What happens when you take two close friends who also happen to be two of the biggest names in drag in Australia and put a mic in front of them?-you get the sparkling new podcast Brenda Call Me! with Courtney Act & Vanity. After meeting at the legendary Sydney gay and drag nightclub Stonewall, an 18 year old Shane Jenek (now Courtney Act) described Vanity (Benjamin Moir) as the “supermodel of Sydney drag”. Vanity took to Shane and became a mentor, even while saying “I didn’t have the heart to tell her to f*ck off, I was like “come on let me show you the way child”. A friendship, a business (Wigs by Vanity with Courtney Act) and eventually a podcast, was born! The gals will be chatting about their lives, all things drag, a dash of politics, (and listeners might even get to find out who Brenda actually is…)
As individual talents, Courtney Act and Vanity are standouts. From American Idol to RuPaul’s Drag Race, Courtney Act has gone on to release her debut EP Kaleidoscope, with her online videos being viewed over 40 million times and selling out 2017’s The Girl From Oz. Vanity is an accomplished performer and wig stylist, becoming well known on and off stage. Vanity’s eponymous wig line (Wigs by Vanity with Courtney Act) has designed wigs worn by Conchita Wurst and RuPaul among others.
Courtney said, “Brenda, call me’ is the text Vanity and I send to each other when we want to chat. We have been friends for 20 years, lived all around the world, in different time zones, and we are super excited for you to listen in on our best friend conversations, we’re just glad they are not live and the legal department will be reviewing them before they hit your ear drums.” Vanity said, “We thought we were going to be recording this podcast on opposite sides of the world, but Ms. Rona has reunited us and we’re super excited to be sitting face to face giving our unsolicited Australian drag opinions on all sorts of topics. Courtney doesn’t actually know why we call each other “Brenda” so make sure you tune in when I explain its origins.”
Brenda, Call Me! is available on the Nova Podcast Network, with a new episode launching every Thursday. Episodes are available here or wherever you access your podcasts.