RuPaul's Drag Race (season 4)
| RuPaul's Drag Race | |
|---|---|
| Season 4 | |
| Broadcast from | January 30 – April 30, 2012 |
| Judges |
RuPaul Michelle Visage Santino Rice Billy B[1] |
| Host(s) | RuPaul |
| Broadcaster | Logo |
| Competitors | 13 |
| Winner | |
| Sharon Needles | |
 | |
| Origin | Pittsburgh, PA |
| Runner-up | |
The fourth season of RuPaul's Drag Race began airing on January 30, 2012,[2] with cast members announced November 13, 2011.[3] The winner of season four headlined Logo's Drag Race Tour featuring Absolut Vodka, won a one-of-a-kind trip, a lifetime supply of NYX Cosmetics, and a cash prize of $100,000.[4]
Like the last season, Santino Rice and Billy B (Billy Brasfield), celebrity makeup artist and star of the HGTV mini-series Hometown Renovation, shared the same seat at the judges table alternatively, Brasfield filling in for Rice when needed.[1] Both judges appeared side-by-side in the audience during the "Reunited" episode.
The theme song playing during the runway every episode was "Glamazon" and the song played during the credits was "The Beginning", both from RuPaul's album Glamazon.
The winner of the fourth season of RuPaul's Drag Race was Sharon Needles, with Chad Michaels and Phi Phi O'Hara being the runners-up, making it the first time in the shows history to have two runners-up.
Chad Michaels and Latrice Royale competed on the first season of All Stars. Latrice placed 7th/8th overall with season 3 contestant Manila Luzon. Chad won the competition.
Phi Phi O'Hara competed on the second season of All Stars. She placed 7th overall.
Contestants
(Ages and names stated are at time of contest)
| Contestant | Name | Age | Hometown | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sharon Needles | Aaron Coady | 29 | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | Winner |
| Chad Michaels | 40 | San Diego, California | Runner-up | |
| Phi Phi O'Hara | Jaremi Carey[5] | 25 | Chicago, Illinois | |
| Latrice Royale | Timothy Wilcots | 39 | South Beach, Florida | 4th Place |
| Kenya Michaels | Omar Olivera Bonilla[6] | 21 | Dorado, Puerto Rico | 5th Place[lower-alpha 1] |
| DiDa Ritz | Xavier Hairson[7] | 25 | Chicago, Illinois | 6th Place |
| Willam | Willam Belli | 29 | Los Angeles, California | 7th Place[lower-alpha 2] |
| Jiggly Caliente | Paulo Arabejo[8] | 30 | Queens, New York | 8th Place |
| Milan | Dwayne Cooper [9] | 36 | New York, New York | 9th Place |
| Madame LaQueer | Carlos Melendez[10] | 29 | Carolina, Puerto Rico | 10th Place |
| The Princess | Adam Biga[11] | 31 | Chicago, Illinois | 11th Place |
| Lashauwn Beyond | Jamall Jackson[12] | 21 | Fort Lauderdale, Florida | 12th Place |
| Alisa Summers | Alex Hernandez[13] | 23 | Tampa, Florida | 13th Place |
Contestant progress
| Contestant[lower-alpha 1] | 1[15] | 2[16] | 3[17] | 4[18] | 5[19] | 6[20] | 7[21] | 8[22] | 9[23] | 10[24] | 11[25] | 13[26] | 14[27] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sharon Needles | WIN | HIGH | WIN | SAFE | HIGH | SAFE | HIGH | BTM2 | WIN | LOW | WIN | SAFE | Winner |
| Chad Michaels | SAFE | WIN | HIGH | HIGH | WIN | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | HIGH | HIGH | BTM2 | SAFE | Runner-up |
| Phi Phi O'Hara | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | HIGH | LOW | HIGH | WIN | BTM2 | LOW | WIN | HIGH | SAFE | Runner-up |
| Latrice Royale | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | WIN | SAFE | HIGH | LOW | WIN | BTM2 | BTM2 | ELIM | Miss C | |
| Kenya Michaels | LOW | SAFE | HIGH | LOW | ELIM | ELIM | Guest | ||||||
| DiDa Ritz | SAFE | LOW | BTM2 | SAFE | SAFE | LOW | SAFE | SAFE | ELIM | Guest | |||
| Willam | SAFE | SAFE | SAFE | HIGH | HIGH | WIN | BTM2 | DISQ | Guest | ||||
| Jiggly Caliente | BTM2 | SAFE | SAFE | HIGH | SAFE | BTM2 | ELIM | Guest | |||||
| Milan | SAFE | HIGH | SAFE | BTM2 | BTM2 | ELIM | Guest | ||||||
| Madame LaQueer | SAFE | WIN | LOW | ELIM | Guest | ||||||||
| The Princess | HIGH | BTM2 | ELIM | Guest | |||||||||
| Lashauwn Beyond | HIGH | ELIM | Guest | ||||||||||
| Alisa Summers | ELIM | Guest | |||||||||||
- The contestant won RuPaul's Drag Race.
- The contestants were the runners-up.
- The contestant was voted Miss Congeniality by viewers.
- The contestant won a challenge.
- The contestant received positive judges' critiques but was ultimately declared safe.
- The contestant received judges' critiques but was ultimately declared safe.
- The contestant received negative judges' critiques but was ultimately declared safe.
- The contestant was in the bottom two.
- The contestant was eliminated.
- The contestant won the challenge but was disqualified from the competition.
- The contestant returned as a guest for the finale episode.
Lip-syncs
| Episode | Contestants | Song | Eliminated | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alisa Summers | vs. | Jiggly Caliente | "Toxic" (Britney Spears) |
Alisa Summers |
| 2 | Lashauwn Beyond | vs. | The Princess | "Bad Girls" (Donna Summer) |
Lashauwn Beyond |
| 3 | DiDa Ritz | vs. | The Princess | "This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)" (Natalie Cole) |
The Princess |
| 4 | Madame LaQueer | vs. | Milan | "Trouble" (Pink) |
Madame LaQueer |
| 5 | Kenya Michaels | vs. | Milan | "Vogue" (Madonna) |
Kenya Michaels |
| 6 | Jiggly Caliente | vs. | Milan | "Born This Way" (Lady Gaga) |
Milan |
| 7 | Jiggly Caliente | vs. | Willam | "Mi Vida Loca (My Crazy Life)" (Pam Tillis) |
Jiggly Caliente |
| 8 | Phi Phi O'Hara | vs. | Sharon Needles | "It's Raining Men (The Sequel)" (Martha Wash and RuPaul) |
None |
| 9 | DiDa Ritz | vs. | Latrice Royale | "I've Got to Use My Imagination" (Gladys Knight & The Pips) |
DiDa Ritz |
| 10 | Kenya Michaels | vs. | Latrice Royale | "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" (Aretha Franklin) |
Kenya Michaels |
| 11 | Chad Michaels | vs. | Latrice Royale | "No One Else on Earth" (Wynonna Judd) |
Latrice Royale |
| 13 | Chad Michaels vs. Phi Phi O'Hara vs. Sharon Needles | "Glamazon" (RuPaul) |
None | ||
- The contestant was eliminated after their first time in the bottom two.
- The contestant was eliminated after their second time in the bottom two.
- The contestant was eliminated after their third time in the bottom two.
Guest judges
(In alphabetic order by stage name and/or last name)[4]
- Pamela Anderson (actress)
- Natalie Cole (actress, pianist, singer and songwriter)
- Loretta Devine (actress)
- Elvira, Mistress of the Dark (actress and television hostess)
- Jesse Tyler Ferguson (actor)
- Rick Fox (basketball player)
- Jennifer Love Hewitt (actress and singer)
- Wynonna Judd (actress and singer)
- Regina King (actress)
- Ross Mathews (comedian and television personality)
- Rose McGowan (actress)
- Jeffrey Moran (Absolut Vodka marketing/branding executive)
- Max Mutchnick (television producer)
- Kelly Osbourne (television host and comedian)
- Pauley Perrette (actress, singer, writer)
- Amber Riley (actress and singer)
- Mike Ruiz (photographer)
- John Salley (professional basketball player)
- Dan Savage (author)
- Nicole Sullivan (actress, comedian, voice artist)
- Pam Tillis (singer and songwriter)
- Jennifer Tilly (actress)
Episodes
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 38 | 1 | "RuPocalypse Now!" | January 30, 2012 |
|
The first episode of season 4 was released prior to its January 30 air date to fans of the RuPaul's Drag Race Facebook page. The sneak peek video was released on January 27, but its content was cut short before the runway walk and judging.[28] Thirteen new queens begin their quests for the title of "America's Next Drag Superstar," but first must survive drag zombies and the end of the world.
| |||
| 39 | 2 | "WTF!: Wrestling's Trashiest Fighters" | February 6, 2012 |
|
In this women's wrestling challenge, an homage to G.L.O.W., the queens are separated into three teams headed by the mini-challenge winners, and are asked to create a wrestling storyline and to choreograph a match, to be performed in front of the judges and a live audience. In addition, the teams have to split into binomials: the nice girls, or Faces, and the bad girls, or Heels. Following the wrestling matches, the girls are asked to walk the runway in their best "girly-girl" couture.
| |||
| 40 | 3 | "Glamazons vs. Champions" | February 13, 2012 |
|
The queens make commercials for RuPaul's albums Glamazon and Champion. The queens are separated into two teams, led by Phi Phi O'Hara (Team Champion) and Kenya Michaels (Team Glamazon).
| |||
| 41 | 4 | "Queens Behind Bars" | February 20, 2012 |
| |||
| 42 | 5 | "Snatch Game" | February 27, 2012 |
| |||
| 43 | 6 | "Float Your Boat" | March 5, 2012 |
|
The queens design ship-shaped floats for a Pride parade runway extravaganza. One color from the 8-stripe rainbow flag was randomly assigned to each contestant by Willam, who won the wet T-shirt contest mini-challenge.
| |||
| 44 | 7 | "Dragazines" | March 12, 2012 |
|
The contenders' challenge was to produce a magazine cover. The magazines were shared out among the queens by Latrice Royale, who won the mini-challenge.
| |||
| 45 | 8 | "Frenemies" | March 19, 2012 |
| |||
| 46 | 9 | "Frock the Vote!" | March 26, 2012 |
|
The top five girls return to the work room, and RuPaul brings them their next mini challenge: create fashionable footwear out of clear platform heels using an Absolut cocktail as inspiration. Phi Phi wins the mini challenge, and Ru then presents them with their main challenge. The girls will be campaigning for the Drag Queen Presidency, and must put together a presentation for a round table political debate. For their runway, the queens needed dress their best for the president's inaugural ball.
| |||
| 47 | 10 | "DILFs: Dads I'd Like To Frock" | April 2, 2012 |
|
It is revealed that Kenya has returned to the competition, and she wins the mini-challenge, which was to drag out a stuffed teddy bear. For their main challenge, the queens are paired up with dads for a maternity runway/makeover and striptease.
| |||
| 48 | 11 | "The Fabulous Bitch Ball" | April 9, 2012 |
|
For the mini challenge, the queens made a puppet of their own peers and made a bitch fest. Chad won the challenge and as a reward, she allowed to pair each queen with a dog to use as inspiration for the main challenge.
| |||
| 49 | 12 | "RuPaul Rewind" | April 16, 2012 |
| A look back on the highlights, low-lights, and previously unseen footage from the season as we race toward the climactic grand finale! RuPaul is joined by Shannel (season 1), Pandora Boxx (season 2) and Mariah (season 3) as they look back over the top 10 fits of fashion from the season so far. This episode also included a few clips of queens who didn't make it on the season, among them, Magnolia Crawford, who later became a contestant on season 6. | |||
| 50 | 13 | "The Final Three" | April 23, 2012 |
|
The queens compete in their final challenge: starring in RuPaul's music video for "Glamazon". In a twist, all three finalists had to perform the lip-sync song. Afterwards, RuPaul announced that the winner of the race will be revealed on "RuPaul's Drag Race: Reunited" the next week. | |||
| 51 | 14 | "Reunited" | April 30, 2012 |
|
For the first time, a live audience of fans, mainly from the Los Angeles area sit in as RuPaul and the contestants return for the annual reunion, where RuPaul reveals the winner of the season. The finale episode was taped at the El Portal Theatre in North Hollywood on Wednesday April 25, 2012, where three different outcomes were filmed in an attempt to keep the winner from being revealed before the episode aired, as had happened in previous seasons.[29][30] We find out Latrice Royale is crowned "Miss Congeniality." We also learn that the reason Willam was disqualified was that he was caught having conjugal visits with his husband, who had tracked Willam to the hotel where the contestants were sequestered during production. This is in breach of the clause barring contestants engaging in unauthorized outside contact.
| |||
Marketing
In January 2012, Logo released the second running of Fantasy Drag Race, an online fan contest inspired by fantasy football where viewers assemble a team of three season four Drag Race contestants. Players receive and lose points based on their team's performance on the show, and can earn additional points by redeeming codes and performing tasks given out when episodes of the show first air. The highest scoring players receive Drag Race and NYX Cosmetics products, and one player wins a trip for two to the first stop on Logo's Drag Race Tour.[31]
Already having a generous social media presence, Logo expanded its efforts across Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, GetGlue, and Foursquare in preparation for the premiere of season four. Both RuPaul and contestants tweet live while the show airs, and LogoTalk! chat parties (featuring judges, contestants from previous seasons, and contestants from season four) occur on the official Logo website while participants watch new episodes.[32] Season four specifically marks an increased interest from Logo in Tumblr, where the network publishes animated GIFs, contestant trading cards, and images that incorporate internet memes.[33] Dan Sacher, VP of digital for VH1 and Logo, has stated that their online marketing efforts are part of helping the small network expand their fan base across as many outlets as possible.[32]
Reception
The premiere episode of season four averaged a 0.6 rating in the 18-49 demographic, totaling 481,000 viewers, and ranked as the highest-rated premiere in Logo's network history. Untucked totalled 254,000 viewers, marking the companion show's most watched debut. During the evening of the premiere, the show registered eight US trending topics on Twitter (including Jiggly Caliente, Sharon Needles, Phi Phi O'Hara, and Latrice Royale) and reached a 7th place ranking on Trendrr. Leading up to the first episode, the show's Facebook page saw an 89% increase (earning over half a million fans).[34]
The season finale scored a 0.7 rating in the 18-49 demographic and drew 601,000 viewers total, while the reunion episode became the highest rated episode of the season. Season four's "RuPaul's Drag Race: Reunited" was also the highest-rated reunion in the franchise's history, seeing a 33% increase in the 18-49 demographic compared to season three. The reunion registered five trending topics on Twitter (including Sharon Needles, Phi Phi, Willam, and a new portmanteau Willam introduced to the show: "RuPaulogize"), and ranked 4th among non-sports cable programs for the night on Trendrr.[35]
During season 4, the show's Twitter following increased by 77%, and the Facebook page accrued a 36% increase in likes.[35] TV.com also declared it was the best reality show on television.[36]
Notes
- ↑ Contestant progress is referenced throughout the episodes from LogoTV, alongside the episodes published on iTunes Store.[14]
References
- 1 2 Peterson, Brian. "Legendary Makeup Artist and RuPaul Drag Race Judge Billy B. Eats Boys for Breakfast, Specifically "New Queer on the Block"". Seattle GAY Scene. Archived from the original on 2014-03-16.
- ↑ Polly, John (October 10, 2011). "RuPaul's Drag Race Season 4 Judges: Think Glee, Modern Family!". NewNowNext. Logo. Retrieved October 12, 2011.
- ↑ "Rupaul's Drag Race Season 4". Logo. Retrieved November 15, 2011.
- 1 2 Shumaker, Jason (December 12, 2011). "'RuPaul's Drag Race' Fourth Season Premiere Sashays onto Logo, Monday, January 30th" (Press release). Logo. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
- ↑ Virtel, Louis (March 14, 2013). "The 10 Hottest "RuPaul's Drag Race" Contestants Out of Drag". NewNowNext.com (Logo TV / Viacom International. Archived from the original on March 28, 2017. Retrieved March 28, 2017.
- ↑ Keyes, Jeffrey James (2011-12-26). "A Drag Race Holiday: Kenya Michaels". Retrieved 2018-02-17.
- ↑ "Getting to know Dida Ritz: Rogers Park drag queen makes name for herself on RuPaul's Drag Race". Loyola Phoenix. Chicago: Loyola University. April 18, 2012. Archived from the original on August 16, 2017. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
- ↑ Meet the Pinoy plus size 'Barbie of New York'
- ↑ Bridges, Traci (January 25, 2012). "West Florence, USC grad in the hunt on "Rupaul's Drag Race"". SCnow.com / The Morning News (BH Media Group). Retrieved May 23, 2017.
- ↑ "She's Here, She's LaQueer: RuPaul's Madame Helps Puerto Rico, Rips Trump". www.ocweekly.com. Retrieved 2018-02-17.
- ↑ "Nashville's Fluid Queen". Out & About Nashville. 2014-09-02. Retrieved 2018-02-17.
- ↑ Keyes, Jeffrey James (2011-12-24). "A Drag Race Christmas: Lashauwn Beyond". Retrieved 2018-02-17.
- ↑ "The 10 Hottest "RuPaul's Drag Race" Contestants Out of Drag". LOGO News. Retrieved 2018-02-17.
- ↑ "RuPaul's Drag Race, Season 4". iTunes Store (United States). January 30, 2012. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
- ↑ "RuPocalypse Now!". RuPaul's Drag Race. Season 4. Episode 1. January 30, 2012.
- ↑ "WTF!: Wrestling's Trashiest Fighters". RuPaul's Drag Race. Season 4. Episode 2. February 6, 2012.
- ↑ "Glamazons vs. Champions". RuPaul's Drag Race. Season 4. Episode 3. February 13, 2012.
- ↑ "Queens Behind Bars". RuPaul's Drag Race. Season 4. Episode 4. February 20, 2012.
- ↑ "Snatch Game". RuPaul's Drag Race. Season 4. Episode 5. February 27, 2012.
- ↑ "Float Your Boat". RuPaul's Drag Race. Season 4. Episode 6. March 5, 2012.
- ↑ "Dragazines". RuPaul's Drag Race. Season 4. Episode 7. March 12, 2012.
- ↑ "Frenemies". RuPaul's Drag Race. Season 4. Episode 8. March 19, 2012.
- ↑ "Frock the Vote!". RuPaul's Drag Race. Season 4. Episode 9. March 26, 2012.
- ↑ "DILFs: Dads I'd Like To Frock". RuPaul's Drag Race. Season 4. Episode 10. April 2, 2012.
- ↑ "The Fabulous Bitch Ball". RuPaul's Drag Race. Season 4. Episode 11. April 9, 2012.
- ↑ "The Final Three". RuPaul's Drag Race. Season 4. Episode 13. April 23, 2012.
- ↑ "Reunited!". RuPaul's Drag Race. Season 4. Episode 14. April 30, 2012.
- ↑ Smothers, Thairin (January 27, 2012). "RuPaul's Drag Race Season 4 Full Trailer". The WOW Report. World of Wonder. Retrieved January 28, 2012.
- ↑ Tanner Stransky (April 26, 2012). "On the Scene at 'RuPaul's Drag Race: Reunited'". Entertainment Weekly.
- ↑ Maria Sciullo (April 30, 2012). "Sharon Needles Crowned 'Drag Race' Queen". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
- ↑ "RuPaul's Fantasy Drag Race". Logo online. Logo. Archived from the original on April 16, 2011. Retrieved February 8, 2012.
- 1 2 Winslow, George (January 30, 2012). "Logo Expands Social Media Efforts". Broadcasting & Cable. NewBay Media. Retrieved February 8, 2012.
- ↑ Edelsburg, Natan (February 3, 2012). "Inside look at how Logo's "RuPaul's Drag Race" is using Tumblr". Lost Remote. Archived from the original on February 4, 2012. Retrieved February 8, 2012.
- ↑ Shumaker, Jason (February 1, 2012). "LOGO'S SEASON DEBUT OF "RUPAUL'S DRAG RACE" ON MONDAY NIGHT SCORES AS THE HIGHEST-RATED PREMIERE IN NETWORK HISTORY". Logo Press Room. Logo. Retrieved February 1, 2012.
- 1 2 Slane, Jake (May 2, 2012). "LOGO'S "RUPAUL'S DRAG RACE' SEASON FOUR REUNION WINS THE CROWN AS HIGHEST-RATED EPISODE THIS SEASON". Logo Press Room. Logo. Retrieved June 23, 2012.
- ↑ Navarro, Alex (April 23, 2012). "Why RuPaul's Drag Race Is the Best Reality Show on TV Right Now". TV.com. CBS Interactive Inc. Retrieved June 1, 2016.
External links
- Official website (U.S.)
- Official website (Canada)
- Official Facebook page
