Get to Know Minerva, the Punk Princess of Denver

As the self-proclaimed Punk Princess of Denver, Minerva is going to stand out for all the right, wrong, and unique reasons.

Growing up in a military family and moving to the Mile High City from Tennessee when they were 11 years old, Minerva instantly fell in love with the art of drag after watching season three of RuPaul’s Drag Race. However, it wasn’t until they saw Adore Delano, who Minerva says is their personal hero, when they realized drag was the lifestyle to pursue.

Whether it’s edgy, weird, or WTF, Minerva will always give a performance that is memorable. They can be seen regularly at Tracks, and they recently debuted a new monthly show called Hell on Heels, an alternative showcase that allows a space for entertainers outside of the social norm.

OFM caught up with Minerva to talk more about their drag and the goals they hope to accomplish.

Can you begin by telling us more about who Minerva is and what they’re all about?

Minerva’s kind of crazy (laughs). I like to say that my drag style is chaotic, but in a way where it somehow just works. I like to throw myself in a closet and whatever comes out is what happens. In terms of branding, I typically say I’m the punk princess of Denver because I love edgy, weird, shock art stuff, but I also like to dance, have fun, and make people smile. Give them a sense of comfortability.

If this is someone’s first drag show, they can go, oh, this isn’t as intense as I thought it was going to be. On the other hand, I want you to walk out being like, what just happened? Minerva is also flexible, does a lot of gymnastics, as well as stupid stuff. I’ve broken many stages with my body, I’ve eaten money, I’ve kissed random strangers—Minerva is a crazy loon, but entertaining.

How did you discover your love and passion for drag?

I’ve been doing drag since I was 13. I just turned 21, and I started because of Drag Race. I was in school, and this was the time when YouTube would play full episodes of TV shows. The entirety of season three was on there, so I watched, and I was completely mesmerized and in love with Raja. Like, this bitch is cool. Then it was season six when I saw Adore Delano, and I was like, that’s what I need to be doing!  This is what we’re going to do. So, I’m a Drag Race baby, started in high school, and it’s been crazy ever since.

Is there a story behind your drag name?

When I turned 18, I felt like my personal life was shifting so much that my drag was going to shift as well. When I first came to Denver, everybody in the scene was gorgeous, pretty, and polished, and that’s not what I was doing. I was the edgy, weird, ripped up T-shirt, teased up to high hell, crazy person. I was like, if I need to be successful, then I need to be pretty and put together, and that’s what I did. Then I started to work very closely with the club kid weirdos in Denver, specifically Yvie Oddly.

In a nice way, she slapped me around a bit and told me to get out of my head and just do what I want to do. Like, stop worrying about what other people think. Just have fun with what you’re doing. So, I changed my name to Minerva because I was super into mythology as a kid, and Minerva was the Roman goddess of war, strategy, and wisdom. I was also a huge Harry Potter person, and Minerva McGonagall was such a badass professor. So, my name came from both Roman mythology and McGonagall.

You are also a member of the House of Ninja. How did you get involved with the ballroom scene?

I just started producing my very first show, and the house parents at the time came to it. They were watching me perform, and they approached me afterwards and were like, “You have some insane talent.  We want to work with you. We’ve never seen a drag entertainer perform the way you perform.” OK, cool!! We sat down and talked, and then over time, everything just clicked together.

When I was a kid and discovered what being gay and drag was, I was also paying attention to ballroom culture and learning about it. Since the house parents approached me, it’s been a great journey. I’ve gotten very, very close with a lot of people all over the world from the House of Ninja, and they’ve supported me in so many ways that I will forever be grateful for.

What makes the Denver drag community so special to you?

I can talk about this for hours (laughs). Every scene obviously has their own talents, niches, and styles. Nebraska and Dallas, Texas have big pageant scenes. LA and New York are known for their fashion, and Chicago is known for the club kid style. Denver has this new sense of drive and style that’s a combination of everything around us, and our scene here has not always been as paid attention to or looked at until recently. We have people who are pulling from all these different styles and inspirations, and we are all unique. We all have our own thing, and everybody has their own reason for doing drag.

There’s Jessica L’Whor, who is one of the biggest queens in the state right now, and she can do a lot of different things. There’s Heavenly Powers, who is known for being this punk rock diva, and then there’s Yvie Oddly and Willow Pill. We all have our own different things, but collectively, we make Denver one of the most unique and special places that I’ve ever seen.

Besides Tracks, do you perform anywhere else?

I can be typically seen at X Bar and Hamburger Mary’s,  but my home bar is Tracks. When I turned 18, I did the “Ultimate Queen Competition,” and that skyrocketed my drag career. I went from having no gigs to 18 shows in two weeks. So, I always give Tracks love, support, and respect because I would not be where I am today without them.

Earlier this year, you started a new monthly show called Hell on Heels. Can you tell us more about that?

Yes! It’s an alternative drag showcase held on the third Thursday of the month. Post COVID, a lot of our alternative spaces have either closed, like Gladys, or they aren’t giving queer alternative punk kids the space they need to be able to express themselves. So, that’s why I started my show, and it’s open to anyone who wants to do it. There are no rules. There’s no you’re not this enough or not that enough. If you want to be on the stage, you are welcome to be on my stage.

Ultimately, what do you hope the show achieves?

I want it to be one of those shows where even if it’s someone who has never see a drag show before, I want it to be an experience that someone can take away and be interested enough to dive deeper into queer and drag culture. I want it to be a positive experience for someone and something that they can remember. For the drag artists in our city, I want it to be a space where people aren’t intimidated.

I’ve heard from many drag artists that Tracks is intimidating because we have some of the biggest shows in the state. A lot of people have said to me, “I could never perform at Tracks.” Being someone who started my career at Tracks, that genuinely made me feel sad. I’m like, “Why not? Why couldn’t you?” So, I want to make the drag artists feel comfortable, feel like they have a space to be themselves, and do what they want.

I broke down after the first show and cried because not only was it so successful, but I got messages from every single person who was in my show telling me that this was the first time in a very long time where they didn’t feel uncomfortable while doing a show. They didn’t feel pressure, and that was my goal. Like I said, it’s an alternative drag showcase, but alternative doesn’t always mean punk, goth, or club kid. Alternative is just something outside of the drag social norms.

Now that the Denver drag scene is starting to become more mainstream, do you have any desire to be on Drag Race or any other reality competition series?

Oh, girl! Who doesn’t? I mean, for the people who don’t, that’s OK. If that’s what you want, live your life. For me, I would 100% want to be on Drag Race. Not only because I’ve now had multiple family members within the drag world on Drag Race, but I see the show as a stepping stone. It would finally allow me to be able to do what I feel like I need to do, what I feel like I would want to do with my life and career.

Drag isn’t always about the money. It helps pay the bills, but the reason why I do drag is because if I could for a moment be something for someone where they can forget about their struggles, worries, and they can just be in the moment with me while I’m on stage performing or at the meet and greet, that’s what I want. I want to be that person for someone because I remember when I was a kid, I hadn’t seen someone like me on TV until I had seen Adore Delano.

She came from struggles just like I did. She was misunderstood because she was this weird, alternative punk kid, and that’s how I was too. The clarity and feeling of I’m not alone whenever I saw her is what I want to be for someone, and I’m very blessed to be getting to a point like that. Recently, a kid who I believe is turning 12 came up and talked to me. They were like, “I’m queer; I’m being bullied in school for it, and I don’t know what’s wrong.” The fact that there are kids coming up to me, it’s the biggest blessing in the world to me. That’s what I want out of my life.

Before we wrap up, are there any other upcoming projects or anything else you’d like to mention or plug?

I’m working on a new merch design on my website, so make sure to check that out, and then come see Hell on Heels!

Stay up-to-date and connect with Minerva by following her on Instagram @theminervaofficial. Merch can be purchased at minervamerch.com.

Photos courtesy of Minerva, Brian Degenfelder, Taylor Ham, and Wyatt Stokesberry