Precious Paula Nicole, Brigiding, Viñas Deluxe proud of their journeys as drag queens

The Divine Divas are proud drag queens and no one can bring them down!

During their guesting on the podcast "Your Honor," Precious Paula Nicole, Brigiding, and Viñas Deluxe talked about their journey as drag queens and how their experiences made them who they are today.

"Sobrang proud and grateful talaga na ngayon pa kami naging drag queen, ngayong 'yung time ganto 'yung pagtanggap ng drag sa Philippines," Viñas Deluxe said.

Viñas shared that she had experiences in school where she wasn't allowed to perform because she was in drag, and the art form was not as accepted as it is now.

"Pero ngayon, ini-invite na kami sa mga schools na may mga drag competitions sa schools, kasabay sa mga intrams nila. 'Di ba dati mga cheerdance competition lang, ngayon, may drag competition na kasabay ng mga dance contest, singing contest," she said.

Viñas added that they also get invited to talk about what drag brings to communities, like having confidence.

"Ang sarap sa feeling na sineseryoso na siya ng tao. Hindi na lang siya entertainment na para pagtawanan," Vinas said.

Brigiding gives credit to the queens that came before them, who fought hard for drag to be taken seriously.

"Imagine-in n'yo nung time na 'yon, walang 'Drag Race Philippines,' walang platform. Lumalabas sila ng bahay, kinukutya sila, na-di-discriminate, 'di ba usually hindi pa tinatanggap ng pamilya kasi ganun pa kasama 'yung tingin sa mga bakla. Pero ipiniglaban nila 'yung pag-pe-perform at pagmamahal nila sa pagtatanghal. So sa kanila kami talaga nagpapasalamat," she said.

"So ginagalingan namin ngayon para 'yung mga susunod na bata, ipagpatuloy 'yung art form at mas maraming maka-experience nung art of drag," Brigiding added.

Precious Paula Nicole looked back on when she wasn't accepted to work at bars. She also performed without salary. Slowly, drag was brought onto variety shows and had more platforms.

"Ang nakakatuwa kasi, binabalikan ko 'yung time na kahit ako muntik na hindi maniwala sa ginagawa ko, pero thankful ako at grateful ako na 'di ako bumitaw dun sa nakikita ko," she said.

Precious added that she is happy to see that drag is now a serious profession.

"Hindi na siya basta 'yung nakikita mo lang sa bars, may mga brands na nagtitiwala, may commercial, may movies, may music videos, may song, nagkaka-concert. From one-man show, may team na kami na nagtatrabaho para sa 'min," she said.

Precious Paula Nicole is the Philippines' first-ever Drag Race Superstar. She won the pilot season of "Drag Race Philippines" in 2022.

Vinas and Brigiding also competed in the first season. They also competed in "Drag Race Philippines: Slaysian Royale," where Brigiding was declared the winner. —Nika Roque/MGP, GMA News