This article contains descriptions of allegations of sexual assault.
Bob the Drag Queen and Monét X Change spoke out for the first time about the multiple sexual assault allegations that have been made against RuPaul’s Drag Race co-star Shangela.
During the October 11 episode of their Sibling Rivalry podcast entitled “The One About Diddy,” the two performers segued from discussing the sex trafficking charges against rapper P. Diddy into a conversation about the allegations against Darius Jeremy “DJ” Pierce, known to the Drag Race audience as Shangela.
In a Rolling Stone investigation released in March of this year, five people alleged that Pierce had sexually assaulted or attempted to assault them. All of the accusers said they were between the ages of 18 and 23 when the alleged assaults took place, describing a pattern of being too inebriated to consent to sex when Pierce first approached them, followed by continuing advances after saying no. That investigation followed a May 2023 lawsuit from Daniel McGarrigle, a former assistant Drag Race and production assistant on HBO’s We’re Here, that was settled and dismissed in February of this year, as Deadline reported.
Fans of Bob and Monet have long asked for their comment on the matter, with some claiming their silence equates to support of Pierce.
“Some people have taken my silence as some form of allyship,” Bob said, directly addressing these criticisms. “Someone even accused me of quote unquote ‘working overtime to silence victims,’ which seems really wild to me personally, a really wild accusation.”
“The truth is that I am not working overtime to silence anyone, I literally did not know what was going on,” Bob continued. “I did not want to spread rumors, especially ones that I was that close to, but I certainly stand with the six people — [which] is incredibly damning — and I certainly hope that these people get the justice that they need.”
Monét pointed out that Pierce was “foxtrotting and box stepping on ABC’s Dancing With The Stars” around the time the allegations surfaced. “I can’t even imagine what it’s like to see a person who did something like that to you on TV getting their 10s or dancing in the club next to you,” Bob said.
At the end of their conversation on the topic, Monét drew a connection between the allegations against both Diddy and Pierce, observing that “obviously there’s some through line between people in power” and coercive sexual dynamics.
Shangela was replaced on season 4 of HBO’s We’re Here following the allegations, though it has not been confirmed if the decision was related.
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