<
https://theconversation.com/as-mexicos-lgbtq-community-battles-for-inclusion-two-drag-performers-have-become-internet-stars-with-more-than-2-million-tiktok-followers-241552>
"In January 2022, Erick Martínez, also known as Turbulence Queen, introduced a
guest on his YouTube channel: Ivan “Momo” Guzmán, with the stage name Burrita
Burrona, a drag performer wearing a cartoonish donkey costume topped by a wig.
During their interview, Turbulence and Burrita shared stories, gossiped and
threw shade at Mexican actors, newscasters and performers. Soon after, their
careers took off.
Before Burrita’s first appearance, Turbulence’s YouTube channel had fewer than
5,000 subscribers. Now, after the rebranding of the show to include Burrita’s
name, their channel has about 375,000. More than 2 million subscribe to them on
TikTok – Turbulence, with 600,000 followers and 16 million likes; Burrita with
1.5 million followers and 28 million likes. Their “El Podcast del Momento” has
more than 225,000 subscribers.
The two proved so popular that corporate sponsors started getting in on the
action. Soriana, a large supermarket chain in Mexico, splashed their images on
a line of cakes. Netflix Latin America had them hosting a series of videos
promoting its new South Korean dramas. The media giant Televisa included
Turbulence and Burrita as part of their comedic coverage of the 2024 Paris
Olympics.
Over the past 3½ years, the YouTube show has added some new characters,
including Burrita’s mom and an on-and-off love interest, a butch lesbian wolf.
Along with the interviews, the characters do comedic cooking segments and
sketches. Even in today’s fragmented and cluttered media environment, the
program regularly gets around 250,000 views, with some episodes reaching more
than 1 million.
While drag performers are not new in Mexico, Burrita is something of a novelty:
a drag mascot. Although long a part of Mexico’s commercial culture – mascots
promote everything from soccer teams to pharmacies and are a staple at
children’s birthday parties – Burrita is the first to do it in drag."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
