From dad to drag: How Jada Yee supports his queer kids as Chyna B. Deadly

It's a Saturday night and Chyna B. Deadly is strutting, jumping, dancing and lip-syncing to Lady Gaga's latest single, Abracadabra. She's dressed in a plunging glittery gown and high heels, surrounded by people singing along, dancing and waving money at her.

Chyna is a drag queen and her adoring fans are attending the Sweet N Sticky Pride event on June 14 at The Exchange in Regina.

But during the day, you'd know her as Jada Yee: a tall, broad businessman, usually wearing a suit.

Yee's alter ego and stage name is a blend of his Chinese and Indigenous heritages.

You might assume, because Yee is a drag queen, that he's gay. He's not.

He's straight, married to a woman and has four children, two of whom are transgender.

"My children are my life," he told Sam Maciag in this week's episode of the This is Saskatchewan podcast.

"Everything I want to do is to show them that they're loved and appreciated. I try to see things through their eyes. That's what makes me a better person."

In 2023, Yee was invited to participate in Walk the Walk, a drag queen fundraiser that raises money by putting local celebrities and change makers in drag. They learn how to work it, then do so in front of a crowd, with proceeds from the event going to Lulu's Lodge, an organization that provides support to young queer and transgender people who've been kicked out of their homes.

When his daughter Jill revealed herself to be transgender in her late 20s, Yee committed to being a better ally. He joined support groups for parents, saying it was really important for her to know that he had her back.

When his son revealed himself to also be transgender a few years later, Yee said he was better prepared to support him and be a good parent.

"I think [our relationship] got better because it allowed me to really be more open with them," he said.

When Yee hit that stage as Chyna for the first time in 2023, it was supposed to be a one and done performance. But one of the other queens approached him.

"She was crying and she said, 'I wish you were my dad.' It was so emotional … and then afterwards, the group came up to me and they said, 'You should continue doing this,'" said Yee.