A huge conDRAGulations to RuPaul's Drag Race and American Idol alum Adore Delano, who took to social media to announce that she is trasnsgender.
via: Them
In a heartfelt 10-minute Instagram video uploaded earlier this week, Delano addressed rumors that have been circulating around the internet regarding her body and her gender. She confirmed that she is transitioning, adding that she kept it “really hush-hush” in the first three months “because I wanted to go through the beginning stages of the puberty privately, because there’s a lot that changes, and [that] integrates into the way that you think and the way that you receive information and the way that you react.”
"I've found that it's been very enlightening and has made me probably the happiest I've ever been in my adult life,” the drag queen and singer-songwriter told her 2 million Instagram followers.
Delano explained that two years ago, when she got sober, she was forced to confront her feelings about her gender that had persisted since childhood. “This is a feeling from dysphoria to euphoria,” she said.
She went on to share her life story: First, she came out as bisexual at 12 years old and then gay. During high school, Delano presented as a girl. Although she didn’t yet know the word transgender, she told her mom, “I’m not a boy, I’m a girl. I want to live my life as a girl.” Thankfully, her mom was supportive and let her wear makeup and women’s clothes, for which Delano expressed her gratitude.
Delano “suppressed everything,” though, when she was cast on American Idol in 2008 at the tender age of 16. "I threw it away. I burned it. I tried to reinvent myself,” she recalled. “But I reinvented myself into something that was so uncomfortable. It was almost like a sacrifice in order to get what I wanted career-wise.” By the time she appeared on Season 6 of Drag Race in 2014, she’d already committed to a persona that didn’t quite fit who she knew herself to be. But now, Delano is ready to embrace her gender identity. “I’m taking care of myself,” she shared, “and I feel beautiful.”
Delano also said that she was having an unspecified gender-affirming surgery in November, a step she described as “moving into the euphoric chapter of the book.”
“We only have one body, depending on what you believe," she added. “But on this earth and in this lifetime right now, I'm going to make the best out of it and squeeze the most juice out of it as I can and become the most beautiful butterfly that I can for you guys.”
Fellow former Drag Race contestants showered Delano with love in her comments section. Courtney Act wrote, “I accompany you on any journey. I love you forever. My ride or die!” while fellow trans queen Peppermint wrote, “I’m so proud of you. Welcome home sis.” Kornbread also expressed her happiness for Delano, and added a word of lighthearted advice: “Warn ya friends that’s [sic] the mood swings are normal lol. It’s a right of passage and they should be honored to experience it.”
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