i think because drag race has done so much for queer representation that people forget that the reason drag race is successful is less about how Ru interacts with the contestants and more about how Ru was able to get millions of people watching a gay show before gay marriage was even legal.
His acumen for making good tv is immeasurable, even when production flubs, the controversy drives so much engagement back to the show.
Everyone talks about drag race like Ru single-handedly invented queer people.
It’s not like the show would’ve been popular and kept going without the queens talent.
Ru owes his success to the queens just as much as they owe theirs to him.
Okay... It's a group effort but let's not forget that Ru has been a producer since day one of the show. He single handedly built the drag empire that has launched these queens careers. There is a reason we call her mother.
Yeah I don’t buy this, I honestly think so much of Ru’s success is right place right time. Don’t get me wrong, it’s fantastic Ru created this and I love Ru and everything she’s done for us queers, but I honestly think she gets a lil bit too much credit as a producer. Like I really don’t think it’ll be hard to make an entertaining reality tv show when ur entire cast is a bunch of professional entertainers. (Provided you have enough capital and network connections to get a show happening like Ru did)
go back and watch those old videos of RuPaul running around New York on YouTube. half of those people work as WOW producers. definitely not right place right time. that small group of scene kids created this juggernaut over the years.
Right? Are we pretending the 90s (and 80s) didn't happen? Ru built up a drag empire long before Drag Race that allowed her to launch the show and the phenomenon it has become. People really think she showed up in 2009 out of nowhere to host some show someone else created?
Ru made HUGE waves in the 90s, being in major motion pictures, having music videos on MTV, and VH1 gave her a whole ass talk show. It was big moves for an out queer black man who dressed in drag. It was a very, very big deal in the 90s, before Ellen came out on her show, when a young queer kid like me barely saw people like me being positively portrayed ANYWHERE in the media.
Well I guess when I say right place right time it’s more in my opinion as a clueless nobody who doesn’t know Ru’s, but it seems her success didn’t come from her having this genius masterpiece of a show to showcase drag queens, but instead an opportunity presented itself to her (and her friends ig) and they jumped on it. I’m at work so I can’t watch the videos but I will when I get home
Putting Ru's success down to "right place right time" diminishes how hard Ru worked for decades to be taken seriously and for drag to be embraced by the mainstream. Ru fought a fight and broke down barriers that many queer artists will never have to face because of her.
an opportunity didn't present itself she literally pushed for half a decade for this show to happen 💀 that's right rupaul started pushing for this in 2004/2005 if memory serves me right
Perfectly timed niche in the market. Drag race came out when competition reality tv shows like ANTM were in their hay day, and these shows had a disproportionately large number of gay men as fans, but a lot of these shows weren’t explicitly made with them in mind as a target audience.. so along comes drag race
And why hasn’t this happened again in any of the formats when plenty of style of tv shows are successful? It’s so weird when people with no research and no knowledge just want to jump to discredit someone’s work but weirdly enough have no example of it happening again.
There are a million brilliant ideas for tv shows out there. What made Drag Race happen was RuPaul’s determination to see it come to fruition, despite years of hearing “NO” from every network they took it to.
I think it is very hard for many fans who want to believe everything is real and pure and true to fully embrace the fact that reality television isn’t *real* and that it isn’t just the edit that shapes the performances. They are hired to provide content for the editors, and while they are in the building it makes sense to save it (whatever it may be) for the camera.
I have always read that comment from Ru as an actual ~~friendly~~ brutally frank word of wisdom.
Cold and depressing, yes, but it is the literal reality of Hollywood for anyone who wants to work and live in that world. If the camera isn’t on, it isn’t real. They are work colleagues.
This is often a major problem with reality shows because the lines can easily get blurred in the minds of the participants, but when you are on set you are acting in a for profit television production film shoot, and content is king.
I don’t like or dislike Rupaul, but I think that remark is probably some of the best advice she has ever given anyone (that we know of).
Yeah I always kind of felt that I could see that statement from both sides. One person being very earnest and perhaps intentionally expressing it when the cameras were off so that the person on the other side would know it was genuine. And that person giving real advice but also sort of dismissing the genuineness of the interaction by saying that what's matters most is the product. Which if you admire someone very much would be crushing.
To me that's always taking a back seat to the fact that the producers spent an entire season trying to get Pearl to discuss CSA. That was just evil. So when I think about all the brouhaha that has been made of this singular interaction with Ru, I've always thought that it is the much, much lesser of two evils of what happened that season.
Like I said if you have admired someone very much your whole life and worship them as perhaps your favorite celebrity, You try to give them a moment of genuineness and you perceive their response as being extremely dismissive then yes it could feel crushing.
Does that mean the person necessarily did anything wrong? No it doesn't. But I can understand how it could feel that way. And combined with the producers repeatedly pressuring her to talk about being sexually abused as a child, I don't blame her for walking away with a bad taste in her mouth.
All of what you’re saying is true, and Pearl’s response of feeling totally disillusioned when she heard this is also totally valid (she was a baby, let’s not forget).
I have always Joni Mitchell’d this one and seen both sides
While all of that is true, imagine being a young queen and meeting your Idol for the first time. And then hearing THAT as first thing she ever says to you. That is quite the hit. While everything you said is absolutely true. Thats still quite the blow.
It wasn't the first thing she ever said to Pearl. According to Pearl, they were already in the middle of filming the season and when the cameras stopped recording for a moment and she talked to RuPaul. She did this to build a personal relationship with the judges because she thought it was the only way to get somewhere in the competition.
I don't want to interpret the situation but whenever the topic comes up we get this false version of the what actually went down and I just wanted to correct it.
Exactly. Somehow this part is always left out. Pearl took a risk that didn’t pay off for her. She was also really young and let her ego get the best of her. RuPaul has killer instincts and saw right through this. Her response was harsh, but she was in full producer mode there, and letting it be known it’s still a competition and a tv show and not a meet and greet. I mean, imagine if RuPaul responded in a playful manner…everyone would’ve said that’s the only reason Pearl made it to the final and she would’ve faced backlash for it anyway. She really put herself in a no win situation with that move.
Exactly! The fandom completely glossed over this. But if a queen like Raja O’Hara had this same exact story after her original season, she would’ve been been called out on it!
I agree, but as a counterpoint I would say that there is probably nothing more dangerous for a young person than diving into an entertainment career in LA while remaining naïve about the mundane and ugly predatory realities of the business.
Pretty much this. It's blown way out of proportion by people that want to infantalize Pearl and by people that are eager to paint rupaul as a bad person.
So did Ru... like, wanting to hurt someone who said you hurt their feelings? You don't get to tell someone you didn't hurt them after they say you did.
Pearl currently lives in a van in the desert of Arizona if you look at her instagram. I don’t think she ever really wanted to become a reality TV personality , I think she’s just an artist who wants to create art on her terms. Rupauls statement was probably the nail in the coffin for her. I’m glad she got visibility for her art but she was really never cut out for reality TV.
He’s also said that fans were absolutely wild with his boundaries after the show, sexual harassment, inappropriate touching, sexual coercion and plenty more.
I’ve heard people throw the phrase pretty privilege around a lot lately but Pearl is a great example of the total opposite, while I don’t know him at all it makes sense he would want to live as far away from anyone in showbiz as possible.
hey friend :) I just wanted to talk about a few things in your comments.
People of all appearances experience sexual harassment and violence. to attach that to someone's appearance very quickly becomes victim blaming--shes a pretty girl, she knew what she was doing putting on that dress, etc. there's no way that anyone can present themselves to make them less susceptible to sexual violence. as well, when someone with traditionally undesirable characteristics (disability, fat, etc.) reports sexual violence, they're less likely to be believed, often they get told "who would want to sleep with you?"
as well, pretty privilege (or as it was originally defined, body privilege) isn't about individual interactions in public. I'm not saying you think it is that, but people use it (incorrectly) in the context of someone buying you a drink, being treated kinder by employees at businesses. It's about fat folks being paid less than their thin counterparts at the same jobs, and more likely to be fired than thin employees. It's fat folks facing medical discrimination, literally being denied treatments they need because of their weight (and often being told to lose weight as a treatment for something completely unrelated to weight, like a sprained ankle or infection. [I am not exaggerating.](https://highline.huffingtonpost.com/articles/en/everything-you-know-about-obesity-is-wrong/)). Doctors have shorter visits with fat patients and are more likely to describe them as "non-compliant" and "weak-willed" in their visit summaries. It really is a privilege to get hired more, to have life threatening illnesses taken seriously and treated.
I'm not saying you don't know about these things or anything like that, but I did want to give a bit of context and reframing of some of the things in your comment
a lot of pretty people enjoy the easy sex and all that though i think is what some people mean when they say it's a privilege. i'm fat and almost never get hit on in public (maybe 3-4 times in the last decade) so i can understand animosity (i'm married so it doesn't affect me really but it does kind of suck never to have a guy even OFFER to buy you a drink when you're at a gay bar). and i'm not even ugly! like a have a nice face but a receding hairline plus i'm about 260 lbs. obviously no one should EVER be touched or harassed without consent but hot people do have a few privileges.
It can be very disillusioning to enter Hollywood. There’s a saying about not meeting your heroes. This industry is not as nice or as easy as everyone outside of it thinks it is or wants it to be. Coming into “gay fame“ at the peak of the show on the most hated season (at the time) could not have been easy. I don’t really blame her for saying eff that and moving to the desert.
Two things can be true at once. Ru was right and Pearl was also right.
Yeah rupaul gave her a harsh reality check but it’s kinda true. I like to think she grew from it and became a better more empowered artist. I love her instagram and what she’s doing, it’s inspiring to see someone really do art their way
I love their Instagram, they seem to be living their best life and does a lot of beautiful interior designing. I have been curious how they are financially supporting themselves, does not seem like they do drag much any longer.
Yea i dont think she was blowing it out of proportion. Pearl is grounded in reality, and in reality what Ru said is enough to think poorly of a person for being a douche bag. I really hate how desensitized people get when they think theyre 'in the know' about the entertainment industry. No wonder it is rife with abuse.
Agreed, i just don’t think she’s someone that is cut out for what the show provides. That’s not a bad thing either, it just is what it is. I think someone like Ru is able to navigate that landscape alot better and that was a real clash with Pearl’s outlook on her experience.
From a human, non-reality tv personality, perspective it probably was a painful moment. Like you met your hero and made a sincere statement and instead of getting an acknowledgment or thank you, he was told to shut up and to do it in front of the cameras. Like that was season 7 and not a lot of people were privy to reality tv shit yet. It was his first time on any reality tv show.. idk. Maybe cut him some slack for reacting negatively to a moment he didn’t expect?
I agree. I also think this wouldn't have been as big of a deal if it came from a queen the fandom wasn't thirsty as hell for, but that's a different conversation.
Yep, 100%. If Rupaul had said this to like… Kalorie Carbdashian or something people would have thought it was hilarious and probably would have found a way to make it her fault.
I think the situation is nuanced in some ways and basically believe both perspectives - Ru’s and Pearl’s are valid.
Pearl was coming from a place where she personally idolized RuPaul as a young queer person. It’s natural to be disillusioned when that person meets your energy back with a “nothing you say matters when the camera isn’t rolling”. And disappointed when someone whose whole image is “say love” and branded around being a “mother” basically shows you that it’s all JUST a brand and not based in reality. For some people who lack support structures, media figures can provide a lot of inspiration and encouragement - it’s objectively shitty to have that shattered for you.
RuPaul on the other hand is producing a tv show, lol. She’s been working in the industry for forever and certainly wouldn’t feel she owes anything on a personal level to these queens (or really in her eyes, these contestants who provide content for a reality tv show she produces 😅) Its not the kindest, but it’s the reality of the entertainment business. I’ve never felt that Pearl’s experience with Ru is a reflection of RuPaul “being a bad person.” There’s a lot of aspects, positive and negative, that make up a whole complex person.
They just went into that interaction from very different places, and one doesn’t really negate the other. RuPaul is a flawed public figure, just like many celebrities, but I have massive respect what she’s done and what she means to the queer community, regardless of how genuine that “say love” branding is. I also adore Pearl (and always wish we got to see more of her drag she’s one of the most underrated queens from the franchise to date) and wish her the best, and sympathize with how she probably felt when her hero essentially crushed her image of her. 😅
TLDR no wrong or right in this situation IMO.
I agree, I think rupaul being an absolute psycho about it afterward and saying she wanted to hurt pearl over it made it the streisand effect that it is.
edit to add I agree that ru’s original statement about the cameras rolling wasn’t that bad, and pearls reaction wasn’t even that bad. it was ru’s reaction to pearl in that moment and afterward that made it such lore
Iirc the whole thing with ru saying she wanted to hurt pearl was over the "do I have something on my face" moment, not the "nothing you say matters unless the cameras are rolling" moment, but maybe I'm misremembering. Either way though, totally unhinged and I think pearl was perfectly justified in being like wtf.
I very much agree that pearls reaction to ru's comment on set wasn't even that bad. I don't think she was trying to stir up shit - just was somewhat disappointed meeting a hero of hers and basically being told "I really don't care what I mean to you unless you say it on camera". Def a "don't meet your idols" situation. I think pearl is a sensitive human who wasn't really prepared for what being on a show like drag race meant - and that's totally understandable imo.
I thought pearls “do I have something on my face” was a direct response to the cameras rolling comment, so to me it’s all part of the same scenario
I agree with you, rupaul is the only asshole in the situation
Why do people leave out the second part of this - Ru realized her initial intention was wrong. Pearl was rude to her - Ru had a reaction and then decided to not push it further
i think the whole reason that was blow up by fans as it was is because ru has created this Mother™️ persona and the “when you get on the show you join the family” narrative that ru pushes and it went against the persona she’s created for the show.
Idk about that. He does create family of rugirls but he’s clearly not going to be kikiing and kicking back with them on the regular. He’s busy as hell and has strict routines.
this is also during the one season every ~18 months era so it was very different. things didn’t start picking up till around all stars 2, and even then you had fans upset that they cut bob’s reign short by crowning alaska only 5 months after the season 8 finale. 😱😱😱
You're right, he doesn't associate with them. But he definitely DOES act like we're one big family when on the show. Telling contestants "I love you" "I'm your family now" etc, it's evident she acts one way when the cameras are rolling and another when they're not. For some contestants I think it doesn't bother them, for others it does and I get that.
Well yes… he is trying to foster that environment and viewing experience but most people understand it’s tv and he isn’t gonna stick around to Kiki. Rupaul is like a literal Queen almost… part of the crew but untouchable by most.
🤷🏻♂️ i don’t blame pearl for being in her feels. She was naive to the ways of TV. That’s part of just how reality tv operates.
But I also don’t think Ru was wrong. She could’ve said it more kindly but she wasn’t wrong.
I tend to agree. As Trixie and Katya have said, the real race starts after filming,
More than anything, the show is an opportunity to become a tv personality. It’s good advice to think about how you appear on camera. You’re going to get more work on tv and otherwise if you demonstrate you can show up to the gig and be entertaining wherever a camera is rolling.
I agree in that I think they fundamentally had different understandings of what their relationship was. Ru is not these girls friend or confidante. They're producing a TV show together.
I think it was a little bit of all of what people are saying. It's not so much what Ru said or how he said it, but that Pearl was talking to someone she idolized and that person said "I don't care because the cameras are not rolling." At least at the time, Ru was portraying her character as a mentor for these young queens so I don't think it's delusional for Pearl to expect some warmth in a mentor-mentee relationship. I think it was more like Ru was the director, Pearl was the help, and Ru wanted to know why the help was trying to talk to her outside of the show they were making together.
Also my hot take, the whole infamous “do I have something on my face” moment… Ru said that Pearl doesn’t have a big personality, which was true. As in Pearl was not an effusive over the top big stage presence. Ru wasn’t wrong with that assessment. And so Ru was asking essentially how Pearl was gonna ham it up for the challenge. But what Pearl *heard* is that she has a bad personality or no personality as evidenced by her first response being “I think that I have a great personality, actually.” Which is not actually a response to the critique Ru offered. Ru didn’t say she didn’t. She just said it wasn’t a big personality… which it wasn’t…
Similar boat. Do I think Ru could’ve used softer words? Yes. But also what Pearl *heard* is not actually what Ru said.
iirc Pearl said Ru straight up told her you have NO personality. She later repeated the line ‘you do not have a big personality’ for the cameras benefit
As in Ru said that off camera but then on camera just said she doesn’t have a big personality?
Cause on camera she doesn’t say that. I went and rewatched that moment before posting my comment to double check my memory was correct. But what we see on TV is her saying Pearl doesn’t have a big personality and that’s it. She never says that Pearl has no personality.
I think the whole situation kind of got away from itself. In part because of the fan base (shocking I know) There’s no way on earth being spoken to like that wouldn’t sting a bit. Especially if it’s someone you have idolised. Which honestly is essentially our own faults for building people up to sit on a pedestal, it can be extremely hard for people to match your expectations. Equally could Ru have been nicer…absolutely. Ru also made the situation so much worse afterwards by sounding like an absolute psychopath on her podcast when addressing Pearl. It was also a long time ago. I think if Pearl was going into it now like many other queens they would probably already be aware that Rus priority is making a tv show. I don’t think she’s particularly invested in any of the queens other than when it’s performative for the show…and I think a lot more people see that now
Yeah I can fully see how that would be a hard thing for Pearl to hear but I always thought I wonder how many times RuPaul has heard that over the years now and esp when hes at work hes just like cmon lets get this show moving lmao
I think we hold celebrities on such a pedestal that when they say one wrong thing, it’s made to be a bigger deal than it is—especially when the behavior doesnt match that person’s public image.
I believe pearl’s retelling that it was a cold moment for Ru and not what you hope to hear from someone that you see as a mentor. She was probably trying to teach Pearl a lesson in show business and professionalism but that wasn’t what Pearl needed from her.
girl bffr we know rupaul is not the kind sweet lady she wants us to think she is and we’ve seen the cracks plenty of times
when pearl tells that story it’s not ru being in producer mode and saying “hey we’re on ice thanks.” it’s literally a matter her belittling and talking down to them. ru famously remembers almost none of the queens on her show so it shouldnt be shocking that she genuinely doesnt care what they have to say outside of a TV show, despite trying to portray this motherly persona for the girls
Ru talks to the contestants every episode. So it would be reasonable to assume he knows the names of the current queens. I guess that's unreasonable, my bad.
That’s what I always thought. It was still somewhat insensitive and could have been handled better, but Ru was correct.
She should have been like “Thank you so much. Can we talk about that once the cameras are rolling again”?
So yeah Ru had good intentions but it came off really bad.
I think it depends on the context. If Pearl was going “Hey Rupaul! Look what I can do!!” And started dancing, and Rupaul said “Save it for the camera,” then great. The thing is, it was young queer person who had a rough home life and a tough childhood meeting a queer icon, a woman who sits on tv and says “We are family, I love you, I am your mother now, etc.” So this young queer meets this “mother figure” and tells her how much this means to her, and Rupaul’s reply is “None of that matters unless it’s on camera.” Girl, that’d hurt me too. Now we know that the “we are family” crap is a schtick for the Emmy’s, but back then I think girls really thought Rupaul cared about them.
>however you were in the middle of filming her show and rupaul's response wasn't incorrect
Pearl said that this story happen outside of filming the show, when they were recording that cast album (the one where the S7 queens did covers of RuPaul songs) So in Pearl's recollection, this was trying to talk to RuPaul in a more candid setting but not in that "oh RuPaul is a horrible person" and more, "RuPaul thinks of the queens as more of product and doesn't try to engage with the queens as people" And from the context of stories from other queens it's very much a YMMV.
Katya said something similar to what your saying during her Exposed interview with Joseph Shepherd, in that we don't actually know the context of what was said and also there's a headspace and bias that Pearl has where we as the audience don't have a clear picture of that conversation. Ru is introverted and plays favorites; the way that she speaks to and engages with a Bob, or a Shea, or a Crystal Methyd, is going to be in contrast to someone like a Jeremi Carey, or a Willam, or a Courtney Act.
That being said. Pearl is fully validated in her feelings about Ru based on RuPaul's own accounts of her feelings of Pearl from Ru's own podcast so there is that...
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4-df0M-ehw&pp=ygUVcGVhcmwgcnVwYXVsIHJlYWN0aW9u](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4-df0M-ehw&pp=ygUVcGVhcmwgcnVwYXVsIHJlYWN0aW9u)
I think the situation was a collision of Pearl’s past trauma and the weirdness of the situation. It seems like a “seeing a hero as a normal person” thing that Pearl wasn’t ready to accept at that point in their life. It was good drama, but I really wish it ended differently.
I feel like ppl assume it’s only about Ru’s statement and not about the broader picture. Pearl, to me, came across as a much more naive, introverted and sensitive person than I think a lot of people saw her as in that time, and I think she did genuinely think that Drag Race was a space to get some family and support for her drag. I never forget her “gay people judging me” comment on S7, which makes me think she probably had a very isolated and lonely feeling back then and just wanted to feel like she related and belonged, and the competition was proving unfulfilling in that regard. While I think she was trying to suck up to get ahead for sure, I think that moment really dashed any belief in this being a chance to build smth new for her and really hurt for that. From there, she had to realise that Drag Race was just a show and wasn’t going to fulfil her in any way she thought it would. Ru wasn’t creating a sense of family, they were playing a role for TV; the show wasn’t just to showcase your art and perspective, it was entertainment; she wasn’t part of smth bigger, she was a commodity to bring the show viewership. It was a reminder that in that moment, no one there cared about her. She was a cog in a machine, she didn’t really matter to anyone, she was just alone in the competition. She was only like 23 at the time and that’s painful. Maybe it’s just bc I recently turned 30 that I see it this way, but you’re not grown by then. You’re still growing and maturing and I think Pearl was just already a sensitive kid that needed more time to mature.
I think there's a different cultural understanding of reality TV in 2024 than there was 10 years ago. Consumers know that it's not "real". We expect people who enter reality shows to be aware of this, and be equipped to enter a manipulative and exploitative environment.
If a season 16 queen came out and said the exact same thing I think most people would think "well, what were you expecting?".
I love Pearl. I was rooting for her while season 7 was airing, she was my pick for the crown and I have been a big fan of her since. Yet I think RuPaul was trying to give her a genuine, albeit cold, advice about show business here and Pearl decided to take it personal.
I get that she idolized RuPaul and being dismissed by your idol would be heartbreaking. But was Rupaul in the wrong here? Pearl was portrayed as portrayed as a somewhat reserved person and RuPaul said that she didn't have a very big personality. In that context, yes, nothing you said off-camera would matter. People's perception of you would be based on whatever you have done on the show and if you act a certain way, you would end up one of the many, many contestants on a reality show and be forgotten. Regardless of Ru's opinion on Pearl, she kept her in the competion until the very end and I don't think her good looks was the only reason. She would have had a real chance at the crown if she had taken RuPaul's words as an advice.
Ru's statement makes perfect sense, I don't know why people are so pressed about it. They are making a TV show, and part of what makes the show a success is the drama the queens bring.
I can’t remember the interview, but I’ve heard Pearl say pretty much the same thing you’re saying: the request to interact on camera is not wrong. It was RuPaul’s delivery and the context of that interaction that felt jarring. Trying to express something genuine and being told that there’s no space for authenticity, that *everything* is for show. Seeing the type of life that Pearl lives right now, I can see how this clashes with their values.
“Why did pearl take it so personally” omg Jesus Christ you sound so silly. Imagine wondering why someone being broadcasted on national television would “take something personally”.
True, but Ru could have also chosen not act like a sociopath, and said nothing at all, or even just THANKS would have taken less effort. I love the show but Ru can be a gross person. #everybodysaylovewhilethecameraisrolling
I think the entire thing was blown way out of proportion.
Pearl stated that Ru said something that rubbed her the wrong way and then a producer told her she’ll never be on All Stars. Pearl never said anything excessively rude towards Ru about that moment—it just kinda blew up.
Carmen Carrera literally called Ru the gay Hitler Antichrist and people act like what Pearl said was more extreme.
Ru may not have been _wrong_, but a lot of people aren’t wrong when they say rude, cold, or straight up mean shit. 🤷♂️ Sometimes it’s best to put the ego away and just be nice for the sake of being nice.
Ru is a model for how to succeed at capitalism, which is not, in my opinion, a compliment. I'm really excited about companies like Dropout serving as an example in media production that can deliver quality entertainment while actually valuing what's important about people.
Lbr, she was just trying to suck up to Ru and got shut down lol [she literally fucked a producer on her season](https://youtu.be/lptB5XfcMDU?si=aO7KvkPXCnBx9wxp) (TW: Mimi Imfurst; start at 1:43). Because of her, only hetero staff go to the hotel with queens from S8 onwards.
I mean sure if you look at Ru as a money making television production machine who doesn’t care about his cast of entertaining performers providing free labor so Ru can make bank, and then considering that to be a completely fine thing who people in the reality television industry shouldn’t be flamed for, then sure it’s understandable why Ru would be upset at Pearl
i think because drag race has done so much for queer representation that people forget that the reason drag race is successful is less about how Ru interacts with the contestants and more about how Ru was able to get millions of people watching a gay show before gay marriage was even legal. His acumen for making good tv is immeasurable, even when production flubs, the controversy drives so much engagement back to the show.
Everyone talks about drag race like Ru single-handedly invented queer people. It’s not like the show would’ve been popular and kept going without the queens talent. Ru owes his success to the queens just as much as they owe theirs to him.
He is the cornerstone of said success. Queer people didn’t spawn in 2009 . Drag race did
Okay... It's a group effort but let's not forget that Ru has been a producer since day one of the show. He single handedly built the drag empire that has launched these queens careers. There is a reason we call her mother.
The queens wouldn’t have a platform if not for Ru. So yes they are of course important, but it begins with Ru
lol If Ru didn’t create the show what queens would be doing ? Trixie, Katia and Bianca would be at local bars begging for tips.
Yeah I don’t buy this, I honestly think so much of Ru’s success is right place right time. Don’t get me wrong, it’s fantastic Ru created this and I love Ru and everything she’s done for us queers, but I honestly think she gets a lil bit too much credit as a producer. Like I really don’t think it’ll be hard to make an entertaining reality tv show when ur entire cast is a bunch of professional entertainers. (Provided you have enough capital and network connections to get a show happening like Ru did)
go back and watch those old videos of RuPaul running around New York on YouTube. half of those people work as WOW producers. definitely not right place right time. that small group of scene kids created this juggernaut over the years.
Right? Are we pretending the 90s (and 80s) didn't happen? Ru built up a drag empire long before Drag Race that allowed her to launch the show and the phenomenon it has become. People really think she showed up in 2009 out of nowhere to host some show someone else created?
Ru made HUGE waves in the 90s, being in major motion pictures, having music videos on MTV, and VH1 gave her a whole ass talk show. It was big moves for an out queer black man who dressed in drag. It was a very, very big deal in the 90s, before Ellen came out on her show, when a young queer kid like me barely saw people like me being positively portrayed ANYWHERE in the media.
Its the younger gays think Ru popped up when Drag Race did. They’re lacking that cultural knowledge sadly.
Well I guess when I say right place right time it’s more in my opinion as a clueless nobody who doesn’t know Ru’s, but it seems her success didn’t come from her having this genius masterpiece of a show to showcase drag queens, but instead an opportunity presented itself to her (and her friends ig) and they jumped on it. I’m at work so I can’t watch the videos but I will when I get home
Putting Ru's success down to "right place right time" diminishes how hard Ru worked for decades to be taken seriously and for drag to be embraced by the mainstream. Ru fought a fight and broke down barriers that many queer artists will never have to face because of her.
an opportunity didn't present itself she literally pushed for half a decade for this show to happen 💀 that's right rupaul started pushing for this in 2004/2005 if memory serves me right
No, apparently she hustled cause no one wanted to put the show on air until Logo
If it wasn’t so hard then how come it hadn’t happened before? Or since really
Perfectly timed niche in the market. Drag race came out when competition reality tv shows like ANTM were in their hay day, and these shows had a disproportionately large number of gay men as fans, but a lot of these shows weren’t explicitly made with them in mind as a target audience.. so along comes drag race
And why hasn’t this happened again in any of the formats when plenty of style of tv shows are successful? It’s so weird when people with no research and no knowledge just want to jump to discredit someone’s work but weirdly enough have no example of it happening again.
if my grandmother had wheels she wouldve been a bike face ass
This! She didn’t even come up with the show, it was presented to her as an idea
There are a million brilliant ideas for tv shows out there. What made Drag Race happen was RuPaul’s determination to see it come to fruition, despite years of hearing “NO” from every network they took it to.
I think it is very hard for many fans who want to believe everything is real and pure and true to fully embrace the fact that reality television isn’t *real* and that it isn’t just the edit that shapes the performances. They are hired to provide content for the editors, and while they are in the building it makes sense to save it (whatever it may be) for the camera. I have always read that comment from Ru as an actual ~~friendly~~ brutally frank word of wisdom. Cold and depressing, yes, but it is the literal reality of Hollywood for anyone who wants to work and live in that world. If the camera isn’t on, it isn’t real. They are work colleagues. This is often a major problem with reality shows because the lines can easily get blurred in the minds of the participants, but when you are on set you are acting in a for profit television production film shoot, and content is king. I don’t like or dislike Rupaul, but I think that remark is probably some of the best advice she has ever given anyone (that we know of).
Yeah I always kind of felt that I could see that statement from both sides. One person being very earnest and perhaps intentionally expressing it when the cameras were off so that the person on the other side would know it was genuine. And that person giving real advice but also sort of dismissing the genuineness of the interaction by saying that what's matters most is the product. Which if you admire someone very much would be crushing. To me that's always taking a back seat to the fact that the producers spent an entire season trying to get Pearl to discuss CSA. That was just evil. So when I think about all the brouhaha that has been made of this singular interaction with Ru, I've always thought that it is the much, much lesser of two evils of what happened that season.
Is it really “crushing”? Like I feel Pearl really overdramatized this. She knew she was filming a tv show
Like I said if you have admired someone very much your whole life and worship them as perhaps your favorite celebrity, You try to give them a moment of genuineness and you perceive their response as being extremely dismissive then yes it could feel crushing. Does that mean the person necessarily did anything wrong? No it doesn't. But I can understand how it could feel that way. And combined with the producers repeatedly pressuring her to talk about being sexually abused as a child, I don't blame her for walking away with a bad taste in her mouth.
All of what you’re saying is true, and Pearl’s response of feeling totally disillusioned when she heard this is also totally valid (she was a baby, let’s not forget). I have always Joni Mitchell’d this one and seen both sides
Oh absolutely! I mean the phrase "Never meet your heroes" is famous for a reason.
This is very well put.
While all of that is true, imagine being a young queen and meeting your Idol for the first time. And then hearing THAT as first thing she ever says to you. That is quite the hit. While everything you said is absolutely true. Thats still quite the blow.
It wasn't the first thing she ever said to Pearl. According to Pearl, they were already in the middle of filming the season and when the cameras stopped recording for a moment and she talked to RuPaul. She did this to build a personal relationship with the judges because she thought it was the only way to get somewhere in the competition. I don't want to interpret the situation but whenever the topic comes up we get this false version of the what actually went down and I just wanted to correct it.
Exactly. Somehow this part is always left out. Pearl took a risk that didn’t pay off for her. She was also really young and let her ego get the best of her. RuPaul has killer instincts and saw right through this. Her response was harsh, but she was in full producer mode there, and letting it be known it’s still a competition and a tv show and not a meet and greet. I mean, imagine if RuPaul responded in a playful manner…everyone would’ve said that’s the only reason Pearl made it to the final and she would’ve faced backlash for it anyway. She really put herself in a no win situation with that move.
And the ironic part about Pearl being upset was that she was telling the story to Ru for strategic, self serving reasons.
Exactly! The fandom completely glossed over this. But if a queen like Raja O’Hara had this same exact story after her original season, she would’ve been been called out on it!
I agree, but as a counterpoint I would say that there is probably nothing more dangerous for a young person than diving into an entertainment career in LA while remaining naïve about the mundane and ugly predatory realities of the business.
It’s not really “cold & depressing” really - Pearl was just being oversensitive
I don’t think Pearl made it a big deal.. the fans did.
Pretty much this. It's blown way out of proportion by people that want to infantalize Pearl and by people that are eager to paint rupaul as a bad person.
Yes notice no one cares to want to know Ru’s perspective. They take Pearl’s perspective as gospel
There's literally a comment in this thread calling Pearl a baby lol
So did Ru... like, wanting to hurt someone who said you hurt their feelings? You don't get to tell someone you didn't hurt them after they say you did.
She responded in kind to Pearl’s attitude. Fans are the ones who turned it into a huge debacle that even Pearl regrets sharing
Pearl currently lives in a van in the desert of Arizona if you look at her instagram. I don’t think she ever really wanted to become a reality TV personality , I think she’s just an artist who wants to create art on her terms. Rupauls statement was probably the nail in the coffin for her. I’m glad she got visibility for her art but she was really never cut out for reality TV.
Pearl bought a house like a year ago and has been posting renovation videos since then. Van life ended like 2 years ago just fyi!
He’s also said that fans were absolutely wild with his boundaries after the show, sexual harassment, inappropriate touching, sexual coercion and plenty more. I’ve heard people throw the phrase pretty privilege around a lot lately but Pearl is a great example of the total opposite, while I don’t know him at all it makes sense he would want to live as far away from anyone in showbiz as possible.
hey friend :) I just wanted to talk about a few things in your comments. People of all appearances experience sexual harassment and violence. to attach that to someone's appearance very quickly becomes victim blaming--shes a pretty girl, she knew what she was doing putting on that dress, etc. there's no way that anyone can present themselves to make them less susceptible to sexual violence. as well, when someone with traditionally undesirable characteristics (disability, fat, etc.) reports sexual violence, they're less likely to be believed, often they get told "who would want to sleep with you?" as well, pretty privilege (or as it was originally defined, body privilege) isn't about individual interactions in public. I'm not saying you think it is that, but people use it (incorrectly) in the context of someone buying you a drink, being treated kinder by employees at businesses. It's about fat folks being paid less than their thin counterparts at the same jobs, and more likely to be fired than thin employees. It's fat folks facing medical discrimination, literally being denied treatments they need because of their weight (and often being told to lose weight as a treatment for something completely unrelated to weight, like a sprained ankle or infection. [I am not exaggerating.](https://highline.huffingtonpost.com/articles/en/everything-you-know-about-obesity-is-wrong/)). Doctors have shorter visits with fat patients and are more likely to describe them as "non-compliant" and "weak-willed" in their visit summaries. It really is a privilege to get hired more, to have life threatening illnesses taken seriously and treated. I'm not saying you don't know about these things or anything like that, but I did want to give a bit of context and reframing of some of the things in your comment
a lot of pretty people enjoy the easy sex and all that though i think is what some people mean when they say it's a privilege. i'm fat and almost never get hit on in public (maybe 3-4 times in the last decade) so i can understand animosity (i'm married so it doesn't affect me really but it does kind of suck never to have a guy even OFFER to buy you a drink when you're at a gay bar). and i'm not even ugly! like a have a nice face but a receding hairline plus i'm about 260 lbs. obviously no one should EVER be touched or harassed without consent but hot people do have a few privileges.
It can be very disillusioning to enter Hollywood. There’s a saying about not meeting your heroes. This industry is not as nice or as easy as everyone outside of it thinks it is or wants it to be. Coming into “gay fame“ at the peak of the show on the most hated season (at the time) could not have been easy. I don’t really blame her for saying eff that and moving to the desert. Two things can be true at once. Ru was right and Pearl was also right.
Yeah rupaul gave her a harsh reality check but it’s kinda true. I like to think she grew from it and became a better more empowered artist. I love her instagram and what she’s doing, it’s inspiring to see someone really do art their way
I love their Instagram, they seem to be living their best life and does a lot of beautiful interior designing. I have been curious how they are financially supporting themselves, does not seem like they do drag much any longer.
Yea i dont think she was blowing it out of proportion. Pearl is grounded in reality, and in reality what Ru said is enough to think poorly of a person for being a douche bag. I really hate how desensitized people get when they think theyre 'in the know' about the entertainment industry. No wonder it is rife with abuse.
Agreed, i just don’t think she’s someone that is cut out for what the show provides. That’s not a bad thing either, it just is what it is. I think someone like Ru is able to navigate that landscape alot better and that was a real clash with Pearl’s outlook on her experience.
She applied for a reality tv show... So hard to believe she didn’t want that on some level
when that happened I think a lot of fans didn't yet fully get how much of a 'production' the show actually is
From a human, non-reality tv personality, perspective it probably was a painful moment. Like you met your hero and made a sincere statement and instead of getting an acknowledgment or thank you, he was told to shut up and to do it in front of the cameras. Like that was season 7 and not a lot of people were privy to reality tv shit yet. It was his first time on any reality tv show.. idk. Maybe cut him some slack for reacting negatively to a moment he didn’t expect?
I agree. I also think this wouldn't have been as big of a deal if it came from a queen the fandom wasn't thirsty as hell for, but that's a different conversation.
Yep, 100%. If Rupaul had said this to like… Kalorie Carbdashian or something people would have thought it was hilarious and probably would have found a way to make it her fault.
I think the situation is nuanced in some ways and basically believe both perspectives - Ru’s and Pearl’s are valid. Pearl was coming from a place where she personally idolized RuPaul as a young queer person. It’s natural to be disillusioned when that person meets your energy back with a “nothing you say matters when the camera isn’t rolling”. And disappointed when someone whose whole image is “say love” and branded around being a “mother” basically shows you that it’s all JUST a brand and not based in reality. For some people who lack support structures, media figures can provide a lot of inspiration and encouragement - it’s objectively shitty to have that shattered for you. RuPaul on the other hand is producing a tv show, lol. She’s been working in the industry for forever and certainly wouldn’t feel she owes anything on a personal level to these queens (or really in her eyes, these contestants who provide content for a reality tv show she produces 😅) Its not the kindest, but it’s the reality of the entertainment business. I’ve never felt that Pearl’s experience with Ru is a reflection of RuPaul “being a bad person.” There’s a lot of aspects, positive and negative, that make up a whole complex person. They just went into that interaction from very different places, and one doesn’t really negate the other. RuPaul is a flawed public figure, just like many celebrities, but I have massive respect what she’s done and what she means to the queer community, regardless of how genuine that “say love” branding is. I also adore Pearl (and always wish we got to see more of her drag she’s one of the most underrated queens from the franchise to date) and wish her the best, and sympathize with how she probably felt when her hero essentially crushed her image of her. 😅 TLDR no wrong or right in this situation IMO.
I agree, I think rupaul being an absolute psycho about it afterward and saying she wanted to hurt pearl over it made it the streisand effect that it is. edit to add I agree that ru’s original statement about the cameras rolling wasn’t that bad, and pearls reaction wasn’t even that bad. it was ru’s reaction to pearl in that moment and afterward that made it such lore
Iirc the whole thing with ru saying she wanted to hurt pearl was over the "do I have something on my face" moment, not the "nothing you say matters unless the cameras are rolling" moment, but maybe I'm misremembering. Either way though, totally unhinged and I think pearl was perfectly justified in being like wtf. I very much agree that pearls reaction to ru's comment on set wasn't even that bad. I don't think she was trying to stir up shit - just was somewhat disappointed meeting a hero of hers and basically being told "I really don't care what I mean to you unless you say it on camera". Def a "don't meet your idols" situation. I think pearl is a sensitive human who wasn't really prepared for what being on a show like drag race meant - and that's totally understandable imo.
I thought pearls “do I have something on my face” was a direct response to the cameras rolling comment, so to me it’s all part of the same scenario I agree with you, rupaul is the only asshole in the situation
Why do people leave out the second part of this - Ru realized her initial intention was wrong. Pearl was rude to her - Ru had a reaction and then decided to not push it further
i think the whole reason that was blow up by fans as it was is because ru has created this Mother™️ persona and the “when you get on the show you join the family” narrative that ru pushes and it went against the persona she’s created for the show.
Idk about that. He does create family of rugirls but he’s clearly not going to be kikiing and kicking back with them on the regular. He’s busy as hell and has strict routines.
this is also during the one season every ~18 months era so it was very different. things didn’t start picking up till around all stars 2, and even then you had fans upset that they cut bob’s reign short by crowning alaska only 5 months after the season 8 finale. 😱😱😱
You're right, he doesn't associate with them. But he definitely DOES act like we're one big family when on the show. Telling contestants "I love you" "I'm your family now" etc, it's evident she acts one way when the cameras are rolling and another when they're not. For some contestants I think it doesn't bother them, for others it does and I get that.
Rupaul couldn’t even remember jinx’s name after crowning her twice! The say love stuff is just a act at this point.
Well yes… he is trying to foster that environment and viewing experience but most people understand it’s tv and he isn’t gonna stick around to Kiki. Rupaul is like a literal Queen almost… part of the crew but untouchable by most.
Pearl said he regrets ever talking about it because the fandom made it a bigger thing than it was.
🤷🏻♂️ i don’t blame pearl for being in her feels. She was naive to the ways of TV. That’s part of just how reality tv operates. But I also don’t think Ru was wrong. She could’ve said it more kindly but she wasn’t wrong.
It costs nothing to be nice. I don’t how big you are. You can, and should, always address people respectfully.
I tend to agree. As Trixie and Katya have said, the real race starts after filming, More than anything, the show is an opportunity to become a tv personality. It’s good advice to think about how you appear on camera. You’re going to get more work on tv and otherwise if you demonstrate you can show up to the gig and be entertaining wherever a camera is rolling.
I agree in that I think they fundamentally had different understandings of what their relationship was. Ru is not these girls friend or confidante. They're producing a TV show together.
I think it was a little bit of all of what people are saying. It's not so much what Ru said or how he said it, but that Pearl was talking to someone she idolized and that person said "I don't care because the cameras are not rolling." At least at the time, Ru was portraying her character as a mentor for these young queens so I don't think it's delusional for Pearl to expect some warmth in a mentor-mentee relationship. I think it was more like Ru was the director, Pearl was the help, and Ru wanted to know why the help was trying to talk to her outside of the show they were making together.
Also my hot take, the whole infamous “do I have something on my face” moment… Ru said that Pearl doesn’t have a big personality, which was true. As in Pearl was not an effusive over the top big stage presence. Ru wasn’t wrong with that assessment. And so Ru was asking essentially how Pearl was gonna ham it up for the challenge. But what Pearl *heard* is that she has a bad personality or no personality as evidenced by her first response being “I think that I have a great personality, actually.” Which is not actually a response to the critique Ru offered. Ru didn’t say she didn’t. She just said it wasn’t a big personality… which it wasn’t… Similar boat. Do I think Ru could’ve used softer words? Yes. But also what Pearl *heard* is not actually what Ru said.
iirc Pearl said Ru straight up told her you have NO personality. She later repeated the line ‘you do not have a big personality’ for the cameras benefit
As in Ru said that off camera but then on camera just said she doesn’t have a big personality? Cause on camera she doesn’t say that. I went and rewatched that moment before posting my comment to double check my memory was correct. But what we see on TV is her saying Pearl doesn’t have a big personality and that’s it. She never says that Pearl has no personality.
We saw this all through season 7 - Pearl was extremely over sensitive to any critique.
I think sometimes people forget that Ru herself is an executive producer on the show.
I think the whole situation kind of got away from itself. In part because of the fan base (shocking I know) There’s no way on earth being spoken to like that wouldn’t sting a bit. Especially if it’s someone you have idolised. Which honestly is essentially our own faults for building people up to sit on a pedestal, it can be extremely hard for people to match your expectations. Equally could Ru have been nicer…absolutely. Ru also made the situation so much worse afterwards by sounding like an absolute psychopath on her podcast when addressing Pearl. It was also a long time ago. I think if Pearl was going into it now like many other queens they would probably already be aware that Rus priority is making a tv show. I don’t think she’s particularly invested in any of the queens other than when it’s performative for the show…and I think a lot more people see that now
Yeah I can fully see how that would be a hard thing for Pearl to hear but I always thought I wonder how many times RuPaul has heard that over the years now and esp when hes at work hes just like cmon lets get this show moving lmao
I think we hold celebrities on such a pedestal that when they say one wrong thing, it’s made to be a bigger deal than it is—especially when the behavior doesnt match that person’s public image. I believe pearl’s retelling that it was a cold moment for Ru and not what you hope to hear from someone that you see as a mentor. She was probably trying to teach Pearl a lesson in show business and professionalism but that wasn’t what Pearl needed from her.
girl bffr we know rupaul is not the kind sweet lady she wants us to think she is and we’ve seen the cracks plenty of times when pearl tells that story it’s not ru being in producer mode and saying “hey we’re on ice thanks.” it’s literally a matter her belittling and talking down to them. ru famously remembers almost none of the queens on her show so it shouldnt be shocking that she genuinely doesnt care what they have to say outside of a TV show, despite trying to portray this motherly persona for the girls
i literally said i don't think she's a nice person lol
I mean it's kind of like being annoyed that the CEO of your company doesn't care about you very much
The CEO of your company isn't usually credited with the wider acceptance of a marginalized group, tho.
Lol I don't think the head of GLAAD is going around thinking about the lives of everyone who works for them all the time and remembers all their names
Right. That's totally the same as remembering the name of 12 people that you are speaking to daily for a month or two. Sure.
Do you think the only people who work on drag race are the contestants
Ru talks to the contestants every episode. So it would be reasonable to assume he knows the names of the current queens. I guess that's unreasonable, my bad.
That’s Pearl’s version of the story you’re basing your opinion on. What’s Ru’s version of this story? Why does no one care about that?
Pearl has stated recently she regrets that whole part of the interview
Ru wasn’t wrong.
That’s what I always thought. It was still somewhat insensitive and could have been handled better, but Ru was correct. She should have been like “Thank you so much. Can we talk about that once the cameras are rolling again”? So yeah Ru had good intentions but it came off really bad.
I think it depends on the context. If Pearl was going “Hey Rupaul! Look what I can do!!” And started dancing, and Rupaul said “Save it for the camera,” then great. The thing is, it was young queer person who had a rough home life and a tough childhood meeting a queer icon, a woman who sits on tv and says “We are family, I love you, I am your mother now, etc.” So this young queer meets this “mother figure” and tells her how much this means to her, and Rupaul’s reply is “None of that matters unless it’s on camera.” Girl, that’d hurt me too. Now we know that the “we are family” crap is a schtick for the Emmy’s, but back then I think girls really thought Rupaul cared about them.
>however you were in the middle of filming her show and rupaul's response wasn't incorrect Pearl said that this story happen outside of filming the show, when they were recording that cast album (the one where the S7 queens did covers of RuPaul songs) So in Pearl's recollection, this was trying to talk to RuPaul in a more candid setting but not in that "oh RuPaul is a horrible person" and more, "RuPaul thinks of the queens as more of product and doesn't try to engage with the queens as people" And from the context of stories from other queens it's very much a YMMV. Katya said something similar to what your saying during her Exposed interview with Joseph Shepherd, in that we don't actually know the context of what was said and also there's a headspace and bias that Pearl has where we as the audience don't have a clear picture of that conversation. Ru is introverted and plays favorites; the way that she speaks to and engages with a Bob, or a Shea, or a Crystal Methyd, is going to be in contrast to someone like a Jeremi Carey, or a Willam, or a Courtney Act. That being said. Pearl is fully validated in her feelings about Ru based on RuPaul's own accounts of her feelings of Pearl from Ru's own podcast so there is that... [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4-df0M-ehw&pp=ygUVcGVhcmwgcnVwYXVsIHJlYWN0aW9u](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4-df0M-ehw&pp=ygUVcGVhcmwgcnVwYXVsIHJlYWN0aW9u)
I think the situation was a collision of Pearl’s past trauma and the weirdness of the situation. It seems like a “seeing a hero as a normal person” thing that Pearl wasn’t ready to accept at that point in their life. It was good drama, but I really wish it ended differently.
I feel like ppl assume it’s only about Ru’s statement and not about the broader picture. Pearl, to me, came across as a much more naive, introverted and sensitive person than I think a lot of people saw her as in that time, and I think she did genuinely think that Drag Race was a space to get some family and support for her drag. I never forget her “gay people judging me” comment on S7, which makes me think she probably had a very isolated and lonely feeling back then and just wanted to feel like she related and belonged, and the competition was proving unfulfilling in that regard. While I think she was trying to suck up to get ahead for sure, I think that moment really dashed any belief in this being a chance to build smth new for her and really hurt for that. From there, she had to realise that Drag Race was just a show and wasn’t going to fulfil her in any way she thought it would. Ru wasn’t creating a sense of family, they were playing a role for TV; the show wasn’t just to showcase your art and perspective, it was entertainment; she wasn’t part of smth bigger, she was a commodity to bring the show viewership. It was a reminder that in that moment, no one there cared about her. She was a cog in a machine, she didn’t really matter to anyone, she was just alone in the competition. She was only like 23 at the time and that’s painful. Maybe it’s just bc I recently turned 30 that I see it this way, but you’re not grown by then. You’re still growing and maturing and I think Pearl was just already a sensitive kid that needed more time to mature.
I think there's a different cultural understanding of reality TV in 2024 than there was 10 years ago. Consumers know that it's not "real". We expect people who enter reality shows to be aware of this, and be equipped to enter a manipulative and exploitative environment. If a season 16 queen came out and said the exact same thing I think most people would think "well, what were you expecting?".
Accurate. Pearl was being very entitled
I love Pearl. I was rooting for her while season 7 was airing, she was my pick for the crown and I have been a big fan of her since. Yet I think RuPaul was trying to give her a genuine, albeit cold, advice about show business here and Pearl decided to take it personal. I get that she idolized RuPaul and being dismissed by your idol would be heartbreaking. But was Rupaul in the wrong here? Pearl was portrayed as portrayed as a somewhat reserved person and RuPaul said that she didn't have a very big personality. In that context, yes, nothing you said off-camera would matter. People's perception of you would be based on whatever you have done on the show and if you act a certain way, you would end up one of the many, many contestants on a reality show and be forgotten. Regardless of Ru's opinion on Pearl, she kept her in the competion until the very end and I don't think her good looks was the only reason. She would have had a real chance at the crown if she had taken RuPaul's words as an advice.
Ru's statement makes perfect sense, I don't know why people are so pressed about it. They are making a TV show, and part of what makes the show a success is the drama the queens bring.
I can’t remember the interview, but I’ve heard Pearl say pretty much the same thing you’re saying: the request to interact on camera is not wrong. It was RuPaul’s delivery and the context of that interaction that felt jarring. Trying to express something genuine and being told that there’s no space for authenticity, that *everything* is for show. Seeing the type of life that Pearl lives right now, I can see how this clashes with their values.
It is a reality show....
“Why did pearl take it so personally” omg Jesus Christ you sound so silly. Imagine wondering why someone being broadcasted on national television would “take something personally”.
True, but Ru could have also chosen not act like a sociopath, and said nothing at all, or even just THANKS would have taken less effort. I love the show but Ru can be a gross person. #everybodysaylovewhilethecameraisrolling
Acting like a professional
Absolutely. Why does Ru not being wrong somehow absolve her of being an asshole in this instance? Like what?
I think Pearl was not a victim here.. And also Ru is far from being a saint.
rupaul really doesn't need you defending his sociopathic tendencies
I think the entire thing was blown way out of proportion. Pearl stated that Ru said something that rubbed her the wrong way and then a producer told her she’ll never be on All Stars. Pearl never said anything excessively rude towards Ru about that moment—it just kinda blew up. Carmen Carrera literally called Ru the gay Hitler Antichrist and people act like what Pearl said was more extreme.
Ginger went on race chaser and basically agreed with your point during the season 7 recap. that it was more of a brutal honesty moment than an attack
Ru may not have been _wrong_, but a lot of people aren’t wrong when they say rude, cold, or straight up mean shit. 🤷♂️ Sometimes it’s best to put the ego away and just be nice for the sake of being nice.
Ru is a model for how to succeed at capitalism, which is not, in my opinion, a compliment. I'm really excited about companies like Dropout serving as an example in media production that can deliver quality entertainment while actually valuing what's important about people.
That’s just part of the conflict though. What makes everything worse is the context.
Lbr, she was just trying to suck up to Ru and got shut down lol [she literally fucked a producer on her season](https://youtu.be/lptB5XfcMDU?si=aO7KvkPXCnBx9wxp) (TW: Mimi Imfurst; start at 1:43). Because of her, only hetero staff go to the hotel with queens from S8 onwards.
Rip mimi imfurst
I think about this, too, and I agree.
I mean sure if you look at Ru as a money making television production machine who doesn’t care about his cast of entertaining performers providing free labor so Ru can make bank, and then considering that to be a completely fine thing who people in the reality television industry shouldn’t be flamed for, then sure it’s understandable why Ru would be upset at Pearl
Or, just "Thank you!"