By Mikkel Hyldebrandt
Photos by Callum Hutchinson
International drag superstars Violet Chachki & Gottmik have joined creative forces on their upcoming North American Tour – The Knockout Tour – kicking off in Atlanta on September 12. And that’s not all, because in support of their new show, they have also delivered a knockout single, “TKO”, an electrifying debut bursting with unapologetic queerness, and, of course, high fashion. We got a chance to talk to the icons about the collaboration, the new track, and the new tour.
Since your respective Drag Race seasons, tell us a little about what you have been up to.
Gottmik: Since Season 13, I got to travel the world on tours, I wrote a book called “The T guide”, I’ve released music, started working a bit in the fashion space, and started a podcast called “No Gorge” with Violet! Last year, I also went back on a charity version of All Stars and got to show how my drag has evolved and really honed in on who Gottmik is.
Violet: it’s been 10 years since my season of drag race, and I have done so much! From touring the world with the Drag Race official tour to working with one of my biggest inspirations, Dita Von Teese. I’ve toured with my own solo show “A Lot More Me” globally, I’ve put out music with Allie X, and I had a residency at Crazy Horse in Paris. I’ve walked in so many fashion shows, been in so many magazines, and fashion campaigns. I was on the cover of Vogue Czechoslovakia, and I got to attend the Met Gala alongside Jeremy Scott. And I’ve even started to really get bookings as a DJ, which I really love. I’m so grateful, it’s been a lot of work, but I truly want to make my Atlanta proud!
Now, you’re joining forces on this tour – The Knockout Tour – but you have been working together for a while now, right? What is it about each other that makes collaboration so good?
Gottmik: We started working together a few years ago, because we both are extremely detail-oriented and have a really grand vision about what the drag industry could and should be! We started our podcast as a way for people to see us together, so we could work together in real life beyond just an online presence, and working so closely made me realize that both of us, no matter how different we may be sometimes, are unapologetically ourselves, and that’s really inspiring to be around. It’s really special to be able to have such amazing experiences and opportunities with your best friend!
Violet: Gottmik and I work so well together, because we’re both perfectionists. We both think that drag deserves to be showcased at the highest caliber possible. We both challenge ourselves to be the best versions of ourselves in and out of drag, and that’s truly what family means.
So, the Knockout Tour: What’s the concept, how did you come up with it, and what can we expect to see?
Gottmik: Violet and I have different individual styles. She’s more of a glamorous, burlesque, fetish doll, and I’m more into the punk rock, leather, and horror vibes, so we thought it would be a cool structure to have a show where our performances are a battle of Glam vs Rock! Each “round” is our solo numbers including aerial, burlesque, original music, dancers, and so much more – and then coming together for the big finale! It’s going to be really fun with a lot of crowd participation!
Violet: We are bringing the highest caliber of a drag show possible to all of these venues: live vocals, aerial, burlesque, fashion, stand-up, live instruments, lip-synch performances, costumes, and just over the top faggotry!
It sounds like your brand of high fashion, high glamour, and fierce queerness is being perfectly translated to the stage. And speaking of all those things, let’s talk about your powerful, new track “TKO” – how did that come about?
Gottmik: When we decided to go on tour together, a song with visuals was just the next natural step! We have both been working on our own individual music for years, that we want to debut on this tour, so having a song together really was necessary for us, and it turned out better than I ever could’ve imagined!
Violet: Yes, we wanted to create a song that was our styles combined, but also gave you that sort of jock jams athletic workout feel, that went really well with this sort of fight-boxing concept
Also, the video for this track is incredible. Tell us more about that.
Gottmik: Thank you! We are very visual artists, so we were very excited for this video. Our aesthetics are so far from “sporty” so doing a boxing/workout-themed video was really fun and different for us.
Violet: Everything we do is a labor of love, and this music video is no exception. We filmed in a 100° heat in Los Angeles and had some amazing extras help us out with really capturing our concept. I’m so glad you enjoyed it.
Going back to the tour. You will be visiting 50 cities on the course of three months. Did you help decide what cities you would be going to?
Gottmik: We wanted to hit as many cities in North America as we possibly could for the first leg, and of course we really wanted to hit our home towns (Atlanta and Phoenix) as well as our current home base (Los Angeles) – and from there we kept thinking of all the cities we’ve toured and had amazing memories at over the years, and the list kept growing. Every single city is so major to us ,and we are beyond excited to bring the show to everyone!
Violet: We just wanted to bring drag to as many places as possible. We truly love meeting the fans and giving people some escapism. The world is in such a crazy place right now that I think it’s just fabulous to go and look at something fantastical for 90 minutes, and just forget about all your problems. Leave them at the door!
The tour is happening soon, but what’s next for you? Any exciting projects in the making? More music perhaps?
Gottmik: I’m dropping music every week up to the tour pretty much, which is super exciting! I think the music journey will never end for me. As a visual artist, I love being able to perform my own music live. Next year is also very brand-focused for me personally: I announced I was dropping a makeup line, and after this tour, I will finally be able to be 100% committed to that dream of mine!
Violet: I have so many exciting projects coming up. I can’t divulge too much, but I’m really enjoying DJing in and out of drag. I love releasing music, and I always love working in fashion.
Violet, your hometown is Atlanta, why did you choose to start the tour here and what is special to you about the Atlanta drag scene?
Violet: Atlanta drag is some of the best in, dare I say, the world! It truly has some of the most iconic queer artists and queer history. I wanted to start the tour here because I really want to feel grounded on this journey, and I just know that there’s no place better to start than my hometown!
Anything you’d like to add?
Gottmik: The knockout Tour is truly a dream come true, so thank you so much for your support, and if you haven’t already gotten your tickets, PLEASE GO GET THEM! It’s going to be really special!
Violet: We are both just so excited to truly bring this level of artistry to a proper stage and really kick off this next phase of our careers! We cannot wait to share it with you. It would mean the world to see you there.
The Knockout Tour: Violet vs Gottmik will kick off in Atlanta at the Variety Playhouse on September 12th – Tickets are available at axs.com.
The “TKO” single by Violet Chacki and Gottmik is out now and available to stream everywhere.
You can follow Violet Chacki at @violetchachki and Gottmik at @gottmik.