TED Talks Daily - Bravery, brilliance and RuPaul Charles | On the Spot

Episode Date: July 19, 2024

In the debut of TED's new "On the Spot" rapid-fire Q&A format, Emmy-winning television superstar and drag icon RuPaul Charles answers questions about bravery, brilliance and more — all with his signature wit and wisdom. Get a glimpse inside RuPaul's head and hear his thoughts on the power of drag, the best way to slay, the most important personality trait -- and the best advice he's ever been given. (Featuring an equally rapid-fire Q&A with TED's Helen Walters.)

TED Audio Collective Hi, TED Talks daily listeners. I'm TED's Head of Media and Curation, Helen Walters, stepping in for Elise Hu. And today we're bringing you something a little different. It's a new format from the TED stage that we're calling On the Spot, where an iconic speaker responds to a lightning round of questions without any advanced prep. First up, you may know him from RuPaul's

Drag Race. It's the Emmy-winning drag icon himself, RuPaul Charles. You'll also hear me join RuPaul on stage for a moment at the end. It's a treat. Enjoy it after a quick break. Support for this show comes from Airbnb. If you know me, you know I love staying in Airbnbs when I travel. They make my family feel most at home when we're away from home. As we settled down at our Airbnb during a recent vacation to Palm Springs, I pictured my own home sitting empty. Wouldn't it be smart and better put to use welcoming a family like mine by hosting it on Airbnb? It feels like the practical thing to do, and with the extra income, I could save up for renovations to make the space even more inviting for ourselves and for future guests. Your home might be worth more than you think.

Find out how much at Airbnb.ca slash host. John Stackhouse and Sonia Sinek from Creative Destruction Lab as they ask bold questions like, why is Canada lagging in AI adoption and how to catch up? Don't get left behind. Listen to Disruptors, the innovation era and stay ahead of the game in this fast changing world. Follow Disruptors on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform. Hello, darlings. Now, we're going to do a new format here, which is on the spot. I'm told it's on the spot. And I will be answering a series of questions. So we'll see how this goes. All right, let's start with our first question.

And again, I have 10 minutes. So we'll see. I bet I can do it faster than 10 minutes. Define bravery. Define bravery. I think bravery is the ability to follow your bliss and make no excuses for that, all right? Define brilliance.

I think allowing yourself to be a vessel, a channel, so that the source can work through you and you align yourself with that source, I think that yourself to be a vessel, a channel, so that the source can work through you and you align yourself with that source, I think that's brilliant. What's the power of drag? Now, the power of drag, it's like the Superman suit to Clark Kent. It allows you to expand your idea of who you are,

of what you are, and it's a very simple trick, and it works. I recommend everybody try it tonight. What's the best way to slay? Know thyself. Be thyself. You are the best version of you. So you can slay that way. I get a round of applause for that. Thank you over here.

What's the first thing you notice about someone? I notice their aura. I can see, I can sense what they're about, what they want. You know, for years, I learned how to sort of shape-shift myself into what I felt someone needed from me. Listen, not the greatest thing in the world to do because, of course, you leave a little bit of yourself behind. But it sure did teach me a lot about reading someone's character, you know, and my own character. All right. What trait do you most value?

A sense of humor, people. A sense of humor. My favorite thing to do in the world is to laugh. My favorite thing in the world to do is to laugh. And I've done a lot of things. But if you have a sense of humor, yeah, because I think if you have a sense of humor, any of it too seriously, all right? What's the wisest way to be an adult? Well, to be an adult, you have to be able to keep your mouth closed, because there's a lot of things you want to say in the situations, but an adult knows better. Yeah, it's true.

It's true. You can't say everything to everybody. You really just can't. I wish we could. I wish we could. But we can't. All right. If there's one thing you want AI to keep in mind, what is it? I don't like that question. Which of your dreams have not yet come true?

I would love to be able to put together a retail storyline that is just as magnificent as Patagonia and Esprit and all the things they've done. I'd love to do that. Maybe there's time. Yeah. Oh, hi. What's the best way to say goodbye? I really don't like saying goodbye. I never have. But I've learned to be in the moment and to actually acknowledge someone and the time that we spent together. I've learned how to sit in that. I think I was always too sensitive, so I never liked to say goodbye.

So the best way to say goodbye is to do it deliberately and to acknowledge that, you know, this could be the last time I ever see you. So, you know, I'm going to acknowledge that and stay in the moment. That's great! That's great. That's fantastic. And now, back to the episode. That was going to be 10 minutes, and I have four minutes and 37 seconds left.

You want to chat? You want to? Shall we? Let's do it. Who has a question for RuPaul? Oh, I thought you were going to chat with me. You know, questions from the audience? Why not? Well, I'll tell you why not. Oh.

I don't think in all the years I've taken questions from the audience mostly people like to make comments. That's true. And we don't really want comments. No, that's true. That's true. Maybe you and I should come up with a few questions to ask me.

What would you like to tell everyone? Okay, all right. RuPaul, what is the best piece of advice you've ever gotten? That's a good question. Thank you. My 10th grade teacher, Mr. Pinnell, in Atlanta, Georgia, he said, RuPaul, my real name, do not take life too seriously. The emphasis on to. He actually used some dirty language in there, and you can fill in the blanks where he put it. You can also

swear on this stage. No, no, darling, there may be Christian children here, darling. There are none. You will. I can guarantee it. But no, it was the best advice. At the time, it was in 10th grade. You know, I flunked the 10th grade. I repeated the 10th grade, and then I dropped out in the 11th grade. But of all the time I spent in school, that was the most valuable lesson I ever learned. And as the years went on, it became more and more valuable because you have, it's like we are actors on a stage, and it's as if the actors believe that they, say Twelfth Night,

some Shakespeare thing, the actors actually believe they are the characters they're playing, you know, and drag and laughter and all those things shake it up to say, hey, kiddo, you know, you're only playing a role. This show will close, And we're going to go on to another show and another show and another show. It's going to be fabulous. Yes, it sure is. So don't get too invested in Twelfth Night, darling. So RuPaul. Yes. RuPaul is your real name. Why did your mom call you RuPaul? Well, Elizabeth, I will answer that question. I just want to say, if there are any people who want to get into show business, do not use your real name. It's my real name because it ends up on all of the public papers and all that stuff. And you're at the gynecologist or in the dentist's chair,

and they know all your business. But my mother saw a psychic when she was pregnant with me and the psychic said, you're going to have a boy and he's going to be famous. So my mother thought, you know, I'm going to name him RuPaul Andre Charles because ain't another MF in the world with that name. Yeah. True.

My real name. True. Yeah. People call me Ru though. Who is your favorite person on the planet? My best friend, who I happen to be married to. His name is George Labar, and he's so lovely and kind. I think the greatest attribute humans can have is kindness. That's number one. Number two is a fat ass. And he's got both. He's got both. And he's Australian. He's absolutely lovely. He's lovely. Okay, we have 45 seconds. I'm not stopping. What's your favorite thing about television?

Oh my gosh, I learned everything I know from television. I love it. I'm watching a show called Murder, She Sat Down and She Wrote right now. It's about 45 years old. And I can't get enough of it. I can't get enough of it. I love it. Murder, She Sat Down and She Wrote.

All right, ladies and gentlemen, it has been so much fun. Thank you. Thank you so much. Give love to somebody. Support for this show comes from Airbnb. If you know me, you know I love staying in Airbnbs when I travel. They make my family feel most at home when we're away from home. As we settled down at our Airbnb during a recent vacation to Palm Springs, I pictured my own home sitting empty. Wouldn't it be smart and better put to use welcoming a

family like mine by hosting it on Airbnb? It feels like the practical thing to do, and with the extra income, I could save up for renovations to make the space even more inviting for ourselves and for future guests. Your home might be worth more than you think. Find out how much at airbnb.ca slash host. That was RuPaul Charles at TED 2024. If you're curious about TED's curation, you can find out more about it at TED.com slash curation guidelines. Thanks for letting me join this week's episode. Bye for now. Looking for a fun challenge to share with your friends and family?

TED now has games designed to keep your mind sharp while having fun. Visit TED.com slash games to explore the joy and wonder of TED Games.