Denver Can’t Resist the Taste of Peppermint

Peppermint is a legendary queen from NYC who became a fixture in the city’s nightlife. She was already well on her way towards success by releasing music singles and appearing on TV shows, but her career did not fully take off until she became a contestant on RuPaul’s Drag Race Season Nine.

Making it to the top four, Peppermint ultimately finished in second place after she and winner Sasha Velour lip synced to Whitney Houston’s “It’s Not Right but It’s Okay.” Peppermint may not have won the crown, but she won the hearts of millions. Moreso, she made huge strides and broke down several barriers by being the first openly transgender woman to compete on Drag Race.

As a trans activist, Peppermint will fight to ensure that the trans community is not silenced or forgotten. Last year, she reached another milestone by making her Broadway debut in the Go-Go’s inspired musical Head Over Heels, playing the role of Pythio. She is the first trans woman to originate a principal role on Broadway.

Peppermint will be performing at this year’s Denver PrideFest on Sunday, June 16 on the Center Stage at 3:30 p.m. OUT FRONT had the pleasure of catching up with her, and we cannot wait for what she brings to the party.

Welcome to Denver, Peppermint! Will you be making the Mile High City minty fresh?

Oh, you better believe it, honey! You better believe it. Everybody knows that Peppermint is everyone’s favorite flavor!

We are so excited to have you here for Denver PrideFest. What can audiences expect from a Peppermint performance?

You know, they can expect some fun. A little bit of hip-hop, a little bit of booty shaking. All that.

What does Pride personally mean to you?

Pride to me means community. It means solidarity, and it means the future.

Obviously, millions of people know you from your time on RuPaul’s Drag Race. How would you say the show changed your life?

The show has given me a much larger platform than I ever could have imagined, and it gave me the ability to connect with people around the world and see places and cities I never dreamed of seeing.

And you were the first openly trans women to be cast on the show. Going into the competition, were you hesitant about revealing your true self?

I was comfortable with who I was, but I didn’t know the other queens. You know when you start a new job, are you never really sure whether to tell them you have a secret vault of diamonds in your basement or not [laughs]. So, it was really more about that I didn’t know who I was going to meet and what they were going to act like. Once I got comfortable with the other queens, I knew it would be okay. I was really more worried about my trans being used against me.

As we all know, RuPaul made some comments last year about trans people competing which landed him and the show in hot water. What were your thoughts on the situation, and did you lose any respect for Ru?

No, I did not lose respect for RuPaul. After that interview, at the time, I thought it was a good way to start a good conversation. At the end of the day, drag is becoming more mainstream and everyone should enjoy drag. It is for everyone, and Drag Race is a good part of why so many people like the art of drag.

I really look forward to a future where people are open to different kinds of drag queens and drag artists, whether they are gay, straight, black, white, young, old, male, female, nonbinary, trans or anything.

People should be able to experience the love of drag and express their love for drag. So, hopefully Drag Race will be open to more and more types of performers on the show because we want the show to be on the air forever, and I think in order to do that, we need to belike every other show that’s bene on the air for a long time, change things up and bring on new blood. Eventually, that will include more trans performer and different kinds of drag queens.

Do you think the trans community is often forgotten within the LGBTQ community?

Yes. I mean, I think that gender identity and sexuality are often misconstrued in ways. People can understand sexuality, because everyone has a sexuality, but not everyone understands gender identity. We need to recognize that notion more. Also, just because we are all from the same community, that does not mean we all benefit from things at the same time or have access to things at the same time.

I think some people are realizing more that just because something is labeled LGBT, that does not mean we have equality. Right now, a big thing for women is about their reproductive rights and the ban on abortion and the ban on people to make their own decisions with their bodies. That does not just affect heterosexual women. It also affects trans men. It affects anyone who has a uterus and the ability to bear children, which can be trans men. So, we have to talk more about how global issues affect all of us, more so with different parts of the community, and I am here to help people understand that.

As a trans activist, you believe we just need to constantly and continuously have those open conversations?

Yes. It is important to focus our energy on the fact that trans people are still being discriminated against, and we still have a lot of hurdles to overcome.

If given the chance to compete again on Drag Race, would you?

Probably, yes.

You are also the first trans woman to originate a principal role on Broadway at Pythio in Head Over Heels. How was the who’s run, and would you like to do more work on Broadway?

Oh, I loved it! It was so much fun, and I would definitely love to do Broadway again. The show was life changing for me, and it was a fun show. There was a lot of appreciation for the production.

How does it feel to know that you have broken so many barriers and you are truly looked at as a hero within the trans community?

It is great to know that my contributions are being recognized. I always try to be conscious of the fact that not everyone is given the same opportunities, so I have to remind myself that it is important for me to continue to keep those conversations going and keep the dialogue open. It is nice that people have taken notice and I will always keep our community in mind and do what I can do to help better it.

What kind of legacy do you hope to leave?

I would like to be remembered as an entertainer who has made a significant impact on the world.

You are a New York queen. Do you still perform throughout the city a lot?

Occasionally, yes.

What’s next for Peppermint? Any upcoming projects we should be on the lookout for?

Yes! I will be performing at World Pride at the Gramercy Theatre on June 28. Other than that, I take it one day at a time, so keep checking back to see what’s coming up.

Photo by Jeff Eason