“The whole look is all pink, to represent my identity as a trans female,” she says. “It’s really special to me because we repurposed my Drag Mother Quanah Style’s jingle dress for the outfit.” Both Verley and Quanah continue to be some of Vancouver’s most well-known queens, and while the drag community is small in the city, both performers bring unique energy to it by infusing their Indigenous heritages into their stage looks. In the finale episode of Drag Race, for instance, Verley sported a take on a traditional ribbon skirt and jingle dress, two garments that are often worn by dancers at powwow ceremonies. [1] She has described her gender identity as fluid and in flux. She was born on April 17, 1995, in Lytton, Canada, and raised there to become a fashion icon. Using she/they pronouns – Ilona is proudly Nlaka’pamux 2 Spirit – and flavours her drag with her connection to culture and the fluidity of her gender identity. Add a photo to this gallery Nlaka’pamux: Profession: Model: Instagram: IlonaVerley: Twitter: ilonaverley 10 Facts on Ilona Verley: Ilona Verley is the famous Canadian model who is known as the cast of Canada’s Drag Queen. “It’s a way for me to express whatever I’m feeling—and now, I’m feeling the Drag Race girl fantasy.” You can be sure that she will continue using her platform to spread awareness about her roots, too. Ilona Verley is the famous Canadian model who is known as the cast of Canada’s Drag Queen. Ironically enough, Ilona was sent home by her Canadian sister Lemon. 35.0k members in the rpdrcringe community. 8 marca, 2021 Uncategorized Uncategorized Ilona attended the Blanche MacDonald Centre in Vancouver. [2], Verley is Nlaka'pamux and two-spirit, and has said she identifies as a "proud, Indigenous trans woman". © 2021 Condé Nast. “He’s been a godsend for me,” she says. But in addition to the fiery entrance—and her striking, monochromatic drag looks that followed—Verley brought something else unique to the season: representation for … [7][8] She also attracted positive notice for her look in the season finale, which blended a First Nations jingle dress in her signature pastel colours with red handprints, a symbol of the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women. They're like, ‘What's an Indigenous person?’” Growing up in Surrey, British Columbia, Verley was equally confused about her own cultural identity. ... Ilona Verley is a two-spirit indigenous artist who grew up Nlaka'pamux and strives to … From her date of birth, she is currently at … u/haybails720. Ilona Verley. The latest fashion news, beauty coverage, celebrity style, fashion week updates, culture reviews, and videos on Vogue.com. Vancouver queens Julie Vu, Ilona Verley, Quanah Style, and BamBam. ILONA VERLEY Vancouver (BC), Canada QUEENS OF THE NORTH It’s all out in the clear: Canada’s Drag Race is out and Ilona is a contestant on the first season! Ilona Verley is a Canadian-American drag queen most known for competing on the first season of Canada's Drag Race. But in addition to the fiery entrance—and her striking, monochromatic drag looks that followed—Verley brought something else unique to the season: representation for Indigenous, Two-Spirit queens. Ilona Verley gave it her all in the first pageant in Drag Race herstory and wore a sickening bejewelled gown for ... learning more about my background being Nlaka'pamux. Home / Uncategorized / ilona verley native american; March 8, 2021. The term ‘Two-Spirit’ refers to Indigenous North Americans who define themselves as embodying both male and female spirits. Close. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement and Your California Privacy Rights. Using she/they pronouns – Ilona is proudly Nlaka’pamux 2 Spirit – and flavours her drag with her connection to culture and the fluidity of her gender identity. “I think her biggest strength as a performer is her ability to emote. All rights reserved. Share. By Maija Kappler. Epic Science for Epic Kids. Ilona joins us from Calgary to talk about … Before Canada's Drag Race, Ilona spent some time in Los Angeles performing as a drag entertainer, but the queen has since moved back to Canada. She was born on April 17, 1995, in Lytton, Canada, and raised there to become a fashion icon. Because who knows, in a few months from now, when I'm in a better mind-set or a better situation, how I'm going to feel". She believes drag holds the power to educate others. Discover (and save!) “I had no one to look at on TV that was like me. 2.3k. [1][4][5] She became the "first Indigenous, two-spirit, and openly non-binary queen" to compete. Menu. She felt like she could only explore her culture through style when she felt educated enough to do so. As soon as Ilona Verley sashayed into the workroom on the first episode of Canada’s Drag Race, it was clear that the Vancouver-based queen would be a fierce competitor. 3. Vancouver-based designer Evan Clayton is the creative mind behind several of the outfits Ilona Verley rocked on the show. Based in Vancouver and raised in Nlaka’pamux Nation, they moved to … She hinted at the prospect of working on music, and will also be gearing up for some performances as venues begin to open up again. For the finale of Canada's Drag Race, Ilona Verley, a two-spirit member of the Nlaka’pamux Nation in British Columbia, wore red hands and covered her mouth in respect to the many Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. Ad Choices. “I went in there being very open about viewing myself as non-binary, and by the end of it, I walked away feeling confident and understanding of myself. In the past, Verley has auditioned for season 11 and season 12 of the U.S. series. From Nonbinary Wiki. To revist this article, visit My Profile, then View saved stories. From her date of birth, she is currently at the age of 25. From British Columbia, there's Vancouver's Ilona Verley, a two-spirit indigenous artist who grew up Nlaka'pamux, and Victoria's Jimbo, a cabaret performer who has a background in clowning. Ilona Verley is a Canadian-American[2] drag queen most known for competing on the first season of Canada's Drag Race. (Two-Spirits are Indigenous people who identify with both male and female spirits.) Personal life. “When they see something that's pleasing to their eyes, 9 times out of 10, they're more interested in learning more.”. CV Scioly Store; Sponsors; Contact Us; Competition [2], Verley was raised in Surrey, British Columbia. Ilona Verley is a two-spirit indigenous artist who grew up Nlaka'pamux and strives to be the representation she wished she had seen growing up watching mainstream media She is always serving monochromatic head to toe pastel looks and has a strong social media presence This article is a stub. From her date of birth, she is currently at the age of 25. She was born on April 17, 1995, in Lytton, Canada, and raised there to become a fashion icon. “I can sew, but I don’t like to sew.” Exploring her culture through drag, however, is somewhat new territory for Verley, as it’s something she only started doing over the past year. Ilona Verley (Nlaka'pamux First Nation) "Ilona hopes that her time on the show helps other Indigenous queer people “feel seen”. And we got thrown together and put this production together with all new people. Ilona Verley made Drag Race herstory as the first two-spirit Indigenous queen to appear on the reality franchise. [6] On Canada's Drag Race, Verley placed in the bottom two on three occasions and was eliminated in the seventh episode. This article is within the scope of WikiProject Canada, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of Canada on Wikipedia. “I wasn't as knowledgeable as I could have been with my culture [when I was younger],” she says. She never made the cut, though she found a silver lining in being able to star on the Canadian counterpart this summer (available to stream on WOW Presents Plus.) Verley competed in the first season of Canada’s Drag Race, a spin-off of the seminal RuPaul’s Drag Race, in which drag queens are judged on their charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent in their attempt to be the next drag superstar. Lemon and Ilona Verley are the two first queens of Canada's Drag Race to live and come from outside of Canada, from the US. Ilona Verley was a contestant on Rush a la Willam International: Season 1, she ended up in 8th place, being the first queen eliminated. The 25-year-old, who is Nlaka'pamux, made history as the first Indigenous Two-Spirit queen to compete on the reality series. For me, performing is like therapy,” she says. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Condé Nast. She can capture her audience through her art and expression.”, Now that the show has wrapped, Verley has a busy schedule of projects to look forward to for the rest of the year. “Alright, party girls, I’m about to let these whores have it,” she exclaims into her phone, then tossing it aside for dramatic effect. “For me, Drag Race has always been the ultimate goal,” she says. Though she did not end up winning the grand prize, competing on the series still proved to be a surreal experience for the Canadian queen. ilona verley finale. She's one of the two Canadians in the cast. Ilona Verley (Nlaka'pamux First Nation) "Ilona hopes that her time on the show helps other Indigenous queer people “feel seen”. “I realized, being on Canada’s Drag Race [was] more of a place where I was going to be able to talk about being Indigenous,” she says. We reworked parts of my *ex drag mother quanahstyle ‘s jingle dress (originally by @tajhouseoftalents who also provided the eagle feathers for this) into this look so I would have a piece of her with me while filming and could represent a part of her as my *then chosen family with the tootoosis family crest, as to me chosen family *has been as important as my blood family, my nlaka'pamux people. [2] On the LGBTQ&A podcast in the same month, Verley said "I think for me right now, the best way to describe who I am right now in this moment is nonbinary and gender fluid. She opened up about being the franchise's first two-spirit contestant. [9], imagineNATIVE Film and Media Arts Festival, "Indigenous Queen Ilona Verley On Bringing Two-Spirit Representation to Canada's Drag Race", "Ilona Verley, Drag Race's Two-Spirit Queen", "Canada's Drag Race: Things You Didn't Know About The Queens", "Canada's Drag Race: Indigenous drag queen Ilona Verley from Vancouver makes a splash in Vogue", "Canada's Drag Race: Vancouver queen Ilona Verley on Indigenous representation and that ass critique", "Why Ilona Verley Almost Quit "Canada's Drag Race, "Canada's Drag Race star Ilona Verley on being the first Indigenous two-spirit queen to bring it to the runway", "Ilona Verley Is 1st 'Canada's Drag Race' Queen To Get The Vogue Treatment", "A 'Canada's Drag Race' Queen Is Calling Out An Offensive Nyx Makeup Tutorial", "Tantoo Cardinal, Ilona Verley, Lorne Cardinal at imagineNATIVE 2020", "Ilona Verley: 'Drag Race's' Two-Spirit Queen Says 'F*ck Gender, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ilona_Verley&oldid=1012927446, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 19 March 2021, at 02:35. "[11], She lives in Vancouver as of October 2020,[9] having returned to Canada after living in Los Angeles. Ilona Verley: Birthday: April 17, 1995: Age: 25: Gender: Female: Nationality: Canadian: Ethnicity: Nlaka’pamux: Profession: Model: Instagram: IlonaVerley: Twitter: ilonaverley ", "♪ Everything I do is sheer perfection / Everywhere I look, men cover their erections / Everything they wear gets them a detention / Everywhere they go, people have nothing nice to mention! But in addition to the fiery entrance—and her striking, monochromatic drag looks that followed—Verley brought something else unique to the season: representation for Indigenous, Two-Spirit queens. Ilona Verley: Birthday: April 17, 1995: Age: 25: Gender: Female: Nationality: Canadian: Ethnicity: Nlaka’pamux: Profession: Model: Instagram: IlonaVerley: Twitter: ilonaverley Years doing drag: 5. [9], In October 2020, Verley was announced as one of the performers at the opening gala of the 2020 imagineNATIVE Film and Media Arts Festival. Home. Ilona is the first queen to be eliminated on Rush a la Willam's International spin-off. Verley is Nlaka’pamux, a people of the Interior Salish language group in southern British Columbia. It had a triggering sense to it.” (Many Indigenous people were forcibly sent to residential schools in Canada from the 1870s to the 1990s, where they were stripped of their culture and forced to assimilate to white, Christian values. Home / Uncategorized / ilona verley native american; March 8, 2021. She seems to be secretive about her details, even her real name is not known for now. Ilona Verley and Canada’s Drag Race. Recently featured in Vogue Magazine, Ilona is known for her enigmatic drag style and ability to dazzle audiences through her art and expression, and is the first Indigenous and two-spirited queen to appear on Canada’s Drag Race. [3] In 2020, she accused NYX Professional Makeup of cultural insensitivity. /r/DragRace_Canada. Kompleksowa obsługa reklamowa. Vogue may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. Jump to navigation Jump to search. “She has such a strong sense of self and her identity that shines through her drag,” says Quanah, who is Cree, of Verley. The 25-year-old, who is Nlaka'pamux, made history as the first Indigenous Two-Spirit queen to … [1], She has also worked at a NYX Professional Makeup store. Born: 1994/1995 (age 25–26) ... Verley is Nlaka'pamux and two-spirit, and has said she identifies as a "proud, Indigenous trans woman". ), Verley now finds pride in learning more about her cultural traditions, and channeling them into her drag looks. In November 2020 she stated: "I don't want to put my foot down too much with any label. Posted by. Ilona Verley made Drag Race herstory as the first two-spirit Indigenous queen to appear on the reality franchise. A queen of social media, Ilona has built a formidable online brand and her carefully curated feed has captured the attention of 10k+ fans! In November 2020 she stated: "I don't want to put my foot down too much with any label. Ilona Verley. Michael Bronski talks about the terms Europeans applied--erroneously and pejoratively--to the Two-Spirit Native Americans they encountered. Her signature looks always include “monochromatic pastel realness,” Verley says, adding, “I’m like those crazy, eclectic old ladies that just wear one color.” Her looks for Drag Race were created in collaboration with her friend Evan Clayton, a designer based in Vancouver. and trying to find that balance of finding respectful ways to incorporate a little bit of culture into my drag without being disrespectful. Note to editors: remember to always support the information you proved with external references! In November, Verley was named to Out magazine's annual Out100 list of influential LGBTQ personalities. In 2015, she then developed a love for drag as a means to express herself as a Two-Spirit person. In the first season of Canada's Drag Race, the contestant Ilona Verley, who is from the Nlaka'pamux Nation in British Columbia, was the first contestant to identify as two-spirit and as non-binary. Ilona: I'm Ilona Verley, and I'm a fucking bitch. Ilona Verley from season one of Canada's Drag Race who was recently featured in Vogue, set to perform & Judge at the 9th Annual Kelowna's Next Drag Superstar this weekend. ilona verley native american. “Being on the show helped me connect with my inner self that I was always trying to ignore,” says Verley. Tickets to Canada’s Drag Race Screening Party with Scarlett Bobo & Ilona Verley – VANCOUVER. 1 month ago. Nlaka’pamux: Profession: Model: Instagram: IlonaVerley: Twitter: ilonaverley 10 Facts on Ilona Verley: Ilona Verley is the famous Canadian model who is known as the cast of Canada’s Drag Queen. I was able to come home, have a conversation with my mom, and say, ‘I’m trans.’”, On the show, the enigmatic drag style that she’s developed over the past five years was on full display. The insider’s guide to what to shop and how to wear it. “It’s exciting to get back on stage. How to watch Canada's Drag Race in the US . I went through this whole phase in high school, feeling like I had to be white passing to be successful,” she says. Ilona Verley Is 1st ‘Canada’s Drag Race’ Contestant To Get The Vogue Treatment. For the finale of Canada's Drag Race, Ilona Verley, a two-spirit member of the Nlaka’pamux Nation in British Columbia, wore red hands and covered her mouth in respect to the many Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women.