Coco Montrese talks 'All Stars' nerves and harsh critiques

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Coco Montrese could have probably slayed the house down with a Janet Jackson medley. Instead, she channeled old Hollywood glamour on "RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars 2" -- and was the first queen sent home.

But the Las Vegas-based performer says it hasn't changed her mindset.

"Don't worry," she says. "I'm going to keep taking risks."

Montrese is one of 10 returning queens on the second "All Stars" season, which includes fan favorites and villains vying for the crown. Each week's top two queens lip sync for their "legacy," with the winner earning a $10,000 tip and deciding which of the week's bottom three goes home.

Roxxy Andrews won the first lip sync and sent home Montrese, her Season 5 sister. Nine hopefuls are still competing for the crown. Montrese talked about her experience, that Dorito compact and going into "protection mode" with Adore Delano.

What was your first reaction to the "All Stars 2" offer?

Wow – me? Are you sure called the right Coco? That type of thing. I was very tak-en back and elated by it. It's a very humbling thing when there are 100 queens they could have offered it to. I was floored. But then it was like, 'Oh my God, what did you get yourself into? You wanna put yourself back in the public eye like that?' Sometimes the fans can be brutal. There's no room for mistakes. Sometimes they think you're Superman.

Was int strange walking back into that workroom a second time?

It was a great feeling, but I was terrified at the same time. I felt a different type of confidence. I laugh at myself now more. I don't mind being the brunt of the joke sometimes. I've learned a lot.

Are there still nerves?

You really don't want to let people down. You don't want to let your fans down. You don't want to let RuPaul down. I think it was more nerve-wracking than the first time. You're walking into a room full of people you see as stars themselves in their own right. They all have careers. You have a career now. You're afraid of not de-livering.

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Talk to me about this Dorito accessory, a nod to being called orange throughout Season 5.

My Dorito compact! It comes out along with my perfume for the holiday season for sale on my website. It's a cute little compact that looks like a Dorito. It has a mirror and a powder.

Who were you most surprised to see enter the workroom?

I didn't expect to see Tatianna (from Season 2). I loved her on her season, and I've known Tatianna. But that was a shocker to me. She's amazing, but I just didn't ex-pect to see her.

The dynamic between you and Alyssa Edwards is obviously very different this time around.

It was a sense of comfort having her there. Alyssa and I do have a history, of course, competing in lots of pageants together. Contrary to what people believe about our rivalry, when we were competing in pageants together, we actually were so encouraging with each other. 'We need to be the winner and the first runner-up.' We were always side-by-side fighting for the top. Whoever gets the top, the next year you help the other girl get to the top. Unfortunately, what happened with Miss Gay America happened. But seeing her here was very comforting. It was very en-couraging to have her there.

What inspired the classic Hollywood homage during the talent show challenge?

Here's the thing. When you grow up watching entertainers like Madonna and Cher and all of them and go, 'How did they stick around so long with the Miley Cyrus-es and all these other girls coming up?' Madonna's always reinventing herself. If she's not reinventing herself, she's reinventing the music, she's putting a twist on the songs. It keeps you coming back to the concert, which keeps her relevant and keeps you buying that really expensive ticket. That was my thing. Take the risk. Don't play it safe because people get tired of saying that. These fans, they come 24-7 to see us perform in these different cities. If they know they're gonna see the same thing, they can say, 'I'll sit this one out. I know she's gonna do Janet (Jack-son).' I wanted to be unpredictable. Sometimes it pays off, sometimes it doesn't. it is what it is.

Were you surprised to be the first sent home?

I was thinking about what I could have done to make the performance a little bit better, knowing that I'm with a great group of girls, and let the chips fall where they may. If I felt like someone else was worse than me, it didn't matter at that point. It was a risk I took. I think it kinda showed on my face when (Roxxxy Andrews) an-nounced it. I wasn't upset with her at all. I was more upset that I was leaving. I didn't want it to affect her in the competition. That's why I went over and hugged her and I said to her, 'It's OK.'

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Were you taken aback by Michelle Visage's harsh critiques? She's incited the wrath of fans all over social media.

You never expect it. I was taken aback by it. But in the same text, Michelle is like a mother to all of us, and sometimes that tough love is the love that we're needing. When I saw it, I was like, 'God, that was harsh.' But Michelle's not a mean-spirited person. She's not evil by a long shot. But it caught me off guard, and I was very protective of Adore (Delano) more than myself. You can say anything about my makeup. You can say anything about my performance. You can say anything you want. I'm 40-something years old. My skin is a lot thicker than someone younger. I kinda went into protection mode of Adore. She's this young girl. I don't know if she can really take that.

What's next for Coco Montrese?

I joke with people all the time and say I'm close to retirement. But I live and breathe to be onstage. I need to entertain. I don't know what I would be like if I stopped en-tertaining or stopped nurturing younger talent. I want to own my own business where I make a platform for younger entertainers to actually step onstage and per-fect their craft and hone their craft learn that there's not a right way or a wrong way. Just do it. That's everything. I want to be what RuPaul is to me.