Who Went Home on RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 16? The Shocking Twist

Hershii LiqCour-Jeté

Eliminated: January 19, 2023
Place: 14th

Hershii LiqCour-Jete was the first drag queen to be eliminated from RuPaul’s Drag Race season 16. She lip-synced to “Maybe You’re the Problem” by Ava Max and lost.

Hershii recalled the moment she knew that she was about to be eliminated. “I was standing between Geneva and Mhi’ya [on the Main Stage],” she told Entertainment Weekly. “While we were making the outfits, Mhi’ya’s didn’t look good, so in my mind I was like, I have a chance, but seeing it on the stage, she pulled it together better than I thought. I was shocked that Geneva was down there. I didn’t know why she was. I thought either Morphine or Mirage would be in the bottom, so I was shocked to see Geneva. I knew I was in the bottom after they clocked my pants. I said, to this day, I should’ve just f—ing lied and said I made those pants.”

Mirage

Eliminated: January 26, 2024
Place: 13th

Mirage was eliminated in episode 5 of season 16 of RuPaul’s Drag Race. She lip-synced “Dark Lady” by Cher against Geneva Karr.
“I would say it was a flash. It was so fun, but I feel like it kind of flew by,” Mirage told Blavity about her time on the show. “I mean, obviously I was having a great time. I loved it. I would do it again. I highly recommend, but yeah, it was just such a there and back before I even realized my head was spinning,” she said, adding that walking into the werkroom was more than she could expect.

Amanda Tori Meating

Eliminated: February 2, 2024
Place: 12th

Amanda Tori Meating was eliminated in episode 6 of season 16 of RuPaul’s Drag Race. She lip-synced “Emergency” by Icona Pop against Q.

On what she did the night after her elimination, she told Entertainment Weekly. “I cried a lot, I was upset, I was spiraling. My story producer, before I left set, he looked at me, like, “Be kind to yourself tonight.” Such a sweet guy. I thought I blew it. Before that night, before I got sent the f— home, I was like, I’m top-four, easily … I don’t care that I had a rough go at the beginning, there have been tons of girls who’ve fallen on their face and become a beautiful butterfly by the end of the season. I was like, that’s absolutely going to be my tea. I was a bit devastated to have that not be my fantasy, but, I think I’ve butterflied in my own way.”

Geneva Karr

Eliminated: February 9, 2024
Place: 11

Geneva Karr was eliminated in episode 6 of season 16 of RuPaul’s Drag Race. On her elimination, she told Entertainment Weekly, “I was kind of like, okay, I can finally get off this roller coaster of emotions, I don’t have to be stressed about the next week or if they’ll love what I’m delivering. I got this far, and I did the damn thing, and not that many people can say that…. I was excited to get to see how my father was doing because he’d just had surgery before I went on the show. That weighed on my mind in the competition. I was even considering not going because I helped pay for his surgery, and I was short on money. I took whatever I could, and that’s why I was upset a lot of the time, because I didn’t really bring what I wanted to, but I’m going to do the most with what I can. I was excited to see how he was doing, and that’s why I wasn’t giving up, but relieved to check on him.”

Megami

Eliminated: February 16, 2024
Place: 10

Megami was eliminated in episode 8 of season 16 RuPaul’s Drag Race. She lipsynced opposite Mhi’ya Iman Le’Paige with “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus. On her performance, she told Entertainment Weekly, “. I don’t know much of what Mhi’ya did because I was going to focus on the words of this song and the emotion and intent behind the song, and kind of stare Ru down and make that connection and feeling the feelings of Miley Cyrus. Maybe Ru didn’t like me looking her in the eye and saying, “I can love me better than you can.”

Xunami Muse

Eliminated: February 23, 2024
Place: 9th

Xumani Muse was eliminated in episode 8 of season 16 of RuPaul’s Drag Race. She was placed in the last two spots with Morphine Love Dion and lip-synced “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)” by Whitney Houston. On her elimination, she told Entertainment Weekly, “Every little moment counts, so the moment you start second-guessing, that’s when it could be your time, and that’s what happened to me. I gave it my all, and it was my time. I don’t regret anything. Looking back, I would’ve definitely done Celia Cruz [for Snatch Game]. I wanted to prove something to myself, like, if I go with this random character, it’ll show X, Y, Z. The reality is I should’ve gone with something I’m used to and feel comfortable with.”

Plasma

Eliminated: March 1, 2024
Place: 8th Place

Plasma was eliminated on March 1, 2024. She lip-synced battled Mhi’ya Iman LePaige with “Bloody Mary” by Lady Gaga.

Mhi’ya Iman Le’Paige

Eliminated: March 15, 2024
Place: 7th Place

Mhi’ya Iman Le’Paige was eliminated on March 15 2024. She lip-synced battled Morphine Love Dion with “Dim All the Lights” by Donna Summer.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, she recalled “[Morphine] said, ‘Girl, you gagged me. I wanted to kick your ass.’ I had to set it off. I already knew it was going to be a good lip-sync and battle. She set it up for me, sitting down on the floor, so I’m twirling around and happened to throw it on her. I did it to throw her off her game! … I didn’t think it would get like that. We had our little buildup, but once the lip-sync happened, it was like, claws out, let’s fight.”

Dawn

Eliminated: March 22, 2024
Place: 6th Place

Dawn was eliminated on March 22, 2024. She lip-synced battled Morphine Love Dion with “Body” by Megan Thee Stallion.

She told Entertainment Weekly, “I had such a good time every single day, even the days I was safe on safe on safe, I wasn’t in the top, I still came into Untucked happy, excited, having fun, joking around. That day was the first day where I was like, just not feeling it. I don’t think I’d given up, but I didn’t realize I was in the bottom two until they called Nymphia safe. I don’t want to call that delusion, I want to call it hope.”

Morphine Love Dion

Eliminated: March 22, 2024
Place: 5th Place

Morphine Love Dion was eliminated on March 22, 2024. She lip-synced battled Sapphira Cristál in “Miss You More” by Kelsea Ballerini.

Q

Status: Eliminated April 5, 2024

Q was eliminated on April 5, 2024 and ended up in 4th place. She lip synced “Better Be Good to Me” by Tina Turner against Plane Jane, “It’s definitely a bummer [to go home before the finale]. I’ve processed that by now,” she told Entertainment Weekly. “Honestly, I don’t know if staying longer in the competition has benefitted me more [as it might’ve if I left] earlier. It’s always that kind of toss-up with how you’re perceived by the audience. Who knows if me even staying this long was good. I’m at peace with it.”

Who’s still remaining on RuPaul’s Drag Race season 16?

Here are all the queens still remaining on RuPaul’s Drag Race season 16:

• Nymphia Wind
• Plane Jane
• Q
• Sapphira Cristal

Nymphia Wind

Status: Still In The Show
Winner: Episode 2 with “Maybe You’re the Problem” by Ava Max

Plane Jane

Status: Still in the show

Wins: Episode 1 for “Shower” by Becky G

Sapphira Cristál

Status: Still in the show
Wins: Episode 1 with “Break My Soul” by Beyoncé