Season 17 of RuPaul’s Drag Race is almost upon us, and fans are already falling in love with the new crop of 14 queens. That means gushing over their promo looks, getting to know them in their Meet the Queens videos, and — for two queens in the cast — discovering their connection to one of the world’s most famous drag artists: Chappell Roan.
During her Midwest Princess Tour, which ran from September 2023 to October 2024, Roan had local drag artists from each of her tour stops perform sets to open her shows. That included two of the contestants Drag Race fans will soon become familiar with, Suzie Toot and Lydia B. Kollins.
First, Toot joined Roan at her tour stop in Fort Lauderdale last October. She shared a picture of herself with Roan and fellow Florida drag queen Kat Wilderness to Instagram, writing in her caption, “many thanks again to @chappellroan and her entire team for being so wonderful and platforming queer artists (espEcially here in florida) y’all are doing amazing things and I’m very honored to have been a part of it ♥️💋”
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Next, Kollins was an opener for Roan’s show in Pittsburgh this April. “Thank you to the homies @chappellroan for treating us so well and making me feel like a superstar 💙⭐️🌙,” Kollins wrote in her own Instagram post in honor of the show.
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“What an incredible person to fall in love with for the first time,” Roan reminisced during a Q&A.
After the Season 17 cast was revealed on Wednesday, fans of both Roan and Drag Race quickly made the connection and were thrilled to see their interests intersect.
Some are even hoping the two will get a chance to show their love for Roan on the show in the form of a lip sync. Roan’s music has yet to be featured on Drag Race, but given her massive rise in popularity this year, it’s only a matter of time. Lydia versus Suzie to “HOT TO GO!” (ideally for the win, and not for their lives)? We’d like to see it.
Season 17 of Drag Race premieres on January 3 on MTV in the U.S. and on WOW Presents Plus worldwide. Check out the first look trailer for the season below.
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