Who is Yamil "Yam Yam" Arocho? Survivor 44 contestant likes to do “bearded drag at Halloween”

Survivor is set to return with another season this week and will feature a new batch of castaways as they get ready to compete to become the Sole Survivor. One of the 18 contestants set to appear on the show is Yamil "Yam Yam" Arocho, who likes to do bearded drag for Halloween.

While speaking to Entertainment Weekly, he stated that every year, he gets a costume that he loves, usually a character from his childhood, and does a drag impersonation of it.

He said that for Halloween 2022, he went as Storm, while his husband was Cyclops and that they had a lot of fun.

Tune in on Wednesday, March 1, at 8 pm ET on CBS to watch the season premiere of Survivor season 44.

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Survivor season 44 contestant Yamil "Yam Yam" Arocho is a salon owner who loves to travel

Yamil Arocho is one of the contestants set to appear on Survivor season 44. The 36-year-old was born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

The salon owner, who has traveled to 57 countries so far, describes himself as fun, loud and caring. He said that he wants to fulfill his lifelong desire of "playing the best game in the world."

Yam Yam said that he has been watching Survivor since its inception in 2000, when he was a 13-year-old. He said that he wants to prove to himself that he has the physical and mental strength to make his dreams come true by winning the money and the title.

Arocho spoke to Parade about his upcoming appearance on the show and stated that the best advice he received about being on the show was from his brother. His brother told him that they picked him because of who he is and that he is who he wants to be.

Yamil’s brother told him that he was enough just as he was and advised him to be himself on the show and that everything will be great.

Speaking about what has prepared him to be a part of the show, the contestant said that it was being in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria, which destroyed the area. Yamil said that he was lucky that his business and home were not as severely damaged but that he had to deal with the scarcity of resources that everyone was suffering.

The season 44 contestant said that he was 31 at the time and people of the community were looking at him for answers and hope. He had to be the leader as well as a teammate during the time.

Yamil added that after dealing with the uncertainty of what was going to happen, he felt like he could do anything. He added that as long as he had people around him who he believes in, he knows that he will be fine. The salon owner noted that was exactly what he would look for on the show as well, people he could believe in.

The Survivor season 44 castaway is extremely excited about the upcoming season and the “new era” that comes with it. He stated that he’s going to approach it like he does his daily life, with the motto “Make the best of it, and try to work with it."

Tune in on Wednesday, March 1, 2023, at 8 pm ET to watch the season premiere of Survivor season 44 on CBS.