I am my own biggest fan.
— Alyssa Edwards
I was a hyper little kid.
I always had to fight for the chance to get people to hear me.
Huge fan of Lady Gaga - huge, mega, superfan.
If people don't ask you for their opinion, you don't have to share it, but if you are asked, be honest.
This movement that RuPaul has created and World of Wonder and Logo has allowed to be aired, it's so much than just gay men carrying on in high heels and wigs and fake fingernails. It's truly a story of courageous souls. And I'm grateful that I'm a part of this.
I can't tell you at DragCon how many families that waited in line to see me. Some of them waited up to five hours, and they had their family there. That's the beauty of this. I remember being that little gay boy in Mesquite that was so afraid of the world, like, 'Am I living right? Am I living wrong?'
I had to find the courage to share not only myself but my art with the world. I faced fear, and I went for it. I wasn't a failure, and I'm very proud of myself.
You don't want people to think, 'Oh, she was a person who was bitter because she didn't win.' You can't always win at everything.
I have such respect for RuPaul.
If I put on a T-shirt that says 'YAAAS,' I want to mean it.
I remember going to the first ever DragCon, and I know this sounds crazy, but I've never experienced a ComicCon or anything like that of this nature. So it was a full carnival of extravaganza. I was a little bit more prepared the second year because I was excited to see everything.
I think it's inevitable to evolve if we allow ourselves.
The greatest gift I've ever received is being a teacher.
As much as I love to travel and be on stage and perform, I knew at a very young age that I wanted to be a choreographer and a director.
I've changed as a person because of the art of drag.
During the day, I'm a business owner. I'm a teacher and a mentor.
People know I like to laugh and have a good time. Even when I'm sassy, it's still kind of stupid-silly.
It's overwhelming that so many people love what you do and appreciate and get it. It's very rewarding.
'Drag Race' is a movement. I'll be forever grateful that I left my legacy.
Growing up as a little, introverted boy, dance was the only way I could communicate. For me, it's the greatest language - no words. Sharing people's stories through the art of movement is magical.
A good dancer is not necessarily defined by great technique, skill, or ability to pick up choreography but by confidence. When you feel the music, it penetrates to your soul. Everybody's a dancer. The greatest dancer is someone who is willing to dance, not afraid.
Every performer will have a bad night. It's just inevitable.
I'm kind of living a Bruce Wayne life and then morphing into Batman, but I'm glad now Batman comes out during the day. That's kind of like how drag was: we were called upon at night to make people smile and laugh and clap.
I remember going on stage for the very first time as a solo act, I was probably, like, nine or 10 years old. And being backstage, I started having anxiety... I was literally getting sick.
You can't say the word 'queen' without a little bit of 'drama' in front of it, right? It comes with the territory. Throwing shade and all that is part of the gig, but it should all kind of be in fun at the end of the day. When you start turning down that dark road where there's no light? Sometimes you put the car in park.
Drag was like 'Alice in Wonderland,' where she fell into the hole and her world changed. I fell into a gay bar, and my entire world changed.
You don't have to win 'Drag Race' to really win. And I am living proof of that, thank you Mary J. Blige!
I remember when I started performing, I thought, 'Why is this something that we do after hours, underground?' I was waiting on the world to change and the idea of this art to become mainstream, and I think that's what 'RuPaul's Drag Race' has really accomplished in such an eloquent way.
I've always been the rock of my family.
It is the greatest reward for me to share my story, my art, and my work. And people receiving that and being thankful and grateful, it once again resonates deep within because it reminds me that I am so much bigger than being a drag performer.
I'm a very real person that has overcome a lot, so I think I'm relatable.
I am a business owner. I'm a teacher. I think Justin's actually kind of plain, kind of nerdy. But when I morph into Alyssa, I'm like this... Well, this creature, everything that Justin couldn't be.
It took a lot of years of me on my own, coaching myself, to look in the mirror and love the reflection.
I sometimes feel like it's my world and everyone is just visiting.
I thought doing drag in the beginning was fun: playing dress up.
Go out, live your best life, encourage and share your laugh, and make other people laugh.
I'm gonna be the best version of me. If there's something I don't know, I'm not afraid to ask.
I have so much to be thankful for.
I think what happened is I learned my strengths, but more importantly, I learned to embrace my weaknesses.
I think that drag, being mainstream, it's such a wonderful thing because even my sister, years ago, they thought it was so taboo and didn't understand it, or maybe they thought, 'Justin, do you want to be a woman?' and I'm like, 'No, Alyssa's my character.'
Violet Chachki - I'm a huge fan of her work.
Positivity attracts positivity.
I used to focus so much on winning. I used to be such a perfectionist.
I started doing drag because I needed a creative outlet for myself.
I think when someone is so passionate about what they do, sometimes emotions come to the top, and you just get to that boiling point where you have to let it out.
This whole idea of editing, not one time I can tell you, not one time has a producer ever asked me to say something I did not want to say. I will also say this about 'Drag Race' producers: I will stand by the show and the people there because they have changed so many people's lives for the better, and I'm one of them.
I knew I wanted to be the Steven Spielberg of dance.
I don't get cute, I get drop-dead gorgeous.
My kids stand out at competitions. They're products of me. And you can't come to Beyond Belief and have a flamboyant teacher like me and be basic.
