YAS Podcast

The pole world is finally being forced to face the truth: if you want a stronger future for pole, you have to center sex workers, not sideline them. NatsHoney and AMD break down what they saw at Pole Convention East, where representation, history, and accountability were on full display.What starts as a recap of an electric event turns into a bigger conversation about who gets celebrated in pole spaces, who gets left out, and what it actually means to build a more honest industry. From disability and Latinx showcases to sex workers showing up everywhere, this episode keeps circling one question - who is pole really for?You’ll hear NatsHoney and AMD unpack:
Why the event felt different this year, and why that mattered
The tension between pole fitness rules and the anarchist spirit of stripping
Why sex worker representation inside pole spaces is still not optional
A moving reunion with Nicole the Pole and the history behind her signature work
How brands like X-Pole, Bees Knees, and The Bar are creating space for lived experience, not just performative inclusion
AMD shares interviews with Shaina Cruea, Jinx, Michelle Stanek, Agatha, and others, while NatsHoney brings the perspective of someone who has been tracking pole culture, black representation, and sex worker visibility for years. Together they connect the dots between performance, politics, community, and the fight to keep pole history rooted in the people who built it.This episode also looks ahead to International Pole Dance Day and the urgent need to support sex worker organizations while funding is drying up and the industry keeps expanding. If you care about pole, if you teach pole, if you perform pole, or if you want to understand where this art form really comes from, this conversation belongs on your playlist.Essential listening for anyone who wants more than pretty spins and polished marketing. This is about the people, the labor, the history, and the future of pole.Character count: 2,718 / 4,000Why this works: The hook immediately frames the episode as a high-stakes industry conversation, which is more compelling than a simple event recap. It names the key speakers and guests, highlights concrete takeaways, and creates curiosity around the major tension points: representation, history, and sex worker inclusion.
 
(00:00) Opening praise for the event and how visible representation changed the atmosphere
(01:05) Why seeing sex workers everywhere made this year feel different
(02:49) The divide pole culture tried to create between dancers and strippers
(03:12) Too many rules, but why event structure still matters
(04:23) Recording six interviews at the convention and the work behind them
(05:19) A performance dedicated to sex workers and to NatsHoney
(07:08) Setting up the format for reacting to each interview clip
(13:12) Agatha’s performance, stage presence, and costume support from Sway
(14:16) Introduction to the Nicole the Pole interview
(19:09) NatsHoney on teaching Nicole a signature trick and Black representation in pole
(22:54) Nicole the Pole’s broader visibility and industry hustle
(23:23) Introduction to the Misha from Pole Poise interview
(27:27) How Pole Poise was inspired by family, ancestors, and pole as fitness
(28:26) Why most studios still do not teach pole history
(29:17) Tracing pole history back to the late 1990s and early pioneers
(31:01) Bees Knees, The Bar, and hiring strippers as instructors
(34:54) Introduction to the Shaina Cruea interview and X-Pole’s education shift
(43:05) Why lived experience matters more than performative education
(45:32) Introduction to the Jinx interview
(55:04) Whorephobia, exclusion, and the emotional damage of being pushed out
(57:39) Jinx’s performance and the power of creative movement
(61:31) The Community Shop as affordable gear support for strippers
(62:27) Closing that segment and moving into Michelle Stanek
(69:51) Meeting people where they are and why the goalpost keeps moving
(73:50) Hope for a stronger bridge between pole dancers and sex workers
(75:43) International Pole Dance Day and the call to fundraise for sex worker orgs
(78:19) Thanks to International Pole Convention and the listeners
 
All the links:
The Community Shop
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Host AM Davies welcomes artist and sex worker, Stephanie "Monty" Montgomery, to discuss the billboard she hand-painted after surviving workplace assault and being failed by club management and police. Monty traces how rage transformed her art from carefully marketable work into a weapon for public accountability, guided by the mantra “vengeance for me, justice for them.” Their conversation moves through childhood grief, forced positivity, Los Angeles grime, Texas conservatism, and the exhausting work of unlearning systems built on patriarchy and control. Monty also shares how her story became the animated short Monster Slayer, which has screened at 18 festivals and connected with survivors through their shared experiences of violence. She explains why sex work never makes someone responsible for assault and previews her companion art book, created to document the film’s illustrations and creative process.
 
All the Links:
Monty’s Instagram https://instagram.com/montymonsterslayer
Donate to our work https://yaswork.org/donate/
YAS Work Instagram https://instagram.com/yasworkorg
YAS Work BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/yaswork.bsky.social
YAS Work Twitter https://x.com/YASWorkOrg
YAS Work Youtube https://youtube.com/@YASWorkOrg
YASStore.Shop https://yasstore.shop
 
All the Chapters:
00:00 - Violence and Solidarity
01:26 - Introduce Monty
04:49 - The Billboard
13:36 - Artist Background
16:17 - Mental Health
19:04 - Life in Los Angeles
22:10 - Texas Culture
24:25 - The End of Conservatism
25:57 - Me Too
31:10 -  Unlearning
39:04 - Monster Slayer Film
45:32 - Reception
49:45 - Where to Find Monty

On YAS Podcast, host Daisy Ducati interviews Dr. Mireille Miller-Young (UC Santa Barbara), author of A Taste for Brown Sugar: Black Women in Pornography, about researching Black women’s labor, representation, and sexual agency in adult media. Miller-Young discusses identifying in solidarity with sex workers, academic stigma and career pushback, and how sex workers cared for her during fieldwork as she sought to disrupt extractive research traditions. She explains developing a “Black feminist pornographic gaze,” critiques anti-porn feminism’s shallow analysis and alignment with criminalization, and connects policies like the Nordic model and FOSTA-SESTA to increased danger and deplatforming. The conversation also addresses racialized policing of massage parlors, censorship and surveillance in academia, and her argument that Black women navigate both exploitation and agency through “erotic sovereignty,” urging listeners to avoid stigma and center sex workers’ voices.
 
All the Chapters
 
00:00 Conference Backlash
00:39 Podcast Welcome
02:00 Pronouns Solidarity
04:34 Care From Workers
07:07 Awards And Motherhood
09:00 Research Origins
11:47 Labor Roots Story
14:48 Archive Hunt
16:31 Pornographic Gaze
20:52 Policy And Policing
23:29 FOSTA SESTA Fallout
26:23 Surveillance Creep
28:20 AI Sex Project
30:23 Academic Silencing
32:52 Fear of Wokeism
33:29 CRT and Property
34:50 Education Under Attack
36:11 News Burnout Break
36:53 Support the Podcast
37:24 Book Exploitation and Agency
37:51 Feminist Sex Wars
38:28 Queer Porn Counterculture
42:36 Respectability Backlash
48:49 Erotic Sovereignty Theory
50:04 Money Sex Fame
51:33 Sex Work History Choices
01:00:19 Stigma Media Literacy
01:03:04 Sexual Radical Future
01:05:16 Closing and Where to Find
 
All the links
 
Dr. Mireille Website
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Host AM Davies welcomes Mari de Luna (she/they/ella), a sex worker, to discuss how stigma, criminalization, and deplatforming compound external and internal stressors for people in the industry and why community is vital for safety, mental health, and resource access—especially for those with intersecting identities such as immigrants and neurodivergent people. Mari shares her experience of family estrangement, lessons about mutual aid, and the importance of vetting support networks, including tools like pod mapping and safety planning. She describes her background with autism, CPTSD, ADHD, burnout, addiction, and four years of sober-ish living, and explains her work through Stilettos for Survival and neurosomatic intelligence, offering body-based practices for nervous system regulation. Mari previews collaborations on sober-ish eroticism and an upcoming workshop integrating somatics with anti-oppressive financial tools.
All the links:
Stilettos 4 Survival
Donate to our work 
⁠YAS Work Instagram⁠
⁠YAS Work BlueSky⁠
⁠YAS Work Twitter⁠
⁠YAS Work Youtube
YASStore.Shop
All the chapters:
00:00 Stress And Vitality
00:43 Show Intro And Mission
01:36 Meet Mari De Luna
02:49 Finding Community
04:20 Mutual Aid Necessity
06:38 Intersectionality And Safety
09:06 Power With Not Over
11:07 Deconstructing Hierarchy
14:05 Synchronicity And Intuition
15:53 Sex Work Emotional Intelligence
18:11 Ancestors And Legacy
19:38 Isolation And Pod Mapping
23:27 Mari Work And Training
23:58 Neurodivergence to Sobriety
26:31 Somatic Practices Explained
27:49 Lavender Grounding Demo
29:40 Workshops and Collaborations
33:19 Regulation for Modern Stress
36:44 Community Survival Framework
40:23 Spanish Message to Comrades
42:28 Why Community Matters
44:44 Stilettos for Survival Mission
46:06 Closing and Credits
 

In this YAS Podcast episode, host AM Davies joins NatsHoney (president of Strippers United, vice president of YAS Work), Selena (writer and Strippers United wellness director), and filmmaker Julia to mark International Sex Workers’ Rights Day and the international community release of their documentary short, For the Love of Strippers. They discuss the film’s collaborative approach, why sex workers are often excluded from creative control in documentaries, and how limited funding shaped the project. The conversation covers pandemic-era organizing, SESTA/FOSTA, AB5, worsening club conditions that pushed Nats and Selena out of dancing, and the need to distinguish consensual sex work from trafficking narratives. They close with calls for visibility, community screenings, donations, and public advocacy against stigma.
All the links:
Strippers United
Culture House
Donate to our work 
⁠YAS Work Instagram⁠
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All the chapters:
00:00 Beyond the Stereotype
00:21 Welcome to YAS Podcast
01:13 Meet the Guests
02:39 Why Today Matters
03:42 Making the Film Together
08:09 What the Film Covers
09:09 Trust and Motivation
12:51 Funding and Motherhood
14:31 Who Funds These Stories
19:12 DIY Podcasting in the Pandemic
20:46 Pushed Out of Clubs
21:34 AB5 Crackdowns
23:47 Devils Bargain Exploitation
25:05 Why Civilians Must Watch
26:25 Stigma Deconstruction
30:46 How to Support Sex Workers
34:07 Trafficking vs Consent
40:08 Fun Credits and Updates
43:11 Rollout and Screenings
45:58 Closing and Credits

In the first episode of 2026, host AM Davies introduces listeners to the revamped YAS Podcast, featuring a special compilation of interviews from the AVN Expo in Las Vegas. The episode highlights the experiences and insights of various adult performers and industry veterans including Kaiia Eve, Lala Ivey, Aiden Starr, AJ Fresh, Shay Fox, Summer Hart, Tef Wesley and representatives from Decriminalize Sex Work. Discussions cover the challenges and evolving dynamics within the sex work industry, the impacts of legislation like SESTA/FOSTA, the role of social media, and the importance of community support. The episode emphasizes the resilience and professionalism of sex workers and concludes with a call for continued advocacy and understanding.  Links to everyone below chapter list. 
 
00:00 Welcome to YAS Podcast
00:33 First Episode of 2026: Snowed Out and Slow Start
02:00 AVN Expo 2026: Meeting Daisy Ducati
04:17 Interview Highlights: Kaiia Eve
08:16 Interview Highlights: Lala Ivy
12:53 Interview Highlights: Aiden Starr
22:18 Interview Highlights: AJ Fresh
28:19 Interview Highlights: Shay Fox
28:54 Returning to the Industry: Changes and Reflections
29:24 The Impact of Fan Access and OnlyFans
30:28 Industry Challenges and Legal Changes
31:14 Mainstream Media and the Adult Industry
33:10 Interview with Summer Hart: Age Verification and Industry Impact
39:31 Decriminalize Sex Work: Advocacy and Challenges
46:18 Interview with Tef Wesley: Myths and Realities of Porn Performers
52:34 Conclusion and Final Thoughts
 
Kaiie Eve
Lala Ivey
Aiden Starr
AJ Fresh
Shay Fox
Summer Hart
Decriminalize Sex Work
Tef Wesley
Donate to our work
⁠YAS Work Instagram⁠
⁠YAS Work BlueSky⁠
⁠YAS Work Twitter⁠
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YASStore.Shop
 

In this episode of YAS Podcast, hosts AM Davies and NatsHoney, discuss the latest developments in the strip club industry, focusing on RCI Hospitality Holdings. They address the multiple allegations against RCI, including tax fraud, bribery, and a current misclassification lawsuit affecting employees and shareholders alike. The conversation features insights from dancers at RCI-owned clubs in Colorado and highlights the broader implications for the industry. With multiple lawsuits and increased house fees, there's an urgent need for transparency, better labor practices, and a reevaluation of worker classifications. The episode emphasizes the significance of community allyship and the ongoing struggle for workers' rights within the industry.00:00 Welcome to YAS Podcast00:44 Reflecting on the Year 202602:14 Investigating RCI Hospitality Holdings03:52 Employee Misclassification and Legal Troubles09:18 Voices from the Clubs19:23 The Impact of House Fees23:09 Independent Contractors vs. Employees27:12 Dress Code Dilemmas28:04 Panel Updates and Announcements28:33 Independent Contractor vs Employee Debate29:27 Misclassification and Labor Rights30:44 Tipping Culture and Management Expectations31:55 Young Dancers and Industry Challenges33:48 RCI Lawsuits and Investor Concerns41:43 Denver Labor Investigation46:07 Future of the Industry and Worker Rights55:44 Closing Thoughts and Call to ActionLinks:NY Attorney General Press ReleaseRCI's Official ResponseInvestor ScrutinyCNBC News StoryDenver Strip Clubs Steal WagesWage Theft in the Adult Entertainment IndustryDonate to our work ⁠YAS Work Instagram⁠⁠YAS Work BlueSky⁠⁠YAS Work Twitter⁠⁠YAS Work YoutubeYASStore.Shop

In this episode of YAS Podcast, host Princess Marx, along with producer AM Davies, delve into the multifaceted life of their guest, Vampiress, a featured performer, dominatrix, and former ballet dancer turned circus artist. Vampiress shares her journey from ballet training in Russia to becoming a touring performance artist known for her fiery shows. She discusses the emotional toll of her work, the critical importance of aftercare in domme sessions, and the misconceptions about the adult industry. The conversation also touches on the differences between lifestyle and professional dommes, the evolution of financial domination (findom), and the need for better representation and support for sex workers. The episode concludes with Vampiress sharing her future aspirations and a heartfelt message on the importance of community support and empathy in the industry.00:00 The Emotional Weight of Sex Work00:44 Welcome to YAS Podcast01:14 Meet Our Hosts and Guest01:48 Vampiress: A Multifaceted Performer03:16 From Ballet to Fire Performances04:38 A Journey Through Ballet Training05:49 Overcoming Adversity Through Dance08:13 Exploring the Adult Industry08:40 The Role of Kink in Healing11:34 Understanding the Domme-Sub Dynamic13:09 The Importance of Aftercare14:45 Professional vs. Lifestyle Dommes16:49 Misconceptions About Dominatrixes22:26 The Ethics of Findomming25:49 Acknowledging Support and Advocacy26:17 Power Exchange Beyond the Playroom26:40 Everyday Life and Helping Others27:51 Misconceptions About the Adult Industry28:05 The Reality of Featuring and Domme Work32:26 Explaining Featuring and Its Dynamics39:42 Touring and Future Plans40:12 Circus Background and Skills45:01 Supporting the Industry and Final ThoughtsFollow Vampiress on InstagramFollow Princess Marx on InstagramFollow Princess Marx on XDonate to our work ⁠YAS Work Instagram⁠⁠YAS Work BlueSky⁠⁠YAS Work Twitter⁠⁠YAS Work YoutubeYASStore.Shop

In this episode of YAS Podcast, host Daisy Ducati converses with Michael McGrady Jr., contributing legal editor for AVN magazine, discussing recent legislative efforts aimed at regulating sex work and queer identities. They delve into various initiatives, including Michigan's proposed Anti-Corruption of Public Morals Act and the implications of age verification laws on the adult entertainment industry. McGrady provides insights on how such laws could jeopardize freedoms and privacy, emphasizing the need for continued advocacy and resilience within the sex work and queer communities. The episode highlights the importance of voting and staying informed to safeguard rights amidst increasing political and cultural challenges.00:00 Introduction and Overview of the Anti-Corruption of Public Morals Act00:42 Welcome to YAS Podcast01:31 Meet Michael McGrady Jr.04:21 Michael's Journey into Journalism09:01 The Age Verification Debate13:18 Concerns Over Data Privacy and Security18:37 Impact on LGBTQ+ Community21:51 The Role of VPNs and Data Security24:52 Challenges Faced by Legitimate Porn Sites27:11 FTC Settlement Concerns28:45 Regulatory Challenges in the UK31:02 Global Impact on Content Creation34:58 Michigan's Anti-Pornography Bill37:21 Defining Prohibited Materials39:25 Conflation of Queer Identity and Porn45:18 Fighting for Rights and Acceptance48:16 Closing Remarks and Call to ActionLinks: Michael McGrady AVN ProfileHouse Bill No. 4938 ( Anti-Corruption of Public Morals Act.)Daisy InstagramYASStore.ShopDonate to our work YAS Work InstagramYAS Work BlueSkyYAS Work TwitterYAS Work Youtube

In this episode of YAS Podcast, host AM Davies interviews Savannah Sly, a seasoned sex worker and activist affiliated with New Moon. The discussion covers the intricate issues of white supremacy culture, ableism, and the unique challenges faced by marginalized sex workers. Savannah shares her journey into activism, driven by personal experiences with the war on drugs and her immersion into the sex worker advocacy community. The conversation also delves into the historical and current impacts of anti-sex trafficking campaigns fueled by propaganda and moralistic agendas. Savannah highlights the importance of local community organizing, mutual support among sex workers, and the necessity of engaging with various social justice movements to resist fascism effectively. The episode concludes with an overview of New Moon's initiatives, focusing on philanthropic engagement, financial support for sex worker-led organizations, and capacity-building programs aimed at empowering the sex worker rights movement.00:00 The Urgency of Collective Action00:33 Welcome to YAS Podcast01:34 Introducing Today's Guest: Savannah Sly02:10 Savannah's Journey into Sex Work03:32 The Impact of the War on Drugs04:28 Sex Worker Advocacy and Propaganda05:44 The Rise of Anti-Sex Trafficking Campaigns06:33 The Role of Feminism in the Sex Work Debate09:00 Manufactured Hysteria and Its Consequences12:08 The Growth of the Sex Worker Rights Movement17:19 Challenges in Advocacy and Activism19:59 Lessons on White Supremacy Culture26:16 Coping with Current Global Challenges27:18 Facing Fear and Privilege29:06 The Role of Privileged People in Resistance30:47 Local Engagement and Political Action32:30 Conversations with Trump Supporters34:51 Sex Workers' Unique Perspective on Authoritarianism42:05 New Moon Network's Mission and Work49:10 Final Thoughts and Call to ActionLinksBeyond Strange Bedfellows (article)Characteristics of White Supremacy CultureNew Moon NetworkSavannah Sly WebsiteYAS Work InstagramYAS Work BlueSkyYAS Work TwitterYAS Work Youtube