Sasha Colby

Sasha Colby was born in Waimānalo, Hawaii.^[12][13][14] Her mother is of Irish descent and suffered from severe bipolar disorder, resulting in a volatile upbringing.^[15] Her father was Native Hawaiian.^[15] As a teenager, she secretly did drag, locking herself in the bathroom and wearing her sister's clothes.^[16] The first transgender woman she met was her mother’s hairdresser, Tammy.^[2] Colby is the youngest of seven children and was raised in a conservative Jehovah's Witness family.^[13][17]

Sasha Colby has been described as a "beauty queen", a "drag legend",^[18] and a "pageant legend".^[19] She won the Miss Continental competition in 2012.^[12][20]

In 2018, Sasha Colby was cast in Sasha Velour's drag showcase NightGowns^[21] and appeared in the stage show's 2020 docu-series.^[22] Alongside other drag queens, Sasha Colby walked the runway before Jennifer Lopez's performance at the iHeartRadio Music Awards wearing a look inspired by Lopez.^[23][24] Chrissy Callahan of NBC News said Sasha Colby's look "channeled" the "Jenny from the Block" music video.^[25][26]

Sasha Colby is also known as a model and activist.^[27] In 2020, she represented Hawaii in GLAAD's video, which featured drag queens from all 50 states and Washington, D.C., and sought to mobilize voters in the 2020 U.S. presidential election.^[28] Before the COVID-19 pandemic, she organized a monthly trans-inclusive event at The Chapel, a gay bar in West Hollywood, California.^[29]

In 2023, Sasha Colby was cast on the fifteenth season of RuPaul's Drag Race. She is the first-ever Native Hawaiian to be cast on Drag Race. She was crowned the winner of the season, earning the title of America's Next Drag Superstar and becoming the first winner of Polynesian descent.^[30][31][32] Later that year, Colby spoke at the annual Pride Month celebration hosted by Vice President Kamala Harris.^[33]

RuPaul was opposed to casting openly transgender women on the show until late 2018, despite casting closeted transgender women in previous seasons.^[34][35][36] Colby waited until she felt it was her time to audition for the show and told Vogue that winning during a year of vehement anti-transgender legislation was important to her.^[37][7] She is the second trans woman to win RuPaul's Drag Race (after Willow Pill)^[38] and fourth to win Drag Race globally, following Angele Anang on Drag Race Thailand (Season 2), Kylie Sonique Love on RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars (Season 6),^[39] and Vanessa Van Cartier on Drag Race Holland (Season 2), and preceding Captivating Katkat on Drag Race Philippines (Season 2). Following Van Cartier, Colby is the second Miss Continental winner to win a Drag Race season.

Sasha Colby is a trans woman.^[27] Previously based in Chicago, Illinois, she now lives in Los Angeles.^[40][41][42] She is the drag mother of season 14 contestant Kerri Colby^[43] and singer-songwriter Chappell Roan.^[44][45]

Colby has Native Hawaiian and Irish heritage. While on Drag Race, Colby performed a lip-sync to "Zombie" by The Cranberries to honor her Irish heritage and the trauma of seeing the Warrington bombings on the news as a child. Additionally, the performance was a tribute to how "Zombie" helped her cope with witnessing her parents' struggles with mental illness, especially her mother who had bipolar disorder.^[15][46]

Colby is passionate about learning history. She is particularly inspired by the gender transition of Chevalier d’Éon during the 1700s.^[2] She is polyamorous and has three partners, including a queer gym owner based in Seattle.^[47] In 2016, her father died by suicide just a few years before turning 80 due to the toll of her mother's bipolar disorder.^[15][48]

• America’s Next Drag Superstar, RuPaul's Drag Race Season 15, 2023, Winner^[49]
• Miss Continental 2012, Winner^[49]
• Miss Pennsylvania Premiere Continental 2012, Winner^[49]
• Miss Continental 2008, First Alternate^[49]
• Miss West Virginia Continental 2008, Winner^[49]
• Miss Continental 2005, Fourth Alternate^[49]

All credits adapted from Apple Music and Spotify.^[74][75]