Local earns forex from online service
It’s been quite common to hear someone joke about going on Murray Street when they aren’t happy with their financial situation.
In recent times that joke has taken on a 2023 spin, “I think I’m going to start an OnlyFans.”
However, there are signs that the joke is becoming a growing consideration in T&T.
OnlyFans is a social media subscription service that has gained notoriety for its vast amounts of adult content, with consumers paying subscription fees to individual creators.
The online platform, which was created in 2016, has made over a thousand of its content creators millionaires as a result.
Danielle “Bhad Barbie” Bregoli, who was best known for going viral after uttering the phrase “cash me outside” during a TV appearance as a 13 year old, became a millionaire six hours after she started an OnlyFans account which she started after turning 18.
Last year, she confirmed she had earned over US$50 million from the platform in just a year.
Bregoli isn’t the only “public” figure who has profited on the site, as famous rappers, models and even news personalities have supplemented their income through the site.
Not only public figures have also profited from OnlyFans.
Last month Business Insider profiled content creator Jazmen Jaffar, who quit her job as an attorney to become a full-time content curator on the site after she made more than US$180,000 in the first three months of this year through OnlyFans.
This, she said, was substantially more than the US$75,000 per year she was set to make at her job.
There are creators from T&T who are hoping to be as successful as Jaffar, but the Business Guardian was told the stigma attached to the platform, and the taboo associated with sex work, was one of many challenges they faced.
“It is not my wish to be an advocate for the worldwide controversial platform, OnlyFans, with regards to my niche within the realm of Trinidad and Tobago because it is such a small place with a history of discrimination against anything taboo. COVID- 19 is over and there’s a lot of self-employment opportunities,” said a content creator who only agreed to be identified as “The Muse”.
She told the Business Guardian that she started her account at the height of the pandemic as a means to ensure she still had an income when restrictions prevented her from working as a model and dancer within the entertainment industry where at times, she made upward of $30,000 a month.
“I did not go into this lightly. I had the mindset that, “Hey!
This is an option I have while in COVID. I will be judged harshly because it showcases an easy method to gain money for those looking in from the outside. It really has caused deeper hate from persons who will and would never have taken the risk to keep their source of income flowing,” she said, “I decided that COVID was not going to take two years from me financially.”
She said her page has done reasonably well but there are several issues that affect her and other creators in this country.
“Creating content on Onlyfans opened my eyes to a lot of social norms and issues within T&T that affect us daily such as “revenge porn” where people find the need to distribute intimate materials of another with intentions to ruin their self-image, worth or sabotage social status,” said the content creator, who said there had been instances of people attempting to tarnish her image since she chose the platform.
Several local content creators who use the platform opt to withhold their identity due to similar concerns, while The Muse was the only content creator who agreed to speak with the Business Guardian about being a content creator for the site.
She said since she joined the platform she had been seeing more people expressing interest in setting up accounts, but she warned it was a risky venture.
“The numbers are climbing every day in T&T with people who want to join OnlyFans because it’s safer and you don’t need to sell yourself physically.
But the sad truth of the matter is not everyone has thick skin, (to shake off ) sexual shaming or knows the method of how to be successful in this career…it actually takes skills, knowledge, and personal self-work.
“If you’re thinking about joining, just know that it’s already saturated worldwide and only the creators who produce quality or give away a lot for little are making money. It’s either or… no in-between,” the content creator said.
The Muse said the platform’s international base has allowed her to garner foreign exchange but while it has worked to her benefit, she also hoped her work would help push T&T as well.
“I also showcase my beautiful country locations in my content.
I try my best to wear our local brands while in my own unique way influencing others to buy. I employ graphic designers, photographers and video editors. I have created a small community of people I support with my job and couldn’t imagine what it might be like if my source of income did not exist. We struggle as a country to bring to life other aspects of our entertainment industry besides the Carnival.
“I have accumulated a lot of foreign exchange and wish to be supported to build more. I showcase the good parts of my culture online for tourist attraction! My job is taboo but I love my country and want to help it grow economically!”
However, she noted that the country had a contradictory stance when it came to sexuality and sex work as there were obvious elements of society that would connect with content creators such as herself.
“I’ll be quite frank though, T&T doesn’t care if you sell your body within an artistic nature because of our Carnival culture and being one of the countries highest on the list for consumption of pornography.
I can only speak for myself, the content I create is a form of self-expression, to which I feel free to explore different aspects of my body in return for money,” she said.
She said while the platform does have a reputation for adult content, she stressed that it is not just a platform for sexual content nor was it a hub for prostitution.
She said the platform allowed women like herself to reject sexual exploitation and instead gave them greater agency.
“I do enjoy my work as a creator on OnlyFans, I use my platform to spread positivity, encouragement for sexual freedom in a safe way by showing authentic creativity, inspiring those who struggle with bad marriages, confidence and self-worth,” she said.
“It’s far from porn and liberating to sex workers! It’s crazy to see the number of men from T&T, if not all who message to ask me to prostitute! It’s literally just T&T males! That in itself goes to show what a lot of people deal with on a regular just to get by, and not to forget, the site does have policies saying “no arranging outside of platform.”
She also said local content creators were also affected by the low number of credit card owners in T&T, but she said she had been advocating the use of local fintech options to circumvent this issue.
She said many content creators were ultimately facing the same challenges the wider public was and called for society to be more accepting.
“I wish my country would acknowledge that we all are dealing with the same issues. I hope that we can focus on supporting anyone who has the opportunity to work and build our economy and put our country on the map.
With that being said, I had to decide on the refusal to use PayPal and encourage everyone to join Endcash,” she said.
In recent times that joke has taken on a 2023 spin, “I think I’m going to start an OnlyFans.”
However, there are signs that the joke is becoming a growing consideration in T&T.
OnlyFans is a social media subscription service that has gained notoriety for its vast amounts of adult content, with consumers paying subscription fees to individual creators.
The online platform, which was created in 2016, has made over a thousand of its content creators millionaires as a result.
Danielle “Bhad Barbie” Bregoli, who was best known for going viral after uttering the phrase “cash me outside” during a TV appearance as a 13 year old, became a millionaire six hours after she started an OnlyFans account which she started after turning 18.
Last year, she confirmed she had earned over US$50 million from the platform in just a year.
Bregoli isn’t the only “public” figure who has profited on the site, as famous rappers, models and even news personalities have supplemented their income through the site.
Not only public figures have also profited from OnlyFans.
Last month Business Insider profiled content creator Jazmen Jaffar, who quit her job as an attorney to become a full-time content curator on the site after she made more than US$180,000 in the first three months of this year through OnlyFans.
This, she said, was substantially more than the US$75,000 per year she was set to make at her job.
There are creators from T&T who are hoping to be as successful as Jaffar, but the Business Guardian was told the stigma attached to the platform, and the taboo associated with sex work, was one of many challenges they faced.
“It is not my wish to be an advocate for the worldwide controversial platform, OnlyFans, with regards to my niche within the realm of Trinidad and Tobago because it is such a small place with a history of discrimination against anything taboo. COVID- 19 is over and there’s a lot of self-employment opportunities,” said a content creator who only agreed to be identified as “The Muse”.
She told the Business Guardian that she started her account at the height of the pandemic as a means to ensure she still had an income when restrictions prevented her from working as a model and dancer within the entertainment industry where at times, she made upward of $30,000 a month.
“I did not go into this lightly. I had the mindset that, “Hey!
This is an option I have while in COVID. I will be judged harshly because it showcases an easy method to gain money for those looking in from the outside. It really has caused deeper hate from persons who will and would never have taken the risk to keep their source of income flowing,” she said, “I decided that COVID was not going to take two years from me financially.”
She said her page has done reasonably well but there are several issues that affect her and other creators in this country.
“Creating content on Onlyfans opened my eyes to a lot of social norms and issues within T&T that affect us daily such as “revenge porn” where people find the need to distribute intimate materials of another with intentions to ruin their self-image, worth or sabotage social status,” said the content creator, who said there had been instances of people attempting to tarnish her image since she chose the platform.
Several local content creators who use the platform opt to withhold their identity due to similar concerns, while The Muse was the only content creator who agreed to speak with the Business Guardian about being a content creator for the site.
She said since she joined the platform she had been seeing more people expressing interest in setting up accounts, but she warned it was a risky venture.
“The numbers are climbing every day in T&T with people who want to join OnlyFans because it’s safer and you don’t need to sell yourself physically.
But the sad truth of the matter is not everyone has thick skin, (to shake off ) sexual shaming or knows the method of how to be successful in this career…it actually takes skills, knowledge, and personal self-work.
“If you’re thinking about joining, just know that it’s already saturated worldwide and only the creators who produce quality or give away a lot for little are making money. It’s either or… no in-between,” the content creator said.
The Muse said the platform’s international base has allowed her to garner foreign exchange but while it has worked to her benefit, she also hoped her work would help push T&T as well.
“I also showcase my beautiful country locations in my content.
I try my best to wear our local brands while in my own unique way influencing others to buy. I employ graphic designers, photographers and video editors. I have created a small community of people I support with my job and couldn’t imagine what it might be like if my source of income did not exist. We struggle as a country to bring to life other aspects of our entertainment industry besides the Carnival.
“I have accumulated a lot of foreign exchange and wish to be supported to build more. I showcase the good parts of my culture online for tourist attraction! My job is taboo but I love my country and want to help it grow economically!”
However, she noted that the country had a contradictory stance when it came to sexuality and sex work as there were obvious elements of society that would connect with content creators such as herself.
“I’ll be quite frank though, T&T doesn’t care if you sell your body within an artistic nature because of our Carnival culture and being one of the countries highest on the list for consumption of pornography.
I can only speak for myself, the content I create is a form of self-expression, to which I feel free to explore different aspects of my body in return for money,” she said.
She said while the platform does have a reputation for adult content, she stressed that it is not just a platform for sexual content nor was it a hub for prostitution.
She said the platform allowed women like herself to reject sexual exploitation and instead gave them greater agency.
“I do enjoy my work as a creator on OnlyFans, I use my platform to spread positivity, encouragement for sexual freedom in a safe way by showing authentic creativity, inspiring those who struggle with bad marriages, confidence and self-worth,” she said.
“It’s far from porn and liberating to sex workers! It’s crazy to see the number of men from T&T, if not all who message to ask me to prostitute! It’s literally just T&T males! That in itself goes to show what a lot of people deal with on a regular just to get by, and not to forget, the site does have policies saying “no arranging outside of platform.”
She also said local content creators were also affected by the low number of credit card owners in T&T, but she said she had been advocating the use of local fintech options to circumvent this issue.
She said many content creators were ultimately facing the same challenges the wider public was and called for society to be more accepting.
“I wish my country would acknowledge that we all are dealing with the same issues. I hope that we can focus on supporting anyone who has the opportunity to work and build our economy and put our country on the map.
With that being said, I had to decide on the refusal to use PayPal and encourage everyone to join Endcash,” she said.