Pride In Porn: Celebrating Trans Women In The Industry
By A/E Welcome
It’s finally Pride Month again, and what better time is there to celebrate some of the accomplished trans women Holly’s gotten a chance to chat with in the industry? Long imagined as a niche kink, these women are finally being given recognition as the full people and gifted performers they are in the mainstream adult world. Still, though, many have shared with Holly that there’s a long way to go before trans women are really treated with the dignity and equity they deserve, even in the industry.
Firstly, I wanted to highlight the excellent interview Holly had with Natassia Dreams in summer of 2021. Natassia’s spent time as a model, escort, actress, director and, interestingly enough, a figure skater! Being a trans woman of color and a sex worker, Natassia has a lot of stigma to contend with. That hasn’t been able to stop her from being an accomplished industry veteran, though, with two decades of experience under her belt (plus a place in the Urban X Awards hall of fame!) While chatting with Holly, Natassia shared that, while the adult industry’s treatment of trans women has improved over her tenure, there’s still a long way to go. “There’s a stigma on trans performers,” she says, “People will put people on a ‘no list’ for working with us, which I don’t understand.” The people who are really helping, in Natassia’s opinion, are cis people in the industry who work with trans folks not just for clout, but in ways that help normalize trans women as women like anyone else and not a sort of fetish. “Treat transgender women as you would treat a cisgender woman; it’s so easy.” You can learn more about Natassia’s fascinating life trajectory and years in the industry on her episode of Holly Randall Unfiltered. Plus, you can find her on on OnlyFans and Twitter.
Next up, let’s take a look at Lucy Hart, who was on the show in May of 2022 (and once before, pre-transition!) Lucy only came out a few years ago, but she knew she was trans long before that. In this deeply intimate conversation, Lucy describes how long she avoided transitioning out of fear, how she leaned into kinky ‘crossdressing’ as an alternative, and how career success and the pandemic made suppression impossible. Now Lucy’s accepted her identity, she’s ready to talk about not just elements of her physical transition (like her new boobs and how hormones are affecting her sex drive), but also deeper emotional issues that were harder to face while she was lying to herself. Transitioning is right for her, but that doesn’t make it emotionally easy. You can hear more of Lucy’s experiences with her transition, codependency, depression, and more when you check out that episode of Holly Randall Unfiltered with Lucy Hart. Plus, she owns the network PervOut.com and is active on instagram, tiktok and twitter @mamahartx
Last but not least, I’m going to be biased and talk about the industry darling and “true superstar” Natalie Mars. Sure, Natalie never had a full episode on the Holly Randall Unfiltered podcast, but she’s been interviewed by Holly a couple times and I just couldn’t help but include her. With gorgeous eyes (that she’s tired of having complimented all the time!) and sporting her signature blunt bangs, Natalie’s not afraid to own her success and talents. She’s won and been nominated for so many awards she’s lost track, but she’s still hungry for more. Natalie’s a size queen and latex aficionado, and I have to say I was a fan far before seeing these interviews. Plus, she’s bold and not willing to stay quiet about the BS in the industry that still affects so many trans people. “I thought porn was going to be more like ‘oh everyone’s so, like, sexually liberated’ but oh wow a lot of these people are still, like, homophobic and transphobic.” The good news is, Natalie’s seen how this issue has improved, especially since cis women are much less stigmatized for working with trans women than they used to be. While some stigma is still strong with cis men in the industry, Natalie knows, from talking to other trans performers who’ve been in the industry much longer, that things are going in the right direction. You can check out Holly’s interview with Natalie Mars at the 2020 AVN awards, plus a short chat they had in 2019 on the TEA red carpet. Maybe one day she’ll even be a guest on the Holly Randall Unfiltered podcast! You can also find all her socials through this link.
Plus, Holly’s spoken to so many other women I couldn’t fit into this blog post. From Casey Kisses to Aubrey Kate and Daisy Taylor, there’s so many trans voices to hear and trans performers to enjoy.
Porn has long been a place where trans women’s bodies are celebrated, but that doesn’t mean they’ve always been treated with the dignity, equity, and humanity they deserve. Unfortunately, the situation is even worse outside of the adult industry. As trans people are attacked in the media, face day-to-day violence in real life, and even flee the country to avoid genocidal rhetoric and policies, it’s especially important that we all stand beside trans people – especially because trans women in particular are so often attacked in similar ways and for similar reasons that sexworkers are! Let’s listen to the trans performers we enjoy so much, and help make the changes they need to live their best lives in and out of the adult industry. The time is now to protect the trans people we love, the trans people we work with, and, yes, the trans people we jerk off to. Especially during pride month, but also every month. Threats to trans existence don’t stop in July, and neither should we.