'RuPaul's Drag Race Star Chi Chi DeVayne Dies At 34

Chi Chi DeVayne real name Zavion Davenport who appeared on RuPaul Drag Race’s eighth season and the third season of RuPaul’s Drag Race All-Stars has unfortunately died.

Source: Bennett Raglin / Getty

Prior to her passing, the 34-year-old was hospitalized with pneumonia last week and solicited prayers. While in the hospital she had catheters connected to her heart and kidneys before she underwent dialysis. 

Chi Chi also told fans that she suffered from scleroderma, an autoimmune rheumatic disease that causes tightening and hardening of the skin and connective tissue. Her hospitalization was directly connected to her disease.

“They got my blood pressure down and all of that good stuff,” Chi Chi explained. “But today they have to do three hours of dialysis to see if they can get my kidneys back functioning.

“If you don’t know, I’ve got scleroderma and it affects everything in your body like heart, lung, kidneys everything and I let it go too long without going to the doctor, and these are the consequences. Take care of your body.”

“Tomorrow they’re going to give me a biopsy on my kidneys and let me know what it is that’s making my blood pressure so high, so I just want to say that I love you guys,” she added.

 

Fellow Drag Race stars and World of Wonder, the production company behind Drag Race, have issued statements on her passing. 

Entertainment Weekly reports that DeVayne is the second contestant from Drag Race to have died since the show’s inception, following the death of season 2 contestant Sahara Davenport, who died of heart failure in 2012.

RuPaul has also released a statement on Chi Chi’s passing;

“I am so grateful that we got to experience her kind and beautiful soul,” said RuPaul.  She will be dearly missed, but never forgotten. May her generous and loving spirit shine down on us all.”

R.I.P. RuPaul’s Drag Race.