If you caught the second season of RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under you’ll already know what a fierce drag artist Kween Kong is. If you didn’t, you’ll soon get to know the Pasifika New Zealander as part of the lineup of the first ever season of what promises to be the Olympics of drag, RuPaul’s Drag Race Global All Stars, with new episodes debuting Fridays on Paramount+. This new version of the Emmy-winning franchise sees 12 fan favorite queens from around the world representing their countries as they vie for the title of “Queen of the Mothertucking World” and a spot in the International Pavilion at the Drag Race Hall of Fame. Oh, and a grand prize of $200,000.
The queens competing alongside Kween Kong are, Alyssa Edwards (RuPaul’s Drag Race, RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars), Athena Likis (Drag Race Belgique), Eva Le Queen (Drag Race Philippines), Gala Varo (Drag Race México), Kitty Scott-Claus (RuPaul’s Drag Race UK), Miranda Lebrão (Drag Race Brasil), Nehellenia (Drag Race Italia), Pythia (Canada’s Drag Race), Soa de Muse (Drag Race France), Tessa Testicle (Drag Race Germany), and Vanity Vain (Drag Race Sverige).
Kween Kong, who is of Samoan and Tongan descent and describes herself as “from the neck up Beyoncé, from the neck down Jay-Z”, played rugby at school and went on to have an international career as a contemporary dancer before discovering her love for drag a decade ago. She was a finalist on Down Under and became the first drag performer to be nominated for a prestigious Logie Award (Australia’s Emmys) in 2023. With the first two episodes of Global All Stars now streaming on Paramount+, Kween Kong speaks exclusively with The Queer Review’s editor James Kleinmann about what she wanted to show RuPaul this time around, what it was like to lip-sync against Alyssa Edwards, and what inspired her new single, “Global Savage”, which she performed on the opening episode of the season.
James Kleinmann, The Queer Review: when did drag first come into your life and were you immediately smitten by it?
Kween Kong: “I come from the dance world, so I’ve always been a performer. I was a contemporary dancer for a decade before I’d even picked up my first pair of heels, which is why my tricks like the hurricane barrel roll are so scary-looking! This is now my tenth year of doing drag, so it’s still pretty young. I started out in Adelaide, South Australia where the scene is very small. At that time, we only had one queer venue and I did a Halloween variety show there in drag. I feel like lots of drag queens are born on Halloween!”
“Initially I was part of a drag duo act called Bell Moss. We called ourselves that because we thought we looked like Naomi Campbell and Kate Moss, but we actually looked more like their fathers! That’s when I caught the itch for drag. Even though I’d accumulated years of performing contemporary dance on main stages, doing drag was the first time I felt like I had really met myself. So that’s where it all started, a little dive bar in Adelaide. I think there were about five people in the audience that night, including the bar staff and the security guard, so it was a very humble beginning!”
I love the way you describe doing drag as meeting yourself for the first time. How did that feel?
“Mama Ru always says when you’re in drag you reveal yourself. I am not only a queer person, but also a person of color, I come from the Pacific, I’m Samoan Tongan, and I was raised in a family that was very religious. We were Jehovah’s Witnesses, those annoying motherfuckers that come knocking on your door at nine in the morning on a Saturday when you’re hungover going, ‘Do you have time to talk about Jesus Christ?’ It was so restrictive, so the idea of gender for me was very limited. I was always very much a boy’s boy, or at least I was raised that way anyway. I played rugby and had a very macho upbringing. Doing drag made me see myself in a different light, one that I’d always craved to experience. Seeing myself as Kween for the first time—and knowing that my strength has always been my femininity, my maternal nature—was such an out-of-body experience. I was going, ‘Oh, my God! Hey there, how you doing?’ Meeting Kween Kong made me feel whole.”
Did you have a drag mother to guide you as you were starting out?
“I came up through ballroom, so I had a lot of chosen family. In New Zealand, I was raised in the House of Iman. The New Zealand drag scene was trailblazed off the back of Maori and Pacific Island queens, trans women and queer men. My two mothers, before I even started drag, were Tess Tickle and Buckwheat, two big Polynesian goddesses. When you were in those queer venues you were safe because Buckwheat was bodybuilding at the time and was an almost seven foot Tongan man out of drag. He was definitely a big protector and you knew that you were safe under those mamas. So those two are my drag moms, Tess and Buckwheat.”
What is it like being a drag mother yourself now?
“I run my own house and I’ve got a bunch of kids. In my culture and my community, our base value as world indigenous people, as well as Pacific people, is reciprocity. We like to share and because I had always been the beneficiary of so many people who helped me realize my potential when I started doing drag, I wanted to use my platform and my space to assist people that were coming up. That’s always how I experienced things. I never did things on my own. I always had people pushing me, egging me on and reinforcing my value. So I just naturally assumed that position once I got to a level of success and created my own house.”
I live in New York and it’s always great to hear about the ballroom community in other countries.
“Ballroom is birthed out of necessity because to be queer and to be of color—especially in the times that the ballroom scene was created in Harlem—being the minority within the minority was very real. The brackets of us that are branched out in communities like New Zealand and Australia are descendants of that lifestyle and those legendary New York houses. Being a part of Drag Race it’s been so interesting to connect more with the international houses and understand the cultural significance of these pillars within the queer community and POC community. It makes me feel really privileged and it is an honor to be able to represent a group of people that have helped me to realize my success and my potential.”
The world first got to meet Kween Kong on the second season of Drag Race Down Under, how do you reflect back on that whole experience now?
“Drag Race Down Under was such an amazing experience because I never thought that I would ever get on Drag Race, although my name was one of the bigger names coming into the ring. Naturally, people had only ever seen me on stage or videos of me performing, they’d never experienced me as a person out of drag because I tend to keep to myself. I’m very much an introverted extrovert. On Drag Race Down Under, I think everyone saw a version of Kween that was really in her head and who struggled a lot with validating herself because I am so used to being around a community and a village who reinforce each other. Going through it, I definitely got a lot of tough love from RuPaul which has really helped me, not only in my career, but in my life in general. My life has become so fruitful since that experience. Seeing myself on TV and hearing some of the gems that Ru offered me, knowing that she was speaking from her own lived experience, unlocked so many doors for me. It put me on the path that I needed to be on to be successful and to be my own boss. I’m very thankful for what Drag Race has done for me in my life.”
What was your initial reaction when you got the call about being part of Global All Stars?
“When they told me about Global it was incredibly exciting and in my mind it made sense. This might sound arrogant, but I was waiting for the call and I knew it was coming. I’d been manifesting it, but I’d also been working my ass off since doing Down Under. I’d been working on myself as a person as well as on my drag. I said to myself, ‘My first experience on Drag Race was not the experience that I was expecting of myself, but when it does come around again, which it will, I’m going to make sure that I’m aligned and ready to walk into that space and shine’. That’s definitely what my focus was, but the biggest thing that I wanted to do was to have fun and to make RuPaul laugh because I didn’t really have that opportunity the first time because I was so in my head. So when I got that call I thought it made sense because I am the best of the best in Down Under and I’m going to show the world why I deserve to be in that space!”
On the first episode of Global All Stars we saw you perform your original song, Global Savage, for the talent show which RuPaul said was “fantastic” and I agree. What went into the creation of putting that track together?
“When it comes to doing a talent show there are so many things that we do as drag queens that are talents, like makeup and hair, so there are lots of things that we can focus on. I’ve always used my platform to be an example of the communities that I represent. When I was coming up with ideas of what I could do, the first thing that came to mind was this image of all these colonial pirates arriving on the Pacific sea shores and them being met by a big warrior queen called Kween Kong coming out from the bushes to absolutely bash the shit out of these colonizers! It was my opportunity to look at a point in time that it is very layered and very dark in our history, but also reflect upon that and the legend of what Kween Kong the superhero means to me and what she represents to the community. She represents all these strong, matriarchal, Pacific women that are warriors.”
“When we were writing the song, I had a village of people with me. That included Paul Mac, who is a legend in the music industry for us Down Under; my sister Jamaica Moana, an independent rap artist, who guided me through writing the lyrics; and my beautiful sister Prinnie Stevens, a singer in her own right, who came in and laid down all the background vocals for us. It was definitely a community going, ‘Okay, here’s an opportunity to showcase a little glimpse from the Pacific. How are we going to do this? We’re going to show them power; we’re going to show them grace; and we’re going to show them our language’.”
“There are lots of beautiful drag queens, but the thing that I really want to highlight and represent is our Pacific beauty, our women, our Island beauties. They are solid women with big, bushy hair. I really wanted to show their curves and their strength. That’s why I lifted that dancer up like he was a toothpick, because I’m strong and I know many Pacific Island women that could do that as well. There was a lot of thought and a lot of care put into all the details of that production and I was really appreciative that Ru could see that because so many other people were like, ‘That’s just a lip-sync track. This is basic.’ But I was like, ‘Darling, no it’s not. This is everything.'”
Having put so much thought into it, what was it like to perform Global Savage in front of RuPaul?
“The last time I was on Drag Race I put so much pressure and so many expectations on myself before walking into the Werk Room, but this time I did the opposite. I decided that I was going to prepare as much as I could and do the things that I know I can do, but the main thing that I wanted to do was to have a really good time. I wanted to show Ru how much she’s helped me grow, because she really has given me so many opportunities, as well as helped me personally with lots of the baggage that I’ve been carrying. So that was my chance to show her Kween Kong unapologetic, in full force, flat footed, big, curvy and fierce, because I am one of the fiercest bitches on that stage. It felt really right that I started the talent show and set that bar very high. It felt really good and Mama Ru was living.”
Alyssa Edwards is one of your Global All Stars competitors and sisters. What a brilliant opening episode to have the two of you lip-syncing. What was that like for you?
“Outside of competing next to each other, Alyssa Edwards is one of my favorite drag queens. I’ve always been such a huge fan of hers. She was pre-VH1, pre-MTV, pre-Paramount+, she was a Logo TV Drag Race queen, she’s one of the OGs. As a dancing diva myself, there have been so many things about her story that I followed and connected with over the years. Being able to now call her a sister and a friend is amazing. When I first met her in the Global Werk Room I had to stop myself from being a fan. I was literally like, ‘Don’t be a fan! Don’t be a fan!’ as I walked up to her and casually said, ‘Hey girl, are you ready for this?’ But in my mind I was freaking out because she’s such a legend! Being able to compete with her, but also lip-sync with her on that opening episode, I was living my best life. My inner-fangirl was doing an Alyssa meet and greet with her while I was also saying to myself, ‘Actually, she’s the dancing diva of Texas and I’m the dancing diva of Down Under, so let’s combine forces and set up this season to be the best ever!’ It was an honor.”
You two holding hands at the end of the lip-sync was a really beautiful moment.
“Oh, my God, yeah, I was beaming for days after that. After we finished that lip-sync I couldn’t believe that I had just performed with Alyssa Edwards. I’ve been watching her perform and dreaming of meeting her for years so it was such an out-of-body experience. My goodness, what a way to start the season!”
What did it mean to you to win the first episode and share it with Alyssa?
“I had no expectations, I just wanted to lead and let my work speak for itself. Being able to come up with a win right off the top and set the bar high, but also to do that with Alyssa Edwards nonetheless, was so special. We also won five grand each, and $5,000 US dollars is like a million dollars in Australia! So we’re starting off really good and I’m really excited.”
The Werk Room and Main Stage have both had a glow-up for Global All Stars. What was it like to be on that set?
“Oh my goodness, yes they have had a glow-up! Me and Spankie Jackzon are both big bitches and that Down Under Werk Room was tiny. Anyone who has seen Down Under will know that we only have about three cameras and two lights on the Main Stage, so when I first walked onto the Global Main Stage I was gagged. Then when we walked into the Werk Room it took me about 20 minutes to process being there. I was like, ‘This feels like Drag Race, but this is ridiculous!’ Even Alyssa said that it was way bigger than the US studio. Those doors that Ru comes through into the Werk Room are amazing. They really invested in the production and went above and beyond to make sure that this was the biggest season of Drag Race yet.”
There are 12 queens from 12 countries competing on Global All Stars, did you find that there was an international language of drag that you were all able to bond over?
“With what’s happening politically across the world when it comes to drag, the thing that we all know and that unites us as a sisterhood is how important drag is for our communities. We are the unsung heroes within our communities, the flag bearers, we are the leaders in so many outlets and what we represent in our own ways has activism at the forefront. Advocacy is at the forefront of everything we do, but above and beyond that we want to make sure we inject love, joy, happiness and fun into our communities. We all know that this world is really dark and there is lots of bullshit that happens, so the least we can do is entertain and put smiles on people’s faces. What we mean to our communities is the thing that unites us. Our languages are different, our cultural references are different, but you could see why we were all there and we have a lot of respect for each other because of that.”
One last question for you, what’s your favorite piece of LGBTQ+ culture, or a person who identifies as LGBTQ+; someone or something that’s had an impact on you and resonated with you over the years?
“RuPaul is always going to be my number one icon and the blueprint for me. Being able to work with her twice now has been incredible. She’s so generous and I’m so grateful to have had lots of one-on-one time with this icon. Doing Global, I felt like I was at a family reunion and we were at a cookout together because there were so many bits and pieces she was giving us all off camera. Being able to show her how much she’s done for us and actually be able to say to her, ‘Thank you so much for changing my life’, was epic. I know that she’s done that for a lot of people across the world. There are 15 franchises now, that’s how many countries have Drag Race, which means that all these communities that might not have had representation or versions of themselves reflected on mainstream media are now seeing celebrities that are queer, drag, unapologetic icons. It’s been such a movement that has not only been life-changing for me personally, but it’s had a huge impact on our community at large around the world. So it’s RuPaul all the way for me”
By James Kleinmann
The first two episodes of RuPaul’s Drag Race Global All Stars are now streaming on Paramount+. New episodes debut Fridays on Paramount+. Follow Kween Kong on Instagram, X, and Facebook. Kween Kong’s new single, Global Savage, is available on all streaming platforms now.
In celebration of the new series, MTV, home of the flagship RuPaul’s Drag Race series, and World of Wonder have partnered with All Out – an international organization that fights for LGBTQ+ rights around the world – making a $100,000 donation to start the new fund. To find out more and make a donation, look for the “Drag Saves the World” QR code at the end of every episode, or head to the official website.
