NKD Mag - Issue #64 (October 2016)

OCTOBER musicians: 04 SYMON finding her own voice

08 YOUNG RISING SONS on new music and old friendships

14 WALKER HAYES proof that hard work pays off

16 CHEAT CODES building their team one song at a time

26 FRENSHIP from spotify to the stage

28 RYAN FOLLESE keeping it all in the family

34 CAILLE RAE

don’t call her an influencer

46 BROOKE EDEN from florida to diamonds

actors: 20 LANDRY BENDER disney’s newest best friend (whenever)

50 EVAN ROE get to know the up and coming actor

double threats: 36 VICTORIA JUSTICE on rocky horror, nickelodeon & more

publisher: CATHERINE POWELL

editors: CATHERINE POWELL

writers: SAMANTHA BAMBINO MARY BARNES MERISSA BLITZ TAYLOR DOUGHERTY DUSTIN HEVERON STACY MAGALLON CATHERINE POWELL VANESSA SALLES RILEY STENEHJEM TANYA TRANER

photography: CATHERINE POWELL

design: CATHERINE POWELL

symon Words by RILEY STENHEJEM Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

At eight years old, Los Angeles native Symon was already looking up how to find an agent for her singing career.

Growing up, she watched the pop stars of the early 2000’s performing on MTV’s TRL, and found herself inspired by the artistry and performances of Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake. “Every video they would show, they would look like someone else. I had such an interest in artistry and how they would express themselves, from their clothing to their makeup,” she says. Symon started participating in school plays and building her music career. At 16, she started a band with two of her neighbors, which became The New Officials. “These two boys moved in next door to me, they were brothers, and I heard they were musicians and they were hot, so I was like, ‘It’s perfect! The dream’,” she says. “Before I knew it, we were on the Disney Channel, and it kind of all just snowballed after that.” They quickly found themselves signed to Universal, and had the chance to live in Sweden and work with producer Andreas Carlsson, the man behind dozens of top-charting pop songs, including the ones Symon found herself so intrigued by when she was younger.

04

“He actually became my mentor, which is crazy,” she says.

Just recently, The New Officials broke up, giving Symon the chance to branch out as a solo artist. At first, of course, the end of her first big music project was confusing and discouraging, but soon after she decided to look at it as an opening for new opportunity. Being in the band taught Symon about the ins and outs of the industry, and now, she is ready to put that education to use on her own project.

“Within that week of me being angry, being sad, I said, ‘This is just the beginning for you, you have to go into the studio and create’,” she says.

Soon after the breakup of The New Officials, Steve Zapp, co-founder of the record label Art Beats, contacted Symon. He had first seen Symon perform years ago at a small club in L.A., when he was managing bands signed to Hollywood. “He said, ‘I’ve wanted to steal you from that band for years, but I didn’t want to be unprofessional and whatnot, so what’s going on with the band?’” Symon recalls. “The band had just broken up, and he goes, ‘Call me.’” After a meeting or two, Steve and his business partner, Gino Barletta,

signed Symon to their label. Soon after, Symon was signed to Sony, as well. “All of that happened within two months of my band breaking up, so it was just absolutely incredible,” she says.

As a solo artist, Symon hopes to convey her journey of self-exploration and realization through her music. “I’m in my 20’s.

This time in my life… It’s trial and error.

We’re trying to find ourselves,” she says.

“I’m basing my album off of my journey, finding my female strength. Whether it’s me feeling sexy, or it’s me being vulnerable, there are different aspects of having female power, and I want my art, my audience, to feel connected and to be able to relate.”

This sense of female power is being felt not only in Symon’s music, but in the music community as a whole. Finally, the solo careers of powerful female solo artists are taking off, something in which Symon finds a great deal of support. “For a minute, it was all boys. It was a lot of solo guys.

All of a sudden, there was a demand,” she says. “There needed to be some female voices out there. We all inspire each other.

Everyone needs to support one another, and that’s how I look at it.”

NKDMAG.COM

05

06

Symon’s debut single, “Say”, was the first song she did by herself, and it serves as an introduction. “I wanted to write a fun song to introduce who I am,” she remarks, “I saw it as just something that I can put out for me to feel like I’m being myself.” Symon is now in the midst of radio promotion for the song. One of her first stops on the radio tour was at SiriusXM. “I’ve grown up listening to Kid Kelly everyday. I was so nervous,” she says. Symon played “Say” for him, and immediately he asked to hear it again.

“I’m so starstruck by him, and he goes, ‘I have to play it again.’ He looks me in the eye, and he says, ‘I’m adding your record,’” Symon says. “I’m like, ‘What are you talking about, this doesn’t even come out for another month!’” Kid Kelly’s reaction was just the beginning of the success of “Say.” Now, a few months after its release, the song is charting in the Top 50 on pop radio. “I just feel so overwhelmed and so grateful,” Symon says.

Currently, Symon is working on new music: her next single, an EP, and a debut full-length. The single, which she hints will be coming out soon, is going to have a slightly different vibe from “Say”. “I think you can expect something a bit moodier, a bit more vulnerable, and maybe something a little sexy,” Symon remarks. This song will also have a music video, something that she didn’t get to do for “Say.” “This one is going to have an amazing music video with great concepts. I can’t wait for people to actually see my imagery, and my whole thing,” she says. In 2017, she plans to tour. Since a full band can’t come along on the radio tour stops, she’s working on building her band for next year.

“It’s amazing to have squads up there, and to feel that power,” she says, “I’m excited to start touring and have some talented musicians up there with me. That will feel awesome, to have that support.”

Overall, Symon is just excited to reach out to audiences, both new and old, with her own story. “I can’t wait for people to come into my life now. I want to touch people, I want people to feel like they can relate, and I want to help people,” she says.

“Music for me was always my escape, but I knew that I wanted to make that escape my reality, and I just want people to feel something. I want to move people in a bigger way. There’s so much to do, and I’m the little girl climbing up that ladder.” NKD NKDMAG.COM

07

young rising sons Words by MERISSA BLITZ Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

Standing in a crowded Starbucks on a Saturday afternoon on the Upper West Side, the guys in Young Rising Sons are grabbing a quick bite to eat. Steve Patrick is chatting away with his mouth full, Julian Dimagiba burns himself on his spinach feta wrap and Andy Tongren is excitedly tweeting about their meet-and-greet that is going to take place soon in Central Park. Underneath the hectic nature of the day lie three chill dudes who are best friends and musical soul mates who are preparing for big things that lie ahead.

They guys met seven years ago, around Thanksgiving, kind of by fate – Steve says it was a “divine intervention”. Andy had been performing at an open mic at Angels and Kings in the East Village in Manhattan. The rest of the guys happened to be visiting from New Jersey and stumbled upon Andy’s performance. They were looking for a singer to start a band and asked Andy to come practice with them sometime.

“It just immediately clicked,” Andy remembers. “It was insane chemis-

try. I eventually moved to Jersey and fell in love with the area and fell in love with the guys – it was just like a perfect combo.”

Around the New Year, after a couple months of getting to know each other and learning what worked for them as a whole, they began to play shows. They toured a bit under a different band name, having some fun and making some fans along the way but the vibe didn’t feel right to them.

“It was fun music to play, what we were doing prior to what we’re doing now, but that’s kind of all it was, it was just fun. I don’t think any of us really felt a true connection to it,” Andy says. “I think we realized that that just wasn’t us and we kind of found a sound that we identify more with.”

Eventually they decided to change their name to Young Rising Sons, “just to give [themselves] a little facelift”. They were lucky enough to get signed to Interscope Records after they put out their hit “High” and have been on an upward spiral since.

“I’m kind of glad it took us the

amount of time that it did because we were able to mature, not just as a band but as individuals, so that when that point did come, it felt more natural, it felt right, and we were ready for it, I think,” Andy explains.

Recently, the Sons faced a new challenge when their lead guitarist, Dylan Scott decided to leave the band. Dylan, who is now playing in a band called Rad Horror, had been with the band since day one and basically grew up with Steve and Julian.

“We all love Dylan to death and I think musically he just wanted a different thing and we didn’t see eye-toeye on that but we felt like he should go and be able to do his own thing and not hold himself back,” Steve explains. “He just wasn’t reaching what he thought was his full potential, I think.”

The guys, now a threesome, are incredibly supportive of their friend’s decision to go down a different path and are welcoming the changes and challenges that it’s currently bringing them.

“We’re excited for the challenge NKDMAG.COM

09

10

and I think it will give people another view into what we’re actually capable of as musicians – get to show off a little more,” Andy says.

They’re currently experimenting with members playing more or different instruments than they’re used to. Steve is even stepping out from behind the drums and playing the ukulele a bit and, according to him, he’s “killing it!”

“Andy’s playing a lot more guitar and piano to fill out a lot of that space. I’m playing a string instrument, which is very confusing for people because they’re used to me playing drums,” Steve says. “But we’re not just going to have [Dylan] replaced by a track on a computer or something like that, we want to make sure that it’s organic still.”

The guys took a challenging situation and forced themselves to learn something new and constantly grow as musicians and as individuals.

“That’s kind of the point of playing music, I think for all of us, is to just expand and learn everything you can,” Steve says.

The guys have been taking a lot of risks lately, including putting out their most recent single “Undefeatable”. It was a song that Andy had been holding on to for over two years while other songs just kept being put ahead of it, though “Undefeatable” was always in the back of his head because he thought there was something special there.

A couple of months ago, Andy was in the car with Julian heading to the studio and he decided to see what he thought of it.

“I just played it and he looked over at me and the words out of his mouth were literally, ‘Andy, what the fuck is this’,” Andy remembers. “I think when you write a song you know when something is really good and it could work, but having other people excited about it just kind of reconfirms that.”

So they took it into the studio, reproduced it and came out with a single that combines the gritty rock sound of their old style with the anthemic pop vibe of their new sound.

When a new single comes out, fans usually start asking when the next album is coming out. The Sons have been working on a full-length for a while now and had plans to put one out last year but weren’t happy with the way that it was coming out.

“We kind of sat down with it and were like, you know, our fans deserve

better,” Andy says.

Touring really took a toll on their creative process because it’s such a crazy period without a lot of down time that Steve describes as feeling like there’s “a beehive in your brain.”

“I feel like we didn’t really accomplish what we wanted to and we kind of looked at the body of work and were like, we could do better,” Steve says. “That’s a big part of why it has taken so long.”

The past few months, they’ve been working hard creating a body of work that they’re proud of. There isn’t a release date set yet but it seems like they feel more confident in this endeavor than the last album they were thinking of putting out.

The Sons want to make sure that they give the best of themselves to their fans whether it be through the music they put out or the interactions that they have with them. They described their fans as being a tightknit community of people.

“We can do giveaways and send people personal videos and photos and sign things, hand written letters, NKDMAG.COM

11

I think our fans really appreciate that stuff,” Steve says. “While we’re not touring and we’re not in front of them they’re still thinking about us which is really cool.”

One of their friends helps them out with a street team called Sons Social Club that helps to promote the band and have been essential in helping the band grow.

This particular day, they were on their way to have a little meet-andgreet in Central Park for their fans.

“We did one of these in Asbury Park a couple months ago and it was at a time when we were a little stalled out,” Andy explains. “We couldn’t really do much, we weren’t playing shows, we hadn’t put out any new music but we wanted to do something.”

But the guys appreciate their fans so much they wanted to do something special. They posted a map of where they would be in Asbury Park with an X marked on it and just left it up to the fans whether or not they would come out for it. They weren’t expecting much but almost 200 people ended up coming out.

“It’s cool to do pop-up stuff like this and give everyone a chance to hang out with us; it’s not a rush,” Steve says, “We can just hang as long as we want and talk to everybody individually, take photos, sign stuff, we’ll probably play a few songs acoustic - it’s not legal I’m sure.”

“Yeah, we might get arrested,” says Andy with a laugh.

The guys are heading over to the West Coast at the end of the month to play some shows with The Moth and the Flame. They’re excited to get out of the studio for a bit and play, even if it’s brief.

“It’s funny because right now it’s such a fine balance because we haven’t put out all this new music but we’re really excited about it and want to play it but want to play songs that people know, too,” Andy says.

This tour will be the “litmus test” as Andy calls it to figuring out how these new songs play live as well as how they perform as a trio.

“We’re excited to get back in front of everyone and say hello,” Steve says. NKD 12

NKDMAG.COM

13

walker hayes

Words by TAYLOR DOUGHERTY Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

Walker Hayes has lived a true Nashville story – one that includes trial, tribulation and the triumph that begins to emerge. Unlike some, Walker didn’t grow up wanting to be a musician professionally. “I didn’t harness such a passion for music until college,” he says, “In college I was a biology major for two years and one summer I took a class in piano, fell in love with it, changed my major, and ended up getting a degree in piano.” After college he moved back to Mobile, Alabama, married his high school sweetheart and intended to work in the real estate business with his father, but his passion for music only escalated when he took up learning guitar. He spent hours upon hours practicing, “I had a lot of time to make up,” he laughs. Finally, at the insistent urging of his father, Walker decided to perform at a local bar open mic night – and it was this night that truly set his career as a musician in motion. “I had a lot of stage fright, but finally I said ‘Dad, I’m going to do this if you’ll just leave me alone about it’ and I went and did it and… boom. I was just like ‘I’ve got to do this for a job and not sell real estate like you.’ Which is not what he expected but fully supported. So did my wife. So we moved to Nashville,” he recalls.

Walker and his wife Laney have been in Nashville for 12 years now and have six children. While the dream is still alive and well for him, like most Nashville hopefuls, it hasn’t been easy.

“I’ve had and lost two record deals and I’ve been through about three publishing companies, so Nashville’s beat me up pretty good. My stuff ’s a little weird for the country format, but it seems country music is coming my way. I don’t know where my music sits. I just think people are beginning to connect and it was all timing,” he says. He ran into one of his toughest moments a few years ago when another publishing deal came to an end. It was a loss he took hard and personally, and the one that almost made him give up music altogether.

Money got tight, and while he was able to get another publishing deal it wasn’t enough to provide for his family, so he had to take up a second job at Costco to make ends meet. After a year of this he thought he couldn’t take much more when his biggest break yet came by way

of producer Shane McAnally. “I was pitching him songs for an artist that he was producing and he said ‘I love your stuff, but I can’t get my guys to cut it. I want to cut it on you’. He signed me and I got to stop working at Costco,” he says.

It was a move that changed Walker’s life and gave him the confidence boost he needed to continue on. “You know, when you get somebody like Shane to endorse your product, there’s really no one else in town who you would want behind you. It’s about relationships and it’s about people eventually standing behind you. He’s one of the first people that have gotten behind me and not really, oddly enough, trimmed anything away. He’s just like ‘I love what you do’ and he’s honest. I feel like everyone needs a person like Shane who doesn’t like everything, because if someone likes everything you give them, you’re not improving,” Walker says.

This year he’s released two 8Tracks, Good Shit and Break The Internet, and has taken an increased focus on growing his fan base. “These are all songs I build as I’m writing. I build these tracks in a little shack on Music Row, out back behind my publishing company. It’s got an old version of Pro Tools in there and I just beat on tables and beat box and whistle or whatever. There’s label stuff in the works, but right now, I’m just enjoying the freedom of writing what comes from the heart and not really aiming,” he says. But he admits that this freedom is something that he hasn’t always had and there have been many times where selling out seemed like the only option.

“There’s plenty of times in every year and every record label where I’ve just kind of conceded and been like I cant get anywhere doing me with you all so I’m going to put on the shirt, you want me to wear a red v-neck? Okay. You want me to cut my hair like this? Okay.

You want me to sing more like this?

Fine. You want a song that’s simpler and happier? Because that’s up-tempo and positive, you want that? And I’m ashamed to say there’s a lot of weeks every year that I spent going ‘I’m tired of trying to buck the system and be me.

Just let me give y’all whatever it is you think is going to pop me,’ because that’s what everybody says. ‘If you just give me that ‘one,’ then you can be yourself ’”

he says. He ran into what many artists over the years have run into: he was just tired of fighting. But with Shane’s guidance he has found a new freedom with music that he hasn’t had in a long time. “What Shane tells me that’s different is, ‘Just be yourself. We’re going to find that ‘one’ and it is going to be you.

I don’t want you to be this guy or that guy. I don’t want you to be that easy to digest, because if you’re not polarizing then you’re not the guy I signed.,” Walker says. Since being with Shane he hasn’t only increased his footprint with fans, but with others in the music community that would have never given him the time of day before. “I could feel a lot of people who I’d never really just buddied up with kind of cracking and being like ‘Okay, maybe this Walker guy – maybe this is legit’. And a lot of those guys came out of the woodwork, and it means the world,” he says, “I was surprised how much it meant to earn some of their respect. My phone has just been blowing up. It’s so weird. I’m getting calls from everywhere, from people I just didn’t even know listened to other music in the community. It’s gratifying and great. But yeah, there’s a difference. There’s a buzz, and that buzz is important.”

This November, Walker will make another incredible stride forward in his career when he opens for country duo Dan + Shay on their Obsessed Tour.

“I’ve done one-offs for 12 years. You name them, I’ve opened for them, but I’ve never had a tour. This is a first. I’ve never had an artist be like ‘We’re taking you out, and you’re going to go the whole fall,’ so I think it’s going to be the beginning of a long lasting relationship and I have the most respect for them. I just can’t wait to watch them and learn from them, because they’re bad to the bone,” he says.

If it’s anyone’s time to breakthrough, it’s Walker Hayes. He’s paid his dues in full more times than most people could handle, but he’s still standing and still has the same passion for the craft and the artistry. He’s yet another example of the new wave emerging from Nashville, that of true creative types that are bending the system and beating the industry at its own game by refusing to be anything other than themselves. NKD NKDMAG.COM

15

cheat codes

Words by VANESSA SALLES Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

16

Set on making a name for themselves and playing by their own rules, DJ/producer trio, Cheat Codes, gets better and better with each song.

With a fan base that spans across the globe, Cheat Codes is comprised of the multi-talented Trevor Dahl, Kevin Ford, and Matt Russell. Though the guys had each worked on individual projects before banding together, it’s their joint effort that has found them international success. “After making our first song together [“Visions”], we just really dug the vibe and decided to stick together,” Trevor says, “We kept making new songs and releasing them on a regular basis, all on our own time and dime.

Keeping everything in-house was kind of how we got our start and from then on, we just tried to make every release bigger and better than the last.”

Having already achieved such monumental career goals, the guys are both impressed by and grateful for their sky-rocket ride to stardom. “It’s definitely been fast, but everything feels very natural,” Matt says. “Nothing’s been forced in our career and we’ve made sure to do whatever feels right to us and base all major decisions like who we work with, what songs we put out, what we decide to do with our brand, etc. on our gut-feelings. Everything’s authentic and everyone we surround ourselves with is 100% invested in our vision.”

The idea behind Cheat Codes is way more than just music. In fact, Trevor, Kevin, and Matt hope to make it a lifestyle. “The whole idea behind it is to skip all the boring stuff in life and just go straight to having fun,” Matt says.

“It’s about doing things that you want to do; that’s the whole point of having a cheat code. While we’re focusing on music right now, there’s a lot more areas that we’d love to get into. We want to be able to expand our brand and eventually have a clothing line, write a book, have a realty TV show, etc. It’s all about timing.”

While everything’s been happening

at a fast speed, the trio still makes sure to recognize and embrace every milestone. “Everything’s been happening in incremental steps,” Trevor says. “After we made ‘Sex’, we knew that it could be a big song for us. We’re so grateful that Spotify really supported the song; it got up to #10 on the global charts and at one point, ended up getting 3M+ plays a day. That’s definitely when we started to realize how crazy everything was and how far we could go. It was surreal, for sure.” Having only performed one of their first shows just short of a year ago, Cheat Codes has gone from being music lovers’ best kept secret to an on-the-rise household name. “We definitely have different stand-out moments that we’re always really grateful for,” Kevin adds.

“We think of our first tour [with The Chainsmokers] and how we played to thousands of people - it was a wild time for us. That was only last November and now we’re doing headlining shows in Europe and going on tour with Matoma.”

For their viral success, Cheat Codes credits the help from their label partners and streaming services like Spotify. “I think everyone our age understands that streaming is the future,” Trevor says. “It’s definitely been a huge part of it for us and we understood that from the beginning. We didn’t want to rely on radio too much and that played a big part in us coming up. Radio’s also very hit or miss and fans of the radio aren’t necessarily die-hard fans of the artists.” Shying away from any long-term record deals, the trio prefers finding unique partners for each track, assuring quality work. “We’re doing one song at a time which is different than what a lot of other artists do,” Kevin says. “We’ve been very picky with finding partners that work for specific songs. We try and see who’s good at doing what and make sure we’re building our partnerships the right way. We want to be smart about everything and so it’s been really cool for us to be so hands-on with the entire process.”

NKDMAG.COM

17

With fans in different music markets, Cheat Codes is accepting of the fact that not every song will be a number-one hit.

“We definitely want to have songs that don’t live on the radio,” Trevor says, “We want to have songs that just live inside certain music worlds; we like that. Having songs that live in different lanes is really important to us. There’s definitely people that listen to and love both our pop and dance songs but there’s some people who’re more into pop than dance, or vice versa. We like being able to cater to them all.” Making sure their fans get what they want, Cheat Codes place priority on making their live shows one to remember. “That’s where it all comes together for us,” Matt says, “One of the great things about festivals or clubs is that you might hear a Top 40 song that you know and love the lyrics to, but then the beat goes into something totally different and unexpected.

That’s what we do with our songs and shows; we want to have songs that stand out on their own but where we can tweak the beat to it and give fans something exciting to hear. Whether their favorite song is ‘Can’t Fight It’ or ‘Sex,’ they’re still going to be able to enjoy the whole show because of the energetic, feel-good vibes.”

Having graced multiple stages at multiple festivals, the trio have learned (and mastered) the ropes as they’ve gone. One thing they’ve incorporated into their sets – which has solidified them as unique artists are the use of visual elements and genuine crowd interactions. “People that come to festivals are coming for the music,” Trevor says.

“We’ve had a great reaction from people and the festival crowds have been really accepting of us. Adding live elements and visuals is a big part of it all; people are more into the performance if it’s interesting to watch. We’re used to talking to crowds and interacting with them so when we came into this dance world we

18

felt like people weren’t doing enough of that in their performances. It was natural for us to want to fill that void and be a little bit different!”

With each release having its own vibe, Trevor, Kevin and Matt are very adamant about giving each song its own time to shine. “We usually go one song at a time and then figure out our next step,” Matt says. “We always have a bunch of songs ready to go because we’re always writing, producing, and mixing everything. It’s just a matter of always putting our best foot forward.”

Even though the trio focuses on putting out one song at a time, the time in between releases can differ with each track. “We really like being flexible,” Trevor adds, “The dance world creates content like crazy so that world might be ready for a new song quicker than the radio would. Not every song will crossover and be a smash and that’s not what we’re after; songs that are meant for certain worlds will just find its way there.”

As for Cheat Codes’ future plans, the trio is set to have some busy months ahead of them. “We’ll be touring till mid-November and then we have a couple more festivals lined up,” Matt says, “Mostly, we’re just going to continue to do what we’ve been doing which is creating. As crazy as it may sound, we don’t ever want to be content; we always want to want more. In the future, we’d like to create our own festival, our own label, have a residency in Vegas, and so much more. We plan on having our hands in a lot of different areas. It’s just a matter of taking our time so we can go about everything the right way. We’ve had such a great reaction in international markets like Australia and The Netherlands so playing EDC festivals in those places is definitely on our bucket list. Ultimately, we just want to get better and better while having people love what it is we’re doing.” NKD

NKDMAG.COM

19

landry bender Words by STACY MAGALLON Photos by CATHERINE POWELL Hait & Make-Up by CHECHEL JOSON When actress Landry Bender was 4-years-old, she couldn’t shut up about Annie. Her mother claimed it was just a phase. But it wasn’t.

Chicago born and Arizona raised, Landry started her career at the early age of 5 when she auditioned for a community theater production of Peter Pan. Before she turned 10, she had performed in 15 productions. “At that point, my parents decided it was time to take my love of acting seriously,” she says. A couple months later, she was discovered by an entertainment manager.

Landry’s parents – both of which are sports announcers – made a bold choice in moving to Los Angeles because it seemed to work out for everyone. After stepping foot on west coast soil for pilot season, Landry was quick to claim Los Angeles as her home. “I remember calling my mom a few weeks after we settled down there,” Landry says. “I was like, ‘Just so you know, I don’t want to leave.’ I was 9,” she recalls. A year and a half later, Landry booked her first role in a commercial. In 2011, she acted beside Jonah Hill in The Sitter. It wasn’t until the following year that Landry met with the

20

network that would give her her biggest opportunity to date.

Landry was casted as Cleo Bernstein on Disney XD’s Crash & Bernstein. The series centered around a boy with three sisters who yearns for a brother. His wish is granted when a puppet named Crash comes to life. Crash & Bernstein ran for two seasons with its last episode airing in August of 2014. “I was almost 14-years-old when the show wrapped and the producers wanted to find a new project for me,” she says. So Landry shot a pilot with the same producers, who loved the chemistry of the cast, but not the concept of the storyline. The creators, who pitched Best Friends Whenever three years ago, decided to resurrect the idea from the creative graveyard.

Landry plays Cyd Ripley, the sarcastic tomboy best friend of Shelby Marcus.

While her parents are away on an archaeological trip in Peru, she and Shelby discover their ability to travel through time together as long as they remain touching.

“She’s a little dark, but she’s headstrong,” Landry says of Cyd. “She’s got this confidence and spark, and she loves everyone around her.” Best Friends Whenever is

founded on the importance of friendship and love – themes Landry fully supports and believes in. “We’re flawed and we’re klutzy, multidimensional characters,” she says, stating that the actors are the same age as the roles they play. “And I think shows about friendship are so important to show to young girls and boys.”

The young Disney star praises the authenticity of such a relatable, genuine character existing on a network known for gracing the world with “perfect little princesses.” As a kid, Landry grew up watching Hannah Montana and The Suite Life of Zack and Cody among the other popular hits on Disney Channel. She cites Selena Gomez’s Wizards of Waverly Place character, Alex Russo, as a huge influence on her portrayal of Cyd. In a rapidly developing entertainment industry with a negative stigma around it’s female employees, Best Friends Whenever challenges the status quo. The show is scripted by an almost all-female staff who brings pieces of their actors into the personalities of their characters. “I’ve seen so much growth in terms of the writing,” Landry says. “You meet characters written from many different angles –

NKDMAG.COM

21

22

NKDMAG.COM

23

not just the stereotypical tomboy or nerd or girly girl.”

In the last decade, an entertainer’s social media following has evolved into a critical component of their success.

This includes watching episodes with their audience in real time and reacting alongside their fans. “Having that instant connection is so much fun,” Landry says.

“It’s something I wish I had when I was growing up and watching Disney.”

Best Friends Whenever brings a new, refreshing element to the often common narratives of Disney Channel shows – and it’s something you’ve never seen before. The time traveling portion manages to make this live-action sitcom both entertaining and educational for it’s cast and audience. “In one episode, we visited the ‘70s and my parents were like, ‘I remember that,’” Landry laughs. “I’ve learned so much just by being on the show.” The show’s farthest time jump has yet to air, but Landry promises it’s worth tuning in for, and that the upcoming season (which kicks off with a week of new episodes starting October 2nd) will be one to watch. Whether it’s Cyd’s friendship with Shelby, or the wacky ingredient

of time travel, there’s always something to explore. “There’s so much growth going on and each episode gets better and better,” she says.

During her time off from filming Best Friends Whenever, Landry was added to the cast of a currently-running animated show – though she can’t disclose details yet. “It’ll be released soon,” she says, keeping the secret to herself. “I’m proud of the work I did because of how different acting is in the voiceover world.”

She finds herself overacting and overexpressing herself to foster a stronger, more emotional impact in her delivery.

“It really gets you going in your PJ’s,” she says, laughing.

Landry also just registered for her junior year of high school. Her independent study program is no different from other 16-year olds – she just gets to do her work with the tutors on set. “Academics are so important to me,” she says.

“I’m able to keep up with that well and I’m lucky I love it as much as I do.” With two years to go, the big ‘C’ word comes up: College. Landry doesn’t know where or how, but that’s a definite part of her plan. “I’d love to go for writing, produc-

ing, or directing,” she says. “But I have some time to figure it out. There’s a lot of room for exploration that would help my career.”

Since Season 2 of Best Friends Whenever has wrapped filming, Landry finds herself doing “pretty normal” things.

“Honestly, I’m in hibernation mode,” Landry declares, laughing. “I love hanging out with my friends, going to the mall, I just started Stranger Things on Netflix. And I really love cake.”

Landry loves the defined contrast between herself and Cyd. Last season, her character was hit with an existential crisis. Coincidentally, so was Landry.

Cyd and Shelby traveled back to kindergarten, and in doing so, faced the hard, inevitable truth of growing old. “I was having the same conversation with my mom,” Landry recalls. “Neither of us know what’s ahead.” And while others find fear in the unknown, Landry is embracing it. There’s hope in the future, both in reality as well as in the life of her fictional character. “I hope any character I play challenges me,” she says. “If it scares me, it means I’m doing something right.” NKD

NKDMAG.COM

25

frenship Words by DUSTIN HEVERON Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

With a band name like FRENSHIP, you’ve probably already guessed that the L.A.-based electro-pop duo (consisting of Brett Hite and James Sunderland) was formed when the two men met each other for the first time and became instant best friends and close collaborators with an immediate musical synergy that made their friendship the stuff of legends. And you would be wrong.

“I met [Brett] working at Lululemon selling women’s spandex,” James Sunderland recalls with a wave of his long, blonde, beach bum hair that looks like he could just as easily have stepped off the Venice Beach boardwalk as the sold out stage of one of the electro-pop scene’s hottest new acts. “I found out Brett did music and we didn’t like each other’s shit at first.”

Yet as with Hemingway, Shakespeare, Beethoven and so many artists before them, James found the answer to their creative differences: “We got really drunk together for a while and just became friends,” he says. Bret adds, laughing, “Yeah and then loved each other’s shit.”

Brett Hite — the other “fren” in FRENSHIP — is another anomaly: a deadpan stoic that also loves to crack jokes and speaks bluntly (but not coldly) about his passion for music, sporting the perpetual 5-day-old beginnings of a beard that you’d expect an effortlessly-cool L.A. music maker to have.

James gives the Cliff ’s notes version of their formation/transformation into a band, “[I] said let’s stop drinking and try to make a song and then made that song ‘Kids’ and got noticed by some people. Signed a publishing deal and then started playing out a bit, grew it, worked on music, signed a record deal, and here we are,” he recalls.

It may sound like the story of an overnight success, but James and Bret have been paying their dues and putting in the legwork for years.

“DJ-ing wasn’t really for me,” James recalls of his early days in the electronic music world. “We always saw the artist project being the main thing,” Brett observes about their initial signing of a publishing deal as a songwriting/producing duo, “But we also really enjoy writing with other people. If we’re

working with another artist it’s fun to dive in and really find out who they are and really try to get that to come to life in a record.”

Brett continues, “[Songwriting] was always part of it, but I think we got caught in ‘We should write for everybody and then we should do our own thing’ and didn’t really find a good balance, then eventually it was like ‘We’ve have to put our own stuff out, let’s put our songs out.’ So we did and it’s been so far a pretty rewarding result.”

James adds, “It’s been a pleasant surprise for sure, but we’ve been chipping away at this for a while, so to a degree you’re like, ‘Yeah, I know we do some cool stuff,’ and this song felt pretty good from inception, but it’s going to hit a hundred million [Spotify plays] in a day or two and that’s pretty shocking.

It’s all shocking.”

“We had no idea this was coming,” Brett offers, succinctly, “We do our best and then we put [the music] out because that’s all you can do. We go in there and we rewrite our songs, we do our damnedest to make it’s the best thing we can make it, and that gives you the confidence that when you release it, it’ll be well received. But it’s all subjective and you have no idea how it’s going to react. It’s crazy that it’s doing what it is and we’re super grateful and excited about it.”

But new successes and achievements bring new challenges and raised expectations — ones that FRENSHIP as a group have been working hard to prepare for, and welcome openly. “We’ve never had more people try and tell us what to do than right now,” Brett points out, “Which can be good, but mostly it’s frustrating and we get tired of it.”

Signing to a major label like Columbia Records is a sure fire way to bring more attention and scrutiny to a project, but James and Brett are confident that they found a good fit in that partnership.

“We saw a label as a thing that would take us and make us into a thing it wanted us to be,” Brett confesses, “It’s really weird to me when people are like, ‘Here you should be creative like this.’ We’re not these 20-year-old punks anymore, so let’s do what we want to do. Life’s too short to be told how to be creative. Columbia [Records] were one

of the only big meetings we had where they were like ‘What do you guys want to do, where do you want to take this, and how can we be a part of that?’”

Fittingly enough, James and Brett counteract outside frustrations with: friendship. This time, instead of drinking with a songwriting partner, the friendship comes in the form of the two (soon to be three) additional touring musicians Brett and James brought in to help fill out the live band. “We bring these guys [FRENSHIP’s live touring band] in and we listen to them,” Brett reveals, “They’re our buddies and they’re a good hang and all that, but we respect them as artists and we definitely respect their opinions. Live, it’s a collaborative effort for sure.”

“Obviously there’s more cooks in the kitchen,” James adds, on increased input from label personnel, management types, etc. “There’s things that have shifted, we’re trying to build something long term here, but yeah, it felt natural [to add additional live musicians].”

James expounds on constantly perfecting FRENSHIP’s live show, “It started out just the two of us onstage, and then we added a drummer, we added a guitarist, but we’ve really only been doing full band shows for about six months.”

The band’s shared vision and work ethic extends well beyond their current iteration, “We’ve been rehearsing our asses off trying to make it sound really good,” James states, “And it’s super important to us to take it as far as we can. It’s super cheesy to say, but arenas are in the sights, so you’ve got to hear it in a big stage.”

And for FRENSHIP, the stages just keep getting bigger and bigger. With their recently-released EP, Truce, a full fall tour underway and big plans headed into 2017, FRENSHIP looks to continue growing in popularity (and stage size) with no slowdown in the foreseeable future. “In this modern world it’s such an opportunity to be a great live band because no one is anymore,” Brett opines, “That’s essentially the core of music – playing it for other people live and seeing the faces and people singing back. It’s such a cool experience. We’ve always seen this as a live band, it’s the fun challenges of showing people there’s a little more depth.” NKD NKDMAG.COM

27

28

ryan follese Words & Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

Even if you haven’t heard Ryan Follese’s name, you’ve definitely heard his voice. As the lead vocalist of pop band Hot Chelle Rae, Ryan secured two platinum singles with “Tonight, Tonight” and “I Like It Like That” back in 2011. After attempting to follow up their sophomore album Whatever (2011), the band parted ways with RCA Records and eventually disbanded. Shortly after, a family emergency brought Ryan back to his hometown of Nashville and gave him the opportunity to tap into his country roots.

After eight years of playing as a foursome, guitarist Ian Keaggy left Hot Chelle Rae in 2013, which Ryan cites as the first instance of something not feeling right. Shortly after his departure, Ryan’s mother (songwriter Adrienne Follesé) was diagnosed with breast cancer.

Ryan dropped everything in Los Angeles and moved back home to Nashville to be with his family. “I had been working on all these songs that sounded really country to me for awhile,” Ryan says. When he

returned home, his mother (who is in good health now) suggested they finishing writing those songs together as a family – along with Ryan’s father Keith (an award winning songwriter) and younger brother Jamie (who played drums for Hot Chelle Rae). “Chemo flew by and before we knew it, we had a record,” he says, “It’s felt right. It still feels right.”

Ryan grew up writing with his parents a little bit, but quickly made an effort to separate himself from his parents’ shadow. Once he had success of his own with Hot Chelle Rae, him and his parents were able to see each other as “pure equals”, which made writing together easier.

“Now it’s like, who can out write the other?” Ryan jokes. While country music always surrounded Ryan, he initially started writing rock music in a “crap rock band” before Hot Chelle Rae morphed into a pop band. “None of it felt right, though,” Ryan admits, “I wouldn’t take back a second of it, but it’s not what I inherently do naturally.”

Quickly into the writing process for his debut country album, BMLG Records (a sub-label of Big Machine Label Group) made Ryan an offer.

He was hesitant to sign at first because he had been on a major label for eight years and it didn’t end well.

“Never will you hear an artist say ‘Yeah, the record label just let me make the record I wanted to make’,” Ryan says, “They were nothing but helpful and actually critical in amazing ways.”

The creative team for Ryan’s album was kept small – just his family and longtime friend Cameron Montgomery, who also produced the record, along with Dann Huff. The only other songwriter credited is Cameron’s older brother Josh Montgomery (of The Summer Set), who helped write “Growing Up”. “There was no compromising. If someone had a bad idea, it was okay to tell them it was a bad idea because it’s family,” Ryan says. This forced everyone involved to bring their best foot forward, and Ryan believes that’s evident in the final product. In NKDMAG.COM

29

fact, Scott Borchetta – CEO & President of Big Machine – insisted that Ryan needed to be a writer on every song or it wouldn’t sound like him.

In Nashville and country music, that is the highest of compliments.

From the day this project started – and even before, really – Ryan knew that these songs were his and other artists would not be cutting them. “I was never writing to not be an artist,” he says, “I’m definitely a selfish writer. It’s lead singer disease.”

On September 2nd, Ryan released the Ryan Follese EP – his first collection as a country artist. While a full-length album is completed, these songs served as a reintroduction of Ryan to old fans, and a digestible introduction to new listeners. Ryan feels that the six tracks are some of his best songs ever, and has been eager to get them out for a long time. “I’m ready for the album, though,” he admits, “That’s why there’s six songs. I was cramming.”

He feels that this collection of songs is reflective on a very specific time in his life.

Throughout the entire writing process for his album, Ryan and his family kept the songs very close to them. They had all witnessed the dark side of what can happen if you send your songs out before you’re ready to release them, and chose to keep them guarded for as long as possible. “We were just out in Franklin [Tenn., a suburb of Nashville], just doing our thing. And the way it’s coming out now is exactly

30

how I wanted it to happen,” Ryan says.

Prior to releasing his country debut “Float Your Boat” this summer, Ryan was a little nervous as to how the Hot Chelle Rae fans would react to him switching gears and going country. “It doesn’t matter if you like pop or country or whatever.

This is fun and it’s me, and it just happens to be country,” he says. The fan response to his new songs has exceeded his expectations – especially considering he had been keeping so quiet about what he was up to. “I felt like sending a tweet when I was trying to figure my life out was such a – not stupid thing – but so useless,” Ryan says. He found it very difficult to not communicate with his fans and answer questions about what was going on with Hot Chelle Rae. He opted to pull an Ed Sheeran and do a bit of a social media detox – and he knew he didn’t want to come back without music ready to go. Luckily for him, the majority of his fanbase (from what he can tell) stuck around and were excited to hear his new songs.

His second single, “Put A Label On It”, is already a fan-favorite, and Ryan knew in his guy that it would be a single since the day he wrote it.

“I feel like it touches a nerve with every single person who has ever been in any kind of relationship,” he says, “It is that stage where both of you are going, ‘What is it?’” He wanted to channel the good feeling of when two people are on the same page about entering a relationship.

NKDMAG.COM

31

32

“That is the best feeling ever,” he says. He is currently in the middle of an intense radio tour across the country to promote the single. Many country artists are quick to admit that the first radio tour is the hardest thing they’ll ever do, and Ryan doesn’t disagree – but it’s also his second rodeo. “I like playing acoustic, I like meeting people and towns and shaking hands,” he says.

While Ryan has plenty touring experience under his belt, he is having a hard time adjusting to being the “boss” on stage, so to speak.

“When you’re in a band, your band is your shield, so if anything goes wrong or something happens, it’s not your fault, it’s somebody else’s fault,” he says, “It’s a cop out.” Now, the live show is completely on his shoulders, but he feels that he is ready to take on that responsibility.

He’ll be heading out with LoCash on the Ones to Watch Tour staring in November with dates stretching into April. Those dates, however, are very spread out and he’s hoping a more traditional tour routing will take up the majority of his spring and summer next year.

This chapter of Ryan’s life has been a total reset. While he has put in the hours towards a music career already, in a way, the genre shift means starting fresh. “For me, my parents told me that they were very proud of me because it took a lot of courage to reset,” he says, “I’m realizing it did, and I’m very, very happy with how they’ve pushed me. But it’s tough to do.” He finds it humbling, but also never let the band’s fame get to his head – no matter how big the stage they were playing on was.

If everything goes according to plan, Ryan’s full-length album will be released in either spring or summer of 2017. For now, he hopes the EP finds its way to as many ears as possible, and that it takes him back around the world and into arenas.

Any nerves that were associated with his new project have long since disappeared and now Ryan plans to keep it growing as long as possible.

“Once you jump out of the airplane it doesn’t matter anymore,” he says. NKD NKDMAG.COM

33

cailee rae Words by SAMANTHA BAMBINO Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

34

Cailee Rae may have thousands of followers on Instagram and Vine, but she’s much more than your average social media star.

The singer found her passion for music at a very young age and it was clear she was destined for the spotlight. Growing up, Cailee had so much energy that her parents constantly had to tell her to turn it down a notch. “I would always be running around the house, singing all these songs,” she says.

As she got a little older and started school, she realized it was hard to fit in with the other kids. Naturally, she turned to music. In second grade, Cailee got her first guitar for Christmas, which was signed by her idol, Taylor Swift. Ever since then, the young artist could not stop writing music.

Cailee even taught herself how to play her first song, “Achy Breaky Heart,” through YouTube, which was just becoming big at the time.

“I started writing for school projects. If I had an assignment about planets and science, I would write a song about it. So music just kind of became what I did,” Cailee says. “After I got home from school, I would do that and my mom would yell at me and say I had to do my homework.”

Over the next few years, Cailee continued to enhance her skills as an artist and write original music. One day, she felt so strongly about one of her songs that she put it behind her dad’s PowerPoint presentation for work. He tried to laugh it off and apologize, but a coworker was intrigued by her talent.

“Someone had heard it and wanted to meet me and wanted to use it for something,” she says.

Though originally from St. Louis, Missouri, Cailee and her family took frequent vacations to Los Angeles.

Their next trip turned out to be very special. She was able to visit a real, live recording studio and meet with Dayyon Alexander, who first heard her music in the PowerPoint.

The studio tour quickly progressed into much more when Alexander asked if she would like to write with someone, just for fun. Cailee jumped at the opportunity and recorded her original song “Feel This Way.” Alexander only

scheduled her for an hour of studio time, but the two ended up collaborating for six hours straight and still work together to this day.

Sadly, the amazing L.A. trip came to an end, and Cailee traveled back to Missouri to resume a normal life.

However, the buzz of the music industry was calling her. “I was starting 8th grade, and when I walked into school and came home, my parents just saw that I felt sad because I really had found something I was passionate about. And where I was from, people just kind of thought it was fake and thought it was something that doesn’t really happen in real life,” Cailee says.

“It was an experience that definitely felt like home to me.”

Cailee asked her parents if she could permanently move to the West Coast, and they were fully supportive. They saw how much she loved music and didn’t want to restrict her from pursuing her dreams.

After making the move to L.A., Cailee’s popularity on social media grew at an unprecedented rate.

Growing up, she never really had any accounts, but decided to start an Instagram. After posting a cover of an Ingrid Michaelson song, things immediately took off.

“All of a sudden, my thing was on the popular page and I was like what the heck? This is crazy,” Cailee remembers of her first experience with the power of social media. Though this was new and exciting, she made her intentions as an artist clear from the start. “I do covers not because I want to gain fans. I honestly do covers because I get really inspired by other music, and I think it’s important for me as an artist to show what I connect to,” she says.

After gaining attention on Instagram, Cailee joined Vine and received over 2 million views on a cover of Taylor Swift’s “Blank Space.” Though her social media following continues to grow, she does not want to be named the next best Instagrammer.

“People can easily put a label on you, and the one thing I really wanted to make sure, still to this day as I work with my music, is I want to make sure people know I’m an artist,” Cailee says.

“I’m not an influencer, I don’t do ads, I don’t do any of that. I really just use social media as a way to connect with my fans around the world and to share my music.”

Soon, the urge to start releasing some original music grew strong. The result, an EP entitled Overthinking, contained songs that were all brand new to fans, but still got an extremely positive reaction.

Since the launch of her first EP, Cailee stays true to what fans originally fell in love with and continues to post covers, though not as frequently. Some videos take up to four hours to complete, especially if you’re a self-proclaimed perfectionist like Cailee.

She explains how her boyfriend, social media personality Jack Dytrych, will steal her phone and laugh at the many versions of the same cover. “He looks through my phone sometimes and sees pages and pages of the same video because I did a million takes of something,” she says, “It’s funny because people listen to them and think every one sounds the same, but they’re not! One note is different, I swear.”

Being a perfectionist is definitely not a bad thing, and that trait comes in handy while in the studio. “Each line I have to make sure is perfect,” Cailee says. “I want it to sound a certain way.

I don’t want any autotune or anything like that in my music. I want it to be my real voice.” Each song is barely touched in production, so fans can rest assured that they are hearing their idol’s own, raw voice.

What can we expect next from Cailee Rae? The artist has already written songs for a follow up to Overthinking and hopes to release a new single soon.

A collaboration with a certain young pop singer may also be in the works.

“All my fans constantly tell me ‘Collab with Shawn Mendes!’ He’s an awesome artist, I would love to collab with him.

He would be a really cool tourmate too,” she says.

Cailee also has some long-term dreams that include filling a stadium with her supportive fans. “I want to have that moment with the crowd where everyone is singing the same song, and it’s just a loving, positive feeling,” she says. NKD NKDMAG.COM

35

victoria justice Words & Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

36

NKDMAG.COM

37

38

Victoria Justice grew up in Hollywood – Hollywood, Fl., that is.

She spent the first 10 years of her life rollerblading and riding scooters down Hollywood Beach’s boardwalk, which was just a few blocks from her childhood home. She was only 7 when she first caught the acting bug. She saw a kid on a commercial and immediately summoned her mom to the television. “I told her that I wanted to do what the kid was doing in the commercial and asked if she thought I could,” she says. Her mom said yes and promised to take her down to Miami one day when school let out early to meet with an agency. Her mom made good on her word and Victoria and her younger sister Madison signed with World of Kids, who began booking them on modeling and commercial shoots.

“I was very fortunate to have a lot of success with booking modeling jobs and commercials, so when I was 9 I told my mom that I wanted to give TV and movies a try,” Victoria recalls. She spent six weeks in New York that summer and quickly realized Los Angeles was where she really needed to be – so it was off to the West Coast. Less than a month after she arrived in California she booked her first television appearance on Gilmore Girls. When she was 12, she joined the cast of Zoey 101 on Nickelodeon, and when that wrapped creator Dan Schneider and Nickelodeon wanted to work with Victoria on her own show, Victorious.

“It was the experience of a lifetime,” Victoria says of her time on Nickelodeon, “One that 11-year-old me could’ve only dreamed about, but then my family came to L.A. to give me a chance to pursue that dream, and it worked out beyond my expectations.” At first, juggling school, acting and a normal life wasn’t too difficult for Victoria, but when she became the lead of her own show at 16, it became too much. She was enrolled in a humanities program at Cleveland High School in Reseda, Cali., which produced a very demanding workload. Six weeks into her sophomore year, she switched to homeschooling.

Since Victorious was full of musical performances (every fourth episode, to be exact), most of Victoria’s spare time was spent in rehearsals or recording, in addition to doing press for her show. At the time she was also signed to two sepaNKDMAG.COM

39

rate record deals with Columbia Records – one for the show and one for her as a solo artist – so she had weekly writing sessions in her schedule as well. “The first two seasons were the most demanding, but I really loved it,” she says. Throughout middle school, Victoria was enrolled in an elite musical theater program and with Victorious she was able to utilize that intense training. “It didn’t leave much time to hang out with my close friends, but I still managed to do sleepovers here and there, and invite them to set when I could,” she admits.

When Victoria first started on Zoey 101, social media was nonexistent. At the time, she had her own website where she would post photos and host Q&A’s – similar to how she utilizes social media now.

“We were definitely more protected being very young teens,” she says, “We didn’t really have to deal with cyber bullying, negative or mean spirited comments, which was really important.” About a year after Victoria joined Nickelodeon, social media slowly started to break through – but Victoria was not in a rush to sign up.

Dan Schneider wanted the entire cast of Victorious on Twitter, so Victoria joined and really began to enjoy having a new way to interact with fans. She felt that 99% of the comments she would receive were positive, and that fans really loved the cast and the songs. The show trended worldwide almost every time a new episode aired.

A few months after Victorious finished airing in February 2013, Victoria switched coasts to begin filming Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List in Greenwich Village in Manhattan. Immediately after, she filmed the pilot for Eye Candy across the bridge in Brooklyn. Victoria was instantly interest-

40

ed in Eye Candy because she couldn’t put the pilot script down. “A female computer hacker that was also a vigilante? I was in,” she shares. Based on the book by R.L. Stine, Eye Candy followed Lindy (Victoria) on her quest to solve her sister’s disappearance, and stop a serial murderer who was targeting people in her life. The MTV drama quickly secured a cult following – many of whom were Victorious fans. “It was the perfect next vehicle for me after Nickelodeon. My audience was growing up with me and we were all ready for me to be seen in more mature roles,” she says.

When Eye Candy wasn’t picked up for a second season, fans were outraged. The show premiered the same night as the College Championship Bowl in 2015 – which ended up being the largest telecast in cable history. Eye Candy’s rating suffered as a result. “A show’s premiere is so important to a show being successful,” she says, “I got a phone call from MTV the very next day and they were so apologetic and supportive of me and the show. They believed in us and were going to continue to promote it.” In the end – while the show’s ratings weren’t bad – they weren’t great. Cancelling the show is a decision that a top executive at MTV regrets, and Victoria takes pride in knowing that. “I took it in stride, though, because I’ve been doing this a long time and it’s just the nature of the business,” she says, “I didn’t take it personally. In fact, I was sincerely happy that it happened in the first place.”

Victoria’s latest project is possibly her most anticipated yet. She will star as Janet in the FOX special The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let’s Do the Time Warp Again – a tribute to the 1975 film.

The stacked cast is filled out by Laverne Cox, Ryan McCartan, Adam Lambert and

NKDMAG.COM

41

Christina Millian, and will air on October 20th. While this is Victoria’s first time stepping in to play an already established character, she wasn’t nervous because she (and the rest of the cast) anticipated that some fans of the original film wouldn’t want a remake at all, and understood that.

She hopes that the naysayers will get on board once they see it. “I’m so proud of the way it turned out. We all are,” she says, stressing that everyone did a great job putting it together.

There has been a bit of backlash, however, from some of her fans who have trouble seeing her in a more adult role.

“Some people think once you’re a Nickelodeon actor that you can’t do anything else,” she says, “I don’t think they realize that being on Nickelodeon or Disney is a style of acting and that doesn’t mean it’s the only thing you can do.” She thinks that fans who have seen her in Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List or Eye Candy will understand and have been waiting for her to take on a role like this. Recently Victoria posted a teaser clip of her singing Janet’s big song “Touch-A Touch-A Touch-A Touch Me” on her social platforms to promote the movie. In the clip, Victoria is only wearing a bra and a half slip, singing a “sexy, provocative song”. Many of her followers slut shamed her on her posts and some

even unfollowed her after leaving negative comments. “Many of my fans are international, so I don’t think a lot of them understood it exactly,” she says, “But quite a few of them just weren’t used to seeing me in a role like that. It was hard for them to wrap their brain around it.” She notes that the majority of her fans are very supportive of this new step in her career and is very appreciative of them for that.

Preparation for Rocky Horror was a bit strenuous, but as a huge fan of the original film, Victoria was anxious to make Janet her own. When she was 15, she went to her first midnight showing of the film (a tradition for fans) and dressed up and participated in the experience. To prepare, she watched the film again as a refresher, but skipped around a bit as not to become too heavily influenced by Susan Sarandon’s version of Janet. “I rehearsed how I was going to sing them so I could make them my own,” she adds. Then came four weeks of rehearsals to learn the choreography.

Rocky Horror will once again showcase Victoria’s musical abilities on television.

Back in the Victorious days, three songs Victoria wrote (“Best Friends Brother”, “Make It In America” and “Faster Than Boys”) were used in the show. “Dan Schneider was extremely selective, so

I considered it an honor,” she says. She looked forward to her weekly writing sessions and was always eager to explore the concepts she would come up with – all which were based on personal experiences. Recently, she started writing and demoing songs again, but is quiet about the details of when people may hear them.

Since her time on Victorious, she has put out a few cover videos on YouTube – often collaborating with Kurt Schneider and fellow Nickelodeon alumni, Max Schneider.

“I love being a part of anything interesting, fun and different, and that’s what I get when I collaborate with Kurt and Max, who are both so talented,” she says. She also worked with Todrick Hall on “Snow White and the Seven Thugs” where she played Snow White – with a twist. She doesn’t have any new videos on the horizon at the moment but is never opposed to putting something fun together with her friends.

Following the release of Rocky Horror, Victoria will jump right back into work.

She recently signed a development deal with FOX and will be meeting with writers to talk new projects, or potentially pop in on an already airing show. “I’m not sure where this road will lead, so I’m playing this one by ear,” she says, “We’ll have to see where it goes.” NKD NKDMAG.COM

45

brooke eden Words by MARY BARNES Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

46

From small town living in Loxahatchee, Florida to living the American Dream in Nashville, Brooke Eden has always worked hard for success. Since the age of 4, she knew a career in music was in her future. The daughter of a country musician, Brooke took a fast track to performing.

“I started playing with my dad’s band when I was about 5-years-old,” she says. After seeing her cousin in a theatre performance of Annie, she took to singing the songs around the house, grabbing her father’s attention. “My dad was like ‘Oh my gosh I think she can sing.’ So he started asking me to play with his band on the weekends,” she says. She performed songs by Shaina Twain, Faith Hill and other artists. Known around town as “the little singer girl,” Brooke says she always felt the support from her hometown, friends and family.

“I just kind of grew up in my hometown singing,” she says. Local performances led to bigger and better things. Starting at around 12-yearsold she was continually asked to open up for country greats such as Alan Jackson, Brooks and Dunn and Trick Pony.

After high school, she attended the University of Florida. “I didn’t want to be the naïve girl that I was.

I grew up in a small town bubble. I learned a lot in college,” she recalls.

After getting a degree in business, she went right back into the world of music. “I started playing shows five nights a week and that’s how I saved money to move to Nashville,” she

says.

Things began to take off the second she got to Music City. “The first day I moved to Nashville, my dad [said] ‘We’re going out, get your boots on’,” she says. They headed downtown to Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge, a world famous Honky-Tonk lounge featuring live country music on every floor. “Some random stranger handed me $20 and said ‘Get up on stage and sing.’ So I got up on stage, handed them [the money] and the guy on stage said ‘You better not suck’,” she says. Brooke took the stage, and stole the show.

Three songs in she was offered a job.

She attended an open audition that weekend to meet the band and get her schedule. It was then that she was given a golden opportunity.

“The band leader of all of Tootsie’s came up to me and was like ‘Honey, this is Honky-Tonk school. I have a feeling you’ve already been through Honky-Tonk school. What else do you want to do in Nashville?’” she recalls. She told him she wanted to start writing songs, and he made an appointment for her to join him and country songwriter Bob Regan in writing a song. “He took me under his wing for the next year and a half or so, and he introduced me to writing partners, taught me how to write songs and how to record. He was really my little angel,” she says.

She spent the next few years traveling back and forth between Nashville and Florida. She would spend two weeks in Nashville, writing and recording, then travel back down to

Florida to perform for two weeks.

“That’s how I continued to make a living in music because I wanted to do music 24/7. I didn’t want to have a ‘real job’,” she says. After two years, she was signed to Red Bow Records after they saw a YouTube video of her performing “Baby Girl” with country group Sugarland, an honor she received after winning a Facebook contest. Since being signed, she has been working hard recording songs.

“I’ve just been writing for this record and finding my style and sound,” she says.

It took Brooke a while to find her groove. “There are songs that I was writing [six months in] that I am still proud of, because you are writing with these people who are incredible writers. So, even if you aren’t that great yet, they’re going to pull you out of the gutter until you get good.

I found my voice about a year and a half in [after] writing every single day,” she says.

Her first single, “Daddy’s Money”, penned by country-duo Muddy Magnolias, was released in December of 2015. Though not written by her, Brooke was the inspiration for the lyrics. “I was living with Kallie [North] of Muddy Magnolias at the moment and she thought I came from money. I was like ‘Girl, I ain’t never had daddy’s money.’

She thought it was really funny so her and Jessy [Wilson] wrote it,” she says. The president of Brooke’s label loved the song and decided to have her record it. Though not a personal turning point for her, she believes it

NKDMAG.COM

47

is one piece of the whole puzzle.

After the single’s release, Brooke hit the road with her promo team for her first radio tour. “It was intense.

We were out five or six days a week, every week, for sixteen weeks. But it was really incredible,” she says. Being on the road with her team, composed of music veterans, was a great learning experience for Brooke and bonding experience for the group.

“They’ve been in the business for so long and they have so many awesome music stories,” she says. The greatest part for Brooke was getting to travel.

“I had never left Florida except for music things, but getting to see America on a bus was pretty cool,” she says.

Her latest single, “Diamonds,” was released on September 2, 2016. The song, written by Brooke along with Chris DeStefano and Brett James, reflects on Brooke’s small town life. “I grew up in a small town where if you had a party in town, it would get shut down in 15 minutes because of noise complaints, so me and my friends used to go out to the woods. Every-

48

one would circle up their cars, turn their headlights on, and one person would turn on the local country music station. That was how we enjoyed our weekends,” she recalls.

For Brooke, “Diamonds” is about more than just those experiences.

“For me, [it means that] it doesn’t matter where you are in your life right now, tonight we are just all going to feel like diamonds. It’s everybody’s own individual experience.

So I’m excited to kind of bring that to life and let other people bring it to life in their own minds and in their own situations,” she says.

Brooke’s first EP, Welcome to the Weekend, was released on September 23rd. “I’m just so excited because I’ve been wanting to put out this music for so long,” she says. “To finally have a date for it and know when it’s going to happen is amazing,” she says. The EP includes four songs that Brooke says were requested the most by her fans, based on her live shows. “That was really important to me because I don’t want to just put anything out.

I want to put out what the fans are

begging for right now,” she says.

Along with the release of her new single and EP, Brooke also recorded the theme song for Tyler Perry’s TLC show Too Close to Home, after a recommendation from Tim McGraw. “[He] is the person who made me want to be a country singer. That Tim McGraw is speaking my name is such a crazy phenomenon,” she gushes.

Brooke plans to spend the rest of her year promoting her new EP and working on her first full-length album, which she anticipates will include the songs from her EP. “We’ve actually already recorded about 15 songs. Any weekend I had off [from the radio tour], I would go into the studio and record,” she shares, “There’s so many deeper tracks and I’m just really getting to feel the insides of a soul on the album.” As for “Diamonds,” she would love to see the song reach No. 1 on the charts in the next year. “It takes a long time to get a new single to move up the charts, so I think that’s a good goal for me,” she says. NKD

NKDMAG.COM

49

evan roe Words by TANYA TRANER Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

50

So how does the kid who was “too Nickelodeon” land a job on one of CBS’ hit primetime dramas? He just keeps working.

“I was an awkward kid. I still kind of am,” Evan Roe says. “I was pretty shy. I didn’t really like sports.

I didn’t know what I wanted to do.”

Evan’s mother, always trying to find something that he would like, decided to put him in his elementary school play at the young age of 8. “I played Linus in Charlie Brown.

And I was terrible, and I loved it,” he says. From there, Evan’s passion took off. He continued to perform in musicals until his school cut funding for the program. One teacher, who Evan says he owes everything to, decided to fund the program herself to keep it going. He took his first step into community theater after starting middle school, where there was no arts program at all.

It was then that he and his mom agreed that the next step should be auditioning for television. “I had no idea what I was doing,” he says.

“We drove up to Los Angeles over 50 times, completely blind.” Evan says he then got an agent. “I was the stereotypical actor kid, I’ll own that,” he laughs.

His big break came two and a half years ago when he landed his role of Jason McCord on the CBS hit Madam Secretary. Auditions for the show were actually over, but his agent was able to get him in front of the casting crew. It wasn’t looking so good for Evan, whose previous experience with small roles on networks aimed towards kids and tweens made him seem too bubbly for the crew. They gave him a second shot though, so Evan went home and watched a lot of dramas, and crying scenes, and came in the next day giving it his all. “At the very end, it was between me and one other guy, and they said ‘You’ll know within the next two hours’,” he recalls. Those two hours completely changed his life. “Since then I think I’ve grown a lot. I know that’s a very generic statement, but it’s true,” he says.

Evan’s character Jordan, the anti-authority son of the United States

Secretary of State, Elizabeth McCord (played by Téa Leoni,) has definitely evolved three seasons in. “I think at the beginning of the first season he was snarky. He was more rambunctious,” he says. Now in coming into the third season, Evan thinks his character mirrors some of his own traits. “I’m more mature. My character better understands his mom’s intentions and what she does,” he says.

In the first two seasons, his character really made fun of his mom for what she did. “And now because he’s sort of becoming an adult, he’s understanding, he’s sympathizing more with what his family is doing,” he says.

Up until this role, Evan says that comedy was all he knew. “It threw me into the deep end,” he says. “I came to New York. I started working with all these actors who’d been doing this twice as long as I’ve been alive.” He didn’t know what he was doing, but considers it the best acting class he could have ever taken. “I think the biggest thing I’ve learned, aside from actual acting experience and how to convey emotion, is that if you want to be an actor, or a singer, or a dancer in any entertainment industry, I think the best aspect you can have is to just be yourself,” he says. He knows how cheesy and inspirational that sounds, don’t worry. “But you’re going to have 30 people telling you what to say to your fans, what to say in interviews, and you shouldn’t listen,” he says.

“You should really just say what you think.”

This translates to all aspects of his life, including social media, which Evan says is his biggest personal dilemma as a young actor. “Do you do what everyone else is doing?

Do you take to social media, and you make a bunch of accounts, and you talk to your fans?” he ponders.

“Or do you completely go off the radar and just work on what you’re working on?” This always crosses his mind. “Should I just delete all my accounts and just keep working and just be myself ?” he says. He doesn’t see social media as a necessity like others do, but he does see that he

has it a little easier, being on a show aimed at an older demographic. He says many actors his age, on kid shows and teen shows, have a lot more pressure to be active on social media, and are more harshly criticized. Evan doesn’t feel the pressure to be vanilla, or to say what people are expecting. “I can stay under the radar, and I can share what I want and talk about what I want without judgment,” he says. He thinks this role is perfect for him personally because he believes his career, especially at this young stage of his life, is about the middle ground. “You don’t want to be a super star, but you don’t want to be a nobody,” he says.

Before this job, Evan says he was very deeply invested in the television scene in Los Angeles. For about the first year of shooting with CBS, he didn’t like New York at all. “It was too busy. It was dirty. I wanted to go back to L.A.,” he says. But now, he’s in love with the reality of this city, and the ability to make it no matter who you are. He says the city helped him realize there is so much more to the world of acting. “New York has this authenticity to it. There’s actors here who are never searching for fame, who aren’t looking for recognition,” he says. “There’s theater, there’s television, there’s films. There are people who are making films by themselves. You can do whatever you want. It doesn’t matter if you’re rich, or if you’re poor, it’s just if you have the dedication.”

While he can’t give away too much for the premiere of Season 3 on Sunday, October 2nd, Evan was able to reveal that his character Jordan, who has always gotten away with standing up to authority figures in the past, isn’t so lucky this season – a nice little teaser leading up to the premiere.

Besides his current role, Evan is pretty much up for anything. He is open to feature films, indie films, theater, anything he can use to flex his acting muscles while shooting in New York. He wants to play different types of roles so he can keep practicing and honing his craft. Ultimately he just wants to keep working. NKD NKDMAG.COM

51

NKDMAG.COM