Soju (drag queen)

Soju is the stage name of Tony Hyunsoo Ha,[2][3] a South Korean-American drag queen, singer and television/YouTube personality. She is best known for her online reviews of the reality show RuPaul's Drag Race, until being cast on the show's eleventh season.

Soju
Soju in 2019
Born
Hyunsoo "Tony" Ha

(1991-05-12) May 12, 1991
Occupation
Known forRuPaul's Drag Race
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2016–present
GenreComedy, review, vlog
Subscribers64,800+
(April 2020)
Total views6.3+ million[1]
(April 2020)
Websitehttps://www.shotwithsoju.com/

Early life

Ha was born on May 12, 1991, in Seoul, South Korea. His family moved to Cedar Rapids, Iowa when he was ten years old.[4][5] He came out as gay when he was 21 and his drag mother is Kahmora Hall.[6] Ha's original drag name was Soju Love, but later shortened to just Soju, which is taken from the drink of the same name.[7]

Career

Outside of drag, Ha is the owner of a taekwondo academy.[8]

Soju was announced as one of fifteen contestants on the eleventh season of RuPaul's Drag Race on January 24, 2019.[9] She was eliminated in the first episode after doing poorly in the sewing challenge and losing a lip sync to "The Best of Both Worlds" by Hannah Montana against Kahanna Montrese.[10][11] A conversation between Soju and the judges about a cyst became a viral meme within the Drag Race fandom.[12][13][7]

After season eleven, YouTuber Miles Jai became the co-host for the third season of Shot with Soju. Comedian Margaret Cho appeared in the first episode of the season in March 2019.[14] Soju is one of the founders and performers of the touring LGBTQ+ K-Pop drag show Seoul Train Party.[15] She appeared in the music video for Lizzo's song "Juice" on April 17, 2019.[16][17]

Music

Soju released her first single "So Juicy" with a music video on January 11, 2018.[18][19] Her second single, "K-Pop Idol Reject" featuring Edward Avila was released on November 6, 2018.[20] In an interview with Billboard, Soju stated, "We want to bring more foreigners, we want to see queer people in K-pop. It's slowly changing - the industry is very conservative and very old school, so it will take a while for them to change. But it's happening."[21]

Personal life

Soju lives in Chicago, as of 2017.[18]

On January 22, 2021, Soju was accused of sexual assault.[22]

Filmography

Television
Year Title Role Notes
2018 How Far Is Tattoo Far? Herself
2019 RuPaul's Drag Race Contestant (15th place)
2019 RuPaul's Drag Race: Untucked

Music videos
Year Title Artist
2018 "So Juicy" Soju
2018 "K-Pop Idol Reject" Soju
2019 "Juice" Lizzo

Web series
Year Title Role
2016-19 Shot with Soju Host
2018 Cosmo Queens[23] Herself
2019 Whatcha Packin'[24] Herself
2020 Silky's Snack Shack[25] Herself

Discography

Singles
Title Year
"So Juicy" 2018
"K-Pop Idol Reject"

References
  1. Soju's YouTube Stats (Summary Profile) - Social Blade Stats
  2. "This is how Soju the Drag Queen gets ready for bed". Very Good Light. 4 May 2018. Archived from the original on 9 February 2019. Retrieved February 17, 2019.
  3. "It Presents: Juice". ChicagoPride.com. June 26, 2016. Archived from the original on July 31, 2016. Retrieved March 3, 2019.
  4. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY Soju!!". 2017-05-12. Archived from the original on 2019-03-31. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
  5. "Soju Love, Chicago". 2017-10-19. Archived from the original on 2019-03-27. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
  6. "The WERRRK.com Interview: Soju". 2018-05-11. Archived from the original on 2019-03-27. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
  7. Sultana, Rashad (March 2, 2019). "'RuPaul's Drag Race' season 11: First cyst-er down". Queerty. Archived from the original on March 27, 2019. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
  8. "Queereans". PHmuseum. 2018-10-16. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
  9. "Aquaria & Adam Rippon to Announce 'RuPaul's Drag Race' Season 11 Cast in Upcoming 'Ruveal'". Billboard. Archived from the original on 2019-01-20. Retrieved 2019-01-21.
  10. "RuPaul's Drag Race Season Premiere Recap: Let's Get Elevengendary!". Vulture. 2019-02-28. Archived from the original on 2019-03-27. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
  11. "'RuPaul's Drag Race' 11 episode 1 recap: Which queen was sent packing on 'Whatcha Unpackin'? [UPDATING LIVE BLOG]". Goldderby. 2019-02-28. Archived from the original on 2019-03-27. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
  12. "Soju Does Not Regret Talking About Her Taint Cyst on 'Drag Race'". Out.com. 2019-03-03. Archived from the original on 2019-03-27. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
  13. "Drag Race star Soju tells us why she wants to grow another cyst". Gay Times. 2019-03-07. Archived from the original on 2019-03-22. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
  14. "'RuPaul's Drag Race' Season 11: What's Next For Soju After Elimination?". Newsweek. 2019-03-01. Archived from the original on 2019-03-29. Retrieved 2019-04-17.
  15. "'RuPaul's Drag Race' Star Soju Shares Her Top 10 K-Pop Songs Ever". Billboard. 2019-04-16. Archived from the original on 2019-04-17. Retrieved 2019-04-17.
  16. "Lizzo - JUICE Music Video feat. RuPaul's Drag Race Queens". 2019-04-17. Archived from the original on 2019-04-25. Retrieved 2019-04-17.
  17. "Lizzo Shares New "Juice" Video Feat. RuPaul's Drag Race Queens". Stereogum. 2019-04-17. Archived from the original on 2019-04-17. Retrieved 2019-04-17.
  18. Cabe, Jessica (September 28, 2017). "Chicago Drag Queen Soju Drops First Single, 'So Juicy'". DNA Info. Archived from the original on March 27, 2019. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
  19. "Soju (소주) "So Juicy" Official M/V". 2018-01-11. Archived from the original on 2019-04-02. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
  20. "Soju (소주) "K-Pop Idol Reject" ft. Edward Avila Official M/V". 2018-11-06. Retrieved 2019-03-18.
  21. Daw, Stephen (March 1, 2019). "Soju Talks Diversity in K-Pop, Why She Didn't Recognize Miley Cyrus & More After 'Drag Race' Exit". Billboard. Archived from the original on March 29, 2019. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
  22. "'Drag Race's Soju Deletes Twitter After Sexual Assault Allegations". www.out.com. 2021-01-22. Retrieved 2021-01-22.
  23. "Watch Soju the Drag Queen Transform into a K-Pop Goddess". Cosmopolitan. 2018-11-07. Archived from the original on 2018-12-19. Retrieved 2019-04-17.
  24. Whatcha Packin’: Soju | Season 11 Episode 1 | RuPaul's Drag Race. YouTube. March 1, 2019. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  25. Silky's Snack Shack: Episode 5 "Whoop Yo Ass Pie". YouTube. March 25, 2019. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
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