By Denny Patterson
Start your engines! The queens of RuPaul’s Drag Race are kicking off the infamous Werq the World tour at Fort Lauderdale’s Broward Center on July 8, 2022.
Organized by Voss Events, this year’s live production is an experiment gone wrong that will send audiences spiraling through time as the queens take a journey through iconic periods of history in hopes of returning the crowd to the present day. After the tour’s Fort Lauderdale premiere, it will sashay across North America all summer, playing some of the continent’s largest arenas.
OutClique had the pleasure of connecting with Season 13 finalist Rosé, who is making her Werq the World debut. Originally hailing from Scotland, this fierce queen is one of New York City’s most electric and dynamic drag entertainers, as well as one third of the internationally acclaimed girl group, Stephanie’s Child. Equal parts razor-tongued comedian and remarkable vocalist, Rosé unites her undeniable passion and broad skillset daily with a driving force.
Check out the full interview below where she talks more about the tour, her Drag Race experience, and what more she hopes to accomplish.
Denny Patterson: Thank you for taking some time to chat with me Rosé! What can audiences expect from this year’s Werq the World tour?
Rosé: The theme is time travel, so you can definitely expect some time wizardry and lots of magical leaps through different eras and decades that our planet has been through. Of course, this is through the eyes of drag queens, so everything’s very fabulous. The cast is absolutely incredible, so you’re going to see all sorts of talent. We have singing, dancing, tons of beauty, and the show is hilarious. There is something for everybody with this show.
DP: Care to give us a hint as to what we’ll see from your particular set?
R: Yeah, let’s do two key words: dinosaurs and death (laughs). In this show, I decided to go the prehistoric route, so my number takes place on the day that the asteroid hit the Earth and wiped out all the dinosaurs. You know, something festive and lovely.
DP: Since this is your first Werq the World tour, what are you looking forward to the most about it?
R: We recently finished the European leg, and that was so successful. I’m excited to do the American leg only because, furthermore, I have so many friends all across the states that are finally going to get to see me perform in a big production since I appeared on Drag Race. It’s going to be nice just to perform for everybody and continue traveling all over the place.
DP: This tour has several Season 14 queens involved. How excited are you to perform alongside them?
R: I am so excited! I’m a fan of everyone. We had Jorgeous and Lady Camden in Europe, which was a complete treat. I am practically glued to Lady Camden. We’re so similar, we became such great friends, and I love Jorgeous as well. But yeah, I’m very excited to work with Willow Pill. I’m excited to see what Daya Betty’s got up her sleeves, Bosco as well. It’s going to be a lot of fun. I’m excited to see what the new girls are cooking!
DP: For those who do not know, how did Rosé come to be? When did you discover your love and passion for drag?
R: I discovered my passion for drag when I was finishing college, at which point, I want to say Season Five was airing. I have vivid memories of watching Season Five in my college house, but it wasn’t until five years ago that I started doing drag myself. I’ve always been a performer, I’ve always loved being on stage, I’m very creative, and I found that I wanted to not only create and perform things, but direct them as well. I want to have my hand in all the pots, and drag is the only thing that I’ve found in my life and in this industry that kind of lets me do that. Plus, I get to dress up like a woman, which is amazing.
DP: How would you say Rosé is constantly evolving as a drag artist?
R: Personally, I like to try something new every single time I’m on stage. Drag, of course, is an art form, but it’s ever changing both as a collective and individually. I’m always seeking new inspiration and looking to get better at different skills. I think the biggest evolution that Rosé has gone through in the last year has been physical. There are some people who don’t even recognize me in this show, and I take that as a huge compliment (laughs).
DP: The world fell in love with you when you competed on Season 13 of RuPaul’s Drag Race. How has the show changed your life?
R: How has the show not changed my life? Really, everything has changed for the better, and I feel so lucky. So many of my dreams have come true just with the visibility of my art and my personality. It’s such a joy that what I do and who I am brings joy to others. These tours are a fabulous way of being reminded of that because the fans are so incredible, and they’re so excited to meet us and to see us live. That’s been my dream my whole life. I’ve always wanted to perform for the entire world and show everybody who I am and what I can do, and Drag Race gave me that opportunity.
DP: What was going through your mind when you realized you made it to the final four?
R: I was gagging. When that happened, if I’m not mistaken, when we went from the top five to the top four, I actually won the challenge that week. So, I was the first person to know for sure that I was going on to the top four, and it was very relaxing to know that one of the major goals that I had for myself was achieved. I made it to the end!
DP: During your season, you focused a lot on trying to be perfect 100 percent of the time. Looking back, is there anything you would have done differently?
R: Oh my God, yes. There’s so much I would have done differently, but not at the time. I very much believe that we are a collection of experiences and that everything counts towards what we are meant to become and what we’re going to become. I love my life. I love who I am today, so everything that happened on Drag Race is included in that recipe. So, technically, I wouldn’t change anything, but had I been cast tomorrow, it would be a very different experience because I’m a different drag queen now. Of course, there’s hiccups when you’re on the season, even if you do perform very well. Even if you do strive to be perfect. I can say for sure that if I went back now, that would not be anywhere near one of my goals. I could care less about being perfect.
DP: If asked to come back for All Stars, would you?
R: People ask me that all the time, and what I’ll say is that recently, especially while watching the current winners season of All Stars, I’m really feeling a little inspired and itchy to perhaps return and rightfully claim my crown and win some dollars! It’s something I would definitely consider if given the opportunity.
DP: Which challenge what’s your favorite?
R: Before I was on the show, my favorite episode every season was the musical episode, which of course ties so directly to my life, skill set, and background as a musician, singer, and theater performer. Getting to actually be in a Rusical was so fun and doing well in it was even more fun. Watching it back was equally fun.
DP: Your season will forever be legendary because it was filmed during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. How challenging was that?
R: I mean, we wrote the book. Every day was trial and error. It was high stress. I was talking about this with a friend the other day, recounting what it was like because when you’re filming Drag Race, you’re cut off from the world. You don’t have your phone or computer. You’re very limited to outside contact and what’s going on in the world. As the weeks progressed filming in Los Angeles, it did cross my mind several times, is anyone that I love dead? Seriously. When we left to film, it was still in that really scary time period where we didn’t have answers or a vaccine. I was also coming from New York, which was the epicenter in our country at the time. So, it was very challenging, but I’m very proud, still to this day, that we so triumphantly put on a show.
DP: You also came onto the show right after Jan’s season. Did she offer you any advice beforehand?
R: Of course. Jan helped me pack the night before I left, and she excused herself for about an hour to write down all these wonderful notes for me that were very, very helpful. She wasn’t the only queen who had been through Drag Race to give me advice, but after doing it myself, I kind of realized that even though the advice helped, every single queen’s experience is going to be different. Even the advice that I have to give to someone, a newcomer, it’s only going to go so far because you really have to just relax into yourself and be yourself. Nobody can tell you how to do that. You have to figure that one out yourself.
DP: What’s going on with Stephanie’s Child? Any new works we should be on the lookout for?
R: Yes! We recently released a brand new single on Alaska’s new album called “Girlz Night.” The music video is so cute and we had such a fun time. Alaska, Jan, Lagoona Bloo, and I hopping around New York City in a limo, drinking champagne we can’t afford, and wearing dresses we can’t afford. You should check it out.
DP: What more do you hope to accomplish with your drag career?
R: I hope that I have a very long drag career and life, so I’m hoping to accomplish a lot. As someone who is both interested and skilled at a lot of different facets in the performing realm, I have a lot of goals, some of which have started getting checked off. However, one thing that is very important to my drag is theater and acting, and that’s really at the basis of everything and at the core of everything that I am as a performer and artist. I am an actor, and I would just love to dip my toes into the pool of scripted television and film. That is a huge dream of mine.
Stay up-to-date and connect with Rosé by following her on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @OMGHeyRose, or visit her official website, OMGHeyRose.com. Visit BrowardCenter.org for more information and to purchase tickets for Werq the World.
