Interview: Ash Gordon Is Elevating the Stories of Drag Artists to the Surface With Her Boundary-Pushing Songwriting

Ash Gordon has spent the past decade collaborating with drag artists to tell stories, positively impact her community, and educate the world through her dynamic skillset as a songwriter and producer at the heart of the movement.

‘what a wonderful world’ – Ash Gordon

Who is Ash Gordon? She’s many things.

She’s the songwriter behind Sharon Needles’ PG-13, the first full-length album ever released by a drag queen. She’s the co-writer of the upcoming musical Drag: The Musical alongside the incomparable Alaska Thunderfuck. She’s the songwriter behind the 2023 single “Drag Isn’t Dangerous,” which raised upwards of half a million dollars for LGBTQ+ organizations to fund drag performances after the Tennessee drag bans.

Like I said, Ash Gordon is many things. In fact, she’s a self-titled “chameleon.” It’s her ability to adapt and deeply relate to each artist she works with that makes Ash Gordon a pivotal force in today’s pop scene, and surely tomorrow’s as well.

“I’ve been a songwriter my whole life. I’ve been writing songs since I could remember what writing was.”

For Gordon, the songwriting process comes naturally. Where she truly shines is in amplifying the voices of drag queens and setting them to the tune of music that aligns with their personal ethos. It’s important to her that she never takes control of a song or artist. She’s guided by pure intentions and it’s her character that’s built a reputation of trust amongst the drag community.

“All I have is love towards drag. A lot of times before we even meet, it just so happens the universe lines me up with people that want to work together. I’ve been very fortunate in that way, but it’s because of my reputation. From early on, drag artists trusted me.”

Gordon has worked with a wide variety of drag queens, including Alaska Thunderf**k, Trixie Mattel, and KATYA, to name a few. Her songwriting process is tailored uniquely to each of them.

“I get the privilege of working with a ton of different voices. For Trixie, she and I have the same music brain. She’s really into early 2000s, pop punk, alternative. When I work with KATYA, she teaches me a lot about music. She listens to a lot of international music. Funny enough, she hates music where she’s speaking in English. It’s not her thing. She’s like, it has to be another language. So, she educates me when I’m working with her.”

Her close companion and collaborator Alaska Thunderf**k is the co-writer of their upcoming Off-Broadway musical, Drag: The Musical. This marks the first musical fully committed to celebrating drag in all its glory. For Gordon, this is long overdue and the musical we’ve needed for a long time.

“I’m obsessed with my own musical. Is that okay? It’s like the musical I always wished existed. We need a musical about drag queens and drag only. We need a musical where the drag world is normalized and it’s not like, ooh, what’s this taboo thing?”

Since Gordon’s emergence into the drag world in 2013, the culture of drag has changed greatly. From the presence of drag in the performances at this year’s VMAs to language that originated in the drag community being popularized in culture, it feels like there’s no better time to bring drag to the forefront of the musical world. The future of drag in Gordon’s mind is just as bright.

“I envision a drag queen to have a number one billboard hit very soon and I envision myself being a part of that.”

Drag: The Musical opens on October 21st. It’s the next chapter in Ash Gordon’s monumental career as a songwriter, producer, artist, and advocate. As a trusted force in the community for more than a decade, it’s her time to put her work in the spotlight. It’s clear that this is only just the beginning for Gordon.

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