Meet The Beautiful Bearded Drag Queen Adele Computer
There is no shortage of drag queens in NYC. You can’t throw a rock without hitting some twink in a dress who thinks he’s got what it takes to shantay down the runway just because he’s seen every season of Ru Paul’s Drag Race while practicing YouTube makeup tutorials. There’s a difference, though, between learning how to just paint your face and turning that face into a work of fucking art. This interview series highlights the New York queens that stand out from the crowd, work their assess off and rock those heels til they bleed.
Meet Adele Computer.
Photo Credit- Jordan Bowens
Describe your look.
Beautiful! The whole thing is about gender fucking. I’ve heard people say that drag queens with beards can’t detach themselves from masculinity and I’ve never been a traditionally masculine person. The last time I was clean shaven was in 2014. I haven’t seen my chin in years and I haven’t seen my double chin either. That’s what really gives me the confidence to go out and do this.
So the beard stays?
I don’t know what’s underneath there. Judging by the stuff that comes out of it it can’t be good. It’s fucking Phantom Of The Opera. I need this beard.
So you’re a drag queen by night and a 9 to 5’er during the day?
I’m a copywriter at an ad agency as my day job. I have a Drag Race viewing party every Thursday so I’ll just bring everything to work and at 5 o’clock I’ll start gluing down my brows, sitting at my desk, and getting into drag. A lot of people come up and ask me what I’m doing and every girl in the office is like “You have to give me a lesson in contouring” and I’m like “Yes, honey. Whenever you’re ready I’m ready”.
You were a stand up comedian before you started drag.
Essentially my whole life I’ve been looking for an outlet for performing. I always knew I wanted to be some kind of entertainer. I used to hate drag. I just didn’t want to be around it. Now that I look back on it, I think the truth was that it was a little bit too close to home. I wasn’t ready to see my truth yet so I avoided it.
How did you get started in drag?
I started going to Drag Race viewing parties in Brooklyn because it was something to do on a weeknight. Eventually I had participated in so many drinking contests that the queens were hosting that I had amassed like $85 in gift certificates to a drag boutique and there was nothing else to spend it on but drag. I bought a wig and some make up and a pair of heels. That was the impetus of my drag career.
What’s an Adele Computer show like?
I know I’m not necessarily an amazing dancer or a real fishy looking queen so I just try to keep people laughing. That’s why I love drag, you can do stand up, you can do improv and you can work them into a lip sync. It’s all under the umbrella of a drag performance. Recently I performed at Night Of 1,000 Carries, a Carrie Fisher charity tribute show. I did I’m A Slave For You by Britney Spears as Princess Leia. I brought a giant inflatable Jabba The Hut onstage and made him the slave for me.
Is getting onto Drag Race a goal for you?
I would love to be the first bearded queen on Drag Race. I’m holding out hope that one day they will need someone like me on the show. I haven’t auditioned but I do plan on it. I think if there is ever going to be a bearded queen on there I don’t know why it shouldn’t be me.
