SILAS & ALAÏA WILL TRY ANYTHING ONCE

SILAS & ALAÏA WILL TRY ANYTHING ONCE

We’ve all heard the phrase “I ain’t never seen two pretty best friends,” but let us introduce you to Silas Waller (@honkytonkhooker) and Alaïa (@ya_alaia). Ailas is an OnlyFans creator, model, and go-go dancer who was once nominated for New York City’s best go-go dancer. He runs a vintage clothing business called “Honkytonk Closet” out of Manhattan Knight’s in Chinatown. Alaïa is a dancer and performer from Russia who is currently dancing eight shows a week at the Kit Kat Club in Broadway’s Cabaret. Some of her recent credits include dancing with Lady Gaga in her Chromatica Ball Tour and Dita Von Tease in her recent Las Vegas residency. The friends got together to tell us about how they met, serving looks, and what the future holds. 

ALAÏA: Hellooo!

SILAS WALLER: Okayyy. Yasaka! Is it still recording? Test, test.

A: Yes. Today is the 18th of July, 2024. It’s 11pm. Where are we? 

SW: We’re in your apartment, Upper West Side. 

A: Yess. On 72nd street, that I just moved into. This reminds me of one of the first times we met.

SW: Drinking red wine on a white comforter. Stressing me out!

A: [Laughs.] Do you remember how we met? I feel like the first vivid memory that I have of you is at my older apartment on St. Marks Place. Small world, New York experience. I was in the class below. I was a junior and your ex was a senior. I was terrified of him, at the time, but he was quietly a mentor to me.

SW: I won’t speak to how scary he is on tape. [Laughs.]

A: But yeah. I had a get together that he brought you to, and I remember just being mesmerized by your style. That was the first thing.

SW: I was turning looks back then.

A: You were turning looks. You still are! Well…on occasion. 

SW: I’m serving trade. But every gay in Brooklyn is, so I’m just following suit.

A: How did you develop your style? What were the origins--the influences?

SW: I think going to art school and only shopping at Goodwill. I was inspired by everyone around me that was always serving looks. I had no money, so I would only shop at Goodwill. But Goodwill has everything! I could really cunt it out for like $12. What about your style? You have a lot of nice pieces in your closet.

A: I do! When I was living here during the pandemic, I was saving a lot of the allowances that I had back then, and I really developed an interest for vintage clothing. I was specifically interested in archival pieces, specific brands like vintage Gaulthier, Mugler. I was trying to cinch myself into Mugler jackets.

SW: You were definitely serving looks when I met you, too.

A: Yeah, I was serving looks. But I think my style has always been a little chaotic and continues to be. Like I don’t think that there has been a particular era that’s influenced me. I’ve just been drawn to pieces. It’s kind of counterproductive in New York City because I can’t wear a lot of what I own on a daily basis, so I end up just dressing in sweats and whatever is comfortable. It’s either 100% or it’s nothing for me. I really turn it out, full look, or I’m comfy. So you moved here and then you opened Honkytonk Closet? How has that been for you? Did you ever envision it being at a store?

SW: I never thought I would have a store. I mean, I still don’t have a store, but I never thought I would have a permanent location to sell out of. New York retail is crazy. I miss doing one-off events because it was so community-based. I would reach out to different people and bring people together for a one-time thing. But it’s also so nice to have it be more hands-off. 

A: I think that those are also some of the earliest memories that I have of you: going to that Fourth Street pop-up. I think it was you and our other friend, Allison, who also loves vintage. Do you have a piece that stands out to you as being the most memorable or the most you? ‘Cause I have one for you…[Laughs.]

SW: Oh, yeah?

A: Remember that fur coat that you had. It was brown. I remember you wearing a crystal g-string outside a club and having the fur coat over it and nothing else. And you had long hair. That was an iconic phase for you.

SW: I miss the hair-ography of it all, but having long hair is a lot of work. I love to be a low-maintenance person. It's just easier with short hair. I don’t even wash my hair that often.

A: Meanwhile, I’m blowing out my hair every night after I finish the show. I come home and I take an hour and half or two hours--the girls can attest--to do my hair.

SW: To do your hair and your wig!

A: The wigs are an important part of my style.

SW: When would you say our friendship got solidified?

A: For me it was when we moved in together. It was a bit of a leap into the unknown when we moved in together. I had just finished my first professional job on tour--

SW: Chromatica Ball!

A: My stuff was halfway in storage, halfway in this tiny little month-by-month rent apartment. I had no plans or foundation for what I would do when I got back to New York, but I somehow found out that you were looking for a place as well. 

SW: I knew you, of course, but I had been out of the country for months. I feel like that was when you really solidified friendships with a bunch of people in that group. 

A: I was a little intimidated at first. 

SW: Really?

A: I was! I really did look up to you when I first met you because you were so sure of yourself and you had such a great group of people around you. I think, in New York, that’s one of the most telling things about someone. You always had people around you that seemed to be magnetized by you. I admired it. 

SW: Aw. I was definitely intimidated by you, too. By all of those people really. They all knew what they were doing so surely, and I didn’t really know what I wanted to do. 

A: Yeah, we lept into living together, and I think that’s when our friendship really reached a new level. I’m glad we did because I’ve had some awful roommate experiences. Okay, what are your current goals for yourself in New York? 

SW: My goals in New York are always to just have a good time. This city is too expensive and too hard to live in to not have a good time, so I really try to prioritize that over anything else.

A: Do you ever see yourself having a full-time job? I feel like as long as I’ve known you, you’ve been able to make ends meet with all these different freelance projects. Or does something more stable scare you?

SW: I don’t envision it for myself. I don’t think I would like it. But I also am clued into the fact that it might be necessary at some point in my life. 

A: If that’s the case, what would you do? Is there anything that draws you?

SW: Oh, I don’t know. Of all of the “real” jobs that I’ve had, I think I liked working in a coffee shop the best. I liked that it was very hands-on, and I had such a direct hand in influencing someone’s day. It felt like the days really flew by. I think it would be cool to be one of those people who lives in Brooklyn and is just a staple at their local coffee shop.

A: You should open your own coffee shop! “Honkytonk Coffee.” 

SW: Yeah, like a coffee shop or community space. We’ll see. I’m also really into the idea of communal living. I mean, I’ve never done it, but I’m into the idea of it. All of my friends living together in a commune and we just hang out all day and raise chickens. Even just like on Long Island. I’m always reminded when I leave New York that it is so much easier to live somewhere else. 

A: Oh my god, it is. I’m originally from Russia, and my mom currently lives midway in a smalltown in the South of France. I spent a lot of this past winter there to get my first surgery and recover. Anytime I’m there, I’m reminded how much easier things are. Everything is just so much more affordable. Arts is publicly funded, so there is so much more money for artists to make a living. In New York City, with all of the jobs I’ve had here, I’m constantly thinking about making rent and paying for essentials. Even now, working 8 shows a week. Only a couple years ago, this job would’ve been my dream. Now I’m here, and I’m realizing that the way New York is set up puts us all on the struggle bus together. 

SW: I don’t think it’s ever an easy place to live. Even if you’re super rich and taking an Uber Black everywhere, you’re going to be stuck in traffic. You could be super rich in the suburbs, have a nice car, and not have any traffic. 

A: Do you see yourself living in New York for a long time? You travel a lot.

SW: I hate winter, so I don’t see myself spending too many winters here. As long as I can avoid them. I really think the thing that keeps me here are the people I have around me. It’s taken a long time to find them--and I’m so grateful that I did--but if everyone wanted to leave, I would leave. Virtually anywhere! Preferably a warm climate but I would go with. There is nothing about New York that keeps me here aside from the people. Like, I’m not going to get FOMO from some random people going out in New York. 

A: I agree. I think when I moved here, I really moved for the place, but as I’ve matured, I’ve realized that I’m really here for the people.

SW: And it is a great place! 

A: [Laughs.] It is! We’re so lucky. I think especially for us to be here as queer people…

SW: That’s true. I do forget that New York is a huge queer scene compared to other places. 

A: Okay, do you wanna ask any of your questions?

SW: I wanna ask some questions! We’re going to a little segment based on Tyra Banks called “Alaïa.” Okay, A-shy-a, working in the performing arts, do you ever feel stage fright?

A: No. Actually, wait, yes. I’ll take that back. I only feel stage fright when there are people in the audience that I care about and their opinion matters to me. It’s a pro and a con in many ways. On the one hand, I can perform for tens of thousands of people and not care, I’ll be the best version of myself, but if it’s a more intimate crowd and I know three people in the audience--like when you came to see the opening of Cabaret--that’s when I tend to get stagefright. Because I care, you know.

SW: Okay, A-raya, what is your dating life like these days? Are you looking for love?

A: I think so. I really got lucky because my first relationship was so good. It was such a strong base for me to go off of for the rest of my life. I need to remind myself how I felt in that relationship because there was so much love there. When we started dating, I wasn’t even out yet. I came out and started transitioning while I was with this person. It’s hard because the bar has been raised higher for me. My standards are high. I do think I’m ultimately looking for a relationship. 

SW: I think it’s good to have high standards. There’s so many people in the city that you really don’t have to settle. 

A: That’s true. I’ve never been a hook-up person, like I’ve never been into fast dating. I’ve never felt comfortable in that realm.

SW: You need to be wined and dined!

A: Exactly! Which is polar-opposite of you, right? 

SW: Yeah, I’m scared of that. If we hook up and it starts moving too fast, I just think, run. I’ve been in a couple really good relationships and had enough experiences to know I don’t want to settle, either. I’m open to the right thing coming along.

A: Does it matter for you if your friends approve or not?

SW: Oh, yeah, for sure. I prioritize my friends way more than any romantic partner. Whoever it is is going to have to really integrate. Okay, next one: A-try-a, when’s the last time you tried something new?

A: At the end of last summer, you dragged me to Six Flags. I used to be deathly terrified of roller coasters, but I think you unlocked something in me. I was having fun. I was terrified, to be completely honest, but since we went that day, I realized that I love things in life that make me feel something super intense. I think it’s why I love being onstage so much, there’s that intensity and adrenaline that draws me back.

SW: There are a lot of worse things you can do to feel that rush. [Laughs.] A-cry-a, when’s the last time that you cried?

A: Yesterday.

SW: Oh!

A: Recently, I’ve been crying every single day. It’s not like a bad thing. I think I’ve just been so much more in touch with my emotions as I transition. In a fascinating way, it’s been really helpful to me professionally. I feel like anytime I’m onstage now, I’m able to go back to a place where I’m so in tune with my emotions. I can easily bring up something--like a memory or sensation--which translates to craziness in real life. I’ll literally wake up and cry. But it’s a good release.

SW: I wish I cried more. 

A: What do you do to release emotions?

SW: I sing in my car a lot. That’s very therapeutic for me. But I do feel like I have a lot of emotional walls internally. Crying feels so performative to me. Even when I’m by myself, I think, why am I crying if there’s no one around to witness it?

A: I think that’s the other part that draws me to it. I’m a very performative person. I’ve often been told that I live my life as if I’m in a movie, and I’ve tried to cling on to that so much recently. Anyone that’s ever told me to come down from the clouds and be more realistic, I just say no. Sure, living like that makes life harder, but I also think it’s what makes me a good performer. 

SW: I think main-character-syndrome is an important part of your line of work.

A: What does the future look like for you?

SW: I think, right now, I feel really good about the future. I’ve been better and better at taking things day by day and not stressing out about the future so much, and I think that’s made the future look brighter.

A: That’s a good approach. 

SW: I don’t know what the future looks like, but it feels like it’s going to look good.

A: That’s a good feeling to hold on to. I’m very big on gut-feeling. As long as I feel passionate about what I’m doing--it doesn't always have to be a high--but as long as there is that warm feeling of being on the right track, that’s what keeps me going. I want to live many lives. At the end of my life, wherever I’m at, I want to look by and know that I really tried everything.

SW: Try-sexual. She’ll try anything once. 

*This interview has been edited and condensed for your viewing pleasure.

Lensed by Carmen DeCristo (@fotodecristo)

Styled by Alaïa (@ya_alaia), Silas Waller (@honkytonk.hooker)

MUA: Tommy Taffy (@tommy_tafoya)

Photo Asst: Andy Roelofs (@andyxroo), Selene (@selxene)