While hosting an All Stars 9 viewing party at Roscoe’s Tavern in Chicago, Seal Naysha claimed that an All Stars 8 queen cashed in their stipend – money given for contestants to use to help cover the cost of their runway looks – and never returned to film the season.
“I’m not gonna say who. [But] somebody got cast. They gave [her] the stipend. They called her and were like, ‘How’s everything going? We haven’t heard from you in a while.’ And [production] were like, ‘Well, they stole the stipend. I don’t have it anymore.’ And then [they] stole the stipend.”
Rumor swirled as to exactly which queen was the perp in question. Somehow, Drag Race sleuths seemed to settle on implicating season 11’s Ariel Versace.
However, Versace took it upon herself to set the record straight in a statement shared to her Instagram Story on July 1, fully denying the claims made against her.
"Twitter is wild you guys,” Ariel wrote in a paragraph posted to her Instagram Stories.
“That’s why I barely use it anymore; it’s a cesspool for rumors and random drama. I just caught wind that there is some rumor I was cast on All Stars 8 (I wasn’t) and then dropped out and stole the stipend for costumes. HUH!?!?”
“That would one, never be able to happen; and two, I work my ass off daily doing gigs and running my hair business for my own money honey. Why do people believe everything they read on the internet? It’s mind boggling. Anyway…”
Ariel originally competed in season 11 of Drag Race and went home in the fifth episode after lip-syncing against Shuga Cain to "I'm Your Baby Tonight" by Whitney Houston.
Since her time on the show, the queen has been rumored to appear on multiple seasons of All-Star seasons.
However, Ariel says that she did not cash in a stipend for All Stars 8 and ghosted producers before filming.
Which queen do YOU think is the true stipend stealer? Leave your guesses in the comments below!
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