Larry Edwards (entertainer)

Larry Edwards
Edwards (right) with Frank Marino, 2018
Born
Larry Edwards

Fort Myers, Florida, U.S.
Other namesHot Chocolate
Occupationfemale impersonator
Websitehttp://www.larryedwardslive.com/

Larry Edwards, also known by his drag persona Hot Chocolate, is an American entertainer. Known for his performances in Las Vegas, primarily as a Tina Turner female impersonator. Edwards has also competed in national pageants, being crowned as Miss Gay America in 1980.[1][2]

Edwards has made numerous appearances on film and in television, including Miss Congeniality 2, What's Love Got to Do with It, the documentary Pageant, and the competition series The Next Best Thing.

Edwards studied Fashion Merchandising at Massey Business College in Atlanta, Georgia.[3]

Edwards performed in Frank Marino's Las Vegas drag-revue show Divas as Tina Turner and previously performed in the long-running hit show La Cage at the Riviera Hotel and Casino.[4] Edwards met Tina Turner at a taping of The Oprah Winfrey Show.[5][6]

Edwards was the Celebrity Grand Marshall of the Las Vegas Pride Parade in 2010.[7] Las Vegas mayor Oscar Goodman awarded Edwards the Keys to the city for his work in promoting the hospitality industry of the area.[8]

In 2019, when Celine Dion announced her 2019/2020 Courage World Tour, she released a video titled "Ciao for now Las Vegas", in which she leaves Las Vegas in a car full of drag queens.[9] Impersonator Steven Wayne stood in for Dion, alongside drag queens; Bryan Watkins, Crystal Woods and Hot Chocolate as Barbra Streisand, Diana Ross and Tina Turner.[10][11]

He released a music video in 2020 featuring the remixed version of "What's Love Got to Do with It" by Kygo.[12]

  1. ^ "Meet three Las Vegas drag stars with unique takes on the exploding genre - Las Vegas Weekly". lasvegasweekly.com. 2018-10-11. Retrieved 2024-03-18.
  2. ^ St. James, James (July 30, 2020). "Simply the Best! The Legendary Hot Chocolate Releases Her OWN Version of the New Tina Turner "What's Love Got to Do with It" Remix". www.worldofwonder.net. Archived from the original on 2020-08-05.
  3. ^ "Beyond the Rope - Las Vegas Weekly". lasvegasweekly.com. 2006-05-11. Retrieved 2024-03-18.
  4. ^ "Frank Marino's Divas". Frank Marino's Divas Las Vegas. Retrieved 2024-03-18.
  5. ^ "Hot Chocolate". www.houstonlgbthistory.org. Retrieved 2024-03-18.
  6. ^ "RuPaul's DragCon LA 2018: Chad Michaels, Derrick Barry and Hot Chocolate Spilled Tea at "Seeing Stars" Panel". DerekPlease.com. 2018-05-15. Retrieved 2024-03-18.
  7. ^ "Las Vegas Pride 2010" (PDF). lasvegaspride.org.
  8. ^ "Larry Edwards | Independent Film Quarterly". Archived from the original on 2023-04-09.
  9. ^ "Ciao for now Las Vegas". YouTube. 3 April 2019. Retrieved 4 April 2019.
  10. ^ Suzannah Showler (28 August 2019). "Céline Dion is Everywhere". The Walrus. Retrieved 2 September 2019.
  11. ^ "Steven Wayne". Retrieved 2 September 2019 – via Facebook.
  12. ^ "Vegas Tina Turner artist returns to character". Las Vegas Review-Journal. 2020-07-17. Retrieved 2024-03-18.