Katya Zamolodchikova

May 1, 2025

Fast Facts
Background
Career Timeline
Why We Love
Surprising Facts
FAQs

Brian Joseph McCook or Katya Petrovna Zamolodchikova, born May 1, 1982, is a well-known drag queen contestant who placed fifth in the seventh season of “Ru Paul’s Drag Race,” and runner-up in “Ru Paul’s Drag Race All-Stars” season two. She also participated in several multimedia projects, exploring mediums and collaborations with fellow drag queens. Celebrate Katya’s Day with us.

Fast Facts

Full Name:

Brian Joseph McCook

Nickname:

Yekaterina Petrovna Zamolodchikova, Katya Zamolodchikova, Katya

Birth date:

May 1, 1982

Age:

Zodiac Sign:

Taurus

Height:

5' 9"

Relationship Status:

Single

Net Worth:

$4 million

Background

Katya Petrovna Zamolodchikova is a RuPaul Drag Race favorite and one of the most influential drag queens in America. Her creativity, ingenuity, and grit in her craft are commendable, and that makes her a fan favorite. A Taurus, born on May 1, 1982, Zamolodchikova came from a family of Irish descent and grew up in a Catholic household in Marlborough, Massachusetts, U.S.A.

As a student, Zamolodchikova attended Marlborough High School and Boston University but transferred after a year to Massachusetts College of Art and Design. While completing her degree in video and performance art at the Studio for Interrelated Media in MCAD, drag piqued her interest, which she pursued soon after — creating a Russian drag character. Inspired by her favorite gymnast Elena Zamolodchikova, and female comedians and personalities Tracy Ullman, Maria Bamford, Lana del Rey, and Amy Sedaris, she created her drag persona with the stage name Yekaterina Petrovna Zamolodchikova, or simply, Katya. Her language proficiency in Russian and perseverance in practicing the accent, with the help of “Pronounce It Perfectly,” was an advantage and was what added to the character.

Zamolodchikova’s experience in conducting drag shows in a local drag scene in Boston and the Jacques Cabaret gave her the courage to audition for “RuPaul’s Drag Race.” She auditioned four times before making it to the seventh season and was voted as “Miss Congeniality.” In 2016, Zamolodchikova returned to another RuPaul show, being a participant in the second season of “RuPaul’s Drag Race: All Stars” and finishing as a runner-up. Since her RuPaul breakthrough, she has had numerous collaborative projects in various digital mediums with other drag queens, especially with Trixie Mattel.

Career timeline

2006

Brian Creates His Drag Persona

Yekaterina Petrovna Zamolodchikova, or Katya, is born and is known for performing Russian songs at the local Boston drag scene and Jacques Cabaret.

2015

Katya Joins RuPaul’s Drag Race

After several auditions, she makes it to the seventh season and is voted ‘Miss Congeniality.’

2016

Cast in RuPaul’s “Drag Race: All Stars”

Once again, Katya returns to Drag Race: All Stars, and In this season, she qualifies for the top three, placing as runner-up.

2017

The Trixie & Katya Show Premieres

After the success of their first collaboration on a Youtube web series, Trixie and Katya kick it off by announcing their show together.

2019

Katya Goes on a Comedy Tour

“Help Me I’m Dying” is the title of her show airing on several T.V. channels.

2020

Collaborates with Trixie Mattel on Several Projects

The two release a book they co-authored and launch a weekly podcast.

Why We Love Katya Zamolodchikova

She’s a multi-talented artist
Katya Zamolodchikova, no doubt, is an awesome drag queen. But she’s also good in other art fields and has a flourishing acting career.
Her perseverance in pursuing and expanding her drag career
She thrived and conquered going to auditions, exploring multimedia platforms, and creating various content. She eventually got the world’s attention because of her resilience.
She cares for her fans
She is always mindful of her fans and continues to improve her craft as a drag queen. She is even known as the ‘sweetest woman in show biz’ for her charm and tenderness.

5 Surprising Facts

Katya identifies as bisexual
As Bryan McCook, his real self, the drag queen identifies as gay, but as the drag queen Katya, she identifies as bisexual.
She’s an author and podcast host
Her collaborations with Trixie Mattel involve co-authoring “Trixie and Katya’s Guide to Modern Womanhood” and co-hosting a weekly podcast “The Bald and The Beautiful.”
She can speak four foreign languages
She can speak fluent Russian and French and is known to speak Japanese and Portuguese.
She went on a drag hiatus
Due to mental health reasons, she postponed her comedy tour in 2018 and returned the following year.
“The Most Powerful Drag Queens in America”
She placed 13th in “N.Y. Mag’s” 2019 list, among hundreds.