RuPaul’s Drag Race season 14 contestant Willow Pill has come out as trans in an emotional statement on social media.
“It’s taken me a long time to come to terms with my transness because so much space has been taken up by my illness,” Willow wrote in a post, which touched on their diagnosis with the kidney disease cystinosis. “My condition has caused me so much physical and emotional pain that my body became something I always wanted out of. Eventually, hating my body for failing me and hating myself for not being a girl was so constant and intertwined that it felt totally normal. I know it’s not my fault, just the way I’ve learned to survive.”
Willow, who explained that their pronouns are they/she, said they explored “feelings about illness, medical PTSD, and self-hatred” in quarantine during the coronavirus pandemic, and eventually came to learn that they were “not happy” with their gender identity, either.
“Much of that is due to being on Drag Race and feeling euphoria being Willow for the first time since quarantine and being around a bunch of queer and trans friends on set,” the post continued, referencing Willow’s fellow season 14 contestants Kerri Colby, Kornbread “The Snack” Jeté, Bosco, and Jasmine Kennedie — all of whom came out as trans before, during, or after the show.
Willow added that they are “still not sure” where they fit on the spectrum of gender, but: “For now, I just say trans femme, but I also don’t have to know now.” The queen also opened up about having surgery in November to make their face “a bit more feminine” as well as to counteract some effects of “long-term medication” ahead of discussing a “low dose of hormones with a doctor” on their journey.
vh1 ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ star Willow Pill comes out as trans.
“I want to cry more, have softer skin and a fatter ass. Happiness would also be nice,” Willow wrote. “I want to share this because I have felt so lonely keeping this to myself. I’ve rarely been able to talk to other people with similar stories, though I know there are many out there. I’m so tired of holding my pain in, and if I’m sharing dark bath bomb jokes and my ass cheeks to the TV world, then I also want to share this…. I’m starting to finally feel bits of happiness with my face and body, and that’s a start. I love ya’ll so much!”
Willow’s announcement makes Drag Race season 14 the edition with the most trans contestants in the show’s history, with the total standing at five.
In exclusive interviews with EW, both Bosco and Jasmine — who came out on camera in February during an emotional Untucked moment — cited Kornbread (who recently got a tattoo of Willow on her thigh) and Kerri as inspirations on their own journeys to understanding their gender identities.
“I talked openly with them once the season wrapped…. I felt so much clarity being around them this summer, being able to talk to them and see how they approached things and moved through life. Kerri and Kornbread’s presence helped center me. They’re really cool people,” Bosco said. Jasmine echoed: “In the Werk Room around Kerri, Bosco, and Kornbread, these girls had such a light about themselves. They’re so confident. It was Kerri who resonated with me. We had a conversation about family off-camera. She said you don’t need to live your life for anybody else. If people accept you, that’s great for them, but if they don’t, that’s their fault and their problem. I care a lot about what people think about me, and she made me realize that I don’t have to live my life to please people. She gave me the confidence to talk about it openly on TV. If it wasn’t for Kerri, I probably wouldn’t have come out to this day.”
Subscribe to EW’s BINGE podcast for full recaps of RuPaul’s Drag Race, including weekly season 14 recaps with the cast, adapted from our new Quick Drag series airing Fridays at 10:05 p.m. ET / 7:05 p.m. PT on the @EW Twitter account.
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