Monét X Change and Lady Bunny cause a stir with ‘Ebony & Irony’ podcast
Drag Stars Monét X Change and Lady Bunny have been causing quite a stir in their new podcast series, Ebony & Irony.
“The podcast is off to a great start,” confirms Monét X Change. “Well, after Bunny figured out what a podcast was and got internet.”
New episodes of Ebony & Irony premiere every Friday and feature drag stars Monét X Change and Lady Bunny dissecting the latest pop culture, politics and scandals. But, Ebony & Irony is also not your typical drag podcast. Rather than discussing the lewks of RuPaul’s Drag Race, the show touches on such themes as cancel culture, COVID, and cultural appropriation.
“There’s nothing wrong with Drag Race-themed podcasts…in fact I already do one!,” says Monét X Change. “But we wanted Ebony And Irony to be different and fresh. Well, as fresh as my elderly co-host Bunny can be.”
“Drag Race queens viewing everything through a prism of that show gets to be more incestuous than my relatives back in Tennessee”, Lady Bunny adds.
The show also features light-hearted segments like Definitely Not the News where Bunny and Monét mine the internet for the latest fads and throw more shade than a solar eclipse. They dig in deep, interviewing guests who are experts in their fields. “We’re not here to ‘Yass, Queen!’ our guests,” Bunny explains. “We ask hard-hitting questions so that different viewpoints are expressed.”
“The show is totally unscripted,” says Monét. “We tried some scripted segments, but Bunny can’t read.”
“Working with Monét is a rare opportunity,” Bunny quips. “How often to do I get to say ‘I’m the pretty one?’”
Past episodes have included conversations with UK historian/author Stephen Brogan (discussing Meghan Markle’s Oprah interview) and Danny Mandarola, a victim of sexual manipulator, Sherry Pie. On this Friday’s show, Monét X Change and Lady Bunny will welcome comedian Margaret Cho to discuss the Atlanta shooting of six Asian women.
Monét X Change is best known for winning Miss Congeniality on RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 10 and winning RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 4. The Brooklyn-based diva cemented her fame with an album, Unapologetically, a Build Series talk show named The X Change Rate, and a stint on London’s West End with Courtney Act. Monét regularly joins her friendly competitor Bob the Drag Queen for their popular podcast, Sibling Rivalry.
Lady Bunny created the drag festival Wigstock in the 1980s. The festival is the subject of two documentaries, 1995’s Wigstock: The Movie and 2018’s Wig on HBO. A living drag legend, razor-witted comic, fabulous DJ, and one kooky queen, the Lady Bunny experience can be summed up from her own words in V Magazine’s December issue: “My humor is outrageous, my look is over the top, and my politics are in your face. That’s just the way I am!”
The premiere episode of Ebony & Irony welcomed guest, Linda Simpson, discussing her book, The Drag Explosion. Following episodes featured trans punk icon Jayne County, gay porn star Boomer Banks, Dr. Darien Sutton, and nightlife columnist, author and bon vivant Michael Musto.
“I’ve learned so much doing this podcast,” reflects Bunny. “Including who Monét X Change is.”
“Bunny is an absolute legend…down at the clinic,” adds Monét X Change.
Ebony and Irony is part of Starburns Audio network. New episodes are available every Friday on Apple Podcasts, or wherever you access your podcasts. The show is interactive with listeners on the Stereo app.
