RuPaul's Drag Race

RuPaul's Drag Race is an American reality competition television series produced by World of Wonder for Logo TV. The show documents RuPaul in his search for "America's next drag superstar." RuPaul plays the roles of host, mentor, and source of inspiration for this series, as contestants are given different challenges each week. RuPaul's Drag Race employs a panel of judges, including RuPaul, Michelle Visage and a host of other guest judges, who critique contestants' progress throughout the competition. The title of the show is a play on drag queen and drag racing, and the title sequence and song "Drag Race" both have a drag-racing theme.

RuPaul's Drag Race has spanned seven seasons and inspired the spin-off shows RuPaul's Drag U and RuPaul's All Stars Drag Race. The show has become the highest-rated television programme on Logo TV, and airs internationally, including in Australia, Canada and the UK. The show won Outstanding Reality Program at the 21st GLAAD Media Awards, has been nominated for 4 Critics' Choice Television Award including Best Reality Series – Competition and Best Reality Show Host for RuPaul, and was nominated for a Creative Arts Emmy Award for Outstanding Make-up for a Multi-Camera Series or Special (Non-Prosthetic). In 2015, RuPaul's Drag Race was renewed for an eighth season and RuPaul's All Stars Drag Race was renewed for a second season.

RuPaul's Drag Race (season 5)

The fifth season of RuPaul's Drag Race began airing on January 28, 2013, with a 90-minute premiere episode. It had the most contestants since the creation of the show with fourteen. The winner of this season was Jinkx Monsoon.

As this season's winner, Jinkx Monsoon walked away with the title of "America's Next Drag Superstar" along with a lifetime supply of Colorevolution Cosmetics, a one-of-a-kind trip courtesy of AlandChuck.travel, a headlining spot on Logo's Drag Race Tour featuring Absolut Vodka and a cash prize of $100 000. Santino Rice and Michelle Visage were back as judges at the panel. The theme song playing during the runway every episode is "I Bring the Beat", while the song playing during the credits is "The Beginning", both songs are from RuPaul's album Glamazon.

Contestants

The drag queens who competed to be "America's Next Drag Superstar" for season five of RuPaul's Drag Race are:

(Ages and names stated are at time of contest)

Lip-syncs

Notes

RuPaul's Drag Race (season 4)

The fourth season of RuPaul's Drag Race began airing on January 30, 2012, with cast members announced November 13, 2011. The winner of season four will headline Logo's Drag Race Tour featuring Absolut Vodka, wins a one-of-a-kind trip, a lifetime supply of NYX Cosmetics, a cash prize of $100,000, and the title of "America's Next Drag Superstar."

Like the last season, Santino Rice & Billy B (Billy Brasfield), celebrity makeup artist and star of the HGTV mini-series Hometown Renivation, shared the same seat at the judges table alternatively, Brasfield filling in for Rice when needed. Both judges appeared side-by-side in the audience during the "Reunited" episode.

The theme song playing during the runway every episode was "Glamazon" and the song played during the credits was "The Beginning", both from RuPaul's album Glamazon.

In the season finale, Sharon Needles was crowned the season's winner.

Contestants

The drag queens who competed to be "America's Next Drag Superstar" for season four of RuPaul's Drag Race are:

RuPaul

RuPaul Andre Charles (born November 17, 1960), best known mononymously as RuPaul, is an American actor, drag queen, model, author, and recording artist. RuPaul was born and raised in San Diego and later moved to Atlanta to study performing arts. He settled in New York City where he became a popular fixture on the nightclub scene.

RuPaul achieved international fame as a drag queen with the hit song "Supermodel (You Better Work)" from her album Supermodel of the World (1993) and later dueted with Elton John on the song "Don't Go Breaking My Heart". In 1996, she became a spokesperson for MAC Cosmetics, raising money for the Mac AIDS Fund and becoming the first drag queen supermodel. The same year, she landed her own talk show The RuPaul Show which ran for two years on VH1 before co-hosting the morning radio show on WKTU with Michelle Visage. She has since released the albums Foxy Lady (1996), Ho, Ho, Ho (1997), Red Hot (2004), Champion (2009), Glamazon (2011), Born Naked (2014), Realness (2015) and Slay Belles (2015), and made appearances in films including Crooklyn (1994), The Brady Bunch Movie (1995), To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar (1995) and But I'm a Cheerleader (1999). RuPaul has also published two books: Lettin' It All Hang Out (1995) and Workin' It (2010). His reality television series RuPaul's Drag Race, which follows RuPaul in his search for the next drag superstar, has produced seven series on LGBTQ network Logo TV. She is also a host on television shows Skin Wars and Good Work.