With 2024 officially upon us, RuPaul has just three words for you: Start your engines!
On Friday (Jan. 5), fans will finally get to see the premiere episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race season 16 on MTV. Introducing a brand new crop of 14 world-class drag performers, the new season will follow the contestants as they compete for a cash prize of $200,000 and the sought-after title of America’s Next Drag Superstar.
Split into a two groups across two premiere episodes, the new cast of 14 queens will compete in two talent shows — one themed after MTV’s Spring Break and the other after the Teen Choice Awards. Once they’ve finished, the queens will be subjected to the season’s first big twist; they’ll have to rate each other to determine the week’s top and bottom performers.
The return of Drag Race also means the return of the beloved Lip Sync for Your Life format. Over the course of 15 years, the battle royale for survival has not only saved hundreds of queens from elimination, but has also boosted gains for the artists they feature. As executive producer Tom Campbell told Billboard in 2022, “that’s part of what this show does; it’s passing down these generational moments.”
With a flock of fabulous new performers for fans to fall for over the next few months, Billboard decided to speed up the getting-to-know-you process by asking each contestant a simple question; what is your go-to lip sync song? Below, the cast of RuPaul’s Drag Race season 16 breaks down (in their own words) their favorite songs to perform for Billboard, ranging from Britney Spears to Barbra Streisand to a “poop mix.”