Social Media Sensation Bretman Rock Will Become the First Openly Gay Cover Star of Playboy
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Social media sensation and influencer Bretman Rock is making history as the first openly gay cover star of Playboy. Rock joins the likes of iconic names Kate Moss, Dolly Parton and Kylie Jenner by being their digital cover star this month.
In celebration of Halloween, Bretman poses in the iconic Playboy bunny suit, which has been worn on the holiday primarily by women. Playboy has always been game-changing, forward-thinking, and progressive, and is positioning the bunny costume open to all genders and body-types, having Bretman as the forefront. Additionally, to celebrate the relationship between the YouTuber and brand, Playboy is restocking their previous T-shirt collaboration with Bretman this month. “For Playboy to have a male on the cover is a huge deal for the LGBT+ community, for my brown people community and it’s all so surreal,” says Bretman. “A totally ‘is this even fucking happening right now?’ type of vibe. And I’m so pretty.”
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The 23 year-old Hawaii-based Filipino influencer isn’t new to the spotlight after making a name for himself on YouTube and the short-form video app Vine, where Rock displayed both his humor and his skill with makeup. And while videos of him applying contour and trying out drag makeup came long before there were other men in makeup gaining notoriety online, Rock continues to break boundaries with his latest cover shoot.
I’m a @playboy bunny ???? DUHHHHHH pic.twitter.com/qMw5u5hbzy
— BretmanRock’s Year (@bretmanrock) October 1, 2021
“I’m a @playboy bunny,” Rock wrote on Twitter alongside photos of the digital cover where he’s wearing the famous bunny suit.
A representative for GLAAD, the leading LGBTQ advocacy organization accelerating acceptance and equality, explains why the representation is so important: “Playboy’s inclusion of Bretman Rock on its cover is a powerful step forward in the ongoing movement towards greater diversity and inclusion in fashion and modeling,” Anthony Allen Ramos, GLAAD’s head of talent, said in a statement. “As the first out gay man to cover the magazine, especially during Filipino American History Month, Bretman Rock is continuing to defy gender norms and use his massive social platform to not only break down barriers for LGBTQ inclusion in the industry, but also inspire so many other LGBTQ Filipinos who have been underrepresented in fashion, modeling, and across media.”
According to Playboy, Rock isn’t the first man to rock different parts of the iconic outfit. But he’s in good company, as names like Steve Martin, Ezra Miller, Paul Rudd and more have all borrowed elements of the trademarked costume.
It’s Bretman, bitch. ???? Introducing the October 2021 digital cover with icon @bretmanrock
See more: https://t.co/wj2pmXi7lT
Photography by Brian Ziff
Videography by Boa Simon pic.twitter.com/fvG0pIcyax— Playboy (@Playboy) October 1, 2021
Rock is only the third man to appear on the cover of the men’s lifestyle and entertainment magazine, behind the magazine’s late founder Hugh Hefner and, in July 2020, Latin pop star Bad Bunny; Rock is the first openly gay man.
