David Garton is fresh on the New York scene, arriving here just four months ago after visiting only one time prior.

Born in Brooksville, Florida–about an hour north of Tampa–Garton, 25, grew up surrounded by cows and horses before finding his way to the metropolis that is New York City after a 7-year stint in Orlando (4 years for school, 3 years working in graphic design).

A former sex worker, Garton is outspoken in his support of his former industry in the wake of last month's RentBoy raid and an ardent defender of the role of sex work within the fabric of our society.

Below, we chat with David Garton/@lightningblueeyes.

NewNowNext: Why New York?

David Garton: It's just a lot more interesting of an atmosphere. And one big thing for me, which I especially started to understand because of Instagram, is that I was craving a larger creative community, and New York obviously has that.

Has it lived up to your expectations?

I thought I was going to come up here and be very frugal, but New York in summer was a lot more fun than I anticipated. I came here for Halloween in 2014–that was my first time in New York–and stayed for eight days kind of scoping things out. So when I moved here, I'd gotten a decent feel for what it was going to be like.

So how did you get started working at the Cock?

I was working a lot in video editing before I moved up here but it's difficult trying to turn that into a career. I met Frankie Sharp at his party at Westgay and through friends he was like, 'You're fun you have a good spirit. Is this something you'd be interested in?' Through Instagram, he had an idea that I was open to that sort of thing [laughs]. So I started dancing there on Wednesday's.

Your Instagram is very sexual. A lot of people are very afraid of sex. You are not. Where does that come from?

It has a lot to do with me growing up in a very non-gay environment. Where I grew up, gay culture isn't something that exists really. Moving outside of there and becoming quickly accustomed and assimilated into gay culture, first in Orlando and now even moreso in New York, I learned more about myself. Putting it on my Instagram is a way for me to claim my sexuality and not be ashamed or think it's something that has to be behind closed doors.

Are you comfortable talking about your sex work?

I am.

How did you first get involved?

I had had a long discussion about it with a friend that was in the business in DC–I was 23 at the time. In speaking with him, I realized there was a lot of stigma towards it, especially from me being this clueless Southern, rural kid. At the time, I didn't even know it existed on the Internet. Hearing his take on it, him going to all these various parts of the country because some guy needs companionship, was very interesting to me. I steadily tip-toed into the water; it wasn't exactly a head-first kind of thing [laughs]. I quickly learned that it was easy to be self-cautious and aware of who you were willing to work with, who you weren't and how much it differed from the popularized stereotype of sex work.

Many sex workers aren't comfortable discussing it, much less identifying publicly as such. What gives you that comfort?

Maybe ignorance [laughs]. I had been comfortable with the idea of being done with it, and then the whole Rentboy shutdown happened. Some were very worried that people that had ever been on Rentboy now had their information in the hands of the government. I looked at it from a logical standpoint: they got the website shut down; I doubt Homeland Security would have the man power to chase down 10,000 different people from around the world and try and arrest the for sex work. That's why I was happy that so many people spoke out in support. For me, it was important that people voice their opinions on this kind of stuff–especially those that have experience–because so many are forming opinions or speaking out out of ignorance.

So why did you retire from sex work?

I stopped mainly because a lot of things were changing in my life like moving to NYC.

What makes you laugh?

Sarcasm and irony. Especially in the media and pop culture. But that's the Tumblr kid in me.

Who do you like to follow on Instagram?

I have a wide range of interests on Instagram. I try not to go heavy on the thirst following of all the hot guys out there, so I stick to mainly queer artists–it's a great way to keep track of what's being done, connect or collaborate or just be inspired.

What's one thing you think people often get wrong about you?

That it's all about sex. I like to be sexual, but I think there's plenty more aspects of life than just being sexual. That's just something I have focused on enlightening via my Instagram. But I like to post silly stuff, too. I post pictures of my dog, Potato, or funny memes. We all know how Instagram works, a picture of my butt is going to get a lot more 'likes' than a picture of me and my friends in the park, but I'm a person and there's a lot more to me than that.