Pearl In The Desert
THE QUEEN OF FLAZÉDA, PEARL nearly conquered season 7 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, making it all the way to the finale. Now that she’s crossed the finish line, our favorite exhausted drag star has a few things to dish about.
Chris Arneson
Tell me about your album, Pleasure.
It’s kind of veering away from the traditional Drag Race Girls and their music. Trying to focus more on a career in music production. It’s more like a house album. Kinda well-rounded. It’s got different kinds of vibes.
Was it inspired by any type of music?
Most of my free nights out are spent on a dance floor with my friends. I’m from Chicago, and, you know, the whole house scene started there, and it’s really big there. It’s my favorite style of music.
And you’ve got a perfume coming out! Flazéda, right?
Yeah, they just started sending out all the orders.
How would you describe it?
It smells so good, actually. The retail price is up there because it’s 100-percent pure perfume — there’s no water added. It retails for like $130 or something. It’s equivalent to a Chanel No. 9, and it’s got just as much sweet as it has musk. It’s really sexy, kind of nondescript. It’s like a sweet musk — it’s unisex, and you can wear it day or night.
What made you decide to do a perfume?
I didn’t decide; I was approached and offered, and I figured at this point in my career there’s no reason not to invest in all kinds of different things.
You were top 3 in Drag Race this past season! What was the best part of your experience?
The best part, I think, was just getting a reality check. I mean, I walked in there, and I thought I was the bomb, but I just never realized how much room for improvement there actually was. So, I got to grow, you know? I realized I’m not so perfect. At all.
Did you have a turning point during the show?
The turning point was the whole thing. I walked in not knowing what I was up against. I guess I just realized how unreal that show is. There’s so many elements. It’s not as simple as you might think.
Was there anything unexpected you got from the show that you didn’t realize from just watching it in previous seasons?
You just learn how reality television actually works. It’s not real … it’s just not real. Everything is kind of prewritten, almost. Things just sometimes happen to fall into place and work with the story, and sometimes they have to make it work. It’s not like The Real World, where we’re all just hanging out and shit happens. Things are kind of … I don’t know, predestined? Maybe I’m wrong. But that’s how I feel. That’s the vibe I got.
What challenge did you feel you succeeded the most at?
You walk in, and the first day you’re there is the tone you set for the rest of the season. You walk in and your character is written for you based on the way you act the first day, and it’s up to you to continue that. In my case, it wasn’t. I guess my biggest turning point was my stare down with RuPaul and turning it out, proving I’m not a no-personality type.
How long have you been doing Pearl?
It’ll be three years in October.
Had you auditioned for Drag Race before, or was this the first time?
No, this was my first time. I wanted to have a career being creative any way I possibly could. I thought Drag Race would be a good platform for that and give me recognition, making things a bit easier. I think it has in a lot of ways, but there’s also a lot of hardships to go through. There’s a lot more pressure. There’s a lot to think about before you go on TV.
Have any queens from former seasons reached out to you or helped you along?
There’s definitely been a handful of girls who reached out on social media and offered me sympathy or an ear to listen, guiding me if I needed any assistance.
What’s next for Pearl? Are you working on anything?
Right now I’m just so busy working. I took off two weeks, and it’s been a really nice little vacation. I’d like to produce more music, make more video art. I want to get back to my drawing and work with more celebrities. Daniel Franzese from Mean Girls offered me a part in a new movie he’s working on. That’s kind of exciting. Just a bunch of little projects for now. Right now I’m just trying to get to the beach.
You recently had a little rant on Facebook. Looks like you got a lot off your chest. What set that off?
Nothing really set it off. The last 4–5 months has been so wild, and I’ve been so busy. I neglected social media because there’s a lot of negativity on there. It’s like, no matter how hard you work or what you do or what you invest into your craft or how much you sacrifice to entertain people, there’s always criticism and negativity. It’s something I didn’t expect, but it’s nothing I can’t handle. I had Raja blasting me on social media for absolutely ludicrous reasons, and I chose to ignore that. And then all of a sudden I had nudes leak. I guess that was what set it off. I don’t know. For a sec, I had a moment, and I couldn’t believe I was being so mistreated on social media. So I had to have a moment, make my one public statement, and then I don’t have to worry about it for a while. I just decided to touch on all things that had been bothering me for the last few months. I’m really not the type to make any kind of public statement. I just do my thing, but there’s only so much one person can take. I didn’t know if it was going to help. I didn’t care. I just did it, and it was worth posting.
What happened with Raja? You stepped into one of her gigs?
It makes absolutely no sense. It was pretty much the most ridiculous thing that’s ever happened to me. I can stand people having a negative opinion of me, but just straight-up blatant, ridiculous lies and misinformation is too much. He had his side of the story, and I just wanted my side to be out too, if people are really going to waste time talking about me.
Do you feel like you skyrocketed pretty quickly from being lesser known to having everyone talking about you?
I don’t really know if everyone is talking about me, or what’s going on. I avoid social media. I don’t really read my comments. It’s just not worth it to me. You can read 200 nice things, but then one negative thing and it’s all you see. For me, it’s just easier to avoid it and post my content. I guess I would be less surprised if I was really active on social media and involved, but I’m not. I’m just a person who’s making art and putting it out in the world. So yeah, I guess it’s surprising that I’m doing my thing and then people are talking about me. I’m unconcerned about what anyone else is doing.
So your nudes that leaked. Was that weird for you? How did that come about?
I mean, I don’t care. I’m not ashamed of my body, obviously. I wouldn’t have shared them if I were ashamed in the first place. I just think it’s weird that someone would post it. It’s like an invasion of privacy and really uncool and pathetic, and they should get a life. That’s all I have to say about it.
Can Denver expect to see you sometime?
I think I’ll be in Denver in September … at Tracks.
*****
Close! Pearl’s slated to be here August 28, according to his website, PearlLiaison.com.
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