Interview: RuPaul’s Drag Race – Dax ExclamationPoint
3 min read
Even though we all knew a bombshell was coming in episode 2 of RuPaul’s Drag Race season 8, it was one we weren’t prepared for: The second double elimination in the show’s history! Following the episode’s Pitch Perfect themed lip sync battle, aptly titled Bitch Perfect, all seemed to be normal as two queens fell into the bottom and fought to win their position in the race. Unfortunately, with Dax ExclamationPoint and Laila McQueen simultaneously failing to impress RuPaul with their lip sync renditions of Gloria Gaynor’s I Will Survive, both queens found themselves sashaying away. Nine queens isn’t enough for a season, however, and in true reality television form RuPaul set up a major cliffhanger with the introduction of a returning queen in the next episode. So don’t lose hope yet, as someone you know and love may still find their way back into the competition!
Even though Dax finds herself leaving the competition fairly early, she’s more than proven herself as a capable queen worthy of your attention. Her quirky cosplay style wasn’t quite suited for the show, but her intelligent personality and nerdy influences won her many fans; had she been able to show herself off to full capacity, who knows how far she could have gone! Following the elimination, we had a chance to ask her a few questions about her time in the race.
Michael Smith: Aside from your elimination, how was your time on RuPaul’s Drag Race? Are you happy with how you were presented on the show?
Dax ExclamationPoint: It was stressful. It’s kind of like rehab meets prison, but on camera with drag queens. But it was also enjoyable. It was rough. There were late nights, no sleep, short deadlines, but we were able to be creative and I really enjoyed that.
MS: This marks the second time there’s been a double elimination on Drag Race. What was your reaction when you registered the fact that you would both be leaving? Do you agree with the decision in hindsight?
DE: I felt destroyed. We were crushed. We both were. I wished it was one of us instead of both of us. The blow was easier with both of us, but it was a big letdown.
MS: You both had a rather controversial song to deal with as well, considering I Will Survive is such an iconic lip sync track. Were you worried when you found out you had to lip sync to such an important song?
DE: Yes! We don’t really do disco. Growing up gay, you know that song. Everyone knows it, but I’ve never done it on stage before and never wanted to. It’s so iconic, I never wanted to touch it, so it was really rough. It just has so much weight to it. You really can’t and shouldn’t fuck it up, but apparently we did!
MS: How has the fan reaction been since the show started airing? Are you afraid this double elimination will cause a change in your fan base?
DE: Yes and no. The fan reaction has been really positive. My mother recently discovered Reddit and whenever she sees a negative comment, she feels the need to call me. There’s always going to be haters out there. But you just have to let all that go.
MS: You’ve made it known that you’re serious about cosplay; were there any cosplay looks that you were waiting to show off but didn’t get the chance to?
DE: That’s going to be a “no”. There was a clause that we couldn’t bring anything that was copy written. So that limited my choices.
MS: Do you have any regrets about your performance in the Bitch Perfect challenge?
DE: #NoRegrets. Given what I had to work with, I did the best I could in that situation.
MS: Was there any sort of challenge you had been hoping to see on the show? Who do you think you would have done for Snatch Game?
DE: I was planning on doing Scary Spice. Not Mel B. Scary Spice!
Tune into RuPaul’s Drag Race next Monday at 9/8c on Logo to find out which queen will return to the workroom!
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