Manila Luzon says 'drag in the Philippines is the best in the world'

Manila Luzon, "Drag Den Philippines" host aka Drag Lord, said Filipino drag queens are incomparable.

At the "Drag Den Philippines" press conference on Wednesday, Manila expressed her joy that drag in the Philippines is going mainstream.

"I know that the Philippines is jampacked with entertainers, dancers, singers, comedians, and I'm so happy that we're now opening up a new category for Filipino entertainment, and that is drag," Manila told GMA Integrated News.

The "RuPaul Drag Race" alumna says she's traveled and performed with some of the most established names in the international drag scene, but none of them compares to Filipino queens.

"Drag in the Philippines is the best in the world," Manila continued. "And I'm so proud to showcase them and let the audience I've garnered over the years see how fantastic drag is out here."

Heavily inspired by gay pageants mounted on the streets of the Philippines, "Drag Den Philippines" premiered in December on Amazon Prime. Manila Luzon is host (Drag Lord), with beauty queen Nicole Cordoves (Drag Dealer) and content creator Sassa Gurl (Drag Runner) as co-hosts.

Eight competing queens went through incredibly creative challenges including a Filipino fantasy episode, which is something of a tribute to GMA-7's hit fantaserye "Encantadia."

Manila Luzon is currently in Manila for the finale of "Drag Den Philippines," to air on Thursday.

She played judge in the recently concluded "Ms. Dragdagulan 2023" on Maginhawa Street in Quezon City, which Manila Luzon says is her firsthand experience of a baranggayan dragdagulan."

"I knew I was going to be in for a night of amazing entertainment, but I wasn't ready," Manila said with a laugh.

"When one of the queens jumped off to the stage and went straight to split, came over to the judges' table, picked it up with her bare hands, then climbed u  and did a backflip off of it, I knew that that was the 'dragdagulan' I'll never forget it," she said.

Catch Manila Luzon crown the first-ever Drag Supreme on "Drag Den Philippines" grand coronation night and finale concert on Thursday at the Samsung Hall, SM Aura Premier. — LA, GMA Integrated News