She is one of the most successful queens to compete on RuPaul’s Drag Race, having never been in the bottom two for the entire competition. Since being crowned the winner of season 6, Bianca Del Rio has been on a whirlwind that has changed her life and career. While successful before the show, she is now at a whole new level.

"It has taken it to a whole new level. The years before it that I was working I was never big in social media. I didn’t have a Facebook fan page or Twitter or Instagram. I was kind of low key and working steadily but this brings it into another stratosphere. There are so many people that are out there that watch the show and are huge fans in other countries. It just ended in Australia aired in South Africa. So it doesn’t all happen at one time. It really just blew up for me on a professional level as far as work, fans and people that reached out to me. It was a little overwhelming at first because I wasn’t used to that. It has definitely changed on a level to give me the confidence and support from people to do so many other projects that aren’t just working in a gay bar. There is a film I am working on that was extremely well received when I did a fundraiser for it. Other opportunities in the gay world, it is kind of surreal. It is exciting on that level, I haven’t had excitement in my life about drag in a long time. It has revived my career which is pretty amazing."

We spoke to Bianca over the phone hours before she departed for Australia. Her first visit down under is one of the highlights of her post-drag race career.

"The great thing is by episode 2 or 3 I was already traveling. It just intensified as we went further in the competition. A few of the cities I have been to in the United States two or three times, I’ve been to London, Amsterdam, Ireland, Scotland and now I am headed to Australia for two weeks which is pretty amazing. It started out as having little pockets of downtime but once they know you are there it builds. I might have two days off while I am there but I am going back and forth to different cities, a lot, it isn’t like sitting in one spot. It can be a little taxing but in a good way. I’ve never been so [busy], I am looking forward to it."

This season saw arguably the most diverse group of queens in terms of skills, charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent. Being an originator as a comedy queen instead of a lip synch performer is part of what made Del Rio stand out.

"There are no rules in drag, you do what works for you. What I was grateful for was that the show let me do what I do without trying to push me in another direction. Once I knew I was on it, I had concerns about whether they would accept my sense of humour. Was it too racy? Was it too much? How to adapt it to TV? Would they go for that? Because of the show it really wasn’t about us being a bunch of bitches, it humanized us and showed our different talents. I never felt that Adore or Courtney were my specific competition, - we all brought something different which made me think it could have gone any way, any of us could have won. It brought more excitement to it. Oddly enough fans of mine or the others felt they couldn’t be fans of all of us. I kept thinking we are all friends why can’t you be? We all possess something different. I am not competing with Adore’s voice or Courtney’s beauty. We are all very different individuals and I thought that was great and a huge thank you to the show because there really were no rules which was nice. There is nothing wrong with lip synching but it is not what I do best. They let us bring our A-game to the table and battle it out."

Bianca also stood out as she frequently offered advice and support to other queens in the midst of competition.

"After an hour of being there I did not have time to think about the cameras. It is a quick process. It wasn’t a case of me playing to the camera, it was going shit we have to do all of this stuff in no time. As far as the other contestants it was a natural thing to do. If I had two corsets why not let someone use it.  It was a natural approach. It was funny, as it was airing people were saying oh she is showing a softer side. Bullshit that is just me on a day-to-day basis. What I do on stage I take full credit for but that is not me day to day. When I started in drag a lot of people helped me. What is the worst that would happen? I did something good and went home? It was a natural thing to do in an unnatural drag world."

There were certainly moments that challenged her desire to help. Audiences frequently expressed frustration as contestant Trinity K. Bonet every week stated that the challenge was not something she was good at. It wasn’t until being paired with Bianca that she finally shone briefly, but at times the desire to bitch slap a fellow queen was strong.

"There were moments totally, when you are in that pressure cooker you don’t get all the information. We don’t hang out together, we are basically segregated until we film. You have no connection to these people and are just putting pieces together as you go. As a viewer I was in the same boat as everyone else. I didn’t know what her issues were and why she was so hung up on being miserable and what was affecting her until we got to the finale. It was amazing getting to know people as the audience was getting to know them. The only person I knew before the show was Courtney Act and that was just professionally. There were those moments with Laganja that now I probably would handle differently because I have more information about her and where she stood at the time. But in the moment it was like yo bitch, shut the fuck up I am sick of hearing you cry. I can’t deny that I said and did things but I have no regrets. Had I known more I would have done things differently."

Another part of the experience of being on Drag Race is getting mentoring and feedback from RuPaul, who always seems to inspire.

"We filmed the show quite a while ago and it becomes a blur after a while. A majority of the stuff that stands out in my mind is what we saw on the show. Off camera people don’t realize that Ru is extremely engaging and personable. When he is out of drag is when I really gravitated to him. I didn’t expect that going in. With his status and being a producer and star of the show, he is actually really hands on in the show. When he does that walk through on the show you see two or three minutes of it but he is actually with us for 15 to 20 minutes having a conversation. Those were interesting. I didn’t realize he was born in Louisiana which is where I am from. We discussed family life and growing up in the south. It was one of these things where I remember Ru asking me why I didn’t audition before. I said I had never seen anyone like me on the show so I didn’t know if it was for me, and she replied that is because you didn’t audition. It was one of those things that clicked. It was simple to the outside person. Hello asshole. Audition for the fucking show and you might get a chance. We are always taking the time to sit back and go, maybe it’s not going to work or they won’t like me. Do it, take the chance what have you got to lose? If I wouldn’t have taken the chance I wouldn’t be having this conversation with you. It has shifted my life in a huge way, just do it!"

Bianca is currently writing material for a full headlining show. She has been announced for multiple dates at the Gramarcy Theatre in New York City this year which is a massive accomplishment.

"I was horrified! I was concerned going into it. It is a huge space with 600 seats. It pushes you into another realm. I have comfortably done comedy for a long time but especially in New York it is difficult to put together a show, produce it and have everyone happy and make it work. The idea came up and I said ok lets go for it. I had no idea how well it would be accepted. It sold out in a day and they added dates and I have three shows in December and 2 are sold out and one almost is sold out. I was quite overwhelmed, now it is like oh shit now I have to write the show. I have this new outlook from Drag Race that you can do anything when the demand is there. I am taking it to New Orleans, there is talk of taking it to San Francisco. Things are looking up, I can’t complain. After 18 years of being in bars I have had good gigs and bad gigs, I can look at this and realize this is a good gig. It is humbling on many levels."

Fans in Edmonton will get a sneak peek at some of the material as she is working it into her shorter acts including her upcoming appearance.

"It is comedy, nothing serious. I don’t have an album coming out so you don’t have to listen to me auto-tune singing something dreadful. I am testing that material out in smaller venues when I am making an appearance in a 20 minute set. It gives me an opportunity to work out material which is really great. I do a lot of audience participation. There are lots of things I love and hate about traveling so you will hear about the hate of everything from airports to hotels. It is a work in progress and has been an amazing journey. After two weeks in Australia I am sure I will have some shit to talk about. I am just collecting these experiences and trying to make magic out of it. You would be surprised how many funny things happen to you when you have to rely on public transportation and airports. Some of the cab drivers I have met are insane - the gifts you get from fans - all of that will be part of the show. Be ready to have a good time and a cocktail, that is what you should expect. It has been an overwhelmingly fun experience that I will never forget and I am beyond excited for it."

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Contributor Jason Clevett |

Person Bianca Del Rio |

Topic Celebrity Interview | Drag Queen | Drag Race | RuPaul’s Drag Race |