Mimi Imfurst

Mimi Imfurst
Born Braden Chapman
(1983-03-02) March 2, 1983
Hanson, Massachusetts U.S.
Residence Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Occupation Drag performer, singer-songwriter
Website MimiImfurst.com

Mimi Imfurst (born March 2, 1983) is an American drag performer, and recording artist.[1] She appeared on the third season of RuPaul's Drag Race and RuPaul's All Stars Drag Race and was founding member of the girl group Xelle.

Early life

Mimi Imfurst was born Braden Chapman in Hanson, Massachusetts, but was raised in Maine.[2] Chapman became homeless when he was kicked out of his house for being gay.[3] He was later adopted by a lesbian couple and started doing drag at the age of 16.[2][4] Chapman graduated from Marymount Manhattan College.[5]

Career

Mimi Imfurst originally went by the drag name "Delilah DeMistra", which was inspired by Hedy Lamarr's character in Samson and Delilah.[5]

Mimi Imfurst is perhaps best known for her annual Christmas show where she portrays Jesus's mother Mary, for which she appears in Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist.[6] Despite this, Imfurst's role has been met with controversy. In 2005, the Catholic Advocacy Coalition named her one of the top ten anti-Catholic people. One of her shows in Times Square was protested by over 600 people.[4]

In 2010, Imfurst acted in several Off-Broadway plays, including Boylesque, a parody of the film Burlesque, which opened at the Laurie Beechman Theatre.[7] She also acted in Mayo on Your Breakfast at Tiffany's at the Bowery Poetry Club and Thank You for Being a Friend, a parody of the The Golden Girls.[8][9] Imfurst starred in the title role in Rhoda Heartbreak.[10]

Imfurst was featured in the web series Queens of Drag: NYC by gay.com in 2010. The series featured fellow New York drag queens Bianca Del Rio, Dallas DuBois, Hedda Lettuce, Lady Bunny, Peppermint, and Sherry Vine.

Mimi Imfurst auditioned three times before becoming a contestant on the third season of RuPaul's Drag Race.[2] She was eliminated after lifting fellow contestant India Ferrah over her head during their lip-sync.[11] Imfurst was among 12 former contestants brought back for RuPaul's All Stars Drag Race. She was partnered with Pandora Boxx to form Team Mandora, but was eliminated in the first episode.[12] In the show's fifth season, Jinkx Monsoon impersonated Imfurst for the main challenge during Episode 2, "Lip Synch Extravaganza Eleganza."[13]

In 2011, Imfurst appeared in an Entertainment Weekly photo spread along with Pandora Boxx that featured Melissa McCarthy channeling Divine.[14] Imfurst also appeared on the cover of Next with Carmen Carrera and Manila Luzon.[15] That same year, Imfurst starred as Rodney in the Off-Broadway play My Big Gay Italian Wedding.[16]

Mimi Imfurst has appeared on Celebrity Apprentice and the The Howard Stern Show. Imfurst also performs as a stand-up comedian, having opened for Kathy Griffin and Mo'Nique.[1]

XELLE

Xelle (stylized as XELLE, pronounced excel) is an American pop "girl group", originally consisting of members Mimi Imfurst, JC Cassis, and Rony G. The group first met in 2010 when Imfurst hosted a karaoke bash.[17]

For Xelle's first music video "Party Girl," the group started a successful Kickstarter campaign, meeting their goal of $3,000.[18] "Party Girl" was directed by Hilarion Banks and costumes were provided by Geoffrey Mac.[19]

"Invincible," Xelle's second single was released on February 14, 2012, with proceeds of the song going to GLSEN.[3] "Invincible" features fan-submitted videos holding signs that deal with victimization and bullying issues.[20]

Xelle's music video for "Queen" featured appearances by Imfurst's fellow RuPaul's Drag Race contestants Alexis Mateo, Jiggly Caliente, Jujubee, Manila Luzon, Pandora Boxx, Phi Phi O'Hara, Raven, Shannel, Tammie Brown, and Yara Sofia.[21]

Xelle has appeared on Big Ang and Jersey Couture.[22]

Imfurst departed Xelle in July 2013, with an official statement released by the group on their web page August 1, 2013.[23]

Discography

Extended plays

Singles

Year Title Album
2011 "Party Girl" (feat. Mimi Imfurst) Queens
2012 "Invincible" (feat. Mimi Imfurst)
"Queen" (feat. Mimi Imfurst)
2013 "Hologram" (feat. Mimi Imfurst)
"Red Flag"
2014 "Sweat"

Discography

Singles

Year Title Album
2013 "Another Lie" Non-album single
"Sandwich"
"Someone to Screw"

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2008 Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist Himself
2010 Whorrey Potter and the Sorcerer's Balls Fag Hagrid
2012 Nous York[24] Chanteur hôtel de luxe

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2010 What Would You Do?[25] Himself
2011 One Night Stand Up[24] Himself Episode 10: Dragtastic NYC
2011 RuPaul's Drag Race Himself
2011 NewNowNext Awards Himself
2012 RuPaul's All Stars Drag Race Himself
2013 Nurse Jackie[26] Season 5, Episode 2: "Luck of the Drawing"

Web series

Year Title Role Notes
2010 Queens of Drag: NYC Himself Produced by gay.com

References

  1. 1 2 "About". MimiImfurst.com. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 Erbentraut, Joseph (1 December 2010). "ChicagoPride.com interview with Mimi Imfurst". ChicagoPride.com. Retrieved 6 March 2013.
  3. 1 2 Marra, Andy (9 February 2012). "GLSEN is teaming up with Mimi Imfurst and XELLE". Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  4. 1 2 Felion, Marc (19 October 2012). "FOF #1274 – Mimi Imfurst, Second to None". Feast of Fun. Retrieved 6 March 2013.
  5. 1 2 "Second to No One: Mimi Imfurst". Provincetown Magazine. 10 August 2011. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  6. ↑ Bonfiglio, Jeremy D (13 December 2012). "Five questions with ... Mimi Imfurst". The Herald-Palladium. Retrieved 6 March 2013.
  7. ↑ "Boylesque-2010". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 March 2013.
  8. ↑ "Mayo on Your Breakfast at Tiffany's-2010". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 March 2013.
  9. ↑ "Thank You for Being a Friend-2010". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 March 2013.
  10. ↑ Gans, Andrew (20 January 2010). "Rhoda Heartbreak, with Imfurst, Blackwell, Escobar and Gilliland, Begins Jan. 20". Playbill. Retrieved 7 March 2013.
  11. ↑ Stransky, Tanner (8 February 2011). "'RuPaul's Drag Race': It's all about the big girls this season". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 6 March 2013.
  12. ↑ Stransky, Tanner (23 October 2012). "'RuPaul's All Stars Drag Race' react: That twist! Plus: 20 other notable moments from the season". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 6 March 2013.
  13. ↑ Sava, Oliver (5 February 2013). "Lip Synch Eleganza Extravaganza". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 6 March 2013.
  14. ↑ "NEW: Pandora Boxx & Mimi Imfurst Photo Shoot". New Now Next. 21 October 2011. Retrieved 6 March 2013.
  15. ↑ Polly, John (12 January 2011). "Behind-the-Scenes Pics: RuPaul's Drag Race Queens Hit the Cover of NYC's Next Magazine! Smile Carmen, Manila & Mimi!". New Now Next. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  16. ↑ Bacalzo, Dan (24 May 2011). "Mimi Imfurst, Hedda Lettuce, et al. to Guest Star in My Big Gay Italian Wedding". Theater Mania. Retrieved 6 March 2013.
  17. ↑ Moraski, Lauren (19 October 2012). "XELLE reinvents the girl group with "Queens" and help from Janeane Garofalo". CBS News. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  18. ↑ "XELLE makes its first music video! by XELLE (deleted)". Kickstarter. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  19. ↑ Donovan (25 March 2011). "RuPaul's Drag Race Mimi Imfurst Is A "Party Girl"". Homorazzi. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  20. ↑ Xelle (16 April 2012). "When We Band Together, We Are Invincible (VIDEO)". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  21. ↑ "'RuPaul's Drag Race' Alums Star In Xelle's "Queen" Music Video". Instinct. 24 October 2012. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  22. ↑ "Press". XelleMusic.com. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  23. ↑ Giraffic Themes. "An Important Announcement from XELLE |". Xellemusic.com. Retrieved 2013-12-05.
  24. 1 2 "Braden Maurer-Burns - IMDb". IMDb. Retrieved 6 March 2013.
  25. ↑ Sullivan, Andrew (9 December 2010). "What Would You Do? Drag Queens Harassed in a Cafe". ABC News. Retrieved 6 March 2013.
  26. ↑ Spargo, Chris (22 April 2013). "Mimi Imfurst Stopped By "Nurse Jackie," We Smell Emmy". New Now Next. Retrieved 26 April 2013.

External links

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