Kim Chi (drag queen)

Sang-Young Shin was born in the United States on August 8, 1987, and lived in South Korea as a child. Her parents, who are divorced, also live in Chicago. As of 2016, Kim Chi lived in the Andersonville neighborhood of Chicago. She attended Okemos High School. As of 2017, her mother did not know she did drag until she reached fame on TV. Shin studied graphic design in college before working as an art director and exploring sculpture, fashion design, and painting. ==Career==

Shin started performing in drag as Kim Chi in Chicago in 2012. Prior to joining ''RuPaul's Drag Race'', Kim Chi befriended and helped season seven contestant Trixie Mattel get one of her first drag jobs in Chicago, as it was difficult for Mattel to find one in her hometown of Milwaukee. Kim Chi was one of twelve drag queens accepted for the eighth season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'', which started airing March 7, 2016. Upon joining the show, she became "the first Korean drag queen to be featured on American national television." Kim Chi won the first challenge, which came with a small cash prize. Shin sent the money to her mother, telling her she made it through makeup work. After Drag Race, Kim Chi partnered with Sugarpill Cosmetics to create different makeup items, including the Kim Chi Liquid Lip Color, a donut-scented lipstick described as a "Matte lavender mauve with a subtle, unique blend of transparent aqua and violet sparkles". Other items included the Kim Chi Electric Teal Eyeshadow. In November 2016, Kim Chi released a package of Kim Chi emoji called Kimchiji. Emoji included her catchphrases, a burrito bowl, a chicken wing, and a butt being spanked. in 2023 In May 2017, Kim Chi performed as part of the Werq the World 2017 tour. The tour, hosted by Bianca Del Rio and Michelle Visage, also featured drag queens Alaska Thunderfuck, Alyssa Edwards, Detox, Latrice Royale, and Violet Chachki. In December 2018, Kim Chi appeared in the television special ''RuPaul's Drag Race Holi-slay Spectacular, a one-off festive version of the regular Drag Race'' series. In June 2019, a panel of judges from New York magazine placed her 17th on their list of "the most powerful drag queens in America", a ranking of 100 former Drag Race contestants. In September 2019, Kim Chi announced that she was developing her own cosmetics line in collaboration with Bespoke Beauty Brands launched by Toni Ko, the founder of NYX Cosmetics, called Kim Chi Chic. In 2025, Kim Chi collaborated with Korean-American streetwear brand Sundae School for cannabis edible products, named "Kim Chi Over Flowers". Kim Chi published two books in 2025: a superhero graphic novel co-written with Stephan Lee, Donutella Hamachi and the Library Avengers, and a cookbook, Kim Chi Eats the World. ==Bibliography==

Movies Television Music videos Web series ==References==