Quite a bit of drama has been going on in the RuPaul’s Drag Race queendom, particularly with contestants from international franchises and the people they hired to represent them for touring and media opportunities.
The latest queen to join this reckoning of Drag Race alumni opening up about bad experiences with managers is RuPaul’s Drag Race UK season two winner Lawrence Chaney. On Wednesday, November 1, the Scottish drag superstar took to Instagram to share her experiences.
“In January of this year, I took action legal action against my old TV/media representative for monies owed,” the Drag Race UK winner wrote via Instagram story. “Some money was recovered. However, over £30,000 GBP was still owed to me that I was not paid.”
Chaney added, “They are currently in the process of liquidating their company. They have seemingly started up a new company called ‘SMTM Global,’ [which] stands for ‘Show Me The Money.’ So, respectfully… Show me the money!!!”
In recent months, we’ve been seeing Drag Race queens like Farida Kant, Bimini, and others talking about certain issues they’ve had with local promoters, managers, and/or booking agents. While her reasons for it remain unclear, Anetra also announced a break from drag while canceling a series of gigs scheduled with a company called Klub Kids.
As the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) strike of 2023 remains in place, it seems like other entertainers and performers – even those who aren’t organized in a union – are taking this time to expose how their industries work and how systematic changes are needed. After gaining such a large platform for competing on Drag Race, these queens hope to make a better living in their careers instead of being taken advantage of by managers, agents, and representatives.
We hope Lawrence Chaney gets her money back, and that drag entertainers around the world are properly compensated for their work and talent.
