Drag, resistance, and identity: the journey of Azerbaijan’s first drag queen

In Azerbaijan, where queer people are marginalised and forced to express themselves only privately or in the confines of their own homes, there is only one publicly visible drag performer, known by the stage name Lady Slim.  For Seymur Babayev, the first drag performer in Azerbaijan, his drag persona Lady Slim is ‘energetic, stage-loving, a little shy, a little cheeky, and a little crazy’.  Babayev realised from a young age that he was different from others. He thought differently from ot