Alaska is Still Setting the Town on Fire

Alaska set screens on fire when she first entered the Werk Room on the fifth season of RuPaul’s Drag Race. Tall, lean, and full of spitfire, it was clear she was going to become a major part of Dragstory. Ending up placing as runner-up for her debut season and the winner of the 2nd season of All Stars, she has created an empire beyond the Drag Race runway that has cultivated into studio albums, tours, music videos, podcasts, a comedy special, web series, a fragrance, a memoir, a stage musical, and her most recent hit single, “Sweatpants.” When does she sleep?

Alaska hails from the town of Eerie, Pennsylvania.

What did you learn about life from growing up in Erie that you still subscribe to this day?

There’s a working-class sort of sense of humor in Erie and my whole family is very funny.  I didn’t really realize this– I was just used to being around funny people who used swear words a lot. 

Alaska would go on to study theatre at the University of Pittsburgh, moving to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career. Becoming disenchanted with finding work as an actor, he developed Alaska and became entrenched in the club scene in West Hollywood.

How was it settling into LA, what did you love the most, what was the hardest to get used to?

I liked the weather, and I liked riding my bike. And I like the fact that you can find nature or culture or fashion if you go looking for it.  But LA is still hard. It’s a working town, and everyone is working all the time. Quite frankly I enjoy doing nothing whenever possible. But you can do that in LA too.

Regarding your early acting career in Los Angeles, what were some of your early auditions like? Any horror stories?

I arranged to take professional headshots with my friend who had a camera. It was like an existential crisis. I was like, “Who is going to hire this skinny weird kid in ill-fitting vintage clothes and a lip piercing and emo hair?”  I never ended up using the headshots.  

When did it click that drag was where your passion was, and that’s what you wanted to do?

I had no discipline or talent for going on auditions or submitting headshots or any of the things it takes to be an actual actor. So, I did Drag because it was fun and I didn’t know what I was doing with my life, so I needed to do something to not lose my mind.  Then I got a job the first night I went out in Drag. I kept doing it because it’s how I found my community and where I belonged. 

Favorite part about doing drag?

The show.

Least favorite part about doing drag?

Waiting for the show to start.  

After auditioning for every year for Drag Race, she was finally cast for the show’s fifth season. After placing runner-up with Roxxxy Andrews, Alaska wasted no time in keeping the spotlight on his drag, and his career began to explode as he jumped into numerous projects in a diverse group of mediums.

What did you learn most about yourself getting through Drag Race?

Drag Race is like therapy and it’s very personal. They were trying to teach me that I need to stand alone and separate myself from the strong personalities I like to be around, like RoLaskaTox (BFFs Roxxxy Andrews, Alaska, and Detox). On Drag Race you have to strive to be “the best” or “the only one,” or the show doesn’t work. But I love my friends and I’ll never send Roxxxy home. And I’ve learned in time that it’s actually more fun being one of the Supremes than Diana Ross all the time. 

You have developed a whole empire outside of the Drag Race world. To what do you attribute your success outside of the show?

I don’t get it twisted. My life would be quite different if it weren’t for Drag Race.  And I’m grateful for that every day and the doors they’ve opened. But I would still be doing what I’m doing now if I never got on Drag Race. I just wouldn’t get paid as much.  

Craziest drag story?

Whenever someone gets my autograph tattooed on them.

Your strangest hobby or talent outside of drag?

I have hummingbirds.  

What celebrity most needs a drag makeover?

They’re pretty much all in Drag.  

Looking at Alaska’s vast resume, it is no wonder she has released a single titled “Sweatpants.” No, it isn’t about hung guys in gray sweatpants, it is about staying home and chilling in your sweatpants. No wonder, seeing how busy she keeps all the time. It is an emo pop ode to staying home.

Are we really supposed to believe that you just want to stay home and that you actually own sweatpants? What made you create this song?

Working all the time and scheduling every hour of every day down to the minute isn’t healthy or sustainable. I believe it is our God-given birthright to sit on our ass and do nothing. So, this song is a battle cry against unchecked rampant capitalism.  And yes, I have multiple pairs of sweatpants and I wear them whenever I can.

What is your after-drag ritual?

Taking a bath.

What’s your favorite pickup line?

Hello.

This last year, one of her creations, DRAG: The Musical enjoyed a critically and audience-acclaimed residency at The Bourbon Room in the heart of Hollywood. GED was there for opening night, and it was a veritable who’s who of entertainment. Alaska serves as a cowriter for the project and starred.

What is the message of the show, what do you want audiences to get most from seeing it?

DRAG is the story of two rival drag houses that hate one another and have always hated one another. But when they find themselves in trouble, they realize they have more in common than they thought. It’s about finding your chosen family and finding who you are through the expressive art form of Drag.  The show is very funny and will make you laugh, but hopefully you’ll also cry too.

We see drag queens really making a name for themselves in musical theatre. I saw you in DRAG: The Musical twice. Do you have your eye on Broadway? What role would get you on the Broadway stage?

There aren’t a lot of roles that I’m suitable for on Broadway. That’s part of the reason we wrote the musical.  So, I’d like to play Kitty Galloway from DRAG: The Musical on Broadway someday.

Rumor has it, the show is coming to NYC next! What can we expect from this iteration?

Each time we’ve put the show onstage it has evolved and gotten better. And this time it’s like an evolution on steroids. The set and stage will be improved, but the show and the music are also continuing to evolve. 

Favorite hotspot?

Precinct, DTLA.

Favorite non-profit?

The LGBT Center of Los Angeles.

Favorite cocktail?

White wine.

Under the witty and biting clapbacks, under the makeup and devastatingly gorgeous gowns, is a true artist who not only understands the audience side of Drag, but also the business side of it as well. He is an artist of many talents and has worked the industry to his favor becoming one of drag’s biggest current stars.

Alaska’s message to the LGBTQ community this Pride season?

Our community is very powerful. We are the tastemakers of the world and when we speak, the world listens. We must use our voices to speak out against political corruption, injustice, and genocide. Because if we work together, we can make the world a better place.

Alaska next appears in PTown August 21 & 22 at The Art House.

Follow everything Alaska at alaskathunderfuck.com