BeBe Zahara Benet

Career

Bebe Zahara Benet got his start in drag when he was asked to fill in for a missing model at a Paris fashion show, putting on a dress and walking the runway as a woman. After moving to Minneapolis in 2000, he performed for the first time in drag alongside Cyndi Lauper at The Gay 90s bar. He also took part in drag pageants, including Miss US of A. In early 2009, after RuPaul saw him perform "Circle of Life" at Minneapolis Pride and suggested he audition, and with encouragement from Chi Chi LaRue, Benet tried out for the first season of RuPaul's Drag Race.

RuPaul's Drag Race and other television

He was chosen from thousands of applicants to be one of nine queens on the show. He went on to win the season, taking two challenge wins along the way. His victory inspired many future drag queens, including Bob The Drag Queen, who would later win season eight. In 2011, Benet appeared as a "drag professor" on two episodes of RuPaul's Drag U. He was later revealed as the surprise tenth contestant on the third season premiere of RuPaul's Drag Race: All Stars, making him the first winner in the show's history to return for an All-Stars season.

He made it to the finale with two challenge wins but was not chosen for the final two by a jury of previously eliminated queens, finishing in a tie for third place with Shangela. Benet joined Jujubee, Thorgy Thor, and Alexis Michelle in the TLC special Drag Me Down the Aisle, which aired on March 9, 2019, and later became the series Dragnificent. His first dance single, "I'm the Sh*t," has been remixed by Felix Baumgartner, Ralphi Rosario, and Mark Picchiotti. He released a second single, "Cameroon," in July 2010.

Music

In December 2010, he made a cameo in Erasure's music video for their re-release of "A Little Respect," a fundraiser for students at the Harvey Milk Institute in San Francisco. His third single, "Dirty Drums," came out on April 17, 2012, via iTunes, followed by his fourth single, "Face," on March 3, 2014. He recorded a cover of "Little Drummer Boy" for the Drag Race Christmas Queens 4 album. In November 2017, Benet performed in Queens United, a benefit show organized by Phi Phi O'Hara to raise money for people affected by Hurricane Maria.

Other ventures and tours

In 2018, he created "Roar," a monthly show that features interactive dancing. In 2020, he co-created, produced, and headlined the Nubia tour, a live drag show celebrating Black drag queens through original music, group choreography, video installations, live vocals, lip syncs, and narrative-driven performance art. The tour began with sold-out shows in New York City, with plans to visit Los Angeles and other major U.S. cities.

In June 2021, he was featured in a "Gospel Brunch Drag Show" for LGBTQIA+ youths of color celebrating Black Pride, and the virtual "Pride Bigger Than Texas" event. In August 2021, he performed in Klub Kids London Presents: NOIR: The Tour, with 25% of proceeds donated to the Black Lives Matter movement. The documentary Being Bebe premiered at the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival from June 19–23, 2021, and later screened at the Provincetown International Film Festival on June 23, 2021, where it won the 2021 Best Documentary Award. Outside of drag, Ngwa is the CEO of The Lavish Labs, an event planning and decor firm.

Personal life

Before drag, Ngwa led choirs and taught music. He identifies as a drag artist or performer rather than a drag queen, and is a devout Christian.

His fashion inspirations are Christian Dior, Giorgio Armani, and Alphadi. As a child, Yvonne Chaka Chaka was his musical hero, and he hopes to work with Tiwa Savage, Yemi Alade, Angélique Kidjo, and Davido. Ngwa does not label his sexuality and is fine with any pronouns.