Anania (internet personality)

Anania Williams, known as Anania,^[1][2] is an internet personality, performance artist, and host of the digital quiz show Gaydar.

Anania first posted on TikTok in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic.^[3][2] Her early content included posts about politics, including the Black Lives Matter protests.^[4][2] In her viral "Gen Z as" series,^[2] she joked about how Gen Z acts in various careers.^[5] She later began posting videos about make up and drag.^[3][4] As she posted more about her experience as a trans and genderqueer person, Anania was subjected to online bullying.^[3][6] She has stated that the harassment stems from the fact that she does not meet the standard of a "very specific, stereotypical, western, white, skinny type of trans person".^[3] In January 2023, Anania tweeted "behind every gay person is a gayer, more evil gay person".^[7][8] The tweet went viral and started a trend of users posting their favorite queer villain duos, such as Eve and Villanelle in Killing Eve.^[8][9][10]

By the end of 2020, Anania had signed with a talent management company.^[11] In July 2021, Anania had about 2 million followers on TikTok;^[5][12] by September 2025, she had 2.4 million.^[13] Anania was recognized on the 2024 INTO "25 Under 25" list which stated: "As a Black queer influencer and drag artist, they never shy away from the difficult issues facing queer folks — but their sense of humor is top-notch, too."^[14]

Mutuals Media, a digital media network,^[1] recruited Anania as the host for their new show that aimed to be both funny and educational.^[15][16] In July 2024, the network launched Gaydar, a quiz show about queer culture.^[17][3][18] Based on guests' answers to questions, Anania attempts to guess whether they are "straight, gay or a homophobe".^[3][19] The show's first participants were strangers on the street in New York City,^[2] but later episodes have featured public figures such as Reneé Rapp, Lucy Dacus, and Vivian Jenna Wilson.^[3]

Anania has quizzed Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer about her favorite gay bars in Lansing^[18] and asked singer Chappell Roan about what music album "made [her] gay".^[20][17] In a Gaydar episode during the 2025 New York City Democratic mayoral primary race, candidate Zohran Mamdani incorrectly guessed the meaning of the acronym "WLW" and was able to name a New York City gay bar.^[3][21] Anania concluded he is straight but "one of the good ones" and told her viewers to vote for him.^[21][22] By the time the election was held the following month, the video had gone viral, receiving 2.5 million views.^[21][23] The episode has been cited in articles about Mamdani's successful use of social media to market his campaign.^[21][24][25]

Gaydar is posted to social media platforms Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube^[2][1][17] and has had over 120 million views in less than a year.^[17] In June 2025, Lucy Dacus gave Anania the fictional "Women in STEM Award for Advancements in Gaydar Technology" as part of a THEM magazine project.^[16]

Anania performs in musical theater.^[3] In August 2023, she played the role of Lola in a community theater production of Kinky Boots in Chicago.^[26][27] One reviewer called her "magnetic".^[28] In Fall 2025, she played Heaven in a New York Theater Workshop production of Saturday Church.^[29][30] a musical about an outreach program for queer youth. She referred to the show as "queer, Black joy".^[3] As a drag artist, she has opened for Chappell Roan and Bob the Drag Queen.^[3][2] According to Bob the Drag Queen, she is "the future of drag".^[2][31]

Anania grew up in Davenport, Iowa.^[5][2] Her difficult childhood included abuse at home and bullying in school. She sang in the choir at her church as well as in show choir at Davenport Central High School.^[3] In 2022, Anania completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts in musical theater with a minor in social justice at Emerson College.^[4][16] Anania is genderqueer^[18] and trans^[19] and uses they/she pronouns.^[3]