For its Defiance issue, DSCENE Magazine turns its attention to the radical power of New York City Drag collective. Shot by Martin Gatti at PIER59 Studios, the cover features ten performers whose presence challenges the boundaries of visibility, resistance, and transformation. In a moment shaped by censorship, cultural backlash, and anti-queer legislation, the image stands as both fashion and statement, defiant in its existence.
The cover was conceived and cast by Creative Director Jimi Urquiaga, who also appears as Missleidy Rodriguez. Alongside Missleidy are Jazzmint Dash, Oracle, Angel Au, MX.Ology, Tillie the Clown, Lolita Starr, Citrine Cash Collins, Obscura, and Evangeline, each bringing their own visual language and lived experience. Styled by Kat J., with beauty by MAC Cosmetics, the shoot was produced by Chancey Bridges and Citrine Cash Collins, with Celso Assuncao assisting on photography.
PRE-ORDER IN PRINT AND DIGITAL
Drag has long existed in tension with dominant culture. It pushes back against the rules of gender, reinvents beauty, and thrives on exaggeration, parody, and reinvention. To appear in drag is to assert authorship over identity, to build a self in a society that often seeks to erase or contain it. In this issue, drag emerges as a force grounded in intention, survival, and collective memory.
Each queen featured on the cover channels a distinct lineage, referencing different histories, communities, and modes of expression. Together, they form a visual chorus that challenges silence with presence. Their image speaks before any words are spoken. Drag has faced decades of attack and appropriation, but it remains a living, adapting form of resistance that refuses to be controlled.
The Defiance issue creates space for those who refuse to shrink, soften, or simplify. This cover does not ask for permission. It does not explain itself. It simply holds space, visibly, unapologetically, for the artistry, power, and necessity of drag today.
This is drag at its most urgent and alive. Chaotic, defiant, joyful, and unafraid to take up space.
Photography: Martin Gatti
Creative Director & Casting: Jimi Urquiaga (Missleidy Rodriguez)
Stylist: Kat J.
Photography Assistant: Celso Assuncao
Producers: Chancey Bridges, Citrine Cash Collins
Studio: PIER59 Studios
Cast: Missleidy Rodriguez, Jazzmint Dash, Oracle, Angel Au, MX.Ology, Tillie the Clown, Lolita Starr, Citrine Cash Collins, Obscura, Evangeline
Beauty: MAC Cosmetics
Tights and Gloves We Love Colors
