Drag Race PH alums to the queens of season 3: ‘This will be a roller coaster ride’

The third season of “Drag Race Philippines” has started, with fans watching the show plus the official after-show “Drag Race Philippines: Untucked” on Wow Presents Plus and HBO Go.

The season is off to an explosive start, with the queens bringing beauty, talent, energy, laughter, tears and a lot of drama in the first episode.

The competition features 11 new Filipino RuGirls for you to fall in love with: Asia’s Drag Singing Superstar Maxie who represented the Philippines in World of Wonder’s “Queen of the Universe”; her younger sister Angel, a transwoman drag queen from both O Bar and Rapture; John Fedellaga, who has taken her drag from O Bar to California to the internet where her viral videos live; J Quinn, a talented wig stylist from Caloocan whose drag is influenced by K-pop and anime; Khianna who is proud to represent Cagayan de Oro drag; Myx Chanel from Marikina who is also known to drag fans as the cofounder, coproducer,and cohost of the “Bekenemen” podcasts and viewing parties; Popstar Bench, the country’s “ultimate Sarah Geronimo impersonator,” with the moniker “Tala of Sangkabaklaan”; Tita Baby, your campy drag aunt who’s a self-described baby queen; fashion queen and hair stylist Versex; Yudipota from Bacolod who is both a virtual health-care assistant and a fearless drag queen; and Zymba Ding, drag daughter of Season 1’s Brigiding, who is determined to make her own mark in the drag scene.

Returning to the show are host Paolo Ballesteros—everyone’s Mama Pao—plus judges Jiggly Caliente and KaladKaren. Loved seeing Jon Santos in the first episode—he’s our favorite guest judge.

New set of girls

“Season 3 is a season that will be able to stand on its own. You can watch Season 3 of ‘Drag Race Philippines’ even if you did not see Season 1 and 2, and fall in love with a brand new set of girls,” Jiggly told Super at RuPaul’s Drag Con in Los Angeles.

She describes the new cast as “really, really amazing.”

The cast of Drag Race Philippines Season 3

There are 20 international editions of “Drag Race,” but it cannot be denied that the Philippine edition is one of the most popular ones. Was this a surprise to Jiggly?

“I expected it,” she said. “I wasn’t shocked that the fans fell in love with ‘Drag Race Philippines.’ I was surprised by the amount. I knew they were going to like it but I didn’t know that we were going to be one of the top franchises. And I say that proudly because our ratings don’t lie. The numbers do not lie.”

“Drag Race Philippines” is produced in the Philippines by Fullhouse Asia Production Studios, Inc. in conjunction with World of Wonder Productions, Inc.

Fenton Bailey, Randy Barbato, Tom Campbell and RuPaul Charles serve as executive producers on the series.

Before the season started, we asked some Season 1 and 2 queens about their early favorites and what advice they’d give to the queens of Season 3. Here’s what they said:

“Early favorites of course will be some of the queens that I know: Maxie, Myx Chanel, of course, Khianna from CDO, very very talented. Tita Baby, of course … I’m so excited for the Filipinos to embrace them … My advice is just be you. It’s gonna be tough, roller coaster siya and it’s gonna change your lives forever. Embrace it, live in the moment and just bask in the limelight.” —Eva Le Queen

“My favorite would be my CDO sister Khianna. My advice to them would be to savor this moment because minsanan lang ito mangyari and it would change your whole life.” —Hana Beshie

“Good luck, girls. This will be a roller coaster ride. You will not expect every turn, every twist … Galingan niyo, I’m so happy for you all. My early favorite is Versex, the fashion icon … I love her. And also Khianna.” —Matilduh

“Just be yourself. You are competing, but focus on yourself and don’t think about the other people’s strategy.” —M1ss Jade So

“Along with ‘Drag Race,’ along with fame comes the critiques from people, especially on social media. They need to prepare for that. I experienced that personally. Huwag sila ma-bother. Not all opinions matter.” —Captivating Katkat

“My early favorites are Khianna from CDO, Maxie, Tita Baby, John Fedellaga … People will come for you and be ready for that. A lot of unsolicited advice will be coming. Be strong. One thing that Jiggly said when my season was coming out is, ‘Everything you said during and after the show, panindigan mo siya. Whatever sound bite, you said it so panindigan mo siya.’” —ØV Cünt

“Huwag masyadong ma-raket, bigyan niyo kami. (Laughs) No, my advice is just be yourself and people will love you. And kung ayaw man ng ibang tao kung sino ka, it’s okay. My early favorite is Khianna. I fell in love with her the moment I first watched her.” —Arizona Brandy

“Welcome to the family, your life will change forever. This is the beginning of the rest of your life, I’m sure. I want you to enjoy every second of it. Mabilis lang ‘yan … Enjoy every single moment of it because not everyone gets this kind of blessing. Treasure it, love the fans who will love you kasi hindi rin lahat minamahal ng fans. When people offer you love, tanggapin ninyo ng buong-buo because that will be your fuel to keep on going. Good luck and dapat pakak. Early favorites? Popstar Bench is my best friend. I’ve been working with her for like 10 years now. I was there when she was starting, I was her Ate. Maxie is my drag daughter, Angel is my drag daughter and Zymba Ding is my drag niece. I won’t be biased because they are related to me … but when I saw Meet the Queens, girl, walang nagpalamang. Everyone is fabulous and iba ‘yung aura nila ngayon, walang pa-girl and walang pa-sweet.” —Precious Paula Nicole

“My early favorite is John Fedellaga who has been my sister since I started drag. 2008, 2009, magkasama na kami. Galingan ninyo, girls. Don’t f*ck it up.” —Bernie

Pam Pastor

Pam Pastor is a Lifestyle writer and section editor