An American drag queen became a Eurovision Song Contest superfan after falling down a “black hole".
Every year for the last five, Maxxy Rainbow has been covering the competition for his YouTube channel and this year is no different. The 23-year-old performer from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is mostly known for his reaction videos where he gives his thoughts on individual entries as well as various selections during the season to his 21,000 followers.
The blogger and content creator, who is travelling to the UK for the first time for the show in May, is hoping to take his channel in a new direction this year from only doing reaction pieces to now planning on interviewing artists with “creative and engaging content”.
READ MORE: 'Spectacles, drama and joy': Why the LGBTQ+ community love Eurovision so much
The drag queen, whose videos reach over 40,000 views, told the ECHO: “I started my channel with the initial intention of finding a community of like-minded people with similar interests to me. Being from America, I struggle to find friends in my real life that know or care about Eurovision. I would annoy everyone in my life talking about the contest, so one day I decided to make a channel to express all my thoughts and feelings about some Eurovision songs, and from there it exploded.”
What Maxxy loves about Eurovision is how it allows him to connect with people all over the world, and “experience new art, music, language and culture” in a way he said he never could in America.
Maxxy, who started drag when he was 14, said: “In the United States we are taught to be a melting pot of cultures, and with that sometimes comes a loss of individual cultural identity. So, through Eurovision, I have been able to learn so much about different cultures around the world, people's unique life experiences, and the history along the way.”
As America doesn’t compete in Eurovision, Maxxy’s experience of the contest “doesn’t go too far back”. It was only after he had been suggested Germany’s 2010 entry Lena Meyer-Landrut's winning song that he started listening to her music “non-stop”.
He added: “I clicked a channel only for it to be the Eurovision Song Contest YouTube. I was confused but instantly fascinated with what I saw. It was shortly after all the songs had been released and eventually I stumbled upon Jamala's entry, 1944 (Ukraine's winning entry in the 2016 contest).
“I had never had a song impact me in such a way emotionally than I had with that song. Before I never understood the message or the story she was telling, just through her emotion and her power as a singer, I felt it and from there I was hooked on the contest. I fell into the black hole that is Eurovision, and before I knew it I had watched every year, listened to every song, watched every interview, and became a superfan.”
Maxxy will be making his trip to the UK in May to stay in the city for the contest he loves so dearly. Planning on arriving a few weeks before the competition gets underway, Maxxy is hoping to take in all of what the region has to offer.
He said: “What I love about Eurovision is there is a little bit of everything for everyone. We have our fair share of drag queens, humorous campy entries, and female powerhouse divas, but in the contest, you can be whoever you want to be, and share your art no matter how over the top or understated it is, is why the LGBTQ+ community connects with Eurovision because we see it as a safe space where we too can be ourselves, free of judgement.
“I feel honoured the Eurovision community has accepted me into their world. I felt so alone for so long, as I never really fit into the drag community due to me being sober and not enjoying bar culture, so when I found a community that embraced me for my drag and for everything that I am, it really meant the world to me.”
Maxxy explained how he uses his Eurovision family as a means of escapism - especially given the recent events which have unfolded in America. The state of Tennessee became the first to ban drag shows in public spaces last week and because of this, Maxxy feels in the current climate it isn’t the right time for him to go to a Junior event.
He said: “Unfortunately right now there is a massive attack on the trans community as well as drag queens globally with the narrative being pushed of LGBTQ+ people being dangerous to be around kids with the implication that our existence is inherently sexual and therefore we are predators by nature.
“It is sad that something with no factual backing can become such a phenomenon, but I do believe that the majority of people don't actually believe this way. Regardless due to the political climate right now, I don't see it as a possibility, however, I know through my work with Junior Eurovision that the new generations are far more open-minded, understanding and free of judgement, so I have a hopeful mind that one day I will be able to attend a Junior Eurovision.”
For now, however, he is hoping the contest pulls through on its promise to pay homage to Ukraine after it was decided it would be too dangerous for this year's song contest to be held in the country due to the ongoing war.
He said: “Every decision that is made in the presentation of this contest needs to be in honour and support of Ukraine. Now more than ever, it is important the world sees more of the warmth of the Ukrainian people and the beauty of their art, culture, and music.”
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