Having the benefit of two very different careers, Levi Karter is a porn superstar while his counterpart, Sassy, is a successful drag queen. As Levi, his screening of “Leave It to Levi” was part of the Str8up Porn Awards and was a huge success. The DVD was just released on January 28.
I spoke to Levi regarding his two endeavors and what inspired him to engage in both. Although both very divergent in nature, he explained the similarities.
INTERVIEW
You do both porn and drag. Do you prefer doing one over the other?
I like them both very equally for different reasons.
So why do you like doing drag?
I like drag because I love making people happy and making people laugh. It also brings me back to that kind of childhood. You can be creative and not worry about the world for a couple of hours, which is a lot of fun.
Why porn?
I love sex, and I’m very proud of that. I started in stripping and go-going before porn. I don’t know what it was that made me start doing porn, but expressing my sexuality gave me confidence, and I was very happy doing that. I think it also comes back to making people happy and smile. I kind of get off on making other people happy as well.
What type of drag do you do?
Let’s say I’m a hostess and a performer. I lip sync, but I also host viewing parties, and I also host a weekly karaoke party, which is fun. I sing live there, but it’s just kind of for fun—it’s karaoke. I’m not a singer myself.
Where do you see yourself in five years? Do you think you will still be doing both?
I hope to see my drag career take off the way my porn career has. I’m going on my seventh year in porn, and Levi is pretty established and has a steady income and steady work. I’m kind of hoping Sassy will achieve that, and I’m kind of working on making that happen.
You already have a successful career. Why did you take on another one?
I love drag. I’ve always worked with drag in nightlife. I’ve always been around it. In the sex industry, you can make yourself as busy as you want and make a lot of money, but I plan my work out where I do need a second job. So I kind of bounce back and forth between jobs and drag, which is the first job that I kind of see myself sticking with in case I was just getting bored or overworked or not liking what I was doing. I have a lot of fun doing it.
INTERVIEW
You do both porn and drag. Do you prefer doing one over the other?
I like them both very equally for different reasons.
So why do you like doing drag?
I like drag because I love making people happy and making people laugh. It also brings me back to that kind of childhood. You can be creative and not worry about the world for a couple of hours, which is a lot of fun.
Why porn?
I love sex, and I’m very proud of that. I started in stripping and go-going before porn. I don’t know what it was that made me start doing porn, but expressing my sexuality gave me confidence, and I was very happy doing that. I think it also comes back to making people happy and smile. I kind of get off on making other people happy as well.
What type of drag do you do?
Let’s say I’m a hostess and a performer. I lip sync, but I also host viewing parties, and I also host a weekly karaoke party, which is fun. I sing live there, but it’s just kind of for fun—it’s karaoke. I’m not a singer myself.
Where do you see yourself in five years? Do you think you will still be doing both?
I hope to see my drag career take off the way my porn career has. I’m going on my seventh year in porn, and Levi is pretty established and has a steady income and steady work. I’m kind of hoping Sassy will achieve that, and I’m kind of working on making that happen.
You already have a successful career. Why did you take on another one?
I love drag. I’ve always worked with drag in nightlife. I’ve always been around it. In the sex industry, you can make yourself as busy as you want and make a lot of money, but I plan my work out where I do need a second job. So I kind of bounce back and forth between jobs and drag, which is the first job that I kind of see myself sticking with in case I was just getting bored or overworked or not liking what I was doing. I have a lot of fun doing it.
Then which do you have more fun doing?
Shooting porn is equally as fun as drag. They are both the same, but I spend a lot more time in drag. I love getting ready for drag. I love planning a show. I make my own posters, so I get to be creative. So there’s a lot more things to be excited for in drag than there is in porn. I also love shooting, because I’m very fortunate that I get to choose my partners, so I’m always very excited to work with who I work with. But promotion and affiliate links, [it is] sometimes hard to get the tweet out and keep promoting my work. I’m very proud of my work, so I want to keep making sure of promoting it.
What’s your full drag name?
Sassy Frass.
Where do you do drag?
I have a home bar in Brooklyn called The Graham where I host a weekly karaoke party every Thursday, and I have a weekly drag show every Friday. We will also host the “RuPaul’s Drag Race” viewing party when they come back in February.
If I could ask you any question in the world, what would that be?
The first thing I can think of would be, what’s next for you?
What’s next for you?
I plan to hustle and work a lot more in drag. I’m very excited [that] I get to do drag in San Francisco for the first time next month. I’m very excited for that.
What’s your full drag name?
Sassy Frass.
Where do you do drag?
I have a home bar in Brooklyn called The Graham where I host a weekly karaoke party every Thursday, and I have a weekly drag show every Friday. We will also host the “RuPaul’s Drag Race” viewing party when they come back in February.
If I could ask you any question in the world, what would that be?
The first thing I can think of would be, what’s next for you?
What’s next for you?
I plan to hustle and work a lot more in drag. I’m very excited [that] I get to do drag in San Francisco for the first time next month. I’m very excited for that.
1. Levi Karter (star, aka Sassy Frass) @LeviKarterCB
2. Jake Jaxson (director/CEO) @cockyboys
3. R.J. Sebastian (director/photographer/co-owner) @RJ_SebastianNYC
4. Liam Riley (co-star, aka Bambi) @liamrileycb
5. Bambi (co-star, drag account) @teambambixo
6. Anne Kemmerle (Luke/Levi’s mother, co-star of film) @LeaveIt2Levi
7. Sassy Frass Meaner (star of film, drag account) @SassyMeaner
8. TLA Releasing (distributor of film) @TLAReleasing
Instagram
1. Levi Karter (star, aka Sassy Frass) @thatslevicb
2. Jake Jaxson (director/CEO) @jakejaxson
3. R.J. Sebastian (director/photographer/co-owner) @adrian_armas_nyc
4. Liam Riley (co-star, aka Bambi) @liamrileycb
5. Bambi (co-star, drag account) @teambambixo
6. Anne Kemmerle (Luke/Levi’s mother, co-star of film) @favsister72
7. Sassy Frass Meaner (star of film, drag account) @sassyfrassmeaner
8. TLA Releasing (distributor of film) @tlareleasing
