TV

RuPaul's Drag Race star Jan Sport reveals JanSport bag line after changing name for TV

The season 12 and "All Stars 6" contestant tells EW teaming with the brand "sends chills" up her spine as the "biggest accomplishment" of her career.

By

Joey Nolfi

Updated on January 12, 2024 10:01AM EST

Jan — just Jan — is no longer... well... just Jan. The RuPaul's Drag Race season 12 and All Stars 6 queen is officially going by the name Jan Sport once again, and EW can exclusively reveal she's celebrating the return to her OG moniker by launching a collection of bags with the official JanSport backpack brand that inspired it.

“I am so excited to share the Jan Sport x JanSport collaboration with the world! It’s been a lifelong dream, even before I began performing drag as Jan Sport nearly a decade ago. Not many drag artists who name themselves after a company get to collaborate with them — especially ones who had to change their name for a TV show!" Jan tells EW in a statement about the collection, which launches today via MyBestJudy and will also be available at the performer's DragCon UK booth over the weekend.

She continued, "I can not thank JanSport enough for trusting me with the integrity of their brand and vision for their company. To now be part of it, and have my own bags is the biggest accomplishment of my career."

The line includes two items that Jan designed, the Fifth Avenue fanny pack and the Half Pint mini backpack — both of which are set to drop in Jan's signature purple color.

“I really wanted to add some flair, and we settled on a lilac houndstooth. I have always been so in love with houndstooth and I wanted to give it a twist to my usual purple," Jan explains. "We also created a faded effect to give it some depth. My favorite part is the label. To see the JanSport logo on shiny silver outlined in deep purple, and the words 'made by Jan' right underneath it sends chills up my spine."

Jan x JanSport bags — 'Drag Race' star Jan Sport reveals JanSport bag collection.
Tanner Abel

The New York City-based entertainer rose to international prominence on season 12 of RuPaul's Drag Race in 2020, in which she competed under the mononym Jan after changing her original drag name of Jan Sport, a move that was often alluded to when head judge and host RuPaul affectionately referred to her as "just Jan." She ultimately placed eighth on the season, and returned for another stint on All Stars 6 in 2021, also under the name Jan.

The new line marks a major career achievement for the performer, who told EW in 2020 that her initial elimination from season 12 brought the musically-inclined entertainer — whom has released solo singles as well as collaborations with Stephanie's Child, her pop group formed with Lagoona Bloo and season 13 star Rosé — to a low point in life.

"There were a lot of tears that happened, and I was very emotional. In my hotel room after, I didn’t have any tears left. I had cried my eyes out for the last three days of the competition that I was there, and I was just numb. I was defeated…. to have that stripped from underneath me out of nowhere was horrible. It was a heartbreak that I’ve never felt in my entire life, and I was like, I don’t want to sing again," she said at the time. "I don’t want to do any of these things for a long time. I had to build myself back up to be able to want to do these things again, but ultimately I did because that’s what we do: We grieve moments of sadness, but we pick it back up and we have to look ourselves in the mirror and say 'I am worth it, I am worthy, and I can get through this hard time.' That was the beginning of a long process of picking myself back up."