Indigenous Identity, Drag, and Mental Health | Rodaysha Red Ashes
Rodaysha Red Ashes is a local drag performer who turned shyness, anxiety, and a casual conversation at Home Depot into a stage career that changed their life. In this episode, we talk about what drag actually teaches you about confidence, how sobriety reshaped their relationship with performing, and how their indigenous heritage shows up in everything from their drag name to the beaded earrings that start conversations. This is one of those conversations that covers a lot of ground, from the nerves that never fully go away to the community that carries you through the hard parts. Rodaysha is honest about all of it. Rodaysha Red Ashes Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rodaysha.red.ashes/ Who are we Behind the Village is a podcast about how to live a life worth living. Real conversations about mental health, personal growth, and finding fulfillment. Follow Us Website: https://villagermagazine.ca/podcast/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheVillagerCommunityNews/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thevillagermagazine/ Newsletter: https://villagermagazine.ca/subscribe/ Chapters 00:30 How Rodaysha discovered drag 02:52 First performance and getting started 04:30 Performance as a lifelong pull 05:59 Where the confidence actually comes from 09:00 What drag means to Rodaysha 11:02 Evolving as a performer and the drag clown 13:20 Indigenous culture in drag and the story behind the name 16:24 How drag shaped their identity off stage 18:30 Sobriety, substances, and choosing yourself 21:57 Why the people around you matter 23:40 Advice for drag beginners
