DeJa Skye didn’t come to Drag Race All Stars 10 to join the Hall of Fame – she came to serve virality. (And she delivered.)
In 2022, the Daytona Wind star sashayed into the season 14 werkroom, where she memorably became the winner (and only queen in the cast to earn positive critiques) of the Snatch Game, delivering an iconic impersonation of Lil Jon (yay-uh!).
DeJa also touched the hearts of millions of viewers with the shocking revelation that she was “born at a very young age” (so brave).
Earlier this month, DeJa made her return to the franchise on All Stars 10, competing in the first ‘bracket’ alongside Aja, Bosco, Irene the Alien, Olivia Lux and Phoenix.
Although she played an impressive game by accumulating four points, and almost snatched a challenge win with her ludicrous performance of Chardonnay Harrington in the improv, it wasn’t enough for DeJa to advance to the semi-finals. She was ultimately chopped in episode three alongside Olivia and Phoenix.
“I’m very happy with what I showed, minus the international turmoil!” DeJa tells GAY TIMES, referencing the unnecessary self-doubt she felt over her performance as Chardonnay in Murder of the Dance Floor, which went on to receive overwhelming praise from the judges.
“I don’t know what it is about me, but my goal was never to win. It was the same thing with season 14. My goal [on All Stars 10] was to show a transformation and make memeable moments that the fans could kind of latch on. I just wanted to make myself proud and show a metamorphosis, if you will, and I think I achieved that.”
In the second episode, a minor bicker occurred between Bosco and Olivia after the former jokingly insinuated that Olivia’s performance wasn’t top two-worthy. DeJa, an unapologetic “nosey neighbour”, attempted to get closer to the drama by hairspraying the wigless head of a mannequin, eliciting an uproarious response from Aja.
The definition of camp, the small moment had the same effect on social media as it did Aja, going viral. “I don’t even remember doing that,” DeJa laughs. “As soon as the fight happened, you saw Phoenix and I backing away. I hate drama, but I love watching it from afar.
“I saw a can of hairspray and was like, ‘I’m just going to mind my business…’ And then Aja stepping in when she did, it was the cherry on top. So, I definitely that’s my memeable moment.”
While DeJa isn’t one of the three queens from bracket one who will be moving on, she has nothing but praise for the new format of All Stars 10 and its points system.
“It makes a lot more sense, that way you can keep the girls on [for at least three episodes],” she says. “I love that you can kind of throw anything to the wall and hope it sticks, as opposed to being so cerebral and overthinking things. So, the points system works in my mind.”
However, DeJa notes that some queens don’t find their footing in the competition until past week three, “so going in, you really have to hit it on the head the first time around.” She also highlights that a queen having a bad day, resulting in a less than stellar performance in the challenge, “doesn’t dictate you as a bad artist”.
“It’s just that we were in a cast of heavy-hitters, people that shocked us,” DeJa explains. “Like Irene, a huge personality and amazing human. Aja, and then Bosco, who just murders every challenge. So, I’m just glad that we didn’t get lost in the fray.”
DeJa adds: “Having six queens instead of 18 really helped us.”
RuPaul assured viewers that “all is not lost” for the queens sent packin’ in the first round of All Stars 10. After crowning Aja, Bosco, and Irene as the winners of the first bracket, the ‘Blame It On The Edit’ singer unveiled a surprise twist: the eliminated queens aren’t out of the running just yet.
Before the grand finale, each regular judge will select one queen to enter a wildcard lottery. From there, one lucky All Star will be randomly chosen to compete in the final lip-sync smackdown for the crown and a shot at $200,000.
Next week, the spotlight shifts to the second bracket, where six more queens – Jorgeous, Kerri Colby, Lydia B. Kollins, Mistress Isabelle Brooks, Nicole Paige Brooks and Tina Burner – will face off for a coveted spot in the semi-final.
Catch a new episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 10 every Friday on WOW Presents Plus in the UK.
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