s i e v o L We spoke to Amp and Mr Kristofer about their relationship, the kink community and how the coronavirus pandemic has affected their lives
JAMAL GROOTBOOM jamald.grootboom@inl.co.za
RELATIONSHIPS in the queer community come in all forms and sizes, but a community that doesn’t get the same amount of attention is the kink and leather set. YouTuber Amp and porn star and director Mr Kristofer have used their YouTube channel WattsTheSafeWord to educate, entertain and enlighten viewers on sex positivity, the kink community and all things queer. We spoke to them about their relationship, the kink community and how the Covid-19 pandemic has affected their lives. How did you meet and when did you decide to become partners? We met at IML 2014 while Kristofer was doing bondage demos for his booth called BoundJocks. Amp came by the booth and asked how and when he could be tied up for a “demo”. We did a demo that ended far too quickly, and like a lost puppy he came back the following year. We hit it off and kept in contact. Eight months later, after a longdistance fling, Kris officially collared Amp as his only pup. Polyamorous is still a new concept for many people. What was your first conversation about being poly and open?
Pup Amp and Mr Kristofer say a love of bondage brought them together.
Queer + queer kink relationship
Truthfully, we didn’t actually have that conversation at the beginning, but were still a little wishy-washy on wanting a real relationship, so it very much started open. Amp was the pup, Kris was the Daddy and then we just kinda flowed organically. Kristofer had always had doms that were in and out of the picture, but the pup was a constant, and it wasn’t until Kristofer brought a boy into the mix that we sat down and talked about all of the poly dynamics. Why do you think many people are averse to polyamory and open relationships? We have been brought up in
mostly heteronormative households and get fed a steady diet of being monogamous. It’s the perpetuated stigma around different relationships that makes people so averse to trying new things. In reality, being able to communicate about the complexities of jealousy, consent, open relationships, brought us closer together. Religion plays a large factor in what we tell ourselves is socially acceptable as well, as does a lack of representation for those that are poly, open or monogamish; there just aren’t enough people normalising or having those conversations out in
