After talking to Lemon and Cheryl as two of the finalists for Canada vs. the World, Lemon did become the “Queen the Motherpucking World.” Lemon had to lip sync against the other two finalists, Kennedy Davenport and Alexis Mateo, and after giving it her all, she ended up securing the crown for her home country, Canada.
“It’s like the biggest weight lifted off my shoulder,” Lemon said about winning the crown in a post-finale interview with Blavity’s Shadow and Act. “It’s a dream come true and it feels like, you know, all the hard work has paid off. So, it’s an honor. It’s an honor to be nominated, but it’s better to win.”
Going up against two tried-and tested queens like Davenport and Mateo is no easy task, and in one of the confessionals of the finale, Lemon stated she was terrified of the prospect. But she said she wanted Davenport and Mateo in the final with her because of their legendary status.
“There were a lot of questions on my [Golden Beaver] decisions throughout these, throughout the whole season, honestly,” she said, adding that she saved both Mateo and Davenport with her Golden Beaver wins. “Part of the reason why I kept both of them…is because I wanted to win this crown fair and square, and I wanted to compete against the best, and that included the lip sync at the end.”
“It was terrifying to go up against both of them, but I kind of felt at a certain point I was going to have to go up against them eventually. So it was one of those things where I prepared, I knew every syllable of every word of that lip sync. I knew when they [the singers] took a breath. I knew when the music changed. I knew when the drum kicked in. I knew everything about all of the lip sync songs. I think that was really what sent, sent me over the edge and got me to win. But the truth of the matter is it really could have gone either way because Kennedy and Alexis are both so, so talented and such incredible lip singers. It was just an honor to be beside them. And I’m just thankful that the judges chose the way they did.”
Lemon’s win marks the first time Canada has won its Canada vs. the World series. Lemon said it’s “crazy” that aside from Jimbo winning the American All Stars season, “there has never been a Canadian to win an international season of All Stars. So I’m the first Canadian to have won that. I’m the first one out to win a title. I’m the first Portuguese girl to win a crown. There are so many moments of record-breaking and it felt like representation for so many people.”
“I’ve gotten so many messages and I get a lot of messages from people who live in Madeira, which is where my dad’s from, or Glasgow, where my mom’s from, or New York, where I used to live, or Toronto, and it does feel like I have kind of a global support system,” she continued. “It’s an honor to be in the shoes that I’m in because I looked up to so many queens before I was ever in these shoes, these rhinestone Louboutins. But yeah, it’s really cool. It’s crazy to think that there’s so many kids that can look up and think like, ‘Oh, I want to do that one day.’ And now you have the proof that a Canadian can win whatever they want.”
Being part of the international pantheon of RuPaul’s Drag Race is something Lemon doesn’t take lightly. As she said, it’s “crazy” to think that RuPaul managed “to bring queer people and queer entertainment and put it on a stage for everyone. I think that’s something that’s so beautiful.”
“This is still one of the only shows on television that is made up of a primarily queer cast every season,” she said. “And there’s queer people behind the scenes too. And there’s, you know, there’s queer people helping us promote and there’s It’s just such a beautiful, wonderful, incredible place where, you know, you’re actually cherished for the thing that a lot of people don’t cherish about you. I think we all have RuPaul to thank for that. And I think putting a bunch of drag queens in a room is bound to make the best TV in the world. I don’t know how no one thought of it before she did.”
Lemon also talked about how being a part of Drag Race has helped everyone find a queen that speaks to them, including Lemon herself.
“I feel like drag, because drag is an amalgamation of all of the art forms, it’s visual, it’s performance, it’s music, it’s everything. And so I feel like the way that you’ve shined as a drag queen is through your entire spirit, and your entire soul is put into this character that you create. And then that character is reflected in so many people,” she said. “I used to watch Drag Race and I’m sure everyone still does this where you watch Drag Race and there’s a girl on the show that you’re like, ‘That one’s me.’ And it’s so cool to think that there’s so many people that root for every single queen every single season and there’s so many devoted people that are like, ‘That one was my favorite and I’m going to love them until the end of time.’ And I think that’s just so beautiful.”
“It’s so cool to see the other queens even get so much love because it’s like, I love them too. I love Kennedy Davenport. I love Cheryl Hole. So seeing people rooting for them and what wishing they won. I’m like, yeah, b***h, me too. I love them…I feel like when I watched Kennedy during the reading challenge,” she continued. “That was one of those wake up moments where I was like, ‘I’ve been so obsessed with perfection and delivering it exactly perfect and I wasn’t have the fun that Kennedy put into her reading battle and watching Alexis go back and forth, I almost peed myself like it was truly just so, so, so funny. That’s something I love about Kennedy–as seriously as she takes this and as professionally as she does it, there’s always an element of ‘Yeah, but who gives a f**k?’ And I just love that. I think that that’s really good drag.”
Ra’Jah O’Hara, the first winner of Canada vs. the World, came to the finale to usher in the new winner, and Lemon said that having her on the set crystalized her dream of winning the season.
“I love Ra’Jah and I always have. I thought she had a rough run on her first season, but I just thought she just had this star power about her and this magnetic quality. And she’s just so, so, so funny. …And I just thought like meeting her and getting to work with her in this context was so cool,” she said. “To see her standing and painting us made me feel like, ‘Gosh, that’s exactly what I want, to be standing on that side of the room.’ So to have her there was really magical and I really look up to her. I’m really inspired by her and you know, the Purple Reign is never really over, but the Yellow Reign has begun.”
So what now is in the works for Lemon? A ton of projects, and all of which she is conspiring with the universe to achieve.
“I feel like the universe does provide. There’s abundance of success and opportunity out there, and I’m very lucky to be the Queen of the Motherpucking World. So with this title, I’m going to do what I’ve always been doing which is never giving up on the hard work. Never stop pushing yourself to achieve those dreams.”
She added she’s working on a new album and has a new single out with her Canadian queen bestie and Canada’s Drag Race Season 1 winner Priyanka called Gucciyanka.
“There’s so many projects in the works and hopefully I’ll be touring and getting to see everyone and you know, party a little bit because I deserve it.”
The full season of Canada’s Drag Race: Canada vs. the World is streaming on WOW Presents Plus.