This season of RuPaul’s Drag Race brought forth surprising eliminations (and returns), absolutely killer lip syncs, and a record number of trans performers (some coming out emotionally during the competition). It also brought forth a contestant who is arguably, one of the most immediately beloved performers on the Drag Race stage since Vanessa “Vanjie” Mateo backwards-strutted herself off of the Drag Race runway (and into America’s collective hearts). While Kornbread “The Snack” Jeté had a brief run (due to an ankle injury that removed her from the competition) she made quite an impact on both her competitors, the fans, the judges, and even Lizzo during the first runway of the season! Now it seems though, that Kornbread’s run on Season 14 might be the last we see her on that famed main stage.
Beastiana Rosé! We often tell people what to look like as trans. “Passable” and what’s not passable! But there’s no one way to do it! There is beauty in the “beast” as well as beauty in Belle! CHOOSE WHAT YOU SEE FOR YOURSELF. FUCK THE STANDARD! And when you do it, MAKE EM EAT IT pic.twitter.com/3QrDXfg2PQ
— Pan de Elote 🌽 (@kornbreadTMFS) April 18, 2022
As she walked the red carpet for the RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 14 finale taping, Kornbread told NBC Out “So, from here, I’m going to take myself a good little break. I’m going finish my tours out and I’m going to finish my transition how I want to finish it,” the 30-year-old California queen said. She went on to say, “I just want to go straight into acting and doing what I’ve been doing. I enjoy drag, [but] I don’t think I’ll be doing it for too much longer. I give myself a good three years, probably, tops. Because I want to focus 100% on transitioning and 100% on the career I’ve started, which is musical theater and acting. So, drag just did what it needed to do [and] gave me the outlet that I needed”. Kornbread’s “Beauty Meets Beast” aesthetic on the red carpet was a response to today’s beauty standards, with Kornbread saying that “not all of us are gonna look like the same people, this doesn’t lessen who you are…do you and live your best life”
While fans are already anxious to see what Kornbread has in store next (she is confirmed to appear in the much-anticipated Hocus Pocus 2) Kornbread is also not the first RuPaul’s Drag Race alumni to take a step back from the sometimes harsh spotlights of a career in drag. After two polarizing runs on RuPaul’s Drag Race, (Season 4 and All Stars 3 respectively) Phi Phi O’Hara officially retired from drag in 2020. Also from Season 4, bombshell Kenya Michaels is focusing on her career as fashion designer in Puerto Rico, while Season 5 performer Monica Beverly Hillz came out as trans on the Drag Race runway, but walked way from drag in 2018. While he may have come out of drag for the Season 10 finale duel performances, Rebecca Glasscock now goes by Javier and is looking as smoldering as ever out of drag. Season 7 queen Magnolia Crawford has turned to acting exclusively. while Season 2 winner Tyra Sanchez retired from drag in 2020. Finally, there are a handful of other queens (I.e. Robbie Turner and Soju, among several others) who have stepped away from the world of drag to care for themselves away from the spotlight.
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