[LGBTQ+] All About That Paper – AsianKlout
AsianKlout aka. Meilani Dynasty // 19 years // Hollywood, CA
Meilani, a proud member of the LGBTQ community, has been establishing herself on the SL platform for almost a year and a half. She’s been a dancer at Plush since July 2017 and has been very much about making that paper. When she isn’t on the virtual world, she is often tied between her busy schedules of college and RL work - she’s playing the long ball! In this Q&A, Meilani speaks up about her experiences with family as a member of the LGBTQ community, while discussing the challenges she faced in her dancing profession.
WHAT MADE YOU GO INTO DANCING? “I started so I could invest in a business. I began dancing at Plush and was able to make a lot of Lindens rather quickly, and turned my Lindens into real money.”
ARE YOU STRICTLY A DANCER OR ARE THERE OTHER SERVICES PROVIDED AS WELL? “I am currently dancing for the moment. I don’t have a clue what my future holds but I don’t think I’ll be in the business for much longer. I want to venture off and continue to learn to mesh to begin my own store.”
WHAT DO YOU ENJOY ABOUT YOUR PROFESSION? “I like the fact that I get to meet a lot of different people. It’s like opening a gift; you never know what it will be until you open it, and I enjoy my team of ladies; they come from all different walks of life. They are all unique, and they know how to remain professional and keep our environment sexy but classy.”
HOW DO YOU MANAGE YOUR TIME BETWEEN PLUSH AND BEGINNING YOUR OWN STORE? “I used to manage for Plush but I have taken a hiatus from it to cut down my weekly hours, but I pretty much create my own schedule; I go in when I feel like it and I leave when I feel like it, so that I can take my courses for Blender when I am done.”
HAVE YOU GAINED ANYTHING (BESIDES LS) BY WORKING AT PLUSH? “I have definitely gained the ability to manage efficiently and solve problems in a professional manner. I have also learned that it’s okay to be "sexy" without it being some terrible thing, and I’ve also learned to be very very patient. My communication has definitely improved too.”
WHAT WERE SOME CHALLENGES YOU FACED THERE, AND HOW DID YOU OVERCOME THEM? “Well, there are two challenges I overcame with my profession. First, I was ashamed of my profession. I overcame it by changing my mindset; the people who can sit and judge me for what I do are not one of the top paid plushie's, nor are they the reason I can afford my lifestyle. And second, Plush is very popular for the baby girl kind of avatars, you know, the girls with doey eyes and pale skin. I used to conform to those standards, but then I proved to myself, and many other girls, that I can still bring out the same income wearing anything. It’s my personality that gets me attention.”
DOES BEING IN THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY PLAY ANY ROLE IN YOUR PROFESSION? “As a bisexual girl, it helps. We have female clients as well, and some girls are not happy with embracing other women, and because I’m 50/50, it makes my job a little easier.”
WHAT MADE YOU AGREE TO THIS INTERVIEW? “I agreed because I am proud to be a part of the LGBTQ. I have always been proud since I found out that there is a community for people like me. I learned about it in high school when I joined the GSA, which stands for the Gay-Straight Alliance. They taught me to be okay with being open about my sexual preference, especially because I was raised in a religious home; I thought it wasn’t okay to like the same sex, or I’d be condemned.”
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON PRIDE MONTH? “I honestly love that we have pride month. I think this community deserves it after being shunned and frowned upon for so long.”
SHOULD PRIDE BE JUST A MONTH THING? “No, I think we should show our pride for who we are, 365; if we want to go all out in rainbow and dress up on a Tuesday in December, we should do that. I think that’s our problem, we do what we are allowed when it’s our time. We are very strong people, and we can do what we want when we choose to do it. Who gives a f*** if people don’t like it? They don’t have to parade around with us. I strive to feel pride for my sexuality wherever; it’s not about the colors or the parades, it’s about the feeling.”
DO YOU THINK THERE’S A BETTER CHANCE TO GET ACCEPTED INTO THE COMMUNITY NOWADAYS? “In my experience, LGBTQ tend to be open-minded due to people not always be accepting of them. But I’m sure that they will accept it because we can’t tell the next person who to love. Love is special and the feelings are real. Even those who are questioning themselves may need support too. I’ve never met someone from the [LGBTQ] community to be the type to shun anyone. I think we have all had our moments of questioning; even I did. I asked myself if I’m serious about the same sex when I first started out, but I had to remember that I’ve always loved women and men equally from a young age. I’ve had girl and guy crushes. We’ve all been through that stage, so it’s normal.”
WHO DID YOU COME OUT TO FIRST AND HOW DID THE EXPERIENCE GO? “I didn’t come out. I was outed! My mom went through my diary on my phone, where I had been texting my first girlfriend at school. My mom cried and she automatically began to think I was a lesbian. She thought she would never get a grandbaby and even began to doubt herself as a Christian mother. She went into full-on meltdown; she began blaming my previous boyfriend for "turning me into a lesbian", as she had so vividly put it when she finally calmed down. I asked if she hated me, and she said no. She just wished she did a better job with me. I explained to her that I like both; it had nothing to do with who raised me. I’ve been this way since I couldn’t decide if I had a crush on Rihanna or Chris Brown. She wasn’t happy about it, but she soon became used to it out of her love for me. Now she doesn’t care; she welcomes my girlfriends just like she would my boyfriends.”
COULD YOU DESCRIBE BEING BISEXUAL IN 3 WORDS? "Love is love, I guess.”
WHAT WOULD YOU SAY TO SOMEONE WHO IS STRUGGLING TO COME OUT? “Honestly, your parents and/or any other loved ones will always love you even if they are upset. The people who are really there for you will come full circle eventually. You will feel a lot more relieved not carrying that heavy secret with you, and I would also say that in most some cases the people you love, know you better than you think.”
WHAT ARE THE PROS AND CONS OF BEING LGBTQ IN A VIRTUAL COMMUNITY? “The biggest con is the disrespect the LGBTQ show each other. It’s already hard enough having RL people saying hateful shit. It’s time for us all to get together and show one another respect. No one is greater than the other. Personally, I’m tired of them calling each other snide and rude names; it makes the LGBTQ look messy and it gives the homophobic people out there more room to bash us. But the pro’s are that there are some wonderful people out there, with powerful stories and advice to share with those who want to come out.”
DO YOU THINK BEING GAY IS A CHOICE? “No. Our bodies don’t react by choice. Do we choose to be sick? No, our bodies react and it just happens. Do we choose whether to be excited when we meet new people? No, it’s caused by a chemical that releases in our brains. It is what it is. We like who we like. I’m sure there are plenty of straight people who meet people they wonder why they even fell in love with their significant others; it just happens. Love works on its own, you know?”
WHEN DID YOU SAY YOU FIRST NOTICE YOU WERE ATTRACTED TO THE SAME/BOTH SEX? “I was pretty young. I always found both men and women to be beautiful, but I really noticed when I had my first crushes, I liked my best friend in the 3rd grade, and of course, I had my first boy crush too, around the same time. He was the one my parents would call my "boyfriend". We would hold hands and he’d kiss my cheeks. I did like my best friend better than him though, but I was shy and scared; it wasn't normal.”
IF YOU COULD IMPROVE SOMETHING FOR THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY, WHAT WOULD IT BE AND WHY? “If I could, I would travel back in time to the times where people would hide, liking the same sex, and cut that out. Or I’d start an activist group early on so that parents and people of today would care less that people like the same sex.”
Disclaimer: the personal views and opinions written in this post are from the writer and do not always express the professional opinion and views of Verve X Magazine.
Interviewer: Destiny
Photos: AsianKlout
Copy Editor: Voque
