Tommy 2 Wolves - NYC model and actor | Instagram LIVE | Rugged Revival
Watch on YouTube
Subscribe for new episodes, Grit Sessions & more
Listen to this episode
In This Episode
There's something magnetic about a person who doesn't try to be magnetic. Tommy 2 Wolves carries that rare authenticity—the kind that can't be manufactured, won't be packaged, and certainly won't fit neatly into any industry category. Whether he's in front of a camera, on a stage, or just living his life in the margins between those worlds, there's an unmistakable gravity to him that draws people in. It's precisely the quality that makes him impossible to ignore.
Born in 1974 in upstate New York and raised across Phoenix and New York City, Tommy's journey reads like something between a redemption arc and a fever dream. He found himself inside the criminal justice system at thirteen, spent formative years in DOC facilities, and clawed his way toward something resembling stability. That arc doesn't erase itself. It lives in every choice he makes now, every thread he wears, every role he takes on. Talking with host Camden recently, Tommy was refreshingly candid about the chaos that shaped him—not dwelling in it, but not running from it either. There's power in that kind of honesty.
I started going to jail when I was like 13. I spent a lot of time in DOC and then when I got out, they thought maybe it'd be a good idea to go back to New York.
— Tommy 2 Wolves
What's fascinating about Tommy is how organically his path has unfolded across multiple creative disciplines. He's a model. He's an actor. He's a storyteller. But none of these labels quite stick because he refuses to let them define the whole picture. When Camden asked him about falling into the fashion and modeling world, Tommy was clear: it wasn't calculated. He didn't wake up one day deciding to become a face in campaigns or a presence on runways. It happened because he embodied something real, something that photographs and film couldn't help but capture. "I wasn't trying to be a model or get into this stuff," he explained. "It just kind of came to me."
That's where Tommy's philosophy gets interesting. He talks about how most people wear clothes, but the clothes don't wear them. It's a subtle distinction that separates someone truly stylish from someone merely fashionable. His influences—Swan from The Warriors, the Duke boys, Robert Redford, Robert Duvall, the 1970s outlaw country movement—aren't accidental touchstones. They're evidence of someone who understands that authentic style emerges from authentic living. These weren't people performing rebellion; they were people being themselves in a way that looked like rebellion to everyone else.
I always like anything that was really just kind of on the edge. I got into rock really young, you know, before it was cool.
— Tommy 2 Wolves
There's also something particularly interesting about how Tommy draws connections between seemingly disparate worlds. Country music and punk rock. Western wear and rock and roll attitude. Jean-Paul Belmondo and Gary Clark Jr. He grew up around guitar lessons in Arizona spaces that hosted both country musicians and punk bands, and that collision of influences shaped everything that followed. It's the same collision that defined the Ramones, he notes—born out of a cowboy bar, emerging with something that felt entirely new because it was entirely honest.
For someone listening to Tommy talk about recovery, creativity, and the long road from incarceration to a life where he gets to choose his own narrative, there's something quietly inspiring in his refusal to become a cautionary tale or a redemption story. He's neither. He's just a guy who lived hard, learned from it, and found ways to create that honor both who he was and who he's becoming. His work in modeling and acting gives him platforms, sure, but it's the authenticity underneath—the refusal to perform authenticity—that makes those platforms matter.
The full conversation between Tommy and Camden touches on all of this and more, with the kind of easy rapport that happens when two people aren't pretending to be anything other than what they are. For anyone interested in how real people navigate identity, creativity, and second chances—or who simply appreciate someone who dresses well because they have something to say—this is worth your time. Follow along and see where this genuinely unpredictable artist takes things next.
I'll help you. I'll help you start a revolution for this Monday morning situation. >> Yeah. Thank you. Thanks for joining me, man. >> Yeah, absolutely. >> It's a high honor. >> So, uh, >> man, what is that? Horse hide. >> What you talking about there? >> The leather jacket. >> Uh, you know what? I couldn't tell you. I'll I'll send you a message later. Uh so, you know, we like to keep these things short and sweet. So, what I'll do is I'll take the video and I'll post it to all my uh socials. And then the Rugged Revival, they'll take their socials and take the video and then they'll take the audio and stream it to all their services. >> Whatever. That sounds cool. That's a [ __ ] That's a stupid ass thing. There we go. >> Yeah. I say let's get down to it, man. You threw me on the floor. >> I threw you on the floor, bro. You gotta give me >> Couldn't find anywhere. I'm in New Mexico right now. I couldn't find anywhere to put this damn thing up. So, there you go. >> You look You look good. You sound good. >> Thanks, man. Yeah. So, where you at? In DC? >> Yeah, I'm I'm just outside of DC. I'm in Arlington. I'm uh sitting in the lobby of my my salon right now. Oh, nice. >> Tell me a little bit about what you're wearing. You said uh you said you picked up some new threads. >> Oh, um yeah, I got like this old like dress western jacket. Yeah, that's pretty sick. We'll call it. And then just like 517s, you know, Wrangler. Um turquoise. Oh, I got these bad boys, too. They're like uh iguanas. >> Yeah. >> Love it. Well, let's uh let's give the kids what they want. So, uh what what year were you born and where did you grow up? >> Uh 1974. Um I was born in uh in upstate New York, like around Buffalo, Rochester area. Um I never grew up there though really. We moved out to Phoenix and I grew up a lot of my like younger years in Phoenix. then end up back in New York in New York City, you know. So, I went to high school in uh Apache Junction, Arizona, the little school I went to, you know. I started going to jail when I was like [ __ ] 13. >> Um >> yeah, I spent a lot of time in DOC and then when I got out, they thought maybe it'd be a good idea to go back to New York, you know? So, >> that sounds good. Uh so, if you know, think back, who was your first fashion icon? Man, I think, you know, thinking about that and uh, you know, it'd be like Swan from the Warriors or, you know, Bow and Luke Duke, you know, um, I always like anything that was like really just kind of on the edge, you know what I mean? I got into rock really young, you know, before it was cool. and uh so anything like that. But I've always loved country and western and you know that whole decal. So um but yeah, probably Swan, you know, the Dukes of Hazard. That's the farthest thing I can remember when I was a little kid, just watching dude these dudes every day and thinking that their style was so sick, you know. But yeah. >> Yeah, I think it all kind of comes full circle, you know, like the punk rock stuff, you know, the outlaw country stuff. It all kind of pulls together. >> Yeah. As a kid, I was taking guitar lessons at a place called Kovass Corner, >> and it was all country dudes, you know, and these were the same kind of guys that were, you know, it was the same venues that were holding punk rock shows, you know what I mean? There was definitely like this, >> you know, little bit of a mix, you know, maybe not with the older guys, but definitely with the with the younger younger >> Well, I mean, that's the Ramones, right? They got their start in a uh cowboy and bluegrass bar. >> Yeah. Yeah. See, >> that's right. >> So, uh so you you still obviously pull a lot from those inspirations. Who would you say is your current fashion icon? >> I mean, right now, man, it would be, you know, uh like Robert Redford. Um I've really been into Robert Dval lately, you know. I I do acting too. and like watching his old movies like Tender Mercy's and and stuff like that. Just the just the style those dudes had, you know, uh Talons Band Zant, you know, Gary Clark, um Steve Earl, like that whole 70s outlaw country movement, you know. Um I like a lot of French New Wave stuff too, like um like um you know, Jean Paul Bardau and stuff like that. I get a lot of stuff out of that, too, you know. Um, it's just cool aesthetics, man, and their attitudes and, you know, just the rebellion that those guys like it wasn't something they were trying to do. It was something that they were, you know, there's an authenticity to it to the style, you know? It's like, and I think that's the big thing with any of it, man. It's like, uh, >> you know, I accidentally fell into that [ __ ] business, you know? I wasn't trying to be a model or or get into this stuff. It just kind of came to me. And I think it was through that, you know, I see a lot of people the clothes wear them. They don't wear the clothes. You know what I mean? And and I think like, you know, you you can't you can't construive an identity or a or or a look. You know what I mean? Either either e either you are it or you not. You embody it or you don't, you know? And I think a lot of who you are comes into what you wear, you know. >> Yeah. I think that's I think that's very true. >> Yeah. >> I think I think people can read the authenticity and uh you know, people like feeling like a part of something too. >> 100%. That's what everybody sees, man. You know, they may know it, you know, and they're like, I don't know about this, you know, like whatever. And what it is is is generally it's unauthentic. You know, I do a lot of speaking engagements, too, man. And if I'm not living on my current experience, man, or what's going on right now, and I'm trying to live off something that I did a year ago or a couple years ago, and repeat something because I just haven't been in it, you know, it it it just comes off, you know, I don't think I sound right. I don't think I'm moving right. This sounds different because I'm not moving on my current experience with what's going on, you know. So, yeah. So, what was your uh what was your first modeling slash acting gig? >> Oh, uh I still do that [ __ ] man. It was funny. I was uh um I was I was just in New York, man. You know, I was like in the punk rock scene and stuff and uh you know, we were selling drugs and we were selling drugs to all the model guys, man. and and the designers, we didn't really know who they were, you know what I mean? They were just like, you know, like kind of clients that became friends, you know, we all hung out together, man. And um uh we we ended up befriending Shane Oliver, you know, and uh I don't really know who he was or what he did, but then this one guy calls me up and he's like, "Hey, I want you to go to this address and you know, go for this casting call, you know, and I'm like I don't you know what, like I don't know if I'm really he's like just do it, you know." And at that time, man, I was in a place which, you know, I'm a little more selective now, but I was just saying yes to everything, man. You know what? Wasn't any opportunities passing by because of old beliefs or or old ideals, you know what I mean, that I thought I needed to live by. So, I was just, what are we going to do? I'll pull up. What is it? Let's check it out, right? you know, and I I pulled up their um you know, they put some high fashion stuff on me and then I you know, they tell me to go to this other location. I go to this other location, man. I walk in this long [ __ ] white hallway with these pictures and at the end of the hallway is this black dude with like this crazy hair and a headset. It was like out of the movies, man. There's nobody anywhere. Like it's like androgynous dude. And he's like, "Oh yeah, uh go through these doors." And I walk through the doors, man, and there's like 300 [ __ ] androgynous 18, you know, to 21 year old kids, man. Some younger, you know, just a total model. And here I am. I was [ __ ] 39, dude. And I'm wearing engineer boots. And I'm like, what am I doing here, man? And they're like, hey, where's your card? And I'm like, I don't have a card. Like, you know, you know, from your agency and stuff like that. And so I'm standing there, man, and I'm I'm I'm honestly about to leave, you know? I'm like I'm looking around like what the [ __ ] am I doing here, you know? And there's and these two French dudes come walking and they're obviously somebody important, man, because they're like giving kisses to everybody. We we we and then they walk by me. They stop and they look and they're like, "Dutch." And I'm like, "Yeah." And they're like, "Come with us." And they bring me to the front and they bring me in there and there's just all these girls get naked, dudes get naked, throwing on like high heels and crazy [ __ ] And my friend, he gave me the best advice I ever had in doing this, man. He goes, "Hey, look, when you do the walk, you know, cuz it's a moth walk to CJ show. When you do it, walk like you're going to stab somebody." And I was like, "All right, I can do that." you know, they had like these high heeled boots and a rain jacket that was like a skirt, you know what I mean? Came down like I mean, it was wild and I just walked like I was [ __ ] dead face like [ __ ] going to kill you. And I remember Shane and these other people were there and they were just like what? So they called me back and they put me on the show. It was helmet lang. And um you know I did the walk whatever and you know and got out of there and uh buddy man Jake Boils was was doing it too and you know I kind of like at the end it's like all right man give us the clothes see you later you know send you the money blah blah blah. So I walk around he's in the front of the building man right off of Broadway East Broadway. I walk to the front and there's all the people. was like Kate Boss, you know, all these [ __ ] And and then this dude comes up to me and he was like, "Yo, man, you would out there like you you have authenticity, man." Like, dude. And I'm like, "Really?" He's like, "Who's your agency?" I'm like, "I don't have any agency, man. This is the first thing I ever done." And I don't really know who this dude is. He's like, "Well, I'm not an agent, but I I think I could help you." He's like, "You should really consider acting, you know?" And it was this dude, uh, J Star, and uh, he's on like Entertainment Tonight and all this other [ __ ] And you know, I I had no idea who he was. He goes, "Look, let me give you my number and I'll see if I can help you." I'm like, "All right." And I'm like, "Well, what do you do?" And he's like, "I set up the Oscars and the Emmys, you know, I do all, you know, he was like this big dude." And that was the first time I ever considered acting, you know. And then that next day, I'm on the cover of Vogue magazine, man. I'm like GQ. I'm all over the [ __ ] internet, man. And I'm having to hop the subway cuz I don't have money for it. You know what I mean? I started getting calls from everybody and then I'm I'm doing all this [ __ ] I was the first the reason why is is I was the first uh you know runway model like whatever you know high model that was covered in tattoos, >> right? There weren't any at that time. There were people that had some tattoos, but not like me, you know. Um, and there was tons of designers and, you know, brands that were wanting to do that, but they kept getting shot down and people were too scared. It seems like America was the last one to kind of get on that train. >> So once that happened, it opened the doors and I happened to be the dude. So they were just grabbing me for and I was hot [ __ ] for about nine months until they found [ __ ] six other dudes that look like me. So but it got me in agony, you know what I mean? It's like the first thing I did was a casualties video, man. It's my friends. They have this punk band, you know, and uh we were down in Texas and uh you know uh David and Jake hit me up and they're like, "Hey man, you know, we rented out this abandoned prison, man. why don't you come and you know [ __ ] play the dude it's about police brutality is a song song 1312 and and I'm like yeah [ __ ] yeah man so we get there it's the middle of summer in Texas in an abandoned prison hot as [ __ ] and I'm getting my ass beat by the police all day long it was awesome you know but that was the first thing I did and the same thing I went out and people were like yo you were believable man and then one thing led to another and I've been doing movies for like the past four years you know I'm in the middle of filming one right now in >> that was uh that was my introduction to you. Um the casualties actually started the the the band hair thing that I do. They were my first clients. >> Oh, really? >> Yeah. I love those guys, man. I'm a I'm a die hard for life. >> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I've been knowing [ __ ] dude. Since 1990, you know, in New York. I remember when they first started. I remember like the first couple shows as [ __ ] Jorge, dude. He would say the craziest [ __ ] man. Like cuz I was kind of like a crusty punk, you know, living in spots and >> I was part of like a nausea crew and stuff, but I was I was very much into like, you know, Cockney Rejax Blitz. I mean, we all were. It was kind of one thing back then, >> right? >> I remember Jorge Walk up or he he come up and he would say some crazy [ __ ] like we don't have dreadnots where I come from. We just have big panic panic hair. I love that. >> Yeah, those guys are great. And Dave uh Rodriguez, man, he was a good buddy of mine. I toured with him and the Crumb Bombs. I mean, me and not history, but you know, um when I had a major relapse, man, he's the one that got me back out, you know, to New York and it was a big part of me getting sober again, man. You know. >> Yeah, that's that's a good crew, man. I haven't seen them in a couple years. They they um they haven't really hit the DC area in a little while, but uh hopefully we'll see them again soon. >> Yeah. >> So, uh I have a I have a a question I wanted to slip in there. What What's your favorite Manson album? >> Ron Manson. >> Yeah. >> Oh [ __ ] I don't know. I just got like songs, man. I mean, he's just kind of a buddy, you know, of a buddy. And uh I I like Beautiful People, Dope Show, you know. I like I like all of that stuff. I just now listened to some of his new stuff and it was good. We went and we went and seen him and hung out with him the other night. Uh I mean dude's doing great, man. It was one of the best shows I ever seen. You know what I mean? Like it was phenomenal, man. It was in a big ass club, too. It was in an arena. >> Oh, >> uh and it was kind of surreal because, you know, we we came in through the back and I'm walking through and Die Brian, right? He's their tour manager from Austin. He he he started out tour managing for like Riverbo Gamblers and I think oh Kentucky Crumb Bombs and like you know those bands. He started with those band now he's doing the Hoo Link 182 like you know so it was cool seeing him but we got out there and I was seeing all these kids where it looked like the '9s or something. There's no way they were there in the [ __ ] 90s and then here's these older people and I'm like, "Oh, that's their parents and that's the kids." It was quirky, too. So, it was like all these cholo [ __ ] doc dudes, man. It was cool. Yeah, >> I love that. >> That's super cool. >> Yeah. >> Well, we're coming to the end of the road here and I don't want to take up too much more of your time. >> Oh, you're good, man. >> Is there anything you want to plug? You have like a anything you can talk about? You have a photo shoot or movie coming up? >> Yeah. Um I'm getting something together with Wrangler right now. So hopefully doing that, man. Because in all like it's funny. People always come up to like what's your favorite brand? Yeah. I think I'm going to say like Chrome Hearts or Balenciaga, something like that. And I'm, you know, who do you want to do? And I'm like I want Wrangler, you know. So hopefully that comes into fruition. Uh >> uh but I am working on a movie man a featuring Lincoln. the lead, you know. Um it's the first one that I'm the full lead in in in a feature film and >> it's like we're we're making like it's called well it's called Bait, but the name might change. Um there's a couple other old movies named Bait. Uh but it's it's it's like an old '90s New York movie, man. Like Laws of Gravity. We actually have like, you know, uh Peter Gre in it. [ __ ] it's a lot of people from Uncut Gems. We didn't [ __ ] plan on that, man. But it's New York, you know, and it's like we try to use um we got, you know, big actors in it, but they more have cameos and we want to use just the community and people that you don't really know, you know, that are like legends like like Keith Shred, you know, we got him in there and he's, you know, he's a professional skater. He's he's my homeboy. He's a lunatic. He's awesome. Uh and and and he's great. He can act, you know. got um uh we use this we use this we use this girl Taylor uh she's in it man did a phenomenal job and then you know it's a lot of other guys uh but it it's going to be a great film it's a it's a guy gets out of prison you know you know tries to change his life and then it takes a lot of [ __ ] twists and turns and like oh [ __ ] at the end you know um but it's good yeah and well we're about halfway done with it you know so Um, that's what I got going on right now as far as I'm pretty much just tied up in that, you know. So, >> it sounds good. Well, look, man. I'll be the first in line to come and see it. >> All right, man. Yeah. >> Well, listen, let's uh let's chat again soon. Maybe I'll see you at a Desert Five spot. >> Yeah, hold up. I'm working this whole weekend if y'all want to come Desert 5. Oh, another thing, man. I want to plug these. My making the film with me. The new Great Frog Sunnies. >> Okay. >> Sick, man. They got like a little [ __ ] chain and they're all gold and silver. >> Yeah, that's that's cool. >> [ __ ] outlaw. So >> there you go. >> All right, man. >> Well, thanks for your time, brother. We'll chat again soon, man. Hit me up when you come to New York. >> You got it. Bye. >> Later, boss. Peace.
Comments
Keep listening
Related Episodes
Capt'n Scum
Capt'n Scum - Frankfurt-based Country, Folk, and Western Musician | Rugged Revival
In this episode, Camden sits down for a conversation with Capt'n Scum, who is a Frankfurt-based country, folk, and western musician.
Sunny War
Sunny War - From Hardship to Folk-Blues Star | Rugged Revival
Sunny War enlivens traditional folk and blues by freshening her musical attack and writing lyrics that reflect 21st century concerns. Her first album, "Worthless", arrived in 2014, and she continued to gain attention as she built up a cult following that crested with the release of 2018's "With the Sun".Born Sydney Lyndella Ward to a single mother in Nashville, the singer/songwriter spent her childhood moving around the United States with her parent, spending significant time in both Nashville and the Detroit suburb of Rochester. During this time, she learned to love a wide variety of music, picking up the guitar at the age of 13. After she spent a rough period combating substance abuse and poverty, she gravitated to blues and folk and relocated to California settling in Venice Beach.Adopting the performing name Sunny War, she'd sometimes moonlight with her punk side band Anus Kings, but it was her folk-blues showcased on a self-released album that began to gain notice from local scenesters - including critics at LA Weekly. After a few years, she released her official debut, "Worthless", which appeared in 2014. A second independent record, "Red White and Blue", arrived in 2016.In 2018 Sunny War released, via Hen House Studios, "With the Sun", After that album, she moved from Venice Beach to downtown Los Angeles, quickly delivering her next LP also on Hen House "Shell of a Girl", the following year. Her critically acclaimed EP "Can I Sit With You" premiered in 2020.
Daniel Young
Daniel Young - Indie Folk Americana | Another Golden Hour | Rugged Revival
The Rugged Revival — independent Country, Americana & Roots music. Live sessions, artist interviews and real music discovery. Daniel Young is the kind of artist who doesn’t just make music—he lives inside it. A singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, sound engineer, and producer from Salt Lake City, Daniel has spent over two decades honing a craft that runs as deep as the mountains he grew up on. That sense of elevation—of something vast, fleeting, and quietly powerful—echoes through every note he creates. His latest project, Another Golden Hour, captures that rare, glowing moment just before the light fades—when everything feels suspended between what is and what’s about to disappear. These songs were born in the open air of a side patio, shaped in a basement studio, and now return to the world carrying that same warmth, weight, and wonder. Recorded over just two days at Orchard Studios with minimal overdubs, the album reunites Daniel with the Rambling Roses—the same group behind 2024’s Leave It Out to Dry. Together, they create something remarkable: a sound that feels immediate yet timeless, raw yet carefully held together. Each track reflects a different thread of Daniel’s world: • “Baby, Baby Blue” pays tribute to the late KSOP (AM 1370), a pillar of country music history • “Holdin’ Up” wrestles with the quiet weight of modern struggles • “Fires Shall Be Ceased” and “Ways to Communicate” channel the enduring spirit of protest and folk tradition • The title track, “Another Golden Hour,” distills it all into something fluid, shimmering, and deeply human This is music about fleeting light, about holding on, about letting go—and about finding hope anyway. Another day. Another golden hour. Listen now and experience it for yourself. #folksong #countrysongs #americanamusic Subscribe to The Rugged Revival. Share it with your friends. Support independent music! Listen to the full podcast on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6wnHcgA73o1aiiKaz882vH?si=30aabdaa220a4628 Follow The Rugged Revival: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theruggedrevival/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@theruggedrevival Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100094507520679 Website: www.theruggedrevival.com Email: ruggedrevival@hotmail.com
Spencer Hatcher
Spencer Hatcher - Virginia Bluegrass Country Star | “When She Calls Me Cowboy” | Honky Tonk Hideaway EP | Rugged Revival
Stone Country Records’ Spencer Hatcher is a bluegrass-influenced country artist who was raised on a farm in the heartland of Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley. By the age of 11, he was already playing his five-string banjo in his family’s bluegrass band. In 2020, Hatcher formed his own country band, backed by younger brother Connor Hatcher, a bass prodigy and “blood harmony” supporting vocalist. Dubbed the “String King” by his hometown newspaper and quickly developing a reputation across Virginia and neighboring states as an exciting live performer, Hatcher played more than 150 shows a year in both 2023 and 2024, often setting venue attendance records. He has also built a strong online fan base, including more than 900,000 social media followers. Hatcher’s debut EP, Honky Tonk Hideaway—a good-time destination for music fans who prefer their country served stone cold—is available now. The EP features Hatcher’s debut single, “When She Calls Me Cowboy,” which was a Top 10 Most Added Song at U.S. Country Radio (Mediabase) out-of-the-box. Saving Country Music has lauded the young old-fashioned gentleman as “one of the most promising up-and-coming voices in traditional country music.”