Youth Profile - Hailey Berry

ORIGINALLY FROM LIVERPOOL in the UK, 17-year-old Joel Collins now calls the Top End home. We caught up with Joel to chat about what he’s been up to during lockdown and his effervescent drag persona, Hailey Berry.

During the lockdown, you’ve been creating a bit of video content for your YouTube channel. Tell us about what you’ve been up to!

I’ve been in a mentorship with Launch Darwin and Amy Hetherington of Amiable Communications to create a web series on how to become a drag queen! My series is still in production, with a grand finale featuring a local celebrity coming soon…

Tell us about your alter ego, Hailey Berry. What’s she like?

Hailey is what I like to call CCC – she’s cute, campy and comedic. Her favourite thing to do is make people laugh – and look good while doing it. She’s friendly, happy and always overexcited.

We noticed you’ve worked with Darwin drag royalty, Vogue MegaQueen – what was that experience like?

Vogue is my drag mum – we’ve become really good friends. After a rough patch, she really helped me turn my life around. She’s an amazing person, a stunning performer, and she’s all around fabulous!

How do you spend your weekends in the Top End?

On the weekends, you can typically catch me hanging our with friends, practicing my makeup and, especially now that I’m in Year 12, doing lots of homework.

Who do you admire the most and why?

I admire my mum because she is the most resilient, kind and loving person I’ve ever known. She’s always supported me and stood by me. Without her, I wouldn’t be the person I am today.

If you could give one word of advice to other young people in the Top End, what would it be?

Be yourself. Don’t change anything about you to fit in. Enjoy the beautiful place you live in. Oh, and be fabulous!

INFO youtube.com