Meet the Miss Drag South Africa 2020/21 finalists

Despite the challenges imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic, Miss Drag South Africa will be going ahead this year, but as an online event.

On Tuesday, the organisers of the prestigious pageant announced the ten captivating finalists who will compete for the coveted title as well as details of the crowning show.

The journey to find the finalists began early last year. The Miss Drag South Africa organisation initially selected 50 semi-finalists from across all nine provinces to compete in the 2020 pageant.

These were later narrowed down to a Top 20 and then a Top 15. They were posed with challenges associated with the Miss Drag South Africa ethos of ‘Drag with A Purpose’, in which each finalist creatively engaged with this ethos in a fashion that accommodated or addressed the needs of their respective communities.

The finalists were set to compete in a glamorous pageant in Durban in September 2020 but, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the event was postponed. Pageant Director Queen-Enigma Von-Hamburg then decided to host a virtual show this year.

“Our finalists’ health and well-being are our biggest priority and, unfortunately, we cannot ignore the gravity of the current situation and how it has been received, especially with the second wave and predictions of a third and fourth wave. This is also a time to be creative and to think outside the box, but the show must go on,” says Von-Hamburg.

To select this year’s final 10 contestants, a panel of judges conducted virtual interviews with the 15 semi-finalists. They also evaluated their respective Drag With A Purpose projects, social media interaction and talents showcased in video submissions.

So without further ado, here are the Top 10 finalists who will be vying for the title of Miss Drag South Africa 2020/21, in alphabetical order:

1. Arshen Madlopha – Mpumalanga
2. Britina – Free State
3. Ciara M Ndlovu – KwaZulu-Natal
4. Foxy – Gauteng
5. LaPont Namakwanland – Northern Cape
6. Lola Pyramid – KwaZulu-Natal
7. Miss Gee – Mpumalanga
8. Miz Cambell – Gauteng
9. Thibi Monale – North West
10. Ycer Machimana – Limpopo

Educator Zilin Ayoki was crowned in 2017 as the first Miss Drag South Africa. She was followed by Port Elizabeth based entrepreneur, Miss Vicky (2018) and the reigning queen, activist and teacher Belinda Qaqamba Ka-Fassie, crowned in 2019.

“Miss Drag South Africa is much more than just a beauty pageant or modelling competition, as each finalist has to initiate a Drag with a Purpose project to advocate for the advancement of LGBTIQA+ rights and drag culture, as well as serve as agents for change and uplift their communities by serving as positive role models,” explains Von-Hamburg.

Miss Drag South Africa 2020/21 will take place virtually on 27 March, via Quicket. The finalists will do their recordings in their homes and communities and the producers will edit the videos into a final pre-recorded show, lasting approximately an hour and a half.

Tickets for Miss Drag South Africa 2020/21 are on sale at R60 per ticket. Profits will be shared amongst the finalists to aid their respective Drag with a Purpose community projects. For ticket sales, click here.

For sponsorship of other information contact Von-Hamburg at missdragsouthafrica@evhempire.co.za or support the pageant through its Backabuddy campaign.