In 2020, Jackie Cox rose to superstardom when she became the first queen of Iranian descent to sashay into the RuPaul’s Drag Race werkroom, as well as the first contestant to slay the runway with a hijab.
She continued to make herstory this year as the first former alum to – and this might need fact checking – travel across the United States with a solo tour inspired by a critically-acclaimed superhero miniseries with an Emmy-nominated Olsen sister. (Please correct us if we’re wrong!)
JackieVision, which kicked off in September, takes spectators on a “fun romp through the decades” and sees the star tackle classic and modern television tropes, while celebrating all-things queer and pop culture. (You can purchase tickets here.)
In celebration of the tour, Jackie caught up with GAY TIMES and shared a selection of her queer pop culture favourites, from the musical stylings of Queen frontman Freddie Mercury and the US version of Russell T. Davies’ classic drama Queer As Folk. Oh, and if you’re eager to know how Jackie discovered the art of rimming, then this article is for you. Yes, for you!
Your fave queer film is…
This is a complex question because I feel there are a lot of films that aren’t queer films, but to me they’re queer films. Like, the queerest film is Mary Poppins because in my mind, she is a full gay uncle who has come to save this horrible straight family with her magic. So in my mind, that’s a queer film. Maybe I’m wrong, but that to me is a queer film but if you want an actual queer movie then I would say The Birdcage. It has drag, it has family. It was at a time when gay marriage was not remotely legal anywhere and it’s a family story. Of course, I love Too Wong Foo but that is completely beyond the realms of reality, so The Birdcage wins in terms of those 90s queer movies because it has a lot of heart and I think it’s a sweet story. It’s also based on a musical so I love that. The Birdcage wins for me, just for Robin Williams calling out the choreographers alone.
Your fave queer show is…
I was the same age as the Justin character in the American version of Queer as Folk. I remember identifying with that character because his prom was the same year as my prom, and I was an out gay student in high school and I was really nervous to go. I remember in his episode, he was gay-bashed at his prom. So, that was a fear of mine but the happy ending of my story is I ended up being the prom king, which I wasn’t expecting! I remember that show being really formative in my understanding of what my adult life was going to be like. And it’s such a product of its time, it gave me a little guide book. I was living in conservative Orange County at the time, and I didn’t know what gay life was like, so it taught me a lot which was really important at that age because I didn’t know anything. No one teaches you how to be gay. It taught me about rimming!
Your fave queer singer is…
It has to be Freddie Mercury. One, just for his sheer talent alone. Two… Freddie Mercury, you can correct me if I’m wrong, I believe is of Parsis descent, the Persian people who immigrated to India. So, we share that lineage in common. He was so bold, so daring, so talented and was really trying to be as unapologetically queer as was possible in that time period. I’ll have to give it to Freddie Mercury, what an icon. To do a music video in drag?! Come on!
Your fave queer album is…
Album? Who owns albums?! The last album I bought was probably like… Independent Women by Destiny’s Child! I just have Spotify make a playlist out of things. If I’m listening to an album, I guess it’s usually a musical theatre album front to back. Probably the most recent album I listened to was Six, which I think we can say is a queer album? It’s all women, and I love supporting women, which is certainly a big part of my drag, so Six the Musical. Shout out to Lucy Moss, the amazing director.
Your fave queer anthem is…
The hot new single that came out this summer, Put Your Gay Hands Up by Jan, Alaska and Peppermint. It is the gay anthem. Whenever it comes on I am lit. I love it. I love Jan, so I’m proud to say that it is my queer anthem. Put your gay hands up baby!
Your fave queer venue is…
It was Therapy in New York City, but sadly, it was a casualty of the pandemic. My new favourite queer venue, and I just went there for the first time, is one of the oldest big clubs that has been open in the United States: The Max in Omaha. If you are ever in Omaha, you have to check The Max. It is a fabulous queer venue. One of the bartenders has been working there for 37 years and was so amazing, telling me all about the history of the people who have come through that venue. I just went there during my tour for the first time, two weeks ago. Also, my favourite venue in New York that has opened recently is The Queue. There are a lot of new things happening, some old places still surviving, but sadly some places we have lost.
Your fave queer activist is…
I’m gonna play this differently with my favourite queer historical icon, Alan Turing. How amazing, to help us win the war and be a nerd, we love that. We love math. I still think about Tia Kofi’s Alan Turning runway to this day! So, I’m gonna say Alan Turing even though I don’t think he was a queer activist, but I’m gonna say queer historical figure, how about that?
Your fave queer memory is…
That’s a good question. This is a little secret but right after I got the call that I was going to be on Drag Race, that very next week, Bravo hired me to be Lisa Rinna on their Pride float. It was the gayest time of my life. It was me, my friends Chelsea Piers and Paige Turner as drag housewives. A bunch of the actual housewives were on the float. Andy [Cohen] was on the float. It was the gayest moment of my life. I had so much fun that day. Pride 2019 was also the last Pride before COVID, so it was the big celebration of queerness that we now take for granted. We haven’t had a Pride like that since, so I’m hoping 2022 will bring back that Pride.
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