Leading up to the RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 18 “Grand Finale,” Juicy Love Dion had just earned her Ru-demption as the “Queen of She Already Done Had Herses” winner of the Lip-Sync Lalaparuza, becoming the first of three crown-bearers for the season. The other two crowns — one for Miss Congeniality and the other for the champion, “America’s next drag superstar” — had yet to be decided.
Competing for the ultimate prize and a $200,000 cash tip were finalists Darlene Mitchell, Myki Meeks, and Nini Coco, each of whom was asked to write and perform a personal anthem that would help RuPaul Charles determine a winner. Miley Cyrus was also in the house to receive this year’s “Giving Us Lifetime Achievement Award,” as were Raja, Kim Chi, and Bob the Drag Queen for a brief lesson in drag herstory.
More from Gold Derby
Read on for our recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 18, Episode 16, titled “Grand Finale,” which aired Friday, April 17 on MTV, to find out who was inducted into the “Drag Race Hall of Fame” by last year’s winner Onya Nurve, and who followed in Crystal Envy’s footsteps as Miss Congeniality of the season. In addition to the top three, the eliminated queens in the audience were Juicy, Jane Don’t, Discord Addams, Kenya Pleaser, Athena Dion, Mia Starr, Vita VonTesse Starr, Ciara Myst, Briar Blush, Mandy Mango, and DD Fuego.
‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ Season 18 finale
Following a regal display of the eliminated queens on the runway, a preview of the final looks from the three finalists, and an introductory performance from RuPaul of her song “Mother of the House,” it was announced that from the final three a top two would be selected to perform in one last lip-sync for the crown. To narrow the field down, Ru invited each of the queens to write a song with resident composer Leland and then perform it live for the studio audience and judges’ panel of Ru, Michelle Visage, Carson Kressley, and Jamal Sims.
Darlene Mitchell, ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ Season 18
“Get out the way, bitch, I’m ’bout to pass.” — Darlene Mitchell
Darlene was up first with “Cookin’ With Gas,” a country square dancin’ original track that leaned into the “bedroom queen” aesthetic that she quietly honed over the course of the competition. As we saw over the last few episodes, Ru applauded Darlene’s ownership over her point of view, immediately and lovingly declaring her final song as “so dumb.”
In her critique, Michelle acknowledged that Darlene started the competition in a “low-key” way and slowly grew into her own skin. Embracing herself was the personal arc that Darlene explored throughout the season and that ultimately won the judges over week by week. She said (threatened?) that her winning the crown would guarantee “a lot more mall drag in the streets.”
Myki Meeks, ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ Season 18
“Broadway virgin or theater geek, I can make you come eight times a week.” — Myki Meeks
Myki’s perspective on her journey was going from “drag ingénue” to “leading lady,” a theme emphasized in her original song “Versatile.” The song’s heavy sexual innuendo paired well with the musical theater, winning over Ru for its whore-esque qualities and Michelle for achieving pitch perfect personal branding.
Michelle explained that Myki managed to tell the audience exactly “what [she is] able to do” as a drag performer and Jamal added that it was “a hard performance to do,” but “well-executed” and she “left it on the stage.” As someone who says she’s always been supported by friends and family, Myki’s journey on the show was about professional development, finding a voice that could take center stage and “preparing [herself] for greatness.”
Nini Coco, ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ Season 18
“I want to free you from your lows and take you to your highs.” — Nini Coco
While Myki entered the finale with three straight wins, Nini came in less hot with three consecutive trips to the bottom two. In her performance of “Stimulate,” she proved exactly how she was able to survive.
Through a display of popstar-level choreography and her message that drag can do more than simply entertain, Nini had the judges “drawn in and locked in” the entire time. Through the competition Nini transformed from someone taking herself too seriously and getting in her head into a queen that learned how to have fun.
Miley CyrusWWD
“I love the idea of an alter ego giving us power.” — Miley Cyrus
Through Miley’s lifetime devotion to the community and a herstory lesson from Bob, Kim, and Raja on the legendary impact of figures like William Dorsey Swann, José Sarria, and Mother Flawless Sabrina, the season’s tagline of “keeping the lights on” came full circle into a message and call to action for resistance in the face of suppression. If anyone from the Season 18 cast was most poised to be next in the long lineage of commanders of drag excellence, it was maxi-challenge record holder Jane Don’t who was anointed by her sisters as the fresh face of Miss Congeniality.
Reigning queen Onya joined the party in the USA just before Ru announced that the top two queens were Nini and Myki. To determine the win, the two went head-to-head on Miley and Naomi Campbell’s song “Every Girl You’ve Ever Loved.” Despite having the whole Main Stage to work with, both queens stayed contained on their own side for most of the performance, each leaning in to a dramatic telling of the story through their face before exploding into solitary splits in one specific moment of the bridge. When tricks and reveals have defined so many finale showdowns in the past, the only surprise here came from Nini who used her purse as a puppet to avoid lipping the rap verse. In what was surely a close race between the two, Myki Meeks was ultimately declared the winner afforded the title of America’s next drag superstar!
Best of Gold Derby
Sign up for Gold Derby’s Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.