John Fedellaga snatched our hearts
You know Mama Pao—”Drag Race Philippines” host Paolo Ballesteros—is about to make a difficult decision when she starts crying as the episode’s two bottom queens battle it out in a lip sync contest in one last attempt to save themselves from being eliminated.
That’s what happened in Episode 6 of the third season of the show, now streaming on Wow Presents Plus and HBO Go.
“We are so sad to let you go,” she told John Fedellaga, in one of the season’s most emotional eliminations yet.
Mama Pao said, “You have shown the world that beyond the social media influencer facade lies an incredible drag queen. Always remember that you are a star and keep on shining.”
John sobbed and said, “I would like to thank everyone, especially ‘Drag Race,’ because I was able to show the real me, the drag side of me … I was able to show the world and the universe that I’m a star.”
Her Season 3 sisters, who were also crying, surrounded her, engulfing her in a group hug. “I love you girls,” John said.
To Mama Pao, she said, making everyone laugh, “Sure ka d’yan?”
In “Untucked,” the “Drag Race Philippines” companion show, John said, “People keep saying that I’m just a filler queen … People always judged me for just doing content creation.”
John, originally from Cavite but now based in San Francisco, juggles life as a quality engineer technician for Tesla and as a social media queen with over a million followers on YouTube. She is known for her funny videos featuring men she meets and flirts with and pranks on the random cam chat platform Omegle, thus earning her the title Omegle Queen.
But John has also always been a drag queen—she was already performing at O Bar’s original location in Malate as early as 2008. That’s what Bernie, “Drag Race Philippines” Season 2 finalist and a drag queen through and through, told us. “She’s been my sister since I started. We were together in O Bar in Malate … 2008, 2009 pa lang magkasama na kami. We’ve always supported each other.”
In fact, that’s how we met John. A couple of weeks before Season 3 started streaming, we saw her at Bernie’s booth at “RuPaul’s DragCon LA,” looking gorgeous, welcoming Bernie’s fans and helping her sell her merch.
Bernie introduced John to everyone who dropped by her booth, saying with pride, “This is John, she’s a Season 3 queen, you need to watch her.”
No filler queen
When someone is called a filler queen, that means people believe they were added to the show to round up the cast, with no real expectations that they would make it far in the competition.
Anyone who has seen the show will know that John is definitely no filler queen. There have been lots of tears and laughter this season, and John brought plenty of both—from the revelation about her traumatic past to her unforgettable impersonation of Angel Locsin in Snatch Game. John gave us surprise after surprise each week, serving sweetness, sincerity, skills and style—and it soon became clear that she could go far, maybe even make it to the Top 4.
Until she didn’t. It was an elimination that upset many fans (we admit it—we cried) … and John. “I was heartbroken, I was hurt … I still wanted to fight and I still wanted to show more of what I have in each episode,” she told members of the media during an interview over Google Meet.
Still, she’s proud of everything she’s shown, as she should be.
We asked how she prepared for that fantastic performance as actress Angel Locsin. She stayed in character the entire time, volleying with the host, judges and the other contestants, capturing Angel Locsin’s mannerisms and embodying her different roles, acting out scenes from movies and TV shows like “One More Try,” “Mulawin” and “Lobo.”
John said, “I really searched for Angel. I’m a big fan of her, I always copy her nuances every time I mess around with my friends, especially when I used to be on Kumu.”
It’s no surprise that Snatch Game was her favorite challenge. “The moment I auditioned for Drag Race, I was always aiming for Snatch Game. I was always saying Snatch Game was going to be mine because of what I knew I would be able to show. It was amazing.”
But, she added, “I honestly think there’s more that I can show.”
She’s sad she missed out on the twinning challenge and the talent show. “I was excited for the twinning [challenge] and also for the talent [show]. I really prepared for it, I produced a song, called “I’m a Beki.” It’s a love letter to our community.”
She was able to perform it at the viewing parties—at Rampa, Bekenemen and Hoesik—after she was eliminated.
Finding sisters
During her elimination, John expressed gratitude for having found sisters in the show and for how safe she felt in the “Drag Race” space.
“They made me feel safe by not judging me for what I am. They made me feel safe, not only the girls but the whole production of ‘Drag Race Philippines.’ Maraming salamat … I was able to really show the person I am because they really made me feel like I belong.”
John has gotten close to her Season 3 sisters. “What you saw is real. We really try to uplift each other’s spirit when we’re getting exhausted.”
“The reason I joined ‘Drag Race’ is, I really want people to know that there’s more of me,” John said.
And people will be seeing more of her and her drag. “I always transition to different eras … Beauty influencer, content creator, my Omegle era … Now I’m in my drag era. I never stop discovering things. I’m also excited because I would like to produce more songs and music. I’m also going to have a ‘Drag Race’ journey documentary where all the preparations will be shown.”
One thing she learned from “Drag Race Philippines” journey? “I always have to fight for what I want.”
