James Davis Mallory, "Davis" to his friends and family, grew up in Marietta, Georgia in a conservative Southern Baptist home. He was very involved in his church growing up, despite growing feelings that he may be gay. These feelings followed him to Stetson University, where he joined a fraternity and was involved in the social Greek scene. During his senior year, Davis finally made peace with his sexually and came out. Several months later, Davis joined the Denver cast of MTV's Real World, where he dealt head-on with his religious issues and a homophobic roommate.

In his free time, Davis makes personal appearances at malls, colleges, lounges and other nighttime social spots. He speaks about making difficult (and sometimes painful) choices about your identity, reconciling your family and your religious beliefs with your sexual orientation, and safer sex practices and STD awareness.