Camp follower

Go- go dancer, model, digital entrepreneur… religious leader? Cliff Joannou finds out why Matthew Camp, 34, is ready to ascend to the next level of notoriety

Moving to New York from California’s Santa Clara when he was 21 years old, Matthew Camp discovered a heady world of clubs and late nights. He shook his tush on stages across the city’s gay scene as men slipped dollar bills into his jockstrap. ( Yes, tipping go- go dancers in the USA is a thing. And they do the same for drag queens. It’s a custom that doesn’t work so well in the UK with our pound coins, and given that we Brits are too tight to tip a fiver). Over the years, Matthew Camp became a name synonymous with queer New York, to the point where he has been the face ( or arse) of numerous underwear brands, and released his own fragrance and clothing line. As an early adopter of Instagram, his timeless all- American charm became a thirst trap for mere mortal homosexuals as he racked up more than 500,000 followers.

Camp — yes, that’s his real name — is the anti- Abercrombie pin- up, the bad- boy little brother of the models photographed for fashion campaigns. Last year, he had us dropping our drawers when he embraced Only Fans.

When it came to picking the cover star for Attitude’s “Body” issue, Matthew was the perfect fit. From the tightly toned physique to his pert derriere, via the sleeve tattoo that covers his right arm and a scar, he ticked all the right boxes.

Sweet and chatty when we meet for our shoot in an East London photo studio, he is so happy to be in the UK that he starts to wonder whether he should come back in the summer for an extended stay.

In front of the camera, he knows his angles: his shoulders roll, he arches his back and pops his ample bum out. We get the feeling he’s done this before…

You’re quite sex positive for somebody who grew up in a religious household. When did you start to question your faith?

Very early. I grew up a Jehovah’s Witness, which is very anti- gay. I knew I was into guys from a very young age so I immediately started disconnecting from religion as soon as I saw Star Wars and I was so turned on by...

The emperor?

No [ laughs.] The Ford guy. He was so hot. And Jabba the Hut.

You found Jabba the Hut hot?

The situation, not Jabba. The forced sexuality.

Did you see yourself in a gold bikini?

Yeah, absolutely [ laughs]. That movie gave me all sorts of feelings. But I really knew when I saw the movie 54 because Ryan Phillippe was like a god. It was instant boner when I saw that. I was like, “OK, I’m into dudes.” I immediately had a disconnect from my religious upbringing and I knew it was bullshit. I remember being a kid and thinking I don’t have to do this when I’m 18, so I just played along. There were so many inconsistencies with the doctrine. God is in charge of everything, God made everything but if you follow the things that you want to do, that you’re drawn to, you’re bad. [ I wondered] why God would create all these conflicts. It seems like a terrible way to design a system. The argument, of course, is free will but it’s a bullshit argument. My family are no longer Jehovah’s Witness.

Was that down to you being gay?

It was down to my mum reading a lot of books about how religious cults work. There is also weird stuff in a lot of the children’s literature, they would have hidden images inside the pictures and I would show my mum. They were images of people, and weird subliminal messaging.

What was the weirdest thing for you?

When we left, the congregation stopped talking to us. It’s called disassociation.

Are you spiritual at all?

I definitely think that all consciousness comes from the same source. There is some evidence to show the mind exists outside the brain.

You never scream “Oh God” when you’re cumming?

I’m more of a “holy fuck” kind of person.

Did anything good come out of your faith?

The thing I realised was that human beings want to belong to a group, something that reinforces them in the universe. They want to feel important, to feel needed. It opened my eyes to how you can communicate to a large group of people and effectively get them to do what you want.

When was your first sexual experience?

I don’t even remember. When I was a kid I would often get guys to take their pants off, older guys too — four or five years older than me. I’d be, “Oh, I’m not grown up yet, I just want to see what an adult dick looks like.” From there, I started experimenting with oral sex with friends. I was 15 the first time I had anal penetration.

How was that experience for you?

I got drunk, it was fun, I loved it. I was a very mature child. It was something I needed to do, I had to get it out of the way.

You must get propositioned for sex a lot.

Yes and no. Online, yes. In real life, not so often. Most of the people who proposition me for sex live very far away and it’s logistically impossible to travel.

Do you feel that people think you’re looking for sex all the time?

I try to hang out with people who don’t know what my online persona is per se.

And who is that?

I know [ laughs]. Not a lot of gay people, I guess. I don’t go to clubs or anything unless I’m working. I do like to go out and socialise but it’s not a priority for me. My priorities are making money, being comfortable and happy, and working out.

A lot of what you do revolves around your body. What do you like about your body?

I love and I hate that it’s so difficult for me to keep weight on. I know I’m going to love it when I’m older and I’m ripped still, but now I have to eat 24/ 7, about 4,000 calories, two protein shakes a day, to stay at 190lb. It’s a lot of work. But I always want to be bigger, buffer.

How big is too big?

I think there’s like a certain level of unnaturalness that is too big.

Who has the perfect body in your mind?

That’s a weird question because so many bodies are beautiful for so many reasons, and perfect for the individuals who inhabit them.

Does getting old concern you?

No, it’s part of the cycle. The thing that concerns me is not living my life to its fullest potential. Getting older definitely changes the way I relate to sex and relationships. I find myself attracted to younger people the older I get. There’s something about the “unjadedness” of a younger person. They haven’t experienced a bunch of hurt or pain, or bad relationships, so they’re more receptive to having an open, loving relationship.

Have you experienced those things?

Of course, yeah. I’m old. Lol!

Is that a place of regret for you?

Not regret, I’m still a very open person. I don’t have a problem telling the truth to people or being honest about my feelings. But I know that a lot of people have issues connecting with people or making friends as they get older. That’s why I have

“My priorities are making money and being happy”

a tendency to hang out with a younger crowd. But not always. Some of my friends are older.

There’s a tendency for gay people to try to hold on to youth.

Who doesn’t want to hold on to youth? Who wants to get old and die? I just think some people are more honest about it.

What’s your ultimate vision of being age 60?

I’d like to be a billionaire surrounded by a homosexual sex cult!

What does the American Dream mean to you?

Capitalism. The ability to use your natural surroundings or abilities to make money and improve your life.

What if you were poor when you are older?

Then I’ll be poor when I’m older.

It’s not the direction you plan to go in.

As of right now, no. But you never know. They could change the laws and make pornography illegal.

Speaking of pornography, why did you decide to start shooting Only Fans videos?

I’d wanted to shoot sex videos for a while because I feel there’s this divide between art and sex. I don’t see them as different. They’re both an emotional expression. In porn, it’s maybe the wrong term to use because it has such a specific connotation in those prearranged situations. But I like the Only Fans aspect because you can curate your own, and share them with people. It’s important to document sex because there’s nothing wrong with it, there’s nothing shameful about it and there’s nothing crazy about it. You should be able to watch sex as entertainment.

Isn’t it strange how it’s more acceptable to let children play with guns, depict images of people being shot or stabbed in films, but sex is considered taboo.

It’s about control. If people were openly having sex indiscriminately it would change the way our society works, and the way our government works. Our government needs us to keep producing people, to keep producing money, and contributing to GDP.

Does it bother you that your body is a commodity to most people?

No, because everyone’s body is a commodity whether they realise it or not. To me, there’s no difference between somebody standing behind a cash register for 10 hours a day and another person who has sex for 10 or 20 grand a month. Who’s having more fun? It’s about life choices, and people being indoctrinated with guilt about enjoying their life.

Do questions about sexual preferences bother you?

No.

What’s your top/ bottom split?

I’d say I top 85 per cent of the time.

What would persuade you to bottom?

A nice penis is a nice penis.

So, it all comes down to the D?

Not always.

Who came up with the idea of fucking internet celebrity Chris Crocker?

We did a photoshoot together for Daddy Couture. He came to New York and wanted to hang out so I had him on my podcast. Then we went out and had drinks, and he suggested: “Let’s shoot some stuff for Only Fans.” We were drunk so I went back to his hotel room and we shot some fun stuff.

Who would be next on your dream list?

I’d love to fuck Andy Cohen on camera. I know him. He’s great, he’s an awesome guy. But that would break the internet and we need cultural boundaries to be pushed liked that [ smiles.] Also, The Rock and 50 Cent.

They’re not Chris Crocker.

I have a very wide spectrum [ of choice].

You told me you react badly to [ PrEP medicine] Truvada.

I have a couple of pre- existing injuries. The cornea of my right eye got cut by glass in a car accident when I was in my early twenties. If I’ve been up for two days because I’ve been busy, or working, I realise my vision starts getting messed up. I noticed when I was on Truvada it would happen at midday when I’d woken up at 8am. I thought it was weird. Also, I have a rod and seven pins in my arm from when I broke it in a motorcycle accident, and I noticed that my strength deteriorated super- quickly when I was on it. I couldn’t work out or lift; it affected the bone density in my arm.

PrEP has worked for so many people, stopping them contracting HIV, so there’s no doubt it’s a good thing. But I guess that for some people it’s a medication that just doesn’t work because of the side affects. Are you prepared if you were to be diagnosed HIV positive tomorrow?

Yes. I’ve had situations where I had unprotected sex and I’ve been tested. I’ve been prepared for that for a long time.

You recently moved into a former church in Hudson, about 120 miles from NYC. Why?

I guess a lot of it had to do with my exboyfriend, a lot about finances at the time. I never left my house, I was in my house in Brooklyn a lot of the time. But there are too many people around. Every time you leave the house in New York there are 500 people in your face. And I’m not talking about for me, that’s just life in New York. About seven or eight years ago I decided to invest most of my time and energy in internet- based businesses so I didn’t have

“A nice penis is a nice penis but I top 85% of the time”

to be located in any specific area. I could live anywhere and still my income would be safe as long as the internet was up.

What are you working on these days?

I’m creating a platform for people to upload any kind of art they want: sexual, make- up tutorials, workouts, painting, whatever. And they can make money by posting to their subscribers on it.

How does it differ to other sites?

There’s Patreon, which is not subscription based. Only Fans is subscription based but it has been so absorbed by the porn community, they were the first to adopt it. That’s no surprise because porn is usually the genesis of communication technology. Mine is a queer platform for queer people, queer meaning free thinking and alternative. It’s called baeable. com. Bae, as in: “You’re my bae.”

Back to this church you’re living in…

It was built in 1869 as a Lutheran church. Now it’s a gay sex cult. Maybe not “cult.” It’s important for us to rebrand spirituality away from heteronormative dimensions to something more ambiguous.

What would you like to see it become?

A religion under US law, which is not difficult to do. I just have to get a congregation to say how often we meet, then we’re tax exempt, which is total bullshit. But I’m going to take advantage of it because that’s how you get things to change, you take advantage of the system until people get clarity.

So, it’s a political as well as a religious statement?

Exactly.

And these church gatherings are going to be conducted… how?

Rituals. Music. Singing. Sex parties would be great. Nothing really that different to regular religion, except the sex part.

Are you the high priestess?

I think I’d be the creator.

Are we going to be celebrating effigies of you a thousand years from now? The Church of Camp.

The first congregation of homosexuals. Well, the first tax- deductible one.

What reaction do you expect?

It’ll piss a lot of people off. People accept Santa Claus is fake. They accept unicorns are fake. But if you bring up Jesus, they say: ‘ What no, there’s a book.” I reply, “Yeah, based on a bunch of literature that came before that.” It’s important to exploit these ideas. It’s not about taking down religion. If Christianity is right, it should be able to withstand this sort of test.

How much sex does Matthew Camp have?

Lately, a lot but last year not so much. I was seeing someone who didn’t want to have sex with me very often. Because of their personal issues, I assume.

How did that make you feel?

I was fine with it. I wasn’t dating him because we were having sex. I was dating this person because I admired him, I loved him. It just didn’t work out.

How do you rate a sexual encounter?

If both parties leave feeling good about it, that’s a good sexual encounter. If someone feels gypped, that’s bad.

Have you ever had a negative encounter?

I’ve been drugged and raped. And an ex boyfriend tried to fuck me when I was passed out drunk — technically rape.

This happens a lot between men and we don’t talk about it. What ran through your head ?

I was so inebriated I could barely move. I was on a couch and this guy was fucking me, and I woke up and thought: “Oh my God, I hope he’s using a condom,” because this was before PrEP. I reached down and he was, and I thanked God.

Did you not report it?

I was in a city I was visiting. It happens to so many people. Is it acceptable? Absolutely not.

You’ve said in the past that you suffer from depression.

I have been depressed at various stages in my life. After the car accident in my early twenties, and after an ex- boyfriend died. But I’m not now.

Have you cried recently?

I cry at the drop of a hat. Especially when I’m watching a movie. Have you seen the movie Up? It destroyed me in the first 15 minutes.

What upset you most?

It was the emotional connection the character had with the other person and how strong that was. It was so beautiful.

When were you last in love?

I fall in love all the time. I’m one of those people who can love multiple people at once. I’ve tried having monogamous relationships but I feel that’s unrealistic in the world we live in, especially as gay men. The relationship thing is difficult. I don’t own anybody and nobody owns me. To have a healthy consciousness and a healthy personality, you need to have influences from multiple people, whether that’s sexual or friendship or whatever. However those manifest, you should be free to investigate them. Of course, it’s difficult: people get jealous but that has to do with how they are brought up. As we go into a more communication- technologydriven culture, it’s going to be harder and harder to keep these old world ideas about relationships. We need to think about ourselves more as a community than as individuals.

“Monogamy is unrealistic in the world we live in”