Brian Joseph McCook was born on May 1, 1982,[4][5] to Pat (née Moran) and Dan McCook.[6][7] McCook is of Irish descent and was raised Catholic.[8] His father gifted him a cheerleader outfit as a child, sparking his interest in dressing up.[9] He described his parents as "accepting" and his father also bought him his first wig.[7][8] He came out as gay at age 15.[10] He has two siblings.[8] McCook was raised in Marlborough, Massachusetts, and graduated from Marlborough High School in 2001.[11] In a 2019 interview, McCook described growing up as "boring, nondescript, [and] a boiler-plate white suburb".[9] He then attended Boston University for one year before transferring to Massachusetts College of Art and Design, where he studied video and performance art with a minor in psychology, and first became interested in drag.[11][12]
Career
Early drag career
McCook created the Russian drag character Yekaterina Petrovna Zamolodchikova in 2006, taking the stage name from a combination of Russian names and one of his favorite gymnasts, Elena Zamolodchikova.[13] When creating his drag character, McCook stated that he was inspired by "female comedians and just funny interesting women like Tracy Ullman, Maria Bamford, Lana Del Rey [and] Amy Sedaris."[14] McCook stated on Drag Race that the Russian-based aspect of his persona was inspired by a professor he had while studying at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design, who "never left the house without a full face of makeup [with] six inch stilettos in the snow."[15] McCook is not of Russian descent, but took several Russian language courses and used a cassette tape called "Pronounce It Perfectly" to master the accent.[16]
As Katya, McCook hosted a monthly drag show called "Perestroika" at Jacques Cabaret.[17] Katya became known on the local drag scene in Boston for performing songs by popular Russian artists such as Alla Pugacheva, t.A.T.u. and Glukoza.
RuPaul's Drag Race
Katya auditioned for RuPaul's Drag Race on Logo TV four times before being chosen to participate in season 7.[18] She is seen auditioning for the show back in Season 3's Casting Extravaganza. She won two challenges before being eliminated in episode 11, finishing in fifth place after losing a lip-sync against Kennedy Davenport. The decision to eliminate her was controversial, as she was popular among viewers.[19] During the Season 7 reunion, she was voted Miss Congeniality by fans. On May 16, 2016, Katya appeared at the finale of RuPaul's Drag Race season 8 to crown the next Miss Congeniality: Cynthia Lee Fontaine. On June 17, 2016, Katya was announced as one of the cast members on the second season of RuPaul's Drag Race: All Stars.[20] She placed in the top three times throughout the season, and eventually finished as a runner-up along with fellow contestant Detox.
Other projects
Katya and Trixie Mattel in 2017
Katya has uploaded several web series on her YouTube channel, "welovekatya",[21] including RuGRETs, RuFLECTIONS, Drag 101, Total RuCall, and Irregardlessly Trish, the last of which is about a Bostonian hairdresser who lives in a dumpster. Katya improvises some of her material and also writes with a creative partner, Avi Paul Weinstein.
Along with fellow Drag Race contestant Trixie Mattel, Katya co-hosts a web series on the World of Wonder YouTube channel called UNHhhh,[24] which debuted in March 2016. On August 21, 2017, it was announced that Katya and Mattel would have their own show on Viceland, titled The Trixie & Katya Show, which premiered on November 15, 2017.[25]
Katya had a role in the 2018 film Hurricane Bianca 2: From Russia with Hate, directed by Matt Kugelman and starring Bianca Del Rio in the lead role. In 2018, Katya co-hosted a podcast called Whimsically Volatile with Craig MacNeil.[26] In November 2019, it was announced on the podcast that Katya will be leaving the show.[27] In the fall of 2018, Katya and Mattel revitalized their web series UNHhhh on WOWPresents Plus as well as YouTube due to the overall popularity and success of the show.
In the spring of 2019, Katya announced her touring comedy show, "Help Me, I'm Dying". The tour was filmed for a comedy special of the same name that aired on OutTV in Canada in October 2019.[28] It was available on demand in February 2020 and aired on Logo TV on March 4, 2020.[29] In November 2019, Katya and Mattel cohosted a new show on the Netflix YouTube channel called I Like to Watch where they react to various shows on Netflix.[30] In June 2019, a panel of judges from New York magazine placed Katya 13th on their list of "the most powerful drag queens in America", a ranking of 100 former Drag Race contestants.[31]
In 2020, Katya and co-host Trixie Mattel launched the weekly podcast "The Bald and The Beautiful".[34] In October Katya confirmed she would release her debut EPVampire Fitness on November 13.[35] In December, it was announced that Katya and Mattel would co-host the 10th Streamy Awards in Los Angeles.[36]
In August 2021, Katya and Mattel launched a Substack advice newsletter, Gooped,[37] which ran until July 2022.[38]
McCook is Catholic and gay.[8][40] He has been a sex worker where he was paid to have sex with men while dressed in drag.[41][42]
McCook has spoken openly about his experiences with substance abuse, including addiction to alcohol, cocaine, and crystal meth.[43] In January 2018, McCook announced a hiatus from drag for mental health reasons, and his comedy tour as Katya, "Help Me, I'm Dying", was postponed until spring 2019.[44][45] In the first episode of Whimsically Volatile in March 2018, McCook discussed the hiatus in detail. He described suffering a psychotic break after a methamphetamine relapse and briefly returning to live with his family in Massachusetts before entering a rehabilitation center in Arizona.[46] As Katya in a 2022 episode of UNHhhh, McCook shared that he had gotten his tattoos during a manic episode while on drugs but that he did not regret getting them.[47] In April 2024, McCook announced that he would be returning to rehab, postponing upcoming "The Bald and The Beautiful" tour dates.[48]
McCook became friends with Brian Firkus (Trixie Mattel) after they starred on the seventh season of RuPaul's Drag Race. Speaking about their first joint appearance on World of Wonder's Fashion Photo RuView web series, McCook said: "We weren't that close of friends in the beginning, we didn't know that much about each other. It was never pitched as 'two iconic best friends', it actually turned into a close friendship."[49]
In addition to Russian, McCook can also speak French.[50][51]
12katya_zamo (June 20, 2021). "Father's Day 2021". Instagram. Archived from the original on September 15, 2025. Retrieved June 27, 2023. Happy Father's Day to my amazing father, Dan. Loving, accepting, encouraging, the perfect Dad. I so wish that every queer gay Homo in the world could have the experience that I did growing up. ... He also bought me my first wig. What a guy.
1234"Episode 76 - Katya". RuPaul: What's the Tee (Podcast). December 14, 2016. Archived from the original on December 23, 2016. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
↑"UNHhhh". WOWPresents on YouTube. Archived from the original on September 23, 2019. Retrieved August 7, 2022.
↑Miss Fame (February 24, 2017). "Painted By Fame ft. Katya" (YouTube video). Archived from the original on July 2, 2024. Retrieved August 7, 2022– via YouTube.
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