After entering the competition with her sister Sugar, Spice was able to step out on her own (following Sugar’s elimination) & at that point, we got to see what this social media-born performer was made of. After embracing her individuality (and coming under the tutelage of some of her new Drag Race sisters), Spice made great strides in the competition. While Spice has now said goodbye to Season 15 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, she is only getting started in terms of her own career. I sat down to chat with Spice and we chatted about her Drag Race run, newfound sisterhood & what it was like continuing the competition without Sugar.
Michael Cook: Congratulations on a truly one of a kind run on RuPaul’s Drag Race. You & your sister Sugar most definitely defied expectations from the moment you walked into the workroom.
Spice: Thank you so much; that means a lot to hear for sure.
MC: How do you now look back on your RuPaul’s Drag Race run as a whole?
S: I look back at it with fondness honestly. As an artist, it is easy to look back on it and say I don’t like this or I would change that, but it was so long ago and as a drag artist especially, your drag is constantly evolving. I feel like I am a completely different person now, not only with my drag, but as a person. It can be hard to watch in that aspect, but that is where I was at that moment in my life and I wouldn’t change a thing. I look back and I love it; I love all of the shenanigans and the “spiciness” that went down if you will.
MC: You mentioned that both you and your drag have changed drastically since you returned from filming RuPaul’s Drag Race and you are one of several people to tell me that this season. What do you think has changed the most about you as a person and a performer?
S: I think the thing that has changed about me the most is that don’t give an “F” even less, if that makes sense. I always tell & remind myself, especially through the competition, that I was not trying to get people to like me. I just always would tell myself that because it is always easy as humans, we have that innate thing to always be liked by other people.
Even if people say they don’t care what people think, deep down inside it’s this human instinctual thing to want to be liked by others to some extent. I try to remind myself of that, because it’s really not important what other people say about your art, it’s really important what you say as an artist. For me, leaving that show, I am going to just lean into even more of what I love and do what I want; it’s kind of freeing in a way.
MC: There was a distinct shift in the competition when Sugar left the show, and while you were initially heartbroken, you slowly found your own footing and ultimately your own voice in the competition, do you think that is fair to say?
S: Yes, I do think that is fair to say for sure. Me and Sugar, I was always the co-dependent twin and would lean on her for sure. I always knew that if one of us has to stay and it is going to be me, it might be a little bit hard but hey, all the other girls are here by themselves. I mean, we had an advantage having family there. It was also almost harder in a sense though, because I had that advantage and then it was taken away so it was almost like “oh shit”. It was never a bad thing at all though, if I was out and Sugar was there, I would want her to slay and eat these girlies up so I try to keep that in mind.
MC: Do you think that it is easier entering the competition where you can discuss the challenges and even possibly lip syncing against each other prior to meeting the other girls? Do you think that may have given you a bit of an advantage?
S: Maybe, I think that there are pros and cons to everything. I think that there was definitely an advantage, we had each other, we could talk about everything. Also the disadvantage though, was that we had to prepare for the show at the same time. If it was twenty looks that we needed, then we needed forty. We make all of our own wigs, every look you saw on the show, Sugar and I styled ourselves so we were the little wig workshop. While we’re having outfits made, we’re at home styling these wigs and going a mile a minute. There are pros and cons for sure.
MC: What is it like to have people like Mistress Isabelle Books and Malaysia Babydoll Foxx, drag titans in their own right, helping you navigate drag and life post Drag Race? It is definitely something that money cannot buy.
S: For sure! I always say, who cares about winning a crown when you could actually win real relationships that will last a lifetime. And I feel like me and Sugar have definitely accomplished that, specifically with Mistress and Malaysia. Specifically with Malaysia for me. We have talked every single day on FaceTime since the show ended and it’s really been such a beautiful relationship, for all four of us to watch, and all of the girls as well not just them; it has just been really cool.
MC: There have been rumors buzzing about a possible tour with the four of you; any idea what that might look like if it were to come to fruition?
S: It would be everything! If we were to tour together we would be bringing the new school with the TikTok, the old school, it would just be a blend of everything that you love about drag into one night, so I would just be so down for it.
MC: What are the rose and thorn of your Drag Race experience?
S: My rose is the fact that I really accomplished what I wanted to there. The number one thing that I wanted to do going into the show was, I knew that I was not in control of anything going on at a reality show like that, but I was in control of being aware of how I feel and making it my dominant intent to always have fun and to see joy. I think that I definitely accomplished what I wanted to; to live my best life and just have so much fun every second. I definitely feel like I did that.
The thorn, whenever there is a negative I try to turn it into a positive. There were a lot of things, its stressful doing a show like that. There were ten thousand things a day, a mile a minute. I would say that I kind of regret the last episode, not wearing my eight inch heels, I should have just stuck true to myself. They weren’t really telling me to stop wearing the platform heels, all the other girls were telling me I should wear a tiny heel so I decided to show versatility. Then I got home and I was like “never again”!
MC: Speaking of the critiques that you received, did you take it personally when Michelle Visage mentioned that you needed to change up some things on the runway that you keep repeating?
S: Whenever someone says something to me, I take it with a grain of salt, one ear and out the other. I was never really bothered by what she said (laughs).
MC: Now that you have the Drag Race platform in front of you, what can the world expect from you now?
S: I think what you are going to see next from Spice is everything that I was doing before but tenfold, really taking it to the next level. People always ask what’s next after TikTok, but for me I see the power in social media. Some people see it as a stepping stone, but I see it as the moment. It’s the thing to aspire to be. Traditional celebrities are doing podcasts, getting on social media, doing TikTok. We are just going to lean in even more. If I am going to be a social media queen, I am going to be that social media queen! Me and Sugar are just getting started, we have so many plans and ideas. I am just excited to get to work on everything.
MC: Since you and Sugar both have come directly from TikTok, it is very clear that TikTok is one of the newest frontiers and mediums to get drag from. From your perspective, what do you think is the next frontier for drag and where we can get it?
S: You know what, especially with TikTok, Sugar and I were doing that back in 2019 before it blew up during the pandemic. Everyone thought we were crazy, but we knew the power in it and we knew that it would be the next best thing. Honestly, I think the next best thing really is TikTok just getting even bigger. I think people thought it was people just doing these little dances, but there is a genre and niche on TikTok for everyone. I got my dad on TikTok, if we can get that to happen TikTok is forever!
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