Drag queens being catty towards one another comes with the territory and RuPaul’s Drag Race is powered by this mean girl energy, with contestants trading barbs as they battle for victory. But, for the most part, this is all for show, and even amongst “enemies” there are some lines you simply do not cross.
Well King Tyra (aka Tyra Sanchez or just Tyra, real name James William Ross IV), winner of Drag Race season 2, not only just crossed that line, but horrified the entire drag scene and forever cemented her status as a pariah and all-around horrible human being.
On Jan. 5 the drag scene was stunned and saddened by the announcement of The Vivienne’s death, the charismatic and much-loved winner of Drag Race UK season one. The community united to pay tribute and grieve, but Tyra decided this was the perfect moment to gloat.
The disgraced drag queen dredged up a five-year-old post from The Vivienne about the drama surrounding the finale of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars season 5. In it, the late performer mocked Tyra for her failed attempt to ruin the season by spoiling the winner (Shea Couleé) after Netflix accidentally spoiled it too in a YouTube thumbnail, effectively stealing Tyra’s thunder. At the time, Tyra described the move as payback for Drag Race producers failing to stand up for her against racist viewers.
“Bet Tyra was fuming when she Realised Netflix Spoiled the win Too. Sorry gal. You Tried though,” said The Vivienne in 2020. Tyra had clearly been stewing over the fairly innocuous tweet for all these years, taking The Vivienne’s death as her chance to deliver the ultimate, most despicable clap back possible. “Yet it doesn’t compare to the fumes of the crematorium,” she responded, generating unanimous backlash and disgust.
Jaws collectively hit the floor at this impossibly cruel response. The comments were exactly what you’d expect, calling Tyra out for being a trash person.
Others dubbed her “cold-hearted,” which is difficult to disagree with.
And why would a five-year-old post even bother someone this much?
And when it comes to cutting barbs, there’s nothing plainer than visual proof that Tyra was already persona non grata:
But hey, when you’re in a hole, why not keep digging? Doubtless conscious that on Elon Musk’s X engagement equals a payout, Tyra just kept pouring gasoline onto the fire. Season 13 runner-up Kandy Muse rightly described her as a “disgusting person” prompting Tyra to respond “prepare your funeral.”
And, after Kandy quite understandably blocked her, Tyra took this as “running scared” rather than simply not wanting to spend any more time interacting with toxicity.
And finally — inevitably — Tyra pulled out the old puppet master defense, claiming that posting things that make everyone conclude you’re a hateful person nobody in their right mind would ever want to hire, befriend or socialize with makes her feel great about herself.
At this point, it’s worth pointing out that Tyra appears to suffer from a severe lack of self-control and has been wrapped up in multiple controversies and legal troubles over the years, including being banned from RuPaul’s DragCon LA in 2018 after being accused of making terrorist threats against the event. In 2023, she was involved in a minor traffic incident, during which she threatened to shoot the police officer attending, leading to a bizarre dildo-related protest that then resulted in her arrest.
As a coda to this portrait of a damaged, aggressive, and deeply unpleasant person, Tyra is apparently a “devout Christian.” If that is the case — and honestly we’re struggling to see anything remotely Christian in her words and actions — perhaps she needs to head back to Sunday School and be reminded of the whole “turning the other cheek” thing.
Published: Jan 7, 2025 06:52 am