Bianca Castro-Arabejo (November 29, 1980 – April 27, 2025), known professionally asJiggly Caliente, was a Filipino-Americantransgenderdrag performer and entertainer. She rose to prominence competing on thefourth season ofRuPaul's Drag Race (2012), followed by her debut studio albumT.H.O.T. Process (2018), and a recurring role asVeronica Ferocity in the American drama television seriesPose (2018–2021). After competing in thesixth season ofRuPaul's Drag Race All Stars (2021), she became a judge onDrag Race Philippines (2022–2024).
Caliente was born inSan Pedro, Laguna, in thePhilippines on November 29, 1980.[1][2] She grew upCatholic.[3] During the first grade, she was bullied andbody-shamed by a fellow student, and was expelled for stabbing the student's hand with a pencil.[4] Caliente spoke of her father's mistreatment towards the household: "My dad wasn’t too good to us."[5] Her parents divorced when she was a child and she later immigrated to the United States at age 10 in 1991 alongside her mother and brother.[5] She was raised in theSunnyside neighborhood of Queens, New York.
In Caliente's junior year of high school shecame out as gay to her mother.[5] Caliente became interested in being a cartoonist and attendedthe Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) majoring in illustration. She soon realized, that "comic books were kind of like a dying art form" and dropped out.[6]
Caliente first created herdrag persona in 2004 or 2005 on a dare after she came to support a friend who was competing in a drag competition. She named herself after thePokémon characterJigglypuff and added the Spanish wordcaliente meaning hot.[7] Jiggly Caliente once worked at the Web, a gay Asian nightclub in New York City known for itssexual services, and stated, "I just don't think anyone should be ashamed for it."[8] She soon began competing inbeauty pageants and was crowned as Ms. Asia America 2006, Ms. Mexico New York 2008, and Ms. Universo Latina Plus 2009.[9]
Caliente was announced as one of thirteen contestants of thefourth season ofRuPaul's Drag Race on November 13, 2011. She placed eighth overall, being eliminated in alip-sync contest byWillam.[10] Jiggly Caliente appeared in archive footage in the finale of thefifth season and made an appearance in the finale of thesixth season, where she asked a viewer question to contestantBianca Del Rio.[11]
Outside ofDrag Race, Caliente was seen in the beginning of the 2012NewNowNext awards.[12] Her acting career began in 2015 when she played a role in the season-two finale ofBroad City as a shop owner.[13] She was one of thirty drag queens featured inMiley Cyrus's 2015VMA performance.[14] In 2016, she was in the pilot episode ofSearch Party.[15] In 2017, she made a cameo appearance with fellowDrag Race contestantsBob The Drag Queen,Katya, andDetox in an episode ofPlaying House.[16] She made an appearance as a backup singer in the music video for Bob The Drag Queen andAlaska's "Yet Another Dig".[17] She played the character Veronica inPose,[18] appearing in the sixth and eighth episodes of the first season. She later confirmed she would be back for more episodes of the show's second season.[citation needed]
In September 2018, Caliente performed as a background dancer forChristina Aguilera atOpening Ceremony's Spring 2019 runway show alongside otherDrag Race contestants.[19] In November 2018, she made an appearance onSaturday Night Live withDrag Race contestantPeppermint, as a Drag Queen for theGarmin GP-Yasss sketch.[20] In 2020, Jiggly Caliente co-hostedTranslation, the first talk show on a major network hosted by an all-trans cast.[21] On May 26, 2021, she was announced to be one of the 13 contestants returning for thesixth season ofRuPaul's Drag Race All Stars. She was eliminated in the second episode, placing twelfth overall. She was a main judge for thefirst,second, andthird seasons ofDrag Race Philippines, which premiered in 2022.[22]
Jiggly Caliente released her first single, "Fckboi" on March 1, 2018, on her officialVevo channel.[23] She released her debut album,T.H.O.T. Process on March 9, 2018. The twelve-track album featuresDrag Race contestantsSharon Needles,Peppermint, Alaska,Ginger Minj,Phi Phi O'Hara (credited as Jaremi Carey) andManila Luzon. It also features an intro withRuPaul. The album is the firsthip-hop-based record by aDrag Race contestant.[24] The music video for the song "All This Body" premiered on November 30, 2018, and featured Alaska, Ginger Minj, andIsis King.[25]
Jiggly Caliente also was a featured artist for the first three volumes of theDrag RaceChristmas Queens albums. The music video for "Ratchet Christmas" from the first volume was uploaded on December 9, 2015.[26] She contributed to the compilation albumChristmas Queens 3 (2017).[27]
Caliente was Catholic.[3] She publiclycame out astransgender in 2016.[28][10] She shared her transgender identity for the first time on a podcast, stating that receiving letters from fans who were struggling with their owngender identity helped her to realize she was atrans woman.[29] Two months later, she wrote on Instagram that "our trans brothers and sisters are very much part of our struggle for equality" and publicly encouraged drag race fans to engage in advocacy for trans rights.[1]
On April 24, 2025, Caliente's family revealed in a statement that her right leg had been surgically amputated due to a severe infection.[30] She died in hospital three days later, at age 44.[31] Caliente's family announced that a livestreamed funeral would take place in New York City sometime in May, and that there would be a special moment set aside for fans to visit and pay respects.[32]
FellowDrag Race alumni and celebrities posted tributes to Caliente on social media.[33][34][35] The premiere season ofDrag Race Philippines Slaysian Royale paid several tributes to Caliente, including a tearful episode where the cast learns of her death mid-episode.[36]
Some drag artists and social commentators received widespread criticism for how they reacted to the news of her death. Former Olympic swimmerSharron Davies attacked theBBC for publishing Caliente's obituary on the grounds that the network publishes "endless drag stories", which resulted in theGreen Party deputy leaderZack Polanski publicly criticizing Davies' comments as "disgusting".[37][38] Similarly,Tyra Sanchez, the winner of thesecond season ofDrag Race, was widely criticized after she replied to an ode to Caliente posted byJaremi Carey with a meme that mocked Caliente for losing her leg prior to her death. Friends and family of Caliente condemned Sanchez' statements, and some commentators made connections to how Sanchez had also made similarly controversial remarks aboutThe Vivienne following her sudden death months prior in January 2025.[39][40]
Caliente was inducted to theNational LGBTQ Wall of Honor, a monument inside New York City’s Stonewall Inn, in June 2025 alongside seven other transgender advocates.[41]
.jpg)
_(cropped).jpg)
.jpg)
