Interview by Lariscious
Images by Tavf Sampson
Cher Noble’s name lept off the page when I first saw it printed on the poster for the first annual Bushwig festival in 2012. Hands down, one of my favorite drag names…ever.
I knew I had to check her out.
Almost one year later, the Iowa expatriate can be seen hosting and performing a variety of nights in Brooklyn as well as Manhattan.
How was Cher Noble born?
Cher Noble was born on April 26, 1986 when reactor number four exploded at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.
How did that influence your aesthetic?
Cher Noble is a mashup of aesthetics. Part legendary gay icon, part nobility, then blended together with some radiation mutations. It makes her incredibly beautiful (most of the time) but not at all like a real woman. It also allows for continued mutations, you never know what she’ll look like the next time you see her.
What made Cher Noble migrate to NYC?
All the things New York has to offer. I came for the cultural diversity, art, and drag scene, but just knowing I can leave my apartment and do almost anything is the best feeling in the world.
Has the city evolved your drag and if so, how?
Absolutely. It has really pushed my drag to the next level. In Iowa, drag was all fun and games but in New York you really have to try to stand out. Especially in Brooklyn, where it seems like everyone is doing drag and new queens show up every day. You really have to stay on top of your game or you’ll be left in the dust.
What has been your biggest inspiration thus far?
That’s a tough one. I’m inspired by so many different things, it’s hard to pick just one. I guess having fun would be my biggest inspiration, not just for me but for the audience too. Maybe it’s a really crazy look or that song from your childhood you don’t want to admit to liking, but I always try to keep it fun.
Marry/Fuck/Kill has to be the best drag pageant I’ve ever been to. How did the concept develop?
Thank you! We’re really proud of our little brain child. It was a collaboration with Hamm Samwich. I never could have done it without her and she says she never could have done it without me. Originally it was going to be a game show a la Match Game and RuPaul’s Snatch Game. Something with short entertaining answers but wouldn’t put too much pressure on the contestants to carry the show. It turns out that’s the only game show to fit that description so we had to go back to the drawing board if we wanted something original.
Next we looked to pageants. We had already decided that everyone should win (and lose) so there’s no hard feelings so we had to come up with a pageant with a crown for each category. That’s when Marry/Fuck/Kill was born. It was a combination of the game and it had three parts just like a pageant. We’d have three queens, three rounds, three themes, three crowns. There would be a performance round, showcasing style and talent, a trivia round showcasing knowledge (of useless information), and a bonus round where the contestants would have to be on a mic and give some sort of speech. The bonus round was really tricky, but Hamm suggested having a puppet round, and I thought it was absolutely hilarious. That’s how the M/F/K mascot, Mr. Shithat, was born.
Our three themes, marry, fuck, and kill would rotate between the categories for each show so you would always see something new and at the end of the night the best performer in each round would walk away with a crown based on the theme.
I should also give a shout out to Trey LaTrash for helping us work out some of the kinks in the show as well as DJing the party. Nothing complements a drag show quite like a killer dance party.
Any other genius projects or collaborations coming up?
My favorite party, Trey LaTrash’s Dizzyland, is having a one year anniversary blowout special party on August 31st at Paperbox in Bushwick. It’s going to be THE party to go to. Hamm and I also have a few ideas floating around because we have such a good time together and people seem to love our chemistry together, so be on the lookout for that. Bushwig is coming back September 7th at Secret Project Robot. It will also be my one year anniversary of living in New York. I’m really excited for that. Seeing that huge variety of queens all in one place making such a great party is what Brooklyn drag is all about.
Be sure to check Cher Noble out at:
Bless This Mess every Thursday at Wreck Room (940 Flushing Ave, Brooklyn)
Marry/Fuck/Kill last Tuesday of every month at Tandem (236 Troutman St, Brooklyn)
August 23rd at One Last Shag (34 Franklin Ave., Brooklyn)
Dizzyworld August 31st at Paperbox (17 Meadow St., Brooklyn) (Dizzyland monthly at Spectrum 59 Montrose Ave., Brooklyn)
Bushwig September 7th at Secret Project Robot (389 Melrose St., Brooklyn)
