The 13 Most Iconic ‘Drag Race’ Lip Syncs in All of Herstory
It’s summer, which means we’re in a bit of a Drag Race drought. But good news, squirrel friends: RuPaul has just confirmed both a fifth season of Rupaul’s Drag Race: All Stars, as well as a 12th season of Rupaul’s Drag Race. Just watch the video announcement here:
And while we have both Drag Race UK and Dragula Season 3 to look forward to in the coming months, we thought it was the perfect time to revisit some iconic moments from Drag Race past.
Here are 13 of our favorite Drag Race lip syncs in all of herstory:
13. Monet X Change and Dusty Ray Bottoms, “Pound the Alarm”
127. Dusty Ray Bottoms vs. Monét X Change – Pound The Alarm pic.twitter.com/Qg0mQkTaT0
— ً (@lgbtvelour) April 13, 2018
Monet X Change is most certainly a lip sync assassin. She not only knows how to dance (unlike her lip sync opponent in this instance), but every single word she says comes with attitude. On top of all that, we were also gifted with the hilarious death drop fake-out. Priceless.
12. Latrice Royale and Kenya Michaels, “You Make Me Feel”
This is one of the few Drag Race lip syncs where one performer barely moves on the stage but completely owns it nonetheless. Latrice lets emotion do all the work on this Aretha Franklin song. And nothing else is needed.
11. Chi Chi Devayne and Thorgy Thor, “And I Am Telling You”
Has a Drag Race lip sync ever left you with more goosebumps? Chi Chi breathes passion into every word of this Dreamgirls tune. And the icing on the cake: Chi Chi’s necklace of pearls breaking at a key moment in the song, adding another layer of theatricality.
10. Joslyn Fox and Laganja Estranja, “Stupid Girl”
Pink’s fiery song. Joslyn Fox’s surprisingly bitchy and fierce attitude. The double jump and split landing at the exact same time. Those are all the ingredients that form this unforgettable Drag Race lip sync.
9. Raven and Jujubee, “Dancing On My Own”
Feeling emotional yet? To determine who would join the Top 3 with Shannel and Chad Michaels, Jujubee and Raven — who competed for the entire competition together — had to fend for themselves on the aptly titled “Dancing On My Own.” Whether the moment was a little overplayed for the cameras isn’t really the point (after all, they are drag-queens, and exaggeration is the basis of the job). We still sob anytime we rewatch this one.
8. Manila Luzon and Delta Work, “MacArthur Park”
Alternating between wild grimaces and diva poses, Manila interprets the song with both humor and emotion in this unforgettable performance. One of the first legendary lipsyncs of Drag Race.
7. Yvie Oddly and Brooke Lynn Hytes, “Sorry Not Sorry”
By a happy coincidence (that must have delighted the producers of the show) two of the biggest fan favorites of Season 11 had a slip-up during Snatch Game that landed Yvie Oddly and Brooke Lynn Hytes in the bottom two. They found themselves having to passionately (and acrobatically) defend their place of the show. They give you everything you could possibly expect in a Drag Race lip sync. In the end, they are both saved, much to the chagrin of Silky Nutmeg Ganache. After the episode was broadcast, Tatianna tweeted that the lipsync might have surpassed Alyssa’s and her own “Shut Up and Drive,” which we’ll get to soon enough …
6. Ben Delacrème and Aja, “Anaconda”
As the very first lipsync of All Stars 3, tensions were high. Aja, a formidable dancer and rapper on their own merit, would have probably won if facing any other competitor. But BenDeLaCreme takes advantage of the song’s humor to show the world that she’d become a lip sync killer. Her comical interpretation of “Anaconda” literally makes RuPaul and Michelle howl with laughter — not always an easy feat.
5. Dida Ritz and The Princess, “This Will Be”
reminder that Dida Ritz's lip-sync to "This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)" is one of the greatest pic.twitter.com/cpQmoWbUVF
— Netflix Canada (@Netflix_CA) November 20, 2018
“Natalie Cole was sitting right in front of me. I have to do it for her. I do not want her to leave saying, ‘That drag queen did a horrible job with my song.’” Mission accomplished for Dida Ritz, whose energy and endless legs carried herself to victory. This lipsync was long considered the best of Drag Race.
4. Katya and Kennedy Davenport, “Roar”
Katya is without a doubt one of the best lip sync assassins of Drag Race — we probably could have placed any of her lip syncs on this list — and yet Kennedy Davenport manages to win this battle in Season 7, putting all her dance moves and energy into the performance. Violet Chachki’s howl at the end of the song says everything about what just happened.
3. Jinkx Monsoon and Detox, “Malambo n°1”
It’s probably this lipsync, along with her victory in the Snatch Game, that allowed Jinkx Monsoon to ultimately win Season 5. Up until then, Jinkx had been a solid candidate though sometimes a bit messy. Jinkx explodes on the stage, beating Detox, a queen famous for lipsyncs, with a funny performance on a rather obscure song.
2. Sasha Velour and Shea Coulée, “So Emotional”
In season 9 of Drag Race, RuPaul completely changed the format of the final episode. The remaining four queens would have to lip sync to determine the winner. What RuPaul may not have planned on was Sasha Velour forever changing the game. After a rose-tastic reveal and incredible performance of “So Emotional,” Sasha beat Shea, a fan-favorite of the season. Since then, many queens have attempted a reveal on this level, though none have succeeded.
1. Tatianna and Alyssa Edwards, “Shut Up and Drive”
It’s pretty much an agreed-upon fact among Drag Race fans that All Stars Season 2 is the very best season of the show: A dream cast including Alaska, Katya, Alyssa Edwards, Detox — to name a few — with cult moments galore and legendary lip syncs. This includes the iconic lip sync between Tatianna and Alyssa Edwards. Both in blonde, one in white and the other in black, with all their energy turned up to the max. Tatianna and Alyssa officially entered legendary status with this lip sync, and, of course, neither was eliminated.
