''RuPaul's Secret Celebrity Drag Race'' is an American

reality competition Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

series that premiered April 24, 2020 on

VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism of Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network based in New York City and owned by Paramount Global. It was created by Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, at the time a division of Warner Commun ...

. A

spin-off Spin-off may refer to: *Spin-off (media), a media work derived from an existing work *Corporate spin-off, a type of corporate action that forms a new company or entity * Government spin-off, civilian goods which are the result of military or gove ...

of ''

RuPaul's Drag Race ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' is an American reality competition television series, the first in the ''Drag Race'' franchise, produced by World of Wonder for Logo TV (season 1–8), WOW Presents Plus, VH1 (season 9–14) and, beginning with the f ...

'', the series features celebrities competing for charity, mentored by alumni of the ''Drag Race'' franchise. The first season consisted of self-contained episodes based on the format of the main series, with three celebrity contestants competing in popular ''Drag Race'' challenges. For its second season, the format was changed to a season-length competition focused on

lip sync Lip sync or lip synch (pronounced , the same as the word ''sink'', short for lip synchronization) is a technical term for matching a speaking or singing person's lip movements with sung or spoken vocals. Audio for lip syncing is generated th ...

performances, with a field of celebrities concealed via drag personas.

Format

Both seasons of the series have featured celebrity contestants competing for charity, becoming

drag Drag or The Drag may refer to: Places * Drag, Norway, a village in Tysfjord municipality, Nordland, Norway * ''Drág'', the Hungarian name for Dragu Commune in Sălaj County, Romania * Drag (Austin, Texas), the portion of Guadalupe Street adj ...

performers mentored by alumni from previous seasons of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' (billed as "Queen Supremes"). In its first season, each episode was a self-contained competition between three contestants, who competed in "fan favorite" ''Drag Race'' challenges. Similarly to the main series, each episode featured mini and maxi challenges, followed by a final

round to determine the winner. The second season switched to a season-length competition focusing exclusively on lip sync performances. The season began with a cast of nine contestants, identified only by drag personas. In each episode, the contestants give a solo lip sync performance for the judges and a studio audience. The bottom two contestants compete in a "Lip Sync for Your Life" round to determine who advances to the next episode, and who is eliminated and must reveal their true identity. The last remaining celebrity at the end of the season would win $100,000 for their chosen charity. The new format was described as having similarities to '' The Masked Singer''. The series maintains the same judging panel as the main series, consisting of RuPaul,

Michelle Visage Michelle Lynn Case (nee Shupack), better known as Michelle Visage (born September 20, 1968), is an American singer, television host, actress, radio DJ and producer. She first gained recognition as a member of the musical group Seduction which ...

, Carson Kressley, and

Ross Mathews Ross Mathews (born September 24, 1979) is an American television host and personality. He first rose to fame as an intern and a correspondent for ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno''; he was known as "Ross the Intern" on air. Mathews has appeared ...

Broadcast

The series was initially announced in October 2019 under the working title ''RuPaul's Celebrity Drag Race'', with the title changed prior to launch. The first season premiered on April 24, 2020 on VH1, as a four-part miniseries. In August 2021, VH1 renewed the series for a second season, which premiered on August 12, 2022.

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Official site
(in English) {{Portal bar, LGBT, Television, United States 2020 American television series debuts 2020s American LGBT-related television series 2020s American reality television series American LGBT-related reality television series American television spin-offs Celebrity reality television series Reality television spin-offs RuPaul's Drag Race Television series by World of Wonder (company) VH1 original programming