Matthew Cancel stars in Dominic Albano's new underwear collection

Model Matthew Cancel is the star of the Dominic Albano Collection — an innovative, queer-owned underwear brand founded by former model and current designer, photographer, and creative director, Dominic Albano. The brand is committed to redefining standards in men’s underwear, offering designs that combine comfort, style, and individuality.

This is the first time the brand has had a campaign "face" outside of Dominic, and the first campaign to depart from the brand's initial digital aesthetic.

"This partnership is particularly significant as it marks my first official 'brand campaign' after a year of exclusively doing editorials and covers in prestigious magazines such as So.Gay, Numero Netherlands, Folie, 1883 Magazine, and Fault Magazine," Cancel said in a statement. "My modeling career began last year as a way to start the conversation about the lack of diversity within male modeling. I'm only 5'7 (five foot seven inches) and the first short male model to work in a fashion editorial capacity."

Cancel added, "Dominic and I's initial collaboration began with a self-shot social media post that garnered significant attention. My selfie modeling post for the brand ended up on the explore page of Instagram, garnered me 1,000 new followers, received 1,200 likes on my Instagram page, 3,100 likes on ItBoyNYC, and an impressive 9,600 likes on ItBoyTrends."

"The post resulted in nearly 15,000 likes across all pages and over 40,000 impressions, showcasing substantial engagement and consumer interest in an official campaign," he explained. "This campaign is a testament to the evolving landscapes of fashion, branding and social media, where the roles of publicist and model intersect, creating new and innovative narratives."