Virtual strip clubs are popping up on Instagram with some dancers raking in up to $18,000

Virtual pop-up strip clubs are becoming the norm on Instagram Live as dancers look for ways to earn a living after clubs across the country shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

Justin LaBoy, a 28-year-old former basketball player turned social media personality, and Diddy’s 26-year-old son, Justin Dior Combs, have been hosting some of the virtual shindigs for the past three weeks.  

And the livestreams have garnered quite the fanbase; with The Weeknd, Diplo and many professional athletes and influencers tuning in. Shaquille O’Neal, Meek Mill, YG, Casanova and Lil Yachty have all been special guests on the streams, the New York Times reports. 

Justin Dior Combs

Justin LaBoy, a 28-year-old former basketball player turned social media personality, and Diddy’s 26-year-old son, Justin Dior Combs, have been hosting the virtual shindigs for the past three weeks.

And the livestreams have garnered quite the base; with the Weekend, Diplo and many professional athletes and influencers tuning in. Shaquille O'Neal, Meek Mill, YG, Casanova and Lil Yachty have all been special guests on the streams

And the livestreams have garnered quite the base; with the Weekend, Diplo and many professional athletes and influencers tuning in. Shaquille O’Neal, Meek Mill, YG, Casanova and Lil Yachty have all been special guests on the streams

It’s become larger than life,’ Justin Combs said. ‘It started out as us going to live together, and it turned into this crazy thing. People ask me every night if the Live is going on. Justin has this crazy cult like following, and it’s just getting started.’

LaBoy first got the idea for a virtual party while livestreaming to his more than 60,000 followers one night at 1am. 

‘I was like, man, I need a demon to call up,’ Mr. LaBoy said. ‘I said, ‘Where my demons at?’ 

And like clockwork, women were requesting to join in to the livestreams. 

Some establishments, like the famed Magic City in Atlanta, have hosted 'virtual lap dance' performances on their Instagram story

Some establishments, like the famed Magic City in Atlanta, have hosted ‘virtual lap dance’ performances on their Instagram story

And like the 'Respectfully' duo, rapper Tory Lanez is currently hosting dance nights on his Instagram

And like the ‘Respectfully’ duo, rapper Tory Lanez is currently hosting dance nights on his Instagram

‘I was like, hold up, we can’t be doing this for free. Some girls were dancing, twerking, taking it all off,’ he added. 

LaBoy began tagging the dancer’s Cash App user names to the top of his feed so that his followers could send them money. From there, the ‘Respectfully Justin Show’ was born. 

Strip clubs and bars across the country almost immediately shut down as the coronavirus took over the United States. Thousands of bartenders and dancers were quickly out of work, struggling to make ends meet.        

Some establishments, like the famed Magic City in Atlanta, have hosted ‘virtual lap dance’ performances on their Instagram story. 

And like the ‘Respectfully’ duo, rapper Tory Lanez is currently hosting dance nights on his Instagram. 

Hours before the show, LaBoy will hype the even on his various platforms using the hashtag #respectfully

Hours before the show, LaBoy will hype the even on his various platforms using the hashtag #respectfully

He'll create a new Instagram handle for each event and announces details for it on Twitter. He starts the show by placing a glass of red wine on a table

He’ll create a new Instagram handle for each event and announces details for it on Twitter. He starts the show by placing a glass of red wine on a table

‘If it wasn’t for Justin and his Lives I don’t know what I would have done or how I would have paid my bills or gotten food in my house,’ said Sasha, a dancer who has performed on LaBoy’s show.

Hours before the show, LaBoy will hype the even on his various platforms using the hashtag #respectfully. He’ll create a new Instagram handle for each event and announces details for it on Twitter to keep things elusive and to also side step Instagram’s policy on explicit content.

‘I’ve never seen a page get 30,000 followers in an hour,’ Justin Combs said. The pair link up before LaBoy starts the stream with a now iconic glass of red wine.   

‘People would post a picture of a red wine glass and be like, “If your girl knows what this means, she’s not your girl,”‘ said Alexis, a 24-year-old dancer at a club in Atlanta. She has appeared on numerous livestreams. ‘It’s become a symbol of the show.’

Memes have even been created based off the iconic wine glass. DJ Zack Bia uses the glass as a backdrop for his set

Memes have even been created based off the iconic wine glass. DJ Zack Bia uses the glass as a backdrop for his set

Women – known as ‘demons’ – then request to join in, with LaBoy pinning their Cash App info to the stream. 

Alexis shared that she has raked in just around $18,000 from dancing on Instagram Live.   

‘Justin makes sure the girls make a substantial amount of money,’ she said. LaBoy will plug his own handle and distribute the additional funds to the girls.

And the money is substantially better than if they were actually in a strip club, Alexis added. 

 ‘If I’m in the club, I’m there for eight hours,’ she said. ‘On Instagram Live, it’s five minutes. Five minutes compared to eight hours of work.’

Alexis and other strippers have even had to launch their own secondary accounts after they started receiving private request. 

Another advert from Magic City in Atlanta

Another advert from Magic City in Atlanta

‘People ask me to send them a voice note saying their name for $500,’ she said. ‘They’ll go on my page and send the eyes or a red heart like, ‘Where you at? Where you from?’ They’re very active during this quarantine season.’

The women who appear on the show are anonymous, with some wearing ski masks over their faces. Sasha, a 32-year-old living in Los Angeles, usually works as a hostess at a high-end restaurant. 

‘The other women, one is a mom, we all had jobs that were taken away,’ Sasha said. ‘We all have problems, which is why we’re doing this. We’re all trying to keep our identity private while gaining fans and trying to make money.’ 

Sasha – who has made $4000 doing the shows on Live – said that they women have become close friends.   

‘We have a demon community now,’ said Sasha. ‘We go on Lives together. We’re a little Demon sisterhood.’ 

Of course, LaBoy’s creation has spawned copycats and scammers hoping to solicit money and nudes from women. 

‘There are a million fake pages that don’t get shut down that are scamming girls out of money,’ Sasha said.

LaBoy decided to make the project for ‘members only’ on April 4 and announced he would no longer post the accounts on Twitter. 

‘God bless, the haters and fake pages ruined it for everybody,’ he tweeted.