True to You: Meet Miss Gay Ohio

After 14 years, Columbus drag queen Cherry Poppins hit it big; and she’s using her newfound fame to help the Arch City become a better place for all

By Shelby Metzger / Photos by Deondre White / Story Design by Atlas Biro

“I like to be very glamorous and pretty. That's number one. And then I tried to put in some elements of fashion, or at least what I consider fashion,” she joked.

Poppins combines her drag persona with aspects of her real-life personality and passions, creating a unique mix that leaves fans and judges alike wanting more.

“I get to bring out what I like to call my alter ‘she-go’. That's kind of my favorite thing. I get to play this character. And I get to cater to my community.”

With a passion for both drag and her fellow peers, Poppins has a unique and illuminating presence that extends beyond just a performance.

But the daring alter ego of Cherry Poppins wasn’t fully curated until 2008. Before then, Danny Thomas was a young boy from Dayton, Ohio, who had his own reservations about performing on stage in full makeup and luxurious garb.

“To be honest, I used to be afraid of drag queens. They were very intimidating. But I remember one night being out at a show when I was in college and thinking like, you know what, I bet I could do this. It looks kind of easy. And it looks fun,” Thomas explained. “Well, I was half right. It's a lot of fun, but it is not easy. And so I tried to and people were telling me that I had potential. And I didn't think anything of it. I didn't think it was gonna be anything to me as to what it is now. And here we are almost 16 years later, and I'm obsessed with it."

And 14 years after first commanding the stage, Poppins was awarded the highly coveted title of Miss Gay Ohio in November 2022, on the pageant’s 50th anniversary. A yearly competition that is the precursor to Miss Gay America, the longest running gay pageantry in history, Miss Gay Ohio is a statewide battle of the best in drag.

“I competed in one of the hardest years. There were 24 qualified contestants. It was a lot. It was a lot of fun, though,” he said. “I competed for Miss Gay Ohio America five times. This was my fifth time doing it. And I finally won. I always placed kind of up in the top five area, but for some reason, I could just never get over that edge. I didn’t give up though.”

But his road to success hasn’t always been easy. Being a Black, queer person, Thomas faced adversity from all sides, both in and out of the drag scene.

“Being an entertainer of color in a very white dominated community sometimes can be very challenging. I've obviously faced racism within the gay community, but I've also faced homophobia within the Black community,” he explained. “So, it's kind of a double edged sword. It oftentimes left me wondering where I fit in and where I could use my voice, and I've been very grateful that I've been able to navigate through that.”

Thomas didn’t get to where he is today alone, having had his fair share of role models to help pave the way. When asked about his inspirations behind the scenes, he lovingly described some of his most influential heroines.

“Right here in Columbus, there's Corey Williams, aka Anisa Love. She's somebody that I look up to a huge deal. She is a person that I've been able to watch navigate through exactly what I'm talking about – homophobia in the Black community, and racism in the gay community –and do it with grace. And she has longevity and a lot of respect in this community,” Thomas said. “As well as my drag mother, who passed away in 2020. She was always true to herself…that's what I've always aspired to do is to keep moving forward so I can inspire the young queens of color coming up after me.”

And Thomas is doing just that. He uses his platform to raise awareness for racial biases both inside of the drag community and out, as well as for a local organization dedicated to providing a social space for queer men of color to obtain sexual health testing resources.

“When it comes to performing certain bars, I've also used my platform to help raise money for a local organization called Brothers in Unity through Equitas Health. And so that's kind of what I like to do, is being able to use this platform to not only entertain my community, but give back to my community,” he explained. “It's a unique job, I work in prevention for HIV and STIs. And it’s really great to be able to work in a place where I get to use my work and my hobby, aka drag, and kind of combine them together.”

There’s no denying that Cherry Poppins is more than a pretty face. Between being crowned the latest Miss Gay Ohio to utilizing her platform to change the community for the better, she’s making waves in the drag community and beyond. Nor is there any doubt Poppins will be a force to reckon with for years to come.

“I love anywhere where I get to have a platform to use my voice to create change,” he said. “That's one of the biggest things that I've been doing.”

Follow Cherry Poppins, and stay up to date on her events, on Instagram @cpoppins88