The hearts of queens and fans alike were shattered after Kerri Colby's recent elimination on RuPaul's Drag Race season 14 and, when looking back on the judges' critiques, she was admittedly "confused" by their feedback. For many, the show's casting of Kerri was inspiring. Despite exuding confidence and beauty today, Kerri was open in the Werk Room about her difficult journey as a transgender woman. In fact, Kerri's vulnerability allowed fellow contestant Jasmine Kennedie to feel comfortable coming out as trans. However, Kerri's time in the competition was cut short for several reasons, one of which she doesn't completely understand.
Kerri's final maxi challenge of RuPaul's Drag Race tasked her with joining one of three girl groups — ShangRu-Las, the Ru-Nettes and RuPremes — all reminiscent of The Ronettes and other female trios of the '60s. Since the start of season 14, Kerri received consistent feedback from RuPaul, Michelle Visage and the rest of the panel that they wanted her to break down her walls of perfection and discover her funny, ugly side. Partnered with Angeria Paris VanMicheals and Lady Camden in the RuPremes, Kerri was bouncy and energetic while singing her "My Baby Is Love" lyrics. But according to Mama Ru, Kerri's performance was too church-like and not smooth like that of the late, great Ronnie Spector.
On the heels of Kerri sashaying away following a lip sync battle against Jasmine, Kerri reflected on her RuPaul's Drag Race experience. While Kerri understood the judges' negative remarks about her blood vessel runway look, which clearly showed the waistband of her tights, she was "just as confused as the rest of America" regarding their dislike of her girl group efforts. In an interview with EW, Kerri said, "Through my journey, they were adamant about wanting to see more monster, more ugly, and not to rely on pretty, so they pushed me to give the character they were looking for. When I brought my spin to it, which was authentically a character, I had so much fun ... To hear that it didn't land, in their opinion, was a little heartbreaking."
Though Kerri didn't advance as far as she wished on RuPaul's Drag Race — and didn't have the coveted golden chocolate bar that would've saved her — she's proud that her battle to live as her true, authentic self is helping others, especially Jasmine. "It felt surreal because me existing the way I'm able to now wasn't always a possibility. I was put through it, being brought up in the south ... having that full-circle moment where Jasmine said she looked up to me ... felt amazing." Kerri stressed that, even though Jasmine out-lip-synced her, there's no hard feelings.
To date, RuPaul's Drag Race season 14 is the most inclusive to date. In addition to Kerri and Jasmine, Kornbread "The Snack" Jeté and Bosco are transgender women. Kerri endearingly refers to them as the "Transtastic Four." We also can't forget about Maddy Morphosis, the first straight, cisgender man to appear on the show. This surprised many of the queens, but they didn't hesitate to welcome Maddy, a vocal ally of the LGBTQ+ community, with open arms. As is tradition on RuPaul's Drag Race, there will always be drama and mini squabbles in the Werk Room. But at the end of the day, it's a sisterhood of talented queens who have a positive impact on each other and the show's thousands of weekly viewers.
Source: EW