Things you buy through our links may earn Vox Media a commission. The first profile I saw on the dating app Raya was Patrick, He had sandy-brown hair, wide-set blue eyes, and a pet monkey. In the photo, the animal perched on his shoulder, wearing a onesie and stroking his hair.
Would you like to see more? I pressed a play button and my iPhone filled with a Patrick montage set to music. In fact, it was something in-between. Raya, meanwhile, operates quietly. Since it launched in March, it has stayed totally out of the press. The people that gravitate to this are diverse, but also, generally, more internet famous than their counterparts on other dating services. During my three weeks on Raya, I saw pro skateboarders and Sports Illustrated swimsuit models, Dancing With the Stars professional dancers, a YouTube beauty guru, the designer of a streetwear brand popularized by Kanye West , a teen celebrity chef, and Moby.
There were plenty of non-famous people, too: artists, models, record-label employees, ad execs, photographers. Most had Instagram follower counts starting in the low thousands, or else were young and very attractive. The app can be tailored to any sexual preference, though members say the crowd leans straight. Public figures have dated online before.
In July, Tinder introduced verified profiles , supposedly to help prominent members looking for dates distinguish themselves from fake accounts. Most of the half-dozen Raya members I interviewed were skittish about publicly discussing the app, and preferred to remain anonymous. The controlled hush around Raya points to a paradox of internet culture: The more everyone strives for digital fame, the more those who achieve it search for ways to escape.
The members I interviewed all loved the immersive, impressionistic quality. Instagram acts as a home for our most aesthetically pleasing experiences β vacations, outfits, food β not those that are necessarily most important, or topics of interest to a date.
