Phoenix Breaks Silence on Ice Spice Drama — “I Do Apologize”

Ice Spice and Phoenix on ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 10’.

RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 10 contestant Phoenix’s drama with Ice Spice must’ve stirred too much after the season 3 queen clapped back against the guest judge’s Main Stage critiques about her icon status, but the Drag Race OG hopes the rapper isn’t too shaken in the aftermath.

Though she didn’t advance to the next round on the latest episode of All Stars 10‘s new bracket-style format, Phoenix tells Entertainment Weekly in her exit interview below that she’s moving on after previously shading Ice Spice in a comically shady Instagram Stories post in which she said she’s “perfectly fine not getting ‘icon’ validation from someone who’s [sic] ‘fame’ has come from 1 song about s—ting and farting.”

Before RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 10 continues Friday on Paramount+, read on for EW’s full interview with Phoenix, in which she also discusses giving her point to Aja, the status of her relationship with Nicole Paige Brooks, and a reaction to recreating her legendary season 3 Werk Room lookalike moment with India Ferrah for the the AS10 runway.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Last week, your reaction to Ice Spice’s critique on the runway blew up. Have you heard from her or reached out?

PHOENIX: I haven’t reached out to her. I thought about it, but I wouldn’t know where to start. It just wasn’t that big of a deal. I’m still in awe that it turned into what it did. It was light shade. Some thought it was funny, some didn’t, and I wouldn’t have done it if I thought it would [blow up]. I wouldn’t want anything to overshadow the experience I had on Drag Race, and I feel that it did.

It was not a good moment. We throw shade all the time…. It got blown way out of proportion, and I hate it. I do apologize to her.

The fandom was gagged to learn of your connection to Nicole. You said in our most recent interview that you just started speaking again. What’s the status of your relationship?

Me and Nicole will always have love for each other. Nicole was a huge part of my drag, and took interest and saw potential in me. She was a big influence at the beginning of my career. Our human nature is to grow, evolve, and change. She has a specific kind of personality [Laughs] and so do I. Sometimes these personalities clash. I’ve changed so much since Nicole and I first met…. I will always have love for Nicole. The world sees how chaotic she is, and sometimes it drives me crazy and we just clash!

This week, you were annoyed about alliances. Did you know about them prior to the point vote, and did you try to align with anyone?

I had no idea. I was thrown by it. Me and Bosco clicked from the beginning. We only had three episodes, so the first episode me and Bosco gave each other our points, but Bosco kicked it into high gear and was in it to win it. By the second episode, the alliances already started, so it was a little too late.

Why did you give your point to Aja instead of letting RuPaul break the tie?

Aja talked about the struggle to get herself ready for Drag Race. She went through a lot to get herself prepared. I’m a grown adult, and I can put aside my feelings in the moment. I wasn’t going through regardless. As a decent human, I heard her story and felt for her personally.

I loved your makeover reference to the season 3 “Prison, honey” moment with India. Were you surprised this self-reference didn’t resonate better in judging?

Yes. I thought it would be a good moment for me. It’s an iconic Drag Race moment that has been turned into everything you can imagine over 15 years. It was the perfect way to bring this back. It’s the meme that doesn’t die! I loved what I brought, and the moment itself is so campy, and I wanted to show a different side of my drag. Any Drag Race fan saw that and is going to laugh with it. I wished it would’ve done better for me.

Did you reach out to India to let her know you were doing this?

I don’t believe so. India and I chatted off and on, I’ve wanted to do merch with it, and we’ve talked about that before.

You said in EW’s recent video that people ask if you and India planned to enter the Werk Room in similar outfits, but you didn’t indicate if you did or not. What’s the tea?

It wasn’t planned at all. We’d met through the pageant circuit [before season 3]. But, as far as having conversations over the phone, no. At the time, that was a popular wig. I’m almost positive Manila Luzon said she had that wig with her, also. Now I look back like, what in the hell?

You said in our group interview earlier this year that you don’t watch Drag Race religiously. Do you plan to watch new seasons of the show more regularly after AS10?

No comment. [Laughs] Usually, on Friday night, I’m working, hosting a viewing party, managing the entertainment for a night club. I’m in the business of it. I’ve been doing this so long, sometimes you don’t want to come home and watch more drag. It’s not an insult. I’ll probably watch it just as much going forward as I did in the past.