RuPaul's House Of Hidden Meanings

Fresh Air

NPR

Tv & Film, Arts, Society & Culture, Books

4.4 • 34.4K Ratings

🗓️ 4 March 2024

⏱️ 50 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The Emmy-winning host of RuPaul's Drag Race describes himself as "an introvert masquerading as an extrovert." In a new memoir, he writes about growing up Black and queer in San Diego. And how he forged a new and glamorous identity in the punk rock and drag scenes of Atlanta and New York City. The memoir is titled The House of Hidden Meanings.

Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews a new oral history of the Village Voice.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Support for NPR and the following message come from SAP Concur, a leading brand for integrated travel expense and invoice management solutions.
0:08.5	With SAP Concur solutions, you'll be ready to take on whatever the market throws at you next. Learn more at concur.com.
0:17.0	This is Fresh Air. I'm Tanya Mosley. In 1992, a new anthem hit the dance club scene propelling a young man dressed in drag
0:26.2	into the consciousness of the mainstream. The song was supermodel You Better Work
0:31.6	and the name of the singer was Ru Paul.
0:34.0	You better work.
0:36.0	Have a girl.
0:37.0	Work it girl.
0:38.0	Give a squirrel do your thing.
0:40.0	On the runway work.
0:43.0	Super-
0:41.0	Super-B-B-I'm going to work it. on the runway runway.
0:43.0	Super about a working girl
0:45.0	of the world
0:46.0	at your lips
0:48.0	and making love to the camera
0:50.0	work
0:51.0	turns to the left
0:52.0	work now turn to the left, now turn to the right.
0:54.0	The song Supermodel became an MTV staple in RuPaul's most successful commercial song to date.
1:03.4	And as we learned from his new memoir,
1:05.6	The House of Hidden Meanings,
	...

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