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RuPaul Reveals Why He Didn't Wear Drag at the Met Gala
"People don't really understand camp, it's abstract to most people."
We're still gagging over some of the incredible looks from this year's Camp-themed Met Gala. Janelle Monae, Lupita N'Yongo, Ezra Miller, and Billy Porter were a few celsb that understood the assignment and awed us with some of the campiest looks we've ever seen. But when it was announced that RuPaul would attend his very first Met, fans gleefully anticipated the supermodel of the world's strut onto the red carpet—and since the theme is camp—presumably in drag.
But many people where left underwhelmed by RuPaul's debut appearance in...a suit. A beautiful campy suit! But a suit nonetheless.
\u201cI stayed up scrolling this damn feed just to find out RuPaul didn\u2019t even show up IN DRAG?! #MetGala\u201d— Myiesha Jeffries (@Myiesha Jeffries) 1557188097
\u201cViolet, at the Met Gala you have not... \u2018met\u2019 our expectations. Aquaria, tonight your dress had us feeling... torn. \nRupaul, your lack of high drag left you looking... lackluster.\nI\u2019m sorry my dears but all three of you are up for elimination.\u201d— \u0394NT\u03a3K (@\u0394NT\u03a3K) 1557189416
With his guest appearance on last night's Late Show with Stephen Colbert, RuPaul broke down exactly why he wore that suit.
"I didn't want to go in drag because I thought it was gonna be a sea of drag queens. I really did," he explained. "I thought all the guys were gonna be dressed up like Divine from the John Waters films. Not one person was dressed up as Divine."
He went on to very subtly drag everyone who didn't quite nail the theme (and all those men who just wore black suits). "People don't really understand camp, it's abstract to most people."
RuPaul and Colbert go on to say exactly what camp is ("You have to be able to see the absurdity of life outside of yourself"), chat about the political act that is drag, and critiquing others who walked on the red carpet.
Watch the clip below.
Taylor Henderson is a PRIDE.com contributor. This proud Texas Bama studied Media Production/Studies and Sociology at The University of Texas at Austin, where he developed his passions for pop culture, writing, and videography. He's absolutely obsessed with Beyoncé, mangoes, and cheesy YA novels that allow him to vicariously experience the teen years he spent in the closet. He's also writing one!
Taylor Henderson is a PRIDE.com contributor. This proud Texas Bama studied Media Production/Studies and Sociology at The University of Texas at Austin, where he developed his passions for pop culture, writing, and videography. He's absolutely obsessed with Beyoncé, mangoes, and cheesy YA novels that allow him to vicariously experience the teen years he spent in the closet. He's also writing one!
