Tampa Bay’s Vanessa Vanjie Mateo has sashayed her way onto the upcoming tenth season of VH1’s RuPaul’s Drag Race.
The upcoming season’s queens were “ruvealed” in a promo following the latest episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race All-Stars 3 late Thursday, Feb. 22, as well as the show’s official Twitter account:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bD9TW9C1ls
Coming in oh-so-hot and always bringing you the party: @VanessaVanjie!! #DragRace
Meet the Queen https://t.co/Pj8QH7T6Kp#DragRace Season 10 premieres THURS 3/22 at 8/7c on @VH1!! pic.twitter.com/OtvgAA2s1R
— RuPaul’s Drag Race (@RuPaulsDragRace) February 23, 2018
“Hi, I’m Vanessa Vanjie,” the queen says during her in-depth introduction to VH1, seen in full below. “Vanessa is from The Little Mermaid, when Ursula turns into a human. Well that’s me, my drag mother gave me that, ‘cause she said I look like her. And my drag mother can’t pronounce ‘banji,’ so she gave me ‘Vanjie,’ and then Mateo is ‘cause I’m part of the Mateo empire.”
Mateo’s drag mother is local Drag Race alum Alexis Mateo, seen regularly at area Hamburger Mary’s locations. Ever the proud mother, she celebrated the casting via social media:
Congrats to my baby daughter @VanessaVanjie. On making season 10 of Rupauls Drag Race 10…now turn it Mateo Style! pic.twitter.com/oJjcAblaPy
— Alexis Mateo (@AlexisMateo79) February 23, 2018
“I love drag ‘cause it’s everything,” Vanjie Mateo tells VH1. “I get to do hair, make-up… I get to be Beyoncé for the people who can’t afford Beyoncé. I wanna be known for a lot of laughs, a lot of fun, a lot of mug, a lot of hair, a lot of glamor and a lot of banji.”
Watch:
RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 10 premieres March 22 on VH1.
Photo RuPaul’s Drag Race Twitter account.
