RuPaul's Drag Race (season 1)


The first season of RuPaul's Drag Race, later referred to as RuPaul's Drag Race: The Lost Season Ru-Vealed, premiered in the United States on February 2, 2009, on Logo. Nine contestants were selected to compete in the running of becoming "America's Next Drag Superstar." The first season was filmed during the summer of 2008. The winner of the first season won $5,000 worth of MAC Cosmetics, was featured in an LA Eyeworks campaign, joined the Logo Drag Race tour, and won a cash prize of $20,000. One of the nine contestants to compete on RuPaul's Drag Race, Nina Flowers was determined by an audience vote via the show's official website. The results were announced in early September 2008.
The theme song playing during the runway every episode was "Cover Girl" from RuPaul's album Champion. This season and season one of All-Stars are the only seasons to not feature the "Snatch Game".
The winner of the first season of RuPaul's Drag Race was BeBe Zahara Benet, with Nina Flowers being the runner-up.
In late 2013, Logo re-aired the first season, which was titled RuPaul's Drag Race: The Lost Season Ru-Vealed, and featured commentary from RuPaul.

Contestants

'
ContestantAgeHometownOutcome
BeBe Zahara Benet28Winner
Nina Flowers34Denver, Colorado
Rebecca Glasscock263rd Place
Shannel29Las Vegas, Nevada4th Place
Ongina26Los Angeles, California5th Place
Jade Sotomayor25Chicago, Illinois6th Place
Akashia'''24Cleveland, Ohio7th Place
26Long Beach, California8th Place
39Raleigh, North Carolina9th Place

Contestant progress

Lip-syncs

Guest judges

Listed in chronological order:
  • Bob Mackie, fashion designer
  • Mike Ruiz, photographer
  • Frank Gatson, director and choreographer
  • Michelle Williams, singer and actress
  • Howard Bragman, writer and lecturer
  • Debra Wilson, actress and comedian
  • Gordon Espinet, make-up artist
  • Jenny Shimizu, model and actress
  • Lucy Lawless, actress and singer
  • Robin Antin, dancer, choreographer, and actress
  • Jeffrey Moran, Absolut Vodka marketing/branding executive
  • María Conchita Alonso, singer-songwriter and actress

    Episodes

Future appearances

, Shannel, and Tammie Brown competed on the first season of . Nina and Tammie placed 9/10th overall together, while Shannel placed 3rd/4th with season 2 contestant Jujubee.
In the premiere episode of the third season of All Stars, Benet was announced as the surprise tenth contestant. This made Benet the first winner of a regular Drag Race season to compete again. Benet placed 3rd/4th overall along with season 2 and season 3 contestant Shangela.
Ongina competed on the fifth season of All Stars. She finished in 9th place.