Bob and Monét reveal BOMO Beauty line and how Drag Race critiques shaped their 'elevated' makeup

Bob the Drag Queen and Monét X Change are soaking up cosmetic excellence as they walk into the beauty industry palette-first — and EW has the exclusive reveal of the first product launch in their long-awaited BOMO Beauty makeup line.

The RuPaul's Drag Race winners and Sibling Rivalry podcast hosts joined EW's Quick Drag podcast (below) to share their story of going from drag superstars to beauty moguls with BOMO Beauty's first drop, the Pretty/Funny eyeshadow palette they say captures the "duality" of the duo's creative partnership.

In a wide-ranging chat with EW, Bob and Monét reveal why they took their time getting BOMO Beauty right, detail being in the trenches mixing formulas in a lab, reveal that how they've been testing the makeup right under our noses for the last year (if you watch We're Here, you've already seen BOMO Beauty in action), and dish on how Bob secured a gig as Madonna's special guest on her Celebration tour — plus their honest thoughts on recent calls for Drag Race review shows to end.

The Pretty/Funny palette is now available for $39 on the BOMO Beauty website. Listen to Bob and Monét's full interview on EW's Quick Drag above, and read on for a breakdown of Q&A.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: How did BOMO Beauty come about, and why is this the right project for you to collaborate on outside of your work performing together?

MONÉT X CHANGE: Bob and I toyed with the idea of doing a makeup thing separately, and I wanted to do a partnership [with another brand]. Here comes Bob, busting through the door like, "Monét, you don't need to do a partnership, we can do our own line!"

BOB THE DRAG QUEEN: That sounds accurate. I'll say, it would've been a shorter trip if we just partnered with somebody.

The bio for the line says, "This almost ruined our friendship, please buy it!" Can you elaborate on what elements of this almost ruined your friendship?

BOB: No, it's a little silly. Monét and I almost ruin our friendship every day over whether nacho cheese is better than—

MONÉT: Cool ranch.

BOB: It doesn't take a lot for me and Monét to get to a breaking point. We worked hard on this, and we're very proud of what we've done. I saw some whisperings online, we mentioned this a while back, like, why is it taking so long? They're just using white label. We aren't white-labeling anything. We're literally out in these chemistry streets wearing coats and goggles, mixing with the people who mix makeup, like, "more of this, less of that." This is all original makeup that you won't see anywhere else in the world.

Take me through that process.

MONÉT: We work with a lab, we describe the colors we want. First of all, we're bald, I don't know why they have us wearing those little hair nets. We have little scrubbies on our shoes, we're scraping different things, adding a little more glitter to this one, we want more zinc here, we're in the lab mixing and concocting. For those who don't know what white-labeling is, it's like when they give you an eyeshadow that already exists and you slap your label on it. We aren't doing that. We're legitimately mixing these formulas. We're on some Dexter and Deedee-type stuff.

Were there any disasters in the experimentation process?

BOB: We had a few lipsticks that were just not the colors we said. We haven't released the lipsticks yet. It ended up being right in the end. It's not just mixing makeup; it's talking to graphic designers, designing the packaging, hiring directors to shoot our commercial…

MONÉT: People look at drag queens as the makeup mother-tucking gurus. We didn't want to put something out that didn't fully represent us and how we use makeup and how we want to sell the fantasy, so we wanted to take our time and make sure it was something we could both genuinely be proud of, not just putting out a product because we want people to spend their money. We want you to buy this and actually love it and use it and tell people about it because it's good stuff.

BOB: Monét and I had an interesting journey with the evolution of beauty. Both of us got critiques, some for fashion, some for makeup, on our seasons [of Drag Race]. I'm proud to say we've elevated our style and fashion so much. I now work with an Emmy-winning makeup artist [on We're Here], Laila McQueen, from my season of RuPaul's Drag Race. Monét and I take our craft very seriously.

You're launching with the Pretty/Funny eyeshadow palette. I'm assuming you tried it on and tested it?

MONÉT: We absolutely did. Different times, I've worn the makeup, but I didn't say that in preparation for this. I want to post pictures of me wearing it in practice at shows. I wore it on the Sibling Rivalry tour once.

BOB: I wore it on We're Here several times. I use the palette every time I'm in drag now.

You have more products down the line. What's coming?

MONÉT: We have more palettes coming up and some really dope ideas and fun concepts. Making the makeup is a lot of fun, but also the marketing about the palettes… we have a palette that will be a full gag and a full kiki.

BOB: You can be glamorous, political, and humorous all at once. Outside of drag and Joan Rivers, where can you get that? We have one palette coming out that has a political statement to it, but it's also going to be great makeup, glamorous, and it's also hilarious.

Did you look to other beauty brands by celebrities or drag queens for a blueprint on what to do or maybe to do a different approach than what's done before?

BOB: I admire the queens who've come before us with makeup palettes: Trixie Mattel, Kim Chi, Willam, Miss Fame…. They're inspirations.

Have you sent any to Raven to use on RuPaul on set?

BOB: Raven would give us a cease and desist.

MONÉT: [Imagine] RuPaul does one of his iconic TikTok videos with the palette.

BOB: If RuPaul doesn't do it, I'm not above doing a deepfake.

Have you secured other queens or celebrity talent for collaborations?

MONÉT: The one that's coming out, I don't want to say the name, within the next couple of months, there's a specific girl that's one of the most beautiful f---ing creatures I've ever seen in my life, and if she agrees to be part of this palette, girl…

BOB: It's fair to say that you might see a moment with a certain Emmy-award-winning drag queen down the line.

It's Delta.

BOB: We've narrowed it down to like, four.

If any other RuGirls could be your spokesmodel, who would it be?

MONÉT: Naomi Smalls, Kerri Colby.

BOB: The original RuPaul's Drag Race makeup diva: Nina Flowers.... Kim Chi, Trixie Mattel.

MONÉT: Marcia Marcia Marcia.

BOB: Honestly, ya'll gagging, Marcia is turning it. Leave her alone, put respect on her name.

Bob, you were also recently announced as the special guest on Madonna's Celebration tour. How did you and Madonna become close?

BOB: Lola, her daughter, recommended me for her Pride show — recommended that I host the show, actually. When I got there, me and Madonna got close, it was my birthday at the time, she got me cupcakes and sang me happy birthday. I'm friends with her son, I feel like I'm in the Big Brother program. [Me and Madonna] hit it off. The gaggiest moment was like, I have a number for Madonna, but I don't know if it's the real number, there's no way Madonna gave me her real number. Someone on her team was like, "I can't give you Madonna's real number, but you can tell me the number you have, and I'll tell you if that's the right number." I read it and they were like, "Oh my God, Madonna gave you her phone number."

Monét, is that the same number you got on the set of "God Control?"

BOB: You are shady!

MONÉT: The doors I've opened, honey. [Laughs]

BOB: I saw that shady interview you did with Princess Poppy about [blocking me on Grindr].

I was going to ask. Since then, I've asked her if Bob reached out. Did you talk to her about it?

BOB: I've never spoken to Princess Poppy. As we see, I got blocked immediately. So, I've never spoken a word to Princess Poppy in my life.

Have you talked to Madonna about going on Drag Race as a guest judge, and is she aware of Kimonogate?

BOB: We don't really talk about Drag Race when we're together. We talk about Socrates, Plato, Aristotle…. We usually talk about work when we're together. Maybe, at some point during the tour, I'll be like, "Did you know about Kimonogate on RuPaul's Drag Race?" Maybe I need to recreate [my Boy Scout] look and get a picture with her while I'm in that look.

Monét, you have a stand-up special soon. What can you tease?

MONÉT: I filmed my first stand-up special with the Tribeca Film Festival last summer…. It's me talking about my life and growing up a very f----ty kid, and my experience between St. Lucia and Brooklyn, and also that time I made firecrackers when I was 23 years old, and I was high for 48 hours.

BOB: We don't know what firecrackers are. We're not all from New York City.

MONÉT: Firecrackers are when you take two Ritz crackers, put Nutella on them, grind weed up, put the weed on both sides of Nutella, wrap it, and bake it for 23 minutes and 42 seconds exactly. Chemistry and science.

BOB: What in the Breaking Bad is going on?

We need a makeup palette inspired by a firecracker.

MONÉT: With Laganja Estranja as our spokeslady.

The Fire Cracker Palette with Miz Cracker.

BOB: It's Miz Cracker dressed as Tina Burner.

You're both on EW's recap podcast right now, and recap shows are somewhat under fire these days. We've seen queens saying review shows should end. It's been a contentious topic for years. Has it gotten out of hand?

MONÉT: I don't think it's gotten out of hand. A few queens may be disgruntled. I've seen grumblings, Aura Mayari saying [she's] not cringey…. There was a time when fans would say stuff like, "Bob, we're over the purse," and he made a music video. It became a thing. "Monét, please, we hate sponges." I made a music video and made it a thing. There was a time when you could take these things and laugh at yourself and spin it into gold. People may be losing their way on how to do that.

BOB: I'm not making any jokes. If you have feelings like that, your feelings are valid. Feelings get hurt. But I think when you go onto a TV show, specifically RuPaul's Drag Race, specifically a show where the point of the show is getting critiqued, and you know there's an official review show for the show made by the same company that licenses the show, it's part of what you know, going into it. On the other hand, nothing can prepare you for being on the world stage until you're on the world stage. I don't think review shows need to stop…. I don't think the answer is telling people to not share their opinions.

This interview has been edited and condensed.

Subscribe toEW's Quick Drag podcast for recaps of RuPaul's Drag Race, including reactions with the cast, special guests, and more.

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