Magic City on a Monday: A Local Dancer Gets Candid
It’s 4:30 PM on a Wednesday, and in front of me in the library is a fresh-faced beauty, with curious, wide eyes, and Nike gear gripping her fit physique. Now that she was sitting in front of me, I began to question the last minute things I scribbled down to ask her, and wondered how to go about this interview; but to my surprise, what occurred that day was an in-depth conversation, followed by a connection and understanding, which was not what I expected at all. Below is the honest, sincere, and uncensored thoughts of a dancer working inside one of the most infamous clubs in Atlanta, “Magic City,” while she simultaneously attends one of Georgia’s leading research universities and develops into a prospering young adult. To remain anonymous, the dancer will be referred to as “Giselle,” or the name she goes by in the club.
Her Campus: Before I fully dive into this interview, how do you feel about the terms “stripper” and “dancer?” Which do you prefer?
Giselle: “Well, like when I’m around the city and someone asks me what I do or what my job is, I say dancer, but they just assume I mean a dancer like a “ballet” dancer or something, because I don’t look like the stereotypical stripper with tattoos and all that and stuff. But I don’t really get offended by either term. Dancer gives the job a type of eloquence, but I don’t really have a preference.”
HC: Are there any stereotypes that you want to dismiss right off the bat?
G: “The stereotype that strippers are whores and gold diggers, like how they portray us in music and media. A lot of these girls are mothers, college students, and more. I know that there are girls who are doing bad things and are gold diggers, but you can find this outside of the club in other girls too. There are women who seek men just for money. I don’t think that it is exclusive to girls who strip for money.”
HC: Tell me a little bit about the audition process, and how you go about getting the job.
G: “So the audition process really depends on which club you go to. The more “prestigious” the club is the more steps there are. But at Magic City, they do a body check. So a body check is when you come in looking nice, you know with your makeup done and your hair done, and they ask to see your breasts. Then, they ask you to take your pants off so they can see your front genitals and then your butt, and then that’s it.”
HC: So you don’t have to dance at all?
G: “Nope. They just want to make sure your body looks good and that’s it.
HC: So, I’ve heard of something like a “house-fee,” that dancers have to pay. Can you explain what that is and how much you have to pay?
G: Yeah, so a house-fee, again, depends on which club you go to, but like every club has a different day that is pretty big for them where a lot of people come in. For Magic City, it is Monday (“Magic Monday”) and Saturday. So the dancers pay $100 to work on Mondays, but it’s because they know we are gonna make a lot of money on Monday’s. Weekday nights are $30, and the weekend is $75. Day shifts are $10.
HC: How often do you work?
G: “I mainly work Monday’s and Saturdays, but sometimes I do pick up extra days when it’s a little slow. Cause it’s not always great and packed inside, especially with how the weather is now.”
HC: You mentioned before that Monday was huge day at your club. How much would you say the dancers are making on average on a Monday night?
G: “It depends on the girl, because guys in the club can request certain girls to dance just for them so really it depends on the guy that’s interested in you that night. You can get a lot of money from dancing on stage, or doing lap dances. But typically there is like a “pile” of girls dancing in one area, and we can make up to $2,000 in less than 2 hours. Sometimes we are there till 5 in the morning counting our money because there is so much.
HC: I’m curious about the “piles” and about how you guys decide who gets how much money. Are there any fights that break out because of money?
G: “So, what we do to avoid those situations is have the DJ call certain dancers to the stage, and whoever is up there will just split the money that is being thrown up there. It’s the same thing with a “pile.” We all start at the same time and then split the money evenly, and we don’t let other people come into the “pile”. For example, we had this girl come in a little late to our “pile” and she was asking for $300 when it was over. We as a group told her no, and only gave her $250 because she didn’t start with us.”
HC: Because of situations like that, would you say that it is important to have friends or “alliances” with other dancers?
G: “I wouldn’t say have an alliance, it’s just better to not have enemies. Some girls do have alliances because they grew up together, or came from another club together, but it’s just nice to just not have enemies period.”
HC: How many girls work at Magic City?
G: “About 100. And most of them all come in on Monday.”
HC: From your perspective, what would you say the environment was like when you first started. Was it overwhelming at all?
G: “Um, no I actually just watched a lot of Youtube videos and stuff to prepare me for the lifestyle that comes with being a dancer.”
HC: So how did you become comfortable with taking your clothes off and dancing in front of a lot of people? Or were you always just naturally okay with it?
G: The first day, I was kind of shy because that was the first day I was actually getting paid to undress. What really made me get comfortable with the idea was that I realized that these men are here to see me undress. Like they are offering me money for this. So, as time passed, and I was getting more and more money, I became more comfortable with it.
HC: Do you think working at Magic City has changed you?
G: “I think it definitely has changed me and the way I look at men. Men pay me money to undress, and now I’ve kind of like, I don’t want to say I’ve become more materialistic, but if a guy is paying me to undress, any guy that wants to be with me can put more effort into it. It’s made me value myself more, ironically.”
HC: What about the clientele? There’s always talk of celebrities coming in and stuff like that, so what you say about the people that come in?
G: So, um, we have a lot of drug dealers come in. You know small time drug dealers. Celebrities come in, but not that often. I think that’s controlled. I think I’ve figured that out. Some people like Future, only come once in a blue moon. As much as they talk about it in their music and stuff, I think it’s very controlled for them. It’s not like how they make it seem in the videos and songs. You don’t see famous people everyday or every weekend.”
HC: Are you ever leery about the people you work with, or do you kind of just dance, then keep it moving?
G: “Uh, me as someone that wants to keep this part of my life out of the other part of my life, um I just work at work, and once I’m out I’m myself. I don’t really like to bring friends from inside of the club into my real life. I’ll exchange numbers with other dancers, but they are saved in my phone as their dancer names and vice versa.
HC: Are you ever concerned about your safety?
G: “I haven’t heard of anyone having issues, because we have so much security. You can get escorted out, but for me personally, I don’t think it’s necessary. But you can.”
HC: So to go more in depth about dancers and the people you work with, do you find that drug and alcohol abuse is common?
G: “Well, yeah weed is definitely a big thing in the club. It’s definitely a place people go to smoke. But for the girls, what we do is, we come in at 8 o’clock, roll up, smoke, go back downstairs and change. Some girls drink. Some girls don’t. But I’ve never seen anyone too sh*tfaced, because we have these huge, steep stairs leading up to the main floor and we are wearing heels and stuff so that’s hard enough. But some girls still do drink a lot.”
HC: You are balancing school and dancing at the same time, so is it ever tempting to just drop out and keep getting money?
G: “No. Never. A lot of people think-well, actually let me not say that. Because I used to know this girl, and she went to Kennesaw State, but she got addicted to the money and dropped out. I can’t see myself doing that because I know that dancing is not a forever thing. For some girls it is. Like some girls are like 40 and still dancing. But I don’t see that being my path. Fast money isn’t for me forever. It’s nice now, because it helps me get through college, but in the back of my mind I know that this is not the main goal.
HC: Do you feel that you are stigmatized or dehumanized in a certain way because of what you do?
G: “Definitely, definitely, but that is why I am so open about it and what I do. Because I want people to see that I am a person just like they are. I don’t post pictures of it, because when people see the image of me in a two-piece in a stripper setting, it changes their perspective on who I am. But if I use my words and give them more background on what is actually happening there, then through my few followers, it can be a grass-root movement here and there and eventually it will change people’s perspectives. And for those who have known me before I was a dancer, they will say you know Giselle is a cool girl and she’s not different because of the fact she’s a dancer, she just has more money. I want people to see that I am not a completely different person or less of a person because of stripping.
HC: Do you feel that any parts of the club are glamorized? Or made out to be better than it really is?
G: “Umm. I think that a lot of girls joke about being a dancer. Especially when college gets kind of hard, and people say ‘Oh well I’ll just drop out and be stripper,’ but being a dancer is actually kind of hard, because you get a lot of men that offer to be sexual with you in exchange for money. And when you see that large amount of cash just for one act, that you do with other people anyway where you don’t get anything out of it, it’s tempting. Cause you’re like well I could have sex with Billy Joe from school and he could do me wrong and talk about it all over school, or I could have sex with this business man who isn’t going to tell anyone and pay me $5000 in exchange for it. It’s really tempting, but I don’t think women should get involved with that. Because it changes your mindset on relationships. You start seeing men as a business exchange instead of a potential partner or friend. So, I think that aspect of this lifestyle is glamorized. Like having a sugar daddy is very glamorized. And I had one for a bit, but it just wasn’t me Being a stripper and having sugar daddies isn’t an easy alternative for school or work. Some of these dancers are there for 12 hours or more a day in high heels trying to make money. It wears you out.”
HC: Is there a certain extent you let people go to when you are dancing on them or on the pole, before you tell them to stop? Are they allowed to touch y’all?
G: “Business wise, you are only allowed to dance for a song and you pay per song. As far as touching, people are not allowed to touch us. If you do, the DJ will call you out and you can potentially get thrown out if you are too vulgar. Some girls allow guys to rub and slap their butt, some say no off the bat, but some are okay with it. I personally don’t let them go very far.”
HC: Is there a private room that people can access?
G: “No there are no VIP rooms in Magic City. There are some in other clubs like Peaches and Folley’s, but those kinds of situations get tricky, because those clubs can turn into hubs for prostitution rings. So, I think Mr. Magic chose not to have those rooms to avoid those types of situations.”
HC: Do you report to Mr. Magic personally?
G: “We don’t report to anybody and we don’t have a schedule. We just come in whenever we want. But when we pay our house-fee, it’s kind of like signing in. Mr. Magic owns the club, but we don’t really interact with him. We have a manager and she kind of overlooks us and makes sure things are running smoothly and that we are behaving and not giving Mr. Magic a bad name.”
HC: How did your friends, family, and boyfriend react to you becoming a dancer?
G: “My mother does not know. My dad has an idea, cause I haven’t asked him for money, and I plan to keep it that way. I chose to make this decision to work at a club so I shouldn’t be asking for money. It was a very grown-up decision to go and do that. My sister knows. And my boyfriend and I actually met at the club during one of my day shifts. And he’s fine with it. He just doesn’t want me to get involved with prostitution. Obviously. And he knows I don’t plan on being there forever, so that makes him more comfortable with me being a dancer. And he knows my plan is to continue school and do more.”
HC: Is maintaining a relationship difficult when you are in the stripping scene? Does he come in while you are working?
G: “No. We met while I was working, but he hasn’t gone back. Just for the sake of me being comfortable. He goes to other clubs, but not often. He has his mind a little more preoccupied now.”
HC: So he doesn’t get jealous of you and vice versa?
G: “Currently, we are discussing this. But I don’t feel jealous. Sometimes I’m just curious about you know his past and normal girl stuff. But I don’t mind him going to other clubs.”
HC: Why do you think men go to the strip club?
G: “Guys go to the strip club to show off. It’s not about the women. Of course it’s nice to have a pretty girl butt naked dancing next to you, but it’s more so of a show of who has the most money, the best entourage, and who can buy the most bottles. A lot of guys that come just have excess money and just kind of want to show off.”
A little after this question, I decided to wrap up the interview. My mind was swirling and I was trying to digest all she said, with a clear mind. Being in her presence, and feeling how normal she was and how easy the conversation was cleared a lot of the stereotypes and stigmas that were in my head before the interview began. Though all in that line of work don’t have the same values, thoughts, and insight as this dancer, it was a nice reminder to me about the complexity of humanity. There are so many different sides to a person, and putting effort into judging them only on a surface level, shrinks your capacity to learn.