Jaidynn Diore Fierce is the stage name of Christopher Williams, an American drag performer who competed on season 7 of the American television series ''

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, ...

''. Williams, who is originally from

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

, lives and works in

Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

. He has spoken out against Tennessee's bill to ban public drag performance and

gender-affirming care Transgender health care includes the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of physical and mental health conditions which affect transgender individuals.Gorton N, Grubb HM (2014). General, Sexual, and Reproductive health. In L. Erickson-Schroth. ...

for

transgender A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth. The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...

youth.

Early life and education

Christopher Williams was born in the U.S. state of

and raised in a Christian household. He graduated from high school in

and attended his first

drag show A drag show is a form of entertainment performed by drag (entertainment), drag artists impersonating men or women, typically in a bar or nightclub as a burlesque-style, adult-themed nightclub event. The modern drag show originated in the speake ...

at Play Dance Bar in 2007 on the night of his graduation.

Career

Williams began his drag career in Nashville, competing in pageants for several years. He auditioned for ''

'' three times and was selected to compete as Jaidynn Diore Fierce in the show's seventh season (2015). On the show, she impersonated

Raven-Symoné Raven-Symoné Christina Pearman-Maday (; born December 10, 1985), also known as Raven, is an American actress, singer, and director. She has received List of awards and nominations received by Raven-Symoné, several accolades, including five ...

for the

Snatch Game Snatch Game is a comedy challenge recurring across the ''Drag Race'' television franchise and a fixture of the reality competition series. Since the second season of the original American ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' series in 2010, the challenge ha ...

challenge. Jaidynn Diore Fierce was partnered with Tempest DuJour on the episode " Conjoined Queens", a pairing Pride.com deemed a "betrayal" on Kennedy Davenport's part. Jaidynn Diore Fierce eliminated two contestants from the competition and was placed eighth overall. She was eliminated by Ginger Minj. Pride.com said Jaidynn Diore Fierce "was another great example of a queen who had everything it took to go all the way, but just wasn't ready yet to tackle all of the challenges that one must face on ''Drag Race''". Michael Cook of ''Out In Jersey'' called her the "true heart" of the season and said she had an "infectious" personality. Ryan Shea included Jaidynn Diore Fierce in ''Instinct'' magazine's 2019 list of the ten best "plus size queens". Jaidynn Diore Fierce recorded "The Beginning" for ''CoverGurlz 2'', a 2015 compilation album featuring season-7 contestants performing covers of songs by

RuPaul RuPaul Andre Charles (born November 17, 1960) is an American drag queen, television host, singer, producer, writer, and actor. He produces, hosts, and judges the reality competition series ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and has received List of awards ...

. In 2016, Jaidynn Diore Fierce was part of the rotating cast of Playmates at Nashville's Play Dance Bar. In 2017, she participated in a drag show to raise funds for Puerto Rico residents who were affected by

Hurricane Maria Hurricane Maria was an extremely powerful and devastating tropical cyclone that affected the northeastern Caribbean in September 2017, particularly in the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, which accounted for 2,975 of the 3,059 deaths. It is the ...

, and the following year, she headlined the

University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee The University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (UW–Milwaukee, UWM, or Milwaukee) is a Public university, public Urban university, urban research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. It is the largest university in the Milwaukee metropo ...

's nineteenth annual drag show. As of 2022, she was part of the all-Black drag trio Missfits with her "drag sisters" Sapphire Mylan and Venus Ann Serena, who has also been described as Jaidynn Diore Fierce's "drag daughter". Also in 2022, Jaidynn Diore Fierce and fellow ''Drag Race'' contestant Mercedes Iman Diamond performed at the first drag brunch in

Ely, Minnesota Ely ( ) is a city in St. Louis County, Minnesota, St. Louis County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 3,268 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located on the Vermilion Range (Minnesota), Vermilion iron range, Ely once ha ...

. In 2023, Jaidynn Diore Fierce was part of a fundraiser to spotlight queer performers in

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

and Americana, and to protest the passage of anti-LGBT legislation in Tennessee. She was also among a group of ''Drag Race'' contestants and other Tennessee-based drag artists who joined

Lizzo Melissa Viviane Jefferson (born April 27, 1988), known professionally as Lizzo (), is an American singer and rapper. Born in Detroit, Michigan, she moved to Houston, Texas, with her family at the age of ten. After college, she moved to Minn ...

on stage at one of her concerts as part of the singer's protest against the state's bill to ban public drag performance. Among other 2023 events in which Jaidynn Diore Fierce performed were a local '' Wizard of Oz''-themed brunch and an LGBTQ+

pub quiz A pub quiz is a quiz held in a pub or Bar (drinking establishment), bar. These events are also called quiz nights, trivia nights, or bar trivia and may be held in other settings. The pub quiz is a modern example of a pub game, and often attempts ...

fundraiser in

Orlando, Florida Orlando ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Orange County, Florida, United States. The city proper had a population of 307,573 at the 2020 census, making it the fourth-most populous city in Florida behind Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville ...

Personal life

Christopher Williams lives in Nashville, . He has struggled with his sexual identity, being both Christian and gay. In addition to joining Lizzo on stage, Jaidynn Diore Fierce has spoken out against Tennessee's bill to ban public drag performance and gender-affirming care for trans youth. In 2023,

John Oliver John William Oliver (born 23 April 1977) is a British and American comedian who hosts ''Last Week Tonight with John Oliver'' on HBO. He started his career as a stand-up comedian in the United Kingdom and came to wider attention for his work ...

defended Fierce against Gabrielle Hanson, a Republican politician from Tennessee, on Oliver's television series ''

Last Week Tonight A last is a mechanical form shaped like a human foot. It is used by shoemakers and cordwainers in the manufacture and repair of shoes. Lasts come in many styles and sizes, depending on the exact job they are designed for. Common variations ...

''.

Discography

* "The Beginning" (2015)

Filmography

Television

* ''

'' ( season 7)

References

External links

Christopher Williams
at

IMDb IMDb, historically known as the Internet Movie Database, is an online database of information related to films, television series, podcasts, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and biograp ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fierce, Jaidynn Diore 1980s births 20th-century American LGBTQ people 21st-century American LGBTQ people Living people American drag queens American gay entertainers Christians from Tennessee Drag performers from Nashville, Tennessee Gay Christians LGBTQ people from Tennessee Jaidynn Diore Fierce