Pabllo Vittar keeps making headlines this year, whether they’re about her smash hit songs, her fashion week lewks, her political statements or all of the above, it’s her world and we’re all just living in it. The Brazilian drag queen and pop star has established herself as an important figure in pop culture, and this week her hard work was recognized at MTV’s European Music Awards, making her the first drag artist to ever win an award.

The Latin pop/electro singer made history this week at MTV’s European Music Awards. 

Drag sensation Pabllo Vittar made history on Monday night at the award ceremony in Seville, Spain, becoming the first drag artist to win a category (“Best Brazilian Artist”) in the 25 years of the MTV European Music Awards. Vittar had been nominated for the same award in 2018. But she lost to performer, Anitta, who had won the prize for five years straight.

The singer was also the first Brazilian to ever perform at MTV’s European Music Award show.

Vittar also gave a pre-show performance, becoming the first Brazilian to perform at the event. She performed her hit song, “Flash Pose,” on the event’s red carpet. That track includes a feature by Charli XCX, who did not appear at the event.

Vittar’s music has garnered her millions of streams and views.

With over half a billion Spotify streams and a billion YouTube views, Vittar’s sound is a mixture of Brazilian rhythms with an American pop sheen. She’s forged partnerships with superstars from around the world, dancing alongside Charli XCX in “Flash Pose” and making out with Diplo in “Então Vai.” On Instagram, she has 9 million followers–more than double the number of followers her drag idol, RuPaul has accrued on the social platform.

Vittar has become Brazil’s most famous drag queen. 

In 2017 she was the first Brazilian artist to have three songs in Spotify’s Top 5 with ‘K.O.’, ‘Corpo Sensual’, and ‘Sua Cara’ —alongside fellow Brazilian diva Anitta. The  ‘Sua Cara’ singer has been nominated to a total of 27 awards in her career, including a Latin Grammy. Of the 27 nominations she’s received in the past two years, she won seven, including Best New Artist and Song of the Year at the Brazilian awards. 

Vittar is a vocal advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, despite living in Brazil which is known to be one of the most dangerous countries in the world for people of the LGBTQ+ spectrum. 

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Pabllo Vittar é eleita uma das “Líderes da próxima geração” pela revista TIME ✨

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The number of violent deaths of LGBTQ+ people in Brazil peaked in 2017 at 445 people, with researchers asserting this 30% rise on the previous year was directly related to anti-gay sentiments championed by ultraconservative politicians. Last year, 420 LBGTQ+ people were killed, including Marielle Franco, a black, bisexual, feminist Rio de Janeiro city council member; Jean Wyllys, a gay federal lawmaker, resigned from his seat due to repeated death threats. And to top it off, Jair Bolsonaro was elected president; the politician is a self-professed homophone who has said he would “rather his son die in a car accident than be gay.”

Vittar has used her global megaphone to both celebrate her identity and speak out against its horrifying dangers. 

The singer performed at the World Pride parade this year, making stops in Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles, Ontario, amongst other cities. She also performed at the U.N. headquarters in New York. The drag queen held a pocket show for about 20 minutes, where she featured some of her hits, such as “Problema seu” and “Corpo sensual 

This award marks a milestone in Vittar’s career extending her reach further into worldwide recognition. Just a few days before the EMAs, the singer celebrated her 25th birthday with the release of the first part of her trilingual album, titled 111. Effortlessly switching between languages and styles, the drag superstar flows seamlessly from her Portuguese dance-floor track ‘Amor de Que’, to her English-language, Charli XCX-assisted pop banger ‘Flash Pose’, to the irresistibly Latin-infused ‘Ponte Perra’ – sung in Spanish.

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Granted, you probably thought that you’ve already confronted the world’s largest torta, thanks to your abuelita’s talents in the kitchen and propensity to stuff you full. But, you’d be mistaken if you thought that good ol’ abuela didn’t have some serious competition last week. That’s right, good people: we’re talking about the world’s largest torta.

What do you mean, abuelita’s got competition?

Well, July 31 saw what was practically an army of chefs in Mexico City create a 236-foot torta. Basically, these geniuses took festival food to a new level – although, it would be pretty difficult to carry this torta in one hand. And, do you know how long it took for them to make it? Less than three minutes! At least you know who to call on next time you’ve got a grumbling stomach.

So…what was the point in all of this torta mayhem?

A combination of local authorities and local businesses teamed up to put together the massive Mexican sandwich, which contained a combination of lettuce, onion and tomato, mixed with gallons upon gallons of mayonnaise, mustard, and spicy sauces. Each section of the torta was made by a different chef, who added a new signature flavor to the mix by using ingredients such as ham and seafood. The stunt culminated in not only the biggest torta ever made in Mexico, but the biggest torta made in the whole of Latin America. 

But why did it need to be so massive?

Sure, making a hella big torta is going to attract a crowd. Someone’s gotta eat it, once it’s been made, right? But, these torta chefs weren’t making the iconic Mexican sandwich for the fun of it – that’s only part of the story. Rather, it was a challenge that was part of a three-day annual torta fair organized by the local government in the Mexican capital. 

The hope in creating and executing a challenge as delectably iconic as this one was to try to draw attention to businesses in the region that specialize in the torta, and give them an economic boost. When previously interviewed about the event, locals have said, “What we want to do is to show people that the torta is very important. It’s important for our diet and we’re bringing together more than 100 (torta) businesses.” They’ve also stressed that the event is “… a good idea to bring tourism to Mexico City and to give an idea of our gastronomy, into what normal people eat daily.” 

But do we really need to have a conversation about the torta – it’s just a sandwich, right?

At the end of the day, while the torta functions very much like a sandwich, it’s anything but. Okay, maybe that’s being a little dramatic. But, it is part of Mexican culture. And, the torta does differentiate itself from being a plain ol’ sammich. It tends to be bigger in size, and actually has ingredients like avocados and refried beans on both the inside and outside of the sandwich. They can be heated, or eaten cold. The trick to a genuine torta is using bread that doesn’t fall apart under the weight and moistness of the ingredients. The businesses that participated in the event are part of preserving the secrets to a great torta.

The thing is, with the rise of fast food, consumer interest in tortas has declined. And, don’t get us wrong – some days, only a good McDonalds cheeseburger will suffice for those particularly nasty hangovers. However, less desire for tortas means that businesses suffer losses, and may potentially close. From there, less consumer access to tortas means that, again, consumer interest can then further decline. It’s a vicious cycle. But you know what? It may just be that making a gigantic torta is part of the process of revitalizing interest in the torta, and preserving cultural legacy.

Do you have any fond memories of devouring a Mexican torta? Or are you yet to try one? Let us know on Twitter – you can find us through the icon at the top of the page.

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