Today we're joined by Philadelphia Escort Riley Ivy for our sex worker interview series 'A Tryst With'! We're talking gaming, trans short fiction, and classical trombone, read on for more...
Can you tell us your origin story as a sex worker?
The origin really comes from the classic story of not being able to find a job and just doing sex work instead. I graduated with my masters’ in classical trombone in 2023 and wasn’t having any success with job searching after. After a few months, I started an OnlyFans to dip my toes into content creation and see where it could go. I had been wanting to start one for a while anyway, but never could for professional reasons. By December 2023, everything had progressed to the point where I could justify being a full time sex worker and stop job searching. Around that time, a regular client of one of my provider friends asked about a duo with us, but wasn’t sure if I wanted to escort as well. I decided, screw it, let’s try this out. I had so much fun in that session and decided to fully add being an escort into the mix. Now I’m doing content creation, camming, and escorting and loving every second of it!
Is there something you didn't expect going into the industry?
For one, how much supportive community I would find. I didn’t have particular expectations about it, but I found super quickly that so many people, trans sex workers especially, just wanted to help and lift me up and see me succeed. Trans sex workers have a tougher time than our cis counterparts as is, with less opportunities, and it’s felt like a lot of us know that and just want to help each other out. I’ve gotten recommendations for work and studio shoots I never would have on my own, and it’s inspired me to do the same for others. Something about “a rising tide lifts all boats”.
I also didn’t expect how much I would love my clients. Again, I had no expectations, but it’s still a shock how wonderful they have been and how well they treat me. I’ve gotten spoiled with some truly amazing dinners and gifts, ranging from extravagant to small and thoughtful. My clients treat me like a princess and that makes me so happy.
On the whole, I’m just grateful for all the amazing people I have met through this line of work, both clients and fellow sex workers.
What is it like interacting with clients as a trans sex worker? What kinds of clients seek you out, and what kinds of clients do you enjoy seeing?
It can be interesting sometimes, but I’ve found for the most part the clients I see have been super respectful of who I am and don’t treat me particularly differently than any other girl. I sometimes get inquiries from chasers who clearly only see me for my parts, but they tend to not go through with booking and never actually become clients. I am proud to be trans and know what people are attracted to, but I still want to be seen as a whole person and that, at the end of the day, I’m just a girl that happens to have a little extra that makes me special. My regulars see me as a person too and they are wonderful because of that!
What’s your ideal date with a client?
I love a full-day, 12 hour date filled with adventures! Starting with coffee or brunch, going for a walk in one of Philly’s gorgeous parks, maybe going shopping or to a Philadelphia Orchestra concert, dinner and drinks at an amazing restaurant, and PLENTY of alone time at our hotel in between. I’d include some down time in there as well, whether it’s cuddling and just talking or a bit of my own alone time so I can recharge and be fully present the rest of the date.
Do you have a favourite book by an NB/trans/POC author? What’s one book or writer you wish your clients would read?
A Dream of a Woman by Casey Plett! It’s a collection of short stories about trans women in their everyday lives. It’s really touching and a great insight into some of what goes on in our brains as trans girls.
In addition to escorting, you also do porn. Could you talk us through the difference between producing your own content versus shooting for a production company?
At its core, the difference comes down to the amount of control I have over the content. With my own content, I have complete creative freedom. For studio productions, I often have input in the creative process, but generally the final product and marketing are out of my hands. Studio shoots do come with the perk of not having to worry about any of the technical aspects. Creative freedom over my own content is amazing, but it does come with having to set up the camera and lighting equipment myself. Sometimes it’s easier to not have to worry about that.
Recently, I’ve been leaning towards creating my own content. I love being on a studio set, but the longer I do sex work, the more I value the creative freedom that comes with my independent content. I can make porn exactly how I want!
Who would you love to collaborate with?
Oh my gosh, I have a whole list, but I especially want to do more collaborative work with other providers! It feels like a lot less pressure, and we get to make porn that can show off to clients what we can do in the bedroom. The other providers I have worked with so far, we have made really genuine content and had a wonderful time shooting together.
What’s it like being neurodivergent and a sex worker? Can you tell us about some of the positives and negatives?
Being a sex worker has actually been a blessing for my neurodivergent brain. Having a varied schedule I control helps a lot with keeping me engaged with my work, and also serves as a framework for me to work my self-care routines around. Adding camming was the biggest help. As much as I love dates and sessions, I am (intentionally) low volume so there is not much to work around there. Camming regularly 3-4 times a week gave me more to work those routines around and I have noticed how much better I take care of myself and how much easier it is to stay engaged with work!
You’re a classically trained musician! Can you share a little about this with us?
I am, yeah! I got a bachelors’ and masters’ degree in classical trombone, and have been playing for almost 20 years. I don’t play much anymore, and when I do it’s as a hobby, but I don’t feel like my degrees went to waste. They taught me how to work my ass off to be really good at something, and that is a principle I carry over into my thought process with sex work: I just want to be really fucking good at what I do. I also spent all that time learning how to be a live performer, which has carried over into porn: while I draw my on-camera personality from how I am in real life, it is still performing, and that aspect has come so naturally because of my performance training in music.
You’ve also worked professionally as a gamer. We’d love to hear about that!
I did! I got into Teamfight Tactics (a strategy game that is a spinoff of League of Legends) when the pandemic started and improved enough to compete at a pro level for a year, and then I switched to commentating pro level tournaments for another year after that. I was live streaming on Twitch the whole time as well. Gaming was a massive help occupying myself during quarantine and reinforced the skills that help me out in sex work: being a hard worker to improve at what I do and getting comfortable on camera in front of an audience. I’m not involved in the competitive sphere anymore, but I’m grateful to my time in the scene for getting me through a rough couple years and being vital to my growth as a person.
What was the game that first turned you into a gamer? What are you playing right now?
Pokemon! The Pearl version on the DS was the first game I really got sucked into. I did the classic trans thing of picking the female character “because I thought she was cute” (not a sign of anything gender-related at all). I don’t play the games anymore, but I still love the designs of the Pokemon and have a couple tattoos of them, and am planning on getting more.
Currently I still mostly just play Teamfight Tactics, plus whatever my friends drag me into playing. Teamfight Tactics is much more of a chill hobby for me now and it’s nice to be able to relax while playing the game instead of grinding to be among the best in the world at it.
What’s your favorite way to relax and recharge after a long week?
Anything that lets me turn my brain off and completely get out of work mode. On my own, that means ordering takeout (Chinese food or pho is my go to) and watching Netflix to unwind and turn my brain off. However, I am also a massive extrovert and love to recharge with social time! Spending time with my partner (also an escort who I offer duos with!) and my close friends is a welcome break from work. I treasure my relationships with the people I care about, and I try my best to maintain them even with how hectic my schedule can be. The people in my life really keep me going.
My favourite album is: It changes as frequently as the seasons, but currently it’s The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess by Chappell Roan.
The dorkiest thing about me is: I get SUPER giggly during sex when it’s feeling really good.
If you want to win my heart you must: Be kind, caring, and communicative, and make an effort to make sure I feel comfortable.
I feel most sexy when: I am being touched in all the right ways by someone who is obviously enthralled by my body.
In the future, I plan to: Do sex work as long as possible and go from there. The world feels like it could come crashing down at any moment and I just want to enjoy living my life to the fullest while I can!
Want to meet Philadelphia Escort Riley Ivy in person?
Head over to her profile! 👇👇👇
