This has been quite the week in Hollywood, specifically within the Kardashian world. We’ve witnessed a particularly messy breakup and have been given insight into the company Blac Chyna keeps.
The morning of the breakup last Wednesday was incredibly entertaining, problematic, and dramatic—like most things pertaining to the Kardashian clan. By now I presume you’re aware of the key plot points, so I won’t rehash, but as a sex worker I was very interested in Blac Chyna’s alleged “mistress”, Rarri True (AKA Ferrari). I went to his Instagram to investigate who would be suitable company for someone at the Kardashian level of fame. His IG had a standard LA/Hollywood aesthetic: nice cars, jewelry, and clothes. I couldn’t quite put my finger on what his occupation was, though. As a full-time FSSW, I had an inkling he was part of the family in some way, and pretty early on, social media pundits such as Youtube personality and drag Ballroom performer Stahr Milan began commenting stating that he is a sex worker/scammer/entrepreneur. (On July 6th, True himself vaguely tweeted, “Don’t listen to the lies, I swear they all lies“, but he also tweeted in May that “If you tell me you ain’t do it then you ain’t do it and if you did then that’s family business“, which might better indicate his attitude towards his potential sex work.)
This made perfect sense to me in terms of why Chyna would want him in her life. Who could possibly be more discreet and cautious than a sex worker? Who else would be more reliable as she attempts to escape Rob Kardashian?[Editor’s note: Though as of yesterday, it’s clear Chyna’s not taking chances anymore when it comes to her confidentiality, even with Rarri.] What’s a bit different about this story is that typically, celeb relations with sex workers are denied and the sex worker involved is shamed. But Chyna, hasn’t repudiated Rarri True and has actually remained very calm under what must be terrible pressure to give “answers” about her companion and their relationship.
Once Rarri True’s status as a sex worker became known, I understood why someone with Chyna’s background would be interested in someone who potentially had a vague “entrepreneurial” background, beyond her need for discretion. She herself came from humble beginnings and made a life for herself. She owns multiple businesses and has hustled hard to get where she is. Her background also includes stripping and that gives me the feeling she understands what’s going on around her and is a good judge of character. Certainly, my own sex work has helped make me more perceptive, observant, and intuitive about people’s intentions, wants, and needs.
Of course, the details of their relationship are between the two of them and should remain there where they belong. “Ferrari” will probably be able to leverage these 15 minutes of fame to branch out into all sorts of endeavors, and I’m sure we’ll see him around for a while. But what inspires me about this situation is Chyna and her courage. Her case is an example of how sex workers are treated by the public and media. There’s been much debate across social media about whether a former stripper can be violated by nude photos of her posted to the internet for the entire world to see, as though she somehow doesn’t own her body anymore.
The consensus from memes and trolls is that she’s lost the right to any sort of privacy because of her background, which is astonishingly disappointing. Legal battle aside, I’m so impressed with how far Chyna has come in her journey from stripping, to becoming a video vixen, to meeting and eventually marrying rapper Tyga (they met on the set of “Rack City”, a video she starred in), to becoming an honorary Kardashian. All the while, she never hid or shied away from her past, instead embracing it along with her ex-sex worker bestie Amber Rose. They even donned matching outfits on the 2015 VMA’s red carpet, wearing dresses covered in the words “gold digger”, “whore”, and “stripper”—completely reclaiming these terms.
Reaching such a level of success and visibility with a sex work background being public knowledge sometimes feels unrealistic, but seeing people like Chyna has given me newfound optimism about my own life and situation. Chyna has flourished while not forgetting where she comes from, and now she’s spending time with a beautiful, vibrant companion who may share her roots. It makes me feel like there’s enough wealth to go around and it fills me with joy and hope that maybe we can all get a piece of the pie like Blac Chyna and Rarri True have.