonique Love, Jiggly Caliente, Serena ChaCha, Trinity K. Bonet), a selection from Season 11 ready for more (A’keria C. Davenport, Ra’Jah O’Hara, Scarlet Envy, Silky Nutmeg Ganache), two more recent-season competitors who feel they have something to prove (Eureka!, Jan), and a few giving All Stars one more spin (Ginger Minj, Pandora Boxx, Yara Sofia). It’s an eclectic bunch and they’re all hungry for the win, so it’ll be interesting to see how strategically they play the game.
How The All Stars 6 Cast Decided On Their Confessional Looks
One thing we know for certain is that all 13 of these queens have been through the Drag Race ringer before, so you can bet they’ll be stepping up their fashion game for the runway. But there’s one look we don’t talk enough about, and that’s the “confessional” look—the out-of-drag outfit the competitors wear when they film their individual commentary interviews. Throughout the season, it’s what we see them in more than anything else, and queens have begun to put noticeable time and effort into assembling looks that are memorable in their own right. Ahead of the season premiere, The A.V. Club asked the cast to spill the tea and confess how they landed on their confessional style. What made Jiggly Caliente wear pink? Is Ginger Minj’s crown just a touch of subliminal messaging, or something more? And why did Scarlet Envy opt for a white linen suit? You can watch the video above for all of the details, and then check out more from our cast interviews below.
Note: Yara Sofia was unfortunately unable to take part in our cast interviews.
Queens Share Why They Answered The Call For All Stars 6
The road to All Stars effectively starts the minute a queen sashays away on their regular season, but it’s not always a rush to jump back into the competition—some want to take the time to refine their artistry and elevate their drag before returning to the Werk Room. In their “Meet The Queens” interviews, the cast shared what they set out to prove to the fans, RuPaul, and themselves by heading back to drag’s biggest stage, but The A.V. Club was still curious: Why now? Why All Stars 6? For many the answer was as simple as, “because they asked!,” but, for others, it was more about feeling ready and knowing there’s more to their drag to show to the world. Not to mention, the season was entirely cast, shot, and produced during the pandemic—a time when nightlife venues, tours, and drag brunches were forced to shut down—so it’s fair to say that some of the queens had a little extra time on their hands.
What The Queens Have Learned From International Drag Race Seasons
Since All Stars 5 wrapped a year ago, we’ve seen season 13 of the “original recipe,” Canada’s Drag Race, Drag Race Holland, the second iteration of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK, the recently wrapped RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under, and the currently airing Drag Race España—it’s truly become a global franchise (not to mention, the previously aired The Switch Drag Race in Chile and two seasons of Drag Race Thailand). It can feel like over-saturation if you’re trying to keep up with it all, but it’s a sign that drag is truly “all over the world,” and a heartening reminder how far we’ve come in terms of LGBTQ+ inclusivity and representation. So, what can be gleaned from these overseas queens? Does it pay off to be a student of international Drag Race series? The A.V. Club asked the All Stars 6 cast which seasons have been their favorite, and what they’ve learned from watching their sisters across the globe.
RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 6 streams exclusively on Paramount+, with its first two episodes premiering simultaneously on June 24.