The crown is well and truly up for grabs — and for the first time in Drag Race herstory, a drag king is in the running.
The cast of Canada’s Drag Race Season 6 has been officially revealed, and among the 12 fierce new contestants is Velma Jones, a 39-year-old performer from Montreal who is breaking new ground as the first AFAB (assigned female at birth) queen to be cast in the Canadian franchise.
But Velma isn’t just here to slay as a queen — they’ve also got a surprise in store.
“Are you ready to make herstory with me? Because I’m your first drag queen being a cis woman,” they said in their Meet the Queens video.
“And also, you’re getting the special two-for-one because you got Velma, and sometimes, here’s Johnny.”
That’s right — Velma also performs as Johnny Jones, a drag king persona they’re eager to showcase during the competition.
“I can’t wait to show you my drag king persona Johnny also. I’m here to prove that I can do anything like the others.”
A First for Drag Race Globally
While there have been several milestones in recent Drag Race seasons — including the casting of cisgender women such as Victoria Scone — Johnny Jones marks the first drag king to ever compete in a Drag Race franchise globally since the show began 16 years ago.
Alumni like Bimini, Ginger Johnson, and Victoria Scone have previously called for drag kings to be included in the show — and now, that moment has finally arrived.
Earlier in 2024, the drag king-focused competition series King of Drag debuted on streaming platform Revry, further pushing forward visibility for kings in the drag scene.
More Stars Set to Shine in Season 6
Velma/Johnny Jones isn’t the only headline-maker in this season’s cast. Also stirring up excitement is Saltina Shaker, a 29-year-old Ottawa queen who enters the werkroom with an enormous following online.
Saltina boasts nearly 2.5 million TikTok followers, placing her among the most-followed Drag Race-affiliated performers in the world — behind titans like Bob the Drag Queen and Trixie Mattel.
She also has over 700,000 Instagram followers, the most of any contestant in Canada’s Drag Race history.
Another queen making waves is Sami Landri, 26, from Moncton, New Brunswick. Sami went viral years before her Drag Race debut thanks to a series of comedic videos, including one poking fun at the “woke left” that continues to circulate on “Gay Twitter.”
Meet the Full Cast of Canada’s Drag Race Season 6:
- Velma Jones (39, Montreal, QC)
- Van Goth (27, Toronto, ON)
- Sami Landri (26, Moncton, NB)
- Star Doll (25, Toronto, ON)
- Saltina Shaker (29, Ottawa, ON)
- PM (31, Vancouver, BC)
- Paolo Perfección (25, Montreal, QC)
- Mya Foxx (31, Halifax, NS)
- Karamilk (25, Toronto, ON)
- Hazel (27, Vancouver, BC)
- Eboni La’Belle (24, St. Catharines, ON)
- Dulce (24, London, ON)
When Does Season 6 Premiere?
Canada’s Drag Race Season 6 will premiere on 20 November on Crave in Canada and WOW Presents Plus internationally. The season will run for nine episodes, airing weekly.
