Drag icon and winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars season two Alaska Thunderfuck is heading on a brief tour with her new show Valentine’s Day is Terrible coming to the Baltimore Soundstage on Feb. 11. I got to chat with her ahead of the show to talk about all things love, romance, dating and Valentine’s Day.

Answers have been edited for clarity. 

EVAN HECHT: I feel like the Drag Race fan in me would be remiss if I didn’t say, can I askkkkk you a question?

ALASKA THUNDERFUCK: Ouooo yeaaah.

HECHT: I didn’t really get the inflection right. 

ALASKA: Keep practicing, you’ll get there.

HECHT: So, obviously, we’re here today to talk about your upcoming show in Baltimore, which is so exciting. Your anti-Valentine’s Valentine’s Day show called Valentine’s Day is Terrible. So I want to ask, what inspired you to create the show?

ALASKA: Something I always love to do is to get together with my best friend Jeremy — who plays the piano beautifully — and just take a topic or a holiday or a theme and put a show together. So that’s what we’re doing. And so, it’s been really fun to sort of flex that muscle again, and I think we can all kind of agree that Valentine’s Day is kind of terrible. Even if you’re in a couple and you’re happy, it’s still like, ‘Oh God, here’s this corporate, made-up holiday that I have to remember and I have to make really special.’

HECHT: It’s always so funny for me whenever I’m home from school or when I was in high school and hearing my parents, who have such a lovely relationship, but still every Valentine’s Day, it was like, ‘Oh, what are we doing this time around?’

ALASKA: Right? Something erupts, something comes to the surface and it’s like, why don’t we just — it’s just designed to sell greeting cards.

HECHT: So being on the stage obviously is not something abnormal for you. You just came off the Red 4 Filth tour, and you’ve also done some amazing other pop-up shows like you did your “Heart 2 Break” Kim Petras one I remember, over the summer you did the “1989” show. So how does a show like this differ from some of your previous work? 

ALASKA: Um, I don’t know — because it’s different songs? It’s a totally different vibe. I don’t know, it’s songs I’ve never done before but have always wanted to do so I’m really excited about that.

[The Diamond Drag: Old Friends Gold of ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’]

HECHT: Can we get an exclusive of maybe some songs we’re about to see for the first time?

ALASKA: No. It’s a surprise!

HECHT: Listen, I had to ask, I had to ask.

ALASKA: I know you’re doing your job as a reporter so I understand.

HECHT: Valentine’s Day can definitely be a controversial holiday for a lot of people. Some people just love to love it. A lot of people love to hate it. What has your relationship with Valentine’s Day been like?

ALASKA: I’ve always found it tremendously burdensome. I don’t really like days where we’re like, ‘Oh, this is the big day. This is a special day.’ I always find that really annoying because then everybody’s expectations get heightened and then if anything goes wrong, it’s ultra worse. So I prefer just normal days. Just like a normal Tuesday.

HECHT: I think we should rebrand Valentine’s Day as normal Tuesday, especially for this year.

ALASKA: Pleeeease … Honey, it’s a normal Tuesday.

HECHT: What would be one thing you could change about Valentine’s Day if you could?

ALASKA: I guess the fact that it’s sort of about romantic love and sort of about coupling. I think that’s the dumbest part about it. I actually quite love boxes of chocolates. I love the color red and the color pink together, which it’s like, you’re not really supposed to wear those together, but on Valentine’s Day you’re allowed. So I love all those things, but I just don’t think it should be like shaming single people.

HECHT: What’s your favorite little chocolate in one of those giant medleys? What’s the first one you’re going to grab?

ALASKA: Oh my gosh, it depends! I’ve always really liked double chocolate truffles, but lately I’ve strangely been into those weird raspberry cream or orange cream ones. I kind of like those.

HECHT: I love those little chocolate oranges, the big chocolate orange you open them up and actually eat the peels.

ALASKA: Oh yeah, that shit’s good. 

[The Diamond Drag: House of Fashion of ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’]

HECHT: Controversial question. What do you think of white chocolate?

ALASKA: It’s fine. I don’t think of it that often.

HECHT: Talking about Valentine’s Day with kind of the overarching theme being love — a lot of people like to celebrate it just because it could be a day to enjoy love and things you love. So for a bit of a deeper question, what does love mean to you?

ALASKA: I think the most important kind of love in my life is the love I have for my friends. I think it’s the most flexible kind of love that we give each other space when we need it and we’re there for each other when we really need it. That has been really important to me throughout my whole life.

HECHT: Obviously a lot of these Valentine’s Day issues we’ve talked about, one of the big things is that shaming of single people and that pressure of being in a relationship around this time. I feel like in the queer community, there’s lots of discussion, lots of odd conversations around dating. So what would be one piece of advice you would give about dating in general, whether it be for all people or even just specifically the LGBTQ community?

ALASKA: You don’t want to ask me for dating advice. I don’t know. If y’all have any advice for me, I will take it. I don’t know — be nice to people? I don’t know!

HECHT: Funny for me, outside of journalism, I work for a dating app … and all my friends turn to me like, ‘Help me make my profile. Help me with dating advice.’ I don’t know what to do. They just pay me to say, ‘Download the app!’

ALASKA: That actually leads me to an actual piece of good advice. I don’t know how well apps really work. Sorry, I know you work for one, but I think you’re going to be better off meeting someone in real life, and sometimes it’s more difficult, not knowing every piece of information about somebody before you meet them. But, that sort of in-person chemistry is something that you can’t detect from over a phone or over an app. So often the most valuable and interesting people you’re going to meet, you’re going to meet organically in real life.