Shania Twain Explains How Drag Queens Inspire Her
In a recent interview with GLAAD, country superstar Shania Twain shared her love and admiration for drag culture.
Shania Twain has been a longtime supporter of the LGBTQ community, and is not afraid to be vocal about it.
In a recent interview with GLAAD, Twain shared her love and admiration for drag culture, describing her experiences attending drag shows and how queens have inspired her throughout her career.
Twain expressed admiration for the bravery exhibited by drag performers when it comes to their sartorial choices, saying, “It takes a lot of courage. I mean, fashion in itself takes courage. You’re taking on a lot.”
She also praised the artistry of drag queens, particularly their makeup skills. “I’ve learned a lot from drag queens,” she says. “I watched their tutorials because no, I’ve never seen such transformation in some of these talents that their faces go through…. It’s very impressive. I’m very inspired by it.”
The Grammy winner admitted to attending some drag performances in the past, though she apparently sticks to the more popular options as opposed to dive bar stages. “Drag shows are so fun,” Twain says. “I’ve been to a couple of drag shows, big ones in Las Vegas.”
Twain’s love for drag culture has been a source of inspiration in her music as well.
In fact, the singer conceded once that her iconic hit “Man! I Feel Like a Woman” was inspired by the drag queens she encountered in gay bars when she was a young woman.
“Being inexperienced at applying makeup, I marveled at how artistic and glamorous some of the men were,” she wrote in her memoir. “My fascination with this initial introduction to men transforming themselves into beautiful women likely sowed the seed of inspiration for a song I would write years later: ‘Man! I Feel Like a Woman.'”
The singer-songwriter cemented her status as a drag lover and an ally to the LGBTQ community when she appeared as a guest judge on season 10 of RuPaul’s Drag Race and showed her admiration for the show’s contestants. During her time on the reality staple, contestants Mayhem Miller and Monét X Change performed a fierce lip-sync to “Man! I Feel Like a Woman,” leaving Twain visibly moved.
In her interview with GLAAD, Twain emphasized the importance of drag culture as a source of inspiration and empowerment for all.
“I think we need this inspiration. We need drag queens to share their talent with us,” she says.
The superstar also talked about the LGBTQ people in her life, and how she felt about them even from a younger age.
“I’ve had so many friends in my life from early on that I would say… some openly, some not so openly who’ve struggled with their sexuality,” Twain says. “When I was younger, I would say I even resented society for just making anyone feel like an outsider.”
She concluded that part of the chat by stating, in no uncertain terms, “I want to say that I love you LGBTQ community. You are rock solid.”
Twain’s new album Queen of Me has been well-received by fans and critics alike, and it easily debuted inside the top 10 of the Billboard 200.
It’s not often that one of the biggest names in country music goes out of their way to praise drag queens and speak on the LGBTQ community, and her commitment to doing so only further highlights how different Twain is from the typical country musician.
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