When Christmas rolls around, sometimes the classics just don’t cut it. Mariah, Kylie and even Ariana have all turned their hand to the camp world of festive music production, but the honour of gayest Christmas music ever is reserved for a gaggle of drag queens whose catalogues range from the fun to the bizarre. Indeed, the RuPaul’s Drag Race queens have released not one, but four Drag Race Christmas albums. We’ve spared you the time and compiled a list of the ultimate songs from the collection, as well as some additional holiday bops from Drag Race alumni, so without further ado, let’s get this Christmas roast a cookin’!

‘Hey Sis, It’s Christmas’ – RuPaul ft. the cast of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK
While this RuPaul holiday classic is just one of a number of Christmas songs that the self-proclaimed ‘Queen of Drag’ has produced over the years, the song took on a new life when the finalist queens on series three of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK were tasked with writing their own verses for the track. The queens, Kitty Scott Claus, Ella Vaday, and Season 3 winner Krystal Versace absolutely smashed the challenge, resulting in this Christmas banger featuring some of our favourite UK queens. 

‘Jingle Bell Rock’ – Tia Kofi ft. The Vivienne
Speaking of Drag Race UK queens, Season 1 winner The Vivienne partnered up with Season 2 contestant Tia Kofi to bring up this next holiday hit. Together the queens covered Bobby Helm’s 1957 Christmas classic, a song you might recognise from a certain iconic Mean Girls performance, but made it their own with plenty of seasonal shady ad-libs. Our favourite addition to the classic has to be The Vivienne’s line: “Come on Tia, get yer sack out girl!”

‘Let It Snow’ – Christmas Queens
Next on our list of Drag Race songs is this campy group number. Jinkx Monsoon, Jaremi Carey (formerly known as Phi Phi O’Hara), Jiggly Caliente, Manila Luzon, Thorgy Thor, Ivy Winters, Ginger Minj and Peppermint team up for this cover. The music video sees a stressed-out Jinkx in her best Janice Ian get up trying to round up her fellow queens for a photo shoot, all the while singing a fun and upbeat version of this holiday classic.

’12 Days of Christmas’ – Katya Zamolochikova
A Katya take on ’12 Days of Christmas’ is exactly what you think it is. We’re talking herpes, four pregnant piglets, three roasted meat chunks, two Bob Ross paintings and ten pounds of ravioli.

‘What Child is This?’ – Peppermint ft. Thorgy Thor
Peppermint and Thorgy Thor demonstrate their flair for classical music on this track. Pep’s vocals accompanied by Thorgy Thor’s violin make for an unusual but pleasing choral piece.

‘All I Want For Christmas is Nudes’ – Trixie Mattel
Speaking of parody songs, the queen of country music’s take on Mariah Carey’s classic deserves a spot on this list. Trixie spills her heart in this song as she reveals her struggles with wanting nudes, and nothing else. Best lyric? “You can even send on Grindr / Just as long as you stay home / Oh I know you’re only an Uber ride away / And oh you could come over but I wish you would stay / Oh the snow is blowing, it’s too late for mistle-hoeing / Baby don’t re-gift take a Jpeg or a TIFF / If you don’t you can sashay away.”

‘We Three Queens’ – Manila, Peppermint & Alaska 5000
The perhaps unlikely trio of Manila, Peppermint and Alaska team up for this queer take on a Christian classic, and the result is sheer opulence. The track is complete with Alaskatication as the All Stars 2 champ encourages us to “worship him God on hiiiiiiieeee”.

‘Ho Ho Ho Ho’ – Willam
Nothing gets us in the Christmas spirit faster than the line “If we gonna f*ck I want presents”. Willam’s parody songs have become canon in the Drag Race fandom, and his festive spoof of Mariahlynn’s ‘Once Upon A Time I Was A Hoe’ is no exception.

‘Merry Christmas, It’s Whateva!’ – Trish a.k.a Katya Zamolochikova
Katya’s alter-ego and smelly friend Trish takes the lead on ‘Merry Christmas It’s Whateva’, which is not so much of a song, but a subdued sort of rant. You may remember Trish as the tanning-obsessed character who made a cameo in the episode ‘Spoof! (There It Is)’, joining Pearl, Trixie and Miss Fame for the parody of the song ‘Tan With You’.

‘Everyday is Christmas’ – Alaska 5000
The self-proclaimed Queen of Snakes’ song ‘Everyday Is Christmas’ – not to be confused with her distinctly different track ‘Chr!$Tm@$ $Ux’ –  is a classic cheerful standard, with a heartfelt message at its core – that every day is Christmas when you’re with the person you love. Indeed, Alaska reminds us that whether it’s Arbor Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, President’s Day, St Paddy’s Day or Election Day, every day is Christmas.

‘Dear Santa, Bring Me A Man’ – AAA Girls
This short-lived but iconic bottle-blonde girl group featured three of Drag Race’s most notorious alumni, Willam (Season 4), Alaska 5000 (Season 5 and All Stars 2), and Courtney Act (Season 6). While the AAA Girls produced a number of holiday songs during their tenure, ‘Dear Santa, Bring Me A Man’, a parody of The Weather Girls’ 1983 hit ‘Dear Santa (Bring Me A Man This Christmas)’, has to be our favourite. 

‘Head To Mistletoe’ – Courtney Act
AAA Girls alum Courtney Act has a lengthy career when it comes to recording music, first coming to fame when she appeared on the Australian Idol singing competition in 2003. Her Christmas hit ‘Head To Mistletoe’ was featured on the first-ever Christmas Queens album in 2015. In the track, Act sings to Santa Claus, saying: “Unwrap me, because it’s Christmas Eve.”

‘Red & Green’ – Jinkx Monsoon
While most of the songs on this list are campy and fun, Jinkx Monsoon’s ‘Red & Green’, as featured on the 2015 Christmas Queens album, takes a more serious emotional approach to the holidays. Think Elvis’s ‘Blue Christmas’, but with the vocal stylings of the only queen to ever win Drag Race twice!

‘Slay Bells’ – Manila Luzon
Manila Luzon, who appeared as a contestant on Season 3, All Stars 1, and All Stars 4 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, wrote ‘Slay Bells’ for the 2015 Christmas Queens album. Since then, Luzon has made performing the track a holiday tradition. In a 2019 Instagram post, Luzon referred to the track as her ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’, referring to the Mariah Carey chart-topper. 

‘Jingle Juice’ – Nina West
This ode to festive cocktails and the well-established tradition of getting absolutely wasted over the Christmas holidays comes to us from Nina West. In addition to being named ‘Miss Congeniality’ of Season 11 of Drag Race, West has toured the world performing for corporations like Disney and in productions like Hairspray as Edna Turnblad. In this campy holiday single from her 2019 album The West Christmas Ever, West lets us in on her holiday drink menu, which includes egg nog, a gingerbread martini, and plenty of Jingle Juice. 

‘X-mas Time’ – Shea Couleé
RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 5 winner Shea Couleé is back with ‘X-mas Time’, a single that she calls an “R&B-pop track to get you through the holidaze.” If you’re looking for a reason to listen to the song, check out this provocative line: “It’s that time of year for some fun, this year the stockings won’t be the only thing hung.”

‘Deck A Ho’ – Bob the Drag Queen ft. Shangela
While Bob the Drag Queen might be touring the world with Madonna these days, in 2017, she was performing her original track ‘Deck A Ho’ under the guise of her alter-ego ‘Hood Pussy’. The track, produced by Mitch Ferrino and featuring fellow Drag Race alum Shangela, is Bob’s dragged-up take on the 1962 Christmas classic ‘Deck the Halls With Boughs of Holly’ by the Everly Brothers. 

‘Naughty or Nice’ – Jaremi Carey
Released as part of the 2015 Christmas Queens album, ‘Naughty or Nice’ was recorded by Season 4 Drag Race alum Jaremi Carey, formerly known as Phi Phi O’Hara. While Carey doesn’t have the best reputation with fans after her tenure on the series, she is definitely a talented performer when it comes to singing, and ‘Naughty or Nice’ is no exception!

‘Last Christmas’ – Blair St. Clair

St. Clair, who appeared on Season 10 and All Stars 5 of Drag Race, was labelled as a Broadway baby from the moment she walked through the doors of the Werk Room. Since then, the queen has proven time and time again that she is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to pure vocal talent. In 2018, she joined the cast of stars working on the Christmas Queens 4 album, with a cover of Wham’s 1986 holiday classic ‘Last Christmas’.

‘The Nativity Twist’ – BenDeLaCreme & Jinkx Monsoon
Featured in their wildly successful Jinkx & Dela Holiday Special as well as on the Christmas Queens 2 album, ‘The Nativity Twist’ features the vocal talents of two of Seattle’s most prolific drag performers, BenDeLaCreme and Jinkx Monsoon. The campy track offers a fresh and funny take on the story of the birth of Jesus Christ in “the majorest manger in history.”

‘Homemade For The Holidays’ – Detox ft. Mamatox
The holidays are all about family, which makes this mother-and-child duet from Detox (who appeared on Season 5 and All Stars 2 of Drag Race) all the more special. Performing alongside her mother, Detox sings about her memories of her mother’s holiday home cooking, including a lengthy and oddly specific recipe for a sweet potato casserole. 

‘Sleigh My Name’ – Priyanka
The winner of the very first season of Canada’s Drag Race, Priyanka has been turning the party with original music since she appeared on the series. With her album Taste Test, the queen created a series of music videos that created a seamless narrative wherein Priyanka is on a quest to take over the Social Injustice Nationals. In the video for ‘Sleigh My Name’, Priyanka has failed at her quest and retires to work in a bar where she has to serve drinks to Santa. If you’re going to check it out, we definitely recommend taking a look at the remix that features other Drag Race alumni like Alaska 5000, Shea Couleé and Lemon. 

“Christmas Hookup” – Jan
Are you ready to feel the ‘Jantasy’ this Christmas? Then check out RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 12 and All Stars 6 alum Jan’s all-new holiday track ‘Christmas Hookup’! 

‘A Very Harsh Christmas’ – Baga Chipz
Playing on her iconic catchphrase from Season 1 of Drag Race UK, runner-up Baga Chipz is ready to rock your next Christmas party with her single ‘A Very Harsh Christmas’, featuring the vocal stylings of Kelly Peakman, who previously appeared on X Factor UK. 

‘Tongue Pop The Halls’ – Alyssa Edwards ft. The House of Edwards
This Texas queen, who has appeared on Season 5 and All Stars 2 of Drag Race, inspired one of the most iconic drag trends – the tongue pop – during her time on the series. Capitalising on the trend, Edwards released her holiday single ‘Tongue Pop The Halls’ in 2016. The campy track, a take on ‘Deck The Halls’, is featured on Edwards’ holiday album A H.O.E. Xmas, featuring members of Alyssa’s drag house, the House of Edwards, including Drag Race alumni like Shangela and Laganja Estranga. 

That rounds off our list of Christmas crackers from our favourite Drag Race queens. Happy listening!