"Any tea about season three of Queer Eye you're able to spill?" I asked Jonathan, while we both sat in the middle of a corn maze on the top floor of The Bordone in Long Island City.
"I shaved my hair off like a month ago, and this is a wig, and you see it on the show," the grooming expert replied.
"Wait, are you lying?" I asked.
"I'm 100% lying. It's not on the show. I wanted to see if you would react and you did. This is totally my hair," he said with a monsterous grin on his face.
Besides his height (there's a reason why Tan France lovingly calls him the "White Giant"), the first thing you notice about the 31-year-old icon is his mustache. It's huge, perfectly manicured, and looks adorable, especially when he tilts his head to smile.
JVN was serving some autumn realness wearing a red, turtleneck crop top sweater underneath a pair of jean overalls. (One strap down at the side, obviously.) And his 3-inch heels were bright red and black with an ornate snakeskin design.
He definitely knew that he'd be interviewed in the corn maze set up in honor of Smirnoff 21 being gluten-free and now non-GMO. Smirnoff made the decision to go non-GMO because the brand prides itself as being a quality vodka for everyone. So now people avoiding GMOs in their everyday life can enjoy Smirnoff cocktails at the same price.
JVN ended up becoming the spokesperson for Smirnoff after he was invited to ride the Smirnoff float during Pride month this past year in New York City.
When initially offered, "I was like, why?" but then he learned about their work with the HRC, the launching of this new bottle, and their message of inclusivity.
"I also love drinking responsibly, and I love that it's built into the message because especially with the LGBTQ community, it's like, 'Come on, moderation!' I feel like it's a word that we haven't heard of."
While chatting with JVN, it didn't take long for him to bring up that his cat died unexpectedly about six weeks ago. It's clear he was distraught over the untimely death of his pet, but his Queer Eye fam was right besides him.
"Everyone [in the fab 5] was there. And they helped prevent me from adopting 11 cats. I just adopted two."
"Well, since you have a boyfriend you can no longer be a crazy lady?" I asked.
"Oh, that's exactly why I can be actually. I keep joking [to my boyfriend Wilco] that I'm going to come home with another three cats, and his response is like, 'Babe, no.'" With Wilco's dog, their one-bedroom apartment is already pretty cramped.
Getting to know Wilco at the party later, it's obvious why JVN adores him. Wilco is funny, kind, down-to-Earth, stylish (he was wearing a Balenciaga fanny pack), and extremely handsome.
But those were just part of the reasons why Jonathan is so found of his man. "He has no internalized homophobia around masculinity. He's very pro femme and living your life, and that's really attractive to me!"
So what can we actually expect to see on the season three, since JVN won't be buzzing his head?
"Well, it definitely does feel more diverse."
