Milk (drag queen)
American drag queen and figure skater
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Milk (born June 23, 1987) is the stage name of Daniel P. Donigan, an American drag performer and former figure skater who came to attention on the sixth season of RuPaul's Drag Race, and the third season of RuPaul's Drag Race: All Stars.[2][3]
June 23, 1987
Milk | |
|---|---|
Milk at RuPaul’s DragCon, 2024 | |
| Born | Daniel P. Donigan[1] June 23, 1987 Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| Occupations | Drag queen, model, Figure skater |
| Television | |
| Spouse |
Veer Nanavatty (m. 2026) |
| Website | bigandmilky |
Early life
Donigan was raised in Syracuse, New York.[4][5] He served as an altar boy at his Catholic church and attended Catholic school.[6] He first came out as gay to his mom.[7] He stated, "I always knew I was different. I liked figure skating when all the other boys didn't. I hated basketball when all the other boys liked it."[7] He began ice skating at age 9.[5] He said that he and his dad "never had a very close relationship."[7]
Career
Drag

After moving to New York City in 2012, Donigan began a full-time career as a drag performer.[5] Donigan first gained attention when he appeared on season six of RuPaul's Drag Race in 2014. Out of 14 contestants, Milk placed ninth overall, losing a lip-sync to Trinity K. Bonet in the sixth episode.[8] On October 20, 2017, Donigan was announced as one of the 10 contestants for RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars 3. He was eliminated by Kennedy Davenport in the third episode, placing 8th.[9] He again placed ninth after Morgan McMichaels returned to the competition.[10]

Outside of Drag Race, Donigan has modeled for Marc Jacobs's Spring/Summer 2016 Campaign[11] and Vivienne Westwood's S/S 2018 campaign.[12] He was featured in Perry Ellis's Fall 2018 collection.[13] In print work, he was featured on the cover of Hello Mr. magazine's third issue[14] and featured in the third issue of Gayletter[15] and in the January 2018 issue of Gay Times.[16] He was featured in a 2014 issue of Next Magazine.[17] He was announced as the new face of Madonna's skincare line, MDNA Skin.[18] In 2017, Milk appeared as Madonna in a video promoting the skincare range, dressing in several of her iconic costumes.[19]
Figure skating
Donigan is a former figure skater who qualified to the 2009 U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Junior Ice Dance.[20] He retired from competitive skating in 2009.[5] He returned to competition in 2025, winning first place in the Gold Solo Pattern Dance and Gold Solo Free Dance categories at the U.S. Eastern Adult Sectional Championships.[21][22]
He performed at the Bryant Park Figure-Skating Rink for the Guys On Ice event as charity for the Ali Forney Center.[23]
Music
Personal life
Donigan is Catholic and gay.[6] He was in an open relationship with James B. Whiteside,[27] principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre, for 12 years.[28] In October 2020, Donigan announced on Instagram that they have amicably split.[29] In April 2026, Donigan married Veer Nanavatty.[30] Donigan currently lives in New York City.[citation needed]
Filmography
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | RuPaul's Drag Race (season 6) | Herself | Contestant (9th place) |
| 2016 | Skin Wars | Episode: "Miss Skin Wars"[31] | |
| 2018 | RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars (season 3) | Contestant (9th place) | |
| 2019 | Hey Qween! | Guest | |
| Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen | Guest |
Music Videos
| Year | Title | Artist | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Fashion Blogger | Rhyme So | [32] |
Web
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | James St. James: Transformations | Himself | Guest | [33] |
| 2014–2018 | Milk's LegenDAIRY Looks | Host | [34] | |
| 2014–2017 | #MarcoMarcoShow Backstage | Model | [35] | |
| 2014 | Ring My Bell | Guest | [36] | |
| 2015 | Drag Queens React | Part 2 | [37] | |
| 2017 | $TRANGER$ FOR CA$H | With Kim Chi | [38] | |
| How to Makeup | Episode: "Milk's Finishing Touches" | [39] | ||
| Craiglist Missed Connections | Guest | [40] | ||
| 2018 | Whatcha Packin' | [41] | ||
| M.U.G. | With Kim Chi | [42] | ||
| 2020 | BBC Sport | Guest | [43] | |
| 2022 | Out of the Closet | [44] | ||
| 2023 | Glam Slam | Contestant | [45] |
Discography
Singles
Featured singles
| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "Sitting on a Secret" (RuPaul featuring Aja, Chi Chi DeVayne, Milk, Morgan McMichaels, & Thorgy Thor) |
2018 | Non-album single |