For 20 thrilling moments throughout the neck of a Raya member, We have a keyhole view associated with the dating application for A-listers, and, oh my term, it is enjoyable. First, there is a Hollywood star, aged around 33 – not too hot, but extremely talented. Wasn’t he up for the Oscar? But he lives in Los Angeles, therefore we don’t.
Then up: is the fact that a soccer player? Really, We hate soccer. ‘X’ him (because an X and a heart are Raya’s form of remaining and right swipes). Ooh, that is this DJ-I’ve-vaguely-heard- of? Look exactly what fun he is having inside the profile photo. Is he at a club in Ibiza? Upcoming! A-ha! this 1 features a tan that is nut-brown laughing from the planet’s cares on his yacht.
And as I laugh with him, the Raya application is minimised to my buddy’s iPhone, and also the fun vanishes like cocaine along the plughole in a authorities raid. ‘I can not explain to you any longer,’ she claims. ‘ i’m going to be dumped.’ Because Raya is focused on privacy and exclusivity. It’s a dating application for those ‘too famous’ to combine with civilians.
As it established in March 2015, the names of the few people have actually been released towards the news.
Included in this:Cara Delevingne and Samantha Ronson (ex of Lindsay Lohan and DJ cousin of Mark), plus Harry Potter actress Bonnie Wright and, just lately, JLaw’s ex Nicholas Hoult. Us citizens whom’ve been about it consist of Patrick Schwarzenegger, Elijah Wood, Zach Braff, Matthew Perry, Teri Hatcher, John Cusack plus the designer Alexander Wang.
After Kelly Osbourne’s profile was exposed on the web in August 2015, Raya introduced an advertising that popped up whenever users attempted to have a screenshot, threatening expulsion through the application in the event that image showed up anywhere general general general public.
All admitted they’d been shocked by how high-profile some of the applicants were although the members I spoke to were discreet. ‘There is a weird quantity of actors and performers,’ said one male member in LA. after which you will find the directors, article writers, agents, photographers, models and yogis – individuals the Raya founders describe as ‘in the industries that are creative – in addition to, now, soccer and baseball players and Sports Illustratedmodels.
Therefore who’s behind Raya? Just one is termed: PR guy Mike McGuiness, creator associated with the Co-Op that is LA-based Agency. My duplicated demands for a job interview, via an intermediary, aided by the anonymous ‘guys whom operate it’ had been rejected. ‘They will not speak to the news. They don’t also give background that is off-the-record’ I became told.
Nevertheless, the web channel Amuse has quoted ‘a creator’ as saying: ‘We don’t wish anybody once you understand whom made this or just how it absolutely was developed. We think that tears away in the integrity for the committee. We merely want Raya to possess simply popped away from nowhere and quietly put the party that is best on the web. To take action, which means that unfortuitously we can’t especially include everyone individuals who would gossip or “out” some of our people.’
To date, the strategy of silence happens to be winning. Raya is referred to as ‘Tinder when it comes to Illuminati’ and in comparison to Fight Club (such as: ‘ The rule that is first of Club is that you do not talk about Fight Club’). Those about it feel ‘chosen’, as though for a few digital Vanity Fair Oscars celebration.
Raya happens to be referred to as ‘Tinder for the Illuminati’ and in comparison to Fight Club (such as:
The rule that is first of Club is you may not talk about Fight Club)
And even they have been plumped for. Suggested by an current member (or three) and vetted by a ‘committee’, which, by using an algorithm, trawls Instagram records (and, one assumes, a billion bikinied selfies) to make certain that if candidates are not A-list and apparent, they have been at the least popular and good-looking. ‘There are certainly a large amount of that which you’d call “9s” and “10s”,’ states Lauren Frazer-Hutton, 29, a model and previous manufactured in Chelseareality television star who was simply thrilled to speak about her Raya account. ‘It’s a populace of good-looking people.”
It absolutely was a Raya investor whom first introduced Lauren to your app when she had been staying in l . a . this past year, and she downloaded it very nearly right away. Nonetheless it wasn’t until December that she really registered. Getting vetted took each and every day – the absolute most applicants that are famous okay’d within one hour, while other people state they’ve needed to hold back so long as three months. Element of joining is a $10-monthly 
registration charge (even though most famous people are exempt). This is basically introduced as a method of checking that individuals are whom they do say these are typically. ‘It’s to prevent catfishing creating false profiles,’ explains 22-year-old user Jade*, ‘which is clearly great, since it means they weed out of the frightening weirdos you could get on Tinder.’
Georgie*, a 25-year-old Australian located in nyc, was utilizing Raya off and on for approximately a year.
“On a scale of 1 to Jake Gyllenhaal, many people are hovering around a Bradley Cooper,” Georgie says. “People end up in the next categories: a very attractive individual, such as for instance a model, a tremendously rich guy, an individual who is a pal of somebody whom works well with the application, an innovative with a moderate social networking following, Hollywood aristocracy, miscellaneous sportsperson.”
” for a scale of 1 to Jake Gyllenhaal, many people are hovering around a Bradley Cooper”
