LOS ANGELES — As she sings through the first few notes of the song "Popular" from the musical "Wicked" in a princess pink dress with an exaggerated bow, drag queen Pickle is a sight to behold.
Even before she hits the stage of the small but friendly City of West Hollywood community meeting, Pickle is stopped for pictures and greetings. They adore her as much as she adores her community. After all, she is West Hollywood's first-ever drag laureate, and for Pickle, this isn't just a title — it's a calling.
"It's really about empowering drag artists, to connect with their art form in a bigger and deeper way and really also provide some color to the city, which is so vibrant and so connected to its community members," Pickle said about her role.
West Hollywood has long been a sanctuary for LGBTQ+ community and a beacon of acceptance and creativity. It's also the unofficial home of LA's drag culture — a culture has been thrust more and more into the national spotlight.
"Drag is at a really exciting moment in the country, and also in Los Angeles specifically," Pickle said. "It's a time when drag is really coming out of the shadows and being allowed to spread its wings. It's a time when drag performers are getting more and more opportunities."
With that popularity, made even more mainstream with shows such as "RuPaul's Drag Race" and drag brunches, comes a critical conservative eye and a rise in anti-drag sentiment across many states. But Pickle believes her home state is one of inclusivity.
"California is not perfect, but it's a bastion for progressive values. And drag is no exception," Pickle said. "We get to express our art form here, and we get to be supported by entities."
So it's no surprise that the world's largest celebration of drag culture, RuPaul's DragCon LA made its home in downtown LA. DragCon transformed the LA Convention Center into a spectacle of glamor and inclusivity, drawing queens from the beloved TV franchise and fans from around the world. The first day opened with a dramatic Queen Walk down the pink carpet to shrill screams and cheers from every kind of person one could imagine while RuPaul sat perched in a room above it all, looking over the DragCon queendom with a proud smile and posh claps.
But DragCon wasn't just about the queens, among the attendees was Tucker, who traveled from Ohio to be part of the event.
"I just had to come to DragCon for my third year because I think DragCon is very inclusive," he said.
Although Tucker has a supportive family, he said his home state isn't always as welcoming. For him, LA offers a sense of community and acceptance that's hard to find elsewhere.
"LA is definitely a safe haven for everything that is queer. I think they have been very protective and very revolutionary in things that should be happening around the United States," Tucker said.
Tucker hopes other states will soon follow California's example.
"They’re not meant to harm anybody. They're just meant to protect and to make sure that everybody gets to have fun, not just one type of person," he said of inclusive policies.
Back in West Hollywood, Pickle was about to make her way over to DragCon, where she was running the children's programming for a second day. She regularly hosts Drag Story Hours and has recently formed her nonprofit Drag Arts Lab, designed to give free public programming and education, and empower drag artists. For her, the goal is always expression.
"So much of my North Star is just encouraging people to do what they love, and encouraging people to express themselves and encouraging people to get involved," she said.