Well, no kidding! She’s a drag queen on national television; she’s about as out as it gets; oh, but she has secrets, believe you me . . . just not the kind you think.

Firstly, moving from a small-town California chicken farm to Hell’s Kitchen, New York, has been repeated on all of the social networks that she frequents (MySpace, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook – just add your own). Secondly, the chicken thing isn’t just a gimmick.

Secret #1:

"When we got to meet the queens at the very introduction of Drag Race, before we got to watch the first episode, I talked about growing up on a chicken farm, and that it would make sense later. When I said that, I had no idea that I’d ever talk about chickens again. I thought maybe they were asking me something, and I just trailed off of the question by saying that.

"The ‘chicken episode’, as we watched it (later), was pretty inspiring to people for weird reasons; it was really spontaneous, and I didn’t realize I went into it so deep! . . . So, all that truth fell out, but it makes me happy, because it’s a part of my youth, and I do feel really connected to nature and that sort of joy: that youthful wonder."

True to the life of celebrity, whether it’s new or familiar, his fans went a little nuts on Twitter, Instagram, and elsewhere, with images, videos, shoes, toys – even wicker sculptures. They bring these chicken things to his promotional events: stuffed toy chickens, hats with chickens on them, origami.

It’s a good thing he likes them!

"There has been some pretty amazing things coming forward with it. I can’t deny: it’s pretty cool that something so funny from my youth – that I love – happens to make people happy!"

GayCalgary, always concerned for others, asked Miss Fame how she takes care of herself amongst this growing attention and madness of television, live shows, her own makeup artistry business, her online presence with YouTube makeup how-tos, all of the other social media, and philanthropic events (more about that later).

"It’s so important; it’s mind, body and spirit. You have to take care of all of the elements of yourself as a human being and as an artist. To be able to stay on top of the volume, especially as we’re growing artistically."

Secret #2:

"A part of my truth is that I’ve been sober for a long time, so a large part of me staying ‘right’ in my mind has just been staying sober, and staying close to my recovery. It takes a terrible lot out of me – the internal stresses – but I have a lot of places to go get solutions now. I have a lot of people I surround myself with who are like-minded; who are going through a lot of the same internal struggles, and also overcoming a lot of fear. That, to me, is a huge part of being grounded in the midst of everything.

"The reason I even bring that up is that watching that on the show, seeing that honesty, that personal side of me (that I was very hesitant to bring up, but my mom brought it up in "Untucked"), so it made it an open conversation for people who might not have known I’m actually sober.

"I realized that there’s a huge impact in being able to relate to people that might have similar struggles. That they’re not alone, and you can pursue your dreams even if you’re afraid, by overcoming your personal obstacles . . . That there’s hope; that you can actually live your life with a bigger dream, and not be stifled by your fears. It’s been a long journey, but that’s a huge part of my help."

We asked Miss Fame about her take on projects like ‘It Gets Better’, and she agrees that they’re a great idea, saying "I love a positive message," and mentions that she attended an anti-bullying seminar just this past weekend where she heard Tyler Clementi’s mother speak. This is part of a trend, which you can see on some of on her Instagram (etc.) channels, to become more involved in anti-bullying and be a positive role model for youth.

"I get a lot of young kids writing me personally, messaging me, or on Twitter (etc.), telling me about not being able to come out to their families, living in Russia, being in fear, having issues with their own self-esteem . . . I think I’m meant to be of service, to help people. So right now I’m trying to be a voice for overcoming the challenges we face; overcoming abuse and trauma, and living to your greatest potential."

Wow.

"People paid attention when I dressed as a glamorous, beautiful, superhero-supermodel: there’s something about the way that I look that has allure for people, and when I give them the funny and my truth and the chicken farm, they laugh, and I love to laugh. That’s so great, we need to laugh.

"But I also want the other side of me – whether I’m wearing the makeup or stripping it free – to talk on behalf of all of the truths, about being human, being a young gay person growing up in the middle of nowhere, without any examples or role models to trust. I felt so alone, and I don’t like that there are kids out there that don’t have community. It’s my responsibility, as a gay man, to show up in a positive light for that community. . . If (only) we were all willing to take action from the exposure, and did something for somebody else. You can’t keep all of this glamour without giving some of it back!"

Miss Fame is currently blowing our minds! Is this a drag queen, or Bono?

On a less altruistic note, we asked her about her rather astonishing YouTube makeup how-to videos. She mentions that their instructional nature is based partly on the fact that she actually teaches makeup classes to companies and individuals (when she’s not hustling her own butt into gear for a show), and that she has a portraiture background: when she’s doing makeup, she’s painting a portrait, just on a living canvas! THAT explains the astoundingly perfect eyebrows!

Miss Fame will be showcasing those perfect eyebrows in Edmonton’s The Starlite Room (10030 - 102 Street) on Saturday April 18th as part of Pure Pride’s 10^th anniversary celebration. Contact Pure Pride for details.

Miss Fame’s final word? "My advice is to push yourself to your full potential, because you never know exactly where your light’s going to shine the brightest."