Top 20 Lip Sync Assassins on RuPaul's Drag Race
#20: Raven
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This queen is legendary for her makeup skills, but her two appearances on “Drag Race” have also garnered her a reputation as a fierce performer. Raven’s first-ever lip sync, a sassy rendition of En Vogue’s “Never Gonna Get It,” drew laughs as she pointed at her competitors one by one during the song’s breakdown. But the two-time runner-up also showed range on “All-Stars.” After getting down to the Pussycat Dolls against Team Yarlexis, she delivered a tear-jerking duet of “Dancing On My Own” with Jujubee. Although not a kicks-and-splits performer like some of her peers, Raven has mastered beauty and stage presence alike.
#19: Shangela
Across three stints on the show and its spinoff, Shangela has earned her title as an absolute pro. Although she lost her first no-holds-barred face-off against Sahara Davenport, she came back with a vengeance in Season 3 to send Venus D-Lite and Carmen Carrera packing. In “All Stars” Season 3, she bested frontrunners BenDeLaCreme and Trixie Mattel in two performances and tied in a third. Her lip-syncs aren’t always known for their polish, but there’s no question that Shangela shines when embodying an upbeat tune. And if her record of surviving the bottom two weren’t enough, she introduced the famous dip to the show before Laganja Estranja ever set foot in the Werk Room.
#18: Trinity K. Bonet
Trinity struggled with her confidence throughout her time on season six, a problem that saw her flounder in many main challenges. But when she had to prove that she deserved to stay in the competition, she really came into her own. Her first victim was, April Carrion - another strong lip syncer - who she took down to Chaka Khan’s classic, “I’m Every Woman.” But her biggest take-down was Milk, a quirky fashion queen expected to go much further in the competition. After banishing her “inner saboteur,” Trinity finally met her match in Adore Delano. The duo delivered a sizzling rendition of Paula Abdul’s “Vibeology,” and Trinity sashayed away on a high note.
#17: Trinity The Tuck
Winning a lip-sync against Charlie Hides isn’t exactly rocket science, but this queen has done that and more. After making it to the top four on Season 9, Trinity won four lip syncs on “All Stars” 4, including one tie with Monét X Change in the finale. From the youthful joy of Janet Jackson’s “When I Think Of You” to the squeaky whistle notes in Mariah Carey’s “Emotions,” Trinity strikes a perfect balance of humor and glamor - always with a side of hair-ography. Did she take the comedy too far with the saggy bodysuit in her battle against Latrice Royale? You can be the judge - but there’s no question that Trinity can slay on the main stage.
#16: BenDeLaCreme
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This “terminally delightful” queen only had to Lip Sync For Her Life twice during her time on season six. Strangely enough, both of them were against her biggest rival, Darienne Lake, with both contestants performing well enough the first time around for RuPaul to eliminate neither of them. If this had been BenDeLa’s only “Drag Race” appearance, she might not have made this list, but when RuPaul brought her back for “All Stars 3,” BenDeLa cleaned up - racking up win after win against Aja, BeBe Zahara Benet, and tying with Shangela. Her hilarious “Anaconda” performance was almost too much for Michelle Visage. In fact, the only person that could beat her was… herself.
#15: Chi Chi DeVayne
Top 10 Lip Sync Assassins on RuPaul’s Drag Race
Like Trinity K. Bonet, Chi Chi DeVayne often struggled to find her footing in the challenges, but really stepped it up in the lip syncs. She first found herself in the bottom in the “New Wave Queens” episode, lip syncing to a Blondie favorite against Naysha Lopez, where her high-heeled kicks and flips saved her from elimination. She didn’t need any tricks for her performance against Thorgy Thor though. The song, “And I’m Telling You I’m Not Going” from “Dreamgirls,” couldn’t have been more appropriate, and Chi Chi expressed the emotion behind the Broadway tune with every fiber of her being. She left RuPaul with no other choice but to send top contender Thorgy home.
#14: Heidi N Closet
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Season 12’s Miss Congeniality survived three rounds in the bottom two - a true rarity on “Drag Race” - and for good reason. Despite not thriving in every Maxi challenge, this lovable queen got to demonstrate her dance chops thanks to upbeat numbers like Madonna’s “Burning Up” and Prince’s “1999.” But her best performance? We’d give that to Alex Newell’s infectious “Kill the Lights,” which found Heidi embodying a glamorous disco goddess next to a wild-eyed Jackie Cox. Dressed in a sparkling garment with huge sleeves, Heidi put her costume to work and literally shone onstage. For the feat of eliminating two competitors and tying with another, Heidi is undoubtedly her season’s dance-floor diva.
#13: Roxxxy Andrews
Ever since Season 5, when she took the title of Willow Smith’s “Whip My Hair” as an order, Roxxxy has been known as a formidable performer. That number, which garnered a rare “double shantay” from Ru, saw this queen remove her wig to reveal another one underneath. The move has since become a go-to reveal, but at the time it was a genius-level fake-out that had the judges howling. But Roxxxy’s showdowns on “All Stars” were nothing to scoff at either. In the fifth season, she appeared as the guest Assassin and beat Miz Cracker thanks to a gag-worthy striptease. When it comes to lip-syncs, this queen always has a trick up her sleeve - and we never know what to expect.
#12: Alaska
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Alaska managed to skate through season five into the top three without ever landing in the bottom. As impressive as this was, we were left curious about what an Alaska-style lip sync would look like - a curiosity that was met when she made a welcome return for “All Stars 2.” This time around, the “Drag Race” superfan had her eyes firmly on the prize. Not only did she sweep the most challenge wins of all the girls, but she also won the most Lip Syncs For Your Legacy - 4, including the finale; twice against Katya and once against Phi Phi O’Hara. Although, we should really give the credit to Lil’ Poundcake for that last one.
#11: Monét X Change
Well before she won “All Stars” Season 4 alongside Trinity The Tuck, this queen had mastered the art of delivering a downright hilarious performance. She patented the fake-out split in her lip-sync of Nicki Minaj’s “Pound the Alarm” - a move so iconic it practically sealed Dusty Ray Bottoms’ fate. Also in Season 10, Monét’s wild interpretation of “Man! I Feel Like a Woman” saw her employ colored hairspray and an imaginary motorcycle. And when facing another Lip Sync Assassin, this former Miss Congeniality was no slouch. In “All Stars” 5, she brought about Jujubee’s only lip sync loss across the latter’s three “Drag Race” appearances. While she’s got the dance moves that viewers eat up, Monét more importantly understands what makes a performance instantly memorable.
#10: Alyssa Edwards
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As far as dancers go on “Drag Race,” there’s just no one like this tongue-popping queen. Her first run on Season 5 saw Alyssa participate in three absolutely classic lip syncs. From dramatically straddling the wall in her battle against Ivy Winters to giving it her all against Roxxxy Andrews to “Whip My Hair,” Alyssa showed off countless moves that combined elegance with high drama. She also benefited from a rare second “double shantay” thanks to her and Tatianna’s perfectly matched rendition of “Shut Up and Drive” in “All Stars” 2. Even the choreographer’s losing performance against Coco Montrese has gone down as one of the show’s most legendary - and that alone speaks volumes.
#9: Sasha Velour
This brainy queen didn’t get a chance to lip sync until Season 9’s finale - but did she ever make the most of it. Rather than revealing a different outfit or even a new wig, Sasha devised a three-part rose petal explosion for her first performance. With the bright red flowers perfectly matching her vividly colored costume and wig, it was immediately a moment for the her-story books. The season’s final face-off was almost as epic, with Sasha’s all-white gown lending an otherworldly energy to Whitney Houston’s “It’s Not Right But It’s Okay.” She might be known for her carefully thought-out looks, but these performances showed Sasha’s ability to truly bring a song to life with raw emotion.
#8: Latrice Royale
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Latrice Royale was the heart and soul of season four and she really brought that soul into her lip sync performances. After her epic “Everlasting Love” battle against The Princess, DiDa Ritz seemed to be the assassin to beat. That was, until she met her match in Latrice, whose heartfelt version of a Gladys Knight song won out against DiDa’s peppy energy. Latrice channelled her inner R&B diva again when she lip synced against Kendra Michaels the very next week - a performance that ranks among “Drag Race”’s best. Her skills hadn’t dulled by the first season of “All Stars,” either - taking out Team Brown Flowers on a musical number that was Tammie Brown’s to lose.
#7: Coco Montrese
This pageant legend was truly one to behold on the main stage in Season 5. Beginning with her superior rendition of “When I Grow Up,” Coco ousted Monica Beverly Hillz, Jade Jolie, and even dance maven Alyssa Edwards from the competition. Whether tasked with embodying a contemporary pop smash or an ‘80s dance number, this “All Star” had the perfect moves and the lyrics down pat. While many queens are out of tricks by their third stint in the bottom two, this wasn’t the case in Coco’s showdown against Alyssa. Besides turning out a flawless spoken word verse, she demonstrated the show’s best sleeve-ography to date.
#6: Brooke Lynn Hytes
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This queen joined the ranks of the show’s bonafide dancers in Season 11, and put her classical training to good use. She earned her season’s only “double shantay” with a jaw-dropping show of one-upmanship against Yvie Oddly before eliminating Vanessa Vanjie Mateo. Whether in a lacy ballerina outfit and pointe shoes or a skin-tight bodysuit, Brooke Lynn brought the same fire to each performance. And when facing off against Silky Nutmeg Ganache in her season’s finale, she went beyond her typical splits and even mouthed the lyrics “Bootylicious” while in a handstand. With a flawless sense of rhythm and precision to match, this queen has proven she can nail the assignment every time.
#5: Yvie Oddly
This Season 11 winner wears her weirdness on her sleeve, and her lip syncs are no exception. After her legendary showdown against Brooke Lynn Hytes to Demi Lovato’s “Sorry Not Sorry,” she defeated A’keria C. Davenport by stomping around the grand finale mainstage in one of her most bizarre outfits. She often slayed the competition by demonstrating the most astounding acrobatics the show has ever seen, like in her guest appearance on “All Stars” 5. But even her most restrained finale performance against Brooke Lynn Hytes was breathtaking, thanks to a mirrored headdress and some dramatic makeup. Combining clever costuming with jaw-dropping theatrics, this queen remains undefeated for good reason.
#4: Peppermint
Peppermint talked a big game before her Madonna lip sync against returning queen Cynthia Lee Fontaine in season nine: Usually, this kind of editing means a contestant is being set up for a fail, but we were pleasantly surprised when Peppermint produced the goods. We didn’t get to see a repeat performance until the final five, where Peppermint whipped Alexis Michelle good to a “Village People” disco classic. And then, just when we thought we’d seen it all, she turned it OUT to Britney Spears’ “Stronger” with a perfectly-timed reveal, pushing the fierce Trinity Taylor out of the top four in the live finale, and advancing to lip sync for the crown against Sasha Velour.
#3: Jujubee
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In the Werkroom, Jujubee was all play. On the main stage though, she came to SLAY. Although she made it all the way to the top three, Jujubee had plenty of tumbles along the way, leaving herself in danger of elimination on three occasions. Not only did she pull through each time, but she took down some of Season 2’s strongest contenders, like Pandora Boxx. An easy feat for someone with Jujubee’s talent for conveying the emotion behind a song, as well as making difficult vocals look like a piece of lip syncing cake. Her sultry performance of “Black Velvet” against Sahara Davenport is still considered to be one of the show’s greatest.
#2: Kameron Michaels
In the Werkroom, the muscle queen of season ten was the shy and retiring type, and not coming out of her shell landed her in the bottom three weeks in a row. Each time, we were sure that Kameron Michaels’ time was up, and each time she proved us wrong - becoming the first queen in “Drag Race” herstory to survive three lip syncs to compete in the grand finale. As well as tying with Eureka O’Hara, she sent home fan favorites, Monet X Change and Miz Cracker. Poor Asia O’Hara - and her dead butterflies - didn’t stand a chance. Talk about silent but deadly! Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions. Darienne Lake Won 3 Lip Syncs in Season 6 (& Eliminated Fellow Assassin BenDeLaCreme) Alexis Mateo This Queen Sent Home 3 Beloved Competitors in Season 3 Shea Couleé Because She Redeemed Herself on “All Stars” & Then Some Naomi Smalls For Serving Up Humor, Dramatics, & LEGS Kennedy Davenport One of the Fiercest Dancers to Ever Grace the Main Stage
#1: Symone
“Drag Race” numbers are known for high drama and downright shocking stunts, but Season 13 proved that personality is really what it takes to nail a performance. Before being crowned the winner, Symone broke the existing record for most lip-sync wins in a single season with a whopping seven victories. With her signature facial expressions and an always-perfect blend of humor and glamorous posing, Symone commanded the stage with ease. Even in her very first face-off against Tamisha Iman, this queen’s joy was infectious - and it would serve her well in eliminating competitors Utica Queen, Gottmik, and Kandy Muse. Judging both by the numbers and by sheer star power, Symone is a bonafide lip sync legend.
