It’s been less than a month since we first introduced you to Bryan Silva, the rapper/bodybuilder/gay porn model finding fame as a quotable Vine celebrity, but he’s managed to amass the kind of following and viral fame it takes some people years to achieve.
With 15 words in his first six-second clip, Silva shot to the top of Vine’s “featured” page and appeared on urban blog World Star Hip Hop for being, well…ridiculous. You have to admit that his “fuck haters, get money” mantra is admirable in some sense, but only if he’s in on the joke. (Is he?)
With over 300 thousand followers, millions of views, several Twitter accounts and countless businesses, Silva has managed to parlay his overnight fame into a presumably profitable trade. He stands in front of the mirror shirtless, spits some nonsense and delivers an infamous “Gratata,” and probably makes more cash in those six seconds than you do in a whole day.
In the last month, Silva, a self-described “king of all trades,” has managed to get #Gratata and #VineLikeBryanSilva trending on Vine, and inspired hundreds of followers to imitate his clips — he even inspired a sweet (?) prom proposal.
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
This week, Silva sat down with Complex to definitively answer the question that matters most: Is he in on the joke? (Spoiler alert: He’s not.)
Below, Silva’s thoughts on his work in gay porn, spending three years in jail, his promise as a budding rapper, and his frequent use of the n-word:
Did you graduate high school?
Nah. I went to the university of the streets. I ended up having to get my GED when I was locked up. I actually got that when I was 16. I mainly found my fun with the freaks and the niggas.And where do you work now?
I been had a job. I’m a promoter. I promote all my own stuff and trap music.I’ve seen you rapping, I’ve seen the bodybuilding, I heard a rumor you were doing porn.
Yeah, I have a lot of careers, you could say. A king of all trades.What came first—the rapping, the body building, the porn?
It was the bodybuilding, the fitness career, then it was the porn, and then it was my clothing line, and then it was rapping. It’s not really rapping, because I’m not really rapping, I’m mainly just freestyling.
He’s also very proud of his physique:
How’d you get into porn?
Just how everyone looked at me. Just me knowing that I’m going to be great and I’m going to succeed in life because when you stand out in a crowd, you know you’re going places. Always alpha male, always got to stand out.
On #Gratata:
And now #Gratata is a trending topic, and you’ve got a ton of haters.
Haters make you famous. You talking about the one, “The lame fufu shit ain’t with it/I took some shots at your fitted/Gratata! Swag, bitch.” [Laughs.]So that’s yours. Gratata, with a g?
Nah, it’s gratata! You’ve got to flip your tongue the same time you’re saying the “g” and the “t” so it’s like a gun sound. Gratata!A lot of people do the #VineLikeBryanSilva now, they imitate you.
Honestly, it was mainly the, “All I do is flex, fuck other nigga’s bitches and get respect.” Something told me, “Should I wait?” Because you have a thing on your Vine where you can save it for later, and I was like, “Hmm. I don’t really know if I want to post this because I don’t know if people will be able to relate with this here on this social media network.” Then I thought to myself, “Fuck it. I don’t even care.”
On his “right” to say “nigga”:
Right. Who’s your favorite rapper?
I’m rocking with Soulja and my nigga Sosa.Have you spoken to Soulja before?
I haven’t really reached out Soulja, but he’s reached out to me, giving me a shout out back in 2012. You can actually check out my Twitter and see it. Real recognize real. [He’s my favorite but] only when he speaks to the trap shit though. Speak to the streets. I don’t fuck with that female bullshit. When he wants to sometimes rap for the bitches. Naw, man, fuck the bitches. The bitches come with the respect and the money.Soulja sometimes raps about women. But I take it you’re not a romantic?
I am, but not like that. I’m a hood nigga. I’m street.You can be street and romantic at the same time.
Nah, you got to stick to one thing because you got to think about it, all that romantic bullshit is played out. You’ve already got songs for all that shit. I’m a promoter. I promote trap music.The issue with your Vines is that you’re white and you’re using the n-word.
Yeah, I’ve earned my right to say that.How?
From being on the block since I was eight years old. I’ve always had my fun in the streets. While these niggas were hating on the porch, I was having my fun in the streets.You don’t think it’s inappropriate?
I think it’s how I say it and all the real niggas rock with me.Has anyone approached you or confronted you about your use of the word?
No. Never. Ever since I got the respect to say it no one say anything to to me. I’ve been saying that word since I was 11.
Below, your daily yearly dose of Bryan Silva:
http://youtu.be/mF8NRlAoMLY
TerrenM
This child’s shelf life will be less than V. Stiviano. Much less.
JD13
wow, this is just tragic. This guy needs to start off with learning how to enunciate.
Mr. E. Jones
So is he gay or straight?
BarLackey
Why do you give this ignorant horses ass a bigger platform? I would think that you would want to promote intelligence, not stupidity.
PRINCE OF SNARKNESS aka DIVKID
How did that get a porn career?
I wouldn’t even let my guide dog fuck that
carey579
OMG He totally looks like Roger from American Dad O_O
So Fugly!
Brendan
Two things that the hip hop community loves – white guys that use the n-word and gay porn stars. I see big things in his future. #sarcasm #nope #byefelicia
whattheeff
Yikes. Is there something, like, developmentally wrong with him? or his parents for that matter? He just doesn’t look right…
coffeeaugur
Poor thing …. he ain’t right in the head
RayJacksonMs
@PRINCE OF SNARKNESS aka DIVKID: He has a huge dick. He used to spank it on Chaturbate for tokens.
B Damion
Y’all I’m confused. What is..chile..lol…I can’t. This is crazy.
Lmao
robirob
Who? All I see is the Mouth of Sauron creature without the helmet.
truckproductions
bodybuilder? No. This douche needs to learn the term skinny twink..
james_in_cambridge
You know what’s the one thing that’s admirable about this fool? The fact that once he got some internet fame, he didn’t immediately deny being gay and having done gay porn, which is what most of the guys trying to break into hip-hop would do. He may be, um, slow is the word I guess, but he’s no hypocrite. In fact, he’s ballsier than a lot of guys trying to break into that scene. The first thing most of them would do is hide their sexuality deep in the closet.
DrJohn
What kind of job will he have in 5 years ? and from there on out ?
jake3614
@TerrenM: Clap clap clapclapclap! for that reference! That was well done, Sir!
jake3614
He’s kinda scary looking and seems like he’s probably from Missouri or Mississippi. No, wait. That’s it! He looks like something Jim Henson created for “Labyrinth” or “The Dark Crystal.”
Matthew Tharrett
@james_in_cambridge: Precisely. Glad to see someone is listening.
Haters take note:
“You know what’s the one thing that’s admirable about this fool? The fact that once he got some internet fame, he didn’t immediately deny being gay and having done gay porn, which is what most of the guys trying to break into hip-hop would do.”
DrJohn
I wonder how long he sat in his room repeating Gratata until he got it right
ethan_hines
@Mr. E. Jones: You DO know there are more than TWO forms of sexuality right?