Arts & Entertainment
If she was your girl, oh the things Peppermint would do to you
Performer talks love of Janet, new music, and political attacks on drag queens
If she was your girl, oh the things she’d do to you. I’m not talking about Janet Jackson — I’m talking about Peppermint.
The “RuPaul’s Drag Race” season 9 runner-up has parlayed that success into a diversified career in music, theater, LGBTQ advocacy, and more. From her work with RuPaul as the first out trans woman competitor on that hit show to her groundbreaking role in “Head Over Heels” as the first trans person to originate a starring role on Broadway, to her work as a GLAAD board member, Peppermint is a force in the LGBTQ movement.
She’s not shy when asked about recent controversies involving Republican attacks on drag queens, such as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announcing he would pursue legislation making it illegal for a parent to take a child to a drag performance. In Arizona, the Trump-endorsed candidate for governor last month also attacked drag queens.
“I think the attacks are terrible and dirty,” Peppermint told the Blade. “They are trying and succeeding in distracting us from protecting the most vulnerable of our population — trans children. The drag entertainers are adults and it’s a fun celebratory scene that is inclusive of everyone and certainly not harmful. The only people supporting this are insidious and flat out lying or have probably never seen drag in real life.”
Peppermint this week announced plans for a November tour of her new show and music. Specific dates are listed at the bottom of this article; visit peppermintonline.com for more information.
But the main reason for a recent conversation with the Blade, was Peppermint’s viral video recreation of Janet Jackson’s iconic “If.” The song was the second release from Jackson’s 1993 “janet.” album, peaking at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Its accompanying video and choreography have proven timeless, influencing many other artists, including Peppermint. Her recent meticulous recreation of the video won tens of thousands of fans on YouTube and even led to a re-Tweet by Janet herself.
Jackson’s video created a stir when it was released, revealing a bold and overtly sexual Janet that many fans weren’t expecting. “If” features intricate choreography that depicted Janet grabbing the crotches of male dancers who simulated oral sex on her. The original video was also groundbreaking in its depiction of technologies that weren’t invented in 1993, such as web cams and touchscreens.
“This song, the choreography is so iconic, professional dancers have seen it in other pieces over the years and it’s been a blueprint for so many songs and videos by other artists,” Peppermint said. “Just as people borrowed from Michael Jackson and ‘Thriller.’”
Peppermint fell in love with Jackson’s music following the release of “Control” in 1986 and says she learned all the dance routines over the years.
“There’s something about the way her music and live performance is packaged and presented, it came off as memorable and iconic and forward thinking and progressive and made a big impact early on in high school,” Peppermint said. “I learned the moves to ‘If’ immediately and remember every chance I got in high school and in summer camp, if you were around me you were not safe because you were learning the Janet moves, I would force everyone around me to do the routines.”
Peppermint estimates she spent $30,000 on her “If” recreation and paid for it out of pocket. The video features 10 dancers with about 30 crew on set. It was filmed in one day and she says she studied all angles of the original performance to match the choreography. It took three takes to nail the iconic breakdown dance at the end of the song.
Angel Ayala created the costume; she hand-rolled the bones on the vest (Kim Kardashian recently purchased the original costume at auction for $25,000). Peppermint says she studied Janet’s jewelry and replicated it, scouring the internet looking for similar pieces and ultimately making some by hand to match the originals perfectly.
“My look in replicating Janet’s look, I wanted it to be as close as possible, which I nailed except for the six-pack abs,” Peppermint said, “but I look sexy.”
She noted the importance of finding talented dancers since every moment in the video is tightly choreographed.
“I wanted to update it a bit and make it as inclusive as possible with trans and nonbinary dancers, queer dancers, people of color, which is similar to the original video with its mostly Asian cast,” she said.
She says “If” is, of course, her favorite Janet video; while her favorite Janet song is “Throb” and her favorite Janet tour is the “Velvet Rope.”
Peppermint says she’s never met her idol Janet, but hopes to one day, adding, “I did this for myself, it was a passion project.” Will there be another Janet tribute video? Peppermint says yes, sometime next year, but declines to specify which video she plans to recreate next.
In the meantime, she’s focused on her upcoming fall tour and her own original music about a breakup titled “Letter to my Lovers,” a trilogy about the beginning, middle, and end of a relationship. “I wanted to do something that’s a love letter to the trans community and letting people know you’re deserving of love and deserve to hear a trans woman singing about love to some ‘90s R&B throwback.”
And for those who haven’t seen the Hulu rom-com “Fire Island,” Peppermint stars in the film.
Peppermint tour dates:
November 2 @ Chop Suey – Seattle, WA
November 3 @ Hawthorne Theatre – Portland, OR
November 5 @ The Chapel – San Francisco, CA
November 7 @ Troubadour – Los Angeles, CA
November 20 @ City Winery – Atlanta, GA
November 23 @Evanston SPACE – Chicago, IL
November 27 @ Ardmore Music Hall – Philadelphia, PA
November 28 @ Brighton Music Hall – Boston, MA
November 29 @ City Winery – Loft – New York, NY
Celebrity News
My evening with Madonna
Gay icon headlined the World Pride Music Festival in Amsterdam
Editor’s note: International News Editor Michael K. Lavers and Photo Editor Michael Key will be on assignment in the Netherlands through Aug. 10. They will be covering World Pride in Amsterdam.
AMSTERDAM — Madonna and 6,000 of her closest friends celebrated World Pride at Amsterdam’s AFAS Live concert hall early Sunday morning. I was fortunate enough to be one of them.
Madonna last Wednesday nearly broke the internet when she said on social media in Dutch that “I got somethin’ I wanna talk about,” referring to an opening line in “Danceteria,” one of the tracks on her “Confessions II” album that has received rave reviews since its July 2 release. The track has been on near constant replay on my playlist since I first heard it.
— Madonna (@Madonna) July 28, 2026
MISTR — a telehealth platform that offers free access to PrEP, Doxy PEP, STI testing, and long-term care that has organized Madonna’s Club Confessions shows in the U.S. and the U.K. — later confirmed the rampant speculation. I woke up on July 30 to an email in my inbox from MISTR and the World Pride Music Festival PR team that said I was on the press list.
Madonna was indeed going to headline the World Pride Music Festival that Jake Resnicow and Insomniac produced, and I was going to be there. OMFG!!!!
The gay icon had one more surprise in store.
The Dutch internet on Saturday once again broke over speculation that Kylie Minogue was going to appear alongside Madonna. I was getting ready to leave our hotel in Amsterdam on Saturday night when I saw a video of the two of them together.
“Madonna is now teasing Kylie Minogue on her social media … she may be one of her ‘special guests’ tonight,” I wrote in a text to Washington Blade Editor Kevin Naff at 8:46 p.m.
“Have fun! This is turning into the gayest concert ever,” he responded.
I arrived at AFAS Live shortly before 11 p.m. My press contact walked me and two other Dutch journalists into the venue’s cavernous main room known as the Black Box. We made small talk for a few minutes before I started to walk around and listen to Josh Harrison who was on the decks.
Madonna was scheduled to take the stage at 1:30 a.m., but she is known for being late — she is Madonna and she does what she wants. Hayla, a British singer, and Bebe Rexha are among those who performed ahead of Madonna. Thousands of sweaty men — including a group of Australians next to me who were eagerly awaiting Kylie’s anticipated appearance — packed the Black Box and were dancing, anticipating what was to come.
MISTR CEO Tristan Schukraft at one point came on stage and declared Madonna was indeed in the building. The moment for which we were all eagerly waiting finally came shortly before 2:30 a.m.
“Mother is here and this is gay heaven,” said Madonna when she took the stage.
Stuart Price, who produced her “Confessions on a Dance Floor” album in 2005, manned the decks during Madonna’s set.
She opened it with “I Feel So Free” from “Confessions II.” Madonna then sang “Bring Your Love” and “Danceteria” to which this reporter — and everyone else — sang along.
Madonna then teased a surprise before she began to perform “Love Sensation.” Kylie soon appeared on stage. It was nearly too much for my fellow partygoers from Australia. It was indeed the gayest concert ever!
Madonna and Kylie performed “Love Sensation” together. They then sang “Hung Up” and “Sorry” from “Confessions on a Dance Floor” to round out the set that ended shortly after 3 a.m.
Madonna and I share the same birthday — Aug. 16 — and I would like to think she and Kylie gave me an early birthday present. In all seriousness though, it was an amazing night for me and for everyone else who was fortunate enough to be there.
“On the dance floor I feel so free,” says Madonna in the opening of “I Feel So Free.”
For those few precious hours at AFAS Live I did not think about the Trump-Vance administration and the myriad ways it is destroying the U.S. I did not think about the National Guard troops deployed to D.C. I did not think about the pointless wars that continue to ravage Ukraine and other countries around the world. I simply lost myself on the dance floor and celebrated an icon who has always stood with my community.
Thank you, Madonna.
The Petal Release Party and Drag Show was held at Spark Social on Friday, July 31. Performers included Tiara-Missou, Labianna and Darcy de la Cuadra.
(Washington Blade photos by Landon Shackelford)
Celebrity News
Madonna headlines World Pride Music Festival in Amsterdam
Kylie Minogue made surprise appearance alongside gay icon
AMSTERDAM — Madonna on Sunday headlined the final night of the World Pride Music Festival in Amsterdam.
The gay icon took the stage shortly before 2:30 a.m. local time (8:30 p.m. ET on Saturday) during Club Confessions, a set that MISTR, a telehealth platform that offers free access to PrEP, Doxy PEP, STI testing, and long-term HIV care, organized.
“Mother is here and this is gay heaven,” said Madonna when she took the stage inside Amsterdam’s AFAS Live concert hall that can hold up to 6,000 people.
Stuart Price, who produced Madonna’s 2005 “Confessions on a Dance Floor” album and “Confessions II,” which debuted on July 2, DJed the set.
Kylie Minogue made a surprise appearance. She and Madonna performed a new remix of “Love Sensation” from “Confessions II.”
(Washington Blade video by Michael K. Lavers)
“Throughout my career, I’ve always supported efforts to fight HIV and AIDS, and that fight begins with education and access,” said Madonna in a MISTR press release. “With MISTR, (CEO) Tristan (Schukraft) is expanding access to HIV prevention and sexual healthcare for everyone. Through this work, he’s helping preserve and strengthen LGBTQ+ spaces while investing in the communities and culture that have long sustained us.”
Minogue in an Instagram post thanked Madonna, Price, Schukraft, and MISTR.
Madonna appeared at The Abbey in West Hollywood, Calif., in April. Madonna in June celebrated Pride month with a pop-up performance in New York’s Times Square.
Jake Resnicow and Insomniac produced the World Pride Music Festival that also featured Bebe Rexha and Paris Hilton, among others.
“Pride has always been about bringing our community together,” said Resnicow. “At a moment when too many people are being told to hide or make themselves smaller, gathering openly, joyfully, and without apology matters more than ever. I couldn’t be prouder of what this festival brought to life in Amsterdam — one dance floor, completely free.”
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My evening with Madonna
