Interview by Trevor Potts
It is our great honor at Where Words Ignite Worlds to broaden our scope a bit with this feature on Indianapolis drag luminary Brentlee Bich. To date the focus of our publication has been on the role of music in social change, locally and globally. We will certainly continue publishing pieces in this arena, but at the same time, we will also be expanding our scope to highlight some of the important work of artists in other fields, including visual and performing arts, film, civic engagement, spoken word and here, drag. We are honored with this article to provide a platform to Indy’s own Brentlee Bich, one of our city’s most talented and irrepressibly joyful performers. Brentlee was also a former scholar of mine at Indiana University Indianapolis (then IUPUI), so it was a special treat to reconnect. Without further ado . . .
Tell me about yourself, and your role as a performer? Any background information we should know? What is your stage name and how did you choose it?
First off, thanks so much for reaching out to have this interview. You’ve always been such a supporter of me ever since our days as student and professor, and so I absolutely love being able to return the favor. Well, HI, IT’S BRENTLEE . . . I’m Indianapolis’ MX pink-haired drag popstar, and I’m literally a can of Red Bull brought to life. I identify as non-binary in my personal life, as well as my drag life, which in the drag world means I’m a hybrid of a Male performer and a Female Drag Queen — kinda like the ‘Best of Both Worlds’, but it’s all drag. I’ve been doing drag for a little over 7 years now and have held 3 crowned titles with Mx Indy Pride 2022 being my most treasured title win to date. As far as my drag name, that’s actually a funny answer. So Brentlee Bich came about from the song “Gimme More” by Britney Spears because I had a girlfriend who used to always refer to me as “It’s Brentlee Btch” every time she saw me, and I joked “that would be a fierce drag name,” and so I dropped the T in btch to make it not so obvious, and here we are years later.
What inspires your art, and how do you believe that drag can play a role in social change and transformation, locally and in the world more broadly?
Anything pop culture for sure inspires me. I’m a huge pop culture junkie, so I tend to base a lot of my performances on pop culture references. I have a mix that mashes up clips from films The Hunger Games and Clue and has a call back to the viral Sweet Brown “Ain’t Nobody Got Time For That” meme while being mixed with ‘Disco Inferno’ by the Trammps — so I just have fun with drag. And that’s something I believe is the key to doing drag is for it to be fun with what you’re performing. Drag is something that I feel is an art form that is just as relevant and important as brush-to-canvas art or any other form of artistic expression (i.e., written, digital media, etc.) and with shows like Rupaul’s Drag Race and Dragula, it’s becoming more and more
common to see drag in the world and people expressing themselves through this particular art.
What gives you joy about your performance? Does freedom too play a role? Care to explain?
To me, I just love to entertain people. I’ve been this way ever since I could remember. Like, I was the kid who used to just put on shows in my family living room or in my bedroom singing and dancing to Britney Spears and NSYNC (Yes, I’m team NSYNC); but I love to hear the roar of a crowd and seeing all the faces in the crowd just screaming and yelling as if I’m Taylor Swift. Doing all-ages shows also are great for me (I’m a cast member of a local monthly all ages drag show hosted by Hampton & Company in Irvington.), and I often get messages from parents after the show on social media saying “my kid absolutely loved your show, and it’s all they’ve talked about all weekend,” or ones that even say, “This was our first drag show and my non-binary child really loved seeing you being the type of performer you are.” And it’s those types of messages that make doing drag so much more inspiring for me because I wish I had parents like that growing up, as well as being exposed to the Drag/LBGTQIA+ community so much earlier in life than I was.
I attribute the freedoms to be able to do drag feely in the present to our ‘forequeens’ of the past: Marsha P. Johnson and the queens of the Stonewall era of drag. They truly are the ones who made it possible for us to be able to throw on a wig, a heel and walk out the door in drag to a gay bar to perform on a stage for a crowd. And if you are ever in the crowd at a drag bar, give it up louder for those queens because without those drag pioneers, drag wouldn’t exist for you to be entertained by.
For those unfamiliar with the art form, or perhaps those who might not have positive preconceived notions, what message would you like to share with such an audience?
My best advice to give about drag is that “It takes a lot of money to look this cheap” (laughs). Yes, I stole that from Dolly but Lordy, it’s so true. But, in all seriousness, I say to people who don’t understand the art of drag: go to a drag show, come to an Indy Drag Theatre production, attend a local Drag Story hour, etc., and you will see that drag is just a form of art that doesn’t hurt anyone, but is more so done to bring joy to people and make the world just a bit more sparkly.
You and the Indy Drag Theater are now approaching the second weekend of nearly sold-out performances for “Shrek: A Drag Parody Musical.” Congratulations to you and the whole IDT family! Why should a neophyte consider attending one of this weekend’s shows? What might they expect? What “change” would you like them to experience from their visit?
Oh my gosh, THANK YOU SO MUCH! Yes this production has been such a spectacular show to put on, especially now with the messages the play presents in this current political climate. Working with this cast has been a fairy tale in itself, and hopefully you will be able to make it to our final weekend production running now until Sunday, Nov 24. But this show is jam-packed with all of your favorite characters from the beloved film as well as adding musical elements from the Broadway show. At Indy Drag Theatre, we take your favorite musicals and give them a drag twist; and along with that, we cast our shows not based on what gender was written on paper but giving the characters a new life by not pinning them to that originated gender. For example, our Donkey role in “Shrek: A Drag Parody Musical” is played by an AFAB (assigned female at birth) performer named Delulu Devant and she is PHENOMENAL in this role; and as we all know the role of Donkey was originally portrayed by Eddie Murphy in the film, so in our productions, we break the stereotypes and give performers the opportunity be audition for ANY role in any production.
As to what to expect: LOTS of sparkle, tons of iconic songs and dancing, and the FIERCEST Dragon ever seen in Fairytale Land. Anyone coming to the show will definitely be in for the magic of Shrek brought to life and left feeling the joy of what we at IDT strive to give with every show.
Is there any other message you would like to convey about the potential power of art, music, drag, or other artistic “expressions” to transform the world for the better? We would love to hear.
If you are someone who wants to start doing drag: Just Do It! Life is way too short and drag is such an expanding art form that it can really be for anyone. And you don’t have to be a top level drag queen; you can be whatever you want (which is the beauty and power of drag). And if there’s not a type of drag that fits your particular style, make your own path because drag can be glamorous, campy, grotesque, out of the crayon box. The possibilities of drag are endless, and I don’t think there’s going to be a shortage anytime soon.
Trevor, thank you again so much for having me and hopefully I’ll see you very soon in the audience of one of my many performances. And to find out where I am next, you can find me at “@itsbrentleebich” on all social media platforms.