Denali (drag queen)

Denali
Denali at RuPaul's DragCon LA, 2023
Born
Cordero Matthew Zuckerman

(1992-04-01) April 1, 1992 (age 34)
Fairbanks, Alaska, U.S.
Other namesDenali Foxx
Tonya Hardon
EducationUniversity of Utah (BA)
TelevisionRuPaul's Drag Race (season 13) and RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars (season 10)
Spouse
Alexander Montgomery
​
​
(m. 2026)​
Websitedenaliqueen.com

Denali Foxx (or simply Denali) is the stage name of Cordero Matthew Zuckerman (born April 1, 1992), an American drag performer, figure skater, and choreographer best known for competing on the thirteenth season of RuPaul's Drag Race and the tenth season of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars.

Early life

Born to Jeffrey Alan Zuckerman and Jo Ann Hernandez on April 1, 1992, in Fairbanks, Alaska, Zuckerman was raised by parents of Mexican and Jewish descent. Zuckerman graduated from University of Utah in 2013 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Spanish Language and Literature and a minor in comparative literature and Korean.

Career

Zuckerman is a double gold medalist in the U.S. Figure Skating moves and freestyle category and a PSA certified coach. He has skated with Cirque du Soleil, SeaWorld, and Royal Caribbean Productions and choreographed for Team USA figure skaters Mariah Bell, Amber Glenn, and Ashley Cain-Gribble/Timothy LeDuc.

Denali competed on the thirteenth season of RuPaul's Drag Race. She was the first contestant from Alaska and the first to compete with ice skates. During the show, she eliminated Kahmora Hall from the competition by lip syncing to "100% Pure Love" by Crystal Waters, portrayed a Russian bot in "Social Media: The Unverified Rusical", and impersonated Jonathan Van Ness during Snatch Game. She was eliminated in the season's makeover challenge after a lip sync against Olivia Lux, finishing in 8th place.

On April 23, 2025, Denali was announced as one of eighteen former Drag Race contestants participating in the tenth season of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars.

Personal life

Zuckerman lives in Chicago, as of 2018. He has a third-degree black belt in martial arts.

On August 29, 2026, Zuckerman married longtime partner Alexander Montgomery in a ceremony in Chicago.

Discography

Title Year Notes
"Phenomenon (Cast Version)" 2021 By RuPaul featuring the Cast of RuPaul's Drag Race, Season 13

Filmography

Television

Year Title Role Notes Ref
2021 RuPaul's Drag Race Herself (contestant) Season 13 (8th Place)
RuPaul's Drag Race: Untucked
RuPaul's Drag Race: Corona Can't Keep a Good Queen Down Herself Stand-alone special
2025 RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars Herself (contestant) Season 10 (11th Place)
RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars: Untucked!
2025 MTV Video Music Awards Herself Performer with Sabrina Carpenter, Willam, Laganja Estranja, Symone, and Lexi Love


Web series

Year Title Role Notes Ref
2020 Meet the Queens Herself Stand-alone special
2021 Ruvealing the Look Guest
Whatcha Packin'
The X Change Rate
2022 Out of the Closet
2023 Give It to Me Straight
The Pit Stop

Music videos

Song Year Ref
"When I Grow Up (Ice Version)" 2021
"Shackles (Praise You)" 2021
"Telepatía" 2021
"Diva Duets" 2021
"El Diablo" 2021

Awards and nominations

Year Award-giving body Category Work Results Ref.
2022 The Queerties Future All-Star Herself Won

See also

References

  1. ↑ Yee, Lawrence (January 2021). "'RuPaul's Drag Race' Queens Reveal Their Original Drag Names: Beyonce, Yoko Tsunami and … Tonya Hardon??? (Video)". The Wrap. Archived from the original on October 4, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  2. ↑ Ramos, Manny (October 16, 2020). "Successful 'Drop Dead Drag Pageant' goes on at the Lakeshore Drive-In". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on November 1, 2020. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  3. ↑ "Meeting the Queens of 'RuPaul's Drag Race' Season 13 (Part 1)". December 29, 2020. Archived from the original on April 21, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  4. 1 2 "Meet the Novices: Men". January 20, 2011. Archived from the original on April 18, 2021. Retrieved March 16, 2021.
  5. ↑ Upshaw, Cheryl (February 11, 2021). "Denali Foxx: Alaska Assassin Ices Out the Competition on 'Drag Race'". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Archived from the original on February 11, 2021. Retrieved March 13, 2021. Cordero Zuckerman, 28, is a Chicago-based performer formerly from Fairbanks. His history in the area has influenced everything from his costumes to his drag name: Denali Foxx.
  6. 1 2 "Cordero Matthew Zuckerman". Ancestry Institute. Ancestry. Retrieved November 12, 2022.
  7. 1 2 Sim, Bernardo (December 12, 2020). "RuPaul's Drag Race: Everything To Know About Denali". Screen Rant. Archived from the original on December 13, 2020. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  8. ↑ Villa, Lucas (February 2, 2021). "Denali Foxx is Serving Mexicana Representation on 'RuPaul's Drag Race'". Mitú. Retrieved February 10, 2024.
  9. ↑ Giron, Martin (May 4, 2021). "'RuPaul's Drag Race' Star Denali Foxx Says She 'Can't Wait' for Houston Show - OutSmart Magazine". OutSmart. Retrieved February 10, 2024.
  10. ↑ Program - Santa & Friends on Ice - Beau Rivage Resort and Casino 2-28, 2014
  11. 1 2 "RuPaul's Drag Race: Why Denali Never Made It To Olympics As A Figure Skater". Screen Rant. Archived from the original on March 4, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  12. ↑ Blanton, Kayla (January 15, 2021). "Watch Drag Race Queen Denali Ice Skate (And Do A Back Flip) In Full Drag". Bustle. Archived from the original on September 16, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  13. ↑ Alter, Rebecca (January 23, 2021). "Get Into This Lip Sync Even if You Don't Watch RuPaul's Drag Race". Vulture.com. Archived from the original on March 8, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  14. ↑ Kim, Michelle (January 25, 2021). "Denali and Kahmora Hall's "100% Pure Love" Lip Sync Will Go Down in Drag Race Herstory". them. Archived from the original on March 5, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  15. ↑ "A fun, if flimsy Rusical moves the RuPaul's Drag Race season narrative forward". The A.V. Club. February 20, 2021. Archived from the original on February 20, 2021. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  16. ↑ "'Drag Race' Season 13's Iconic Snatch Game Impressions, Ranked". Bustle. March 6, 2021. Archived from the original on September 16, 2021. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  17. 1 2 Nolfi, Joey (April 23, 2025). "RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars 10 cast announced with major format change: See 18 returning queens on largest cast ever". Deadline. Retrieved April 24, 2025.
  18. ↑ Damshenas, Sam. "Drag Race season 13 star Denali shares fierce new lip sync to When I Grow Up". Gay Times. Archived from the original on March 15, 2021. Retrieved March 6, 2021.
  19. ↑ Quinn, Dave (September 1, 2026). "RuPaul's Drag Race Star Denali Marries Alexander Montgomery: Inside Their Intimate Chicago Wedding (Exclusive)". People. Retrieved September 3, 2026.
  20. 1 2 Ramos, Dino-Ray (February 17, 2021). "VH1 To Release 'RuPaul's Drag Race: Corona Can't Keep A Good Queen Down'; Docu Chronicles Shooting Reality Series During Pandemic". Deadline. Archived from the original on February 17, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  21. ↑ Sim, Bernardo (September 7, 2025). "Sabrina Carpenter brings Drag Race queens and trans rights to VMAs". Out. Archived from the original on September 8, 2025. Retrieved September 8, 2025.
  22. ↑ MEET THE QUEENS - Denali, December 9, 2020, archived from the original on November 16, 2022, retrieved November 16, 2022
  23. ↑ Denali's Yellow Python Look | Ruvealing the Look | RuPaul's Drag Race S13, March 15, 2021, archived from the original on November 16, 2021, retrieved August 26, 2021
  24. ↑ Kandy Muse's Whatcha Packin' | S13 E10 | RuPaul's Drag Race, March 12, 2021, archived from the original on November 16, 2021, retrieved August 26, 2021
  25. ↑ The X Change Rate: The Queens of RuPaul's Drag Race Season 13, January 1, 2021, archived from the original on November 23, 2021, retrieved November 23, 2021
  26. ↑ Denali ⛸ A Medal Winning Journey | S6 E3 | Out of the Closet 👗, November 15, 2022, archived from the original on November 15, 2022, retrieved November 16, 2022
  27. ↑ DENALI - "Give It To Me Straight" Ep12 - Hosted by Maddy Morphosis | E12 | Give It To Me Straight, June 30, 2023, archived from the original on June 30, 2023, retrieved June 30, 2023
  28. ↑ The Pit Stop AS8 E10 🏁 | Bianca Del Rio & Denali Have A Kikiana! | RuPaul's Drag Race AS8, July 8, 2023, archived from the original on June 30, 2023, retrieved July 9, 2023
  29. ↑ Denali - When I Grow Up (Ice Version), January 2, 2021, archived from the original on November 16, 2022, retrieved November 16, 2022
  30. ↑ Denali - Shackles (Praise You) by Jordan Magro, March 13, 2021, archived from the original on November 16, 2022, retrieved November 16, 2022
  31. ↑ Denali - telepatía, March 25, 2021, archived from the original on November 16, 2022, retrieved November 16, 2022
  32. ↑ Denali x Lala Ri- Diva Duets, June 2, 2021, archived from the original on November 16, 2022, retrieved November 16, 2022
  33. ↑ Denali - El Diablo by Yendry, October 5, 2021, archived from the original on November 16, 2022, retrieved November 16, 2022
  34. ↑ "'The 2022 Queerties". Cheat Sheet. February 24, 2022. Archived from the original on February 12, 2022. Retrieved March 31, 2022.