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This post contains spoilers from Episode 2 of RuPaul’s Drag Race! Read at your own risk.
Season 11 is off and running: We’ve got Vaaaanjie in the house, YouTuber Soju sashayed away, and we had an appearance from a rather manly Miley. All of that in just a single episode!
With episode number two in the books, who was sent to pack her heels, wigs, and extensive breastplate collection? And the eliminated queen who will be hightailing it home is…Kahanna Montrese.
yes gawd, @helloross 🙌 love all these girls! ❤️#DragRace
The ladies had their first acting challenge this week and the bottom two, Montrese and Mercedes Iman Diamond, failed to make the cut. Both queens were docked on the runway for their amateurish looks and acting chops (seriously, Montrese’s body glitter looked like a college sorority party gone wrong).
This week, two queens were crowned the winners of the week, Scarlet Envy and Yvie Oddly, and Scarlet didn’t hesitate to remind everyone—panel included—that not only was she the best actress in the challenge, but she was picked last when the ladies chose teams. Modest af, y’all.
During the episode and while on the runway, Mercedes discussed the stroke she had years ago that affected the way she can move her body. The experience also left her confidence shaky, as the queen admitted to not feeling as pretty as she did before the health scare. To add to that, she also found herself on the No Fly List years back strictly because of how her name sounded (Diamond is from Mombasa, Kenya), and gentle readers, a Drag Race recap isn’t the time or the place to get into that injustice. For shame. If these factors weren’t reason enough to root for Mercedes, I don’t know what the front-door would’ve been.
The lip-synch song of choice was “Work Bitch” by Britney Spears, and work, they did. After back handsprings, backbends, and death drops galore, Mercedes was able to secure her spot getting the almighty “Shantay, you stay” from Mama Ru.
Werk bitch…es! 🙌 @Kahannamontrese @Mercedesiman #DragRace
During Kahanna’s intro, she expressed how she likes to show her body and keep it real with her own style of “hip-hop showgirl dance queen,” blending edgy Vegas street influences with upscale high fashion couture. After seeing Kahanna perform just a single time, Drag Race legend Coco Montrese (Season 5 and All Stars Season 2) adopted her as her drag daughter, and thus, Kahanna’s drag identity was born.
Montrese was also in the bottom two last week, beating out Soju in the premiere episode’s lip-synch.
Following Montrese’s exit, 13 girls remain in the competition including Season 10’s meme queen Vanessa Vanjie Mateo. Here’s the low-down on all the remaining queens who will continue to dance, prance, and attempt to snatch the crown this season.