American drag performer and television personality
Mariah Paris Balenciaga
Born (1981-02-13 ) February 13, 1981 (age 43) Occupation Drag queen Years active 1999–present Known for
Mariah Paris Balenciaga , also simply known as Mariah or Mariah Balenciaga , is the stage name of Elijah A. Kelly (born February 13, 1981),[ 2] an American drag queen , ball performer, and television personality, best known for competing on the third season of RuPaul's Drag Race (2011) and the fifth season of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars (2020).[ 3] Since appearing on the show, she has been featured in a number of web series produced by World of Wonder , such as Wait, What? , Transformations , and Fashion Photo RuView . Balenciaga released her first single, "Mug 4 Dayz", on November 19, 2013.
Early life
Kelly was born on February 13, 1982, in Gainesville, Georgia . She later moved to Atlanta when she was 19, and started doing drag in the ballroom scene, becoming a founding member of the House of Balenciaga .[ 4] She is biracial .[ 5] [ 6]
Career
Balenciaga was announced as one of thirteen contestants for the third season of RuPaul's Drag Race in 2011.[ 7] She was eliminated in the sixth episode after losing a lip sync to "Looking for a New Love " by Jody Watley against Delta Work .[ 8] In 2018, she appeared with other Drag Race alumni for the first mini challenge of season ten .[ 9] She asked a viewer question to Eureka O'Hara during the season ten finale episode.[ 10] She appeared as a guest for the first challenge in the premiere of season eleven of Drag Race.[ 11] Balenciaga was also a drag professor for the second and third season of RuPaul's Drag U in 2011 and 2012.[ 12]
Outside of Drag Race , she makes guest appearances for the WOWPresents Internet series "Fashion Photo RuView " filling in for either Raja or Raven , reviewing looks from Drag Race alumni. Her first appearance was on June 9, 2016.[ 13] She also makes recurring appearances on another WOW series, "Wait, What ?" as the co-host to Kimora Blac , where they answer trivia questions. Her first appearance was in the debut episode.[ 14]
Balenciaga was with other Drag Race alumni for an episode of Skin Wars in 2015.[ 15] She was one of the performers for Phi Phi O'Hara 's benefit show for the hurricane in Puerto Rico .[ 16] [ 17]
She was one of the background dancers for Miley Cyrus 's 2015 VMA performance.[ 18] She was a background dancer again, playing as one of the Spice Girls for Rita Ora on an episode of Lip Sync Battle in March 2018.[ 19] She was a backup dancer for Lip Sync Battle again in 2019 for Nico Tortorella .[ 20]
In August 2019, she was featured in Women's Wear Daily magazine, alongside Kimora Blac , Mayhem Miller , and Kameron Michaels .[ 21]
In 2020, Balenciaga returned for the fifth season of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars , placing 8th overall. Her performance in the first episode was praised for raising awareness of systemic racism and prejudice, made particularly timely in wake of the Black Lives Matter movement , and Balenciaga was even given a shoutout by current guest judge Ricky Martin for her performance.[ 22] [ 23]
In September 2020, Balenciaga was featured alongside many other black RuPaul's Drag Race alum in a "Stop The Racism" PSA, speaking out against toxic, racist fans within the Drag Race community.[ 24]
She was a featured performer during Jennifer Lopez 's performance at the 2022 iHeartRadio Music Awards .[ 25]
Music
Balenciaga released her first single, "Mug 4 Dayz", on November 19, 2013.[ 26] A remix EP of the song was released on April 11, 2014.[ 27] Balenciaga appeared in the music video for Pandora Boxx 's "Oops I Think I Pooped" on September 24, 2018.[ 28] She appeared in a music video for Lizzo 's song "Juice " on April 17, 2019.[ 29] She appeared in a music video for pop duo Aly & AJ 's song "Star Maps" on June 12, 2019.[ 30]
Discography
EPs
Singles
Year
Song
2013
"Mug 4 Dayz"
2020
"Stains on the Wall"
As Featured Artist
Filmography
Television
Web series
Music videos
References
^ "Elijah A Kelly" . Ancestry Institute . Ancestry. Retrieved November 12, 2022 .
^ "Mariah Paris Balenciaga "It Gets Better!" " . Abby Normal . 2014-08-07. Retrieved 2018-09-09 .
^ a b Adam B. Vary (May 8, 2020). " 'RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars' Moves Back to VH1 From Showtime, Reveals Cast" . Variety . Archived from the original on May 8, 2020. Retrieved May 8, 2020 .
^ "Mariah Balenciaga" . Grizzly Kiki . Retrieved 2018-09-09 .
^ a b WOWPresents (2019-05-06), FOLLOW ME: Mariah Balenciaga , archived from the original on February 11, 2021, retrieved 2019-05-10
^ Cook, Michael (June 24, 2020). "The Queen of The Ballroom – Mariah Balenciaga Talks Returning For "All-Stars" & What We May Not Know About The Ballroom Scene" . Instinct . Retrieved March 24, 2021 .
^ "Alexis Mateo: RuPaul's Drag Race Season 3 Contestant - RuPaul's Drag Race (Video Clip) | LOGOtv" . Logo TV . Archived from the original on 2021-01-27. Retrieved 2018-09-09 .
^ " 'RuPaul's Drag Race': How 'Precious' was Stacy Layne Matthews last night?" . EW.com . Retrieved 2018-09-09 .
^ "RuPaul Brings Back Katya, Porkchop, Kim Chi, Jujubee, Detox, and More to Help Judge the First Mini-Challenge of Season 10" . VH1 News . Archived from the original on May 15, 2023. Retrieved 2018-09-09 .
^ Club, The A.V. "The A.V. Club convenes its own judges' panel for the RuPaul's Drag Race season-10 finale" . The A.V. Club . Retrieved 2018-09-09 .
^ " 'RuPaul's Drag Race' 11 episode 1 recap: Which queen was sent packing on 'Whatcha Unpackin'? [UPDATING LIVE BLOG]" . Goldderby . 2019-02-28. Retrieved 2019-03-01 .
^ Gascot, John (2011-07-27). "RuPaul's Drag U: Professor Mariah" . Huffington Post . Retrieved 2018-09-09 .
^ WOWPresents (2016-06-09), RuPaul's Drag Race Fashion Photo RuView with Raja and Mariah Balenciaga: Social Media Ep 39 , retrieved 2018-09-09
^ "Wait, What?" . WOW Presents Plus . Retrieved 2018-09-09 .
^ "Skin Wars season 2 episode 4 recap: Drag Queens are here!" . Channel Guide Magazine . 2015-07-08. Retrieved 2018-09-09 .
^ "The "Drag Race" Queens Are Going All Out To Raise Money For Puerto Rico" . LOGO News . Retrieved 2018-09-09 .
^ Cook, Michael (2017-10-28). "Queens United/Reinas Unitas-The Ladies of "RuPaul's Drag Race" Hit The Stage For The People Of Puerto Rico!" . Huffington Post . Retrieved 2018-09-09 .
^ "Meet All 30 Of Miley's Day-Glo Dancers From Her Insane VMA Performance" . MTV News . Archived from the original on August 31, 2015. Retrieved 2018-09-09 .
^ a b Lip Sync Battle (2018-03-29), Charli XCX's "Shape of You" vs. Rita Ora's "Wannabe" | Lip Sync Battle , retrieved 2018-09-09
^ a b "WATCH: 'Younger' Star Nico Tortorella Stunned as Ariana Grande on 'Lip Sync Battle' • Instinct Magazine" . Instinct Magazine . 2019-06-07. Retrieved 2019-06-07 .
^ "How Drag Queens Broke Through the Beauty Barrier" . Women's Wear Daily . Retrieved 2019-09-21 .
^ Blanton, Kayla (June 5, 2020). "The 'All Stars' 5 Premiere Included A Powerful Performance About Systemic Racism" . Bustle . Retrieved March 24, 2021 .
^ Smith, Reiss (June 24, 2020). "Drag Race legend Mariah Paris Balenciaga reveals she was 'cringing' over All Stars lip sync" . PinkNews . Retrieved March 24, 2021 .
^ Reynolds, Daniel (September 22, 2020). "Black Drag Race Stars Urge Fans to 'Stop the Racism' in PSA" . The Advocate . Retrieved March 24, 2021 .
^ Ermac, Raffy (March 23, 2022). "Drag Race Queens Paid Tribute To Jennifer Lopez At Her iHeartRadio Music Awards Performance" . Out.com . Retrieved March 23, 2022 .
^ Mug 4 Dayz - Single by Mariah Balenciaga , 2013-11-19, retrieved 2018-09-09
^ Mug 4 Dayz Stone Cold Remixes by Mariah Balenciaga , 2014-04-11, retrieved 2018-09-09
^ Pandora Boxx (2018-09-24), Pandora Boxx - Oops I Think I Pooped (Official Video) , retrieved 2018-09-24
^ "Lizzo - JUICE Music Video feat. RuPaul's Drag Race Queens" . YouTube . 2019-04-17. Retrieved 2019-04-17 .
^ Huff, Lauren (June 12, 2019). "Watch Aly & AJ's 'Star Maps' music video featuring stars from Shameless, Drag Race, Silicon Valley, The Goldbergs, and more" . Entertainment Weekly . Retrieved June 12, 2019 .
^ "I'm In Love - Single" . iTunes .
^ Gascot, John (July 27, 2011). "RuPaul's Drag U: Professor Mariah" . Huff Post . Retrieved September 17, 2021 .
^ Boulet, Ruth (2015-07-08). "Skin Wars season 2 episode 4 recap: The Drag Queens are here!" . Channel Guide Magazine . Retrieved 2020-04-10 .
^ Damshenas, Sam (22 March 2018). "Watch Drag Race fan favourites return for the season 10 premiere" . Gay Times . Retrieved June 5, 2021 .
^ O’Keeffe, Kevin (28 February 2019). " 'RuPaul's Drag Race' Season 11 premiere recap: Queens here, queens there, queens everywhere" . Xtra .
^ Nolfi, Joey (2019-12-03). "RuPaul brings 22 Drag Race queens to costar on AJ and the Queen" . EW.com . Retrieved 2019-12-03 .
^ Dino-Ray Ramos (June 8, 2020). " 'RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars' Brings Back 'Untucked' Aftershow For Season 5" . Deadline . Archived from the original on June 5, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2020 .
^ Patterson, Denny (November 11, 2021). " 'The Browns' Are Back in Town with a Second Season" . Out Front Magazine . Retrieved January 10, 2022 .
^ WOWPresents (2014-09-16), James St. James and Mariah Balenciaga: Transformations , archived from the original on January 12, 2021, retrieved 2019-09-21
^ WOWPresents (2015-07-09), Mariah Balenciaga & Jaidynn Diore Fierce in Morgan McMichaels' Rooftop Lipsync , archived from the original on November 19, 2020, retrieved 2019-09-21
^ WOWPresents (2015-06-24), Part 2 | Drag Queens Reading Mean Comments w/ Alaska, Raja, Raven, Milk, Morgan, and More! , retrieved 2019-10-23
^ WOWPresents (2017-02-09), M.U.G. with Kim Chi & Mariah Balenciaga - First Timer Mistakes , archived from the original on November 20, 2020, retrieved 2019-05-10
^ WOWPresents (2017-06-27), Spilling The Tea: The Queens Kiki on Gay Dating Apps & Lady Gaga's 'Born This Way: Billboard , archived from the original on November 25, 2021, retrieved 2019-08-02
^ Cosmopolitan (2018-10-11), Mariah Balenciaga | Cosmo Drag Queens | Cosmopolitan , archived from the original on July 3, 2020, retrieved 2019-05-10
^ Producer Entertainment Group/PEG (February 26, 2019), Chicken Adobo You Betta Don't | Wigs In A Blanket - Episode 4 , archived from the original on June 30, 2021, retrieved June 26, 2021
^ Yuhua Hamasaki (April 1, 2019), MARIAH BALENCIAGA joins BOOTLEG FASHION PHOTO RUVIEW: Season 11 Episode 5! , archived from the original on November 21, 2020, retrieved April 11, 2020
^ WOWPresents (2019-06-25), ICONIC with Brad Goreski: Mariah Balenciaga , retrieved 2019-08-02
^ WOWPresents (2019-06-06), Mariah Balenciaga: Reading Queens with Psychic Char Margolis , archived from the original on July 1, 2020, retrieved 2019-09-14
^ Voss, Brandon (2019-04-13). "Mariah Balenciaga and Manila Luzon Have Thoughts About This Week's "RuPaul's Drag Race" " . NewNowNext.com . Archived from the original on February 20, 2020. Retrieved 2020-04-10 .
^ Youtube (2023-02-04), The Pit Stop S15 E06 🏁 | Bianca Del Rio & Mariah Are Golden! | RuPaul's Drag Race S15 , archived from the original on February 11, 2021, retrieved 2023-02-07
^ WOWPresents (June 19, 2020), Whatcha Packin': SPOILER ALERT! | S5 E3 | RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars , retrieved June 20, 2020
^ Hey Qween (January 25, 2021), MARIAH BALENCIAGA on Hey Qween! with Jonny McGovern- Part 1 , archived from the original on February 16, 2021, retrieved January 25, 2021
^ SNEAK PEEK - Binge Queens: Drag Race Mexico, airing Tuesdays only on WOW Presents Plus! . WOW Presents. June 23, 2023. Retrieved June 23, 2023 .
^ Tharrett, Matthew (2016-07-21). "Kim Chi, Willam, Mariah, Alaska And Laganja Get "Expensive" With Todrick Hall" . NewNowNext.com . Retrieved 2020-04-10 .
^ Hill, Leigh (February 28, 2017). "Alaska and Gia Gunn feel their oats in new music video Stun" . OutInPerth . Retrieved October 7, 2020 .
^ Bote, Joshua (2018-09-24). "Pandora Boxx Lets it Rip With Alaska, Jasmine Masters and More in Epic Katy Perry Parody: Watch" . Billboard.com . Retrieved 2020-04-10 .
^ Horbelt, Stephan (2018-08-24). "This 'Girly' Pop Singer Just Re-Created Some of Your Favorite Female-Fronted Music Videos" . Hornet . Retrieved 2020-03-03 .
External links