Kevin Aviance is recovering in a New York City hospital.
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Kevin Aviance, the iconic drag artist and Black queer New York City nightlife legend whose music helped define a generation of ballroom and club culture, is recovering in the hospital after a life-threatening health emergency, his team announced Monday.
In a statement posted to social media, Aviance’s family said he began having trouble breathing at home over the weekend and initially believed it was an asthma attack. But his condition worsened rapidly, and he was rushed to the emergency room. There, he was diagnosed with pneumonia and septic poisoning. Sepsis, also known as septic poisoning, is a dangerous complication that happens when the body’s response to an infection spirals out of control, triggering inflammation that can shut down vital organs. According to his team, doctors told Aviance he’s “incredibly lucky to be alive.”
The statement says he remains hospitalized, is on oxygen, and is being closely monitored. If his recovery continues smoothly, he may be discharged within a few days.
“This is an emotional time for Kevin, his family, and all of us who love him,” the statement read. “Sometimes our bodies whisper before they scream. We have to listen and slow down.”
The Advocate has learned that Aviance is recovering at Mount Sinai Hospital.
“Kevin is currently on oxygen and under close medical supervision to ensure the septic infection is fully cleared from his body,” Aviance’s publicist, Len Evans, told The Advocate. “He is still battling pneumonia and remains in stable condition while resting. We ask everyone to please keep Kevin in your thoughts and prayers during this time.”
Evans said the health scare followed weeks of nonstop work. “He stretched himself too thin working nonstop the last few weeks to release his new single,” Evans said. “He’s spent many hours in the recording studio finishing up his album and doing back-to-back gigs—it just all caught up to him.”
Aviance, 56, a member of the House of Aviance and one of the most celebrated figures in LGBTQ+ nightlife, is best known for hits like “Din Da Da” and “Cunty”—the latter sampled by Beyoncé on 2022’sRenaissance. His influence spans decades and genres, from club anthems and fashion runways to recent DJ sets across North America, including his CVNTY Ball Tourbacked by The Advocate’s parent company, equalpride.
News of Aviance’s hospitalization prompted an immediate wave of love and support from fans and fellow performers.
“Sending Love, Light, and Healing prayers,” wrote music icon Crystal Waters. Comedian and Hey Qween! host Jonny McGovern called Aviance a “legend,” adding, “Sending all my love and good energy to our qween.”
Drag artist and RuPaul’s Drag Race alum Nicky Doll wrote, “Sending all the positive energies possible your way Kevin!”
While attending the grand opening for The Tryst Puerto Vallarta, All Stars 5 champion Shea Couleé congratulated Nurve on her sickening run and for securing the season 17 crown.
"I'm so proud of Onya Nurve! That charisma was off the charts. It was wonderful to watch! It is such an incredible sisterhood. I love these girls and I love welcoming new sisters into the winner's circle. Onya Nurve, welcome sis! You did the damn thing," Couleé tells PRIDE.
One classic Drag Race phrase is that the real race begins once the show has wrapped and Couleé is the perfect personification of that sentiment.
The talented queen has walked in sickening fashion shows, toured around the world, and even landed a role in the upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe TV show Ironheart.
"Honestly, I just always want to focus on gratitude. I'm so thankful for every opportunity [where] I can step into spaces that I've never been in before and represent the community. It really does mean a lot to me!"
The world is certainly Couleé's oyster as she continues to expand her career with her warmth, kindness, and determination to bring LGBTQ+ visibility to spaces that desperately need it.
"My parents always told me that the best thing that I could ever do would be to have a positive impact on the world. Literally today, I was just like, 'It's so fun being gay!' I feel like I live one of the most fulfilling lives and it's incredible."
RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars10 has really shaken things up. The first tournament-style season has allowed for the biggest cast in the franchise’s history, and with such a deep bench of talented and charismatic queens, we’re not complaining!
Last week, the arc of the first bracket came to a close with Irene the Alien, Bosco, and Aja advancing to the next round. But before the eliminated queens — Deja Skye, Phoenix, and Olivia Luxx — were sent all the way home, RuPaul announced one more twist (this is All Stars after all): That one of the queens would be returning in the final round for one more chance to compete for glory!
We can’t wait to see how this turns out! In the meantime, PRIDE caught up with two of the queens, Deja Skye and Phoenix, to talk about their return to the Werk Room, and the conversation took a moving turn as each of them bared their soul about their joy over the opportunity to share their full selves of with the fandom, but also how painful that can when what should be a celebration of their talents becomes a cruel and harmful critique of their appearances. While the announcement of both of these queens’ returns was greeted with plenty of joy and fanfare, they also became the target of toxic commentary on both their faces and bodies — which was not only cruel, but also harmful to their mental health.
Keep reading for our poignant and powerful discussion about the utter head trip of interacting with a fandom that can quite literally save a queen's life, while simultaneously tearing them down.
Phoenix, DeJa Skye, Aja, Bosco, Olivia Lux, Irene the Alien attend RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars 10 Red carpet & Premiere Party at Gitano on May 08, 2025 in New York City.
Santiago Felipe/Getty Images for Paramount+
PRIDE: It’s been so amazing to have you back on my screen this season! In these dark, dark, and desperate times, you’ve both brought me so much joy! Now that you've shot the season, done the press tour, and had time to reflect on the show, how are each of you feeling about your time on Drag Race All Stars 10 and what you got to share with the audience?
DEJA SKYE: My goal was pretty much to share my story and have people actually get to know more about me. Because on season 14, I don't think people knew anything about me. My story really wasn't told. Technically, I had three things I wanted: to show transformation, I wanted my story to come across, and I wanted to have some sort of meme-able moment. I definitely had that with the "nosy neighbor."
PHOENIX: It's been so long since I was on [Drag Race] some of the audience probably wasn't even born yet when season 3 was on. I wanted to reintroduce myself. I have such a different style. I'm this old-school Southern drag mixed with a new-age kind of edge to it. I'm not gonna sit and be like, 'Oh, I didn't want to win.' But that was not first on my list, it really wasn't. I just wanted to really have a good time and reintroduce myself.
Santiago Felipe // Getty Images for Paramount+
I love seeing queens from early seasons come back, because so much has changed, but the skills and the talent and the charisma have always been a part of the show. As you pointed out, you were in the Werk Room more than a decade ago, and the show has changed a lot — as has the fandom. I'm curious, how has your experience been dealing with the new fandom?
DEJA: Ooooh!! [Laughs]
Yes! We are asking the tough questions today!
PHOENIX: I have received lots of love from around the world. Sometimes I forget how big Drag Race is. When I decided to talk about my sister, I received some of the most beautiful, also heartbreaking stories in my DMs from all around the world. I try — at least with the positive ones — to respond back to them, whether it be hearts or a thank you or something, because I'm like, you know what, you took a moment to reach out to me. I want to acknowledge that I see you. I've been introduced to the toxic side of the fan base, but luckily, there've been so many amazing moments from fans that I will cherish those moments forever.
Talking about my sister was such a process, and it was such an internal conversation that I had to have with myself and had to have with my mom. My mom was like, 'But son, there are going to be millions of people around the world that are going to relate to what we went through and the heartbreak that we're still living with.’ And when I decided to share it, those conversations that I received in my DMs were exactly why I decided to share my life with people.
Santiago Felipe // Getty Images for Paramount+
As much as we want to act like it was in the past, people are still experiencing COVID-19 and loss around the pandemic. So I thought that was very, very brave of you.
PHOENIX: COVID may be over with, but the heartbreak that we went through is not.
One hundred percent! Deja, it has not been as long since you were in the Werk Room, but in your personal life you went through something massive, you lived a lifetime since the last time you were here. I'm curious how that experience impacted the way you approached and experienced Drag Race this time.
DEJA: I was technically still healing when I was doing All Stars. The whole reason why I took the call was [because] 10 is such a monumental number. But I also, you know what, there could not be an All Stars 11 and I wanted to show not only a transformation, but I wanted to get my story across. I knew it was a story that quite a few people could relate to, and honestly, it is a tale of caution. Don't just go into something because it's cheap. Don't just do things because of societal standards. No one ever went up to me and said, Deja, you're fat. You should lose weight. And it never hindered me as an artist. So, going back into it, I was like, why did I really do this? I'm very happy now with where I'm at and my body looks great, but it was just a cautionary tale of, like, so dark and gloomy, and where there was contemplation of unaliving myself just because of the pain and the feeling of being alone. I'm already an overthinker, so being alone, literally at home, bed rotting, was not the best thing. I think that what I got from it, though, was a lot of positivity, just like Phoenix, a lot of DMs, a lot of people being like, thank you so much. I'm really going to do my research.
Santiago Felipe // Getty Images for Paramount+
I love that you’re having that impact. It's interesting because there’s also this element of the fandom that feels very entitled to comment on your bodies and appearances. It's rude on one end of the spectrum and dangerous on the other end of the spectrum. I really appreciated your story and how it highlighted that.
DEJA: For me, it was kind of weird. I don't think I ever had body dysmorphia until I lost weight. I was still able to perform. I was still able to be a fierce queen. So it wasn't until I lost weight that I started picking apart my body. Like, 'Oh, I don't like that now. I don't like this now. And then the fandom just perpetuated that by saying, 'Oh, this doesn't look good on you, and that doesn't look good on you.' I'm sure Phoenix can attest to this...
PHOENIX: Oh, absolutely.
DEJA: The things that I put onto my body and what I portray and drag are supposed to make me feel good. It's not supposed to make you feel good. It's not supposed to make a judge feel good. What we portray as an artist is supposed to be our image to the world, and as long as I feel good in what I'm wearing, that's all that matters to me.
So it's so weird that a fandom feels entitled enough to say, 'Well, I don't think this [is good].' Well baby, I frankly, don't care that you didn't like my dress or you didn't like my hair. I did these things because I felt the most beautiful and I was brave enough to go on TV and show that to the world.
Fans, obviously, they're entitled to their opinions, but I think that easing up and just knowing that when it comes to body image, is the hardest thing... you're crossing the line because it's toxic and it should not be part of our fandom.
PHOENIX: To touch on that... know that I've had work done since season three.
Santiago Felipe // Getty Images for Paramount+
Who amongst us hasn’t been touched by an angel?
PHOENIX: I didn't do this for anyone else, but for me. If you don't like it, you didn't pay for it! Everyone has an opinion about everything. Let's not fool ourselves and say that we don't have an opinion, whether it's positive or negative. But for me, some of the stuff that people have said has been — I legit could not imagine saying that to another human being.I have thick skin, but it's moments like that as a human being. Fuck drag, fuck anything else. This is my real life.
I'm so sorry that it happened to you. Drag is one of the most powerful art forms we have, and so thank you for being so generous with your art and your stories.
PHOENIX: Look, I am such a lover of drag and the art form. I say, all the time, I could stop doing drag today and go watch a drag show tomorrow. I will forever be a fan of drag and the power that drag possesses, and what drag has done for our history. I preach all the time: Know your history. If you look at the history of drag and what we have done for our community, I'm so proud to be a part of it.
Aja is a queen who always makes an impression. Whether it was giving epicly quotable sound bites, leaping from boxes, or serving up her unique blend of banje-harajuku realness on the runway, this New York queen is a force to be reckoned with.
While she’s already snatching focus in the first two episodes of the new RuPaul’s Drag RaceAll Stars season, it's been a moment that many fans — and Aja herself — once thought would never happen. Much was made of Aja saying in a 2018 interview with Them that she was no longer using the term “drag 1ueen” to describe herself. “I've been working on my burlesque and my live music, and I don't really have the drive to dance and flip flop and be doing dips and ‘Is she gonna jump from there?’ It's just not something I want to do. It's something that is part of me, but it's not something that I'm carrying into the future, so I’m kind of leaving the term behind,” she explained at the time. Many interpreted this as her leaving drag behind and, unsurprisingly, it led to the usual fan backlash.
After a period of reflection, and coming to terms with her trans identity, Aja has fully embraced the art form again, and is ready to share her renewed passion with the world — and clear up any false narratives along the way.
PRIDE caught up with Aja to chat about this journey. It includes how, as challenging as her life during stints between Drag Race seasons became, she emerged on the other end with a greater sense of purpose and joy. Plus, why all this means that, for the first time ever, we’re seeing the true Aja, unburdened, unleashed, and ready to get raw.
Santiago Felipe // Getty Images for Paramount+
PRIDE: Take me back to getting the call to come back for All Stars. Why was this the right time for you to say yes?
AJA: I was having a good day. I had just smoked a blunt. I was getting ready to go to Miyake-Mugler practice, and I got that phone call. Wait, let me rewind it a little bit. I'm going to tell you something, it’s going to sound absolutely crazy.
Right before [I got the call] I was going through some stuff in my life, everything was a little tumultuous. I was having my ups and downs, and I said, ‘You know what, I really need some change.’ I'm a spiritual person. I prayed on it, and literally nine days later, I got the call. In my culture, nine is a number that sort of represents change and transformation. So, I would be a fool to say no. I immediately said, yes — and then I panicked. I said, ‘What the fuck did I just get myself into?' I immediately started to crash out.
Nine, like season nine! You've been through a lot in your life since your original season, so how has this one felt different for you?
All Stars 10 was the first time in my drag career that I felt like it was okay for me to be a trans woman and do drag successfully and not feel ashamed about it.
Coming back and really, really, like, digging into it. Oh, baby. It made me fall in love with drag all over again, and now I feel like drag is like that ex-boyfriend that you know you want to keep away, but you can't. You can't help because it's so good.
Santiago Felipe
Did you have any concerns coming back? Were there things about the fandom or the competition itself that you were nervous about?
Honestly, I didn't really have any concerns. And I think you kind of see that through the episodes. You see me just having fun. I'm making jokes. I'm being extremely silly. I'm play-fighting with Irene. Drag is not that serious. It is serious, as in, we take the art form seriously, but drag allows us to kind of clown around a little bit and just enjoy and have fun. And I had so much fun allowing myself to do so.
Because child, let me tell you something, getting to that point was not easy, and quitting drag to navigate my trans identity came with a lot of pushback. I had people who no longer wanted to represent me or talk to me, and I lost a lot of friends. I lost a lot of supporters. Thousands and thousands of people unfollowed me on social media.
A lot of false narratives started coming around, and it just became like a punch line. It became a joke. It was like, 'Aja quit drag to be a rapper. Aja quit drag because she says that Drag Race is not good enough, or it was a lot of stuff that was just completely not true. Drag Race changed my life. When I went on it in season nine, I was in such a horrible situation before that, and it allowed me to not just blossom in life, but it created a bridge for me to be in a safe space, and I would never take that for granted.
So it was really hard for me to navigate that, because that, in turn, made people not want to hire me in any capacity as an artist, and I truly felt very unsupported. But at the same time, I was very grateful because I was able to keep a big portion of my fan base who was like, 'Baby, whether you are trans, a square, a circle, Hillary Duff, we don't care. We love you for who you are in every stage and capacity.' And I just feel so blessed and lucky, because not everybody has that.
Santiago Felipe // Getty Images for Paramount+
You’re in a unique position to understand the platform in a way that other people who have not been on the same journey as you can’t or don't. This is your chance to reintroduce yourself to the audience and really retake the narrative. What do you hope people come to understand about Aja 3.0?
I hope people understand that All Stars 10 is the most unfiltered you've ever seen me in my life because I was literally just having a good time. I feel like in past seasons, I did things like code switch, to kind of like straighten up a little bit and deliver a version of myself that I felt was a little bit more palatable. I know that sounds crazy because I definitely was known for saying some crazy shit. But truthfully speaking, there is just a weight that has been lifted off of my shoulders, and just being authentically myself inside and outside. The things people would say that were hurtful used to hurt me a lot more when I was insecure of myself. Now ... I don't really care that you don't like me, because I like me, and that's all I need.
Santiago Felipe // Getty Images for Paramount+
I do feel like you're freer and having more fun this season. You brought up how you were cutting it up with Irene but then by the end of Untucked, you were sharing a sisterly moment. Do you feel like having that banter makes you closer to your sisters, or do you want it to be Kumbaya backstage?
I feel like everybody should just be raw. I feel like everybody should just be honest about how they feel. If you're a kumbaya bitch, then you're a kumbaya bitch, and that's okay. There's nothing wrong with that. But if you're a rah-rah bitch then be a rah-rah bitch. It doesn't matter what Sally and Bob think at home. Girl, f*ck Sally and Bob. Be yourself. There's an audience for every type of personality on Drag Race, and people don't realize that yet. Listen, you got people like Mistress Isabelle Brooks out there. Well, Mistress is a little psychotic, but she's a poster board for villains, and people love her for that. So just be yourself.
Santiago Felipe // Getty Images for Paramount+
I love that! Well, in that case, let's leave things on a raw and real note. This season was filmed differently because you are all broken up into groups. Now that you're all together filming for the preseason, who in the cast is the most chaotic? And who do you vibe with the most?
Who is the most chaotic? [Dissolves into laughter] I can't even answer the question! [Laughs again] The most chaotic is definitely. Nicole Paige Brooks from Atlanta, Georgia. And you have to say the full name. If you don't say the full name, it is blasphemous. So yeah, Nicole Paige Brooks from Atlanta, Georgia is a fucking ki-ki. She is crazy. She is unhinged, and I wouldn't have her any other way. I feel like, honestly, she should win the season. She should have a million — 2 million followers. Somebody needs to give her $5 million, a house, a gold statue of her put up in the middle of Central Park. Girl, that woman deserves everything!
It's no surprise and it's also no secret that I love Lydia 'Backdoor' Kollins. That's what I call her. I know it's Butthole, but I call her Backdoor because I want to — and when I'm feeling really spicy, I call her Lydia Backyardigans De La Cruz. That's what she's feeling, a little spicy!
Despite her busy schedule, the fan-favorite queen has found time for a long distance relationship. While headlining in Sin City, the star met her now-boyfriend Tyrone during her free time on Grindr. Tyrone lives in Colombia and Chaney travels the majority of the year.
"It's the story of Cinderella... but gay! I had such a bad encounter on Grindr the night before. I had this guy over and it went so badly. It was crazy, so embarrassing. Then, I saw my now-boyfriend's profile pop up! I tapped him and it went from there," Chaney tells PRIDE.
Many people obviously think a meetup from Grindr just entails spicy sex, but Chaney and Tyrone's first encounter was actually very chill and relaxed.
"Honestly, I'd love to say it was rough and filthy and hot and steamy, but we just talked about Nicki Minaj for eight hours. We've been together since! I felt comfortable easing into it."
As RuPaul famously says, if you're not watching Untucked, you're only getting half the story. On season two of RuPaul's Drag Race Live Untucked, Chaney introduces Tyrone to the rest of the RuGirls. Check it out in the exclusive clip below!
"When Tyrone walks in and says 'Lawrence tapped me and then tapped me,' I'm going to have to explain to my mom that I put my tap shoes on! I can't explain that to my mother."
Chaney hopes her honesty about meeting Tyrone through a hookup app encourages more people to be more open about their sex lives with their partners.
"When I do my shows, I think it's really important to talk about sex. Sex right now is something we're being demonized for in the queer community. People try and make out that drag queens are perverse and horrible... and we are, but we're not anything out of the ordinary. Everyone has sex! I hate that there's this fearmongering around sex."
RuPaul's Drag Race Live Untucked is streaming now on WOW Presents Plus. To see the full interview with Lawrence Chaney, check out the video at the top of the page.
