The X Change Rate: Shannon Purser & Baga Chipz

In "The X Change Rate," award-winning drag queen, entertainer and TV personality Monét X Change brings her signature wit, heart and style to BUILD Series. Actor Shannon Purser ("Stranger Things," "Sierra Burgess is a Loser") joined Monét to talk about the LGBTQ+ docuseries from HBO Max, "Equal." U.K. drag queen Baga Chipz also stopped by to chat.

Video Transcript

[MUSIC PLAYING]

MONÉT X CHANGE: Hey, y'all. It's your girl Monét and welcome back to "The X Change Rate," a talk show where we vote. Very simple. We vote here up in "The X Change Rate." And you should too. We have a really, really fun show for you all today, because a true bard, Ms. Shannon Purser of "Stranger Things" is here. And later, a British bitch that's sure to make us all feel "much be-ah," Baga Chipz, is also here.

But first, let's get into the gig. Girl, I have to tell y'all all about this saga that is my crazy neighbor. It has gotten crazier. So cut to a few episodes ago, when I was telling you how he like left a note on my door. And then, yada, yada, yada, I wanted to say, I wish a nigga would fuck you, yeah, yeah, yeah. So I come back from the studio Friday or Saturday night, minding my own business.

And I was home for maybe about 10, 15 minutes. I was literally eating a Turkey Swiss, lettuce, tomato, light mayo [INAUDIBLE] from the deli, with popcorn as white cheddar chips, minding my own business, finishing up handsmaids-- handsmaids? "The Handmaid's Tale," and I hear like a boom, boom!-- I'm like, oh, god-- on my door. And I'm like, what the fuck? And through my door I hear, "Keep it down, faggot."

And I was like, [SCOFFS]. So mind you, I'm in my home, minding my business, dick out, balls out, just living my free, gay life in my apartment. So I'm like, oh-- me on the couch, I look like-- you know like, when a big girl try to get up real fast? I'm like-- my sandwich in my hand-- I'm like, oh, hell no! So I'm like, trying to rough get the gumption to get off the couch.

And I open the door. And I'm like, excuse me? He's like-- he's like, you need to keep down-- I was like-- I was like, I don't know who the F you talking to, but you do-- Ed, don't you dare ever come and knock on my door like that again. This is so F-ing rude, so disrespectful. Don't you dare.

So then I close the door. And I run back into the kitchen to get a knife, cause I'm like, this motherfucker not going to be intimidating me. Just to give y'all like, what he looks like, he is-- I would say he's a middle aged man, late 40s, early 50s, salt and pepper, short Caesar hair. He could be black-- if he told me he was black, I would say, OK. If he said he was Dominican, I would say, OK. Like, average plus body, something like that. About 6'1", 6'2".

And as I open the door, with the knife in my hand this time, still butt-booty naked-- looking [INAUDIBLE] so crazy to my neighbors. And then he's now walking down the hall-- like, back down the stairs-- I'm like, and yeah, just remember that when you can't sleep at night, I'm the-- I'm the faggot upstairs making all the noise on top of your head. Good night. Closed my door.

And then that was my Saturday night. It was crazy. I called the police. The police came. I called-- spoke to my super. And everyone is like, yeah, this guy is no stranger to being wild and crazy. Like, super suddenly, he gets like, crazy in the building. He demands all these crazy things. And he always has some complaint about someone. So he's obviously someone that is just going through this whole situation. But I'm not the one. You not-- you not about to come in my home, where I live, and talk about no faggot anything. Not on this gay day. You are not the moment, sir.

So that was that. So y'all know, that same night, I was just making all unnecessary noise. I'm picking up my bed and dropping that bitch on the floor. I'm like-- I'm like-- I started tap dancing. I started rehearsing for the-- for the new production of "Stomp" coming back to Broadway next year. I was on a pop in my house. So TBD. We'll see what happens. It was just too much, girl. It was too much.

Outside of that, I had a very productive weekend. I had a really great edible-- I have a medical marijuana card. You should always do marijuana responsibly. I had an edible that-- it was one of those edibles you take and it had me-- I was constantly in a state of, oh my god, you are way too high to function. But still a really good place. And, I mean, it lasted for about 18 hours, which was a very long time. But you know, I felt good. And I needed it after dealing with that meth-- that catastrophe-- that crazy neighbor.

And someone who should be taking edibles-- all the edibles-- Ice Cube. Have y'all heard about the story? Ice Cube is-- honestly, Ice Cube and 50 Cent, why we even listen to them? They're a mess. They should go the fuck away. So Ice Cube-- while we were all minding our business, drinking our Crystal Light and our Prosecco-- Ice Cube-- we found out because the senior White House advisor Katrina-- what's her name-- Katrina Pearson tweeted, shout out to Ice Cube for coming to work at the White House on some issues.

And we're all like [SPUTTERS] what? Literally-- what? Ice Cube was at the White House, working on Trump's Platinum Plan, which is a Trump initiative to help Black America. It does not take a rocket science-- it does not take a third grader-- to realize that Trump is not here for the betterment of the Black community and brown communities. Trump is here for white people, like, plain and simple.

And honestly, not even many of them. Because if you're-- because if you white and you gay, he ain't here for you. If you white and you super religious, he ain't here for you. So Trump is just out for rich people like himself. But Ice Cube think that he's going to be the savior and he's up in the White House, trying to talk about the Platinum Plan.

And you know, the internet was shot. The internet was gagged. We cannot believe Ice Cube, who is-- if I remember, back in the 80s, Ice Cube-- what really made him notable and prominent was, he was with his group, NWA-- N-I-G-G-A-Z Wit Attitude-- and they had that song, "Fuck the police, coming straight from the underground. Nuh-nuh-nuh, guh-duh-duh, because I'm brown." It was like, a big song. It was like, oh my god, yes. Because you know, that is the year-- those the years of policing black communities-- which they still are doing.

And that's when people started praising Ice Cube for this. And his song, "Arrest the President." Like, he had some really powerful political songs that were really against the man. So to see him do this behind our backs, it was really, really, really, shady. And he has this 13-point plan called the Contract with Black America that he was-- that he said he was trying to talk with the president about.

And he's not really for Republicans or Democrats, he just here for who's ever going to help Black America and the Black community. And saying that none of-- none of the campaigns are trying to do that, when literally, the Biden-Harris ticket literally has a 22-page agenda and plan to help the Black community and Black America. So like, what are you even talking about? Like, you literally make no type of sense. So it's really crazy.

And his-- obviously-- and I'm not saying Ice Cube is-- because I do acknowledge that you do have to reach across the aisle and work with the other side and the people in power to help affect change. But anyone who was delusional enough to think that Trump really has that for Black folk is delusional, ridiculous, and is crazy. I'm sorry about it.

So we'll see where this goes. He went on the Chris-- he went on CNN on the Chris Cuomo show and talked about how he wanted to talk about closing the wealth gap. He said this-- this is the problem in America. Black people don't own capital. We cannot survive in America another 100 years living like this. And for-- specifically for Black communities, if anyone has a problem with what he did, it seems like it's a personal problem. He has no time for that.

So he kept-- Ice Cube is saying what he saying. We're not-- we're not here for it. And he should really get his life together and try to think of a solution that is not talking with Trump. Because again, Trump is not here for the community, for the culture, for the cause. He's not here for any of it. Do not negotiate with terrorists. That is literally the number one rule in diplomacy. Don't negotiate with terrorists. Trump is a domestic terrorist, period.

In the 90s, I was-- I did not watch a lot of like, white TV shows, like "Golden Girls" or "Seinfeld" or "Friends." But I did watch "Home Improvement," because the boys were so cute. The boys all just like, ooh! [KISSING] They were like really, really, really, good-looking boys. And one of them-- I think it was the older brother, Zachery Ty Bryan-- he's a whole-ass mess. He just got arrested over the weekend for choking out his girlfriend. I mean like, choking her out to within an inch of her life.

He was arrested by the police on Friday night in Eugene, Oregon-- which, I used to live in Oregon. Shout out to Portland, Oregon. And I have visited Bend, Oregon and Eugene, Oregon. Ain't nothing good happening in Eugene. Eugene is-- in the grand scheme of things, if you think about New York, Eugene is more like a-- Eugene is like a Coney Island area. Like, it's part of the city, but she'll go crazy on the weekends, you know what I mean?

So he [INAUDIBLE] choking his girlfriend. They got-- they got into an argument. He strangled and choked her. And he tried to take her phone away. But that's like, more than just getting into a fight, whatever. Like that's devious and that's pretty nefarious to like, say, oh, I'm going to take your phone away so you can't call the police. Like, that's a whole 'nother level of stuff.

And when they put him in jail, his bail is only $8,500. So this motherfucker tried to strangle his girlfriend to kill her. And he tried to take her phone away for-- you know, so she couldn't contact help. And it's only $8,500 bail? That is not enough. Now, granted, he was a celebrity many, many a moon ago. I don't know how much she got in her bank account. But $8,500?

No, that bail should be like, $100,000. Keep him in jail. Because yeah, there is an order of protection. But I'm just saying, she going to get out of jail and probably try to go back and contact her again and do whatever. So you know, I mean, it's just-- $8,500 is not enough. I think the government needs to do-- really do more when it comes to domestic violence stuff. Putting restraining orders and orders of protection-- people break that shit all the time. If your motive is to kill or to hurt or to get somebody, you're going to make that happen. So I hope that the girlfriend is safe. I haven't heard any news about it this week, so I'm assuming that she is safe. And yeah. Child stars be going through. Britney, Zachery, like-- what you say? Thought you said him. Does one regional Broadway show and now she's a child star.

- So then is it regional or is it Broadway?

MONÉT X CHANGE: Wasn't it West End, honey?

- That was right. We have to go across the pond. [INAUDIBLE] right here.

MONÉT X CHANGE: But you are going to go across the pond, so that's good. If I was a child star, I would like to think that my life would not be so cray. But I mean, I'm an adult star and my life is a whole mess. So imagine if I grew up in the glam and the roll and the tour life and the glitz and the-- I'd probably be really-- I probably would be really messed up. Thank you, Lord.

Patty, you're not a mess. That'd be great, though. This is so good. It's so good. Mmm. I am drinking Crystal Light and Prosecco at home. This is so-- this is so good.

I saw the story. And I was like, I have to talk to "The X Change Rate" viewers about this. This story is crazy. And shows why it pays to be nice to people. Well, and again, you shouldn't be nice to people to get paid, but it's an added benefit of being a good person. This story's so crazy. Andre Zarre is this like, Polish man. He was a leading contemporary gallerist in New York City and the world. And he was like selling art-- abstract art pieces. Like, you know, I-- unless it's something like a Banksy, how do these art people make-- how do art people make so-- art sellers and dealers are so rich. How do you get into that career? Do you just have to have a good eye?

- I mean--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Like, ooh, this is pretty. I'll buy it. I'll trade it.

- Sort of.

MONÉT X CHANGE: That's crazy. Anyway, he was a multibillionaire-- billionaire? He's a multimillionaire. He dies and leaves his entire fortune to a deli owner in Queens. This multimillionaire dollar empire of art-- he passed away and left his entire everything-- everything he owned went to this deli worker in Queens. His name is Jose-- Jose Yeye. Yeje. Jose Yeje. That is crazy.

So let me tell the story. So Andre-- the guy who died-- he bought a-- he bought a deli in Queens when his health was deteriorating and wasn't doing very well. He was also nearly blind in both of his eyes. And he met this deli worker. He was-- he was-- he was the counter man at a deli. And you know, they would like-- but he lived in Manhattan. How was he-- how did he go to a deli in Queens? How did that happen? There a lot of-- [LAUGHS] Patty. There a lot of holes in the story, but he met him in Queens.

The deli worker has a wife and four kids. And they first originally met in 2016, where the Polish guy wanted to buy into his ice cream business. Because the deli worker, Jose, had an ice cream business. And he was-- and he was a wholesaler. And the Polish guy was-- wanted to-- was looking into becoming a distributor. That kind of fell through or whatever. So-- but they became friends and the deal.

And Jose became like, his caretaker. Jose would come to the-- to the penthouse suite over there on 79th Street, whatever, on the East Side. And he would like-- as he's getting sicker and sicker, Jose sort of like-- bathing him and feeding him and going to get his groceries and all this stuff.

Which I'm like, if you're a multimillionaire, you can afford to buy a home attendance. So something about this is just not all the way. It's just-- all the dots are not connecting to me. If you a multimillionaire, you do not need-- maybe he had a side hustle as a caretaker?

- I mean, also wouldn't you want someone you were close to and had a relationship to take care of you over someone you didn't know.

MONÉT X CHANGE: I guess. I guess. But not Jose. With his wife and his four kids, he got-- he got stuff going on. If you fall-- you pee in the bed at 2:00 in the morning, you think Jose can come from Queens? Getting from Queens-- that car ride-- that's a good 45 minutes. Bitch, I'm already soaked. I'm already on the floor. Having a live-in-- these people normally have like, a live-in caretaker who's there for them 24/7.

So-- but that's that. That's not for me to decide. That's-- that's his-- that's all his own business. And yeah-- at one time, at one point, the Polish guy was going to move into Jose's apartment or house in Queens. Which I'm like, you want to move-- you want to move into his-- with his four kids? They're like, screaming temper tantrums, throwing Switches at your head. Like, who knows what these kids are doing?

So a lot of people are speculating that the poor guy was blind and super sick, so he wasn't like-- didn't have aware of all of his comings and goings. And the lawyer-- his lawyer says, no, they were really, really, really close. And Jose was the closest person in his life. And she saw it all transpire. She doesn't think anything nefarious happened.

But you know, where my mind is going, this-- this is a Lifetime movie. I think that maybe Jose and the lawyer, they're in cahoots. She's like, oh, yeah, we're going to sign these documents over. And then you give me a portion of what you're going to get from the earnings. He's blind, he won't know. And he doesn't have any family in America, they all live out in Europe. Like, let's go. You know what I mean? This is some Lifetime shit. Girl.

But no, the neighbors and-- also, all the neighbors and co-workers in his-- neighbors and co-workers? All the neighbors and workers in the building, none of them liked Jose. They said that Jose-- that he was not a good guy. Like, they weren't here for Jose. But when he got really sick in hospital, they called Jose. So I don't know. It's all really weird. Who knows.

His family in Europe got nothing. They got-- he did not leave anything. In the last eight months that he knew-- he got really close to Jose, he left everything that he had to Jose. And the family in Europe got nothing. And they're really mad about it. But Jose is giving them some of the money. Which is, I guess, a nice goodwill thing. Maybe he feels bad. He's like, I swindled this man for all his money and the least I can do is give his nephew in England a couple of million. Like, here you go girl. Here's-- here's $500,000. That's for you.

- That's good [INAUDIBLE].

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh my god, good-- good that can make you-- we'll make you start your life over, honey. [LAUGHTER]

Now today, for this week's Halloween Highlight. Ooh, it's spooky in here! Look at-- look-- look at our lovely little spooky decor, Patty, do you like it? So cool. Yes!

So "RuPaul's Drag Race"-- obviously the show that put so many queens on the map-- and out of it, things like Boulet Brothers was-- "Dragula" was birthed. Well, "Dragula" normally does a Halloween special. And this year, they were continuing on with their tradition of their Halloween special by doing "Dragula" presents Resurrection. It's kind of like an all-stars-esque thing, where they're bringing back past contestants to compete for-- I'm guessing a cash prize. Who knows?

But "Drag Race" is doing their own Halloween special this year. But "Drag Race" did a Christmas special first, so I think they're going to start doing all the holidays. They going to start doing a Thanksgiving special, there's probably going to be a Drag Race of Love for Valentine's Day. There's probably going to be all the specials. Who knows? "Drag Race" is everywhere.

So they're doing their Halloween special where they're bringing back 11 of the 12 queens from this past season to compete. Well, not compete. It's going to be like the Christmas special. There's going to be like, set scenes and like lip syncs and kiki sessions-- all that kind of stuff.

And what is-- what I think is really, really, really dope-- by the way, I'm probably excited to see maybe three of them perform. No shade. I can think of three of the girls I'm like, oh, I want to see what they're going to do. Everyone else, I'm like. You can't think of any girls that you want to perform in there? No. I didn't think so.

- I don't know what we're-- I don't know-- Out of what?

MONÉT X CHANGE: "Drag Race." The last season, bitch. With [INAUDIBLE]. Right.

So-- but what's really good and what's really dope and I think it's a really nice move for "Drag Race" is that throughout, when you're watching the special, which is airing October 30th at 3:00 PM Eastern Standard Time on WOW Presents Plus, on the app-- it's as cheap as a cup of coffee, whatever their tagline is so you get WOW Presents Plus-- is that, throughout the show, you can Venmo and you can tip the girls. And they're going to pool all the money together. And then they're going to divide it between all of the 12 girls.

"Drag Race" is not getting a cut, "World of Wonder" is not getting a cut. The money is going strictly to the girls. Because you know, these girls, their season came out through a pandemic. And they weren't able to travel the world and the globe like so many of us before them have done. So recoup all that money spent the show.

I know some girls who have-- I know a girl who went on "Drag Race"-- and I'm not going to say what season, how recent or old-- she went on "Drag Race" and she spent $40,000. Four zero comma zero-- oh, well, y'all are seeing it in mirrored, reverse. Four zero comma zero, zero, zero. Like, $40,000 to be on the show. So you know-- I'm not saying all the girls do that, but I'm sure they spend big coin.

So it's nice that the show is-- I think they should put it on VH1. It should be-- can you imagine the amount-- the amount of money they would make if it was on-- streamed on VH1?

- Right.

MONÉT X CHANGE: But you know, WOW Presents Plus, it's good too. Woo-hoo, we're all digital. And yeah, so that's a good move. So if you are free at that-- at that time of the day-- and I'm sure you can probably watch it later, too-- you should check out the "RuPaul's Drag Race" Halloween special for the new-- for the returning girls of season 12.

Girl, people trying to play me as one dimensional, but no, mama. Just like all the other ogres, I got layers, OK? Check out some of said layers in the latest episode of Street Beatz.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

MONÉT X CHANGE: Here we go, girl. Where's the light? This the light. No, this way. Oh, this is the light, honey.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

[SINGING IN GERMAN]

[MUSIC PLAYING]

[SINGING IN GERMAN]

- Whatever it is that you're going to do--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, thank you.

- --it's-- it's amazing.

MONÉT X CHANGE: It's so fun--

- What are you doing?

MONÉT X CHANGE: --just-- just doing my makeup outside here.

- Oh, yeah?

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah. Yeah.

[SINGING IN GERMAN]

- Why is a boy putting on makeup?

MONÉT X CHANGE: Why does a boy put on makeup? Anyone can wear makeup.

- You look really nice.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Thank you. I appreciate that.

- When I grow up, I'm going to paint my hair blue.

MONÉT X CHANGE: You want blue hair? Girl, just get you a wig. Just get you a blue wig and bloop. You know, girl? Don't you dye your beautiful hair.

- Where are your eyebrows?

MONÉT X CHANGE: I shaved them off.

- Why?

MONÉT X CHANGE: Because, you know, it's summer and it's hot. Bzzt. You don't do that. You don't do that.

- Oh, that looks good. Is that like, a highlight? Oh, yes, that's exactly what it is. It's a highlight. How did you know that?

[MUSIC PLAYING]

[MUSIC PLAYING]

- [INAUDIBLE] shots.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Are you visiting?

- Yeah, I just saw you, you know, across the way. I said, he's too stunning. I've got to take a picture.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, thank you.

- Oh my god.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Hello.

- Gosh, you-- how did you change your dress?

MONÉT X CHANGE: Magic.

- You look just like a girl.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Thank you.

- Are you sure you're not performing?

MONÉT X CHANGE: I'm not performing-- you know, I might go over there and dance. It's got really good music. Right? You guys-- you guys have fun in New York City.

[INTERPOSING VOICES]

MONÉT X CHANGE: Bye, y'all. Bye.

- I want a picture of--

MONÉT X CHANGE: I was. Were you Team Monét? No? You were Team Kameron Michaels, weren't you?

- Smells good.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Do I? You know, I showered today, against my better judgment.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

- Can I get your first and last name?

MONÉT X CHANGE: Monét.

- M-O-N-E-T?

MONÉT X CHANGE: Uh-huh.

- Last name?

MONÉT X CHANGE: Change.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

MONÉT X CHANGE: For our next guest, I have one thing to say. "A yella coat and a cigarette, ah dew think." Y'all, make some noise for Ms. Baga Chipz.

BAGA CHIPZ: Hello, Monét! Oh my god, it's so good to see you. I love you.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Baga, I fucking love you. You are so iconic. You are a queen where you do the damn thing, you're funny, and you don't give a fuck about people's expectations or thoughts about you. You are Baga one hundred, all the time. I love that shit.

BAGA CHIPZ: Yeah, well, like I said, that-- it's just-- that is my mentality. Don't let anyone knock you down. You know I mean? I'm not-- I'm not a makeup queen. I'm not a seamstress. But I'm entertaining as-- can you swear on the show?

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, girl, fuck, I say pussy, pussy--

BAGA CHIPZ: Yeah.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck.

BAGA CHIPZ: I'm entertaining as fuck. And I'm myself. And I don't give a shit what anybody thinks of me. If I look like shit on the runway, I'm still going to say a bit. I'm still going to work it like I'm Kate Moss. So, you know what I mean? Yeah, just, I know-- yeah, I-- there's so many different types of drag? You know? You have your pageant queens, your beauty queens.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah.

BAGA CHIPZ: And yeah, I'm just a-- I'm-- because I was never really a drag queen. I've just always been like a comedian, actor kind of thing. I'm very SNL more than look like a woman kind of thing. So yeah, I don't mind playing the old maid or the old grandma role. Yeah. I love doing characters and acting, so yeah.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah, character choices.

BAGA CHIPZ: Yeah, just comedy, acting--

MONÉT X CHANGE: That's-- that's how I first met you. I met you at-- my first time I ever met Baga Chipz, it was my first UK London gig. It was at G-A-Y. And I just remember you having such great one liners for the [INAUDIBLE]. So for those of you who are Americans and don't know about G-A-Y, they have a nightclub. They do this trick party, which [INAUDIBLE] famously got like booed off the stage. Oh, it's called Porn Idol. Porn Idol, thank you, Patty. Porn Idol at G-A-Y. And you just were so funny.

And cut to two years later, you are one of the breakout stars of "Drag Race UK."

BAGA CHIPZ: It's absolutely crazy. Like you said, I was-- I loved G-A-Y Porn Idol every way. You know what I mean. It was-- it's basically like the-- it's like--

MONÉT X CHANGE: You and Ola.

BAGA CHIPZ: Yeah. Yeah, sort of a tutu. I looked--

[INTERPOSING VOICES]

BAGA CHIPZ: And we just-- it's basically just American Idol, but you had to get the nubs out instead of singing. And yeah, it's just-- it's just-- like you-- it's just changed drastically. Like [INAUDIBLE] I was like, I'm going to get a few more gigs. I might be on it for a few episodes. If I could-- I got on it. I mean, even if I go third at the beginning, I'll be fine. I can make a bit more money. I can do more gigs.

And then I made it to the final and I was like, what the fuck? How did that happen? Even I was surprised. I was like, I'm on the show with about 500 pounds worth of stuff. Literally charity shop. Just like, thrift store stuff. And it was just like, old-- some of it looked good. But I-- you know, I mean, I had no money in the bank. I was always spending it.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Well, girl, that's the thing. And I think that-- I just kind of want fans for the show to remember is that, oftentimes, girls going [INAUDIBLE] show-- the show becomes this thing where you have to have the most expensive this, you've got to have [INAUDIBLE]. But you look at the first couple seasons, girls were not going on there with loads of money. Girls were local girls working a couple of gigs out of the week, making-- maybe-- if you made $300 a week from tips and getting-- and your pay, that was a lot of money.

So I want fans to really remember that that's what "Drag Race" really is about, is bitches who are local girls working hard as "fok"--

BAGA CHIPZ: "Fok."

MONÉT X CHANGE: --"if I maht." You know, to be fierce. And you are living proof of that. And you still turned it out. You looked great. And you sold yourself to the world. People fell in love with you.

BAGA CHIPZ: Aww.

MONÉT X CHANGE: I was talking to Blu and Blu was saying, basically, you kind of got the-- I know Vivienne got the crown, whatever. But you got the same opportunity as her, which was-- because y'all couldn't win $100,000, but y'all got the show on WOW. So you kind of got a piece of the big pie at the end.

BAGA CHIPZ: I'll get-- like, it's just been crazy. Like I just can't believe how my life has changed-- literally just changed overnight. Not just financially-- I went on the show. Like I said, I had 500 pound. And I just was like, right, if you're going to get far, you're going to get far on being funny and personality and all that. So I was just like, personality, personality, personality. And then I was knocking the bitches off one by one. And I was like, yeah, come on, faggot. And then I did my "match be-ah" and all that--

MONÉT X CHANGE: "Much be-ah."

BAGA CHIPZ: "Match be-ah." And then I-- and I went and snatched game with Vivienne. And then obviously, the Frock Destroyers' "Breakup (Bye Bye)."

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah. Girl, let me tell you, that is-- "Break Up (Bye Bye)," to me, is one of-- I would say, top five most iconic "Drag Race" songs. Like-- and y'all have been rumored to be doing Eurovision. Now, Blu wouldn't tell me that's true. Are the Frock Destroyers doing Eurovision, Baga? Can you please spill the tea here, live on this show?

BAGA CHIPZ: Well, it was number two in the official charts in the UK.

MONÉT X CHANGE: That's crazy.

BAGA CHIPZ: In the UK--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Bitch, RuPaul has not had a number two hit in decades.

BAGA CHIPZ: And like-- and there's more to come. So I'm not saying anything, but just beware, because there is a lot of Frock Destroyers coming. But I can't say anything about Eurovision, because if I say anything, we won't be on it. And they'll just be like, let's get Sum Ting Wong to sing a song.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, no. Nobody wants that. Please, no. Baga, don't--

BAGA CHIPZ: No, please!

MONÉT X CHANGE: And you know what, that-- you--

BAGA CHIPZ: Like, we-- so--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Go ahead?

BAGA CHIPZ: Would you-- like I said, with the costumes and stuff, I brought only 500 pounds, you know I mean. But if there's ever an All Stars UK, or an All Stars Atlantic, or an All Stars this-- oh, bitch has got money now. So bitch has got--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Girl. So you would be-- you would definitely do an "All Stars" season?

BAGA CHIPZ: Oh, yeah, of course. I love the show. I've always watched the American one. I've been-- I've just-- like, when I watched you the first time and then on "All Stars" and I was like, that pussy has been stepped all the way to the moon. But the thing is--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Thank you, thank--

BAGA CHIPZ: --it was brilliant-- it was brilliant on your season. But "All Stars," it was just like--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Money, girl. You get a little more money.

BAGA CHIPZ: Well, if I-- if I walked in the workroom and you was doing-- and you was performing like you was on "All Stars," I would just-- I would've just been like, fuck this, I'm off. You know, right? It's just too-- no, I mean, you absolutely killed. And--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Thank you, sis. Thank you. So Baga-- so before "RuPaul's Drag Race," you were obviously no stranger to reality-- to reality TV. You did "Drag Queens of London" for two years? Or one year.

BAGA CHIPZ: Oh no, drag-- yeah, it was only for a year, but it was-- you're talking about eight-- about six, seven years ago. And--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Six, seven years ago.

BAGA CHIPZ: Yeah, It was long-- and I literally had no lashes on. I was falling [INAUDIBLE]. I was just very grungy, Amy Winehouse. I used to just like-- yeah. Yeah, I was very Courtney Love. And just very mascara. Very Adore Delano.

MONÉT X CHANGE: It's a vibe. It's a look, girl.

BAGA CHIPZ: Yeah. Oh, Yeah, I looked like trailer trash. I really did. But-- but yeah, like any job, the longer you do it, you get better. You get "much be-ah" at your job. And you learn your craft. And you learn skills on stage. And your makeup gets better. And your hairs get-- hair gets better. And your costumes get better. So, yeah, it was fun to do. It was a bit like the housewives-- like "The Real Housewives," but drag queens.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah, they should-- maybe now they have so many of you guys-- especially on "Drag Race"-- they should bring it back and really profile y'all and watch y'all around. Because I think people-- fans are so interested in what our lives are outside of the nightclubs and the meet and greets. They're like, what are these bitches doing today? Is Baga Chipz really going to MNS and buying her bananas? Is she really going to Tesco to get that little cheap salad? You know what I mean? Like people watching, they're like, what you fucking doing?

BAGA CHIPZ: That's what I love. I love all that. And I'm-- without saying too much, I have actually filmed some stuff like that. But it's for British television.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, work. OK.

BAGA CHIPZ: But I've done-- you're talking about 10 TV shows, you know what I mean? In Britain. So I don't-- in Britain, we've got like ITV-- I'm sure you've watched it [INAUDIBLE]. And we have like BBC One, BBC Two. So I did "Celebrity MasterChef" on BBC One. I did "Celebrity Pointless," it's like a game show--

MONÉT X CHANGE: British people love from reality TV. Tiffany Pollard on "Celebrity Big Brother UK" is one of my favorite-- her and Gemma Collins are now two of my icons because of "CBB UK." So good.

BAGA CHIPZ: Yeah, well, I'm doing a show in two weeks with Gemma. But me and Gemma have got [INAUDIBLE]--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh my god.

BAGA CHIPZ: --as well. So it's just--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Please let her know, from Monét to her, I'm obsessed with Gemma Collins. I love her. She's every day.

BAGA CHIPZ: Well, when I'm with her-- when I'm with her, I'll get her on FaceTime and you can talk to her.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Please, please, please.

BAGA CHIPZ: Because we're going to--

MONÉT X CHANGE: And, and--

BAGA CHIPZ: Oh, girl, sorry--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah?

BAGA CHIPZ: Yeah, like I said, we're quite similar. I mean, we're both deluded. We're both blonde. And we're both-- we both-- yeah, just, we love our-- we love our food.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Love, love, love Gemma. But Baga, I think another really great thing is was this-- which I think was really beautiful-- was Saara Aalto collabing with you. And-- because she was so sick and tired of seeing people collab with drag queens and the drag queen is just holding the mirror or doing a fierce walk. She's like, no, I want to feature this artist. So that was a huge moment, yeah?

BAGA CHIPZ: Yeah. Well, she literally just messaged me. And I was like-- I was-- I've always been a fan of Saara. You know I mean? She's-- I mean, she's a big part of the LGBT community. She's married to a lovely woman. And she-- it's true what you said--

MONÉT X CHANGE: I didn't know she was queer. That's beautiful.

BAGA CHIPZ: Yeah, she's a lesbian. And she literally-- she literally just messaged me out the blue. And she wanted to do a duet? You know what I mean? She wanted to do-- have the drag queen sing, not just-- like you said-- just stand in the background and [INAUDIBLE] and all that. She was like, no. She gave me a rap and everything. I was like, oh my god. Baga Chipz is rapping and, yeah.

MONÉT X CHANGE: This is why having queer people, lesbians, making decisions is good for the community. Because they're looking out for us.

BAGA CHIPZ: Yeah.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah. Love it.

BAGA CHIPZ: She messaged me and she was just like, I'm really-- I'm a big fan of you, Baga. And I was like, what, you're a fan of me? Because she's really big in the UK. And she came second on British "X Factor." She's been on many shows. And when I heard the song, I was like, this is a tune. And it's just very summery. It's like when you're on holiday and just very-- very Mykonos, very Greece. You know, I mean, I'd be [INAUDIBLE]. So I was like, yeah. And I recorded my part-- because of corona-- by myself. And I recorded it where the Spice Girls recorded their album, the first ever Spice Girl album. So I was like--

MONÉT X CHANGE: God, for real?

BAGA CHIPZ: Yeah, in the exact studio. I was like, this is where the Spice Girls--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Love that.

BAGA CHIPZ: --recorded "Wannabe" and everything. So yeah. And it did really well. It was number one in Finland. So that's good.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Girl--

BAGA CHIPZ: Number one in Finland.

MONÉT X CHANGE: --listen, that's more number ones than Bob has ever had. So win for you, OK, girl? Facts. What have you--

BAGA CHIPZ: I [INAUDIBLE] about the number two and the number one.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah, girl. When are you coming back to New York, Baga? You said you loved it so much. When you coming back to the Big-- well, obviously after the pandemic. Do you-- you should-- would you ever live in New York City? Is that a thing you could do, you think?

BAGA CHIPZ: 100%. New York is--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Really?

BAGA CHIPZ: --when I went there-- you can ask any of the girls-- I didn't want to leave. I literally was like, oh my god. This city's amazing. It's-- England don't-- you'll see it-- like everybody thinks London people-- English people are like, hello, hello! You sit on the tube in London, it's just like. Nobody smiles. They're just very busy. They just want to get from A to Z.

When I was in New York, there was like, good-- good evening, ma'am. Good evening, sir. Have a good day. Have a good day. Would you like large fries with that? And I'm just like, oh my god, I want to live here. And the bars were lovely--

MONÉT X CHANGE: What New York were you in?

BAGA CHIPZ: They were lovely. Like, do you know the people in the street that do the traffic and all that? And I was like-- I literally felt like-- oh my god. I felt like Samantha Jones. I was just like, oh! And I just didn't-- and the streets are so clean-- like, where-- in Manhattan, the streets are so clean. Because you can't-- I'm not going to lie, I was having a cigarette outside. And anybody would think I murdered someone. It was like, you can't smoke around here. You can't smoke around here. I was like, oh shit.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, yeah, that is the thing. They don't fucking [INAUDIBLE]. Yeah, that is true. Yeah.

BAGA CHIPZ: Yes. In England, we're all like. It's really European, isn't it? You know, I mean smoking. You know, I could whip-- but I could whip out a pistol. They wouldn't bat an eyelid. I pull out a Superking cigarette, it's like, aah! It's true. I-- yeah, I-- me and The Vivienne-- me and The Vivienne were like, we need a cigarette, we need a cigarette. But every time we went for a cigarette, people were looking at us like we'd just punched someone in the face.

But yeah, we-- I love New York. And we went to loads of bars. And yeah. I was at a party in a penthouse. It was like, in the top floor, you saw the whole city.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Love that.

BAGA CHIPZ: I was with Honey Davenport and Yvie Oddly. And we were just partying. And it was like--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Work.

BAGA CHIPZ: I just had to pinch myself. I was like, oh my god. I'm with these queens. [INAUDIBLE] too. And-- and yeah. And DragCon New York is-- is just incredible. I love the UK one, because everyone knew who I was then because of "Drag Race."

MONÉT X CHANGE: Right, yeah.

BAGA CHIPZ: It'd been aired. So I was making that money on that merch store.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Well, listen. I'm coming to London. You and I will have a drink. We'll have-- I don't smoke, but I'll have a fag with you, just so I can look and feel cool. And we will kiki more up in London. I'm so excited.

BAGA CHIPZ: Yes. We're going to dinner. We're going to have cocktails. I'm going to come on the opening night. The producer's already got my ticket for the opening night. So I will be there. I'll give you a good look backstage. And I'll be there cheering on my gorgeous sisters, because I love you all.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Thank you, babe. I love you so much. Thank you for talking with us and I will see you in-- I'll see you across the pond in a few short weeks, my love.

BAGA CHIPZ: I can't wait to see you, babe. I'll see you-- I'll see you in England and we'll have some fish and chips, babe. It's going to be amazing.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Fish and chips. Thank you, babe. Mwah, mwah. Thank you, boo.

BAGA CHIPZ: Listen to some Adele. I love you, babe. Good night!

MONÉT X CHANGE: Love you.

BAGA CHIPZ: Mwah.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Becoming one of the breakout stars from season one of "Stranger Things," our first guest, stay booked and blessed. Please help me, the naturally red Ms. Shannon Purser.

SHANNON PURSER: Thank you so much for having me. I'm so excited.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Thank you so much for being here. I was just telling you before we started recording, I live for the candle. I live for the black. And I love your nails. I'm literally obsessed.

SHANNON PURSER: Thank you. Thank you so much. Yeah, I just felt very witchy this year. Like all holed up in my apartment. So it's perfect.

MONÉT X CHANGE: I love it. Listen, when this episode airs, I will be screenshot-- I will taking screenshot and sending a picture of your nails to my nail tag and being like, um, I want a set.

SHANNON PURSER: Wow, I'm honored. That's-- that's amazing. Thank you.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Shannon, I have to say, one of my favorite things about you is that you are beautiful, natural redhead. You know, a lot of hoes be out here, faking the red. But you are all-natural, embracing it. You-- not [INAUDIBLE]-- Emma Stone. All of the greats are redheads, in my opinion.

SHANNON PURSER: Thank you. I appreciate it. Yeah, my sister is a redhead too. And we're kind of just silently judging some of these girls who come up with-- [INAUDIBLE]. I get why you want to join the club. I get it.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Now, I promise there'll be no more Barb talk, but it is-- I mean, people literally lost their minds about the Barb. People were having seances trying to bring you back. It was crazy. How does it feel to have such a huge impact? And it was your first role, yeah?

SHANNON PURSER: Yeah, that was my first acting job ever.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Like, that is literally the dream. That never happens.

SHANNON PURSER: I know. I know, it never happens. It's so bizarre. Like, even now, I think I've kind of blocked it out of my memory. Because I was just in shock the whole time. Because I was just some kid in senior year of high school who just got this part. And then everything totally went out of control.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah, it went out of control. You you did-- you've done features for Netflix, "Riverdale," so many amazing, amazing, amazing projects. What so far has one of the most dynamic ones? Obviously [INAUDIBLE], but in terms of dynamic to work with-- like a really good one to work with?

SHANNON PURSER: Ah, that's a good question. I did-- I mean, "Stranger Things" was just so cool because it was my first job. And I love 80s sci-fi, so it was perfect--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Right?

SHANNON PURSER: --as a first job. But "Riverdale"--

MONÉT X CHANGE: And the styling. I love the styling of "Stranger Things." I love the looks you got to wear on it.

SHANNON PURSER: Me too. I did it and then my mom was like, I had that shirt that you're wearing.

MONÉT X CHANGE: No.

SHANNON PURSER: Yeah.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh my god. Well, shifting gears, I mean-- so I saw the trailer for "Equal." And my sis and I watched it. And girl it looks so good. Before we talk about it, let's take a look at it really quick.

- We arrested around 3,000 homosexuals.

- The police department knows their sex deviants.

- In 1952, admitting to being gay could get you 15 years to life. Cops would contact our employers. Publish our names and addresses in the paper.

- We were going to lose our jobs, lose our homes. We're tired of being victims.

- I declared under oath that I was homosexual and I wasn't ashamed of it.

- For the first time, we went insane. We had the right to be who we are.

- We should be standing up on our hind legs and demanding our full equality.

- We are all fed up.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

- You can be proud of being gay. You can be proud of being yourself. That, in itself, was radical.

- Are you a man or a woman?

- Well, [INAUDIBLE], first one has to determine what is a man and what is a woman.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

Sick and tired of being shut down.

- People who are just coming into their own in the world must be as dramatic about it as they possibly can.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

Time to take what we deserve now.

- We can't just let ourselves be attacked, pushed around again and again.

- [INAUDIBLE]

[MUSIC PLAYING]

- You can't force us into your boxes anymore. We are not doing it.

- [INAUDIBLE]

[MUSIC PLAYING]

MONÉT X CHANGE: Shannon, it looks so good, so good, so good, so, so, so, so good. Ugh. I love it.

SHANNON PURSER: Thank you. Thank you so much. I-- yeah, I'm just so excited about this one. It was such an amazing experience. And like, all the cast and crew are queer. So, it was just this really unique--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, see, I love that.

SHANNON PURSER: Yeah. It was so great.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah. And you're-- you identified as a queer woman. How did it feel to channel our ancient queer gods to do this role?

SHANNON PURSER: Truly, I mean, that's-- that's really how I felt. Just super humbled and overwhelmed and excited. I don't know. I just-- I've had such a journey getting to where I am at this point in my life. I grew up in the Bible belt in Georgia, like super Christian. So like, if you'd asked me a few years ago if I would've taken this part, I would have said no. Because I would have been terrified. So to be able to do this confidently and to feel like I'm honoring these women who came before me is so, so special.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah. I always-- I firmly believe-- and people will get mad at me-- but I'm like, lesbians are literally the superhumans. They're women, so fierce. They're queer, fierce. And lesbians are just boss ass-- they always-- all the lesbians in my life are women that have positively effected great things in my life. And I love lesbian women and energy.

SHANNON PURSER: Absolutely great. They're like the blueprint. I'm like--

MONÉT X CHANGE: You know what I mean? Love it. So I want to play one really cute game, Shannon. It's called The Strangest Thing, OK? So what I'm going to do is, I'm going to give you a thing or a place. And you just tell me the strangest thing that happened to you then. Really-- really quick, rapid fire.

SHANNON PURSER: OK.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Here we go. The strangest thing on Halloween.

SHANNON PURSER: Ooh, probably that I just stayed home every year, because we weren't allowed to celebrate it.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, you weren't-- see, well, I grew up in the islands. And we don't really celebrate Halloween. So when I came to America, I was like, OK, that's the thing I've seen on "Hocus Pocus" and TV. I get it. But I was never allowed to celebrate, either. So I've never really been a Halloween person, but whatever. The strangest thing that happened to you in high school.

SHANNON PURSER: High school. OK. Well, there are a lot of strange things. I went to a cult Christian school. And we would do performances where we pretended to be the-- basically, the seven sins. And yeah, it was just a lot. There's a lot of [INAUDIBLE]. I was a weird kid. That's basically it.

MONÉT X CHANGE: You know, I just finished-- speaking [INAUDIBLE], I actually finished "Handmaid's Tale." I know I'm late to the train. I know everyone-- "Handmaid's Tale"-- girl, have you ever watched it? It's so good. I'm obsessed.

SHANNON PURSER: I saw the first season and I was like, wow, this hits real close to home.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Got you, got you. The strangest thing on the set of "Riverdale."

SHANNON PURSER: Oh, strangest thing. Oh, god. I know these are supposed to be like, rapid-fire questions.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, no, no. Girl, I say that, but I'm the same way. I'm like, hmm.

SHANNON PURSER: [INAUDIBLE] so much. The strangest thing that happened on "Riverdale." Probably getting the job. Because they just invited me into the workroom and were like, hey, we saw you on "Stranger Things" and, like, do you want to be on our show? And I was like--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Work.

SHANNON PURSER: --sure. So I kind of just showed up.

MONÉT X CHANGE: I think the universe is telling you, Shannon, that you're-- you need-- that we needed you as an actress. The universe is like, literally every sign, everything is like, Shannon, act.

SHANNON PURSER: Please. Lord, I hope so. This is my dream.

MONÉT X CHANGE: The strangest thing that's ever happened to you on a first date. The strangest thing that has happened to me was a guy invited me on a date-- pre-"Drag Race." I literally had no money to my name. And I mean, he racked up a bill. He may have had, I want to say, five to six drinks. We went to a place called Del Fresco. It's a little fancy restaurant. I really-- I was like, OK.

So the bill ended up being about $422. And he was like, yeah, you should pay for it. I was like, let's go Dutch. And he was like, no, I don't have my card on me. I don't have my wallet or anything. I was like, work. I ended up paying $422 for a date.

SHANNON PURSER: Wow.

MONÉT X CHANGE: We didn't even have sex! Anyway, what about you?

SHANNON PURSER: I don't have anything to compete with that. Like, the weirdest thing that happened to me was, I was on a date where I had to do all the talking. And I mean all the talking.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Hate that.

SHANNON PURSER: It was--

MONÉT X CHANGE: At that point, I'm just going home. What's the strangest thing that happened to you at work? Like, when you used to work at the movie theater back in the day?

SHANNON PURSER: Yeah. Yeah. I think things kind of got really weird towards the end. So I was still working there after "Stranger Things" came out. Because I was like, I don't know if I'm ever going to act again. So I need to keep this job. And one one of my last days, I went back to my car and there was this couple waiting for me by my car. I don't know how they knew which car was mine. And--

MONÉT X CHANGE: How did they-- see, no ma'am. That's weird.

SHANNON PURSER: We saw you on "Stranger Things." And I was like, OK. Like, how do you-- how do you know what car I drive? It was--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, that's creepy, though. No, no, no, no, no, no, no. Amidst of all the COVID craziness, do you have any plans of celebrating Halloween this year?

SHANNON PURSER: Yeah. I think in my own way. I'm kind of witchy. And I love spooky stuff. So I'll probably just be watching scary movies and dressing up for nobody but myself. But [INAUDIBLE].

MONÉT X CHANGE: Are you based in LA?

SHANNON PURSER: Mm-hmm.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Ah, jealous. You know, I often think about moving to LA. I'm like--

SHANNON PURSER: You and me--

MONÉT X CHANGE: I'm just such a New York girl. I'm in New York. I don't know if I could do it.

SHANNON PURSER: I get it. I love New York so much. I lived there for a little bit. And I would love to go back.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah. Yeah. I feel like my time here has maybe expired. It's time to explore-- or like, Portland. I think Portland is a great city. Portland is weird, but it's still vibey and cute. So maybe Portland. We'll see, though.

SHANNON PURSER: Yeah. Yeah, same. I love Oregon. That'd be cool.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah. Well, Shannon, I-- "Equal" looks like a great film-- great docuseries. Film, docuseries. You're-- I don't think you know how beautiful, how important it is to see a queer woman playing a role like this and giving it life. And for all the young queer kids-- like you said, you didn't know about a lot of stuff that happens in it. I'm sure I have no idea the queer history that's in it. So it's really important. It's timely. And I'm so happy and so excited to watch it.

SHANNON PURSER: Thank you. Me too. Thank you so much. I--

MONÉT X CHANGE: And thank you so much for being here with us on this pre-Halloween episode.

SHANNON PURSER: Yes, thank you. Thank you for having me.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Thank you, my dear. Have a good day. Mwah. Bye.

And that's what we call a show, girl. Oh, you missed my little catch, Patty. That was the show this week. Thank y'all so much for watching. Thank y'all for-- with all of our little technical glitches and difficulties, we made it work. I can-- I long for the day when we are back in studio and living our lives like normal people. Because this digital shit is for the birds. But I love it for you.

Please check out the show-- podcast form is available wherever podcasts are found-- Apple, Spotify, Google Play, SoundCloud-- all the places. And give us a five star rating and a comment. It will really mean a lot to me. Until next time. Thank you and remember to always keep your currency in check. Peace.