Monsters and Dust

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M&D: I remember you once telling me that you encountered some resistance to your choice of name early on. What were people trying to call you out on, and how did you respond?

YJK: I think people may think the name is indicating that she’s purely a joke. I like that one may derive various associations to the name and that it is ambiguous as to the qualities of the persona. People have their own opinions, which in this case I really don’t give a shit about. Drag itself is a very contentious practice. It often makes use of stereotypes from a lot of other cultures, particularly those that are reactionary to oppression, and a lot of people don’t want to be confronted by that. This is good though, that there’s a critical dialogue around drag.

M&D: What are some early lessons/experiences going into drag that you've learned from? Are there assumptions you made that have been broken, or reinforced?

YJK: I’ve learned the importance of shoes. Queens are HARSH when it comes to shoes. Also, people can tell when you’re comfortable in drag or you’re uncomfortable, it’s important to have a confidence in one’s persona, because there are still many who look to drag queens for that particular diva quality.

M&D: I think that your act often leans toward the avant-garde, how has this played out in the drag world? For instance, I remember you clearly being the crowd favorite at your first competition at Roscoe’s [a bar in Chicago’s Boystown], but you weren't allowed to win. Of course, this was a reflection of drag "rules" and heirarchy (you can elaborate on that too), but I think it was just as much the fact that they didn't know what to do with you.

YJK: I don’t really think I’m avant-garde. I just want to do drag on my own terms, and if people appreciate it, that’s great! Certainly, there are older queens who seek to perpetuate the rules and hierarchies in the drag community, understandably — for a lot of them, it’s a living, and they don’t want their money fucked with. The culture is always changing along with gay culture, or rather, the dissipation of it. There are a lot of younger queers who reject my form of drag now. It’ll be interesting to see how the culture and the community continues to change. It is sad in a way, but it also mirrors the greater acceptance of diverse notions of gender and sexuality in the mainstream and the passing of legislation for gay rights. Still, for a lot of older gays, and how I grew up, the pain and the trauma of oppression is still felt, and for all the progressive queers who refuse to identify as gay or lesbian, more power to them. And in terms of equal civil rights, we’re not there yet — there’s still a lot of violence and homophobia against men who display effeminate traits and females who are butch — it’s a political stance one takes in this time to identify as gay.

M&D: Since that experience at Roscoe's, have you been able to interact with the drag community more? Are you finding other queens that are breaking the traditional mold?

YJK: I’ve been struck by the comradery between drag queens because for me at least, it started off as a really isolating interest. We share makeup tips. A lot of Asian queens have approached me in turn,
which is cool. There are a lot of other queens who are doing interesting things, bringing a more critical perspective to drag, and bridging drag and art, such as Kalup Linzy and Dynasty Handbag.