I Am Not a Drag Queen - Billy Porter

Billy Porter Oscar Gown '19

Billy Porter wears tuxedo gown at 2019 Oscar: 

"I’m not a drag queen, I’m a man in a dress".

From the very start of his red carpet ascent, the 50-year-old actor has been forthcoming about his use of clothes -- fabulous, loud, fluid and larger-than life -- as a tool to subvert stereotypes, and ignite discussions around identity, gender norms and non-conforming representation.

"I am not a drag queen, I'm a man in a dress," he said of his Oscars look in the same Vogue essay in which he professed how the Golden Globes cape had been his catalyst for change.

"From this (Oscars) moment, I want people to understand that you don't have to understand or even agree with other people's authenticity or truths, but we must all respect each other. People are going to be really uncomfortable with my black a** in a ball gown -- but it's not anybody's business but mine," he wrote.

Vogue interview "Billy Porter on Why He Wore a Gown, Not a Tuxedo, to the Oscars"

[At the first fitting in the gown,] I felt alive. I felt free. And open, and radiant. And beautiful! Which has not always been the case for me. I haven’t always felt so good about myself. It really is astonishing how much of an effect clothes have on your spirit. My aunt Dorothy used to always say, “Dress for the job you want, not the job you have.” That’s why I look good every time I leave the house. I want to run shit. From this [Oscars] moment, I want people to understand that you don’t have to understand or even agree with other people’s authenticity or truths, but we must all respect each other.

The tradition continues - Billy Porter Oscars '20