Asia O'Hara | |
|---|---|
_(crop).jpg) Asia O’Hara atRuPaul's DragCon LA, 2018 | |
| Born | Antwan Mason Lee (1982-07-07)July 7, 1982 (age 43) Grand Prairie,Texas, U.S. |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 2003–present |
| Known for | RuPaul's Drag Race (season 10) |
| Website | asiaoharaland |
Antwan Mason Lee[1][2] (born July 7, 1982), better known by the stage nameAsia O'Hara, is an Americandrag queen, reality television personality, and costume designer. She is most well known for competing on thetenth season ofRuPaul's Drag Race, in which she placed fourth. Since her season aired in 2018, O'Hara has been a staple of several domestic and international tours that featureDrag Race contestants, including Werq the World, Christmas Queens andDrive 'N Drag. She has also appeared on a number of web series produced by World of Wonder, includingCan Do Queens, which she co-hosts withKameron Michaels. In June 2018, she released "Queen for Tonight", her debut single. Her second single, "Crown Up", was released on May 20, 2019, along with an accompanying music video. Since January 2020, she has been a staple cast member ofRuPaul's Drag Race Live!, a residency show in Las Vegas, and also stars in the accompanyingVH1 miniseriesRuPaul's Drag Race: Vegas Revue.
As a professional entertainer, she has won several national titles in drag pageantry systems, includingMiss Gay America in 2016.[3]
O'Hara was born to Lois Helen Williams[4] and grew up inGrand Prairie, Texas and has five sisters, who Asia helped to raise, and all of whom also became performers. Her parents are deceased. She moved to Dallas when she was 14, and in high school performed in band,color guard, and theater.[5]
Her drag career began in the early 2000s, when she entered and won an amateur contest at the Rose Room in Dallas. The name Asia was taken from a close family member of hers, and the name O'Hara was given to her by her drag mother, Josephine O'Hara. Her drag grandmother is Texas pageant legend Sweet Savage and her drag father is Bob Taylor.[6] O'Hara continued to perform and in the following years won many titles in thedrag pageantry system, including three National titles. She has worked as a makeup artist and behind the scenes during pageants, helping to plan and promote preliminary competitions. O'Hara owns her own costume design company, Helen of Seven, in which she creates custom design pieces for clients including dance teams, color guards, ice skaters, and other drag performers.[7]
As a dance and color guard instructor, O'Hara has taught at the high school level in Texas, leading her teams to statewide competition.[8] She has performed often at the Rose Room Theatre & Lounge in Dallas, Texas since 2005, and has been a full-time showgirl there since 2009. She has also toured across the country performing, judging, and competing in pageants.[9]
O'Hara was crowned Miss Gay America in October 2016, at the 2016 competition in Memphis, Tennessee.[9] Winners of this title are known as the "Symbol of Excellence" of female impersonation and are expected to reign for one year, while performing official MGA responsibilities including touring, community service, and projecting an overall positive image for theLGBT community.[10]
She is also close friends with Texas-native Drag Race alumAlyssa Edwards and theDavenport drag family.[11]
She currently owns the Miss Gay Texas pageant.[12]
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On February 22, 2018, O'Hara was presented as one of the 14 drag queens competing onSeason 10 ofRuPaul's Drag Race.[13] She won two main challenges on the show and came in fourth place.[14][15] In her finale performance, she is most notable for a failed attempt to release live butterflies from inside her costume, which received negative attention from animal welfare organizations such asPETA who condemned her actions as a 'Sad Spectacle'.[16] Asia also received backlash fromRuPaul andVH1 for her use of animals in the finale.[17] In response to the backlash "O'Hara promised to donate over 100 volunteer hours to theASPCA."[18]
O'Hara was featured inRuPaul's Secret Celebrity Drag Race, aRuPaul's Drag Race spin-off, where she helped celebrities undergo a drag transformation.[19]
In June 2018, O'Hara and otherRuPaul's Drag Race alumShea Coulee andMonét X Change performed inThe Vixen's widely popularBlack Girl Magic, a drag show created to showcase the talent of black drag queens.[20] O'Hara was part of theDrag Race "Werq the World" tour in 2019.[21][22] O'Hara hosted the red carpet for theRuPaul's Drag Raceseason eleven live finale.[23]Later, from March 26 to September 6, she hosted theRuPaul's Drag Race: Season 11 Tour, presented by Voss Events and World of Wonder.[24]
In September 2019, at RuPaul's DragCon NYC, O'Hara was named as one of a rotating cast of a dozenDrag Race queens inRuPaul's Drag Race Live!, a Las Vegas show residency from January to August 2020 at theFlamingo Las Vegas.,[25] and later co-starred inRuPaul's Drag Race: Vegas Revue, a miniseries about the live show.[26] After closing down due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, Asia O'Hara will return to the show in August, 2021.[27][28]
On November 1, 2019, O'Hara announced her first self-produced one woman show, "Asia O'Hara's Electrique Christmas", set to show on December 21, 2019.[29] In June 2020, O'Hara was announced as a cast member for Voss Events'Drive 'N Drag, a traveling summer drive-in tour created to accommodate the conditions of theCOVID-19 pandemic.[30]
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As part of her season's final challenge, O'Hara and the other top four contestants wrote and recorded their own verses forRuPaul's song "American". The song peaked at number 12 on theBillboardDance/Electronic Songs chart.[31] That same day, O'Hara released her first single, "Queen for Tonight" on June 15, 2018.[32] Later that year, she recorded the track "Cause I'm Rich" onChristmas Queens 4, a compilation album featuring Christmas songs sung by formerDrag Race contestants.[33] Following the album's release, she embarked on the Christmas Queens tour ofEurope in November and December 2018.[34]
Her second single, "Crown Up", was released on May 20, 2019, along with an accompanying music video.[35][36]
Since appearing onRuPaul's Drag Race, Asia O'Hara became the subject of racist attacks over the internet.[45][46]
| Year | Song |
|---|---|
| 2018 | "Queen for Tonight" |
| 2019 | "Crown Up" |
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions |
|---|---|---|
| US Dance Digital | ||
| "Cher: The Unauthorized Rusical"[47] (RuPaul featuring the Cast of RuPaul's Drag Race, Season 10) | 2018 | — |
| "American" (RuPaul featuringAquaria, Asia O'Hara,Eureka O'Hara &Kameron Michaels) | 12 |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | RuPaul's Drag Race | Herself | Contestant (4th place) | [13] |
| RuPaul's Drag Race: Untucked | ||||
| 2020 | RuPaul's Secret Celebrity Drag Race | Guest mentor | [19] | |
| RuPaul's Drag Race: Vegas Revue | Main cast | [48] | ||
| 2023 | RuPaul's Drag Race | Special guest; Episode: "Reunited!" |
| Year | Title | Artist | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Juice | Lizzo | [49] |
| 2019 | Crown Up | Herself | [50] |
| 2020 | Always | Waze & Odyssey | [51] |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Can Do Queens | Herself | Co-host (withKameron Michaels) | [52] |
| Watcha Packin | Guest | [53] | ||
| Queen to Queen | Guest, withKameron Michaels | [54] | ||
| Countdown to the Crown | Season 10 | [55] | ||
| Fashion Photo RuView | Guest Co-host | [56] | ||
| 2019 | How To Makeup | Guest | [57] | |
| Toddy's World | Guest; S3 Ep3 | [58] | ||
| 2020 | Werq The World | Featured queen | [59] | |
| 10s Across The Board | Host | [60] |
| Year | Award Ceremony | Category | Work | Results | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | MTV Movie & TV Awards | Most Meme-able Moment | Asia O'Hara's Butterfly Finale Fail | Nominated | [61] |
| 2020 | The Queerties | Future All-Star | Herself | Nominated | [62] |
