Community Spotlight: Bratty Azzasin

Bratty Azzasin: The Magical Boss Baby

In June of 2019 at SELF, I met this tall colorful Little with locs in two ponytails and the brilliant personality of a celestial star. I'd seen her a few times on Facebook, however, it did not properly convey the essence of Bratty after seeing her in person. Again we met at The Journey Conference later that year. She was still Bratty, however this time with a wicked springy lollipop paddle looking for victims, yet somehow maintaining a look of innocence. I wanted to get to know this seemingly paradoxical Little. We stayed in communication for the following years. This is how I came to know Bratty Azzasin,

Bratty Azzasin AKA Boss Baby AKA Bratty(preferred) has been in the BDSM lifestyle for only a few years but has made a huge impact in the time she’s been in, She’s become an organizer and founding member of an organization, a director of events, and an active contributor to local Munches, as well as other non-lifestyle organizations. We will get into that later. Let’s get to know Bratty and how she started her lifestyle journey.

Bratty’s pronouns are she/her/fae/Khaleesi. She believes pronouns are used to solidify one’s identity. They are self-affirming. She is a Switch and Leatherwoman who is also a Little. But don't let her being a Little fool you, she has earned the moniker Boss Baby. Bratty started her journey in late 2016 after ending a relationship and decided to take time for herself. Later that year, she discovered the Poly lifestyle. During this time, she expressed her interest in BDSM to one of her partners. She was introduced to Carl “Da Kollector”. He was instrumental in helping her understand and navigate the BDSM lifestyle. She had started her journey towards the rabbit hole, January 14, 2107, she went to her first Black Philly Munch. It was a great, yet overwhelming experience for her. One that required her to take some time to process everything she had experienced. After a few months of processing, the next step in her journey led her to Unity Munch 2017. That event further pulled her closer to the rabbit hole. The lure into BDSM was the understanding that there was a place for her. That was solidified after going to the Baltimore Playhouse that weekend, she was able to observe various kinks and fetishes there, including coloring and age play. That's when she discovered she was a Little. At the Playhouse she saw that BDSM allowed her the freedom to completely be herself. It was then that she fully surrendered and crossed over into the Darkside we call BDSM.

Now that she was fully invested in BDSM, her thirst for knowledge pushed her to continue to learn and grow. She went to Weekend Reunion 2018 and it blew her mind. It was there that she first entered subspace. It was also there that she was called Boss Baby for the first time. Throughout her journey, she’s managed to stay safe and avoid the drama that unfortunately can occur in this lifestyle. She attributes that to finding her chosen community, her tribe, which keeps her accountable and safe. She is a strong believer in finding a Tribe that will be there to support you when things become difficult. When she got sick in 2019, it was her tribe that made sure she was taken care of; her tribe and kink kept her going. Her philosophy is that finding a tribe is more important than a D/s dynamic. If a person takes the time to find their tribe, it can help them have a better dynamic. Her belief in it is so strong that the first class ever taught was ‘Finding Your Tribe’.

She wanted to learn more about the leather community and chose Beyond Leather 2019 as her first leather event. To Bratty, in BDSM, there were a lot of specific things to learn. However, she found Leather to be more intuitive. When her daughter was sick in the ICU in New Mexico, she told those in her leather circle what was going on and that she would be in a strange city and state. They reached out to others in a leather network resulting in leather folk being there to support her by watching out for her, making sure she had food, and making sure she was able to get some rest during that difficult time. She firmly believes that for those in the leather community, Leather is embodied in us. You can’t teach Leather, it is inherent in you. Even though she hasn’t been Leather long, she contributes to her maturation in BDSM and Leader being older when she started.

Bratty is demisexual and in her words, “pro hoe shit”. She has a “no penetration” rule. She is into a lot of kinks. She is service-oriented. Bratty’s motto is: Service is the price we pay for our time on earth.

She is heavily involved in several BDSM organizations as well as becoming a member of the Board of Commissioners of Housing only 5 months after moving to Texas. She is involved with Philly Black Munch, Leather Girls of Color, and Florida Power Exchange. She was approached with the idea of LGoC in January 2020. In February of the following year, Leather Girls of Color was launched. Applications were opened in June 2021. She created a curriculum for the first class and is now in the midst of the 3rd class. LGoC continues to grow under her leadership and the hard work of its members. She believes there is no need for competition between women's organizations. There is space for all women's organizations. One doesn’t diminish the light of others. Bratty is working to build a legacy. According to Bratty, “Nothing beats a failure but a try”. She believes that leaders must empower those who have chosen them to lead.

Advice that Bratty has for those new to the community:

• "Wait at least a year before getting into a dynamic."

• "Be open to exploring anything you might want to try."

• "Don’t let anyone dictate what this life is for you."