Reign LaRue Steps Into Her Crown

Long before the wigs, the pageants, and the packed Houston crowds chanting her name, Reign LaRue was just a child playing make-believe drag.
“I would put T-shirts on my head and pretend they were wigs in front of the TV,” Reign says. “I would have preferred to do that over playing with cars or coloring books.”

Growing up, performing was a constant. She danced competitively in elementary school, competed in theater through high school, and eventually became president of her drama club. But after graduation, adulthood and work pulled her away from that creative side of herself.

That changed unexpectedly — and because of someone else’s passion. Reign credits her partner, Lupe Salas, with opening the door.

At 21 years old, the couple visited a gay club for the first time after seeing that drag icon Bianca Del Rio was performing at South Beach. While there, Reign spotted a flyer advertising a local amateur drag competition. At the time, she thought drag queens only existed on television.

“We went to watch and immediately fell in love with everybody — the energy, the love they received,” she says. “My gears started turning. I thought this might be a great way to start performing again.”

She went home and taught herself, building her way up from no makeup knowledge, no hair experience and no formal training. Her first performance came in August 2017 at So You Think You Can Drag. She won. That momentum continued. She later entered Desi’s Drag Race and captured the season 12 title in 2018, a turning point that launched what would become one of Houston drag’s most recognizable careers.

Since then, Reign has built an impressive résumé: directing Millennial Dolls beginning in 2019, becoming show director at JR’s, and establishing herself as both a performer and creative leader in Houston’s drag scene.

But for Reign, success was never about moving fast; she wanted to earn each next step. “I wanted to make sure I was ready in all aspects before I took another step,” she said. “Hair, makeup, performance — I wanted those boxes checked to the best of my abilities.”

That same intentionality shaped another major part of her journey: pageantry. This year marked her formal entry into the pageant world, a world she describes as entirely different from nightlife performance.

“The pageant world is like studying for a test,” she says. As she describes it, the show world is for the audience, and pageants are a different challenge. Now, she has the title to prove she belongs.

Reign recently won Miss Gay Houston Texas USofA at Large, earning the opportunity to compete at the state level for Miss Gay Texas USofA at Large later this season. The win wasn’t just another crown. It represents years of preparation and inspiration.

She points to performers she admired within the system and says seeing fellow Houston titleholders succeed made her believe there was room for her, too. More recently, building a relationship with Jazell Barbie Royale helped push her into competition.

“Seeing her win made me throw my hat in the ring,” Reign says. “I’d love to do the same thing and win it for the big girls.”

That journey hasn’t happened alone. If Reign is the face audiences see, Salas has been there from the beginning helping create the world around her.

As a plus-size entertainer, finding costumes wasn’t easy. Salas suggested they try making them, and just like that, a sewing machine became part of the act. Over time, their partnership evolved into something bigger: Salas’ love of drag merged with Reign’s love of performance to empower a creative collaboration that now fuels the entire operation.

“He gets to put his creative mind to work, and I get to put my performance skills together,” Reign says. “The drag supports both of us.”

Eventually, another layer of support arrived when Reign joined the LaRue drag family under her drag mother, Leisha LaRue. At first, she resisted the idea. Joining a drag family meant legacy, responsibility, and expectations. But after building a genuine relationship beyond shows and performances, she officially became Reign LaRue in late 2019.

Today, she sees drag not simply as entertainment but as representation. “As a plus-sized person, I get to be that confidence for people,” she says. “I get to be that escape for them.”

And while audiences often see only sequins and spotlights, Reign says there’s something important happening behind the curtain. “It takes a village to make a queen happen,” she declares.

Looking back at the child performing in front of the TV, Reign says she carries that younger version of herself into every performance. “Whatever you do in life,” she says, “make sure you do it with heart and intention for that kid inside of you that dreamt of where you are now.”

For any readers who want to channel their inner alter ego by embracing drag, July 16 marks International Drag Day. Hailed as a day (and possibly extending into the weekend, because why not?) to celebrate and recognize drag art all around the world. Don a wig, beat the mug and sport some overtly gender-stylized clothing with accessories, attitude and a desire for the crowd’s adoring attention. After all, we’re all born naked; the rest is just drag.

Follow Reign LaRue on Instagram @reignlarue.