Today we’d like to introduce you to Jordan Almond.
Hi Jordan, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Well, if we really want to go back, I started doing drag when I would wear my mom’s slips as gowns and walk around the house in her heels. Then I turned 10 and grew out of her shoes (I have big feet; 16 in women’s to be exact) and had to put dress up away for a little bit. Then I came out a bit before the COVID-19 pandemic and went full force, spending my money only on makeup and an entirely new wardrobe, cutting all of my clothes much shorter and into crop tops. I sustained this until college, and then I realized that I should probably start saving some money. When I got to SDSU, I was introduced to drag, despite being surrounded by it and reminded of it through the thousands of videos in my YouTube watch history. I went to my first drag show and instantly became hooked, auditioning for the SDSU Fall Show in 2022, and it has been uphill ever since.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I would definitely not call the road that I have been on “smooth,” but it has been extremely insightful, and I would not have had it any other way. I always grew up in a conservative household in a conservative town, so being gay didn’t seem like an option, even though I always knew there was something that made me different. It got to a point when I was 16, when my mom asked me, “When you do start to date, would you be dating boys or girls?”, which thank the Lord for because I would have never had the guts to bring up the topic on my own. Despite my parents knowing this about me for a while, because of my accelerated pace, they could not keep up and were unable to understand me. Despite the misunderstanding constantly being apparent in my house, the one thing they were clear on was that I was loved, and they did not want to do anything that would make them lose me. We may not see eye to eye on everything, but we love each other. One thing that really showed my parents and brothers solidarity with me was during Christmas time of 2021. It was my first semester in college away from home, and my grandma, who I was very close to, had died about 2 months prior. I was just looking forward to a real Christmas with my entire family, coming together for our first family Christmas without my grandma. I received a call a couple weeks before Christmas that my presence was not welcomed at my extended family’s house, where Christmas was being held, if I was going to “dress up like a girl.” As soon as my parents and brothers heard that, they got behind me and said, “If Jordan is not invited, then we will not be in attendance either.” Despite the several homophobic and transphobic BS excuses I was getting from my extended family, I was only focused on the support of my primary family and eventually finding my San Diego family, proving to me that actions speak louder than words and blood does not mean you are family; it is about love and surrounding yourself with the people that ACTUALLY want what is best for you.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a Drag Queen/artist/performer, and I am known as being the kooky, campy, nutty Dragée of San Diego. With my performances, I try to make people laugh and stay entertained the entirety of my performance while still serving a look that I am proud of. I am most proud of this past SDSU drag show, Dragstravaganza: Halftime, hosted by my drag mother, Amber St. James, and my drag auntie, Luxe the Drag Queen, where I did a “Mother” themed halftime show performance which honored the musical “Mothers” of the queer community, such as Beyonce, RuPaul, and Chaka Khan. I also got to perform with my sisters, including my bestest friend in the whole entire world, Jade Fantasy, who made her drag debut. What sets me apart from others is that I am not afraid to look stupid or be “ugly” with my look because I know that, regardless, I am doing more than most people occupying a space with me. I find beauty in the ugly and cherish it because too many performers and artists are focused on perfection and get angry when it is not reached, but if your imperfection is perfection, then you can never lose.
The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you, and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
When COVID-19 lockdown happened, my stomach dropped, and I was so scared of being by myself and sinking into eternal loneliness. However, I came out to the loved ones in my life as gay just a couple of months prior to the pandemic, so while other kids were able to come out and feel out who they were through everyday interactions like going to school and going to the mall with friends, I was stuck at home with my newly found freedom and an unemployment check from Jack In The Box. I pondered what I should do with it, so I double-masked, took a trip to Walmart, and spent about $100 on makeup, creating my beginner makeup collection. Instead of going to school every day for 8 hours, I would go to Zoom school for 4 hours and then lock myself in my room with the drag queens of YouTube and just tried everything I could, starting with gluing brows down and continuing until I created a drag face. Albeit not a good drag face, but it was mine, and nobody could take that away from me. I learned how to start doing things for myself and quit people pleasing because if I were to have gotten sick and, God forbid, died, the only person that I would have to lay in my coffin with is me, myself, and I, so I need to be able to love and cherish myself.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thejordanalmond/
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@thejordanalmond
