Ladybeard's ability to combine his masculinity with girly cuteness has won him numerous fans. Photo: Courtesy of Ladybeard

He is a 1.8-meter-tall Australian man weighing 90 kilograms. Once a pro-wrestler, stuntman and heavy metal singer, Richard Magarey is dubbed by his fans as the cutest "goddess," despite being masculine, muscular and hairy.

With his iconic two ponytails, girly dresses and Japanese school uniform, the full bearded, cross-dressing pop singer who calls himself "Ladybeard," has a huge following in Asia.

Ladybeard had long been trying to break into the Asian entertainment market which began experiencing rapid development in the early 2000s. It would later prove to be a huge fan base for him.

He first rose to fame in Hong Kong, where he appeared in a wrestling contest as a cross-dresser wearing a Lolita dress and two ponytails, while fully bearded. The local audience went wild and he soon became known as a cross-dressing wrestler.

Ladybeard then moved to Japan in 2011, where cross-dressing culture is among the most popular in the world. He was soon discovered by costume maker, Clearstone.

With its support, Ladybeard formed a pop metal group in April called "Ladybaby" along with two teen Japanese girls, blending Japanese kawaii (cute) music with heavy metal.

Earlier this month, they released their first music video, "Nippon Manju" ("Japanese Bun"), an ode to all the things they love about Japan. It's received more than 4 million views on YouTube.

On the Chinese mainland, Ladybeard's fans are also increasing rapidly. He opened his official Sina Weibo account on May 2, and has nearly 200,000 followers. Ladybeard has visited Shanghai and Shenzhen, Guangdong Province in recent months, and will be in Beijing on July 25 to meet his fans.

Metropolitan had an exclusive interview with Ladybeard, during which he shared his personal journey and secrets to becoming a manly "goddess."

Metropolitan: How did the idea of cross-dressing wrestling come to you?

Ladybeard: When I cross-dressed in Australia people enjoyed it, but it was not a huge deal (it's been done a lot in the West). When I first cross-dressed in Hong Kong [in 2006] the locals went crazy and thought I was the funniest thing they'd ever seen. I bought a black and pink Lolita dress at the Mong Kok ladies' market in Hong Kong. I was much thinner then, so it was easier to find a dress that fit, and that dress had laces at the back so the size was adjustable.

When I started wrestling, I needed a character for the ring, so I decided to wear a dress and call myself Wu So Lui, which I thought was a great name. "So" means beard, and "Lui" means girl, and it translated very well into English, "Ladybeard."

Metropolitan: Why do you think you have become so popular?

Ladybeard: I'm not sure. I think both the masculine elements and cute elements are very strong parts of my natural personality.

And I think my background and experiences put me in a position in which I had enough faith in myself to take a risk (or maybe I was just totally stupid), and that enabled me to present these two extremes of myself to the world, side by side, and that seems unique to a lot of people. I also think my fans all respond to different elements of the character and performance. Some love the cuteness, some love the screaming and smashing, some respond to a sense of confidence...

Metropolitan: You are the most popular in Japan, and in other Asian countries like China, too. But what about the West? 

Ladybeard: I have the advantage of playing the "funny foreigner" card in Asia. One interesting thing about my time in Hong Kong was locals would tell me that they thought I was really funny and they really liked me, but I couldn't cross-dress if I was Chinese. They said if a Chinese guy cross-dressed like me, everyone would consider him insane, and not in a good way. So a huge part of what has made me stand out in Asia has been my foreignness, I think. I don't know if things would be so well received if I were in a group in Australia with two Australian teen girls. Actually they might be received very badly.

Metropolitan: Who helps you most in building the image of Ladybeard? Any tips on how to take cute pictures?

Ladybeard: I met Naoko Tachibana (a Japanese photographer specializing in men's cross-dressing photography) about two months after I arrived in Japan. Tachibana runs a photography studio specifically for cross-dressers, and she's also a hair and make-up artist and has a great sense of style. So together we created the Ladybeard of today. She brought all the skills and perspective to Ladybeard that I couldn't provide myself, and really is the genius behind my current success.

I advise people to study the finer details of posing because the small details make huge differences, and also think of modeling as a performance. Perform a character for the camera, and a lot more intention and personality will shine through in your photos. Make yourself the most important ingredient of your photos, not your clothes or make-up.

Metropolitan: Will you try more exotic dress styles in future such as traditional Chinese costume?

Ladybeard: I'd love to do more traditional Chinese cosplay! I hope I have a chance to do so soon.

Metropolitan: What do you think of Chinese people's attitude toward cross-dressing? How do they see you?

Ladybeard: It seems quite conservative to me. But it depends on the context. Chinese opera has a long history of men playing women from what I understand. So in that context it seems normal to Chinese, I think. But in everyday contexts, Chinese mainlanders seem to find cross-dressing very strange still. That's part of what encouraged me to start this career in Hong Kong. I felt like out of all the things I did in Hong Kong, it was cross-dressing that people responded most to. If cross-dressing was a more familiar thing to Chinese, I probably would not have had that reaction and probably wouldn't have decided to pursue this career in the same way.

Metropolitan: Have you encountered any negative or even rude views questioning your style and persona from people who are not your fans? 

Ladybeard: I used to receive a lot of criticism when I first started doing this, but nowadays I actually receive surprisingly little. I'm not really bothered by people making rude comments anyway, people can say whatever they want about me. One cannot get on stage and on video and do something as extreme as what I do and reasonably expect not to be criticized at all I think. And again I don't mind if people make comments about my sexuality. I'm only a 5-year-old Japanese girl trapped in an Australian man's body, so I don't understand what they're talking about anyway.

Metropolitan: Do you think someone in China will become a cross-dressing idol like you in the future?

Ladybeard: I have no idea if someone in China will follow in my footsteps. I want to encourage people to pursue their dreams and goals. If that means cross-dressing, great. But if that means pursuing a life as a five-star chef, or as an astronaut, or as a parent, I still want to encourage them. Don't worry about what other people want, it's your life. If I can successfully do what I'm doing, why can't you achieve your goals and dreams?

Ladybeard's fan base is growing in China where he's seen as a special and rising star. Photo: Courtesy of Ladybeard

How do Chinese people see Ladybeard?

Xu Chao (32, male, actor): Once I had to cross-dress at work. I had never done that before and was quite confused. A friend recommended his Sina Weibo to me and suggested I learn to pose from him. I did and it was quite successful.

Ni Yan (29, male, IT worker): The best part of him is his courage to pursue his own style. I used to think about cosplay female roles at university but I did not pursue it because I was afraid of being regarded as insane.

Huang Yingshu (26, female, fitness instructor): He must be quite a hardworking person. To build those muscles and strength you need heavy daily training. But I can not imagine how he trains in the gym in a pink laced sports bra.

Feng Shuhan (8, female, primary student): (After being shown Ladybeard's photo) He's pretty. His hair, dress and makeup are all pretty and he looks happy when he laughs.  I want to dance with him and also dress like him.

Li Shujuan (58, female, retired): (After being shown Ladybeard's photo) Oh my god, if he appears in our neighborhood I will definitely call the police immediately.