"Oh, honey—my name is as fake as my tits," admits Michelle Visage, a judge on RuPaul's Drag Race and author of The Diva Rules, a hybrid memoir/advice guide featuring 25 rules to help readers, as suggested by the book's subtitle, "Ditch the Drama, Find Your Strength, and Sparkle Your Way to the Top."
The evolution of Visage's stage name—borne out her vogue battle skills in the '80s New York City ballroom scene—is featured under Rule No. 6: Give Good Face and is just one of the notable reveals in her new book, which also includes a chapter on her experiences as an adopted child ( Rule No. 2: Be Thankful You're a Misfit ) and her difficult, but powerful connection to Madonna ( Rule No. 10: Celebrate Your Competition ).
"A lot of people look at me on the outside and think that I am a strong, independent broad who is never insecure or has never had any adversity—and the reality is the complete opposite," said Visage during a recent phone interview with Windy City Times. "I struggle with anxiety and self-doubt and that all stems, in part, from being put up for adoption and from not 'being wanted from birth.' For all the kids who feel like they have no hope of ever fitting in, as shitty as they feel at this moment, I promise you there is something else out there waiting for you."
Visage is a multi-hyphenate artist who has enjoyed a decades-long radio career and is a former member of two pop groups, Seduction and S.O.U.L. S.Y.S.T.E.M., both of which had singles that hit the Billboard Hot 100. As the outspoken judge on RuPaul's Drag Race, Visage's trademark side-eye and copious amounts of T are legendary, but she is quick to point out what actually defines true beauty.
"Giving good face is a play on words. I am 47 years old and I was brought up in the ballroom scene, which some of these kids don't know about, but it's why I am hopelessly devoted to the gay community," explained Visage. "Giving good face is more than the outside—it's what lies beneath at our core. It's showing up for things on time, it's being kind to other people. It's not about being pretty-pretty, which is so fleeting and so subjective like art. [For example,] my idea of what makes men attractive is different from Ru's, although there are a few types that cross over for us," said Visage, with a quick laugh.
RuPaul, host and executive producer of RuPaul's Drag Race, penned the foreword for The Diva Rules in which he describes Visage as "a lioness—highly intelligent, fiercely loyal, and hyper-aware."
Visage's keen observational skills have always served her well, particularly when it comes to sizing up the competition. In 1989, she performed at the Love Ball, an AIDS benefit in New York City that raised $400,000 to fight AIDS. Visage's performance introduced attendees—which reportedly included Madonna—to a then-relatively unknown form of dance called voguing. Susanne Bartsch, the famed event producer who organized the Love Ball, told New York magazine "Madonna came, and the next thing you know, there's the 'Vogue' video," a quote Visage includes in her book.
"It could be coincidence; it could very well be a coincidence—I just don't know how," said Visage, matter-of-factly. "I wore knee pads when I was voguing, I wore my hair in a long blond ponytail. Her Vogue video was so similar. I was like, 'holy fuck.' Of course, Madonna has her eyes open 24/7 or she wouldn't be Madonna. She is my idol, my icon. It flattered the fuck out of me," she said. "[This look and those moves] were something that came from my evolution and soul. It was a look I came up with in the club and voguing scene. That was my thing. I was very surprised."
"For me, you can take it in a negative way or be super-fucking stoked," added Visage. "At the time, I called Caesar Magnifique Valentino, who was my ballroom house 'father'—he taught me to vogue and is still my friend today—and said 'Madonna knows who I am!' Although, of course, I have no idea if she does," said Visage with a good-natured guffaw. Notably, Visage has a poster of Madonna's Truth or Dare documentary, in Italian, on her living room wall—a poster that she says has survived many cross-country moves. And in her office she has a sign that reads "What would Madonna do?" which she says inspires her whenever she is stuck, or lost, or at a crossroads.
While Visage's life is literally an open book with the publication of The Diva Rules, one topic she won't—or contractually can't—kiki about is the upcoming season eight of RuPaul's Drag Race, which, according to social-media chatter, features a Chicago doll in the contestant roster. "I can't say anything. I can say you will be very happy," she said. "Not you specifically, just generally, as a viewer, you will be happy. It really is a phenomenal season. It's mind-blowing," she said.
Visage is embarking on a short tour behind the release of The Diva Rules, including a stop at Roscoe's Nov. 6.
"I come from New Jersey and New York, so Chicago is very much like going home for me," said Visage, who currently resides in Los Angeles with her husband of seventeen years, a stay-at-home dad who raises their two daughters. "The Boystown factor…everything I need I can get in Chicago—except pizza," she said. "I love everyone at Roscoe's. Actually, everywhere I go people are kind to me. I don't know, maybe, it's because they fear me! But their kindness gives me hope and reminds me that the vast majority of people out there are good."
Michelle Visage will be signing her new book, The Diva Rules, at Roscoe's on Nov. 6; see twitter.com/Roscoestavern/status/654482475746488320/photo/1. The Diva Rules: Ditch the Drama, Find Your Strength, and Sparkle Your Way to the Top will be published on Nov. 10.
