RuPaul facts for kids

Quick facts for kids RuPaul
RuPaul at the 2019 California Hall of Fame Ceremony in Sacramento, California
Born	RuPaul Andre Charles (1960-11-17) November 17, 1960 (age 64) San Diego, California, U.S.
Occupation	Drag queen television host singer producer writer actor
Years active	1982–present
Television	The RuPaul Show RuPaul's Drag Race Gay for Play Game Show Starring RuPaul Good Work Skin Wars AJ and the Queen RuPaul
Spouse(s)	Georges LeBar ​ (m. 2017)​
Relatives	Cory Booker (distant cousin)
Awards	Full list
Musical career
Genres	Pop dance disco house R&B
Instruments	Vocals
Labels	Funtone Every Tommy Boy Rhino RuCo World of Wonder

RuPaul Andre Charles (born November 17, 1960) is an American drag queen, television personality, actor, singer, producer, and writer. He produces, hosts, and judges the reality competition series RuPaul's Drag Race and has received several accolades, including 14 Primetime Emmy Awards, three GLAAD Media Awards, a Critics' Choice Television Award, two Billboard Music Awards, and a Tony Award. He has been dubbed the "Queen of Drag" and is considered the most commercially successful drag queen in the United States, with Fortune saying that he is "easily the world's most famous drag queen." In 2017, RuPaul was included in the annual Time 100 list of the most influential people in the world.

Early life

RuPaul was born in San Diego, California, on November 17, 1960, the son of Ernestine "Toni" (née Fontenette) and Irving Andrew Charles. His parents were both from Louisiana. When his parents divorced in 1967, he and his three sisters lived with their mother. He was raised in the Catholic faith and attended Patrick Henry High school.

At 15, RuPaul and his sister Renetta moved to study performing arts in Atlanta, Georgia. In the ensuing years, RuPaul struggled as a musician and filmmaker during the 1980s, where he worked at Atlanta's famed Plaza Theatre. In 1982, he debuted on an Atlanta public access variety show called The American Music Show, on which he made frequent appearances over the years. He also participated in underground cinema.

In the early 1990s, RuPaul worked the Georgia club scene and was known by his full birth name. He appeared for many years at the annual Wigstock drag festival and appeared in the documentary Wigstock: The Movie.

Career

RuPaul in 2009

RuPaul achieved international fame as a drag queen with the release of his debut single, "Supermodel (You Better Work)", which was included on his debut studio album Supermodel of the World (1993). The music video was an unexpected success on MTV channels, as grunge and gangsta rap were popular at the time. The song peaked at 45 on the Billboard Hot 100. It charted on the UK Singles Chart, peaking on the top 40 at 39. The song found the most success on the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, where it peaked at 2. Radio airplay, heavy rotation of the music video on MTV and television appearances on popular programs like The Arsenio Hall Show popularized the song.

He became a spokesperson for MAC Cosmetics in 1994, raising money for the Mac AIDS Fund and becoming the first drag queen to land a major cosmetics campaign. He later received his own talk show on VH1 called The RuPaul Show, which he hosted for over 100 episodes while co-hosting the morning radio show on WKTU with Michelle Visage.

RuPaul's Drag Race was created in 2009 and has gone on to produce fourteen seasons in the United States. The show has also seen success internationally, with several international variants of the show being made, such as RuPaul's Drag Race UK and Canada's Drag Race. This has also inspired several spin-offs of the main show. He is also featured as a host on other reality television series such as Skin Wars, Good Work, and Gay for Play Game Show Starring RuPaul.

In fall of 2013, RuPaul joined forces with cosmetic manufacturers Colorevolution to launch his debut make-up line featuring ultra-rich pigment cosmetics and a beauty collection. Released alongside the line was a unisex perfume entitled "Glamazon". Talking to World of Wonder, RuPaul said: "Glamazon is for women and men of all ages and preferences who share one thing in common: They are not afraid to be fierce. For me, glamour should be accessible to all, and I am committed to helping the world look and smell more beautiful." The line was exclusively sold on the Colorevolution website in various gift sets.

RuPaul in 2007

RuPaul has 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), as well as television series, including Girlboss (2017), Broad City (2017), and Grace and Frankie (2019). He created and starred in the Netflix original series AJ and the Queen (2020). RuPaul has also published four books: Lettin' It All Hang Out (1995), Workin' It! RuPaul's Guide to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Style (2010), GuRu (2018), and The House of Hidden Meanings (2024). As a recording artist, he has released fifteen studio albums. He received a Tony Award for Best Musical as a producer for the musical A Strange Loop (2019).

For his work on RuPaul's Drag Race, he has received 12 Primetime Emmy Awards, becoming the most-awarded person of color in the history of the Primetime Emmys. In 2017, he was included in the annual Time 100 list of the most influential people in the world. Outside of film and television, he also continues to write and record music; he has released fourteen studio albums as of 2022, and received a Tony Award for Best Musical as a producer for the musical A Strange Loop.

In 2023, it was announced that RuPaul would be releasing a memoir, House of Hidden Meanings, through publisher HarperCollins in 2024.

Other ventures

Podcasting

The podcast RuPaul: What's The Tee? With Michelle Visage debuted on April 6, 2014. Ru-Paul co-hosts with longtime friend and fellow RuPaul's Drag Race judge Michelle Visage. The weekly show features their thoughts on topics including behind-the-scenes of RuPaul's Drag Race, life advice, beauty tips, and conversations with featured guests from the entertainment world.

Audiobooks

In 2018, RuPaul was one of the actors who voiced the audiobook A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo.

Activism

RuPaul has been an active supporter of voter registration, producing a public service announcement supporting National Voter Registration Day and urging everyone to register.

Personal life

RuPaul met painter Georges LeBar in 1994 at the Limelight nightclub in New York City. They married in January 2017. The two split their time between a home in Los Angeles and a 60,000-acre (24,000 ha) ranch in Wyoming.

Discography

Studio albums

• Supermodel of the World (1993)
• Foxy Lady (1996)
• Ho Ho Ho (1997)
• Red Hot (2004)
• Champion (2009)
• Glamazon (2011)
• Born Naked (2014)
• Realness (2015)
• Slay Belles (2015)
• Butch Queen (2016)
• American (2017)
• Christmas Party (2018)
• You're a Winner, Baby (2020)
• Mamaru (2022)
• Black Butta (2023)

Filmography

Film

Awards and nominations

In 2020, a species of Australian soldier fly was named Opaluma rupaul. The name was chosen in reference to the fly's "costume of shiny metallic rainbow colours." Other species described in the same article were named O. ednae (after fellow drag queen Dame Edna Everage) and O. fabulosa.

See also

In Spanish: RuPaul para niños