Playboy: Where were you born, and what was your childhood like?
Riannan Rayne: I was born in San Luis Obispo, California. Actually, I am a California girl born and raised for almost all of my life, entirely. And my childhood was pretty interesting. I was raised with pretty young parents who were very cool. I grew up with them doing motivational speaking all of my life. So I grew up very determined from seeing them on stage. I think it was a very interesting thing to see during childhood, and it encouraged me to know that it was something I wanted to eventually do.
Being that they were very young, they had a lot of parties, a lot of young friends, and they introduced me to a lot of young music. I always joke, but it’s very true that there were only two options of music that played in our house – Tony Robbins, who is a motivational speaker, or 90s R&B. Those were the only two options we could listen to, which was pretty great. And for watching TV, we were only allowed to watch Marilyn Monroe movies, which inspired me a lot for my look and how I went in the direction of my life because I love vintage fashion, and that inspired me a lot in my personality. We also watched a lot of Alfred Hitchcock movies and other stuff from the 1950s. So it was kind of an interesting mix of seeing them on stage motivationally speaking, traveling with them, and seeing them do a lot of sales, which is where I ended up in my current position. I do wedding sales and I did wedding planning for the last 12 years of my life. So my childhood was an interesting mix of a lot of fun and friendship with my parents.
I went to a technology high school that was funded by Bill and Melinda Gates down in San Diego where you learned on MacBooks with a progressive learning style and projects-based learning. We had to present in front of all our peers in high school, which was the most terrifying thing you can do in high school, of course, but we had to do that every single semester in order to pass. So just a very interesting childhood, for sure, but overall, a wonderful one.
Playboy: Did you go to college and, if so, what did you study?
Riannan Rayne: I went to college for about a year at Cal State Fullerton and I studied public relations. I really, really wanted to do PR. I was like, “oh, I want to clean up like celebrities’ messes – I love this idea.” But I had already done wedding planning for about a year in high school because they made us do an internship where we actually quit high school for three weeks. They literally made us stop going to school and go get a job, so I did wedding planning. After that, I kind of had it in my head that I loved that. And when I went to college, I was like, “Oh, this isn’t exactly the dream.”
You know, I think you go to college with an idea that it’s going to be something you love, and then you get there. I think this happens to a lot of people, that it’s not exactly the path that you love, and then it’s not exactly what I wanted. I knew I already enjoyed wedding planning, and there’s hospitality degrees and all sorts of things you can get if you want to work in a hotel. But I didn’t want to do that, and I already had wedding planning connections, so I just went back into that industry. And now I’ve worked in that industry for 12 years and have done about 1,200 weddings at several different venues. So I don’t need a college degree to do that. You can still get one, for sure. But specifically in this industry, you don’t need one. So I didn’t go back to it. But yeah, that’s where I ended up.
Playboy: So, is wedding planning your current full-time job?
Riannan Rayne: Yes, and I’m an influencer on the side. I currently have like 88,000 followers as an influencer, and I do wedding planning and wedding selling at venues as my primary career. I would plan weddings and help people by showing up for their day-of to do on-site coordination, which is like a whole career on its own. It is a full-time job on its own. And then I just started posting about manifestation on the side.
Actually, that’s a whole separate topic we can go on, if you know anything about that. But I loved talking about manifestation and the power of your thoughts and the power of positivity. And I felt like the things that I had learned from my parents at such a young age of how your thoughts can become anything made me a very, very positive and determined person. I felt like nobody was teaching that to the younger generation, and I wanted to do that. And now influencing is such a thing, so I started doing that. And then, because I already dressed in vintage fashion, I also brought that in, and that got me more popular because fashion is such a niche now. So then it kind of took off. I’ve only been an influencer for about two years. So now I have my full-time regular job as a regular person, but then I have this whole full-time side hustle with vintage fashion, modeling, and swimsuit career along with the manifestation stuff. I’ve also worked on writing a manifestation book that’s almost complete.
Playboy: How did you become a creator?
Riannan Rayne: I’m only on Playboy as a creator, and that’s the only thing I’d ever do. I just started recently and I always, always wanted to do something with Playboy, because, again, I was obsessed with Marilyn. Marilyn is the OG Playboy, of course, since she was on the first cover ever in December 1953. I know the history of everything and I always, always loved Playboy. I always thought it was very classy and very iconic. And there was just this symbolism that Playboy represented the golden era of Hollywood – like this golden era of girls and women empowerment. It was always my dream to be in Playboy and be in the magazine, and somehow be a part of it and I didn’t really think that was an attainable dream. And then I saw you can become a Playboy creator and I was like, “Oh, it is a little bit more attainable, which is amazing!”
When I became an influencer, I realized that this is actually a real thing. And it just started taking off. I started making videos online that started becoming popular, and I think people really resonated with the manifestation content that promoted finding some positivity in the hard times that we’ve had over the past couple years amid Covid. People started thinking that they can find more positive thoughts, and I give ways that you can do that. And my love of vintage fashion and 1950s style pin up fashion also resonated with many people on social media. I think Playboy always goes back to that no matter what era we’re in – there’s always that tint of old Hollywood on Playboy, which is my vibe always. That’s just kind of like what I look like with glasses and everything. I’m very curvy. I’m very hourglass. That’s just like the style that I am made in.. So I always wanted to be part of Playboy somehow. And I think that’s the only thing I would ever be part of as a creator. I’m really excited to be a playboy creator. Every time I go on my link, I can’t believe I have that little bunny next to my name!
Playboy: Who inspires you and why?
Riannan Rayne: I think there are a lot of inspiring women in the world right now. I think we’re at a really, really cool time where women are kind of taking over the world in sports, in politics, in entertainment, in modeling, and more. I love the plus size model Ashley Graham. I think she’s amazing. I also love Simone Biles. I literally just watched an amazing Tiktok of her being nervous while getting ready for the Olympic trials and I was like, “whoa. It’s incredible that she would share something like that.” She’s just a regular girl just like me and that’s so cool. I think there’s so many inspiring women out there who I look to every single day and I want to be like, to be open like, and to represent as a strong woman just like them. I hope I’m also inspiring to someone.
Playboy: What book or movie deeply moves you?
Riannan Rayne: The Great Gatsby is my favorite book of all time because it’s a really good love story. They can’t be together and are star-crossed lovers, and I even like that some of the girls are doing bad stuff and going against the grain. But, there’s some symbolism there. There’s a lot going on. Of course, I love the movie as well. I would say The Great Gatsby is very moving. Most love stories are where people can’t be together, but then end up together, but then fight to be together – you know, like the notebook – is basic. But I actually like to see a love where it doesn’t resolve, you know, because The Great Gatsby doesn’t end very well. If you’ve seen the movie or you read the book, you would know that it actually ends really sad. Spoiler alert – he dies. It doesn’t go well, but that’s kind of real life. That’s how some love stories end in a real-life, realistic situation that would actually happen, instead of like a rom com. I love a good rom com, but what actually happens when people’s lives get messy? I think that’s why I like The Great Gatsby.
Playboy: What is your guilty pleasure?
Riannan Rayne: Reality TV. My sister actually casts reality TV so it’s actually really hard to watch because she’s always telling me the behind the scenes. She’s always like, “I interviewed that person,” and I’m like, “well, now I know everything about them.” I especially love that show Love Is Blind where they fall in love from behind a wall in the pods. Yes, love is blind.That is definitely my guilty pleasure. I could not do it because attraction is such a big thing for me. And I don’t understand how they can fall in love in like four hours. But, I love to watch it.
Playboy: What is your favorite place that you’ve ever traveled to?
Riannan Rayne: Oh, that’s a good one. It’s kind of a toss up between two very different places. I went to Alaska and did a sunset cruise there – it was so beautiful. I absolutely love the cold weather and historical things. So I loved seeing the run-down, cool cities, and being in the very cold weather. And my other favorite was Hawaii – the very opposite of Alaska. It was very beautiful and I loved the traditions, the vibe of the land, the food, and the culture.
Playboy: What is your wellness and fitness routine?
Riannan Rayne: I love to do my mini stepper. If you know what a mini stepper is, look it up because it’ll change your life. I highly recommend a mini stepper. I do a mini stepper almost every single day while I watch a TV show. It’s like my little routine and my reward to myself. So every single night, I do a mini stepper for 30 minutes, and I try to eat pretty healthy and drink a lot of water. I think that’s very important, especially for your skin. To keep your skin very clear, it’s good to eat a lot of fruits and veggies so I do that, but I also allow myself to eat whatever I want to keep this hourglass shape.
Playboy: What is your favorite thing to cook?
Riannan Rayne: Pasta and steak. I literally joke that my favorite collab would be with Barilla pasta and Playboy where I’m naked, but with farfalle pasta on me and that’s it. And my Playboy centerfold would include Barilla farfalle noodles. I know it’s ridiculous, but I love pasta that much. My absolute favorite dish to cook would have a pink sauce, which is alfredo and a marinara together. And then I would add some sundried tomatoes, some garlic, some mushrooms, and of course I would put some medium rare steak in it because that’s my favorite protein. Just really hearty pasta is my absolute favorite meal. Keep it thick – that’s how I like it.
Playboy: What piece of clothing identifies you the most?
Riannan Rayne: A 1950s-style wiggle dress. That’s what they’re called. I swear. It was a very tight, hip-hugging, form-fitted dress – sort of like a pencil skirt. If you’ve ever seen Mad Men, it’s what Joan Harris always wears around the office in the show. Those would be called wiggle dresses, where you’re like wiggling in and out to get around. That’s pretty much what I wear on a regular basis to work and out in real life. You can’t really move, but everything looks really good.
Playboy: What turns you on and what turns you off?
Riannan Rayne: What turns me on the most is confidence. It doesn’t have to be male or female, but energy-wise that’s what I am turned on by. It’s just the energy of knowing what you want and going after it. And what turns me off is self-deprecation, definitely. Which is the opposite of confidence.
Playboy: What would make you ghost a potential suitor?
Riannan Rayne: I’d like to say I don’t think I’ve ever ghosted anyone – I think I’ve been pretty upfront in the dating world. When I was out there dating, I was more argumentative than ghosting people. What would make me ghost someone would be if they argue with me about a date, which I have done – I would just not go on the date. If somebody is already miscommunicating or already arguing, that would probably make me just step away. If we’re not connecting or clicking with miscommunication right off the bat, then I’d just rather not.
Playboy: What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?
Riannan Rayne: The best piece of advice I was ever given is probably an affirmation that I say every single day to myself, anytime I’m nervous, in the morning, in the evening time, and it has worked out for me pretty well. It’s “everything is always working out in my favor.” My dad told me that affirmation.
Playboy: What’s a fun fact about you?
Riannan Rayne: I’m named after the Fleetwood Mac song. People tend to love that.
Riannan Rayne is on The Playboy Club. Talk to her now.
