Precious Paula Nicole

The winner of the inaugural season of Drag Race Philippines shares how drag artistry has empowered herself and her career

- Ryanne Stephanie Cheng Co

She became an overnight celebrity. Precious Paula Nicole, the well admired drag queen who won the first season of Drag Race Philippines, is now among the most recognisable artists nationwide. Having worked as a drag artist for years before her win, Precious often attracts attention by personifying everything but the mundane.

I am bi-sexual. Outside drag, I am not feminine but also an introvert. Precious and Rodolfo [Hontiveros III] are two different people, and I love how audiences are amazed when they perceive me in drag and then out. I am two personas in one body. I chose to keep Precious and Rodolfo as two different people, two separate identities.

My ex introduced Drag 16 years ago when I was still a folk dancer