I was here in NYC with my girlfriend visiting my dad with my girlfriend. We stopped to eat lunch in Cafe Felix, located in SOHO. As we were leaving the restaurant, I noticed a buff bloke staring at me. Initially I thought,
Man, what's the muscly bloke's problem?
He then approached me, and that's when I realized he was a friendly dude. He introduced himself as Dave from RED, and proceeded to tell me I had the look of a model, etc. So, naturally, I took his card and went into the agency. A short time later, after reading through his company's paper work and contract, I signed it, and flew back to england the following day!
We kept in contact, and I would occasionally book a few castings to go to, but couldn't really swing it, as I was a full time tattoo artist back home. Weeks passed without any opportunities for me to attend bookings, since there was no time off was allowed. I finally got a day off and got to do an editorial shoot for 10+ Magazine.
Once the issue finally came out (3 months later), we realised I got the front cover and a 6 page spread inside the mag. From then on I started getting more steady work; again, not being able to take much of it because of the tattooing. Another month passed, and I realized I wasn't enjoying the tattooing anymore, so I thought,
What the hell? If they sack me, they sack me.So, I took a few days off to come to NYC, where I did an editorial and ad campaign. After that, I decided to jack the job in and enjoy myself. I've done so much more now, having the time to commit to it. Leaving tattooing was definately the right move. I then decided to leave England for a few months to come over to the U.S., which is where I am now.
I've been here for a month or so and have been crazy busy every day, including weekend; although, I still finding time to hit up the NYC club scene. Coming over here as a "model" and going to these exclusive clubs is totally different from England. The free drinks and skipping the line to get into these places is surreal, and I would never have expected it back home. I'm not really sure what else to say, other than I'm totally enjoying myself, and I'm not just talking about the parties and clubs. I'm talking about modeling as a whole. I'm traveling around, seeing places I wouldn't usually get to see and meeting amazing people. All of this I owe to the guys at RED (Dave, George and John) for giving me a once in a lifetime opportunity, so for that I can't thank them enough :-)
-Dan Felton
