This interview is part of Out's Dating PrEP series, in which LGBTQ+ personalities share honest conversations about love, sex, relationships, and protecting their sexual health.
RuPaul’s Drag Race season 17 alum Lana Ja’Rae is back on the market — technically. “I am open/lurking,” the New York drag queen says in the latest episode of Dating PrEP. “Recently single, ready to mingle, but not looking, sort of, kinda.”
So what catches Lana’s attention? A nice smile is a start, but an uninhibited laugh might be even better. “If you laugh crazy, you don’t care what people think,” she says.
She also knows how she wants a partner to make her feel. “I’m not gonna go crazy because my mom might watch this,” Lana jokes, before revealing that she likes “feeling very small.”
“I feel like I’m a very dainty lady,” she says. “Whether that be in the bedroom or at dinner or walking down the street, I wanna feel protected and cared for.”
When a date does make it onto Lana’s calendar, getting ready is practically an event of its own. She starts her day with breakfast and a trip to the gym, but says she needs “at least” five hours for everything that comes after.
“Shower time, face time, preparation time, if you know what I mean,” she says. “Because you never know where the night’s gonna go.”
Wherever it goes, Lana makes sexual health part of the preparation. “I always am on PrEP because I like having sex with people, but I also like protecting myself,” she says, adding that staying on PrEP is “the easiest way for me to make sure I’m not stressed out about anything.”
As for where those hookups happen, Lana may not be ready to try cruising on public transit, but she has gotten busy with company nearby. “I haven’t hooked up on a tour bus, but I have hooked up while one of my sisters was in the room, which is kind of fierce,” she admits.
And yes, she name-drops the sister — a fellow season 17 queen. “It was Joella. Joella was in the room,” Lana says. “Who would have thought?”
When it comes to her celebrity alter ego, there’s only one answer: Octavia Spencer — specifically, Spencer in Ma. Lana even brought a Ma-inspired bob to Drag Race as a backup for Snatch Game, though it never got its moment.
“She was collecting dust,” Lana jokes. But there’s still hope for the bob. “She may still see the light of day someday. Who knows.”
Watch more episodes of Dating PrEP on Out.com.
