Editor's note: This story contains spoilers for episode 3 ("RDR Live Returns!") of RuPaul's Drag Race season 18.
Mama Ru and Saturday Night Live icon Sarah Sherman challenged the queens to tickle their funny bone on a brand-new episode of "RDR Live" featured on RuPaul's Drag Race season 18 episode 3.
As the season 18 girlies assigned, argued, and reassigned characters to themselves, Myki Meeks and Juicy Love Dion linked up as a pair for a sketch titled "Young Michelle." Myki talked about how passionate she is about comedy, and SNL specifically, whereas Juicy was quick to admit that this wasn't her gig (spoiler alert: she was wrong).
Myki played the titular role (a young Michelle Visage) in the sketch, whereas Juicy played Jean, a mentor figure who advised Visage to stay away from the color green, get bigger breasts, and remember that "it takes two to make a thing go right."
As the scene played out, a mysterious man who had never been featured in the Pit Crew before and wasn't seen in rehearsals with the queens simply materialized as "Ronnie," Juicy's love interest.
Drag Race loves surprising its queens and its gay viewers with new and mysterious heartthrobs who are there to help them feel their fantasies. And Ronnie delivered!
But there's a real man behind Ronnie: an actor and performer named Shyllon Melatti.
Keep scrolling for the tea, babes.
Melatti's Instagram bio has a Brazilian flag and a U.S. flag.
"Silly goose on the loose," the bio includes. "Retired @chippendales."
Melatti introduced himself as a "first-generation Brazilian American and the newest cast member for Chippendales" in an interview with MobAngeles from May 2021. "I've been in the entertainment industry since I was 10 years old, appearing in episodes of Penn & Teller and Criss Angel's Mindfreak, both Vegas entertainers on the Las Vegas Strip."
As a model, he also worked with "brands like Dillard's, Macy's, Vans, and Paul Frank."
Though Melatti joined the cast of Chippendales in the first few months of 2020, he only had two weeks of rehearsals before lockdown guidelines effectively shut down Las Vegas for several months.
"So we transitioned to what we called Chipps at Home," Melatti told Playgirl in an interview from November 2025. "And because everybody was locked up, we did Mother's Day, bachelorettes, birthdays, divorce parties, all through Zoom."
The actor and performer told Playgirl that he "was hosting parties and dancing with the girls in my living room, on my sofa," during that first year of lockdown.
"Chippendales was the last show to come back on the [Las Vegas] Strip in 2021, and I've been with the show ever since," he added.
@shyllonmelatti Idk why this move is so funny to me #foryou #lgbt #speedo
Dual citizenship status: Check. Chippendales casting credits: Check.
The video above examines the "silly goose" allegations. Check.
"I love being on stage in front of the audience," Melatti told Playgirl about performing among Chippendales. "[It is] giving everyone a different experience and a way out from their daily issues and their daily problems. For 85 minutes."
Melatti's run on the Chippendales came to an end in December 2025, and the video above was shared to honor his departure.
There's plenty of content for Melatti's followers to (respectfully) look at on both Instagram and TikTok.
This particular video, for instance, has a riveting plot twist about his backstory.
@shyllonmelatti Taking hubby requests ✍️ #lgbtq #gaytiktok #loveislove #wedding #husband
"Taking hubby requests #lgbtq #gaytiktok #loveislove #wedding #husband," Melatti wrote in this TikTok post.
Are the hubby requests still open after Juicy Love Dion stole his heart? One can never be sure.
Fans can follow Shyllon Melatti on Instagram (@shyllonmelatti), TikTok (@shyllonmelatti), and X/Twitter (@shyllonmelatti).
RuPaul's Drag Race season 18 airs Fridays on MTV.
