Crystal Methyd (born 16 April 1991) is the stage name of Cody D. Harness, an American drag performer who competed on the twelfth season of ''

RuPaul's Drag Race ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' is an American reality competition television series, the first in the Drag Race (franchise), ''Drag Race'' franchise, produced by World of Wonder (company), World of Wonder for Logo TV (season 1–8), WOW Presents Plus, ...

''. Her name refers to

crystal meth Methamphetamine (contracted from ) is a potent central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is mainly used as a recreational or performance-enhancing drug and less commonly as a second-line treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity d ...

and possibly the electronic music group

Crystal Method The Crystal Method is an American electronic music act formed in Las Vegas Valley, Las Vegas, Nevada, by Ken Jordan and Scott Kirkland in 1993. They were pioneers of the big beat genre and their music has appeared in numerous TV shows, films, v ...

Early life and education

Harness was born on April 16, 1991, in

San Jose, California San Jose, officially the City of San José ( ; ), is a cultural, commercial, and political center within Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. With a city population of 997,368 and a metropolitan area population of 1.95 million, it is ...

, to a Mexican mother and American father. At age 5, Harness's family moved to

Springfield, Missouri Springfield is the List of cities in Missouri, third most populous city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County, Missouri, Greene County. The city's population was 169,176 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 censu ...

, to be closer to his dad's parents, and is where he became an

Eagle Scout Eagle Scout is the highest rank attainable in the Scouts BSA program of Scouting America. Since its inception in 1911, only four percent of Scouts have earned this rank after a lengthy review process. The Eagle Scout rank has been earned by over ...

. He graduated from

Missouri State University Missouri State University (MSU or MO State), formerly Southwest Missouri State University, is a public university in Springfield, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1905 as the Fourth District Normal School, it is the state's second-largest u ...

, and first performed in drag at Springfield PrideFest in 2015. He has recalled, "I was practicing my makeup in my room for about a month before I performed. I had a lot of fun, and people told me I looked different, and I liked that."

Career

Crystal Methyd launched the monthly drag show "Get Dusted" at

's Outland Ballroom, and partnered with a local restaurant owner to host the city's first drag brunch in 2017. In addition to hosting "Get Dusted", which Bernardo Sim of ''

Screen Rant ''Screen Rant'' is an entertainment website that offers news in the fields of television, films, video games, and comic books. It is owned by Valnet, parent of publications including Comic Book Resources, Collider, MovieWeb and XDA Developers. ...

'' said "has reenergized the drag scene in Springfield" and features "drag performers of all gender expressions and sexual orientations ... including straight cis men", Crystal helped performers with their makeup. In 2020, Crystal Methyd competed on the twelfth season of ''

''. ''

Bustle A bustle is a padded undergarment or wire frame used to add fullness, or support the drapery, at the back of women's dresses in the mid-to-late 19th century. Bustles are worn under the skirt in the back, just below the waist, to keep the skir ...

'' Kayla Blanton called her the "dark horse of the season", and

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

's Christopher Rudolph named her the "kookiest" of the contestants. Daniel Reynolds of ''

The Advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. The Advocate, The Advocates or Advocate may also refer to: Magazines * The Advocate (magazine), ''The Advocate'' (magazine), an LGBT magazine based in the United States * ''The Harvard Advocate' ...

'' said she had a "kooky charm" and described her

lip sync Lip sync or lip synch (pronounced , like the word ''sink'', despite the Hard and soft C, spelling of the participial forms ''synced'' and ''syncing''), short for lip synchronization, is a technical term for matching a Speech, speaking or singin ...

Nelly Furtado Nelly Kim Furtado ( , ; born December 2, 1978) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She has sold over 45 million records, including 35 million in album sales worldwide, making her one of the most successful Canadian artists. Critics have noted ...

's "

I'm Like a Bird "I'm Like a Bird" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Nelly Furtado. It was written by Furtado and produced by Gerald Eaton and Brian West for her debut studio album, '' Whoa, Nelly!'' (2000). Released as the album's first single on Septem ...

" during the finale as "unforgettable". The ''

Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Houston, Texas, United States. it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. ...

'' Joey Guerra wrote, "The kooky queen with a mullet was a sharp contrast to much of her Season 12 competition. She struggled at first, unsure of how to fit her persona into the show's mechanics. But when she stopped trying, she soared and learned to shape each challenge to fit her." Michael Cook of ''

South Florida Gay News ''South Florida Gay News'' was a South Florida-based alternative weekly newspaper published by Norm Kent. It was first launched in 2009. In May of 2023 the newspaper announced it would be shutting down, following the death of founder Norm Ken ...

'' said "her now-iconic runway looks were nothing to laugh at; this queen is one of a kind". Her parents and Spanish-speaking grandmother appeared on the finale.

Jaida Essence Hall Jared Johnson (born December 9, 1988), best known by the stage name Jaida Essence Hall, is an American drag queen and reality television personality best known for winning the RuPaul's Drag Race season 12, twelfth season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' ...

won season 12, with Crystal Methyd and

Gigi Goode Gigi Goode (born December 2, 1997) is an American drag queen, Fashion design, fashion designer, and reality television personality known for being a runner-up on the RuPaul's Drag Race (season 12), twelfth season of the Drag (clothing), drag com ...

as the runners-up. In September 2021, Methyd embarked on "Crystal & Jujubee's Wonderland Euro Tour," her first international tour with fellow drag race alum Jujubee, performing in 7 different cities across Europe. In 2024 Crystal Methyd starred as Bella Da Boys in the

Tubi Tubi (stylized as tubi) is an American over-the-top ad-supported streaming television service owned by Fox Corporation since 2020. The service was launched on April 1, 2014, and is based in Los Angeles, California. In 2023, Tubi, Credible L ...

horror comedy film '' Slay'', alongside fellow ''Drag Race'' alumni

Cara Melle Cara Melle is the stage name of Sterling Theodora Butler, an American drag performer. Since moving to London, England, she has appeared on the ITV reality series '' Karaoke Club: Drag Edition'' and competed on series 5 of ''RuPaul's Drag Race U ...

Heidi N Closet Heidi N Closet is the stage name of Trevien Anthonie Cheek, an American drag queen from Ramseur, North Carolina, best known for competing on the RuPaul's Drag Race (season 12), twelfth season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'', where she placed 6th and wo ...

and

Trinity the Tuck Ryan A. Taylor, known professionally as Trinity "The Tuck" Taylor or just Trinity the Tuck (born December 10, 1984),Taylor in is an American drag queen, television personality, and recording artist best known for having competed on the ninth se ...

Personal life

Harness lives in Springfield, Missouri, as of 2020. He has a tattoo of "

One Direction One Direction, often shortened to 1D, were an English-Irish pop boy band formed in London in 2010. The group consisted of Niall Horan, Zayn Malik (until his departure in 2015), Liam Payne, Harry Styles, and Louis Tomlinson. The group sold o ...

" in Arabic on his chest. She is the "drag mother" of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' season 14 contestant

Daya Betty Daya Betty is the stage name of Trenton Clarke (born February 19, 1996), an American drag performer who competed on the fourteenth season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and the tenth season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars''. Early life Trenton ...

Filmography

Film

Television

Music videos

Web series

Discography

Featured singles

References

External links

* * {{Authority control 1991 births Living people 20th-century American LGBTQ people 21st-century American LGBTQ people American drag queens American people of Mexican descent Drag performers from California Drag performers from Missouri Hispanic and Latino American drag queens LGBTQ culture in Missouri LGBTQ people from Missouri LGBTQ people from California Missouri State University alumni Entertainers from San Jose, California People from Springfield, Missouri Crystal Methyd