Above, the Real World Suite Party on Jan. 19, one of the many events during the GayVN Awards weekend in Las Vegas. To see more photos from the weekend's parties as well as the GayVN Awards red carpet and stage show, click here.
As the crowd built on the red carpet before the GayVN Awards ceremony at The Joint in the Las Vegas Hard Rock Hotel & Casino two weeks ago, Phoenix Fellington lifted his phone up in the air as he took a video of the sea of people. He smiled as he soaked it all up, the special nature of the moment sinking in.
He wasn’t the only one. Just yards away, Corbin Colby finished his red carpet interviews and caught up with Johnny V. After chatting, Johnny V reached in to give a long, tight hug—one that had Colby grinning from ear to ear, his pure happiness unmistakable as he reciprocated the heartfelt embrace.
“The first company I ever filmed with was American Muscle Hunks, and Johnny V was the person who started me in the gay industry. I hadn’t seen him for at least two-and-a-half years, and his was the most genuine connection that I felt—not just in the industry, but with people in general. I was just thrilled to see him because I’ve missed him ever so dearly,” shared Colby.
And that spoke to the power of the environment that weekend. For industry insiders, it was about a lot more than just winning awards.
“This weekend is very important, because the gay porn industry really needs this recognition—and it deserves it. I personally connect with this because I’ve been doing porn for three years, and I feel like we need to be shared in this light that shows us as something different, that is something unique,” Colby said. “That’s what I love about all of this. And from what I’ve seen, GayVN has done the most to establish that—to show the people what we are and who we are, and I appreciate that ever so much.”
The festivities started Friday night before the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday weekend with the HustlaBall Official Opening Party in collaboration with GayVN at Vanity Nightclub in the Hard Rock. Alex Mecum and husband Carter Dane arrived the night before, and were in attendance to kick off the weekend. (Click here for Hustlaball photos.)
“AVN went all out for this show, so I feel like it gives some dignity to what we’re doing, and that’s important,” said Mecum. “I think now more than ever, a lot of our industry has come into the light. For a lot of us—like Jake Jaxson said on stage—this is our first education on what sex should be like. And for us as sexual minorities, it’s so important to have that celebrated. We have an opportunity to influence people for future generations, and I’m glad we have better sex education these days—and porn will always be around as something that we identify with and attracts us.”
Mecum and Dane spent that Friday night meeting fans and catching up with fellow performers like Levi Karter, Austin Wolf, Johnny V and more—all as DJ Dominic Pacifico entertained the crowd through the wee hours of the morning.
“I love getting to see everyone, all of us coming together—even the people I don’t like, and even the people that don’t like me,” joked Wolf. “I do like all of them. I like the idea of being here and knowing we’re all together. I’m hoping 2019 will be a little bit more of a ‘coming together’ year and feeling that we’re all on the same team. There really doesn’t have to be a competition here … I really want all of these boys to succeed.”
Wolf was a noticeable presence all weekend, from throwing out GayVN hats to the crowd Friday night to presenting during the GayVN Awards.
“When you come to something like this, it shows how things are changing … I mean, five years ago when I went to a scene—and Trenton Ducati and I had this conversation—it would literally enter your head that you were worried about the next one, and even if there was going to be a next one. You almost felt like gay porn was dead. There was no hope, there was no light at the end of the tunnel. All there was was escorting, and depending on who you were, that was not the healthiest lifestyle. And now things are progressing and evolving, and money is coming in. New sites are being built and new concepts are being developed, and I’m very excited to see what we come up with next.”
It was that sense of community and shared success that made the weekend special for performers.
“It’s always nice to see everyone come together—it’s like the Avengers. Everyone comes from their own little world and always gets along,” smiled Beaux Banks. “You get to catch up and see what everyone’s doing inside and outside of the industry, and the messages that they’re advocating for—like Jacen (Zhu) and his ‘Takedown Tina’ initiative—and then just to see how far people come. Everyone has stepped it up a notch, and it’s good to see the growth. I get so excited to see everyone, even if I don’t know them.”
Banks notes that the return of the awards last year was huge for the industry.
“With the GayVNs specifically, we feel like we’re part of it now. AVN is so big—I call it the regulatory agency of the whole adult industry, so it feels good to have the light shine on us, and on everyone. Last year had that big controversy with the ethic category, and this year, it was so diverse—from the nominees to the marketing—so it’s nice seeing everyone celebrated, whether it’s nominees, attendees, the fans who come … it’s just a time to celebrate everyone. And out of all the award shows I’ve been to in the past two years, this has been the biggest turnout for fans—and they stay for the week. That’s a good part of being in Vegas—they can find things to do, and they can meet their favorite people.”
For Skyy Knox, it was extra special seeing Banks.
“It’s great to see people I started with, like Beaux Banks. We started at the same time, so we’ve been growing on our journey together, so it’s great for both of us. We always support each other. This weekend gets the whole industry together, and it’s great because we only get to be together as a group a few times a year. The GayVNs especially just came back last year, and now we’re back again—and its grown even bigger, so more people are coming. With the events they throw—like the VIP parties, the after-parties, and then the awards…wow, it’s so spectacular, and they got amazing performers. My Falcon team got together, and it was great just for us to grow as a family even more. I love them—they do so much for me.”
Adam Ramzi, who took home the fan award for Favorite Daddy, shared the sentiment as he enjoyed his first ever GayVN Awards.
“I love this weekend as an opportunity for us all to get together and catch up and see what we’re all up to. I don’t see a lot of members in this industry on a regular basis, so just even before the awards started, it was so nice to be able to talk to people, see what everybody is up to, catch up, make jokes, congratulate each other. The thing is, we are a small community of people, and we’re making stuff for the world to see—and this makes me feel like people are seeing it, which is awesome.”
It was a big gay weekend in Vegas, which helped add to the excitement for both fans and industry folk.
“This brings the community together,” shared Dane. “There was HustlaBall and the Sin City Classic, and then the GayVNs … it’s just bringing so many different aspects of the industry together—and so many performers together. It’s important to keep that within our community and keep on growing it.”
Fellow CockyBoy Karter concurred: “For me and just everyone in this industry in front of and behind the camera, this is a very important weekend for all of us—not just in the sense of work, but also because this is our time to celebrate. We only have a handful of shows, so it’s just one of those times that we really all get to be together.”
Both performers congregated for the awards rehearsal, and also made appearances throughout the weekend. Other events included the Real World Suite Party on Saturday night, the official GayVN Awards Pre-Party at the Paradise Penthouse on Sunday night, and the GayVN Awards After Party (also in the Real World Suite)—which ran into the early morning hours on Tuesday (and was highlighted by Johnny Rapid’s excitement with the bowling lane).
“It’s really good to have everybody together; it’s just fun. We get to break bread together and network, and it’s a good reminder that you’re not alone—there’s other people trying to create the best art that they can,” shared Max Konnor, who won the Best Duo Sex Scene award with Armond Rizzo. “I’ve caught up with some old friends and met some new ones; everybody’s really cool. I also got to see a few of my fans who have been ride or die since the very beginning. I took some of the new AVN Men magazines, autographed them and gave it to them. It’s really nice to be able to get to meet them and give something back for their faithful fandom.”
Rizzo also spend time chatting with Diego Sans over the weekend. Sans shared the Best Actor trophy for his performance in Pirates: A Gay XXX Parody.
“These awards, it’s important to many of the models. I was just talking to Armond, and in a way it gives you a bit of recognition that, as a performer, you’re doing—not necessarily your job, but you’re doing you, and people are liking who you are and what you’re projecting,” Sans said.
“I love the environment that we’re all in. We’re all in the same industry, but you don’t see many of these models on a daily basis. So it’s a bit of a family reunion for your business family. And it’s good because you can connect with directors, and you can get to know a little bit more about the industry. So many people think it’s just that you go in, you do a shoot, edit and done. There’s so much more behind it, and this is where you actually get to meet people that are responsible for productions, marketing and editing. This is where you really start to see the business and what it’s all about, and there’s no fucking way they’re not going to like it, because it’s fucking porn!”
Sans shared his Best Actor trophy with Wesley Woods (for Zack & Jack Make a Porno), who also took home Performer of the Year. Woods arrived the day before the awards and made the most of his time.
“It’s great whenever you can get all of us into one space … it’s nice to be able to get any kind of group together, because we all ‘get’ it. We all understand what we do for work; we don’t have to have weird conversations or explanations. You actually get to laugh with people about hilarious stories, catch up or just bond with people that you don’t always get to see or be around. I like it for that aspect,” he said.
“I think it’s important to show that you’re recognized for what you’re doing in your efforts, and porn has a huge platform. Some of these performers need to be very aware of their following and the messages that they’re putting out there. So it’s a good time to check in with each other: ‘How are you doing? Do you need help with anything?’ Because we all live very different, chaotic lives. It’s just nice to be around everyone.”
The GayVN Awards Show, presented by ManyVids with support from event sponsors CAM4 and CCBill and bar sponsors ModelCentro and Mr. Man, took place January 21. Click here for more on the show.
