EXCLUSIVE: Michelle Dee Has the Weight Off Her Shoulders and the World On Her Heels

There’s a lightness in Michelle Dee these days. No, it’s not from the multilayered looks she wears at Fashion Weeks. It’s the kind that comes after years of carrying everyone else’s crown of expectations, stacked on top of her own bank of privilege. The former Miss Universe Philippines moves through life still in the fast lane, but now fully in her own lane, trading crowns for control and polish for personality. Her confidence no longer begs for approval; it simply exists. And from the looks of it, she’s never been more herself.

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Queen and Challenger

There was never a grand coming-out party — no dramatic reveal, no rainbow fireworks over the Miss Universe Philippines stage. Michelle Dee simply told the truth, and the truth, as it turns out, was hers to win. When she came out as bisexual through MEGA’s June 2023 special issue, she did it the same way she’s done everything else: on her own terms.

She hadn’t planned it. “I didn’t want to use it to get more attention during my competition,” she says now, looking back on her Miss Universe Philippines reign. “I wanted people to focus on my advocacy.” But when old photos resurfaced online and gossip started rewriting her life, she decided it was time to reclaim the pen.

And she did. The pageant queen, once known for her statuesque poise and short hair — a sharp contrast to the pageant world’s preference for glossy curls and ultra-feminine aesthetic — stood tall in her truth. She didn’t come out to make noise; she came out to make sense of it.

“People were taking things out of context,” she says. “Lives were being affected. I had to take control of my narrative. There’s nothing wrong with being bisexual — there’s everything wrong with your intentions if you think there is.”

That move became the calmest act of self-possession in her career. For once, if at all, Dee wasn’t playing by the rules of a world that expected her to pick a lane — queen or rebel, feminine or masculine, public or private. She was both and all, and she was fine with that.

After two previous pageant runs and an avalanche of public scrutiny, Dee entered her third crown pursuit with nothing left to prove. “It was like, take it or leave it,” she says. “And ironically, that’s when I was embraced the most.”

She didn’t bring home the Miss Universe title, but she came home as something else entirely: the people’s queen, celebrated and cheered as if she had. “It’s funny,” she smiles. “I was called the Queen of Hearts. I didn’t bring home the crown, but I had the winner’s treatment.” That paradox — not winning but still being celebrated — fits neatly into Michelle’s lifelong pattern: defying the binary. She’s both grounded and restless, both athlete and advocate, both queen and challenger.

The Androgynous Mindset

At Paris Fashion Week S/S26, she styled herself entirely — no stylist, no creative director, no committee. Just herself, deciding. “It was definitely a challenge,” she admits. “But I wanted full control over what I was wearing. I love my styling teams, but I also wanted to say, ‘Hey, this is my identity.’”

That independence now bleeds into how she dresses — especially during Paris Fashion Week, where she styled herself in looks from Louis Vuitton, Fendi, Lacoste, Sandro, and Maje. “I wanted to give myself that extra challenge,” she says. “It’s so fun collaborating with designers who actually embrace my identity. I wanted full control — to be the one responsible for what I put out to the world.”

Her aesthetic — sleek tailoring, masculine lines softened by deliberate sensuality — is an exercise in balance. “Fashion is storytelling,” she says. “One day I’ll wear hot pink, the next day black. As long as my identity is there, we have a winner.”

Androgyny isn’t an aesthetic experiment. It’s a reflection of the equilibrium she’s cultivated within — a visual language for duality. “I love that these brands send me looks that are super on point with who I am,” she says. “They don’t try to make me fit into anything. They get it.”

Miss Independent

But don’t call her newfound self-expression a revolt— she’s been independent all along. “I’ve always been independent since I was young,” she says. “But I think coming out helped everyone else understand me more — why I act the way I act, why I think the way I think.”

That visibility has reshaped conversations around her. “I get messages from parents saying thank you,” she shares. “They started seeing their kids differently, realizing gender doesn’t limit what you can become. You can be a Miss Universe and still be whoever you want to be.”

It’s a ripple effect she never planned, but one that mirrors her purpose: “Your sexuality isn’t your platform,” she insists. “It’s what you do on a day-to-day basis that affects people.”

Fashion Is Fluid

Next on her radar? Men’s Fashion Week. In typical Michelle Dee fashion, she doesn’t want to attend it — she wants to own it.“I want to represent women in Men’s Fashion Week,” she says. “Because let’s be real — we all wear men’s blazers sometimes. We love men’s trousers. So why can’t women walk that runway too?”

It’s not performative, it’s instinct. “If you made me choose between directing a women’s or men’s line,” she grins, “I’d probably choose men’s.”

Wearing No Regrets

At thirty years old, she has only sharpened her sense of purpose. She’s found peace in her contradictions — and power in owning them. “It’s really about finding your balance,” she says. “However you move, you have to live with no regrets. Whatever you wear, wear with no regrets.” That’s the lesson she hopes others take from her story — that identity is not a performance, it’s a peace treaty with oneself.

So, is she happy now? She takes a beat, that calm, measured sort that only comes from knowing you’ve already won.

It’s time we stop dressing for approval — emotional or otherwise. Happiness, after all, is the ultimate accessory. Right now, Michelle Dee wears it best. “I’m definitely happy. I move with love, respect, and kindness. I surround myself with people who are better than me, who keep growing. That’s the goal — to always be happy.” And then, with a cool self-awareness that makes her so magnetic, she shrugs: “You can never please everyone. That’s the subtle art of not giving a f***.” 

Photos courtesy of MICHELLE DEE