Growing up, Elly Clutch often felt a bit strange and out of place. In fact, that feeling has stuck with her for as long as she can remember. Nevertheless, she has grown a lot of confidence since her youth, and now knows that being an outgoing and fun-loving nerd makes her uniquely memorable.
Before entering the adult industry, she graduated from college and tried a variety of odd jobs and mainstream careers, working as a server, a barista, a personal assistant and even an English teacher. However, she never felt like any of those jobs quite fit her.
Off-camera intimacy and offline dates and friendships are essential!
Clutch initially began dabbling in adult entertainment for a simple reason: she needed money and it seemed like fun. But the creativity and freedom it offered soon lit a fire inside her.
Clutch feels strongly about creating the kind of porn that she herself has always wanted to see — something that people have a great time watching and even feel connected to. She loves making her own content because it enables her to accomplish that.
Now, as this month’s featured creator, Clutch opens up about her blossoming stardom, her love for the content game and her approach to leveling up.
XBIZ: As a fast-rising creator, how have you stayed on top of your business as it scales?
CLUTCH: Honestly, it’s been a bit of a learning curve, but luckily Jak Knife — my fiancé and favorite co-star! — and I have had each other to lean on. Oftentimes, it’s felt difficult to keep up with, but staying calm, scheduling and thinking ahead all make a huge difference.
We not only had to tap into the creative side of our brains to keep improving and making better content, but we also had to tap into the business side of our brains and learn how to own and operate a functioning business with employees, since I’m not with any sort of management or agency. It’s been a wild ride, but I genuinely can’t wait to see what’s around the corner.
XBIZ: Talk about the visual style of your content, and what fans most often request.
CLUTCH: Visually, I care a lot about the quality, lighting and ambience. I am super passionate about creating porn that is intimate, refreshing and exciting — I want to capture that feeling of electricity and chemistry on camera and make porn that makes people feel good! My most requested content is the content I’m most well-known for, which is boy/girl role-playing scenarios, but I love making anything that’s creative and sexy.
XBIZ: How do you balance your work and personal life, especially with your partner?
CLUTCH: This one has been super hard because of the intensity of my growth this last year, but it’s so important to take time for yourself, respect your own privacy and boundaries, and not feel the need to make every single thing about content.
Off-camera intimacy and offline dates and friendships are essential! Traveling not for work but for pleasure, and scheduling time to do what you love, also helps. We aren’t built to put every bit of ourselves out there for the world, so take care of yourself and your loved ones first.
XBIZ: Discuss who in the industry inspires you, and what kind of creative projects you’ve done with others.
CLUTCH: I find so much inspiration from performers all around me. I love being surrounded by other couples in porn, like Hailey Rose and Max Fills, who just won XBIZ Clip Artist of the Year. The four of us have made five videos altogether so far and they’re some of our best sellers! My best friend, Chloe Foxxe, and I work a lot together, and we are always cheering each other on.
All my most creative projects have been with Jak. We play so well off of each other’s ideas and love using stereotypical porn tropes to get people to click — and then get sucked into something like they’ve never seen before, that keeps them coming back for more.
XBIZ: How do you manage social media marketing, both the promotional aspect and the fan interactions?
CLUTCH: I find the easiest way for me is just to be active on my socials, and be myself. Since most of my audience comes from Pornhub, those people have already seen my NSFW content! They go to my SFW socials to connect with me, see what I’m really like, what my day-to-day is like, what I’m into, etc. I want my SFW socials to help humanize me as a person, not just a performer.
XBIZ: What platforms are you most active on and which are your main revenue streams?
CLUTCH: Pornhub, OnlyFans, ManyVids, Fansly… and more to come. My biggest revenue stream is OnlyFans, but that’s because I have the highest subscriber conversion from Pornhub! That platform literally changed my life and helped me get my content out there. I knew that once people got a taste, they’d see the vision, and I was right! I owe a lot to Pornhub.
XBIZ: What was it like sharing insights on a panel at XBIZ and participating in X3?
CLUTCH: The XBIZ creators panel and X3 were both super exciting, even though I was nervous about them. Being able to participate on a panel with some of my favorite creators felt like a dream, and meeting my fans for the very first time at X3 was such a fun time! I’ve been creating adult content for three years, but since it’s really only blown up over the last six months, I felt like maybe no one would know me, or people would question why I was there — but the fans remind me all the time that I deserve to be there.
Plus, there was the XBIZ Awards, my first time ever being nominated for anything! It was a huge honor. I remember watching the show in years past and hoping maybe someday I’d be on the list, so being nominated this year felt surreal.
XBIZ: Share your biggest dreams for the rest of 2024 and beyond.
CLUTCH: In 2024, I want to expand my brand, do more creative projects and bring some of my directorial ideas to life! I have so many ideas and only so much time, but I want to find ways to make them happen.
In both my career and my life, I want to inspire other people to do things a little differently and not be afraid to have fun. You don’t need to do what everyone else is doing. What makes you different will make you memorable.
