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114-539: One constant in Springfield's Entertainment District since 1902 has been Smith's Billiards, which has long hosted professional pool matches, as well as a mix of young and old virtually every-night. Another constant is Theodore's Blues Club - it has been in operation for nearly 30 years and has, on several occasions, been named the best blues club in the United States. The Mardi Gras is yet another Springfield institution - it

228-459: A slur , as well as those who wish to dissociate themselves from queer radicalism , and those who see it as amorphous and trendy. Some younger people feel queer is a more politically charged, more powerful term than LGBT . In a 2018 U.S. study, about 1 in 5 LGBTQ people identified as "queer". SGM , or GSM , an abbreviation for sexual and gender minorities , has gained particular currency in government, academia, and medicine. GSRM

342-462: A "P" for " polyamorous " or " pangender ", an "H" for " HIV-affected ", or an "O" for "other". The initialism LGBTIH has seen use in India to encompass the hijra third gender identity and the related subculture. Adding the term allies to the initialism has sparked controversy, with some seeing the inclusion of ally in place of asexual/aromantic/agender as a form of LGBT erasure . There

456-451: A "TS", "2S", or "2" for " two-spirit " persons; or an "SA" for " straight allies ". The inclusion of straight allies in the LGBT initialism has proven controversial, as many straight allies have been accused of using LGBT advocacy to gain popularity and status in recent years, and various LGBT activists have criticised the heteronormative worldview of certain straight allies. Some may also add

570-578: A DJ and dancing. Springfield's LGBT nightlife has grown exponentially since the Massachusetts Supreme Court legalized gay marriage in 2004. In 2011, the City of Springfield celebrated its first gay pride week, with rainbow flags adorning nearly every flag post in Metro Center, Springfield, Massachusetts and in 2010, The Advocate named Springfield one of its Top 15 gay cities. According to

684-406: A beauty collection. Released alongside the line was a unisex perfume entitled " Glamazon ". Talking to World of Wonder he said: "Glamazon is for women and men of all ages and preferences who share one thing in common: They are not afraid to be fierce. For me, glamour should be accessible to all, and I am committed to helping the world look and smell more beautiful." The line was exclusively sold on

798-505: A daytime talk show titled RuPaul premiered. It was cancelled after a three-week test run, since it was not picked by any Fox TV stations. He also appeared in Taylor Swift 's " You Need to Calm Down " music video. In late 2019, the first season of RuPaul's Drag Race UK was released on BBC3 . It was well-received, with The Guardian stating that the British version had "saved"

912-417: A deficiency or a temporary state. Similarly, aromantic individuals lack romantic attraction to others, yet they can still forge profound emotional connections and strong bonds with people without the romantic component. Furthermore, agender individuals either have no gender identity or possess a neutral or genderless gender identity. Some people have mistakenly claimed the A stands for ally, but allies are not

1026-493: A derogatory term originating in hate speech and reject it, especially among older members of the community. Many variants of the term LGBT exist, such as the more inclusive LGBT+ and variations that change the order of the letters or include additional letters. At least some of the components of sexuality (regarding hetero, bi, straight), and also gender are stated to be on different spectrums of sexuality . Other common variants also exist, such as LGBTQIA , with

1140-674: A guest "chef". In March 2009, RuPaul released the album Champion . The album spawned four singles " Cover Girl ", " Jealous of My Boogie ", "Devil Made Me Do It", and "Tranny Chaser". The album peaked at number 12 on the Billboard Dance/Electronic Albums as well as 26 on the Billboard Top Heatseekers chart. Logo's second annual NewNowNext Awards in 2009 were hosted by RuPaul. There he performed "Jealous of My Boogie (Gomi & RasJek Edit)". In March 2010, RuPaul released his second remix album, Drag Race ,

1254-449: A housing and condominium stock full of extraordinary architecture, and an (at that time just) budding bohemian arts and entertainment scene. This combination attracted many LGBT residents who stayed in Springfield and have made its gay nightlife one of the most worthwhile between New York and Montreal. Currently, Springfield features five full-time gay bars and clubs, and numerous other bars and clubs hosting gay nights. As of 2011, Springfield

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1368-563: A judge. On March 2, 2015, RuPaul released his eighth studio album, Realness . The release coincided with the premiere of the seventh season of RuPaul's Drag Race . In April, he launched and began hosting a new show, Good Work , a plastic surgery-themed talk show for E! . In October he released his second Christmas album , and ninth studio album, Slay Belles . The album contains ten original Christmas-themed songs and features collaborations with Michelle Visage , Siedah Garrett , Todrick Hall , and Big Freedia . The album charted at 21 on

1482-496: A large part in RuPaul's Drag Race ' s continuous television success. By pioneering queer representation on television, many believe RuPaul to have essentially revolutionised the portrayal of the LGBTQ + community on screen. He first won an Emmy for his work on the show in 2016, and one year later the show garnered eight nominations, including Outstanding Reality-Competition Program for

1596-450: A marginalized group and mentions of A for ally have regularly sparked controversy as a form of LGBT erasure . The initialisms LGBT or GLBT are not agreed to by everyone that they encompass. For example, some argue that transgender and transsexual causes are not the same as that of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) people. This argument centers on the idea that being transgender or transsexual has to do more with gender identity, or

1710-472: A musical guest. On May 4, 2020, it was announced that RuPaul would be on The Price Is Right at Night airing May 11. He also made an appearance in the premiere episode of Canada's Drag Race . In August 2021, RuPaul guest hosted two episodes of the talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live! ; he also interviewed RuPaul's Drag Race season 13 winner Symone on the program. He did voice work in Amphibia portraying

1824-430: A new album would be released the week after. The album, named Remember Me: Essential, Vol. 1 was put up for pre-order on February 2 and eventually released the next day. It is a collection of new songs and remakes of classic RuPaul hits that feature new artists. Two singles have been released from the album so far: "Rock It (To The Moon)" which is a new song loosely based on the lyrics and the melody of "Hey Booty" which

1938-527: A person's understanding of being or not being a man or a woman irrespective of their sexual orientation. LGB issues can be seen as a matter of sexual orientation or attraction. These distinctions have been made in the context of political action in which LGB goals, such as same-sex marriage legislation and human rights work (which may not include transgender and intersex people), may be perceived to differ from transgender and transsexual goals. A belief in "lesbian and gay separatism" (not to be confused with

2052-400: A post- transition trans woman would "probably not" be accepted onto the show, noting that at the time of competition Peppermint had not yet had breast implants . After facing criticism on social media and from former contestants for his remarks, RuPaul compared trans drag queens who had transitioned to athletes who had taken performance-enhancing drugs . He subsequently expressed regret for

2166-442: A public service announcement supporting National Voter Registration Day and urging everyone to register. As RuPaul said voter ID laws vary from state to state; the details of the voter ID required in each state are provided by HeadCount and VoteRiders . As one in five LGBTQ adults are not registered to vote, voter registration efforts have expanded recently. Several stars from RuPaul's Drag Race act as Ambassadors for Drag Out

2280-564: A reality television game show which aired on Logo in February 2009. On the program drag queens compete to be selected by RuPaul and a panel of judges as "America's next drag superstar". The first season's winner was BeBe Zahara Benet , and first runner-up Nina Flowers was chosen by fans as "Miss Congeniality" through voting via the show's official website. To publicize the new show, RuPaul appeared on several other shows in 2008, including Project Runway , as guest judge, and on Paula's Party as

2394-473: A small donation from the Manhattan Association of Cabarets. The Instagram post RuPaul made prior to the establishment of the fund called on followers to vote, saying, "Register to vote so we can get those stunt queens out of office." The video ends with the statement, "By the way, a social media post has never been as powerful as a registered vote." Lauren Herold of Mic.com deemed RuPaul "arguably

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2508-681: A star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contributions to the television industry. RuPaul has made appearances in films, including Crooklyn (1994), The Brady Bunch Movie (1995), and But I'm a Cheerleader (1999), as well as television series, including Girlboss and Broad City (both 2017). He created and starred in the Netflix original series AJ and the Queen (2020). RuPaul has also published four books: Lettin' It All Hang Out (1995), Workin' It! RuPaul's Guide to Life, Liberty, and

2622-569: A talk show of his own on VH1 , called The RuPaul Show interviewing celebrity guests and musical acts. Cher , Diana Ross , Nirvana , Duran Duran , Pat Benatar , Mary J. Blige , Bea Arthur , Dionne Warwick , Cyndi Lauper , Olivia Newton-John , Beenie Man , Pete Burns , Bow Wow Wow , and the Backstreet Boys were notable guests. His co-host was Michelle Visage with whom he also co-hosted on WKTU radio. On one episode, RuPaul featured guests Chi Chi LaRue and Tom Chase speaking about

2736-448: A term used primarily in scientific contexts, has at times carried negative connotations in the United States. Gay became a popular term in the 1970s. As lesbians forged more public identities, the phrase gay and lesbian became more common. A dispute as to whether the primary focus of their political aims should be feminism or gay rights led to the dissolution of some lesbian organizations, including Daughters of Bilitis , which

2850-508: A way of distinguishing themselves from what they regard as white -dominated LGBT communities. In public health settings, MSM (" men who have sex with men ") is clinically used to describe men who have sex with other men without referring to their sexual orientation, with WSW (" women who have sex with women ") also used as an analogous term. MVPFAFF is an abbreviation for Māhū , Vakasalewa , Palopa , Fa'afafine , Akava'ine , Fakaleitī (Leiti), and Fakafifine . This term

2964-561: Is "easily the world's most famous drag queen." In 2017, RuPaul was included in the annual Time 100 list of the most influential people in the world. Born and raised in San Diego, California , RuPaul later studied performing arts in Atlanta, Georgia , before relocating to New York City, where he became a popular fixture on the LGBT nightclub scene . He achieved international fame as a drag queen with

3078-605: Is 70% African and 30% European. After his parents divorced in 1967, RuPaul and his three sisters lived with their mother, a Seventh-day Adventist . He was raised in the Catholic faith and attended Patrick Henry High School . At 15, RuPaul and his sister Renetta moved to Atlanta, where they studied performing arts. RuPaul struggled as a musician and filmmaker during the 1980s, working at Atlanta's Plaza Theatre . In 1982, he debuted on an Atlanta public access variety show called The American Music Show , and went on to appear on

3192-484: Is a dive bar that attracts a younger crowd and usually plays punk and industrial music. Glo Ultra Lounge is a popular club on Saturday nights, with a swanky atmosphere and light show. Petra, next door to Glo, is Springfield's only hookah bar. The Pub Lounge was, until very recently an LGBT bar; however, now it has shifted its focus to a sports bar. Adolfo's is an Italian restaurant serving fine cuisine made from fresh, local ingredients - with an outdoor bar that features

3306-505: Is also the acronym QUILTBAG (queer and questioning, unsure, intersex, lesbian, transgender and two-spirit, bisexual, asexual and aromantic, and gay and genderqueer). Similarly LGBTIQA+ stands for "lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer/questioning, asexual and many other terms (such as non-binary and pansexual)". In Canada , the community is sometimes identified as LGBTQ2 (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and two spirit). Depending on which organization

3420-703: Is also used to include romantic minorities such as aromanticism . In New Zealand, New Zealand Human Rights Commission uses "Rights of Sexual and Gender Minorities" to discuss LGBT rights. In India, the Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court of India , when decriminalizing homosexuality in the case of Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India (2018) , said: Individuals belonging to sexual and gender minorities experience discrimination, stigmatization, and, in some cases, denial of care on account of their sexual orientation and gender identity. However, it

3534-401: Is an umbrella term , broadly referring to all sexualities , romantic orientations , and gender identities which are not heterosexual , heteroromantic , or cisgender . In the 1990s, gay, lesbian, and bisexual activists adopted the term LGB , supplanting narrower terms such as "gay or lesbian". Terminology eventually shifted to LGBT , as transgender people became more accepted within

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3648-554: Is important to note that 'sexual and gender minorities' do not constitute a homogenous group, and experiences of social exclusion, marginalization, and discrimination, as well as specific health needs, vary considerably. Nevertheless, these individuals are united by one factor - that their exclusion, discrimination and marginalization is rooted in societal heteronormativity and society's pervasive bias towards gender binary and opposite-gender relationships, which marginalizes and excludes all non-heteronormative sexual and gender identities. In

3762-520: Is inclusive of "those who may not self-identify as LGBT ... or those who have a specific medical condition affecting reproductive development". A publication from the White House Office of Management and Budget states, "We believe that SGM is more inclusive, because it includes persons not specifically referenced by the identities listed in LGBT." A UK government paper favors SGM because initials like LGBTIQ+ stand for terms that, especially outside

3876-449: Is intended as a term encompassing all sexual- and gender-minorities. For some indigenous people , two-spirit invokes a combination of identities, including sexual, gender, cultural, and spiritual. Some people advocate the term "minority sexual and gender identities" (MSGI, coined in 2000) for the purpose of explicitly including all people who are not cisgender and heterosexual or "gender, sexual, and romantic minorities" (GSRM), which

3990-416: Is more explicitly inclusive of minority romantic orientations , but those have not been widely adopted either. Other rare umbrella terms are Gender and Sexual Diversities (GSD), MOGII (Marginalized Orientations, Gender Identities, and Intersex) and MOGAI (Marginalized Orientations, Gender Alignments and Intersex). SGL ( same gender loving ) is sometimes favored among gay male African Americans as

4104-612: Is outside of their own belief system. His next two singles/videos, " Back to My Roots " and " A Shade Shady (Now Prance) ", both went to the top spot on the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart and furthered his campy persona. His following release " House of Love " failed to place on any U.S. charts but peaked at 68 on the UK Singles Chart . RuPaul was signed to a modeling contract for MAC Cosmetics . Various billboards featured him in full drag, often with

4218-588: Is the largest and most elaborate gentleman's club north of New York City and south of Montreal, (including Boston.) With over 300 "Gras girls" on monthly rotation and its own magazine, the Mardi Gras is not one's average strip club. The Shadow Lounge attracts a younger crowd with a "swanky" atmosphere. Shakago's is a martini, jazz, and piano bar on Hampden Street. Alumni is geared toward the college and post-graduate scene, with live rock music and DJs; however, one can also play games like Keno there. Fat Cat Bar & Grille

4332-664: Is using the abbreviation, the choice of initialism changes. Businesses and the CBC often simply employ LGBT as a proxy for any longer abbreviation, private activist groups often employ LGBTQ+ , whereas public health providers favour the more inclusive LGBT2Q+ to accommodate twin spirited indigenous peoples . For a time, the Pride Toronto organization used the much lengthier initialism LGBTTIQQ2SA , but appears to have dropped this in favour of simpler wording. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

4446-564: Is widely considered a highly "gay friendly city," with two openly gay city councilman. Recently, the New England gay publication The Rainbow Times declared Springfield, "suddenly gay." Since 1926, an entertainment venue has occupied the site of The Paramount Theater, (most recently known as The Hippodrome,) at 1700 Main Street next to Springfield's famous Gothic railway arch. Built at a cost of over $ 1 million in 1926 dollars, The Paramount Theater

4560-549: The 2010 Census , Springfield, more than any other major Massachusetts city, has been greatly impacted by the recent influx of LGBT residents. Boston, Cambridge, Northampton, and Provincetown were long-considered gay-friendly destinations before the Massachusetts Supreme Court ruling; however, Springfield was not. At the time when gay marriage was legalized in Massachusetts, Springfield featured low real-estate prices,

4674-846: The FBI agent Mr. X. He has been hosting a revival of the game show Lingo for CBS since 2023, as well as the Celebrity Lingo spinoff of the British version of the show on ITV . He won the Tony Award for Best Musical in 2022 as a producer of the Broadway musical A Strange Loop . He also voices himself as the announcer on The Tiny Chef Show . HarperCollins published the RuPaul memoir The House of Hidden Meanings in March 2024. The podcast RuPaul: What's

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4788-654: The Global North , are "not necessarily inclusive of local understandings and terms used to describe sexual and gender minorities". An example of usage outside the Global North is the Constitution of Nepal , which identifies "gender and sexual minorities" as a protected class. In Canada especially, the term 2SLGBTQ+ is seen, with the first two characters standing for two-spirit ; the whole term stands for two-spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer and questioning, and

4902-490: The I standing for intersex and the A standing for asexual , aromantic , or agender , and LGBTQIA+ , where "the '+' represents those who are part of the community, but for whom LGBTQ does not accurately capture or reflect their identity". Longer initialisms have been criticized as confusing or unwieldy, sometimes being referred to as " alphabet soup ", and mocked with labels such as LGBTQWERTY , LGBTQXYZ , and alphabet mafia . The implication that

5016-446: The essentialist view that they had been born homosexual and used the descriptor lesbian to define sexual attraction often considered the separatist opinions of lesbian-feminists to be detrimental to the cause of gay rights. Bisexual and transgender people also sought recognition as legitimate categories within the larger minority community. In the late 1970s and the early 1980s, after the elation of change following group action in

5130-538: The " Drag U Theme Song", and a new song, "Sexy Drag Queen". The second season of RuPaul's Drag U began in June 2011. In late 2011, promotions for season 4 of Drag Race began. RuPaul made appearances on The Rosie Show and The Chew , and also attended a Drag Race NY Premiere party at Patricia Field 's store in New York. Season 4 of RuPaul's Drag Race premiered on Logo on January 30, 2012, with RuPaul returning as

5244-674: The 1969 Stonewall riots in New York City , some gays and lesbians became less accepting of bisexual or transgender people. Critics said that transgender people were acting out stereotypes , and bisexuals were simply gay men or lesbian women who were afraid to come out and be honest about their identity. Each community has struggled to develop its own identity including whether, and how, to align with other gender and sexuality-based communities, at times excluding other subgroups; these conflicts continue to this day. LGBTQ activists and artists have created posters to raise consciousness about

5358-517: The Colorevolution website in various gift sets. RuPaul and Revolucian both confirmed through their Twitter and Instagram accounts that they had been working on an upcoming seventh studio album. Born Naked was released on February 24, 2014, to coincide with the premiere of the 6th season of RuPaul's Drag Race . Prior to the premiere an album of RuPaul cover songs performed by the Season 6 cast

5472-629: The Dance Floor" which is a re-recording of the 2010 single "Main Event" from the album Champion . On June 22, 2017, it was announced that RuPaul would receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contributions to the television industry. He was awarded the honor on March 16, 2018, making him the first drag queen to be given the award. In August 2018, it was announced that RuPaul will be releasing his third Christmas album in October 2018. In June 2019,

5586-699: The LGBT category to create an LGBTI community. Some intersex people prefer the initialism LGBTI , while others would rather that they not be included as part of the term. Emi Koyama describes how inclusion of intersex in LGBTI can fail to address intersex-specific human rights issues, including creating false impressions "that intersex people's rights are protected" by laws protecting LGBT people, and failing to acknowledge that many intersex people are not LGBT. Organisation Intersex International Australia states that some intersex individuals are same-sex attracted, and some are heterosexual, but "LGBTI activism has fought for

5700-600: The New England Farm Workers' Council and renamed The Paramount Theater. Currently, the Paramount is in the midst of a $ 1.725 million renovation. 42°6′15.3″N 72°35′32.2″W  /  42.104250°N 72.592278°W  / 42.104250; -72.592278 LGBT LGBTQ (also commonly seen as LGBT , LGBT+ , LGBTQ+ , and LGBTQIA+ ) is an initialism for lesbian , gay , bisexual , transgender and queer or questioning . It

5814-676: The Pursuit of Style (2010), GuRu (2018), and The House of Hidden Meanings (2024). As a recording artist, he has released fifteen studio albums . RuPaul was born in San Diego on November 17, 1960, the son of Ernestine "Toni" (née Fontenette) and Irving Andrew Charles. His parents were both from Louisiana . He was named by his mother; "Ru" came from roux , the French term for the base of gumbo and other creole stews and soups. According to DNA analysis by Finding Your Roots staff, his ancestry

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5928-401: The T. The campaign has been condemned by many LGBT groups as transphobic . Many have expressed desire for an umbrella term to replace existing initialisms. Queer gained popularity as an umbrella-term for sexual and gender minorities in the 21st century. The term remains controversial, particularly among older LGBT people, who perceive it as offensive due to its historical usage as

6042-451: The Tee? With Michelle Visage debuted on April 6, 2014. Ru-Paul co-hosts with longtime friend and fellow RuPaul's Drag Race judge Michelle Visage . The weekly show features their thoughts on topics including behind-the-scenes of RuPaul's Drag Race , life advice, beauty tips, and conversations with featured guests from the entertainment world. In 2018, RuPaul was one of the actors who voiced

6156-482: The US Billboard Dance chart. In January 2016, it was announced RuPaul would present a new game show for Logo TV called Gay for Play Game Show Starring RuPaul which premiered on April 11, 2016, after RuPaul's Drag Race . In February 2016, he announced his tenth album, Butch Queen . It was released in March 2016, just prior to the premiere of the eighth season of RuPaul's Drag Race . A song from

6270-564: The US Billboard dance chart and 85 on the Billboard 200 chart. In a profile by The New York Times it was revealed that he is currently working on a porcelain statuette of his likeness. On April 9, 2014, RuPaul and Michelle Visage released the first episode of their podcast, RuPaul: What's the Tee? with Michelle Visage . In August, he joined the reality competition show Skin Wars acting as

6384-681: The US, the term "Sexual and Gender Minority" has been adopted by the National Institutes of Health , the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the UCLA Williams Institute , which studies SGM law and policy. Duke University and the University of California San Francisco both have prominent sexual and gender minority health programs. An NIH paper recommends the term SGM because it

6498-595: The Vote. In March 2023, in response to the Tennessee Adult Entertainment Act, RuPaul, World of Wonder producers Randy Barbarto and Fenton Bailey, and MTV began a fund to fight anti-drag initiatives. The ACLU maintains the fund, which received donations from efforts at DragCon LA 2023, the "Drag Isn't Dangerous" livestream telethon, "Can't Hold us Down", "Born This Way", and "God Save the Queens", as well as

6612-830: The acronym. Many further variants exist which add additional identities, such as LGBTQIA+ (for intersex , asexual , aromantic , and agender ) and 2SLGBTQ+ (for two-spirit ), LGBTQQ (for queer and questioning), or which order the letters differently, as in GLBT and GLBTQ . The collective of all LGBTQ people is often called the LGBTQ community . These labels are not universally agreed upon by everyone that they are intended to include. For example, some intersex people prefer to be included in this grouping, while others do not. Various alternative umbrella terms exist across various cultures, including queer ; same gender loving (SGL); and Gender, Sexual and Romantic Minorities (GSRM). The first widely used term, homosexual , now

6726-548: The album features remixes of songs from the 2009 album Champion . In April 2011, coinciding with the finale of season 3 of RuPaul's Drag Race , RuPaul released his sixth studio album Glamazon , produced by Revolucian , who previously worked with RuPaul on his album Champion . The album charted on Billboard's Dance/Electronic Albums and the Billboard Top Heatseekers chart at 11 and 8 respectively. In July 2011, he released another remix EP entitled SuperGlam DQ which features remixes of tracks from Glamazon , remixes of

6840-473: The album was a re-recording of "Supermodel (You Better Work)", which reached number 21 on the U.S. dance chart. June 20, 2007, saw the release of Starrbooty: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack in the United States. The single "Call Me Starrbooty" was digitally released in 2007. The album contains new tracks as well as interludes with dialogue from the movie. The film was released on DVD in October 2007. In mid-2008, RuPaul began producing RuPaul's Drag Race ,

6954-441: The album, "U Wear It Well" was featured in the teaser campaigns for the season and was later officially released as the first single on iTunes in February 2016. The album charted at number 3 on the US Billboard Dance chart, marking his highest position on this chart to date (2016?). "'Be Someone" featuring American singer Taylor Dayne was released as the album's second and final single. Additionally, Butch Queen: The Ru-Mixes

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7068-718: The audiobook A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo . Launched through production company World of Wonder , RuPaul's DragCon LA is an annual drag-themed convention held in Los Angeles which started in 2015, followed by RuPaul's DragCon NYC . It began in 2007 in New York City; the public is able to meet with RuPaul, former RuPaul's Drag Race contestants, and other drag queens. The conventions feature performances, meet-and-greet booths, merchandise sales and panel discussions. RuPaul has been an active supporter of voter registration, producing

7182-504: The dance chart. The second, " WorkOut ", peaked at number five. The third and final single from the album "People Are People" a duet with Tom Trujillo, peaked at number 10. The album itself only charted on the Top Electronic Albums chart, where it hit number nine. RuPaul later noted, "Well, betrayed might be the wrong word. 'Betrayed' alludes to an idea that there was some kind of a promise made to me, and there never was. More so, I

7296-434: The early 2010s, asexuality and aromanticism started gaining wider recognition. Around 2015, they were included in the expanded initialism LGBTQIA , with the A standing for asexual , aromantic , commonly grouped together as a-spec along with agender . Asexual individuals experience minimal to no sexual attraction to others, and it is crucial to acknowledge that asexuality is a legitimate sexual orientation, not

7410-455: The entertainment industry, particularly the gay press . In one incident, it was noted that Entertainment Weekly refused to review the album, instead asking him to make a comedic contribution to a fashion article. He likened the experience to "a black person being invited to a party, but only if they'll serve." Despite his apparent dissatisfaction with the release, Red Hot' s lead single " Looking Good, Feeling Gorgeous " peaked at number two on

7524-582: The existence or right to equality of bisexual orientations and of transsexuality, sometimes leading to public biphobia and transphobia . In contrasts to separatists, Peter Tatchell of the LGBT human rights group OutRage! argues that to separate the transgender movement from the LGB would be "political madness", stating that: Queers are, like transgender people, gender deviant. We don't conform to traditional heterosexist assumptions of male and female behaviour, in that we have sexual and emotional relationships with

7638-521: The first time in its 11-season run, and a second consecutive win for RuPaul in the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program . In 2017, he was included in the annual Time 100 list of the most influential people in the world. In 2019, Fortune noted RuPaul as "easily the world's most famous" drag queen. RuPaul has been the subject of multiple controversies regarding his comments and actions towards

7752-584: The franchise. It was renewed for a second season which was released in 2021. RuPaul also created and starred in the Netflix drama-comedy show AJ and the Queen as a drag queen touring the country with an unlikely young sidekick, which was released on January 10, 2020. On March 6, 2020, Netflix announced that the series had been cancelled. Also in January 2020, it was announced that RuPaul would host Saturday Night Live on February 8, 2020, with Justin Bieber as

7866-659: The gay porn industry. Later in the year he released his second album, Foxy Lady , this time on the L.A.-based Rhino Records label. The album failed to chart on the Billboard 200. However, its first single " Snapshot " went to number four on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart. It also enjoyed limited mainstream success, charting at 95 on the Billboard Hot 100, which was his second and final solo Hot 100 entry to date. The album's second single " A Little Bit of Love "

7980-450: The initialism refers to a single community is also controversial. Although identical in meaning, LGBT may have a more feminist connotation than GLBT as it places the "L" (for "lesbian") first. LGBT may also include additional Qs for " queer " or " questioning " (sometimes abbreviated with a question mark and sometimes used to mean anybody not literally L, G, B or T) producing the variants LGBTQ and LGBTQQ . The order of

8094-603: The issue since the movement began. From about 1988, activists began to use the initialism LGBT in the United States. Not until the 1990s within the movement did gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people gain equal respect. This spurred some organizations to adopt new names, as the GLBT Historical Society did in 1999. Although the LGBT community has seen much controversy regarding universal acceptance of different member groups (bisexual and transgender individuals, in particular, have sometimes been marginalized by

8208-463: The larger LGBT community), the term LGBT has been a positive symbol of inclusion . Beginning in the 1990s, the term queer was beginning to be adopted by the community to support gay-pride and reclaim the term from its earlier pejorative use as scholars have shown. The field of study of the LGBTQ community is called queer studies , in recognition of this reclamation and used as an umbrella term for

8322-681: The late 1990s and was hired at WNEW in 2004. In 1993, RuPaul recorded the dance/ house album Supermodel of the World . It was released through the rap label Tommy Boy , spawning the dance track hit " Supermodel (You Better Work) ". The song peaked at 45 on the Billboard Hot 100 . It charted on the UK Singles Chart , peaking on the top 40 at 39. The song found the most success on the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, where it peaked at 2. Radio airplay, heavy rotation of

8436-413: The letters has not been standardized; in addition to the variations between the positions of the initial "L" or "G", the mentioned, less common letters, if used, may appear in almost any order. In Hebrew and Peninsular Spanish , LGTB ( להט"ב ) is used, that is, reversing the letters "B" and "T". Variant terms do not typically represent political differences within the community, but arise simply from

8550-406: The main host and judge. After season 4 ended TV.com declared it was the best reality TV show on television. In the fall of 2012, the spin-off RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars premiered after a large fan demand. The show featured past contestants of the previous four seasons to compete. Season 5 of RuPaul's Drag Race premiered on January 28, 2013, with a 90-minute special and RuPaul returning as

8664-422: The main host and judge. On April 30, 2013, he released a single "Lick It Lollipop" featuring Lady Bunny , who RuPaul previously collaborated with on Champion . On October 25, 2013, he reported via Twitter that the new album would be released in January 2014. In fall of 2013, RuPaul joined forces with cosmetic manufacturers Colorevolution to launch his debut make-up line featuring ultra-rich pigment cosmetics and

8778-583: The most commercially successful drag queen in America." Sami Main of Adweek credited him with creating wider exposure for drag queens from LGBT culture into mainstream society, thanks to his early-career chart success, and later, the successive climb in viewership of RuPaul's Drag Race . His talk show The RuPaul Show was the first-ever national talk show to have a drag queen as a host. Along with his partner Michelle Visage, he welcomed an array of high-profile guests such as Cher , Lil Kim , and Diana Ross over

8892-444: The movement. Around that time, some activists began to reclaim the term queer , seeing it as a more radical and inclusive umbrella term, though others reject it, due to its history as a pejorative . In recognition of this, the 2010s saw the adoption of LGBTQ , and other more inclusive variants. Some versions of the term, such as LGBT+ and LGBTQ+ add a plus sign , to represent additional identities not captured within

9006-427: The music video on MTV , and television appearances on popular programs like The Arsenio Hall Show popularized the song. What other people think of me is not my business. What I do is what I do. How people see me doesn't change what I decide to do. I don't choose projects so people don't see me as one thing or another. I choose projects that excite me. I think the problem is that people refuse to understand what drag

9120-412: The myth that being gay/lesbian/bi/asexual/pansexual/etc. makes a person deficiently different from other people. These people are often less visible compared to more mainstream gay or LGBT activists. Since this faction is difficult to distinguish from the heterosexual majority, it is common for people to assume all LGBT people support LGBT liberation and the visibility of LGBT people in society, including

9234-549: The one-act science-fiction parody "My Pet Homo", written and directed by Jon Michael Johnson for Cooper Square Productions. He performed for many years at the annual Wigstock drag festival and appeared in the documentary Wigstock: The Movie . In the 1990s, RuPaul appeared on the UK Channel 4 series Manhattan Cable , a weekly series produced by World of Wonder and presented by American Laurie Pike about New York's public-access television system. He also worked at WKTU in

9348-400: The preferences of individuals and groups. The terms pansexual , omnisexual , fluid and queer-identified are regarded as falling under the umbrella term bisexual (and therefore are considered a part of the bisexual community ). Some use LGBT+ to mean "LGBT and related communities". Other variants may have a "U" for "unsure"; a "C" for "curious"; another "T" for " transvestite ";

9462-493: The producers issued a statement promising "to help spread love, acceptance and understanding" and Logo TV removed the "You've got she-mail" phrase from subsequent broadcasts, replacing it instead with the phrase "She done already done had herses." RuPaul criticized those attempting to police his language in bad faith and noted that tranny referred to transvestites and drag queens, not just trans women. In 2018, RuPaul gave an interview to The Guardian in which he stated that

9576-402: The reality competition series RuPaul's Drag Race and has received several accolades , including 14 Primetime Emmy Awards , three GLAAD Media Awards , a Critics' Choice Television Award , two Billboard Music Awards , and a Tony Award . He has been dubbed the "Queen of Drag" and is considered the most commercially successful drag queen in the United States, with Fortune saying that he

9690-410: The related " lesbian separatism ") holds that lesbians and gay men form (or should form) a community distinct and separate from other groups normally included in the LGBTQ sphere. While not always appearing in sufficient numbers or organization to be called a movement , separatists are a significant, vocal, and active element within many parts of the LGBT community. In some cases separatists will deny

9804-487: The release of his debut single, " Supermodel (You Better Work) ". RuPaul was a spokesperson for MAC Cosmetics in 1994, raising money for the Mac AIDS Fund and becoming the first drag queen to land a major cosmetics campaign. RuPaul's Drag Race was created in 2009 and has gone on to produce sixteen seasons in the United States. The show has also seen success internationally and there are several international variants of

9918-485: The right to live one's life differently from the majority. In the 1996 book Anti-Gay , a collection of essays edited by Mark Simpson , the concept of a 'one-size-fits-all' identity based on LGBT stereotypes is criticized for suppressing the individuality of LGBT people. Writing in the BBC News Magazine in 2014, Julie Bindel questions whether the various gender groupings now, "bracketed together[,] ... share

10032-772: The rights of people who fall outside of expected binary sex and gender norms". Julius Kaggwa of SIPD Uganda has written that, while the gay community "offers us a place of relative safety, it is also oblivious to our specific needs". Numerous studies have shown higher rates of same-sex attraction in intersex people, with a recent Australian study of people born with atypical sex characteristics finding that 52% of respondents were non-heterosexual; thus, research on intersex subjects has been used to explore means of preventing homosexuality. As an experience of being born with sex characteristics that do not fit social norms, intersex can be distinguished from transgender, while some intersex people are both intersex and transgender. In

10146-419: The same day, the ninth regular season of RuPaul's Drag Race debuted on basic cable channel VH1, home of RuPaul's talk show in the 1990s. It moved from the expanded cable channel Logo TV which aired all previous seasons of the show. The season 9 premiere featured singer Lady Gaga as its guest judge and was a success, with ratings of nearly 1,000,000 viewers making it the series' most viewed episode. The number

10260-430: The same issues, values and goals?" Bindel refers to a number of possible new initialisms for differing combinations and concludes that it may be time for the alliances to either be reformed or go their "separate ways". In 2015, the slogan " Drop the T " was coined to encourage LGBT organizations to stop support of transgender people as they say that sexual orientation, LGB, does not share similarity with gender identity,

10374-523: The same sex. We should celebrate our discordance with mainstream straight norms. The portrayal of an all-encompassing "LGBT community" or "LGB community" is also disliked by some lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people. Some do not subscribe to or approve of the political and social solidarity, and visibility and human rights campaigning that normally goes with it, including LGBT pride marches and events. Some of them believe that grouping together people with non-heterosexual orientations perpetuates

10488-516: The show frequently. He also took part in underground cinema , helping create the low-budget film Star Booty and an album of the same name. In Atlanta he often performed at the Celebrity Club, managed by Larry Tee , as a bar dancer or with his band, Wee Wee Pole. RuPaul also performed as a backup singer to Glen Meadmore along with drag queen Vaginal Davis . His first prominent national exposure came in 1989, when he danced as an extra in

10602-555: The show's 100-episode span. As well as having a variety of comedy skits , the show was noted for discussing topics such as black empowerment, female empowerment , misogyny , and liberal politics that were otherwise unheard of in 1990s television at the time. In 1999, RuPaul was awarded the Vito Russo Award at the GLAAD Media Awards for work in promoting equality in the LGBT community . RuPaul has also been noted as having

10716-436: The show's use of words such as tranny and shemale , including the main challenge announcement phrase up to season 6, "You've got she-mail", which they described as transphobic . That year's season also included a "Female or She-male" segment that required contestants to guess whether various photographs featured cisgender "biological women" or "psychological women" (drag queens), causing further criticism. RuPaul and

10830-531: The show, including RuPaul's Drag Race UK (2019–present) and Canada's Drag Race (2020–present). This has also inspired several spin-offs of the main show, such as RuPaul's Drag U (2010–2012), RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars , (2012–present), and RuPaul's Secret Celebrity Drag Race (2020–2022). His other television work includes The RuPaul Show (1996–1998), Skin Wars (2014–2016), Good Work (2015), Gay for Play Game Show Starring RuPaul (2016–2017), and RuPaul (2019). In 2018, RuPaul received

10944-819: The show, including Sonique , Carmen Carrera , Jiggly Caliente , Monica Beverly Hillz , Kenya Michaels , and Gia Gunn . Later seasons of the show have included contestants who had already disclosed their trans identity prior to their season beginning. In 2017, Peppermint became the first contestant to compete throughout her season as an openly trans woman and in 2021 Gottmik was the first to compete as an openly trans man . Other non-conforming gender identities expressed by former contestants include both non-binary ( Jinkx Monsoon , Aja , Valentina , Divina de Campo , Ginny Lemon , Violet Chachki , and Sasha Velour ) and genderfluid ( Courtney Act and Kelly Mantle ) persons. In 2014, trans activists and former contestants Carmen Carrera and Monica Beverly Hillz criticized

11058-496: The single screen palaces in the area including The Rivoli and The Bing in Springfield, and The Calvin in Northampton. It was not until 1999 that the theater found a stable operator again. It was purchased, underwent a $ 1.3 million make-over, and converted into a lavish night club and performance space, known as The Hippodrome. The main floors seats were removed, but the 1,100 balcony seats were retained and restored. The original organ

11172-402: The term transsexual commonly falls under the umbrella term transgender , but some transsexual people object to this. Those who add intersex people to LGBT groups or organizations may use the extended initialism LGBTI , or LGBTIQ . The relationship of intersex to lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans, and queer communities is complex, but intersex people are often added to

11286-540: The text "I am the MAC girl". He also released his autobiography, Lettin' It All Hang Out . He promoted the book in part with a 1995 guest appearance on ABC 's All My Children , in a storyline that put it on the set of Erica Kane 's talk show "The Cutting Edge". The same year, he was featured in his first of two appearances in the Brady Bunch movies , in which he played Jan's female guidance counselor. The next year he landed

11400-422: The transgender community. According to Vox , he has a complicated relationship with this community, in part due to differing philosophies: through drag he seeks to mock gender and identity stereotypes, while in his view the trans community takes identity seriously. Nevertheless, RuPaul's Drag Race has featured a number of contestants who are trans women , some of whom made their identity public while competing on

11514-515: The video for The B-52s ' " Love Shack ". In the early 1990s, RuPaul worked the Georgia club scene and was known by his full birth name. Initially participating in gender bender -style performances, he performed solo and in collaboration with other bands at several New York City nightclubs, most notably the Pyramid Club . He played opposite New York City drag performer Mona Foot (Nashom Benjamin) in

11628-461: The wider community as the academic response to the Stonewall riots. The acronym LGBT eventually evolved to LGBTQ in recognition of the community's reclamation of the term. In 2016, GLAAD 's Media Reference Guide states that LGBTQ is the preferred initialism, being more inclusive of younger members of the communities who embrace queer as a self-descriptor. Some people consider queer to be

11742-741: Was also criticized for using the 2SLGBTQQIA+ initialism. As of July 2023, the Government of Canada's official term is 2SLGBTQI+ . Trudeau's new acronym was criticized by some social media users. The term trans* has been adopted by some groups as a more inclusive alternative to "transgender", where trans (without the asterisk) has been used to describe trans men and trans women , while trans* covers all non-cisgender ( genderqueer ) identities, including transgender, transsexual, transvestite, genderqueer, genderfluid , non-binary , genderfuck , genderless, agender, non-gendered, third gender, two-spirit, bigender , and trans man and trans woman. Likewise,

11856-491: Was developed by Phylesha Brown-Acton in 2010 at the Asia Pacific Games Human Rights Conference. This refers to those in the rainbow Pacific Islander community, who may or may not identify with the LGBT initialism. RuPaul RuPaul Andre Charles (born November 17, 1960) is an American drag queen , television host, singer, producer, writer, and actor. He produces, hosts, and judges

11970-566: Was disappointed. I don't feel like it was a betrayal. Nobody promises anything in show business and you understand that from day one. But, I don't know what happened. It seemed I couldn't get press on my album unless I was willing to play into the role that the mainstream press has assigned to gay people, which is as servants of straight ideals." On June 13, 2006, RuPaul released ReWorked , his first remix album and fifth album overall. It features reworked versions of songs from his back catalog, as well as new recordings. The only single released from

12084-404: Was double LogoTV's season 8 premiere ratings from the year prior, and triple VH1's usual Friday night viewership in that programming timeslot. World of Wonder Productions announced they were casting contestants for a tenth season when the ratings were released. On June 2, 2017, Essential, Vol. 2 was put up on pre-order on iTunes. It was released on June 9 and preceded by the single "Crying on

12198-500: Was founded by Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon , but disbanded in 1970 following disputes over which goal should take precedence. As equality was a priority for lesbian feminists , disparity of roles between men and women or butch and femme were viewed as patriarchal . Lesbian feminists eschewed gender role play that had been pervasive in bars as well as the perceived chauvinism of gay men ; many lesbian feminists refused to work with gay men or take up their causes. Lesbians who held

12312-555: Was included on the 1998 compilation CD RuPaul's Go Go Box Classics . During this time, he appeared in Webex TV commercials and magazine ads. In 2002, he was featured on the Eurodance track "You're No Lady" alongside Brigitte Nielsen . In 2004, RuPaul released his fourth album, Red Hot on his own RuCo Inc. music label. It received dance radio and club play, but very little press coverage. On his blog he discussed how he felt betrayed by

12426-535: Was not as successful, peaking at 28 on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart. During this time, RuPaul helped launch the return of WKTU radio in New York City and would serve as host of its morning show until 1998. In 1997, he released his third album, the Christmas-themed Ho Ho Ho . That year, RuPaul teamed with Martha Wash to remake the classic disco anthem, " It's Raining Men ". The song

12540-553: Was released on January 28, 2014. The covers album is titled RuPaul Presents The CoverGurlz and contains RuPaul songs from 2009 to 2013. To further promote the Drag Race season premiere, RuPaul, representing Logo TV (and parent company Viacom ) was chosen to ring the NASDAQ closing bell on February 24, 2014. The week of its release, Born Naked reached number one on the iTunes dance album chart. The following week it placed at number 4 on

12654-813: Was released on the Starrbooty soundtrack in 2007, and an updated version of RuPaul's 1996 hit single "Snapshot" from the album Foxy Lady . The album failed to chart on the Dance Albums Chart but managed to debut at number four on the Billboard Dance Albums Sales Chart in the United States. It also charted at number eleven on the UK Dance Albums Chart, becoming RuPaul's highest-charting album on that chart, after Realness managed to debut and peak at number 13. On March 24, 2017, RuPaul released his eleventh studio album, American . Later on

12768-631: Was released. In July 2016, it was announced that RuPaul was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program . He was presented the award at the September Creative Arts Emmy Awards Ceremony . 2016 also saw the release of the single "Read U Wrote U" that features rap parts by the RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars 2 finalists Roxxxy Andrews , Katya Zamolodchikova , Alaska Thunderfuck , and Detox Icunt with production by Ellis Miah . On January 27, 2017, RuPaul announced that

12882-509: Was restored and the marquee was changed to reflect the "Hippodrome" name. During its time as the Hippodrome, the venue became one of the Northeast's centers of the "rave scene," drawing thousands every few months with elaborate raves. When that scene eventually died down, The Hippodrome became more of a hip-hop/novelty club, featuring performers like RuPaul . In 2010, the Hippodrome was purchased by

12996-632: Was the most ornate movie palace in Western New England during its glory days from the 1920s-1960s. It remained a movie theater until the 1960s when it began to find use as a mixed center for movies, concerts, and live performances, (including especially memorable performances by the Velvet Underground , Eric Burdon and the Animals , and Alice Cooper .) The theater was also once run by Western Massachusetts Theatres which at one time owned almost all of

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