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Black Pride Performer Spotlight: Juiccy Misdemeanor

from June 2023 :: Pride

from June 2023 :: Pride, page 52

Horoscopes

by Denny Patterson

riginally from St. Louis and moving to Denver in 2017, Juiccy Misdemeanor has made quite an impact on the Mile High drag scene.

Considered to be derivative of old-school, classic drag and female impersonation, Juiccy’s artistry is sparkly, fun, high-energy, and full of love and joy. Being a professional dancer for a living, she feels right at home on stage while giving audiences an unforgettable performance. Currently, Juiccy has a monthly residence at X Bar with her show X Factor, taking place on the first Friday of every month, and she can also be seen at other popular queer haunts such as Tracks, Triangle, and Charlie’s.

In June, Juiccy will be sharing the stage alongside her drag sisters Miss Zarah Misdemeanor and Porsha DeMarco-Douglas at Black Pride Colorado, and she took some time to talk more about it and her artistry with OFM.

How excited are you to be performing at this year’s Black Pride?

Oh my gosh, it's a thrill! This is our third year of events, so to see the growth and getting to perform at such a momentous occasion, I’m very excited. We are creating space and holding awareness for us as BIPOC and queer people of color, and I think it’s going to be an amazing weekend event. We have some very exciting things coming up.

Who is Juiccy Misdemeanor, and what is she all about?

Juiccy Misdemeanor is a combination of this Midwestern, Southern belle. She loves drag; she loves community and family, and she's very big on making everyone feel included because that's just my natural nature. As far as about her, she's very sparkly, usually high-energy, and loves to connect with people on a deeper level. So, I always make sure that I’m connecting with people offstage as well, and I always try to be at community events and hold up space when I can. I’m just a girl who loves to have fun and cares for the community.

When and how did you discover your love and passion for drag?

Crazy enough, which has been a struggle to explain, but also kind of exciting, during the pandemic, the world of virtual drag came about. I always told myself I wasn’t going to be a drag entertainer. I didn’t want to do drag. I was just a fun, queer, nightlife dancer person or whatever, but I’ve always loved drag. Back home, I was called a drag roadie or a drag hag because I was always involved in some way, whether that was carrying someone’s suitcase or being the small corners and crevices of bars.

As time evolved, and during the pandemic, I tried to stay creative by doing makeup challenges, but prior to that, Felony Misdemeanor asked me to be in her drag family. I was like, "No, I’m not ready. It’s too much" (laughs). Then, after the pandemic, I started to fall in love with makeup and drag even more, and I kept looking for ways to be creative and inspired. A lot of that has to do with ballroom, but also with drag, and then the next thing you know, we had virtual drag popping up at X Bar. I submitted a video called “My Power,” and then everyone was like, "You should do drag!" I was like, "OK!"

What ballroom houses are you involved with?

Currently, I am in the iconic house of LaBeija, which is the first founding house of ballroom. Then in the beginning of my ballroom days here in Colorado, I was in the Kiki House of Flora. They are really thriving and growing in the scene here.

What would you say you enjoy the most about drag as an art form?

I'll say my first and second. My first is the makeup process because I think it's so cool. You can transform yourself into someone of a different personality and energy, but also, I think the performing aspect really hones in for me. I love being on stage, and I love hosting and talking to people on the microphone. It’s fun to see people smile and get into what you’re doing. The world can be crazy, but I am so happy once I’m in the moment.

What can one always expect from a Juiccy Misdemeanor set?

You’re going to get high energy, high kicks, dance, sparkles, and sequins in a loving, communal, and inclusive space. My sets are a place for all people.

What do you think makes the Denver drag community unique and stand out from other drag communities? That's a good question. Being from the Midwest, and I also have family that resides in the South, from Georgia, the scenes are different. I think that Denver is a very eclectic and inclusive scene. Down south, like in Georgia, the pageant scene is very heavy, so everyone’s obsessed with polished, primped, and female presenting, or sometimes male presenting. It’s almost definitive on these lines of old school styles versus Denver where it’s very eclectic and inclusive.

We have bearded queens, androgynous individuals, alternative performers, pageant girls and guys, they/them—It’s such a mixture. Denver has a melting pot of drag, and there’s so much acceptance as well. Of course, everything has its bumps and rocky roads, but I feel like I've gone through many transitions, even through my drag, and every stage has been very accepting, welcoming, and loving.

Besides performing, what else are you looking forward to the most about this year’s Black Pride?

I'm excited to see how we can reach and connect to different communities and different amounts of people. Last year, we were really involved and immersed ourselves into community events, so I’m very excited to see how we can do that on a bigger level and scale, reaching more audiences and gathering more people to really commune and celebrate who are as a BIPOC community. I'm also excited to see the new fresh talent.

I believe we’re going to bring in some new faces and different individuals in and out of state who are just local drag entertainers. We’re giving a platform for local talents from different states to really showcase themselves because I think we sometimes forget that we have so much local talent across the world. As you know, drag has been commer- cialized, and it’s like, if you don’t do this show, you’re failing. No, that’s not true. So, we want to celebrate, highlight, and appreciate local drag talents from all over.

What does Pride mean to you?

Oh, my goodness. That's such a weighted question (laughs). I think Pride has a two-part meaning. The first part is knowing where the struggles of Pride came from and knowing that it was a protest and a fight for people to live their lives as authentically and holistically as possible. However, I also think Pride is a celebration of the future, how far we've come, and the progression. Even with our back falls, we can still commune and shine bright regardless of the people who are trying to oppress or weigh us down. It’s one of those black and white kinds of things. We’re sad and angry that we’re still fighting, but also, let’s celebrate, let our voice be heard, shine bright, and be beautiful. It’s a struggle and a triumph.

Do you remember the first Pride event you ever attended?

Yes! One of my first pride events was in St. Louis, the Pride parade, and I was working with a circus called Circus Kaput. They wanted me to be a ringleader person in front of the circus with this big umbrella, and I was like, "You want me to walk in this parade? Ok! " And that was one of my first amateur drag experiences. One of my friends, who is a fantastic makeup artist, put me in makeup, and I had this ringleader costume on, and I walked the entire St. Louis Pride parade twirling my umbrella parasol feeling my best self. That was my first full immersive experience with a Pride event, and to be in it, that was so cool.

What are some future goals you hope to accomplish with your drag and platform?

At this point, I'm saying the sky's the limit. I have some plans to create some merch and reach more fans, etc., and that’s everyone’s goal, but my long-term goal in terms of my platform and as a performer, I want to continue to highlight and curate space for Black and brown artists who do drag or perform. I always want to curate space for people to feel safe, so if that means going into more non-queer friendly spaces and devising some sort of collaboration/connection partnership so queer people can feel safe in all spaces that they attend, I think that's very important.

As our work progresses, and we have so many members of our community, I want everyone to feel as appreciated. So, that's very big for me. Also, there are a couple dreams that I have that may or may not happen, like Drag Race and things like that. I don't think they are needed to exceed your platform, but I think they do boost and help. Also, I produce an in-house hot sauce, and I’d love for that to become a worldwide thing. I love spicy food. We love a good hot sauce.