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What else have you done?
I shot this TV commercial for ESPN. I play a surfer in a black wetsuit running across camera with a beer and a surfboard and later hanging onto a maypole singing and dancing. It's really weird stuff. It's ESPN stuff. Something that doesn't make sense but is funny.
It sounds like you enjoy the acting aspect of this.
So far it's more like being a mime. (laughs). But I've taken some classes and hopefully it's going to come eventually, so I'm taking it in stride. I'm trying to relax and I'm trying to make myself more animated. There are still emotions that I don't display. It's about releasing and letting yourself go — on a schedule though. Like, you have to make yourself be something, like crying. That's going to take time. It's more of an instinct than a skill though. You can acquire it, but it's more of an instinct. You have to just do it. Acting could be in my future, but it just depends.
What would you say has surprised you the most about this whole business?
I thought everything was very quick. You get in, have an overnight success and then you're out. But it's not like that. You really have to work at it. You have to develop yourself. You have to develop an image. You have to get on people's radar screens. Look, I'm just a 19 year-old child. (laughs) I can cook for myself, I clean for myself, but I'm still a 19 year-old child, and even so, I didn't expect to have this long a run.
OK, so now that you're a big fashion model, what are you wearing?
(laughs) Black shoes and white socks which is against the law ... (we both laugh because I'm committing the same faux pas) ... H&M Jeans, a Gap white Tshirt, CK Briefs and a Levi's vintage jacket.
Any tunes you're listening to these days?
I listen to R&B. I love Boyz II Men. When I go out I like something I can move to. And I move like a snake so I like something that's really slimy and sexual. (laughs)
I ask all the guys this, but you especially, given that you were discovered in our forum ... What's your take on ModelSwim?
ModelSwim is actually something positive in this industry. You can get your face in front of people that can do something for you. It's a very good thing. There's the forum, where people meet and talk and you can get advice. It's like a scouting agency but better, because you can deal direct with people, you're not dealing with a middleman. So it's definitely something positive. If you guys didn't have that site, I wouldn't be around today.
Do you have any advice for new guys just starting out?
You have to weigh the consequences of your actions. I mean, you have to treat yourself as if your future is sensitive, as if you're going to be a politician. Don't do anything stupid that's going to come back and bite you in the ass. Sure, money talks. But it isn't everything and there are a lot of ways to make money. There's never just one way. So treat yourself as if you're sacred. Don't degrade yourself or you'll come to regret it. Also, trust is like a gift. You should only trust somebody up to the point that they give you a reason not to. I'm very careful about who I trust, and who I give that gift to.
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