Laila McQueen explained
Laila McQueen is the stage name of Tyler Devlin, a drag performer and make-up artist based in Gloucester, Massachusetts.[1] McQueen competed on season 8 of RuPaul's Drag Race in 2016.[2] She has won a Primetime Emmy Award as a make-up artist for the HBO reality series We're Here.[3]
Early life
Devlin was born in New Hampshire to Cathy and Michael Devlin,[4] and raised in Manchester. She moved to Gloucester as a teenager. McQueen was artistic in school, which led to bullying from her peers.[5] She started cross dressing in high school at age 15 to ignore the bullying and to showcase her creative outlet before doing drag as a career at 18.[1] [6] [5] She graduated from Gloucester High School in 2011.[6]
When asked about describing her drag, McQueen said "I'm an idiot, I'm such an idiot. I just like to have fun and for other people to have fun, too. I started doing drag from a negative place to replace those feelings. I've always wanted to be a rock star and this is my way to express that, and I'm an artist above all else. Drag gave me an extension to capture those dreams you didn't think would happen, and I've gotten a lot of things I never thought I'd be able to."[1]
Laila graduated from New Hampshire Institute of Art in 2015,[7] before she moved back to Gloucester.[8]
Career
In 2016, McQueen was cast for season 8 of RuPaul's Drag Race. On the first episode, she placed in the bottom with Naysha Lopez and won a lip sync to "Applause" by Lady Gaga.[9] On the second episode, she placed in the bottom again with Dax ExclamationPoint. Both were eliminated after a lip sync to "I Will Survive" by Gloria Gaynor.[10] McQueen has said she wanted to impersonate Betsey Johnson, Courtney Love, or Theresa Caputo for the Snatch Game challenge.[11]
After Drag Race, she worked as a make-up artist from RuPaul's Secret Celebrity Drag Race with Shannel and Mayhem Miller.[12] McQueen did make-up for Jordan Connor on the show. Later on, she also did make-up for the cast of We're Here. In 2022, McQueen won the Creative Arts Emmy for Outstanding Makeup for a Variety, Nonfiction or Reality Program for her work on the episode "Kona, Hawaii".[13]
Personal life
McQueen has a rare anxiety disorder called misophonia.[14] She has lived in Chicago, Illinois, since 2017,[15] but works in many locations.[16] When she was 19, she was banned from the University of Maine for a performance that involved a Bible being covered in blood.[17]
Notes and References
- Web site: What's it like to be a drag queen in Gloucester? Ask Laila McQueen. - The Boston Globe . 2023-09-25 . BostonGlobe.com . en-US . 2017-03-23 . https://archive.today/20170323212859/http://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/style/2016/02/18/what-like-drag-queen-gloucester-ask-laila-mcqueen/eL61UC8IBDzB6tiS0pbYOJ/story.html . live .
- Web site: 2016-02-02 . 'RuPaul's Drag Race' Season 8 Cast and Premiere Date — Meet the Queens of the New Season . 2023-09-25 . Yahoo News . en-US . 2016-02-03 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160203101353/http://news.yahoo.com/rupauls-drag-race-season-8-205800249.html . live .
- Web site: Tyler "Laila McQueen" Devlin. Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. January 27, 2024.
- Web site: McCarthy . Gail . 2022-09-09 . Gloucester man wins Emmy for makeup on HBO series . 2023-09-25 . Gloucester Daily Times . en . 2022-09-09 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220909092241/https://www.gloucestertimes.com/news/gloucester-man-wins-emmy-for-makeup-on-hbo-series/article_7f02551a-2ec4-11ed-9cc1-fbc9e091b1ce.html . live .
- Web site: 2016-03-18 . Gurl Talk: A chat with Laila McQueen . 2023-09-25 . OUT FRONT . en-US . 2023-09-26 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230926022640/https://www.outfrontmagazine.com/gurl-talk-chat-laila-mcqueen/ . live .
- Web site: 2022-09-09 . Gloucester man wins Emmy for makeup on HBO series . 2023-09-25 . Yahoo Sports . en-US . 2023-09-26 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230926022658/https://platform.twitter.com/widgets/widget_iframe.2b2d73daf636805223fb11d48f3e94f7.html?origin=https%3A%2F%2Fsports.yahoo.com . live .
- Web site: Allen . Timothy . 2016-03-30 . 10 Things You Never Knew About Laila McQueen . 2023-09-25 . Queerty . 2022-12-10 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221210060640/https://www.queerty.com/10-things-you-never-knew-about-laila-mcqueen-20160330 . live .
- Web site: 2016-03-07 . Gloucester's Laila McQueen on 'RuPaul's Drag Race' . 2023-09-25 . Gloucester Daily Times . en . 2023-09-26 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230926022640/https://www.gloucestertimes.com/news/local_news/gloucesters-laila-mcqueen-on-rupauls-drag-race/article_5beccac4-8de7-5555-a0dd-eb5a786fdc45.html . live .
- Web site: 'RuPaul's Drag Race' premiere recap: Meet the 12 new queens in the show's 100th episode. Stephan Lee. March 08. 2016 at 04:09 AM. EST. EW.com. 25 September 2023. 18 August 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230818024912/https://ew.com/recap/rupauls-drag-race-season-8-premiere/. live.
- Web site: 'RuPaul's Drag Race' recap: Get ready for one aca-mazing episode. Stephan Lee. March 15. 2016 at 01:52 AM. EDT. EW.com. 25 September 2023. 20 April 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230420181547/https://ew.com/recap/rupauls-drag-race-season-8-episode-2/. live.
- Web site: Whatcha Packin': Laila McQueen | S8 E2 | RuPaul's Drag Race. 25 September 2023. www.youtube.com. 22 April 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230422072423/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9eOk-lWRo84. live.
- Web site: These Queens Actually Did 'Celebrity Drag Race's Makeovers. www.out.com. 25 September 2023. 26 May 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200526204129/https://www.out.com/television/2020/4/25/these-queens-actually-did-celebrity-drag-races-makeovers. live.
- Web site: Gloucester 'RuPaul's Drag Race' Alum Wins Makeup Emmy For Popular HBO Show. 12 September 2022. Essex Daily Voice. 25 September 2023. 12 September 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220912183819/https://dailyvoice.com/massachusetts/essex/news/gloucester-rupauls-drag-race-alum-wins-makeup-emmy-for-popular-hbo-show/843292/. live.
- Web site: 10 Things You Never Knew About Laila McQueen. Timothy. Allen. 30 March 2016. Queerty. 25 September 2023. 10 December 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20221210060640/https://www.queerty.com/10-things-you-never-knew-about-laila-mcqueen-20160330. live.
- Web site: Laila McQueen returns to Gloucester for one-night drag queen spectacular. Tim. McCarthy. Wicked Local. 25 September 2023. 26 September 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230926022640/https://www.wickedlocal.com/story/cape-ann-beacon/2017/10/10/laila-mcqueen-returns-to-gloucester/18341347007/. live.
- Web site: Gloucester man wins Emmy for makeup on HBO series. 9 September 2022. Yahoo Sports. 25 September 2023. 26 September 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230926022658/https://platform.twitter.com/widgets/widget_iframe.2b2d73daf636805223fb11d48f3e94f7.html?origin=https%3A%2F%2Fsports.yahoo.com. live.
- Web site: Laila McQueen Set to Slay BlowPony During Pride. Denny. Patterson. 8 June 2017. OUT FRONT. 25 September 2023. 26 September 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230926022641/https://www.outfrontmagazine.com/laila-mcqueen-set-slay-blowpony-pride/. live.