Filipino drag artist Viñas DeLuxe gained praise among drag queen fans in the Philippines and in other countries for her on-point impersonation of Mariah Carey.
Viñas performed in front of a crowd at RuPaul’s DragCon LA in the United States. She was a guest along with other Pinay queens of season 1 “Drag Race Philippines” at the convention held on May 12 and 13.
For her act, she impersonated Mariah’s performance of “We Belong Together” at the 48th Grammys in 2006.
The talented drag queen, however, took it up a notch. She transformed into Mariah and mimicked the singer’s hand gestures and facial expressions.
RuPaul’s DragCon shared a video of this rendition on Instagram and TikTok.
“@Vinas DeLuxe kept the lambily FED at #DragCon LA, seeing this live was absolutely unreal,” the caption reads.
In the video, it was shown that the original clip of Mariah’s Grammys number was being played as the backdrop while Viñas impersonates the chart-topping singer-songwriter.
The crowd could also be heard erupting in cheers for Viñas’ impressive act on stage.
@rupaulsdragcon @Vinas DeLuxe kept the lambily FED at #DragCon LA, seeing this live was absolutely unreal 😭👏 Don’t miss the biggest weekend in #DragRace ♬ original sound – RuPaul’s DragCon
The TikTok video of the performance has so far garnered 994,000 views, 133,800 likes and 3,817 shares on the video-streaming service.
In the comments section, drag fans both from the Philippines and from other countries expressed amazement at how Viñas managed to imitate Mariah, including her hand gestures and demeanor, during her live singing.
A Filipino fan later shared this performance on Twitter on May 14.
“I’M SORRY THIS IS BEYOND ICONIC?!” the fan tweeted.
I’M SORRY THIS IS BEYOND ICONIC?!?! pic.twitter.com/XIJXgBop0g
— ray ✨ (@mascarayde) May 13, 2023
It has since garnered 1.6 million views, 24,200 likes, 3,599 retweets and 873 quote-retweets on the platform.
Viñas herself later saw this tweet.
“Thank you Drag Con LA,” she said in a quote-retweet.
In a separate post, Viñas thanked RuPaul’s DragCon LA for the opportunity to interact with drag race fans overseas.
She also showcased her outfit on the pink carpet—a towel-inspired Filipiniana.
RELATED: Towel couture? Viñas Deluxe gets online rave for entrance look at ‘Drag Race PH’
“Being part of @rupaulsdragcon was an unforgettable experience, feeling the love and connection with supporters from all over the world, making an impact one glittery step at a time! Twalya pero gawin nating Pilipiñana,” Viñas said.
Being part of @rupaulsdragcon was an unforgettable experience, feeling the love and connection with supporters from all over the world, making an impact one glittery step at a time!
Twalya pero gawin nating pilipiñana pic.twitter.com/aHiJgtPejT
— Vinas DeLuxe (@VinasDeluxe) May 14, 2023
Season 1 “DRPH” queens who were also guests at the massive two-day event include Precious Paula Nicole, Marina Summers, Eva Le Queen, Turing, Jiggly Caliente, Prince Marell, Minty Fresh and Gigi Era.
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