Teaching assistant fired over OnlyFans stars in new music video | Daily Hive

Ariyo Key Music/Submitted

A North Vancouver rapper released a music video Thursday starring Ava James, the Metro Vancouver teaching assistant who was fired by the Coquitlam School District over her OnlyFans account.

James, whose real name is Kristin Macdonald, floats in a pool and sunbathes in a chaise lounge as rapper Ariyo croons beside her.

“I had a fine-ass teacher,” he sings as James struts past him. “I used to think that she was the one.”

Ariyo was inspired to write the freestyle song after he read about the teaching assistant’s struggle in a story first reported by Daily Hive.

James, a single mother, used the much-needed income from her OnlyFans account to support herself and her infant daughter — but was warned by the Coquitlam School District to take it down or face termination this spring.

But James stood her ground, saying it was her right to share her body on her terms on her own time. She was terminated from the district in June.

Ariyo, whose full name is Ariyo Kiaei, was at a friend’s house when they saw the Daily Hive article. The friend’s girlfriend read it aloud, and something clicked for Ariyo — he downloaded a beat and laid down the freestyle track, releasing it on Instagram and Soundcloud that same night.

He was thrilled when James agreed to collaborate on the video, and they filmed the summery scenes at his friend’s penthouse pool in Port Coquitlam.

Although the song is not inspired by a real-life teacher crush for Ariyo, he enjoyed crafting lyrics about the teacher-student dynamic and tying it to the controversial story out of the Lower Mainland that’s sparked discussion about ethics in education and bodily autonomy around the world.

“I think she should do what she wants, right?” Ariyo said. “As long as it doesn’t involve the children.”

The 2:25 track featuring a voice recording of James is available to stream on Spotify and Apple Music.

According to Ariyo’s Spotify biography, he was born in Iran and raised in Vancouver and brings his unique perspective on the world to his music. He’s part of the Canadian Underdogs Collective and has played live shows at Cabana Lounge, Fortune Sound Club, and LanaLou’s in Vancouver.

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Editor’s note: A previous version of this story said the video was coming out July 25. But Ariyo later decided to move up the release, dropping it on July 20 instead.