Amidst the glitz and glamour of season 16 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, a beacon of vibrant yellow stood out. Nymphia Wind, the drag persona of 28-year-old fashion designer Leo Tsao, was just about to experience her moment of triumph decades in the making. Donning a bright yellow bikini and miniskirt, she was about to become the first winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race from East Asia in the show’s 15-year history.
Only seven people from Asia have made it to RuPaul’s top four since the show premiered in 2009. During her final performance at the end of April, she swept onto the stage for a high-energy performance featuring multiple yellow costumes, stealing the show. Throughout the competition, Nymphia Wind has become synonymous with the colour yellow, and she often deploys references to bananas in her outfits.
“Yellow represents the colour of my skin,” Nymphia Wind said in an interview ahead of the finale, emphasising her aim to raise awareness and appreciation of Asian culture. Tsao, born in Los Angeles and raised in Hong Kong and Taiwan, was inspired by K-pop girl groups in high school and ventured into cross-dressing when she studied fashion design in Rochester, UK, graduating in 2017. During her younger years, Tsao was bullied as a child for her gender expression but received strong support from her mother, who still watches her shows and helps her with the logistics of her drag career.
In 2018, Tsao began to develop the persona “Nymphia Wind” while performing in Taipei.
