ay hello to Viktor Belmont, a totally dreamy 25-year-old living in San Francisco.
This year, Belmont became the first trans man to win Best Newcomer at The Hookies, an awards show that honors the best in the male escorting industry.
“With the industry having a huge focus on bodies and anatomy, I was concerned that I might not be accepted into the awards because of being trans,” he told BuzzFeed of the achievement.
He won the award through an online vote and the support of his fellow escorts.
“All these guys treated me as an equal. I was treated with the same respect as anyone else in the running. That equality was something I honestly didn’t know was going to happen.”
For Belmont, escorting comes with a lot of misconceptions.
“It’s an emotional as well as physical job. Everyone deserves to feel good and be taken care of and what escorts do is facilitate that,” he said. “The escorting community kicks ass, honestly. I’ve never met such a diverse, wonderful, loving group of people.”
In addition to his work as an escort, Belmont works in porn, an industry that has its own misconceptions about the trans community.
“I think a common misconception that is made about trans folks in porn is that there are set power dynamics and positions that are required for it to ‘work,’” he said. “I can’t speak for all trans people, there isn’t a single person who can do that, but I can tell you that I think things are changing.”
Because of his work, Belmont has gained quite the fanbase on Tumblr. The page is full of questions and admiration from members of the trans community who relate to his journey.
“I want to be accessible to people. I want people to know I have their back. That I believe in them,” he said. “I want to be the person I needed when I was younger. There were so many times when I just needed someone to tell me it was going to be okay. That I was worth loving. That I could make it. I needed someone in my corner, so desperately…I want people to know that they’re worth it, that they’re incredible, and that the world is a beautiful place with them in it.”
An experience that Belmont is extremely open about with fans is the story behind his scars.
“I have lots of scars, all over my body, but my top surgery scars are my favorite. They’re this warm, gentle reminder of how hard i’ve worked to be me. They represent so much fucking work. They’re my ultimate love note,” he said.
Belmont couldn’t get top surgery until last year because he couldn’t afford it. He was a high school dropout, couldn’t pay rent, and found it hard to get employed by employers who were confused by his gender.
Until he raised the funds, Belmont resorted to the unsafe method of binding his chest with Ace bandages.
“My ribs…they’re uneven from it,” he said. “It used to irritate my skin so much. The friction would tear into the tender parts of my under arms. I’d bleed…I wanted my body to look a different way so badly, I would sleep with it on. I couldn’t stand the way my chest looked. I would do anything to make my chest look different.”
After surgery, he was unable to take pain medication due to a sensitive stomach. “I could feel my fresh, new surgical cuts pulling at my tight chest for two days as I emptied all contents of my stomach into a shitty stock pot.”
“I never thought I would make it past 21, let alone getting top surgery. I was whole. I was complete,” he said. “The feeling I get, looking down at these scars, knowing what I went through to get them […] They are the most beautiful thing I have ever done to love myself. The feeling I get, knowing that I worked so hard to get them, is irreplaceable.”
As much as Belmont is willing to share his journey, he recognizes that there’s not one way to be trans.
“With trans male visibility, I think that diversity is one of the most important factors. When you aren’t represented in any media, you can feel isolated and alone,” he said. “Making sure that not just trans male visibility, but trans visibility as a whole is a spectrum of bodies and orientations, a diverse group that can come together and be chosen family, is essential for the future of the trans community […] I like to let folks know that I adore them, just as they are and I support them in who they want to be.”
His biggest piece of advice for fans: “Don’t let someone tell you that ya ain’t going anywhere because they don’t know where you’re coming from. Follow your heart and set it on fire.”