ND: It was very interesting to work alongside Daphné Bürki because when I was still building my brand coming back from Drag Race season 12, she was the one that gave me one of my first spot on a talk show to really talk about me and my career and what I wanted to do. So now, having her by my side to judge newer queens felt like a well-rounded experience overall. And Kiddy Smile is someone that I grew up as an adult with. He is a mother figure in the ballroom. He’s an iconic voguer and dancer and just overall a badass b***h, so I think it’s great to have him by his side. Both of them did such a great job at not only having opinions and trying to guide the girls, but also supporting me and allowing me to rest on their shoulders whenever the emotion was overwhelming. Because the thing is, when you host, but you come with a contested background, you really have a lot of empathy and you really understand that you are about to crush someone’s dream.

I was able to do was to show them that maybe the adventure was done for now, but the dream was not broken. The dream was yet to be built. That was just a great part to focus on– to heal as fast as possible for the real challenge to start. I’m excited for drag to learn so much from the ballroom scene. The ballroom scene has so much drag in it as well. So I think that it made so much sense to have someone who is not only is someone from the ballroom scene, but also a mother of a house. He really understands what serving charisma, unique nerve and talent on the main stage means and how to carry yourself and how to present yourself and how to perform. We all know that judging in the ballroom scene can be very tough, and he’s no exception to that.

I think the girls really learned a lot from him because he knows exactly what’s up, and I learned from him as well. He’s incredible, and I think that also sends a perfect message out there [in] having someone like him by my side because he is just incredible.

Nicky Doll