Former porn star Colton Ford returns to his soulful musical roots with his new CD, Tug of War.

by Lawrence Ferber

On his album Tug of War (Outsider Music), Colton Ford isn’t singing a different tune, he’s singing the same one he always did: soulful, blue-eyed R&B/pop.

Although best known for his brief gay-porn career, Ford was twice signed to major music labels during the early ’90s (he turned to porn when those deals went south). His first attempt to swap his adult film star identity for that of singer again — including disastrous dealings with a possibly insane manager — was the subject of a 2004 documentary, Naked Fame. Now signed to electronica guru Richard Morel’s Outsider Music label, and working with producer Quentin Harris, Ford is hitting us hard with a full-frontal funk assault.

Sitting in a Chelsea coffee shop, the L.A.-raised, NYC-based Ford (born Glenn Soukesian) chatted about his long-time-coming disc, longtime partner Peter Tiefenbach (aka Peter Harper) and his self-parodying appearance in the upcoming Another Gay Movie sequel.

You’re looking sharp in your shirt and tie on the CD cover. Are you the daddy version of Justin Timberlake?

Daddy Timberlake? What Justin happens to be doing, I was doing back in the early ’90s when I was signed and paired up with Frankie Knuckles. I was doing that R&B stuff, and there was always an issue with the label people in terms of making sure I didn’t sound too “black” and that the music wasn’t too “black.” My hat’s off to Justin for making that transition from *NSYNC, and I definitely think it’s a new day and a lot of funky white people are out there now.

There are some “I’m over you” songs on the album. What is the story behind “You Ain’t Gonna Change”?

“You Ain’t Gonna Change” is about one of my [former] partners. Basically the lyrics say it; he changed as much as he could, but he wasn’t able to go further in a way that served him and the relationship. I got to a point where I was like, I wish you the best and if you choose to step up to the plate and figure out some of these issues you have, you’ll have a better life experience.

You already have a built-in adult following thanks to your gay porn work. But what is the sales point for a suburban teenager who sees your CD in their local F.Y.E.?

I wouldn’t necessarily say my immediate demographic is a 15-year-old, but that’s not to say there won’t be a 15-year-old who responds to what I’m doing. Hopefully I’ll be able to reach people with my music because I think it speaks to a broad audience, lyrically says something and covers a pretty wide variety of genres.

What’s the status of your love life these days?

I’m single and that’s the way I like it. Peter [Harper] and I separated when I moved here [last April] and he moved back to Canada.

And do you feel like you’ve literally left porn behind now that you’re living 3,000 miles from Los Angeles?

I never really connected L.A. with the porn experience. I think what I feel [in New York] that really differs from L.A. is the coming together of artists. I feel artists are out here because of their craft and come to the table to collaborate because they love what they do. What they’re going to get from it afterwards is secondary, whereas in L.A. I feel it’s the opposite: What am I going to get for my work? I know that the creative spirit is out there, but it’s very disjointed.

You’ve also been acting a bit lately. You play Sheriff Trout in here! TV’s gay vampire series, The Lair, and tell me about your role in the upcoming Another Gay Movie sequel.

I play the butch hunk. I know, it’s a stretch! It’s kind of poking fun at my porn persona. Two of the lead characters are having this three-way with this butch hunk, and one of their friends had put [Super Glue] in the lube, so we get stuck together and I turn [as] screaming, crazy nelly as I possibly can.

What is the strangest compliment you’ve ever been given by a fan?

I don’t know if it falls under the strange category, but I was in Philadelphia to promote The Lair, and a busboy came up to me and said, “You know the thing I love most about you and your movies and stuff? Your feet. You have really great feet.” I was like, thank you! Everyone’s got their thing, right?

What should people do when they listen to your album?

Whatever they feel. Whatever inspires them. There are a lot of different styles of music there: some dirty grooves, some laid-back grooves, there’s a ballad, inspirational tunes. It really depends on what they feel.

Are you going to get a Fatburger when you visit L.A.?

F--k Fatburger. I’m going to get an In-N-Out burger. It’s the shit.