Almost a year after conquering the first ever season of Canada’s Drag Race, where she made herstory for the franchise as the first ever Indo-Caribbean champion, Priyanka what’s-her-name has launched her bid for pop superstardom with the release of her infectious debut EP, Taste Test.
Featuring previous franchise alumni such as her season one sister Lemon and Celebs on the Farm’s Cheryl Hole, the five-track collection boasts banger after banger with pulsating club anthem Bitch I’m Busy and lead single Cake, in which she beckons a love interest to “bow down for the queen” and taste her, well, cake.
To mark the release of the incredible mini-album, Priyanka has shared a selection of her queer pop culture favourites, from FLETCHER’s critically-acclaimed S(ex) Tapes collection to Grey’s Anatomy’s fan-favourite queer couple, Callie Torres and Arizona Robbins, to… Willa Wonka? Read ahead, it actually makes sense.
Your fave queer film is…
I really wanna say Willa Wonka and the Chocolate Factory is my favourite queer film because as a gay child, watching that movie and seeing that there’s a land full of candy and you can eat shit off the walls… That’s what being gay is. All of the rules of life are just gone. Like, wasn’t it so satisfying seeing them just put their hands in shit and just eat it? It’s that thing where you’re told growing up, ‘You can’t do this, walk more straight, act more straight,’ and then you realise watching this movie, ‘Wow, I can do whatever I want. Fuck everyone.’ There’s an undertone to it!
Your fave queer show is…
This is controversial, but I’m going to have to say… The first thing that came to my mind was Ugly Betty because it was the first time I saw somebody like me on TV. Betty, of course. No, I’m just joking. The gay kid, Justin. But… I think it has to be Sailor Moon. Hear me out: it’s a show made for gay people. Ugly Betty is the obvious answer, do you understand me? Of course, RuPaul’s Drag Race is monumentally queer and amazing, but also AJ and the Queen. I loved that show. Everyone was like, ‘It’s so bad,’ and I’m like, ‘No it’s not, it’s giving me good 90s TV.’ I was so hoping for a season two, the episode with Monique [Heart] and Latrice [Royale] was the best. So, whatever I just said is what I think.
Your fave queer romance is…
Oh, that’s a great fucking great fucking… Fuck off. Favourite queer on-screen romance is probably Meredith Grey and Derek Shepherd. No, probably Callie Torres and whatever her name is. I was watching Grey’s Anatomy in high school, I think, and it was so satisfying seeing a lesbian couple. Then, they had a kid and blah blah blah, Callie was very fluid in her sexuality and it was the first time that I, on top of Ugly Betty and Brokeback Mountain, saw representation.
Your fave queer singer is…
Me. I think so, yeah. I also wanna say my favourite queer singer is… Yeah, myself. Sometimes it’s hard to love yourself but you have to love yourself, y’know?
Your fave queer album is…
What’s a good queer album? How about The Cheetah Girls 2 soundtrack? Strut is such a good song. I love Miss Symone-yay. There’s a video on YouTube on Raven and, I forget what her name is, Chelsea from That’s So Raven, the red-head girl, and they perform the theme song of That’s So Raven live, with a band. I cry every time I watch it. Chills. I would say that. Who else can I say? David Guetta? No. Is Dua Lipa straight? FLETCHER’s album The S(ex) Tapes… bitch. The fucking ‘ex’ is in brackets and that’s my shit. That’s my shit. When I saw that album title I was like, ‘That is what I would want to name my album.’
Your fave queer anthem is…
Probably… I’m trying to put myself back on a dancefloor, when you’re like, screaming the words. I’m really trying to put myself back, this is method acting. I would say favourite queer anthem is… I Drove All Night by Celine Dion. I think I turned that song into a queer anthem.
Your fave queer venue is…
Well, I would say Crews & Tangos in Toronto because that was my stomping ground. But also, I have to give an honourable mention to GAY Heaven because in 2017 or 2018, I was in the dancehall room, the big room that looks like a Rihanna music video. That place. I was dancing so hard, like it was the best cardio ever, and I looked over and there was this hot blonde guy. We met eyes and walked over to each other and he lifted me up, like in Dirty Dancing. We made out and then I never saw him again.
Priyanka’s debut EP, Taste Test, is now available on iTunes and streaming services. Listen here on Apple Music or below.
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