Sharon Needles

Aaron Coady was born in Newton, Iowa to Joan Coady.^[6][7] Coady is of Irish descent and was raised Catholic.^[8] At age four, he began wearing high-heels and dressing up with the encouragement of his parents.^[9] His years growing up in Iowa was a difficult time as he faced severe anti-gay and anti-"outsider" harassment, which prompted him to drop out of Newton High School.^[10][6][11] He began doing drugs at an early age, later being convicted for a DUI and assault on a police officer.^[6] He stated, "I started drugs really early and sneaking out and sleeping with boys and not coming home for weeks on end."^[6]

Coady began doing drag in 1997^[12] and, in 2004, he moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he began working as a professional drag performer with the stage name Sharon Needles (a pun on the phrase "sharin' needles") in nightclubs and various other venues with the drag troupe "the Haus of Haunt",^[13] which Needles describes as "one punk rock, messy mash up of very talented, fucked up weirdos".^[14][15]

In November 2011, it was announced that Needles had been selected to compete as a contestant on the fourth season of RuPaul's Drag Race.^[16] The season premiered on January 30, 2012, and with Needles winning the first challenge she became an instant stand-out for her "ghoulish" fashion sense and unconventional make-up choices.^{[14][15][17][18][19]} On the night of the premiere episode, Entertainment Weekly columnist Tanner Stransky hailed Needles' macabre style as "drop dead genius" and rhetorically asked "Is Sharon Needles the most 'sickening' (a drag term for 'fabulous') contestant ever?"^[18]

Throughout the fourth season of Drag Race, Needles endeared herself to audiences and became a favorite of the media, judges, and viewers alike for her quick wit, confidence, humility and uniqueness, as well as for her "transgressive" aesthetic.^{[14][15][17][19][20]} On March 27, 2012, Lady Gaga tweeted – "Sharon Needles looks FABULOUS 2night on drag race. Very Born This Way outfit/fame monster wig. Any rentals for my tour? #needthatbodysuit."^[21][22] Needles herself admitted that she was ambivalent in believing that she could win, stating, "(B)eing a comedic, campy, shtick queen and seeing how far those types of queens made it in past seasons, I would have been shocked if I made it past the first day."^[15]

In a departure from previous seasons of Drag Race, where rumors of previous winners had leaked before the final episodes could air, the decision was made not to pre-tape the finale episode announcing the season's winner.^[23][24] Instead, RuPaul decided to give fans an opportunity to voice their opinions as to who should win before taping of the final episode on April 25, 2012.^[23][24] For the taping, three outcomes were filmed announcing each of the "final 3" as the winner, with the true outcome only known to RuPaul and a select few involved in the editing.^[23][24] The finale episode aired on April 30, 2012, when it was announced that Needles had been crowned "America's Next Drag Superstar".^[23][25]

In June 2012, Needles won the Facebook vote to appear as a contestant on RuPaul's Drag Race: All Stars, but declined, as the reigning champion, to participate in the competition.^[26] She also confirmed that her replacement in the competition would be fellow RuPaul's Drag U professor and the runner-up in the Facebook voting, Pandora Boxx.^[26] Needles became a horror host in October 2012 when she began presenting horror and suspense films airing on the Logo network under the series title Fearce!^[27] Needles also became the face of an advertising campaign by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals promoting vegetarianism,^[28] appearing on billboards throughout the United States. In June 2012, the Pittsburgh City Council issued an official proclamation declaring June 12, 2012, "Sharon Needles Day."^[29][30][31]

On January 29, 2013, Needles released her debut studio album PG-13, which debuted at number 186 on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 3,000 copies in its first week.^[5] In April 2013, Needles was featured on the single "RuPaulogize," from Willam Belli's debut album The Wreckoning.^[32]

In September 2015, Needles released "Dracula" as the lead single from her second studio album. Needles released her second studio album titled Taxidermy on October 31, 2015. The second single, released on August 5, 2016, was "Hollywoodn't". The music video was once again directed by Santiago Felipe and explored the dark side of Hollywood. In the video, Needles portrayed Elizabeth Short, a.k.a. the Black Dahlia, Sharon Tate and Jayne Mansfield. Her third studio album, Battle Axe, debuted on October 6, 2017, along with a video for the single of the same name. The second single from the album was "Andy Warhol Is Dead", released on November 5, 2017.^[33] She contributed to the compilation album Christmas Queens 3 (2017).^{[citation needed]}

Sharon Needles was also voted the "Best Drag Performer" of Pittsburgh 2015 by the staff of the Pittsburgh City Paper.^[34]

In 2021, The Daily Beast reported an account from a former fan of Needles who alleged that Needles had been "physically abusive, encouraged self-harm, and sent them child porn when they were underage". Needles denied the allegations through a legal representative.^[35][36]

Needles is Catholic.^[8] He struggles with alcohol and drug abuse.^[6]

Needles was in a four-year relationship with fellow RuPaul's Drag Race contestant Justin Honard, better known by his stage name, Alaska Thunderfuck; they ended their relationship in 2013 but remained friends.^[37][38][39]

Needles was also in a long-term relationship with special FX artist Chad O'Connell. The two began dating in late 2013 and got engaged in 2015.^[40] They broke up in summer 2020.^[41]

Needles lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.^[42]