Alyssa Edwards

Alyssa Edwards

Alyssa Edwards performing in March 2013
Born Justin Johnson
(1980-01-16) January 16, 1980
Residence Mesquite, Texas, U.S.
Occupation Drag performer, dance teacher

Justin Johnson (born January 16, 1980), known by her stage name Alyssa Edwards, is an American drag performer, dance teacher, and businesswoman. Johnson was known for competing in drag pageantry and being dethroned from her title as Miss Gay America 2010, with the title being passed on to Coco Montrese, before gaining prominence and ultimately becoming a fan favorite on the fifth season of RuPaul's Drag Race and the second season of RuPaul's Drag Race: All Stars.

Career

Johnson performs under the stage name Alyssa Edwards. She chose her name in homage to Alyssa Milano and to her mother Laken Edwards, a former drag queen.[1] Johnson is part of the drag family "the Haus of Edwards" and serves as drag mother to fellow RuPaul's Drag Race contestants Shangela Laquifa Wadley, Laganja Estranja, and Gia Gunn.[1] Johnson was one of the judges of the 2010 California Entertainer of the Year pageant, which Shangela won.[2]

Ex-participant of Ru Pauls drag race , Coco Montrese

Johnson appeared in the 2008 documentary Pageant.[3] The film focused on the 34th Miss Gay America pageant of 2006[4] On December 9, 2010, Johnson was stripped of her 2010 Miss Gay America title [5] for having business dealings in conflict with obligations to the Miss Gay America organization. First alternate Coco Montrese replaced Johnson as the winner of Miss Gay America.[6] That same year, Johnson was also stripped of her title as All American Goddess.[7]

Alyssa Edwards performing in Santiago de Chile, August 2016

In November 2012, Logo announced that Johnson was among 14 drag queens who would be competing on the fifth season of RuPaul's Drag Race. Also performing on the show was pageant friend and rival Coco Montrese.[8] Performing as Alyssa Edwards throughout the season, Johnson won the ballet-themed main challenge in the "Black Swan: Why It Gotta Be Black? episode".[9] As part of the show, Johnson sang on the "We Are the World"-inspired song "Can I Get an Amen?" The song's proceeds helped benefit the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center.[10] Johnson was eliminated in episode 9, following a lip sync against Coco Montrese, and finished in 6th place.World of Wonder, the production company behind RuPaul's Drag Race, has prepared a sizzle reel, "Beyond Belief", for a potential reality series for Logo, centered on his Mesquite, Texas-based business, Beyond Belief Dance Company. Johnson has also been a special guest on the podcast series run by RuPaul and Michelle Visage called 'What's the Tee?' [11]

In 2016, Johnson returned as one of 10 contestants in Season 2 of RuPaul's Drag Race: All Stars, ending in fifth place.[12]

Titles

Edwards competed in and won numerous pageant titles.[13] They include:

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2008 Pageant Herself Documentary
2016 Hurricane Bianca Ambrosia Salad Comedy

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2013 RuPaul's Drag Race Herself Season 5 - 6th place
RuPaul's Drag Race: Untucked Herself Companion show to RuPaul's Drag Race
NewNowNext Awards Herself
2015 Beyond Belief Himself post-production
2015-2016 Skin Wars Herself 2 episodes
RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars Herself Season 2 - 5th place

Web series

Year Title Role Notes
2013–present Alyssa's Secret[15] Herself Produced by World of Wonder

Music video appearances

N/A

References

  1. 1 2 Duren, Rand (21 November 2012). "Meet Alyssa Edwards, the fabulous drag queen from Mesquite who will appear on 'RuPaul's Drag Race'". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  2. ↑ Addams, Calpernia. "California EOY 2010 – The Recap". Calpernia.com. Retrieved 19 March 2013.
  3. ↑ "Pageant (2008) - IMDb". IMDb. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  4. 1 2 Higbee, Johnathan (3 November 2009). "A Pair of Queens". Instinct. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  5. ↑ "Suspended Contestant and Affiliate Registry". Miss Gay America. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  6. ↑ Blanchard, Steve (3 March 2010). "Coco Montrese is crowned Miss Gay America 2010". Watermark. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
  7. ↑ Nelson, Maxine (30 January 2013). "'RuPaul's Drag Race' Season 5 Premiere: A Fomenting Feud". Yahoo! Voices. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  8. ↑ Coughlan, Maggie (19 November 2012). "RuPaul's Drag Race Season 5 Contestants Announced". People. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  9. ↑ Framke, Caroline (19 February 2013). "Black Swan: Why It Gotta Be Black?". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  10. ↑ Parker, Lyndsey (5 March 2013). "Great Musical Moments In Reality TV: RuPaul's "Can I Get An Amen"". Yahoo! Music. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  11. ↑ www.rupaulpodcast.com/episodes
  12. ↑ "Logo Announces Contestants For "RuPaul's All Star Drag Race" Season 2".
  13. ↑ "Alyssa Edwards". Miss Gay America. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  14. 1 2 Jones, Arnold (2 November 2009). "Dallas' Alyssa Edwards wins Miss Gay America". Dallas Voice. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  15. ↑ Horbelt, Stephan (24 May 2013). "Always & Forever, Alyssa Edwards". Frontiers. Retrieved 7 December 2013.

External links

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