Violet Chakchi becomes first drag queen to star in lingerie campaign
RuPaul’s Drag Race‘s season 7 winner Violet Chachki has starred in a major lingerie campaign, making her the first drag queen to ever do so.
In partnership with Bettie Page Lingerie, Violet Chachki has launched a line by London-based brand Playful Promises.
“I think the most impactful thing any gender non-conforming person can have is visibility,” said Chachki to Hollywood Reporter.
“She was a huge inspiration for my drag character. I often tell people that when I started drag, I was basically just cosplaying as Bettie Page,” Chachki tells The Hollywood Reporter. “This campaign is really a full circle moment for me!”
Including the likes of corsets and strapped bustiers, the retro-inspired collection is favoured by Chachki because of its “hyper-femininity”.
“I think barefaced, minimal makeup happens mostly on editorial shoots,” Chachki said to Refinery 29.
“I’ve taken a swing at minimal makeup here and there, but I think a lot of what drag celebrates is the opposite of that. We have a lot of cisgendered female fans and I think the inauthenticity and the hyper-femininity is part of why it’s so celebrated.”
“That’s exactly what a project like this does. Visibility and just simply taking up space in media lead to questions, which lead to conversation, which lead to progressive thought and change.”
“We try to keep our brands as diverse as possible, working with women of different ethnicities, shapes, sizes and ages, so it seemed a logical step to also explore gender,” says Playful Promises founder Emma Parker to US Weekly.
The range, which is priced from $26-$98, is available at bettiepagelingerie.com.
Images: ANNA SWICZENIUK/PLAYFUL PROMISES
