Yuhua Hamasaki

Yuhua Hamasaki
Hamasaki at RuPaul's DragCon LA, 2018
Born
Yuhua Ou

(1990-03-01) March 1, 1990 (age 34)
Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
EducationPace University (BA)
Occupations
Years active2002–present
Websiteyuhuahamasaki.com

Yuhua Hamasaki is the stage name of Yuhua Ou,[1] a Chinese-born American drag queen, singer, actor and reality television personality who came to international attention on the tenth season of RuPaul's Drag Race.

Early life

Ou was born on March 1, 1990,[2] in Guangzhou. They moved to Chinatown, Manhattan[3] in New York City when they were seven and started doing drag on the club kid scene under the name Yuhua. They later added Hamasaki after Japanese idol Ayumi Hamasaki.[4] Ou holds a business management degree from Pace University.[5]

Career

Before Drag Race, Hamasaki was one of several drag queens appearing in Katy Perry's performance of "Swish Swish" on Saturday Night Live in May 2017.[6][7] She also designed outfits for other Drag Race alum prior to her appearance on the series, including Aquaria, Bob the Drag Queen, Peppermint, Aja, Jiggly Caliente, Alexis Michelle and Monét X Change.[8] She has won multiple pageant titles including Miss Fire Island, Miss Fire Island All Stars, Miss Stonewall, and Miss Asia NYC.[9]

Hamasaki was announced as one of fourteen contestants for the tenth season of RuPaul's Drag Race in 2018.[10] Due to the popularity of Monét X Change's sponge dress in episode one, Hamasaki created her own sponge dress for sale, and donated the proceeds to Callen-Lorde.[11][12] She was eliminated in the third episode after losing a lip sync to "Celebrity Skin" by Hole against Mayhem Miller.[13]

After Drag Race, Hamasaki appeared with Laverne Cox in the music video for "Bruised" by Mila Jam.[14] She appeared in a commercial for VH1's It Gets Better project, supporting LGBTQ youth.[15] She was also in the video for Trinity the Tuck's "I Call Shade" in February 2019.[16]

Hamasaki received notoriety from her self-published series Bootleg Fashion Photo RuView on YouTube based on the WOWPrsents internet series Fashion Photo RuView with Raja and Raven. She reviewed the runway looks of the All-Stars four cast starting on December 4, 2018, with Biblegirl666.[17] She started covering the season eleven looks on February 22, 2019, with Blair St. Clair.[18] Other guests on the series have included Jaymes Mansfield, Cynthia Lee Fontaine, Dusty Ray Bottoms, Jessica Wild, Laganja Estranja, Jiggly Caliente, Vivacious, Alexis Michelle, Phi Phi O'Hara, Trinity the Tuck and Honey Davenport.[19] She filled in for an episode of the actual Fashion Photo RuView on November 24, 2018, with Eureka O'Hara.[20]

Hamasaki was a guest at the 2019 Life Ball, alongside Alaska Thunderfuck.[21]

In June 2019, Hamasaki was one of 37 queens to be featured on the cover of New York Magazine.[22] The same month, World of Wonder announced that she was set to appear in her own webseries, Sew What?, which aimed to "give viewers tips on how to construct a garment from start to finish". The series aired six episodes from November to December 2019.[23]

She has also been described as a "seamstress, dancer and comedian."[24]

Music

In 2018, Hamasaki released her first single "The Ankh Song" named after her runway look from episode one resembling an Ankh, noted by the judges.[25] A music video was released on April 5, 2018.[26]

Personal life

Yuhua is non-binary and uses pronouns interchangeably.[27] She resides in New York City.[28]

Filmography

Year Title Role Ref
2019 Guys at Parties Like It Conner [29]

Television

Year Title Role
2012 Big Ang Drag Queen
2013 The Carrie Diaries
2014 Blue Bloods
2015 The Mysteries of Laura
2017 Saturday Night Live
2018 RuPaul's Drag Race (season 10) Contestant (12th place)
2018 RuPaul's Drag Race: Untucked (season 10) Herself
2018 Shade: Queens of NYC
2021 The Mind, Explained
2022 And Just Like That... Drag Queen
2023

Music videos

Year Title Ref
2010 "I'm Gonna Sh*t My Pants" – Sherry Vine
2011 "Make Me Moan" – Sherry Vine ft. Peppermint
2018 "The Ankh Song" – Yuhua Hamasaki [26]
2018 "Bruised" – Mila Jam [14]
2019 "I Call Shade" – Trinity the Tuck [16]

Web series

Year Title Role Ref
2018 Cosmo Queens Guest [30]
2018 Fashion Photo RuView Guest host [citation needed]
2018–Present Bootleg Opinions (formerly Bootleg Fashion Photo RuView) Host [citation needed]
2018 Drag Queens React Guest [31]
2019 Out of the Closet Herself [32]
2019 Localish (Potluck Premiere) Herself [33]
2019 Sew What? Host [23]
2020 The Pit Stop Herself [34]
2023 Glam Slam Herself [35]

Discography

Singles

Year Title
2018 "The Ankh Song"

See also

References

  1. ^ "Dressed to Kill: Dispelling the Myths of Men in Drag". Elyssa Maxx Goodman. December 5, 2011. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  2. ^ "Yuhua Birthday Sale". Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  3. ^ "'RuPaul's Drag Race' alum Yuhua Hamasaki on embracing her Chinese heritage through drag". June 29, 2023.
  4. ^ "MThe WERRRK.com Interview: Yuhua Hamasaki". Werrrk. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  5. ^ "rag Queens share their secrets". NY Post. June 2, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  6. ^ "We identified the performers in Katy Perry's 'Swish Swish' on SNL". Queerty. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  7. ^ "Drag Queens and Club Kids "Swish Swish" with Katy Perry On "SNL"". NewNowNext. Retrieved January 28, 2019.
  8. ^ "Yuhua Hamasaki It Gets Better". Seventeen. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  9. ^ "About Yuhua Hamasaki". Website. Archived from the original on December 10, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  10. ^ "Meet The Queens Of "RuPaul's Drag Race" Season 10". New Now Next. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  11. ^ YuhuaHamasaki (March 26, 2018), Yuhua's Sponge Dress, retrieved June 18, 2018
  12. ^ "Yuhua Hamasaki on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved June 18, 2018.
  13. ^ "Eliminated 'RuPaul's Drag Race' Contestant Yuhua Hamasaki Talks Reviving the Spirit of Drag, Gender Neutrality & More". Billboard. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  14. ^ a b "Laverne Cox Blesses Mila Jam's "Bruised" Video, Dedicated to Murdered Trans Women". Newnownext. October 7, 2018. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
  15. ^ "It Gets Better: Yuhua Hamasaki Is Ready to Love You for Who You Are | VH1". YouTube. June 14, 2018. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
  16. ^ a b "Trinity The Tuck Taylor Drops 'I Call Shade' Music Video Starring Her 'RuPaul's Drag Race' Co-Stars". ETCanada. February 15, 2019. Archived from the original on March 25, 2019. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
  17. ^ "All Stars 4 Bootleg Fashion Photo Ruview with BibleGirl666!!!". YouTube. December 4, 2018. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
  18. ^ "BLAIR ST. CLAIR joins BOOTLEG FASHION PHOTO RUVIEW for the Season 11 Promo Looks!". YouTube. February 22, 2019. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
  19. ^ "Bootleg Fashion Photo Ruviews". YouTube. March 23, 2019. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
  20. ^ "FASHION PHOTO RUVIEW: All Stars 4 Social Media with Yuhua Hamasaki and Eureka O'Hara". YouTube. November 24, 2018. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
  21. ^ Munzenrieder, Kyle (June 11, 2019). "Life Ball 2019: 12 Hours Inside Europe's Campiest Charity Event With Katie Holmes, Alaska Thunderfuck, and More". W Magazine | Women's Fashion & Celebrity News. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  22. ^ "On The Cover: The Most Powerful Drag Queens In America".
  23. ^ a b Joey Nolfi (June 27, 2019). "Yvie Oddly, Nina West, more Drag Race stars getting new reality shows". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  24. ^ Prois, Jessica (April 5, 2018). "Yuhua Hamasaki From 'Drag Race' On Asian Pride And Dating Across The Gender Spectrum". HuffPost.
  25. ^ "'RuPaul's Drag Race' Star Yuhua Hamasaki Educates the Children on Egyptian Hieroglyphics in 'The Ankh Song'". Billboard. March 30, 2018. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
  26. ^ a b "Yuhua Hamasaki - The Ankh Song (feat. DJ Mitch Ferrino)". YouTube. April 5, 2018. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
  27. ^ Adebowale, Temi (June 21, 2018). "'Drag Race' Queen Yuhua Hamasaki On Why Coming Out Isn't One-Size-Fits-All". Seventeen.
  28. ^ Shapiro, Eileen (February 9, 2015). "Yuhua Hamasaki". Get Out! Magazine.
  29. ^ "Guys at Parties Like It - a #MeToo inspired horror".
  30. ^ "Yuhua Hamasaki / COSMO Queens / Cosmopolitan". YouTube. April 15, 2018. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
  31. ^ "DRAG QUEENS REACT: Holiday TV Movies w/ Trixie, Katya, Eureka & Yuhua". YouTube. November 27, 2018. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  32. ^ "Yuhua Hamasaki NY Apartment Closet | S2 E2 | RuPaul's Drag Race Out Of The Closet". www.youtube.com. April 30, 2019.
  33. ^ "Watch Localish Season 1 Episode 68 Potluck: Four Strangers Share a Meal in NYC Online". abc.go.com. Archived from the original on May 1, 2019.
  34. ^ Voss, Brandon (March 28, 2020). "Yuhua Hamasaki Has Thoughts on This Week's "Drag Race"". NewNowNext.com. Retrieved March 28, 2020.
  35. ^ @rupaulsdragrace (November 17, 2023). "With competition this stiff, these queens need to be prepped for ANYTHING" – via Instagram.
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