Ilona Verley

Ilona Verley was born in 1994 or 1995 in Nanaimo, British Columbia, and raised in Lytton and Surrey, British Columbia. From an early age, Verley cultivated an interest in makeup artistry, leading them to attend the Blanche MacDonald Centre in Vancouver. This foundational training in make-up artistry provided a solid base for their future career in drag performance and television.

Verley gained widespread recognition for competing on the first season of “Canada’s Drag Race.” Before this, they had auditioned for the eleventh and twelfth seasons of the American reality television series “RuPaul’s Drag Race.” On “Canada’s Drag Race,” Verley notably became the first Indigenous, Two-Spirit, and openly non-binary queen to participate in the competition. They finished in the seventh episode. Following their appearance, Verley also attracted positive attention for their finale look, which incorporated a First Nations jingle dress in pastel colors and red handprints, symbolizing the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women movement. In October 2020, Verley was a featured performer at the opening gala of the imagineNATIVE Film and Media Arts Festival, and in November 2020, they were honored on Out magazine’s annual Out100 list of influential LGBTQ personalities.

Verley has experienced significant personal and professional milestones. As a Nlaka’pamux person, they identify as Two-Spirit and a proud Indigenous trans woman. They describe their gender identity as fluid and continuously evolving. Verley has utilized their platform to address important issues, including a public accusation of cultural insensitivity against NYX Professional Makeup in 2020. They also appeared in pop singer Mathew V’s 2018 music video for “Broken.” In June 2025, Verley was involved in a serious car accident, sustaining a broken nose, dislocated jaw, concussion, fractured spine, and deep facial lacerations.