(Photo: Jaylene Tyme, The Virgo Queen, and Xana. Credit: Bell Media)
*Warning: the following content contains spoilers*
Three Indigenous queens have been fierce competitors in season 5 of Canada’s Drag Race.
Every year, eleven drag queens from across Canada gather to compete for the grand prize of $100,000 and the title of Canada’s next drag superstar.
Jaylene Tyme identifies as a transgender, two-spirit human being; she is registered with Zagime Anishinabek and has ties to Métis Nation Saskatchewan. Xana is two-sprit and Métis and grew up in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Virgo Queen is an Afro-Indigenous sensation from Toronto, Ontario.
The three Indigenous queens spoke with MBC Radio News about the season, how they got into drag, and their Indigenous backgrounds.
“I’m a sixties scoop adoptee, so I was raised by settlers, and it’s just been the last few years that I’ve been able to really reconnect with my ancestral family roots, and it’s been quite a journey,” explained Jaylene.
Jaylene Tyme is 53 years old and started doing drag over 32 years ago. She said that from a young age she had a love for fashion magazines and would put on makeup in secret.
“I didn’t think anyone would understand me, but then fast forward to when I went to a queer space for the first time, and I saw drag on stage, I saw people laughing, and I saw people raising money and awareness for their communities, so then I started performing and haven’t stopped, and it’s just been a community; it’s been an art form that has allowed me to express myself in a way I never thought was possible,” she said.
Jaylene has been a mother and mentor to many drag queens, including Canada’s Drag Race season 3 competitor, Chelazon Leroux, and season 4 winner, Venus. The moment Jaylene entered season 5, she naturally took on the mother role in the competition.
Jaylene highlighted her Indigenous background throughout the competition, entering the show in a red gown that was made by a trans woman of colour and bedazzled with red handprints to represent missing and murdered Indigenous women, two-spirit people, and girls. She also walked the runway in regalia and a turtle island inspired look.
“I have a story to tell, like we all do as a 60s scoop survivor, and I’m also really involved in the trans community and myself; I’ve been sober now for 26 years, and I was part of the street community when I was younger, and I was in a community where a lot of our sisters went missing,” she explained.
In the second episode of season five, Jaylene opened up to the other queens and told them about her experience as a 60’s scoop adoptee. Xana also talked about her Indigenous identity, and Jaylene presented her with a Métis sash. The Virgo Queen then spoke about her Indigenous background, and the three queens shared a viral moment with the clip getting over 7 million views and over 1 million likes on TikTok.
(Video Credit: Bell Media)
“It was a very vulnerable moment for Jaylene and me, and even Virgo, who was able to kind of come in at the end of that conversation and kind of unite all three of us, but being in that moment with Jaylene was just so powerful, and sharing that medicine with her was just so impactful to not only me but I think communities that reach past the Indigenous communities, because obviously that’s going to hit home hard for Indigenous folks, but it’s also akin to anybody who may be mixed race or BIPOC in any country who may not feel connected to their culture,” explained Xana.
Xana is 27-years-old and started doing drag in 2017. She said that she started doing drag as an artistic outlet and a way to express herself after dropping out of college.
“I was able to kind of like get on the stage and get through a bunch of trauma and be able to understand who I am as a performer and who I am as a person, and it gave me this path that I was able to take and be creative again, which I really needed,” Xana explained.
Viewers of Canada’s Drag Race may have labelled Xana the villain of season 5, but speaking with MBC Radio News, she said that’s exactly what she was going for.
“It’s a badge of honour to be the villain of the season; there’s always going to be one. Some people end up being it not on purpose, and then there are some people like me who went in there wanting it, and I feel like that’s something that I hold with pride, “she said.
Despite playing the villain of season five, in Xanas’s free time, she has raised thousands of dollars for charities supporting people in Vancouver and surrounding Indigenous communities. She also raised $5000 for her sister and fellow season 5 contestant, Sanjina DaBish Queen, to go towards her gender-affirming surgeries.
Although Jaylene and Xana made a long-lasting impact on millions of viewers across the globe, the two queens have been eliminated from the competition. Jaylene came in eighth place, leaving the show in episode five, and Xana made it to sixth place before making her exit in episode seven.
There is just one episode left of season 5, and one Indigenous queen has made it to the finale.
The Virgo Queen has always had a natural passion for singing and performing and was actually featured on the big screen before entering season 5 of Canada’s Drag Race. In 2013, she was a finalist on season 6 of YTV’s The Next Star.
“I remember that audition for The Next Star like it was yesterday. I literally just printed off the form at my school library; I think I was in grade five, and I made my mom sign it,” she said.
The Virgo Queen is 26-years-old and started doing drag after being introduced to season 8 of RuPaul’s Drag Race when her friend told her she resembled Naomi Smalls. She has now been doing drag full-time professionally for about six years. Since then, she has become a drag icon in Canada, even having the chance to perform at a Toronto Raptors halftime show.
“This is my livelihood, my income, my everything. I’m also just obsessed with it; for myself, it’s my artistic expression. I mean, every time I get off the stage, I literally feel so refreshed and so sobered up in a way, like I feel very clear, which is a very special feeling,” she said.
Virgo has Indigenous roots stemming from Nova Socia and has constantly been learning more about her Indigenous background, even more so since being a contestant on Canada’s Drag Race.
“Since I’ve been on this show, so many Indigenous people have reached out to me, and so many Indigenous artists and drag queens and drag kings, so I feel accepted into a whole new family and community, which is really, really awesome,” she stated.
Speaking about the moment when Jaylene gifted Xana the Métis sash, Virgo explained that she was extremely grateful to be part of that conversation, calling it an out-of-body experience.
“I feel really blessed and fortunate to have been a part of that and to witness that,” she said. “I think that the most important thing is how it’s affected other people who watch the show, and I think it’s added a lot more sensitivity, and it’s broadened the discussions that we have on the show.”
The Virgo Queen, Helena Poison, Minhi Wang, and Makayla Couture are the final remaining queens in the competition.
“It feels amazing, and it feels super validating. To win the entire competition would mean a lot to me, but I think it would also mean a lot to many people watching at home. I put a lot of pressure on myself, so either way, however it goes, making it to the top four has been a privilege, and I’m just really grateful for the entire experience,” Virgo said.
The finale is set to air tomorrow, January 16 at 8 p.m. CST on Crave; there’s also a live watch party being held that night in Toronto featuring the final four contestants.
Full interviews with Jaylene Tyme, Xana, and The Virgo Queen can be found at the link below.