What Makes Katya's Drag Hiatus Announcement so Admirable

It's a bittersweet time in the Drag Race fandom. A couple of days ago, drag artist and RuPaul's Drag Race fan favorite Katya Zamolodchikova made the bold decision to take a break from drag to focus on her mental health. 

She made the announcement in French on Instagram Live, which was then translated and edited by a Reddit user. Click here to see the portion of the transcript about her leaving.

After placing fifth and being voted Miss Congeniality in Season 7 of the show, and winning our hearts once again as she made it to the Top 3 of All Stars 2, Katya went on to host the popular Wow Presents YouTube series UHNhhh, with fellow Season 7 fan favorite Trixie Mattel, which spun off into the Viceland program The Trixie & Katya Show. It's very clear that Katya has made a massive impact on the Drag Race audience. And it's because Katya is not only funny and wacky, but she is humble and real at all times. She admits to her past drug addictions and her struggles with mental health, and has always encouraged people to be honest about their own demons and feelings as well. 

And this announcement of her only cements why we all love her so much. This is what makes her a survivor of drug addiction. This is what gives her a wonderful sense of humor and made her so relatable on her two seasons of Drag Race. It's all her ability to look at herself as a human being with limitations, but also a human being with the power to take control of her life. That's the Katya that gave us all strength at one point or another, and why we as fans should be happy to give her time to work on the projects and self-growth that she really looks forward to. If anyone wants to make any criticism about how this may affect her, her managers and colleagues financially, I have one thing to say: This is on brand. Katya's brand is admitting when you've hit your limit, respecting yourself enough to act on that feeling and living your life the way that makes you happy. And in a world where incredible entertainers are being treated like showponies and not always given the privacy they need to maintain their stability, this brand is a great reminder of what's important; a gift she's always given us. So let's take this time to give back, show sympathy and give her her privacy and time.

I wish Katya, or should I say Brian, the best at this time. I'll just be here watching reruns of UNHhhh for now. And her old commercial for Krisis Kontrol. 

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