Life as a Truck-Stop Stripper 

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Not sure if I was watching a documentary, a lana del rey video or a cheap ass horror movie

this should be renamed: bored white girls play pretend

These girls took Lana Del Rey’s ride video to heart

I worked at a truck stop strip club for around 6 years. I actually REALLY REALLY REALLY liked it. The one I worked at was a little different to the one in this video. Where I worked they didn't serve alcohol, because it was considered a truck stop, and they didn't want to serve alcohol to people who's job is literally to drive for long hours. At first I thought I would never make any money in that place, but it turned out to be an advantage, at least for the girls. Since there was no alcohol there were no drunk, belligerent guys. If someone tried to enter the club drunk the bouncer wouldn't let them in. 95% of the guys that came in were really respectful and nice. I had a lot of regular customers that turned out to be some of the best people I have ever met, and still talk to today (12yrs later, and we really are just FRIENDS). 99% of the girls I worked with were so amazingly sweet and kind. Nobody "stepped on each other's toes" (tried to "steal regulars"). I am still friends with several girls I worked with. That wasn't the first or last strip club I worked in. I've worked in some bad places in some bad cities. Dangerous places with dangerous staff/girls-strippers/patrons. One night one of the girls I was working with got shot, she's now paralyzed. I've seen girls overdose and die in front of me, the other girls and staff (owner/bouncers/patrons). The staff just said "we'll let's clean everything up and get rid of the patrons we think are holding drugs before we call the police". The truck stop strip club was literally one of the nicest/best jobs I've ever had. The staff/girls were amazing, the patrons were wonderful, and not to mention the money was good. On a bad day (which didn't happen very often) I would walk away with $200 for a 6hr shift. $33 an hour wasn't too bad, especially for like 12yrs ago. Most week days were $300-$600 days. Weekends were $600-$1,200 days. And since I was there for around 6yrs and had regular customers, I built up good relationships with them and had my phone bill paid for, car insurance paid for, etc. I also liked it because it was a smaller place and there would only be 5-9 girls working per shift (we were open 24hrs). It was much easier to make money like that since the place was so small. It would have been impossible to make any money if there were 20-30 girls a shift like there were in some places I worked. I could never do what I used to do (I'm too old, medication has made me gain a lot of weight/I'm not pretty enough anymore, and I'm disabled now), but I will never regret working at that truck stop strip club, and I still to this day cherish the people I have in my life because of that place.

This is disappointing. Women in these industries are already marginalised, it would have been so much more powerful to hear them tell their own stories, rather than distorted through the lens of the filmmaker's biased opinion of their livelihood. The title shouldn't be "life as a truck stop stripper", it should be "what happens when two city girls pretend to be truck stop strippers for a week and can't really handle it". Respect to all the women actually making it work in tough industries like this one.

I have a big issue with this documentary. It just feels like a couple of New York hipsters making a film with no real understanding of the people who's jobs they are undertaking for a week -- people who, unlike the directors, may enjoy it or even have no choice in the matter. This should be about the women doing it for a living; instead, the directors have made a movie about how brave they are to have undertaken such a daring feat. Many scenes are very clearly sensationalized, and some are completely faked. The directors seem to actively undermine what they'd set out to do; the obviously scripted "chase sequence" at the end of the video makes this rather apparent. The result is insensitive, condescending and downright exploitative of the women who actually do this for a living. This is shameful.

I'm sorry ladies, this brought back a lot for me. I've been clean for 4 years. Most of my best friends and even my mother were working gals. I cooked dope or did anything else I could to survive but that doesn't mean I made it out Scott free. I give working girls alot of respect.

Daisy is alot like a 40 something year old stripper I know. She too loves her job because of the people and actually takes time to get to know a bit about them instead of only asking about things that will make her money. Because of that she is the most popular one in her club and makes the most by far despite some other girls being half her age.

**Casually changes in middle of walmart**

The 40 year old woman that they talked to is absolutely gorgeous, she has beautiful eyes and seems to be such a kind soul.

It started strong and ended up with a dark simple life vibe with a lot of acting and more about them then the struggles these dangers face.

“Let’s go voluntarily make ourselves victims and have it be too much for us even though it’s a choice to us and not the he actual strippers we won’t interview”

These girl tried too hard in editing. Instead of focusing on the story, they added pointless scenes of kicking rocks and dancing in walmart in slow mo. They seemed more focused on the look of the documentary then the content. I also felt that this topic was stupid. Why did they pick the most out of nowhere town and the most out of nowhere club to dance at, and then complain that you can't make any money. They should of gone to a real stripclub in vegas or LA and shown the plight of being one of the girls at a busy stripclub. Not just a slow middle of nowhere club. Thats not the "real" woman. Just a small selected amount that no one can relate to

Me: Why is my package so late *Truck driver hitting on some strippers

Gotta give you props ladies, the fact that you actually committed to experiencing the fullness of others puts you in a category most never achieve. You’re braver than most. Was a very interesting video.

In Indonesia we call em Biduan pantura, but most of our strippers are multitalented, they also can sing pretty well

I'm glad I'm not the only one that noticed this was a fabricated mess.

Changing pants in the middle of Walmart and no one bats an eye, That’s accurate as crap.

The first time I ever set foot in a place like this was when I went to apply. It is absolutely foreign territory. Everything in most movie and music videos is completely off base. I went home absolutely shell shocked the first night. It is far harder on you mentally than it is physically... and it's extremely hard physically!

Well done, the cinematography, editing and mood pulled this together so well. Keep this up, please 🙏

Former dancer of 13 yrs and everything these 2 greenies went threw with custys and other dancers is exactly what happens everyday in every strip club no matter how "upscale" or trashy the place looks. We cope with it by growing THICK skin. We all go home and cry at some point in our first weeks, its usually the freedom that money will give us, that keeps us going. My first weekend (2 night shifts Friday and Saturday) I bought home 5k. That was 3 mths after 9/11. What that ment for me was getting out of my foster home, first car and first apartment all right then. That alone was enough to keep me dancing. It also enabled me to focus on getting help from my messed up childhood. (Which is a common theme among dancers)

Honestly, speaking as a REAL cross-country (USA) exotic dancer for the last 7 years, this documentary was disappointing for one reason: these girls aren't "real" strippers. They're posing as strippers. They're fucking tourists. The description even says so. They may as well be actors. A week of footage of two girls playing/goofing around at one club and the other half of the time going around gossiping with the local townsfolk (ex. When they're getting their hair done) is not enough time to paint a realistic picture of what "life as a truck stop stripper" is like. They even refused to give lap dances. LOL. That's why ya ended up with $26 at the end of the night, honey. Why couldn't VICE go into the club and interview the actual veteran dancers, or at least, the girls who have been there at least a year legitimately working? Those would be the REAL "Truck Stop Strippers". Btw, I've never worked at a club this small, I'm just sayin'... let sex workers tell their own story.

“Do you like to floss while you suck?” Made me literally put my food down. I could not get myself to eat again after seeing this

As someone who was previously in the industry, I must say you didn't get paid merely enough for ANY of the things that you were doing. I understand that it was a documentary, but you were getting paid to dance, all the while could have been getting paid for some of those conversations. Also I am glad that you two made it out safety. Hope you got what you wanted from making this film.

Was there not a strip club in New York you could have ignored the women in?

Bartender: What are you two doing in the middle of podunk, middle-of-nowhere These girls: Feeding our egos.

you have to admit the cinematography was amazing. They know how to frame a shot

It's actually hilarious that they went shopping at Wal-Mart for stripper clothes lol

Literally two city girls slumming it for kicks. How is this journalism? Seems more like self gratification.

Everyone is missing how scary this truly is. She was barefoot in a Wal-Mart.

Wow that was a tough assignment you girls got yourselves into. That took balls of steel. Well done, much respect!

“A walk in the wild side” by Two Brooklyn hipsters. This was a great video where the girls learned a thing or two. That’s what made the video special and beautiful. We have enough stripper documentaries thank you. That Vietnam guy with no eye I found terrifying.

that beetle carrying the other beetle on it's back is a mood

I like what this documentary is striving to do and the message behind it but it fails hard. The biggest problem being the film makers themselves. They came in with a pretty ignorant sense of what this is going to be like. Making jokes, laughing around then flat out crying the first night. It was also VERY over dramatized with the unnecessary closeups and what not. I'd rather hear it from an actual stripper who goes through this every day. This documentary seemed like a mockery of actual real women.

Wow this really was a Great documentary. I think actually doing it hands-on and having the experience made it more authentic. I’m sure a lot of girls that actually do this every day didn’t really want to have their business plastered out there but you living it first hand gave us the experience we needed to know. Thank you for not sugarcoating it and keeping it raw

This was very well filmed and whomever had a hand in the cinematography has an eye. The ladies in it are really perfect for this right down to the colors they wear...and how they act in their Wal mart scene . I did , however, feel badly for the ladies who live that life there for more than a few days, and my heart goes out to them . ❤️

"We'll start tonight" footage of multiple days before they actually start working

So, instead of talking to and engaging with actual strippers there who have real life experiences, they figured out how to centralize themselves and make this about them and their 1 week pretend trial? Sometimes Vice gets it, other times it's this *exits

Been there! It’s a rough way to make a living seriously it’s no joke! Haters and people that judge don’t understand the position some moms are willing to put themselves in to take care of the children they bring into the world when they find themselves alone and with little choice, that was a temporary thing but the judgment on myself was probably more harsh then what some others had on me. I still have all of my children with me thou and they are all grown and great. I still have my special needs daughter at home 😊 she is 30 now so I would do it again if I needed to.

powerful, one of the most intense and real videos I have watched of yours.

I love vice but this doc missed the mark. Doesn’t get real enough about the actual workers experience. Feels more like a slightly offensive mockery by two un relatable girls that get to play pretend for a week. They complain about how badly it sucks, and how their poor little knees are bruised and their hands are dirty, then they go back to living their nice New York life. Doc seemed way more about them than the actual women that live this reality 👎🏽

You shouldn't have put yourselves in the story, just tell other people's stories.

12:40 this dancer is so wise and intelligent. She truly could do anything with her life I’m sure. And sadly growing up with nothing or going through a hard time makes it hard to earn enough money to survive and go to school. It’s heartbreaking.

34yo man here.. The men in that club the first night should be ashamed of the way they acted towards these women.

The way the men look at you, makes you "uncomfortable?" What do you think guys are going to do, at strip bar, read a book? WTF

Instead of focusing on the lives of the people they are documenting, as most great vice programming does, it became a self indulgent art house film showcasing two hipsters. They missed an opportunity to delve into the world. In it's place was, "oh my god, look at us, edgy and raw. We chose to be strippers at a truck stop." I stopped halfway through. The title should have been, "Look at us, we're cool."

I love these interviews with the women in this industry or any job under the sex industry umbrella, so people can see that these are real women like themselves, real people like themselves. Down to the earth, intelligent, wholesome. Young adults making a living for themselves.

Love the fact they threw in a leadbelly song especially that gem

the vietnam vet with supposed 112 confirmed kills is the creepiest dude i have ever seen

Honestly, 2 middle class girls spending a week doing a job that other girls and women Do just to survive. I don't think they even really touch on the issues associated with being a truck stop stripper. I don't think I can sit through this!

I love how the documentary explores the dangers and mistreatment of this field of work, and yet this comment section is focused on tearing these two women down for experiencing a new job through their perspective. Which is actually explained in the opening, so it’s not like y’all didn’t know what you were about to watch.

Love how this woz put together. You girl have balls. Respect.

I demand a do over for this doc. Next time real stories.

Wow, 2 Broke Girls took a dark turn this season.

I’d have run far, far, away, when that dude said “I don’t like to floss while I’m eating.” 😳😢

I really enjoyed the beetle giving the other beetle a piggy back ride @ 14:10

I want the 1 star review guy to do this hahaha

Would have been nice to actually hear stories from the girls working there. Instead we get to watch two little rich girls play pretend and not even care to get the perspective of the real women doing this? But we get an interview with the truck driver of course. This is definitely vice quality

This seems like an odd sort of social media performance more than a documentary. There's so much vital context that surrounds these women working these jobs, but the focus was on a couple of new Yorkers doing this as a performance for their actual job

Too many comments about how people are disappointed in this video, the title is exactly what it gives! Good god, it's a half hour video, you ain't got time to get into a tricks life 🧬 story or her motivation for doing this! But anytime you hold a mirror 🪞 up to the actions of men behaving badly, there will always be hard pushback, excuses, and misdirection!

It would've been a lot more interesting to film the experiences of actual sex workers. Not some NY girls on a business trip being paid by Vice. Preferably someone who is in this line of work in order to make a living. They don't need anyone to sympathize and explain how hard their jobs are.

What started as a very promising documentary turned quickly into one of the most disappointing. I was expecting the focus to be on the real women that work these type of jobs, and not on the 'filmmakers' playing adventure dress-up. But not everything was bad, I will remember this for three things; Daisy (the beautiful older stripper with a heart of gold), the guy with one eye and his devilish story and the two girls playing filmmaker.

How have I never seen this!?!? Very entertaining!!👍

19:29 man: I carry a gun..., i carry two guns girl: can you show me me: my mind is traveling rn

the (most likely) stolen valor guy saying he had 112 confirmed and then proceeding into a monologue straight from a serial killer film was the best part

I'm a trucker watching this in my truck, at a truck stop, across the street from a strip club hahahahaha

Absolutely outstanding journalism.

Thank You for this interesting and informative video Vice! Goodness!! These girls are absolutely BEAUTIFUL!! I am less than 6 minutes into video, and I am already completely sucked in! 👍🤍🔞💋

am i the only one who got a lil pissed as her not in a dressing room trying on them shorts and walking through walmart barefoot smfh trifling

Two narcissist's owe me 27 minutes and 24 seconds of my life back.

It's the fact that I live 20 minutes away from Moriarty, NM and had NO IDEA that club existed 😳😂💀

That guy at the end was crazy. Some bullshit about him being a Marine.

Daisy is the real star here

I'm sure they had good intentions, but it ended up be appallingly insulting to the very women they should be documenting. Borderline re-appropriation. They keep saying "I can't imagine how they do it?" and yet...they never try to find out, as if their own personal perspective trumps the experiences of the women.

This is such a solid documentary!

This was great to . I'm having a vice marathon today!

*They get to quit and walk away without a backward glance. They won't have to worry about their next meal or a roof over their heads. If that uppity chick would of really mouthed off to that guy, she would of been dancing for new teeth. This was all controlled, and done for the advertisement. They didn't show the girls who had been doing it for years, and what the wear and tear on their bodies, as well as their spirit, and had been beaten down to no self-esteem, to literally put the true meaning of, I have no Fs left to give, into perspective. This place is, the place strippers go to die, or just disappear without a trace. Who's gonna miss them?!*

In the 8 years I've been dancing I've seen far too many sheltered, entitled little girls like these ones come and go. They come along thinking it's just going to be like a big party and then melt down over the most petty shit. They never last long.

This is one of their best short docs

This is honestly my favorite Vice documentary of all !

i was a dancer for 12 yrs... the parts the lady with the hat was talking about does go on.. its definitely NOT a sorority sister situation AT ALL .. competition is high, cut throat.. and stealing is rampant .. i had a couple nights i sat in the stall in the changing room in tears.. luckily for me i'm 5'11'' without heels and 6'4" in heels.. i didn't really get fucked with by the girls cuz i could handle myself.. but i always felt bad for the girls working their asses off and their boyfriends were sitting upstairs in the room watching tv.. only to come down every hour or so and take all her money and spend it on booze and ''his boys'' while he played big shot on her dime... lotta leeches in the game..

This irritated me, two privileged girls seeing how the other half lives with some annoying camera shots...

Reading the comments I thought this was going to be atrocious...but tbh, I enjoyed it. It was a docu art piece.

"I go barefoot in Walmart" Should have been her opening statement for her job interview 😂

they didnt do a line of blow before there shift rookie mistake

I wonder if the real strippers find this insulting. This what they do to survive.

I truly hope that these women find a better way. Hurts me to the core what they have to go through just to survive.

That was an amazing video! Could have been a movie ! Thank you

I love daisy’s voice. She just seems very warm and friendly.

the main idea of the story is kind of interesting just poorly executed and too much b-roll and a lot of it seems fake.

"Its hard but look easy " Every thing have dark side but this documentary don't have that side

Really great documentary. What camera did they use to record?

the most common profession of a serial killer is a truck driver...

did i just watch blair witch truck stop stripper edition?

This is an amazing segment. 👏

I remember I was about 14. My friend and I got in her father's rig and he drove us to a diner that a lot of truckers go to. While her father went to go pay the bill, we decided to go back to his rig. We were doing little girl stuff and mannerisms. Next thing we knew, our little eye balls were assaulted by constant flashing of headlights. We had no idea why. Her dad came out and screamed, "Get in the rig, get in the rig!!" We thought we were in trouble and we had no idea what we did. When we got a little older her father told us what was going on. All those truckers thought that we were underage prostitutes and they were flashing their lights to let us know they wanted service. I was floored and disgusted. I feel for these girls just doing it for their documentary. Lord what a shock it must have been. Ew! That father shouldn't be sending his son those type of pictures. I bet if his daughter was doing pictures like that for someone else's son, he'd be livid. Men are just gross. There is No possible way that God put them in charge. I feel bad for the Vietnam Vet, he's pretty messed up. I work with guys like him. I hope he has people that he can call when things get too dark.

This documentary should be titled "1 week as New York hipsters posing as Truck-Stop Strippers" What bothers me is the disingenuous nature of the whole project. Here are two women, talking about women being oppressed, acting as fake martyrs in one scene but having a shopping frenzy at Wal-Mart in the next. They try and convey a seriousness in their story, but go into it with giggles and laughs. Rather than highlight the women who have been living it for (presumably) years, they decide to focus more on how rough their one week was. Ironically, it was the women who are actually living the life, who seem to be much more at ease than the two "fakers" who were seemingly set off by one incident of attempted nipple licking. This seemed to justify their (irrational) instigating of a fight with a drunkard. Unfortunately, when their sentiments at the end were that they were happy to go home but would miss the strip club, it trivializes the struggle that the other women are going through. It also minimizes their whole experience suffering, since it comes off as a voyeuristic project in which they knew they could escape after one week.

This should be called pretending to be a stripper while not actually stripping

Good work ! One question ,what is the pyle of dirt and exposed beams next to you two at 9:45 mark ? was that your room ?