Nymphia Wind has opened up about being “uncertain” about the place she “slot in” as a drag performer. (Getty)
The winner of season 16 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind, has spoken candidly about her struggles along with her psychological well being as an Asian drag performer.
Regardless of profitable over Drag Race followers along with her “bananas” character and jaw-dropping appears, the Taiwanese-American performer was typically depicted as doubting her talents.
However she needn’t have completed so. After bagging three problem wins and delivering a surprising efficiency of Kylie’s “Padam Padam” within the ultimate, which even the Aussie pop celebrity herself acknowledged, Nymphia beat closest competitor Sapphira Cristál to take the crown.
After profitable the present, she even bought the chance to carry out for Taiwan’s then president, Tsai Ing-wen.
One among Nymphia’s problem wins was throughout episode 14, entitled “Booked and Blessed”, by which the queens needed to start writing a memoir. Now, virtually two months on, Nymphia has launched a full extract from her ebook Breaking Wind – The Artwork of Letting Go, in partnership with LGBTQ+ youth suicide prevention charity The Trevor Undertaking.
The chapter marks the top of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month and the start of Pleasure month, and touches on Nymphia’s battle with mental-health points whereas rising up, and changing into a drag queen.
“The dialog round psychological well being in Asian nations may be very completely different than within the US. Rising up in Taiwan, psychological well being wasn’t mentioned as a lot with buddies or household, and the taboo nature of the subject may make folks uncomfortable if it was introduced up,” she writes.
“I keep in mind beginning out in Taipei and attending to know the scene and making new buddies however developing in drag takes much more than the typical particular person would assume. They are saying we’re our personal worst critics, I used to be at all times onerous on myself if I didn’t carry out to my very own excessive requirements or my look wasn’t excellent.
“Even transferring to Brooklyn – the place conversations round psychological well being are extra widespread – there have been moments after I would really feel down and uncertain of the place I slot in my drag, Asian or queer communities.”
In response to The Trevor Undertaking, greater than two-thirds of younger queer AAPI folks expertise signs of tension. Nymphia goes on to put in writing about how discovering her chosen household – significantly different queer, Asian drag performers in New York – helped her via her personal bouts.
“There are some issues that solely one other queer Asian drag artist would perceive,” she insists.
“Due to the stress to do properly in my profession, I positively have a little bit of efficiency nervousness. Even after performing for years, generally I nonetheless get nervous earlier than my exhibits.
“It doesn’t matter if I do know my look is sickening, if I’m performing my favorite track, or if the group’s power is off the charts, I can’t cease intrusive ideas and damaging emotions.
“However I can select how I navigate these moments.”