I’ve been a fan of Rupaul’s Drag Race ever since the beginning (shocking, I know) and just finished season sixteen. Out of all those seasons, there has only been one queen that I became a fan of. Pandora Boxx from season two. Rupaul doesn’t always make the best decisions on Drag Race, in my gay opinion, and one of her biggest missteps was not recognizing Pandora’s regal potential.
Pandora had a few singles over the years and finally dropped her debut album this week, simply titled, Boxx. Drag queen music is it’s own genre and has a very specific sound; canned electronic-dance with lyrics that are fun, self-loving and very tongue-in-cheek. Which, Pandora has embraced wholeheartedly.
Drag queens are able to create an illusion visually and Pandora brings that illusion into her music. Whether it’s a creepy haunting music boxx (“Dance”), a drag club on the Enterprise (“Space”) with hysterical vocal laser gun “pews” or Pirates Of The Caribbean realness (“Scurvy”); Pandora delivers. Pandora shines most brightly on “Numbers” and “Raspberries” with her random humor and ridiculousness. When was the last time you heard a Carol Channing impersonation or someone getting shat on by a bird? You won’t get that in a Taylor Swift song.
Back in 2018 I attended Drag Con in New York City because Pandora was in attendance, as well as my favorite judge, Michelle Visage. Once I scored autographs and pics with both, I left. I’ve yet to see Pandora perform live but it’s on my bucket list, maybe with the release of her new album, there will be some shows in the Northeast. From my lips to the Drag Goddesses ears.
