Brenn DeGross has lived in Eugene for seven years, but they only found out about the SLUG Queen (Society for the Legitimization of the Ubiquitous Gastropod) Competition and Coronation about three years ago. She was excited to compete — next year.
“I absolutely fell in love with the idea,” DeGross says. “It’s like, somewhat of an anti-beauty contest, and it brings the weird out.” DeGross resonated with this enough to run for queen, because, well, “I, in my heart, am weirder than weird. And I’m super excited to find my tribe and my people.”
So they found the application, and developed an elaborate “slugsona” to take Eugene by storm and meet some people as weird as they are. And they are confident they will, because, as DeGross loves to say, “Eugene is where weird was born.” And with an entire year to prepare, they knew they had time to get down and get slimy.
Because DeGross thought they were applying for the 2025 pageant.
They didn’t realize until around August 1 that they sent their application in right before this year’s deadline and will in fact be competing in the 2024 pageant on August 9.
“I’m super, super excited and ready,” DeGross says. While they have not gotten the chance to properly bribe the judges, in the time-honored SLUG queen tradition, they reckon themselves something of a skilled cook and a baker, and plan to schmooze the judges with a whole load of fresh grub the day of the competition.
Aside from that, her slugsona, Queen Supreme Slugerella Slimeshine, is prepared to ooze their way to the top.
Slugerella was inspired by the way DeGross noticed how, after the winter weather clears into sunny blue skies, their punk and grunge friends “defrost from their dark side and bring the pink out.” In other words, Degross observes that it’s quite common among themself and many Eugeneans for the wintery gloominess of the grunge to get seasonally altered into a happy, summery hippie aesthetic. This is what this wannabe hopes to pay homage to with their slugsona.
DeGross describes Slugerella as a “hippie/corpse situation.”
Think Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland, their favorite movie, where the colorful and wonderful meets the dark and dreary.
If Queen Supreme Slugerella Slugshine achieves the crown, they say that as part of the SLUGly role as Eugene’s unofficial goodwill ambassador, they hope to offer their queenly services wherever they find themself needed in Eugene.
But specifically, they hope to work with their “favorite little organization” RAD Eugene. Radical Alternative Development is a nonprofit cohort of mental health specialists, drug and alcohol counselors and social workers. It revolves around creating a safe community for all ages — and they are totally punk rock. They hold benefit concerts, carnivals and mosh pits, all family friendly, and all in need of endorsement from a grungy slug monarch. The SLUG Queen Pageant and Coronation is 6 pm Friday, August 9, at the downtown Park Blocks, 8th Avenue and Oak Street. The event begins with music from the One More Time Marching Band, followed by the competition at 6:30 pm. Read Part I, “Feeling Sluggish?” in the August 1 issue.