Ballroom Legend Boogie Revlon Makaveli Reportedly Killed at 36

The performer helped to shape the realness with a twist category.

Mikelle Street

Mikelle is the former editorial director of digital for PrideMedia, guiding digital editorial and social across Out, The Advocate, Pride.com, Out Traveler, and Plus. After starting as a freelancer for Out in 2013, he joined the staff as Senior Editor working across print and digital in 2018. In early 2021 he became Out's digital director, marking a pivot to content that centered queer and trans stories and figures, exclusively. In September 2021, he was promoted to editorial director of PrideMedia. He has written cover stories on Ricky Martin, Miss Fame, Nyle DiMarco, Jeremy O. Harris, Law Roach, and Symone.

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Mikelle Street

April 09 2021 7:57 AM EST

November 04 2024 9:41 AM EST

MikelleStreet

The ballroom community is mourning as news spreads surrounding the death of Legendary Boogie Revlon Makaveli.

Word first broke on Thursday night on social media and has been circulating for hours with many posting tributes. The performer was the founder of the House of Makaveli and was deemed legendary previously while he was in the House of Revlon. Over the span of his career he helped to shape the realness with a twist category -- within this category, men who appear to be masculine-leaning straight men "twist," and vogue affecting a feminine persona. At the Heritage Ball in New York City in 2019, Jack Mizrahi Gucci, an icon within the community, called Boogie to stage for legends, statements, and stars. In his introduction, he said that Boogie should be deemed an icon, one of the most lauded titles within the community, because of the impact he has had on the category of realness with a twist.

\u201cRemembering Realness With A Twist Legend Boogie Revlon Makaveli\u201d
— TENz Magazine (@TENz Magazine) 1617982450

\u201cBoogie Revlon was one of the most important butchqueens to ever touch the ballroom. \n\nhe perfected the Twister category and brought such affect and fullness to it that he challenged BQVF, Butch Queen Drag, and Realness categories all at once; not to mention FQP. \n\nwhat a loss.\u201d
— Tony (@Tony) 1617974518

\u201cRest in Power, Legendary Boogie Revlon Makaveli \ud83c\udf39\u201d
— Twiggy Pucci Gar\u00e7on (@Twiggy Pucci Gar\u00e7on) 1617973938

See on Instagram

\u201cRest in Power Boogie Makaveli, a true blueprint for realness with a twist.\u201d
— Moving back to @MikelleStreet (@Moving back to @MikelleStreet) 1617976026

According to a report from WNCT, Boogie's body was found in a vehicle crash on Thursday just after 1 p.m. He was pronounced dead at the scene and "it was determined he had been shot more than once." Boogie was 36 years old and the suspect, Jimmie Early Speight Jr, has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder and shooting into an occupied vehicle in connection with the killing.