In last week’s premiere of RuPaul’s Drag Race: All Stars 3, season nine competitor Aja brought a fiery ballroom routine to the main stage for the All Star Variety Show main challenge — and landed in the top two as a result. Despite the fact that it had been less than a year since the self-described "slutty anime girl" first competed on the show, Aja seemingly returned in full-form with a renewed sense of confidence and a palpable determination to win. As she put it during her workroom entrance, “I have some unfinished business.”
Though it will take a few more weeks to see just how much business Aja came back to finish, her strong performance in last week’s talent show is a good harbinger of what’s to come. During the judges’ critiques, Aja was praised for the precision of her routine — especially for the execution of her death-defying jump from a five-foot platform (which, of course, instantly became a social media sensation).
To hear more about her triumphant return to the competition, we called Aja while she was at Popeyes with her boyfriend. Talking from a phone with only one percent battery life, Aja opened up about feeling confident, being a drag mother for Haus of Aja, and capitalizing on her infamous Valentina rant.
I want to start with that crazy jump. How planned was that?
It was really funny, because we had YouTube in our hotel rooms, and the morning of, I was watching videos of Leiomy Mizrahi, who’s a huge legend in the ballroom scene. I was gathering some inspiration for the talent show and I came across a video of her jumping off a table into a dip. When I got to the studio, I was like, “Hey, can I get a five-foot platform?” [The producers] were looking at me like, what are you going to do with a platform, so I was like, okay, I’ll show you. I was actually supposed to wear little mint green ankle boots that went with my outfit, but during the rehearsal, I actually hurt my knee and it bled through my outfit. I had to wear thigh-high boots to cover that blood. It was extreme and crazy, but I was like, you know what, I really just need a wow factor to boost my performance above and beyond.
It was very gratifying because everyone just kind of expected me to fail. Especially when I walked in [to the workroom], I was very quiet. I was just like, okay, I’m going to keep to myself. I didn’t really know anyone and everyone there was super established, so everyone was questioning why I decided to do it because I had just finished season nine. So I thought, you know what, I’m not going to tell you why I deserve to be here — I’m just going to show you.
As a performer, you’re very well-known for your legendary dancing. Do you ever get scared when preparing for a jump from that high or is it second nature at this point?
No. I think if I were to think about [how scary it is], I wouldn’t do it. When you go into those situations, especially as a performer, it’s just like an all-or-nothing moment. There was a moment a few years ago where Shangela did a drop and broke her leg, so it’s like that. You don’t think about it, you don’t think about what it could to do to your body. You can get hurt but, as a performer, you kind of have to just do it. I think it’s the only way that it’ll be executed correctly. If we’re thinking about it, you’ll know because you’ll see it on our faces. When I was watching [the episode], I was kind of gagged at how it almost looked like I didn’t even realize what I was about to do. The funny thing too was that the platform was supposed to be higher, but they took it down some inches because Kennedy [Davenport] needed to land her stunt.
Going back to what you were saying earlier about other queens questioning your place on All Stars, did that affect you in any way?
Honestly, there was a feeling that I was there really quickly because it had been less than a year since we filmed season nine. But walking into the room, I didn’t even feel like I had anything to prove. You know, I didn’t know these queens like that, but my life has never been about proving anything. It was more to prove to myself that I could do it and that I should do it. So I kind of walked in with a very positive, happy mood — which is so different than season nine. Season nine, I walked in and felt like I had to prove something to the world. When I walked in on All Stars, I thought I needed to leave that behind and focus on making myself happy. I gave no fucks. I was like, I’m here, I’m here to please me, and I’m here to have fun.
I know it was only a few months, but did something happen between season nine and All Stars 3 that helped you come to this conclusion?
I think it was a combination of me knowing how things worked because I had done the show already, and also… Well, after season nine aired, I was heavily criticized by the [Drag Race] fandom. I’m one of those people that, like, I think I’m very good at taking criticism because I will bark back and fight back but I will always sit down and think if this change is good for me or if it’s something that can actually help me. [Being] under scrutiny for so many different things including my makeup, my attitude, the whole Valentina feud, it really made me put things into a different perspective. I feel like, honestly, when I watch back through [those older episodes], I was a completely different person.
Speaking of the Valentina feud, what are your thoughts on the situation now?
Honestly, I’m not the type of person to regret anything so I kind of look back at it and… I remember getting back from season nine and thinking, oh shit, what if people really like this bitch and I just destroyed my entire reputation? Which is semi-true. I kind of learned to just embrace it. I made merchandise based off of it. I sold it, marketed it, branded it, and said, you know what, it may not be an actual reflection of who I am, but a lot of people think it is. So instead of sitting here worrying about it, I decided to make money off of it.
But you know what, it’s a thing. I think the struggle was equal for me and Valentina because people were doing it to her too. But I think we can both look back at it now and joke about it. Even the last time I saw her, I went to dinner with her and she was wearing a hat that had the speech on it and I thought that was incredibly hilarious. I’m glad we can all move past it and just look at the moment and laugh at it. I think at first, a lot of people were pissed about it, and I was like, “You know what? When you’re mad, you say things you don’t mean.” And in that case, I didn’t say anything mean anyway.
Getting back into All Stars, is there anyone you look at as serious competition?
When I first walked in, I definitely didn’t think that DeLa [BenDeLaCreme] was going to be great competition, because from season six, I had pretty much gathered that she got in her head a lot. But as I was getting to know her — in that first episode, especially — I realized how sweet she was and I realized that she’s one of those silent killers who doesn’t even have to say anything. She’s really witty and then she brought that talent and I realized, no, this is not the bitch who’s not going to make it; this is the bitch who is going to come for everyone’s head.
You’re in the eponymous Haus of Aja. What’s the history there?
The ironic thing is that it kind of goes back to the whole [thing I was saying about] taking criticism from other people and turning it into something good. We, as Haus of Aja, were never really a drag house. It was not meant to be a house. It was the jealousy and the bitterness that was thrown at us from the local queens in New York. We were all best friends and a lot of queens would be like, “Oh, here’s Dahlia [Sin] from the Haus of Aja!” But they started saying that; we didn’t. It was one of those things where I was like, okay, if you want to call us the Haus of Aja then we’re going to make it a thing. And then, we’re going to take it and we’re going to sell it. We’re going to tour and make money off of it, because that’s what a business bitch does. People need to be careful — other people’s jealousy can really capitalize your bank account.
But I think that what really separates the Haus of Aja from other drag houses is that, at this moment in time, we’re all really different. We’re all people of color who come from a really kind of gritty background, where society and life told us we couldn’t do it in every aspect and we kind of just rose above it. We all share an aesthetic and a sense of resilience — which are two different things. We just kind of want to show people that you can rise above and you can look cute doing it. You don’t have to wear your struggle as baggage. You can wear it as a badge of honor and continue to use that struggle as a means of success. Because honestly, the best way to overcome any type of adversity is to just accept it and say, “Okay, well where do I go from here?” And I think that’s something we’ve all done together. It’s like, no matter where I go and how big I get, it’s really about taking the people who got me and supported me and carried me to where I am now, and uplifting them just as much. Because if it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t be where I am.
What else can we expect from Aja in 2018?
Stay tuned. I’m working on music. I’m working on a rap EP and before the end of the year, I’m releasing an album. People should get ready because there’s not really another drag queen — especially amongst the Drag Race girls — who’s put out a non-drag, non-club, or non-pop straight-up hip-hop album. I’m writing all my own content, all my own lyrics, and I’m recording with the help of a few close friends and producers. So this musical project is going to be me opening up my mind, my body, my heart, and my soul. It’s going to be me putting myself out there in a way I’ve never done before. I’m not here to rap about lip gloss; I’m here to tell you what I’ve been through.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
Michael Cuby has always been a social media addict, but is now finally putting his vice to good use as the Community Manager for them. He is also a writer whose work has appeared in PAPER, Teen Vogue, VICE, and Flavorwire.
