NKD Mag - Issue #34 (April 2014) by NKD Mag

COVER STORY 44 The littlest liar, Sasha Pieterse, dishes about growing up on set

FI LM 18 From Liv and Maddie to Heathers, Ryan McCartan shares his story 20 A.N.T. Farm’s Stefanie Scott on what’s next for her career 26 Austin North, Disney’s newest stud, talks growing up

MUSI C 4 Misterwives share about their remarkable start to 2014 8 Nashville act Vinyl Thief get vulnerable 10 ISSUES discuss heir debut full-length 32 The Voice’s Melanie Martinez opens up about her past with bullying 34 Newcomer Spencer Sutherland dishes on what’s to come 36 Lily Kershaw tells all about her traumatic experience on tour 56 Paradise Fears on Battle Scars and what’s to come 62 British babes, The Vamps, on the start of their career

EDITORIAL 16 Artist Write-In: Growing out of music 31 Playlist: Mike Naran 38 Live Photos: Lorde, Demi Lovato, Ellie Goulding 54 Photo Special: Pretty Little Liars’ Red Carpet

TEAM NKD Editors: Isabelle Chapman Jordan Melendrez Jenna Ross Noah Tavlin

Photographer: Writers: Catherine Powell Jackie Bui Susan Cheng Designer: Tara DeVincenzo Catherine Powell Alex Lane

Stacy Magallon Shina Patel Stephanie Petit Catherine Powell

misterw

wives

Words by TARA DEVINCENZO and Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

In just over a year, MisterWives has gone from the New York City underground to MTV’s Buzzworthy. The pop group’s EP Reflections officially went up on iTunes, and band members Mandy Lee, Etienne Bowler and William Hehir are thrilled to be moving forward and working on their first full-length album. MisterWives is an indie-pop band of five, with three frontmen. Mandy is the lead singer, her boyfriend Etienne plays drums and William plays bass. They are all based in New York City and met by having their similar interests intersect. Mandy moved out on her own at 16 so she could stay in New York to pursue music. Will’s style of rock appealed to Mandy as reminiscent of the ‘80s, so she booked him for her themed birthday party. She met Etienne also by bonding over music and talking about it during breaks from work, where they worked only a block away from each other. When she finally asked Etienne to play and record with her they realized they had undeniable chemistry. It began as a NKDMAG.COM

hobby, and when they put their music up online, they gained listeners who enjoyed it just as much. “It was a snowball effect from there basically,” Mandy says. Their first big show was on Feb. 1, 2013 at New York City’s Canal Room. This show attracted a lot of industry professionals, but the band wasn’t initially expecting much from it. “I think we were planning on staying independent because we didn’t expect anything,” Etienne says. The show sold out, and the band started receiving emails from interested labels the following day. Over a twoweek period, several big-name labels were reaching out to them with offers for meetings, but ultimately they wanted to find a team that would let them keep their independence in terms of image and recording. “PhotoFinish stood out to us. PhotoFinish is very real,” Mandy says. “They kind of blew us away. It’s no big label that’s not trying to orchestrate like puppeteers.” Under the PhotoFinish/Island Records label, MisterWives was able to marry their independence with exposure. They started 2014 off at a high point by getting Single of the Week on iTunes for their song “Reflections.” By Jan. 7, their six-song EP that shares the single’s name earned them hundreds of thousands of listens on SoundCloud and a mass of publicity. Big-name blogs such as celebrity blogger Perez Hilton and DailyCandy and even more widely known names like Teen Vogue and Nylon immediately raved about the band upon their release of their EP. The band prides themselves on being very hands-on when it comes to their music. They’ve made it a point to avoid working with any label that would tweak the sound and image for a larger audience. PhotoFinish gave them the comfort and relief of having support in releasing the music just the way they liked it. “Releasing our EP is the best example of a band and a label working well together,” Etienne says. “All in all, it was self-produced with the push of a major label.” 6

PhotoFinish doesn’t exactly have a big corporate persona that would push the band to be anything they were not. The label is an independent New York City based organization that has signed a handful of artists including 3OH!3 and the Mowgli’s. Lately, MisterWives has been ruling the News tab on the label’s official website. After the success of their EP, they kept recording, even if it wasn’t their own material. The PhotoFinish site links readers to an exclusive MisterWives cover of Money On My Mind, an interactive series that features the band, and link to their headline in the Huffington Post. The band has been excited for the success of the EP, but Mandy still calls it scary. “I struggle talking about it. It’s just like, how did this happen?” she says. “You come to one show, and the next day you get a music contract.” All of this exposure came from the EP, but their next move will earn them even more time in the limelight. They’ve been very adamant about keeping their public image one that reflects who they are as a band, and as they grew through the album making process, they plan to show their fans how much they have developed in this phase. The band is expecting a lot of change and development to surface on the upcoming album. With the help of a professional recording label, one of the biggest changes will be the actual sound. “[The album] will have real drums on it,” Etienne explains. “I can’t record real drums in my bedroom.” Not only will the recording happen in a different place physically, Mandy says that, as a songwriter, she’s in a different place emotionally. The songs on the EP were all written during a heartbreak, but Mandy’s influences have since changed. Now, some of her material stems from being very much in love with Etienne, and some of it comes from understanding themselves as a band. “It’s kind of about finding yourself in this place you’re in,” she explains. “Being true to yourself and not letting the industry change you.” Although she says some

labels can act as puppeteers, she doesn’t feel that pressure from hers. “They don’t make us dress a certain way. We’re really just ourselves, and we’re really grateful they are the way they are,” she says. Every member of the band contributes in their own personal way to make it a cohesive unit. They all started separately, and once they came together it became an organic project. “A lot of people want to make you a solo artist or put you in a band, but this all happened very naturally,” Mandy says. Just as their name suggests, Mandy attributes the band success to their seamless cohabitation. “We’re best friends. We’re all way too comfortable with one another,” she says. They all work together, make business decisions and then sit down to share home-cooked meals made by the matriarch of their band. “I feel like, because we have that dynamic, it makes things work without feeling like you’re working,” she adds. They’re working on their album, but they’re enjoying the success they have had so far. “It’s not like we didn’t achieve something we set out to do for the EP,” Will says. Their achievement with the EP didn’t change much for them in terms of their goals, but the recognizes a whole new kind of pleasure from playing the music live. “People are singing along, that’s the big difference,” Mandy says. “People were jumping and singing the words before I could sing the words. It’s more of a party at our shows.” MisterWives is making waves just in time for festival season. They were at SXSW earlier this month and are already on the lineup for Delaware’s FireFly Festival in June. They want to work on scheduling tour dates overseas, but overall, they are aiming at staying grounded. The style they developed is the one that they feel is the truest. And from the reception their EP has gotten, they have a lot of fans eager to hear more. “The EP is kind of like a taste of what the band is about,” Mandy explains. “The full-length album really gets to showcase all the colors we get to paint.” NKD

vinyl thief Words by SUSAN CHENG Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

After a successful Kickstarter campaign helped launch their career two years ago, Nashville-based Vinyl Thief has since gained a large fan base and recognition across the country. With only two EPs under their belt, the electro-rock band recently performed at this year’s South by Southwest and is set to release their first full-length album sometime this spring. However, their path to prominence has not always been an easy one. The band’s 8

latest EP Stop Motion recalls some of band mates Grayson Proctor, Logan Purdom, Andrew Broadway and Sam English most vulnerable moments. Moreover, it also tracks the progress of four hopeful musicians who worked hard and eventually made it — all as a result of confronting those initial hurdles head on. Vinyl Thief began as a three-man band when Logan, Andrew and Sam were freshmen at a high school in Columbia, Tenn. The three friends,

who were all in the school’s marching band, decided to form their own musical group. Logan would be the guitarist, Andrew would play drums and Sam would play the keyboard.“We figured [being in marching band] was not the best way to be cool in high school and get girls, so we thought of other ways,” Logan says, as the other three erupt into laughter. “We weren’t athletic, so we couldn’t play sports.” Grayson, whom the three had also

met in school, joined Vinyl Thief as the band’s vocalist about a year later. The four became known throughout their hometown of over 34,000. Outside of Columbia, however, no one knew the name Vinyl Thief. “We were awful, [but] every kid in town would come to see us,” Grayson recalls the band’s earlier days. “It gave us a false sense of how good we were.” It wasn’t until the four friends moved to Nashville that they realized how much work they had ahead of them. That’s also when the band became more serious about making a record. In the end, Vinyl Thief turned to Kickstarter to raise money for studio time and to pay their producer, among many other costs. It was a decision the band was initially reluctant to make. “I was really wary at first. I remember not wanting to do it,” Grayson admits. But since the band had no money and still wanted to produce an album, Kickstarter seemed like the best option. “There’s only so much money your parents will give you,” Grayson added, laughing. But unlike asking those close to you for support, turning to the public for help can be daunting. “To do that, to come out and ask for money, you’re in a vulnerable place,” Logan says. Reaching out to the public meant believing in the band’s talent and hoping that the public would invest in them. “We don’t have the ginormous fan base that a lot of people do, so we didn’t know if it was going to be successful. We didn’t know if there were fans out there that would back us, and that’s scary,” Grayson says. “Like Logan said, you put yourself in a vulnerable place, which is why we were so surprised when it ended up working.” Ultimately, the band found supporters eager to fund their album, but asking for the public’s help also came with pressure to produce a quality record for their donors —

and to do so quickly. “The thing is, we want to make the best product possible, and we’d rather get more time,” Grayson says. But like all bands, Vinyl Thief had a limited amount of time to work on their now completed album. So for their first full-length album, the band recorded new songs and re-recorded old tracks on the production until the very last moment, even after their manager told them the album had to be completed by the next morning. But timing wasn’t really the problem for Vinyl Thief. As with most artists, the band members were their own worst critics. “After two years, you can get inside your head so much,” Grayson says. “One day you can love every song on the record, and then the next day, we’re like ‘these are all shit.’” The band struggled to produce an album they were satisfied with, constantly making more adjustments to recordings, simply because their own idea of perfection kept changing. “There’s a constant struggle because you want to be a perfectionist, but the problem is your perfection is based on you as a person,” Andrew explains. “So you’re constantly changing, and you want that record to change with you. That’s what makes it hard.” As a result, the band added two entirely new songs with just a week before the album was supposed to be completed. “We really thought the record was done, and then we wrote two more songs and threw them on [the album], and they’re some of my favorites,” Grayson says. One thing the band worked hard to accomplish was making Fathom as true to their experiences and as telling as possible. But to write a meaningful album was challenging because it also required the band to reveal their stories and subject themselves to the public eye. “It’s a vulnerable place, but I feel like that’s where you can pull in people. You

have to put yourself out there,” he continues. “And people can’t relate to something that’s not real, you know. You can’t just make up a story, and [expect that] they go along with it. They’re going to catch it, whether subconsciously or consciously.” Perhaps it’s Vinyl Thief ’s honest voice and empathy that has helped them win fan support. “We really tried to work on making all our music sincere,” Logan says. “You can hear a lot of [music], and it doesn’t have that [sincerity]. But if [I] look back in a few years and say ‘Well I was honest about how I felt, then that’s all [we] can really do.” Although their debut album has yet to be released, the band dropped a four-track EP Stop Motion as a teaser of what is to come. While it is a short EP, the songs serve as concise snapshots of what the band has experienced since 2012. “Smooth,” which opens the album, is centered largely on the theme of escape and running away from their troubles. The last song on the teaser, named after the title of the EP, however, is more self-reflective and presents the band’s more hopeful outlook on the future. The last song on the EP also provides a preview of the rest of songs on Fathom, which also concludes with a happier tone. “The record ends on kind of like a realization that things will be okay. You can escape from everything, and then you just, in the end, realize it’s going to be alright,” Grayson says. “It’s a dark record, we went through some things over the past two years, but it ends on a lighter note.” Even the music they’re working on now reveals a more content Vinyl Thief. “We’ve written a few things over the past few months, and they’re kind of taking a more upbeat approach, a happier side to things because that’s where we’re at now,” Grayson says. “We’ve come through some things, and we’re in a happier place.” NKD NKDMAG.COM

ISSUES

Words by JACKIE BUI Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

The members of the band ISSUES completely transformed and re-transformed their sound. What began as a solid transition from a metal band, to a solo pop and R&B project, has now become best known for its dark, alt-metal sound. Long before the sixpiece band from Atlanta came together, members of the band ISSUES — Tyler Carter and Michael Bohn — dabbled in the metal scene until Tyler transitioned to pop and R&B and embarked on a solo tour. It wasn’t until he toured in 2012 as a pop and R&B artist that Tyler realized he wanted to revisit where he came from. ISSUES was born shortly thereafter. The group, which came together in 2013 as Tyler Carter, Michael Bohn, AJ Rebollo, Tyler Acord, Skyler Acord and Josh Manuel, has played a large role in helping Tyler find his way back to that heavy, dark sound that he was so fond of in the beginning. “We kind of wanted to make a heavy band,” says Tyler, “because we were making a lot of pop music at the time and we were kind of getting bored of it.” Tyler Carter says, “I thought I owed it to the scene to do some more metal.” Both Tyler and Michael played in a band called Woe, Is Me. “My fans kind of wanted to know where the hell I went. Everybody just thought I gave up on music” says Tyler. “They expected me to come back and do [some more metal] someday.” He says that in the time that he spent dedicated to making pop and R&B music, he never forgot about his original fans. He felt the need to return to the music that he loved — for his fans’ sake and for his own. ISSUES says they based their transition back into a more energetic and lyrically creative sound as heard on their song “Hooligans.” This song was written for their fans and was a song that they identify with themselves. “At the end of the day, we’re still the same hooligans we grew up as,” Tyler says. Michael agrees that “Hooligans” is the best portrayal of what their band stands for. “On tour, we’re still a younger band. We’re just a bunch of kids playing with bands that have been around for years, but at the same time we’re doing it,” says Michael. Despite working hard on the road and pro12

ducing music for their fans, they’ve remained the same guys they were growing up. “We’re not a stern band, we’re just having fun,” says Tyler. They hope the transition from pop and R&B through songs like “Hooligans” will continue bringing them success. “Hooligans” is a perfect combination of ISSUES’ metal and R&B inspirations. It begins with an electric edge, but transitions into a softer, smoother groove as the song progresses. The lyrics convey exactly who these guys are and what their intention is. They came together as a bunch of hooligans and want to spread the message of fun and brotherhood. With the song’s genre twist, along with the lyrics, the band did a remarkable job selecting the song that would begin their transition into their new genre home. The band name ISSUES came from a song of theirs — originally titled “Issues” — now titled “Her Monologue.” “It was a really dark pop song,” Tyler says. “It was way too dark and alternative sounding. It wasn’t going to work as a pop song.” Tyler decided to rework the song so that it fit the mood of the lyrics and the tone of the band, and focused on making a name for themselves using the former title of the song. Switching from playing smoother, lyrical music back to their loud and heavy electric roots may sound difficult to pull off. Tyler says, however, that the transition wasn’t too difficult because he was able to transpose many of their pop songs into metalcore. “The song ‘Never Lose Your Flames’ is a song I wrote two years ago as a pop song. We were able to revive that song and give it a pop-punk vibe. We did that to a few songs and threw out a few songs.” Tyler refuses to elaborate on exactly how he turns a pop song into a metal song. “It’d be like giving away my secret recipe,” he says. Once Tyler and Michael made the decision to return to their metal roots, they got to work and recorded an EP before even assembling a full band. “Everybody, by that point, had already anticipated the band so much,” says Tyler, “so we kind of just went with it.” In the beginning, Tyler says the band was shaky and struggled, but by the end of

2013, they were playing sold out shows. ISSUES’ self-titled debut album took five months to write and debuted on the Billboard charts at #9. “We had pretty high expectations for the album, but not like that. We heard our presales had done well,” says Michael. “I never thought we were going to be on Billboard 200 top 20, no less number nine,” says Tyler. Michael adds, “When we got the call, the fact that we broke top 10 blew us away.” Despite releasing both an EP and a full-length album so close together, ISSUES says they were able to lock down the band’s identity in the time between. “We figured who we are and our actual identity, and we’re an actual band now,” says Tyler. Michael also says that the album is more solid than the EP, due to the band becoming more of a closeknit group. Since coming together as a band, ISSUES has prospered greatly, in part because each member of the band is a songwriter. Tyler says that having a team full of writers means, “If I have writers block, somebody else is for sure — out of six guys — going to have an idea.” “Someone is going to take the lead. Once we get locked in on a certain concept or figure then I’m able to be like ‘oh okay now my mind is working again.’ Also, we can take different directions into writing songs.” Tyler says they tend to jump around from song to song when writing. Sometimes the inspiration for one song sparks while they’re in the middle of working on another. “We do a lot of songs separately because we can’t stick to one thing for too long,” he says. “I jump around a lot when I’m writing melodies.” When writing their album, the band knows they’re working toward a full-length album, but don’t go into the writing session thinking about the entire album as a whole. “Obviously we know we’re doing a full record, but at the same time we take it song by song,” says Michael. “We want our songs to stand out. We don’t want it to flow into the next song. We want every song to be that individual song.” The difference between the EP and full album is that it’s more solid. ISSUES wants to make sure their

fans experience being fully engaged with an entire album. The guys of the band feel that today’s industry has more artists releasing singles and promoting them individually. They plan on releasing full-length albums, as they want to emphasize that getting new music from a band you like is not just about one song, but about the overall product. ISSUES agrees on wanting to produce a large quantity of music and release it at the same time, in the form of an album, regardless of whether or not each song will be a hit single. Tyler thinks producing singles is boring. “I think [it] depends who the artist is. If you can make a one in a million song every two months, then why not put out singles. But that’s boring,” he says. “People want an abundance of something.” He feels that fans tire out songs if they are just given one song at a time. “They’re going to overplay your single and you’re going give them another single and they’re going get bored of that,” Tyler says. “But if you give them a big album they’re just going play it over and over.” When selecting singles from tracks off the album, they choose songs they think their fans would like best and what would work best with their transition. “The two singles we released weren’t what was based on what we thought the hit songs would be. It was based on what we thought would be the best transition from our old sound to the new music,” Tyler says. “We like to put out songs that we think are going be good for our fans first and not really considering them hits or singles, which is kind of dangerous, but we don’t care.” ISSUES is pushing through 2014 with a steady fan following and big plans to tour and promote their self-titled album. They kicked off a sold-out tour with Of Mice and Men in March and plan on doing as many shows as they can. “We’re touring all year. We’re doing Warped Tour. We’re going to shoot a few more music videos. We’re going to keep going and just never slow down,” says Tyler. They plan on building off their momentum from the end of 2013 by playing shows, writing more music, meeting their fans and promoting their new sound. NKD NKDMAG.COM

ASK THE ARTIST WHAT EXACTLY DOES IT MEAN TO OUTGROW AN ARTIST? AS AN ARTIST, HOW ARE YOU AFFECTED BY THAT PHRASE?

NATHAN WEST (EAST OF ELI)

LOUIS LEIMBACH (LIME CORDIALE)

That’s an interesting question. I’m not sure you can outgrow an artist. I mean, you can aspire to a certain stature as an artist within the entertainment business, but even if you achieve that goal it doesn’t mean you’ve diminished another artists influence or ability to create. To me, art is an expression of who we are as individuals and how we perceive the world around us. It’s about connecting with others through our own twisted perspectives of reality. In my mind, if my focus is to out grow another artist, I’m doing it for the wrong reasons.

I’m not really sure you can ‘outgrow’ an artist but rather discover something else that distracts you - there’s a shit load of music around. I definitely know this has happened to me. Ten years go by, and whenever ‘Heaven Is A Halfpipe’ comes on it’s just as sweet. You learn something new from every good artist just like reading a book. I guess for a band that’s a little scary. That you can be forgotten in an instant. But why would I worry about that? I’d get nothing done.

HOWI SPANGLER (BALLYHOO!)

DILLON DEVOE (MIME GAME)

I think that when you hit a certain age, you start finding other types of music that you relate to. I used to be really into ska as a teenager, I still listen to those albums from time to time, but it doesn’t connect with me emotionally as much. I don’t actively seek new ska bands to listen to. We all go through changes and we need music that makes us feel better about it. There are definitely artists that will stay with you forever, sure. I hope that we can maintain that connection with someone. Stay relevant and useful in some sense. We seem to have an “all-ages” type of audience. I guess we’ll have to wait and see.

I think you can look at the concept of “outgrowing an artist” in two ways: 1. The listener and the artist just aren’t connecting anymore. Artists and listeners grow at different paces and in different ways. Sometimes your favorite artists’ music just doesn’t speak to you like it used to. There is nothing wrong with that and it doesn’t mean that your growth curves will not cross again at some point. 2. The artist has become stagnant. In this case, I think it is a perfectly natural process that a listener would move on. As an artist, you cannot expect a listener to stick with you when you keep putting the same record out time and time again. As an artist, your duty is to push yourself, your boundaries, and your comfort zones. You cannot worry about outgrowing listeners or fans. Most fans can appreciate an artist who takes risks. If they don’t, then maybe those aren’t the fans or listeners you want anyway. Make art for the right reasons and everything else falls into place.

THOMAS ORGREN (TYPEFIGHTER) As a person, you’re always outgrowing parts of yourself to make room for new growth. The world changes around you, you grow as you experience new things and your favorite song, record, movie or piece of art just doesn’t resonate with you as much as it once did. I can still put on Pinkerton now and then and rock out to it, but I’m not the same 20-year-old kid whose primary concern in life was chasing girls who felt that record with every fiber of my being. I’d be a pretty boring person if I hadn’t outgrown that phase of my life in the intervening years. As an artist, that means you’ve got to keep moving forward, integrating new ideas, growing and outgrowing things, or else you become stagnant, one-dimensional and you might as well hang it up.

LOGAN PURDEM (VINYL THIEF) When I was twelve years old, I outgrew my favorite shoes; a beautiful pair of red Heelys. My mother finally convinced me it was time to move on and purchase ‘grown up shoes’ after much denial. Sometimes listeners can outgrow a band like a pair of shoes. As an artist, you strive to always grow with your audience.

NKDMAG.COM

RYAN MCCARTAN Words by STACY MAGALLON Photos by CATHERINE POWELL When actor Ryan McCartan begins explaining his life story, he shows off his wit. “I started my childhood off naked,” he says, making a playful jab at the magazine name. Like his playful personality, Ryan’s childhood was also filled with fun and play. His father, a college basketball coach, introduced him to the world of sports. But Ryan’s life changed by age six when he was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes. While most young diabetics manage to find a groove with this lifestyle, the same could not be said for Ryan. By the time he was eight, he was no longer playing sports. 18

It was, however, a blessing in disguise. If it were not for his diagnosis, Ryan would probably be playing a Division I sport in college and not acting on Disney Channel’s Liv and Maddie or Heathers: The Musical. After Ryan could no longer pursue an athletic lifestyle, he was stuck. He does, however, recall a moment in middle school — the moment he wanted to fit in by learning how to skateboard. It was the cool thing to go to Dairy Queen every Friday afternoon after school, and Ryan remembers how much longer it took him to skate there than to walk. “Needless to

say, I was terrible,” he says, exaggerating the “r” sound in the word terrible. Around this time, Ryan’s sister was acting in a production of How the Grinch Stole Christmas in their home state of Minnesota. “While watching the production, I turned to my mom and said, ‘I can do this, right?’” he says. Ryan booked his first role at The Great American Theater in Minneapolis, where he starred in a small historical piece about a boat that traversed the Great Lakes to deliver Christmas trees to Chicago. When Ryan started high school, he “learned how to be a human being

without falling down.” But besides his social graces, he solidified his love for the arts, with theater as his main focus. “It’s gotten me through any rough patch in my entire life,” he says. Ryan only attended college for one semester. The University of Minnesota just wasn’t cutting it for him. His family had always been strict about education, so he knew it was going to be potentially tough to break the news to his folks. During winter break of his first semester, Ryan went home for the holidays. He told his parents he wouldn’t be returning to college, but he planned to pursue acting instead. They were totally down. “I expected them to be like, ‘No way,’” Ryan laughs. “But they helped me pack my life into a mid-size Sedan.” At 18 years old, Ryan moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in the film and television industry. For the first six months in California, Ryan was lonely. He hadn’t booked any roles and the only person he really knew was his manager. He presented his skills at over 150 appointments before he booked a single thing. “Obviously every actor will preach the intensity of rejection, and it’s true,” he says. “Being lonely on top of only hearing ‘no’ made for a hard six months of my life.” Ryan would call home to tell his mom that he could no longer do this, and each time she would tell him to keep trying. Pushing through the mud was worth it for him. “If you can stick past the moments when you want to give up, there are other people who will give up, and that’s less competition for you,” he laughs. Ryan learned the importance of the word “yes” while casting directors were telling him “no.” He didn’t move to LA to become the next big thing, but rather to showcase who he was. “It’s an interesting combination of self-confidence and blind arrogance,” Ryan says of pushing himself forward. “I didn’t just think that someone would eventually tell me ‘yes.’ I believed it.”

Ryan put his nose to the grindstone and booked a role as Diggie on the TV show Liv and Maddie. The sitcom stars Dove Cameron as twin sisters Liv and Maddie Rooney. Liv is a popular television star on Sing It Loud!, while her sister Maddie is a tomboy and the captain of her basketball team. Ryan portrays Diggie, Maddie’s main love interest and the captain of the boy’s basketball team at Ridgewood High School. “I thought I was so wrong for this role,” Ryan says of his 16-yearold character. “Up until now I’ve only played athletes or douchebags, and I think I’m neither.” With a few Hollywood sets under his belt, Ryan understands how the process of television works. He has worked with a wide array of people — some of whom have been grumpy or egotistical. But he says acting with Disney has been the best experience thus far. “I don’t know how I was so lucky to work in an amazing atmosphere,” he says. Between the crew and the cast, everyone is present to have fun and be supportive of one another. The environment, which Ryan describes as “comfortable,” makes for good acting. “The only way to be a good actor and to be really human is to be very vulnerable,” he says. “And you can’t be vulnerable if you’re uncomfortable.” Through Liv and Maddie, Ryan met co-producer Andy Fickman, who introduced him to his newest endeavor. Most recently, Ryan was cast for the musical Heathers. He describes the plot as a “darker version of Mean Girls set in the ‘80s.” Westerberg High School in Ohio is controlled by three beautiful and cruel girls, all of whom are named Heather. Ryan portrays the character JD, one of the play’s protagonists. He acts as the savior to misfit Veronica Sawyer, who falls for JD’s logic: murder is the answer to their problems. “She realizes that JD is a sociopathic murderer,” Ryan says. “It’s a really dark comedy with a lot of emotion.” Ryan finds the live audience of

theater performances really appealing. After rehearsing more than a dozen times, he believes the audience is the final piece of the live show. “The give-and-take energy is valuable for an actor to experience,” he says. The musical’s first preview was March 15 and opened to the public on March 31. With two contrasting characters, how Ryan manages to portray both is worth questioning. He recalls an instance where one of his Disney networking executives came and saw Heathers. “He was like, ‘We thought you were this all-American, jock boy, and now you’re this psychopathic, trench coat-wearing murder,” he laughs. As an actor, Ryan refuses to submit to stereotypes. Instead, he hopes to make each character as realistic as possible. He prefers to take an inside-out approach as opposed to an outside-in look. “I’ve taken both JD and Diggie and found a way to fit them around me,” Ryan says. He mentions the lighter, quirkier and more awkward parts of him fit into Diggie’s personality while his darker, sadder side translates into JD. “You have a spectrum of you, and you have to plot where your characters go,” he explains. Ryan’s move to New York City for Heathers was unlike his move to LA. He was initially apprehensive about it, but was welcomed with a sense of community that was not present on the West Coast. He currently lives with two of his cast mates, who get up with him and head to rehearsal together. With Ryan’s cast mates and his sister residing in the same city, his transition was seamless. “I do love New York City because everything is so busy, and there’s so much happening at once,” he says. “It’s even better to move here with a job.” It’s evident that Ryan has come a long way since the six months of rejection in LA. His persistent mindset, I believe, has been the reason for his success thus far. “When your beliefs are in line with your actions, that’s when you succeed,” he says. “It just takes a little faith.” NKD NKDMAG.COM

stefanie scott Words by STEPHANIE PETIT Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

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Growing up watching shows like Lizzie McGuire on Disney Channel, Stefanie Scott had no idea she would someday be a Disney star herself. In fact, when she was a kid, being the center of attention was the farthest thing from what she wanted. “I was shy as could be,” she says. “I wouldn’t smile for any pictures or anything.” Stefanie’s life changed, however, when her mother signed her up for a production of Annie when she was 6 years old. Needless to say, she quickly fell in love with theater. Soon after, Stefanie entered a talent showcase. She practiced every day on a makeshift duct tape stage in her garage and won the showcase. Her dream of making it in the entertainment business was born. Without ever taking an acting class, Stefanie began auditioning for commercials around her hometown of Orlando, Florida, and landed her first gig in a Papa John’s Pizza commercial. At 11 years old, she made the trip to Los Angeles to audition for pilot season. “I was totally naïve,” Stefanie says. “I just looked at a script and said the words. I didn’t really understand anything that had to do with being on set and booking jobs.” Despite her inexperience, Stefanie found success almost instantly upon her arrival. She booked her first role during that trip to L.A. as a younger version of Sarah Walker on NBC’s Chuck. The role as a future CIA agent required Stefanie to do her own stunts, even pretending to get hit by a car on a bicycle. She has been working steadily ever since. The once-shy Stefanie is best known for her role as “it” girl Lexi Reed on Disney Channel’s A.N.T. Farm, which finished its three-season run in March. She had auditioned for several Disney shows since she began travelling to L.A., including playing the role of Tinka in the original pilot for Shake It Up. Although that gig didn’t work out, then 13-year-old Stefanie felt like it was meant to be when A.N.T. Farm came along. At first, Stefanie, the quiet girl from a small “beach bum” town in Florida as she describes it, found it difficult to adjust to fame. “I think the day the show premiered was the first time that I started to have people come up to

me in public,” she says. “It’s weird at first to know how to act. After a couple months, it started to kick in and I understood more how to deal with it. It’s rewarding to know they’re watching the show and they like you enough to come up to you and talk to you.” Stefanie knows being a Disney kid comes with stereotypes to be a positive role model for the young viewers of her show. On top of balancing work, school and a social life, Stefanie finds that to be the hardest part of fame. “You’re kind of looked up to in a way, to where you want to make sure you’re setting the best example you possibly can for anybody that wants to emulate you or who thinks they know you,” she says. “I don’t want to have a bad reputation.” With social media like Twitter, Stefanie is under a microscope unlike the Disney stars she grew up watching. “I didn’t have any of the contact with people like that so easily,” she says. “Even cell phones. I remember I had a walkie-talkie to my friend’s house down the street and we would scooter to each other’s houses. Now the little kid I babysit uses his mom’s cell phone to text his neighbor to come play.” Communicating with fans is simple and constant. Often times, fans write to ask for help with problems they are going through or just let her know they are a fan of her work. Stefanie says she “love[s] replying to people and seeing how excited they get.” However, the interaction goes both ways and Stefanie also reaches out to them when she needs some help. For example, she uses social media to let her followers know about ways they can support Cookies for Kids’ Cancer, a non-profit committed to raising funds to research pediatric cancer, the number one cause of death in America for youth under 19 years old. Stefanie is a National Ambassador for the organization, allowing her to combine her love of baking with a good cause. In addition to holding community events like bake sales, Stefanie also spends time visiting children affected by pediatric cancer in hospitals. “I’ve met so many wonderful people and I’ve gotten to help so many wonderful people,” Stefanie says. “That’s so rewarding.” Balancing schooling and a social

life can be tough for any teenager, but adding a full time job and charity work like Stefanie makes handling everything nearly impossible. Although she tries to do school on set, it isn’t organized with the show for her like it is for younger actors. While school is on the backburner while work is going so well, Stefanie does plan to attend college someday. She enjoys subjects like English and writing because she loves “to be creative and use that side of my brain. When it comes to numbers and science, it’s not my thing. I’d rather play a scientist than be a scientist.” At 17 years old and with A.N.T. Farm coming to an end, Stefanie feels she has grown up and developed new goals. “I love Disney and everything they’ve ever given me,” she says. “Along the way, I’ve always been working on other shows or training and taking classes. I feel like now I don’t really have to worry about breaking the mold.” One of her latest projects is a role on Law & Order: SVU. Stefanie plays Clare Wilson, a troubled teenage runaway who had been working illegally at a nightclub. “What I love about [Clare] is how many layers she has,” Stefanie says. “She doesn’t want help. She really wants to fight through everything herself. I think that she really does need guidance in her life because it’s something she hasn’t had since she was a little girl.” Stefanie says Clare has been a challenging character to play because it is so different from her previous roles. She’s never rocked pink hair, a nose ring and scandalous clothing before. Stefanie has also been learning a lot by working with the seasoned cast, especially Mariska Hargitay who has won an Emmy and a Golden Globe for her portrayal of Detective Olivia Benson on the show. “She was so cool to work with,” Stefanie says. “It was the first time where I felt like somebody told me to say what you feel and I kept accidentally saying something that wasn’t in the script and then she was like, ‘Write that in there!’ By the end, she let me have one take to myself to improvise it on my own.” Stefanie has also begun her foray into singing. Having broken into the entertainment business through musiNKDMAG.COM

cal theater, it’s no surprise that she’s attempting to use her voice again. “I love to sing so I thought that I might as well put it all together and try it out,” she says. “Basically anything that has to do with the entertainment business and it’s creative — I’m there.” Stefanie recently released a cover of “Everything Has Changed” by Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran with singer Spencer Sutherland. They also did a music video for the song for which Stefanie came up with the creative concept herself. The whimsical video features Stefanie and Spencer falling in love in the woods. It was shot by a friend of theirs, making it very intimate. “I love the creative aspect of doing the video,” Stefanie says. “I love filmmaking, so when I got to write the treatment for it, that got me more excited to do more things like that in the future.” The positive reaction from fans to the cover has inspired Stefanie to continue working on music. She teamed up with singer Neon Hitch to record a song called “I Don’t Want to Let You Go” that was released in March. They are shooting a video for the song soon. Neon’s extroverted personality surprised Stefanie at first. “Neon is amazing,” Stefanie says. “That girl is crazy fun. She showed up to my apartment for the writing session with a wrap with fruit on it on her head and I was in skinny jeans and tank top thinking to myself, ‘I probably should have thought this through and got dressed up or something.’ Stefanie has been working with Neon Hitch to write more music and hopes to have an album or EP of original music out later this year. “When it comes to producing vocals and writing music, [Neon] knows what she’s doing,” Stefanie says. “I’ve been really blessed to work with some really neat people lately and she’s definitely one of the coolest.” It may seem like this former smalltown girl is already working on a lot, but she plans to add more rather than slow down. In addition to plans with music and acting, she would love to revisit her roots in musical theater and possibly Broadway in the near future. “Every single job I take on, every time I work, it really fuels me to want to do more things.” NKD 24

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AUSTIN NORTH Words by STACY MAGALLON Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

When actor Austin North was a child, he would watch the shows on Disney Channel. He never expected to be on the network as an actor, but here he is. Austin was a fairly average kid from Cincinnati. He led a regular life, attended school and played sports — nothing out of the ordinary. He loved basketball and football and enjoyed an active social life. But his entire world changed when his sister, Lauren, pressured him into an acting showcase. At the time, he had only acted in small plays at his church with no major roles. “I performed a short monologue for a few Hollywood agents,” Austin says. “Surprisingly, it worked out pretty well.” He was only 13 years old at the

time. Austin and his family decided to move to California shortly afterwards. After a month in a new state, they fell in love with their new home and have no regrets about uprooting their lives. After only living in California for a few months, Austin signed with a commercial agent. And a couple of weeks later, he signed with a theatrical agent. When Austin began auditioning for a few commercials, he struggled at first — balancing a new experience on top of honing his acting skills and learning his own capabilities. He was unsure of himself at the start, and he wondered whether any big acting career was going to come of his commercial appearances. “I was kind of shy when I first NKDMAG.COM

started acting,” he says. “It helped me open up and be more outgoing,” Although acting wasn’t an initial passion for Austin, it developed over time after each acting class he took. A little over a year into the acting process, Austin landed a television role on Disney XD’s Kickin’ It. “It was a sign,” he says. “I thought, ‘Hopefully I can land a series regular role.’” Three years later, his wish came true. In 2013, he booked a series regular role on a new Disney Channel project titled I Didn’t Do It. I Didn’t Do It premiered this past January. The Disney Channel original series focuses on fraternal twins Lindy (Olivia Holt) and Logan Watson during their freshman year of high school. With their three best friends, fashionable Jasmine (Piper Curda), obsessively clean Garrett (Peyton Clark) and eccentric Delia (Sarah Gilman), the twins find themselves strange situations. Each episode begins with a “what happened here?” moment, followed by a series of flashbacks. Austin portrays Logan Watson, Lindy’s athletic twin brother. “He’s super laid back and likes things to work things out on their own,” he says of his character. “He’s pretty similar to me,” Austin explains. “I’m a pretty chill guy.” The pilot was originally shot in early 2013, and the following episodes were filmed six or seven months ago. Austin had been keeping his work a secret from the media for a while, but is thrilled to be receiving continuous positive reactions from both the press and viewers. I Didn’t Do It, which centers on

the mishaps and misadventures of five high school students, is a refreshing subject for the television network. “It’s a new kind of show for Disney,” Austin says. “It’s for an older audience though younger kids and families can enjoy it, too.” He highlights the great dynamic between his character and his friends as an entertaining and relatable highlight of the show. The series is silly and comedic, with moments of genuine of love in the mix. “I think our audience love the relationships on the show,” Austin says. “Logan and Lindy butt heads and fight sometimes, but they really do love each other.” That same dynamic continues off-screen, as Austin describes the on-set experience as time to hang out with his best friends. I Didn’t Do It shocks the audience with unexpected gags, ranging from bursts of water and spaghetti sauce spewing all over the cast. And when it comes to these on-set shenanigans, the shot needs to be captured in one take. “There’s a lot of pressure on us as actors, but there hasn’t been a moment where we’ve needed to clean everyone up and shoot it all over again,” Austin says. He mentions upcoming holiday episodes and a variety of new disasters planned for the rest of the season. But the series will continue to emphasize relationships, especially of the five friends. “It’s just fun to see how our characters develop and bond over the different things they go through in high school,” he says. When Austin booked his role on Disney Channel, he already had

vocational expectations in mind. He knew it was a major network that is broadcasted internationally and had the potential to launch one’s career. “I watched the network when I was a kid and never thought I’d see myself on it,” he says. With a lead role in a newly launched Disney show, Austin notices the difference in his daily life. Fans have approached him to comment on the show, but no one has chased him anywhere — yet. “Disney definitely gets you on the radar because a lot of people see your face,” he explains. Austin’s popularity has shot up with the exposure on television, and the amount of followers for his social media accounts has also increased. He names Instagram and Twitter as his favorite outlets, and he tries to interact with everyone who tweets him or comments on a photo. The current high school junior initially had difficulty when finding a groove with everything going on in his life. Between schoolwork and acting, maintaining a balance was a struggle. But now, Austin is finding a routine that works for his hectic lifestyle. When he is not acting or studying on set, he is staying active, hanging out with friends, playing the drums or simply enjoying California. His new identity as Logan Watson places him in the public eye, but he’s not too worried about getting himself into trouble during his free time. “What you see is what you get with me,” Austin says. “It’s not tough for me to try to have a good image. I think I’m a pretty good guy.” NKD

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THE(MIKEPLAYLIST NARAN)

“Paper Doll” - John Mayer

“Bubbles” - Biffy Clyro

“Hot Tonight” - Tokyo Police Club

“R U Mine?” - Arctic Monkeys

“Thirst” - City and Colour

“She Way Out” - The 1975

“Bravado” - Lorde

“Keep Your Head Up” - Ben Howard

“Searching” - Smoke Signals NKDMAG.COM

MELANIE MARTINEZ Melanie Martinez says that although she was often bullied because of her aspirations to become a singer, it never stopped her from pursuing her dreams. The 18-year-old singer and songwriter has been tenacious in her endeavors and her strength to look past the naysayers and go after what she loves landed her a coveted spot on Team Adam on season three of NBC’s The Voice. Melanie grew up in Baldwin, New York, on Long Island. She says Baldwin is a small town that she loved when she was a kid, but struggled to fit in when she entered adolescence. “I used to like the town, but growing up I got bullied, so that was fun,” Melanie says, sarcastically. “It got worse as I tried to do music,” Melanie says. “That’s why I got bullied a lot.” The bullying began when Melanie went out on a limb when she was 13, and started posting videos of her performing on YouTube. “People would find them and make fun of them,” she says. “They would play them during class. I didn’t understand why they would laugh. I was just trying to do something I loved doing.” Melanie recalls being told her music was stupid. “I would write songs and people would say they’re stupid,” Melanie says. “It made me feel like I wasn’t good enough to do music.” Because of the incessant bullying, Melanie found herself trying to find other outlets for her creativity. She found that, similar to writing music and telling a story through her words, she was able to tell a story visually, through photography. Melanie discovered her love for photography and realized it was not just pictures she loved, but what she could do with them. “I got into photography because that was more accepted in my school,” Melanie says, “I was always such a visual person.” In her photography, Melanie enjoyed conceptual portraiture, which is a type of photography that illustrates an idea. Instead of putting her ideas and stories into a less accepted art form in music, she was able to put pictures together and bring that story to life visually. “I would take pictures of girls who felt like they weren’t supermodel material,” Melanie says. “They had freckles and beauty marks and I would make that pop out more,” Melanie says. She felt that her photography was different and creative and was a way to portray and accent beautiful insecurities. When Melanie had something that she wanted to capture and tell a story

about, she would personify it into one of her photographs. She says that she was always coming up with different scenarios that she wanted to depict in a portrait and that she was always inspired by life around out. Melanie found that when she did this, her classmates connected with her. “I would make…pictures and people thought that was cool,” says Melanie. “With music, it was kind of hard for them to understand it.” Although she excelled at photography and found great joy in it, Melanie quickly decided that she couldn’t just limit herself to photography and slowly got back into music. Music was the first form of art that Melanie fell in love with and the way in which she felt she could express herself best. Prior to auditioning for The Voice, Melanie hadn’t ever performed for a large crowd. She played a few shows, but says only a few people in her family showed up. After seeing an advertisement online for The Voice, Melanie auditioned. “Nobody expected me to actually do anything with music in school,” she says. “Teachers were super proud of me [but] all the students were just really nasty.” As the season went on and Melanie advanced in the singing competition, she says the bullying and hate became more apparent. “They would write terrible things about me on the internet, just because I was achieving my dream at such a young age.” Melanie made it to the top five of the singing competition and looks back on her time on The Voice as both a learning experience and a stressful experience. “It sounds so typical, but I learned so much from the show,” says Melanie, “especially about performing.” Melanie says that although she auditioned on a whim, it was a great experience. She says that being one of the youngest in the competition, she was able to gain knowledge from more seasoned performers who taught her about touring, which she had never experienced before. After leaving The Voice, Melanie was faced with making decisions that would affect her future. Melanie says that in this decision making process, she had an epiphany where she realized that she wanted to continue doing music. “After The Voice was when I was like, ‘this is your life, it’s not just a once in a lifetime thing.’” It was her experience on The Voice that changed the game for her and solidified her dreams and the fact that she wants to continue pursuing music. Melanie says her experience on The

Words by JACKIE BUI Photos by CATHERINE POWELL Voice helped her reach a broader audience and is the stepping stone for her music career. The Voice was a platform to help her gain a larger fan following, and she is now able to build on what she’s already established thus far. “I’m very thankful that I was able to make it that far and reach so many people,” she says. When she initially came home after being in California to tape the show, she found that the bullying was still going on. People would see her on the street and beep or pass her house and say things. “But not in a good way, in a mean way,” Melanie says, “I’m just hoping to move soon.” She says that she would love to move back to the California weather, but will go wherever her music leads her and wherever she can create music. Since her time on The Voice has come to an end, Melanie has been working on her music. “Now I’m just making music, having fun, and loving it,” says Melanie. She enjoys telling stories the most and finds that her music is the way in which she can be a storyteller. Melanie is taking 2014 day by day. As of now, Melanie is spending time in the studio and figuring out her personal style and story. She hopes to create more music and play more shows. Down the line, she just wants to sing and bring her music to life. “I want to show people visuals, music videos and stuff like that,” says Melanie. “I get super into it. I put all of my thought into each song and kind of make it special for people. I just want to reach more people, that’s my ultimate goal.” Despite being bullied, Melanie never stopped pursuing her dream. She says that she did not have to build up the courage to audition for The Voice, because it was never about singing to an audience of people who bullied her, it was about singing to people who loved music and who wanted to listen to her rendition of songs. “I had a lot of courage to do music,” Melanie says. “I always wanted to do it, I wasn’t afraid to do it. I just didn’t understand why I was getting teased to do it…I cared, but not enough to say, ‘oh I’m not going to do music anymore.’” Melanie says that she couldn’t see her future being anything else but something creative. “I can’t be a doctor,” she says, “that’s not my plan. I want to do music or any art form that lets me express myself and tell a story.” Today, the bullying has gotten better. “I think they realize I’m just doing what I love.” NKD NKDMAG.COM

spencer sutherland Words by TANYA TRANER Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

Spencer Sutherland started from the bottom, now he’s here. But he’s not leaving anyone behind. There’s a hustle and bustle at the Big Picture Media office where I meet Spencer for the first time. He certainly looks like he’s a star, with management and a posse surrounding him. But there’s a soft side to him; a humility that is extremely apparent as we talk amidst the chaos in the room. “Ever since I can remember, it’s been like I’ve just had to sing. It’s part of who I am.” He says, jumping right into conversation. He attributes his early love for music to his parents. “Growing up, there was all kinds of music in the house, Elvis, Marvin Gaye and all these legends, these amazing voices,” he says. “My dad loves Nirvana and Green Day, my mom loves Elton John, so it was always around.” He says he knew from the beginning that he had to make music his job. Spencer’s hometown of Pinkerington, Ohio isn’t exactly prime real estate for singers, however. So he says he played wherever he could. “No joke, I played the weirdest, craziest places. Like Monday night I’d play in a Mexican restaurant, Tuesday night a Greek restaurant and then Wednesday night, Italian.” For him, it wasn’t about getting paid; it was about being in front of people and performing. These small nightly gigs paid off in the long run. He says he was offered the opportunity to audition for Leslie Armour, who is now his manager. Five days after his audition, she asked him to open for Big Time Rush. “So Wednesday night I played an Italian restaurant for 20 people probably, and then Sunday I played for 20,000. It’s the biggest jump in the world.” Spencer smiles as he remembers his performance, and begins to laugh. “First of all, I walked on stage and people just started screaming,” he says. “None of these people knew who I was, but they were screaming, and I turned around like ‘Who? Is Big Time Rush coming on stage?’ It was crazy. That

goes down as one of the best days of my life.” Even after his performance, he says he couldn’t believe the reaction. That’s why he says he will never forget or neglect his fans. “I love to do as many birthday parties as I can. If we’re in town, there’s nothing that will get in the way,” he says. “That’s just something that I love to do.” He also handles all of his own social media. “I love connecting with the fans because they do so much for me.” And it’s a mutual relationship. Fans tell him how his music has helped them. “To know that I influence people,” he says. “I don’t even know if I do, but to even think about that, it’s like I can’t even wrap my mind around it.” Spencer says he had more to conquer than just his small town. In high school he was 100 pounds heavier. “I tried out for the high school play, and [my director] was like, ‘Hey your voice is so great, but your body is not.’” He sees this industry body image issue as a big problem. “I think especially with girls,” he says. “It’s not fair because if a girl is putting herself against a Victoria’s Secret Model on Instagram and being like ‘I don’t look like that,’ they don’t understand how touched up that picture is. I think body image is a little skewed today.” Now he uses that criticism as motivation to get in shape in a healthy way and hopefully set an example for others. “I have a pretty strict diet, and I work out six to seven days a week,” he explains. Even when Spencer travels he maintains his healthy lifestyle, even though he doesn’t have as much time to work out. “[It’s] just about a lot of determination, waking up early and going for that run.” Despite overcoming all of these obstacles, he says the hardest thing about a professional singing career is knowing that he’s missing out on a normal life. His friends are all in college. He had plans to go to college — he even was assigned a dorm and roommates — but he gave it all up for music. “It’s scary because I don’t have a set plan

for what I’m doing,” he says. “Like the next four years is college, and after that it’s grad school and then it’s a real job, it’s like I’m doing my own thing.” But he says his own thing couldn’t be going any better right now. Today, Spencer is working on some really big projects. He recently recorded a cover of Taylor Swift’s “Everything Has Changed” with Disney star, Stefanie Scott, and the cover video debuted on Entertainment Tonight. This song really helped as far as nationwide exposure for the release of his first solo single, “Heartstrings.” He is currently recording his first solo EP, a mix of pop and R&B, and it’s set to come out sometime this year. He’s also on The Dangerous Tour with Before You Exit, traveling up and down the East Coast. Being that this is his first real tour, he says he is most excited to do ‘the thing’ to do in each state. “So basically we will go up to a local and say ‘ Hey what is like ‘the thing to do’ in Raleigh, North Carolina?’ And then we go do it.” He says his favorite ‘thing to do’ was ride on the Tower of Terror at Disney World in Florida. “It was nuts. I literally almost passed out,” He says. He also notes that he is really excited about all of the food that he has been able to try. “I used to eat chicken nuggets and that was it, but now I’ve tried Indian, Greek, sushi…I never thought I would get to try these things.” “I don’t see myself doing anything else in the world. Ever. And I just really want to thank my fans. I couldn’t do this without them,” he says. As we wrap up, he begins to be styled for his photo shoot, which turns out to be nothing more than the addition of a fitted blazer to his outfit. He chats about my own life, my job, my interests, my own music endeavors. This might be the first time this has happened to me in an interview. He shows a genuine interest in those around him. Spencer Sutherland came from humble beginnings, and if you’re willing to let him, he would love to take you along for the ride. NKD NKDMAG.COM

lilykershaw Words by ALEX LANE Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

Lily Kershaw may only be 22, but her music reflects a lifetime of experiences. Her 13-track debut album, Midnight in the Garden, explores death and heartbreak through winding melodies and breathy, yet commanding vocals, similar to artists like Anna Nalick and Amy Stroup. 54

Likenesses aside, Lily maintains an air of uniqueness in her music through her mix of folksy/ bluegrass and indie alt-rock. Some of that individuality assuredly comes from her bi-coastal upbringing. Born in Los Angeles, Lily relocated to the Upper West Side of Manhattan for her for-

mative years, before eventually moving back to the west coast. The opposing cultures of east and west coasts gave her a lot to think about professionally. At the time of her move from California to New York City, Lily says she wanted to be an actress or a screenwriter. But after some

time in New York City, her passion for music and songwriting blossomed. She was 13 years old, living next to Central Park in New York, when she seriously started writing music. “I would listen to Simon and Garfunkel’s Live in Central Park record and I just imagine what it would be like to have been at that concert,” Lily says. Early on, songwriting was a private matter. It wasn’t until she turned 20 that she met her first producer and music became her career. The process, Lily recalls, was a bit daunting. “I started to learn about the music business — which seemed like the most terrifying business in the world.” She combats her intimidation of the business with — what else? More writing. The competitive culture of both New York and L.A. has helped to develop her sound and her drive. Most importantly, Lily says, the culture causes her to constantly evaluate why she continues with music. “It’s definitely strange that a lot of people do have the desire to do something similar and I am in cities where people who do those thing, and do them well, like to live. But its part of my soul, and regardless of doing this out in the world, I am always going to do it.” To date, that method has worked to keep her sane in the industry, and has harbored her love for songwriting. Daydreaming in Central Park has now turned into a passion for songwriting that Lily says “[Is] inextricable from my life and who I am.” Lily says, “The writing of the music is more important than the business for me … I think

you just have to remember why you started. Like, what made you write the music to begin with, and write from that place. You do a disservice to the people who your music is reaching if you forget that.” Lily has certainly experienced an evolution in character since the release of her last record. After a month on her first tour with the band Radical Face, Lily fell down a flight of stairs and slipped two discs in her back. She could not walk for six weeks. According to Lily, though it was the most excruciatingly painful experience of her life, the ordeal helped her grow as an individual and taught her a lot about pain, love and expectations. “That has brought a whole new perspective on my 22 years. Like, what pain is, and what are limitations in your mind, and what are limitations in your body. And its interesting because you see who shows up for you to be a friend or to be helpful,” says Lily. She explains that many of her friends couldn’t stand to see her in so much pain and some couldn’t visit her until she was better. The experience changed the way she approached writing too, because for a while, she couldn’t pick up her guitar, or leave her house for a new perspective. “It was weird because usually you write a song, you clean out your closet, you go for a jog — you can get out of your environment,” Lily explains. Being unable to remove herself from her workspace due to her back, she was forced to face and develop the ideas that are present in her debut album. Lily just finished touring the U.S. in support of Midnight in the Garden. The album was

released by Nettwerk Records in late September of 2013. Lily halfjokingly says she has been surprised by the positive reception of the record. “I try not to think about it in the terms of that it exists outside of my little bedroom where I wrote the music. But then its weird because you meet people from, like, Columbus, Ohio, and they’re like ‘I love [this song]’” It seems like Lily is in a dreamlike state, where she doesn’t realize that people are listening to her songs all over the country, and soon Europe too. After her current tour wraps up, Lily plans to tour Europe, specifically France. In the meantime however, she has been working on music for her next album “I feel like this next record will probably be just [my] 22, 23 [years] — which is weird because that’s a very different time. Like who knows who I’m even going to be on that record?” Now that she is in the recovery process, Lily says everything from writing and touring, to being positive and kind is easier. With this new perspective she now knows that any obstacle that befalls her is manageable. For now, she is humbled by her career and plans to continue to write and put out more music in the coming year. Following the close of her U.S. tour, she will go overseas for a promotional tour in parts of Europe. Even though Lily has big plans, she continues to be modest. She says that for now, “I’m just very grateful that I get to tour, that I get to sing, that I get to write music. I’m just grateful. It makes me so happy. And scared. But that’s the best thing, because then you feel alive.” NKD NKDMAG.COM

LORDE Mar. 10, Roseland Ballroom (New York, N.Y.)

DEMI LOVATO Mar. 11, Nassau Coliseum (Uniondale, N.Y.)

ELLIE GOULDING Mar. 12, The Theater at MSG (New York, N.Y.)

SASHA PIETERSE Words and Photos by CATHERINE POWELL Makeup by Jordan Long for Exclusive Artists using Tarte Cosmetics Hair by Lacy Redway using Orbe Hair Care and T3 Tools Jumpsuit by Alice + Olivia Dress by Tadashi Shoji

I meet with 18-year-old Sasha Pieterse in the lobby of the upscale Trump SoHo hotel in New York City. Outside, groups of teen girls are braving the rain to grab selfies with the cast members of ABC Family’s Pretty Little Liars as they trickle out the front door on their way to the airport. The night before, the entire cast gathered in front of an audience of 1,200 fans to do a special live reading of the season four finale script. Prior to the event, Sasha spent two days doing press with her core cast mates — Lucy Hale, Ashley Benson, Shay Mitchell and Troian Bellisario. I expect Sasha to show some signs of exhaustion, but she’s all smiles and is highly alert. “I got to sleep until 10:30 this morning,” she grins. I get a sense that sleeping in is a rarity for Sasha these days. Sasha’s story begins in South Africa. She was born there and most of her family still lives there. Sasha and her parents moved to Las Vegas when she was 3. Her parents were professional dancers and recognized the opportunities available in the United States, both for themselves and their daughter. A family friend of theirs had a son in the entertainment business and Sasha stumbled into acting “kind of by accident.” She got headshots taken, sent them to an agent and was signed across the board — “Which is very unusual,” she says. Soon after, she went to her first audition — for a Lexus commercial — and booked the gig. “Which is also unheard of,” she says, laughing. Not long after, she and her family moved to California. Sasha was 6 years old when she landed her first television role, in Family Affair. The show only ran for one season, but it kickstarted Sasha’s theatrical career. Following the

series cancellation, she booked a few guest star roles on shows like Stargate SG-1 and Wanted before scoring what she considers her most substantial TV role before Pretty Little Liars — a one episode appearance on House. Only 9 at the time, Sasha played a cancer patient named Andie. “I went through five and one-half hours of make-up each morning, woke up super early, but it was an amazing experience working with that cast,” she says. Her performance on House was later considered for a Daytime Emmy in 2005. Following her stint on House, Sasha filmed a few movies, including The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl and Good Luck Chuck, and also appeared on the last season of Heroes. While Sasha had been booking consistent work throughout the early stages of her career, she always faced a challenge when it came to her age. “I always looked older than I really was, and in this business that’s such a hard thing to have against you,” she says. Most companies will hire actors 18 or older to play younger roles either because of the content of the show or movie, or because of the strenuous hours attached to the project. Actors under the age of 18 can only work a certain number of hours each day, in addition to a mandatory three hours of schooling. Considering the rest of the girls in Pretty Little Liars were in their 20s when the show started, it was kind of a miracle Sasha snagged the part. “I was 12 when I got the pilot, and graduated high school at 14,” Sasha recalls. Graduation opened the opportunity for Sasha to work at all hours by the time Pretty Little Liars’ second season began. “It allowed me to not have to worry about booking work because of my age anymore,” she

says, describing it as “a weight off [her] shoulders.” While Sasha may be the youngest actress on set, she’s used to that by now. “All my life I’ve been surrounded by adults, my friends have always been older, so I was used to that company,” Sasha explains. But she’s cautious, and only surrounds herself with people who support her and are good influences on her wellbeing. She hears a lot of negative stereotypes when people hear she’s been in the business since she was four. People assume that because she was a child actor, she’s going to mess up. “That’s such a misconception because there are hundreds of actors who started when they were really young that have done well and are successful in their careers,” she says. “It’s just the ones that do the bad things, and basically hurt themselves, are the ones that get recognized. Which is very unfortunate.” At the time of the Pretty Little Liars pilot, Sasha was fresh off the last season of Heroes and flew to Vancouver to shoot. Once the series was picked up, some familiar faces pleasantly welcomed her onto the Warner Bros. lot. The majority of Heroes’ crew eventually worked on the set of Pretty Little Liars. “It was already a family environment from the second episode,” she says. Sasha praises the crew for everything they do for her and the show. She is thrilled that the majority of the crewmembers for the upcoming fifth season have been on-board since the first. “It starts with the actors, and by that I mean the attitude,” Sasha explains. “It trickles down from us to the crew, and luckily we have a very positive group of people working on this show.” Sasha gets frustrated when she hears about actors who don’t care about the NKDMAG.COM

crew or don’t take them seriously, because at the end of the day, that’s who is making them look good. Luckily, there has never been any of that on the set of Pretty Little Liars. “Every now and then I have to pinch myself, because it doesn’t feel like it’s my show!” Sasha exclaims of the success of Pretty Little Liars. While the show is inspired by a widely popular series of young adult books by Sara Shepard, no one involved with the show was prepared for the impact it would have on teen culture. “It just came out at the exact right time,” Sasha says. While fans of the books were likely to tune into the first episode, they were also likely to get angry if things weren’t the same in the adaptation as they pictured them in their heads. Luckily, the show’s differences were embraced early on, and they allowed the show to develop into something completely separate from the books. And oh, did it grow. With the help of social media, Pretty Little Liars has become a cultural phenomenon, embracing outlets like Twitter like no show had ever done before. During the show, hashtags appear on the screen to encourage viewers to tweet along, and cast members will live tweet and answer questions while a new episode is airing. What began with a small Twitter phenomenon, Pretty Little Liars fans have

become impossible to ignore on Tuesday nights. It has become the most tweeted about show ever and accumulated 17 million tweets in 2013 alone. “The more our show went on, the more the demographic changed and expanded,” Sasha explains. The night before I meet Sasha, the season four finale broadcasted to over 6.3 million viewers. “Our fans are little detectives!” Sasha gushes of those who rally behind Pretty Little Liars. She describes the writer’s room as a bit of an investigator’s office, complete with a wall of plot lines and characters connected by red string. Fans of the

anything about their characters or the plot before it’s necessary, in order to keep things as raw as possible on screen. So this October when it was finally revealed that Sasha’s character, Alison DiLaurentis, was in fact alive, Sasha didn’t know before receiving that script. “I figured she had to be alive, but when it happened the way it did I was so excited,” she says of the now infamous turnaround scene. Season four took viewers on an intense journey after they learned Ali was alive. Now that the season finale has aired, all anyone wants to know is what will happen in season five. “It’s going to be a completely different show!” Sasha dishes. “We’ve never seen Alison like this. She’s a dead girl walking.” The dynamic between all the characters will change drastically now that the girl who was supposed to be dead has actually been in hiding the whole time. While scripts are still being worked on and none of the cast knows anything yet, Sasha has high hopes for what will come of her character. “I want reconciliation, but I know it’s not going to be that easy for [Alison],” she says. Alison will be reintroduced into society and forced to interact with people she bullied before she disappeared. On top of that, it was revealed in the last seconds of the season finale that her mom is now dead. As far as spoilers go, Sasha

“Every now and then I have to pinch myself, because it doesn’t feel like my show!”

show pay attention to every tiny detail, so much so that the writers will have to explain things they thought were insignificant later on because viewers dissect them to an incredible level of detail. It’s a good problem to have, Sasha thinks, because it allows fans to truly become a part of the show, not just watch it aimlessly each Tuesday night. “I think fans would be happy to know that we don’t know anything either,” Sasha jokes. The producers don’t tell the cast

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doesn’t have many to give for what’s to come in season five, but the main focus will continue to be the search for “A,” the girls’ unknown tormenter. However, Sasha hints that there will be new characters coming into play, as well as some old favorites returning. In a sense, Alison herself is a whole new character because until season four, all of her appearances were either flashbacks or dreams. “I realized, now that I’m playing Alison and she’s alive, she is a totally different character. She’s a victim, she’s been emotionally wounded, and I get to capture that,” Sasha says. With so much information coming out in the season four finale, most importantly (in Sasha’s opinion) Alison’s mother burying her alive, season five is already set to turn some heads. After Sasha returns to the small screen for the entire summer when Pretty Little Liars comes back in June, she’ll make her way to the big screen this December in Inherent Vice. The film stars Joaquin Phoenix, Owen Wilson, Reese Witherspoon and more and takes place in Los Angeles in the 1970s. It focuses on Phoenix’s character, a detective whose girlfriend goes missing. “It’s different than anything I’ve ever done before. I play a 22 year old cocaine addict,” Sasha says. The film is far out of Sasha’s comfort zone, and she soaked up as much knowledge as she could from both the cast and director Paul Thomas Anderson. “I was very intimidated, but movies is where I want to be,” she says. The cast has high hopes for Inherent Vice and they’re all crossing their fingers they make it to award show season next year. On the opposite side of the entertainment world, Sasha has always had an interest and pas-

sion for music. While acting is her priority, she does try to release singles whenever she can. “I think singles are all I can do right now, aside from small performances here and there,” she says. While Sasha would love to tour in the future, her schedule doesn’t permit it right now. “I wouldn’t want to do just a two week tour, I’d want to do a big, official tour,” she says. Movies and guest starring roles take priority for Sasha during Pretty Little Liars’ hiatus, but if nothing comes up after this season is finished filming she is going to focus on music again. In terms of influences, Sasha is drawn to country music stars like Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood. The storytelling aspect of country songs appeals to her, especially since she hasn’t had the opportunity to tell a story with a full album yet, only with singles. “It’s an easy outlet for me,” she says of writing in that style. She writes all her own music with the help of producer and writer Dan Franklin. She hopes to at least have another single or two out this year. While it’s easy to see the impact Sasha and Pretty Little Liars have had on their fans via Twitter or through the fans waiting outside the Trump SoHo, the minute it hit Sasha was when she was in Hawaii filming a guest spot for Hawaii 5-0. She was exploring on one of the islands and the phrase “You can’t see me, but I see you. – A” was written on the wall in a cave. “It’s just been a whirlwind experience…I can’t believe five years have passed already,” Sasha says. With a full season to film and a new movie being released in the next eight months, it’s no doubt that year six will go by just as fast. Here’s hoping Sasha will get a chance to sleep until 10:30 again soon. NKD NKDMAG.COM

pretty little liars Just hours before the Pretty Little Liars

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paradise fears Words by SHINA PATEL Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

After high school, most 18-year-old kids are preparing for college to continue their studies. The same couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be said for the six boys of Paradise Fears. The young men, who were accepted to college, decided to put their future plans on hold and give music a shot. The South Dakota natives hoped to win as many Battle of the Band competitions and talent shows as possible. What happened was a grass roots rising to make Paradise Fears a prominent name in the alternative music scene. The band consists of Sam Miller (lead vocals), Michael Walker (piano), Jordan Merrigan (lead guitar), Lucas Zimmerman (drums), Marcus Sand (bass) and Cole Andre (backing vocals and acoustic guitar). Coming from the small town, Vermillion, in the southeastern corner of South Dakota proved to be challenging. Not many people in the area were interested in the alternative rock sound Paradise 56

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Fears were after. The boys were inspired by bands like Taking Back Sunday and Brand New. They all loved going to shows and seeing big names such as Boys like Girls and All Time Low. When they first started out and started playing Battle of the Bands competitions they would try and recreate the experience that they had at the Boys Like Girls or All Time Low shows for the 10 or 15 people that would show up. The band won a competition and was given a $700 prize. “It was the craziest thing in the world to us, that someone would pay us money for playing music,” Sam says. They soon made the decision to take the band out of South Dakota, in hopes that they would be able to record music and go on tour. In 2010, they started following tours like All Time Low and The Ready Set in an attempt to get people to hear their music. At the time they had recorded an EP called Make Them Believe. Just like any other band who wanted to spread the word about their music they would persuade the people waiting on line to buy their CD by letting them have a listen. After eight months or so, they had sold about 16,000 copies of their record, and they snagged the opening spot on the All Time Low tour. Currently the band is unsigned. But they’re not actively looking for a label to sign them. When they first started out not many record labels were looking to sign a small town band from South Dakota. But the band actually benefitted from the lack of a contract. “We figured out how to start to build a following and start making money all on our own. And when we did that, the need for a label became a lot less necessary,” Sam says. The band has no plans to sign with a label as of now, unless they stumble upon a great opportunity. Their fan base is still growing, and they are enjoying being free of a label and a manager. Paradise Fears are known not only for their unique sound, but their meaningful lyrics. Their writing process stems from what Sam calls “an observational philosophy.” As the name would suggest, they write about things they see in their daily lives. “I meet a lot of very, very, very inspiring people,” Sam says. “I come from a very inspiring family. I’m inspired by the five other guys in our band.”. It all started when the band wrote the song “Sanctuary.” Sam wrote the

song when he was 16, at a point in his life when he was struggling with self-image issues. He coped by going to his father’s church to play the grand piano. It became a safe place for him. It was from all of this that the song was written. Not only is this song different on paper but even when performed lived. “When we started playing that song...we could feel our centers of gravity shift a bit because we realized that there is value to music that people can take and apply to their own life and learn to appreciate and accept themselves,” Sam says. What’s unique about “Sanctuary” is that there is a spoken rap section that speaks of how this band and music itself can become a safe haven for people who are feeling lost. This mentality has pushed them to write even more inspirational ballads on future records such as “Yours Truly” and “Warrior.” Sam says that during the song writing process, he will draw from conversations with people he has met in the past, and it helps drive the lyrics in the direction he wants. Not only does Sam draw inspiration from the lives of fans he meets, but he also finds inspiration in the experiences that him and the band have been through. “We’ve had some crazy fun experiences that are fun to draw on for lyrical inspiration,” he says. A lot of these new experience songs come from new music. A new song that Sam wrote is called “Next to Me.” The song talks about how Sam ran into an old friend at a bar and wound up spending the whole night talking to her and catching up about what they had done since high school. “It was a weird, eye-opening experience, and I wrote a song from that,” he says. Another song the band plans to release is called “Reunion.” Sam wrote this song from an observational standpoint and how one night he sees all his old school mates crammed together in a bar. They’re all around the age of 22 and, like most 22-year-olds, are lost and lonely. He sees them all come together and for a couple hours forget about their problems. “I think that it’s in moments that people are the closest together that their loneliness is exposed,” says Sam. Two years after the release of the full-length, Yours Truly, in 2011, the band released an eight-song EP called Battle Scars. In hindsight, Sam sees the decision to wait as a mistake. With this record, the band felt more mature both musically and emotionally. Sam believes the band should

analyze the reception of new music in two facets. One facet would be how the existing fan base reacts. In this sense, he would say that the EP did phenomenally. Many people were excited over the new music and they got nothing but positive reactions from their fans. He also believes that with this EP they were able to reach some new audiences. “People who had previously not even been remotely interested in our music kind of had come around to appreciating it more,” he says. The second facet to success, Sam believes, is commercial success. Initially, the record did well commercially. Their number on the charts was rising and rising and they wound up debuting at no. 2 on the iTunes Alternative chart. But there’s also the possibility of getting radio play. The band didn’t get that from Battle Scars. However, when they were writing Battle Scars and making the music, they weren’t trying to get a radio song. “It’s like hoping to win the lottery,” Sam says. The band doesn’t care about achieving that kind of mainstreaming success. Right now, they’re happy with the way their audience is growing. “I think that there is quite a bit more value to a loyal fan than there is to a hundred passive semi-interested fans,” Sam says. He considers the band lucky. They have been able to forge a deep connection with their audience. The tour that they just wrapped up in March, the Acoustic & In the Round Tour, was their way of giving back to the people who, as Sam puts it, “give a shit about our band.” The shows on this tour were all performed acoustically, and they put a cap on the number of tickets for each venue. They also wanted to break the barricade that separates the band from the fan. The band didn’t want that dichotomy to exist. That’s why they did all the shows “in the round.” Essentially this means at every show the audience surrounded the stage; there was no separation of “us” and “them.” The goal of the tour was to make each performance as intimate as possible. There were many benefits in doing a tour like this because they felt that the fans were more involved, and it allowed them to play longer and make each show more memorable. The purpose of each night on the Acoustic & In The Round Tour was to make the legacy of Paradise Fears last forever. In the theme of legacies lasting forever, Sam thinks it’s amazing that people get NKDMAG.COM

their lyrics tattooed on their body. When he sees people with Paradise Fears tattoos he describes it as, “An infinite little piece of us that has been forever preserved in somebody else’s story.” He says that on this past tour, he noticed a lot of people who have a story to tell about how the band has helped them in a way he could never imagine possible. He hears these stories about how their music saved lives, helped fix broken family relationships and even how their music helps some people come to terms with their own sexuality. “In those moments, that is what Paradise Fears is about for me,” he says. “That one person and me connecting.” The band is constantly trying to make music that is different to keep up in the evolving world. When they begin their music-making process, they tend to focus on songs individually to make it as unique and perfect as possible. They went through a two-month period recently where they constantly wrote lyrics. “We wrote a new song every day,” Sam says. They only start to picture the whole cohesive album and how different songs would work with what they’re trying to release when they begin the recording process. Many artists don’t take risks and get stuck in their ways when they found something that works. But Paradise Fears is always trying to break the mold. “I would say that the entire process [music making] could be summed up by the phrase, ‘Wouldn’t it be cool if,’” Sam explains. This month, the band will be joining The Summer Set on tour in the United Kingdom, the first time Paradise Fears will be across seas. In the mean time, they are going to begin working on new music and start the recording process. They had a bunch of different producers lined up for March and the beginning of April, and they are eager to release new music to their fans. But this time they’re not going to wait to release it. While they may not have won as many Battle of the Bands competitions as they hoped, Paradise Fears has grown into one of the most prominent alternative bands on the scene that will continue to surprise music listeners with their inspirational ballads and eclectic sounds. NKD

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the vamps Words and Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

It’s early afternoon on Feb. 19 and there’s a line of teenage girls outside of the Gramercy Theatre in New York City that wraps around the block. They’re using their colorfully decorated signs to shield their hair from a slight drizzle. Others use their bags as seats on the wet sidewalk. The marquee reads “THE VAMPS – SOLD OUT.” The various businessmen and art school students walking down 23rd Street don’t pay much attention to the line of girls blocking much of the sidewalk, nor do they glance twice at the sign above them. It’s understandable, because The Vamps’ core demographic is teenage girls and those NKDMAG.COM

walking down 23rd Street have probably never heard of The Vamps, especially because tonight is their United States debut. The boys — Brad Simpson (vocals), James McVey (guitar), Connor Ball (bass) and Tristan Evans (drums) — are gathered in the red-lit basement area of the Gramercy Theatre. They’re a little jetlagged from their flight over from England, but they’re in good spirits and anxious for their set tonight. They’ll be performing in front of their United States label, management and close to 1,000 fans. Not only is it sold out — it will also be their first headlining show ever. They’re fresh off of a string of shows with Taylor Swift in London and ready to take on their own crowd. The Vamps are only two years into their career, but they’ve already built up a substantial following. Brad and James formed the band, and then later pulled Tristan off of YouTube. They met Connor through a mutual friend and signed a record deal less than a year into the band. While all the members had their own YouTube channels prior to The Vamps, they admit none of their followings were significant. “I had like 250 subscribers and thought I made it,” James says. They found each other by “getting lost on YouTube” for hours and making it deep into their “Suggest Videos” sidebar. Once the band was in place, they took to Twitter and YouTube to build their fan base. Early on, they were gaining a few hundred followers every day, but once they uploaded their debut single “Wildheart” (later renamed “Wild Heart”) to

YouTube, they began to gain attention — snagging over 46,000 views in two days. A few weeks later they released “Can We Dance” and earned over 1 million views in two weeks. But what really helped them win people over was their live show. Their first tour was a support slot on McFly’s “Memory Lane Tour” in the United Kingdom. McFly’s cult following accepted The Vamps with open arms and things really began to take off. “It really was the perfect first tour,” Brad says, “We got to play Wembley Arena on our first tour!” Following their spring with McFly, they played a few shows with Selena Gomez in the fall before scoring the opening slot for Taylor Swift’s five sold-out London shows in February. “To be a part of that was absolutely amazing. I’m a very big fan of hers,” James says. Though The Vamps have no problem playing huge arenas, they’re excited to play a more intimate show for their New York fans. The boys have already developed a foundation in the city — they recorded quite a few songs here in 2013. “New York is just a special place to us — it made sense to make our American debut here,” Tristan says. When recording in New York, they band had no idea what they were getting into. Their label arranged for them to work with some producers in the city and they packed their bags and left. But it worked out for the best. “We were able to work with such incredibly talented people here and were very inspired by the city,” James says. The songs they recorded in New York last year will finally

see the light of day this April when their debut full-length album is released in the UK, followed by a release in the US later this year. The guys are perfectionists — some songs went through 20 different versions before the band was satisfied. While many bands often struggle to see eye to eye artistically with their respective labels, The Vamps value the opinions and suggestions of their label Mercury Records. “They want it to be the best it can be, and so do we,” Connor says. Even though the record is slated for an April release, the band admits it’s still not completely done. “It’s really hard because we never stop writing, so we never feel like we’re done,” Brad says. “We haven’t had a block of creativity ever,” James adds. But they’re confident in the work they’ve created for their debut and are eager to “get it out of the way.” In terms of content, The Vamps aren’t trying to do anything different than what’s already out there — they just want to do what they like. “We like girls and we like dancing,” Tristan jokes. Commonly mistaken for a traditional boy band that only sings and dances, the guys think what makes them stand out is that fact that they play instruments. “There’s really not many bands our age doing what we’re doing,” Brad says. They pride themselves for not falling into the DJ scene or throwing crazy beats behind their songs just because that’s what’s popular right now. The Vamps feel like their record is a solid showcase of what they can do. “There’s the dance songs, there’s ballads, there’s NKDMAG.COM

guitar heavy tracks,” James explains. They were lucky enough to be able to release their personal favorite tracks as singles in the UK, such as “Can We Dance” and “Wild Heart.” But the rest of the tracks on their still-untitled album are songs that they’re proud of. Following sometime in the US, including stops at the Nickelodeon Kid’s Choice Awards and Radio Disney Music Awards (they scored nominations at both), the band will release their record and head out on a headlining tour in the UK this fall. They’re working out the details for some international dates this summer, but specifics are being kept secret. As our conversation winds down, the group is still full of energy. The boys make jokes about their post-show plans (which include a big dinner and frozen yogurt). Six hours later, the line of teenage girls is now inside the Gramercy Theatre and the shrill heard as The Vamps walk onstage is deafening. Considering the band only has one official single released in the United States, it’s impressive how many words this crowd knows. With the exception of the few songs The Vamps were performing for the first time, the girls reacted to every song as if it were their favorite song in the world. Even the brand new ones earned screams and cheers as fans eagerly tried to film them on their iPhones. So maybe they’re not selling out arenas on their own yet, and the businessmen on 23rd Street don’t recognize their name, but the boys of The Vamps have found their audience and boy, does that audience love them. NKD NKDMAG.COM

NKD Mag - Issue #34 (April 2014)

Articles inside

Sasha Pieterse