Drag Race icon Alaska Thunderfk has announced her engagement to longtime partner Matthew Herrmann, with the surprise proposal taking place during a family celebration in her hometown of Erie, Pennsylvania.
The RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 5 breakout star and All Stars 2 winner shared the joyful news on Instagram, showing off her engagement ring with the captionless post receiving over 50,000 likes in just five hours.
Alaska later confirmed the engagement in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, saying:
“My longtime partner Matthew Herrmann proposed to me yesterday. It was after my grandma’s 90th birthday celebration. I love him so much, and he’s the best.”
A Creative Power Couple
Herrmann, a Los Angeles-based producer and theatre educator, has worked in professional theatre for more than 25 years and was recently the assistant stage manager for DRAG: The Musical — a show co-created by Alaska herself.
The Off-Broadway show opened in October 2024 and explores rivalry, self-discovery, and chosen family through the lens of two competing drag houses. In February 2025, Alaska returned to the role of Kitty, taking over from Drag Race alum Jimbo.
Later this month, Herrmann is set to work on The Civility of Albert Cashier, a new musical production.
On Her Relationship With Drag Race
While Alaska remains one of the franchise’s most beloved queens, fans hoping to see her return on a future All Winners season may be disappointed.
In a candid interview on The Kelly Mantle Show podcast, Alaska revealed that she believes she’s been unofficially blacklisted by Drag Race producers World of Wonder — in part due to her professional partnership with Willam, a fellow drag star known for clashing with the show’s creators.
Alaska and Willam co-host the hugely popular Race Chaser podcast, which offers behind-the-scenes insights and unfiltered commentary on the Drag Race universe.
“They don’t want to talk to me. And I think it comes back to the fact I have a podcast with Willam,” Alaska explained.
She revealed that her team was even told, “We’re really disappointed you’ve decided to do a podcast.”
“I never really put two and two together til it was like, ghosted… And the door was closed,” she added.
Despite the tension, Alaska still hopes for the chance to return to the show:
“The door is fully closed. But I would love to go back.”
