By Kevin Ferrisi –
In the blink of an eye, Judah has been snatching titles that she can proudly add to her drag resume. Judah has only been residing in Connecticut for less than a year, but within that time frame, she is quickly creating a legacy for herself, winning season 11 of Chez Legends and capturing the attention of CT drag fans as she pops up at shows all over the state. Constantly full of surprises, she is delivering something new and fresh every time she hits the stage.
Photo by Kevin Ferrisi.
Judah started her drag journey about two and a half years ago. She started doing drag on May 6, 2021. Just after COVID, her local home bar in Pensacola, Florida was holding an amateur drag competition for the first time since the world started opening back up after the global pandemic. Judah felt compelled to participate in the contest, so she came up with an idea for a number. Contestants of the competition needed to do a second performance during the event if they made it past the first round. Not only did Judah make it past the first round, but she went on to win the entire amateur competition by doing a Lady Gaga number. Such a feat for her first time in drag!
Being born and raised in Pensacola, Florida, Judah is one of nine children and one of three siblings to be openly queer. Florida, residing under strict anti-LGBTQ+ laws, didn’t make for the greatest conditions for openly queer people to authentically live as their true identities. Growing up, Judah knew she didn’t want to live in a state under such policies and knew she wanted to leave Pensacola. Last year, Judah relocated to Connecticut after her brother, a Navy service member, was stationed in Groton and had already made the move. Since moving to Connecticut, Judah feels the community has welcomed her and shown an overwhelming sense of support and love so quickly. This sense of acceptance Judah carries with pride.
Photo by Kevin Ferrisi.
Since Judah was 10, she knew drag was something that she wanted to explore. During a trip to Louisiana to visit her father’s side of the family, Judah and her siblings were flipping through channels on the television and stumbled across RuPaul’s Drag Race during season 4. That moment changed their lives. When she returned home to Florida, Judah was determined to find a way to dabble in the art of drag while maintaining secrecy.
At the time, her brother had an iPad and would record and edit movies. Judah’s brother borrowed another siblings’ makeup and painted Judah’s face with green and blue contours as an alien for his movie. From that point on, Judah recalls most of her childhood “is me just under my covers, with my little iPad, watching RuPaul’s Drag Race, trying not to get caught, just going through every season on LogoTV or the app, literally anyway I could watch it, I was just obsessed. Still am.”
For some artists, coming up with a drag name is part of the journey of self-discovery. But for Judah, the name ‘Judah’ was assigned to her at birth. Most people might be surprised to know that is, in fact, her name in and out of drag. Judah explained, “Growing up, I just felt like I’m a star and I always thought that way and like my mom always told me that too, so I just wanted to keep it because I felt like that’s my name, I want to be a star with my name.”
If Judah was to describe her style of drag, she would consider herself a chameleon. She describes how growing up in Florida with southern queens exuding the stereotypical southern belle, with big hair and big dresses, she knew that wasn’t the kind of drag she wanted to explore. As a result, Judah was constantly questioned about her lack of padding or chest size, the enhancements that drag queens have traditionally used in the past to create the female illusion. She just wanted to be herself and still appeal to a wide variety of audiences. She describes her style, “I like my drag to be tasteful and appealing no matter what it is, like if it’s alternative, if it’s pageantry, if it’s just fashion, no matter what. I feel like I can do a lot of different things, but I just like it to be accepted, no matter what it is.”
Photo by Kevin Ferrisi.
Judah knows how to work a stage, engage an audience and leave a lasting impression. She explained how sometimes, while performing, she finds herself disconnecting from the moment. She talked about how the feeling could be described as “blacking out” and often astonished, returns to the moment after a short time of dissociation. Perhaps it is her own ‘Sasha Fierce’ who takes over for a brief moment in time. Judah lives for crowd interaction and really enjoys seeing everyone entertained and having a good time.
Drag artists are often emerging from the suppression of societal conditions. For someone who is so new to drag, Judah offers them some words of wisdom. First and foremost, she feels drag starts deep down inside, with an internal feeling of passion and desire for the art. She tells us, “It starts with a feeling inside of yourself. You don’t need a drag family or someone to sit there and do your makeup or teach you how to do drag. It’s something everyone can do. You have to want to sit down and learn for yourself. You have to really want it.” She says to connect with that inner feeling to nurture and develop your drag skills.
For Judah, drag has taught her, above all, confidence. Growing up, she didn’t always feel the most confident. Unable to express her identity, she felt she always had to dim her light around others. Drag provided her the platform to connect with her true self. She says, “Being able to do drag, I found that light and I’m so much more confident because of it. I am able to just be myself in every way possible.” Having the freedom to unapologetically be who she is and express herself in the way she has always wanted is part of the reason she decided to go by her birth name. She feels “there’s not much of a change from ‘Judah’ and Judah. Like, I am Judah and now I get to express my true self. It’s like feeding that inner child in me.” She feels she has always been the same person inside and it became a matter of whether she felt comfortable to express it.
Photo by Sam Avery.
In such a short time doing drag, Judah has gone on to win multiple titles. Taking a look at her new drag career, she has a lot to be proud of. Just recently, she was crowned the winner of season 11 of the local drag competition, Chez Legends, which she feels is the biggest accomplishment so far in her performing career. Just after doing drag for only one year, Judah was voted ‘Best Drag Queen’ in her hometown in Florida after the local newspaper organized a reader’s poll where the community can vote for their town favorites in several categories ranging from food, retail, professional services, and entertainment. Before then, after participating in a preliminary in Florida, she was first alternate and invited to compete in the National Pageant Entertainer of the Year in Kentucky. Not to mention, as we stated before, she won an amateur drag competition in her Florida hometown the very first time performing in drag!
Photo by Kevin Ferrisi.
Looking ahead to the future, you can catch Judah competing against the Chez Legends season 12 winner for the coveted title of Mx. Chez Est 2024 during the Chez Legends All Stars weekend competition taking place in April of 2024. Winning season 11 of Chez Legends has really put a spotlight on Judah and has captured the attention of booking directors. She hopes to be able to rise to a platform where touring around the country becomes a possibility.
Leave a Reply