NKD Mag - Issue #47 (May 2015)

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tahj mowry kelsea ballerini rita volk plain white t’s danielle panabaker beau mirchoff phobe ryan kathryn prescott sheppard tyler oakley lexi atkins jacob whitesides

catherine powell catherine powell jordan melendrez catherine powell catherine powell merissa blitz joanna bouras shelby chargin tara devincenzo alyssa girdwain brittany landau alex lane jordan melendrez catherine powell sam rosenthal riley stenehjem tanya traner

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t a h j m o w r y Words by MERISSA BLITZ | Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

“I’ve been acting my whole life for a really, really, really long time. It ages me now because I’m like, ‘Dang, I really am old!’”

Tahj Mowry exclaims in between bites of his cauliflower and quinoa stir-fry as we eat lunch together at Ink 48’s PRINT Restaurant.

Tahj was born into a military family in Honolulu, Hawaii, on May 17, 1986. His family moved to California when he was five, and he grew up in Los Angeles.

“I started acting right away,” Tahj says. “I think it was because I was too hyper, and my mom was just like, ‘We’ve got to do something with this kid.’”

He and his sisters started acting around the same time, taking roles in different television commercials.

“My first commercial was a Charmin toilet paper commercial, which is kind of hilarious. I was like six or something,” Tahj remembers.

His first recurring television role was Teddy, the adorable best friend of Michelle Tanner (Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen), on Full House in 1991. Tahj remembers getting tutored on set with the Olsens and how much fun he had hanging out with the adults on the show.

“It’s just hitting me now how big that show was,” Tahj says. “I didn’t really realize it until later in life, which is weird, but it is such a blessing to have been a part of a sitcom like that.”

After Full House ended in 1995, Tahj went from being cute sidekick to brainiac child genius T.J. Henderson on Smart Guy. While he had the familiarity of working on sitcoms already, Smart Guy was something

else.

“It was different because with Smart Guy, the show was primarily on my shoulders,” Tahj explains. “It’s different, but it’s still a sitcom, so it’s still got the same sort of feel because you do it in front of a live audience, and you feel that instant gratification.”

Tahj compares acting in sitcoms to performing in plays. “It’s cool because you know you’re doing well because you hear the reaction right away and that’s what’s so fun about it.”

When shooting a sitcom, there’s a different process that the actors go through to prepare as opposed to shooting a TV drama or a film. Tahj explains that in the beginning of the week, the actors have to memorize their script and learn the blocking of each scene.

“It’s hard work because you have to remember more things than you would for a film because a film takes more time, so you can do smaller sections of the movie or of the show whereas sitcom you’re doing full scenes,” Tahj says. “But that’s why it’s fun and it keeps you on your toes.”

When shooting a sitcom, he says, there’s no fourth wall. There’s always an audience watching — every take of each full scene and seeing first hand when the actors make a mistake or do spontaneous things while they’re filming.

“I like to try different things every take, like add and change things without telling the writers sometimes,” he says. “The writers allow us to be free, and the audience loves it because, you know, they’re sitting there for a while and take after take it can get boring. So NKDMAG.COM

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you want to change it up a little bit.”

By doing sitcoms his whole life, Tahj was more than prepared for his role as Tucker on ABC Family’s current number-one and longest running comedy, Baby Daddy. One thing he was prepared for the most was how often they’ll change the actor’s lines right on the spot.

“I’ve had scenes in Baby Daddy where they’ve literally changed every single one of my lines for the next take so I have to memorize it on the spot and do it in front of the audience.”

Luckily all the hard work that Tahj puts in is counterbalanced with the fact that the show has “the best crew and the cast is like [his] family.”

“I see them more than my family, I’m there everyday,” Tahj says. “I’m in my dressing room more than my own house.”

Tahj explains that he and his castmates hang out on and off set and that they have a chemistry that’s rare for a sitcom that’s so far along.

“People don’t usually get along for that long,” Tahj says. “We’re very blessed and very lucky to still like one another.”

When it comes time to start working, the cast usually chats so much when they first arrive that they won’t usually start until a half hour after call time.

“It’s very funny. If you came to set you’d be like, ‘Do you guys work? Do you practice at all?’ ‘No we just have fun,’” Tahj says.

Tahj and Jean-Luc Bilodeau, who plays the lead character and Tucker’s best friend, Ben Wheeler, on the show, always have trouble doing scenes together.

“When we look at each other we just laugh,” Tahj explains. “We’re always thinking about the inside joke that we just made or something like that.”

Tucker and Ben are best friends, so they have a lot of serious “best friend scenes” that they have to do together.

“It’s so hard to do those scenes because I’m trying to be serious, and I’m just thinking about what JL told me five minutes ago,” Tahj says.

One of the funniest memories he’s had so far on set, was when Melissa Peterman, who plays Bonnie Wheeler, found an opossum in her dressing room. A live opossum was 6

hiding out underneath her workout clothes, and she thought that it was a prank that the cast was playing on her.

“I wouldn’t come close to an opossum, are you kidding me?” Tahj says, seemingly grossed out by the thought.

He’s excited to see what’s in store not only for Tucker but for the other characters as the show reaches its fifth season.

“It’s cool because as the show goes on, we get to see more of who these characters are,” Tahj says. “Like, we found out that Tucker has an ex-wife.”

Tahj says that Tucker is going to get more airtime in season five. He hopes that Tucker’s dad will come back, and he really wants to meet Tucker’s mom.

“We were bouncing around ideas, I think it would be so cool to have Kristin Chenoweth play my mom because obviously I’m mixed — my mom’s black and my dad’s white – so we could totally do that, and she’s freaking awesome,” he says.

Tahj feels lucky not only to be a part of a show where there is so much chemistry on set but also a show that is beloved by fans.

“Whenever you do a new show, you never know if people are going to like it,” Tahj explains. “Especially nowadays, shows are on for two episodes and they’re gone, and so much money was put into them, and they’re just gone because people didn’t catch on, they didn’t relate.”

He believes that people enjoy watching Baby Daddy because of how well the cast interacts as well as the humor of the show.

He says that since there are a lot of dramas on television lately, people sometimes just need a good laugh.

“They want to go home after a hard day and watch something funny. They don’t always want to watch something dramatic,” Tahj says. “I think it’s just therapeutic for people to sit and just laugh.”

While Baby Daddy is on hiatus, Tahj is still keeping busy with another one of his passions: music. He sang on the show multiple times (he’s even rapped in a kangaroo costume) and now he’s trying to get his own music out into world. He released his electro-soul song “Dancing Along” at the beginning of March, and the feedback is

looking bright.

“People are really liking my sound and how different it is because, for me, I think everything sounds the same on the radio now,” Tahj explains. “They’re liking it because it’s something they haven’t heard before, and I think people are hungry for something new.”

He believes that to create longevity in the music business, artists have to keep trying unique things to avoid becoming a copy of what’s already out there.

“If you do something that someone already did, it might only be hot for that week,” Tahj explains. “I want something that can last, that’s timeless and I want to be able to change my sound as I get older and as I experience life more.”

Tahj is getting ready to release some new music. The official release of his single “Flirt” was April 28 (anyone at SXSW had the opportunity to hear it live), and he plans on releasing an EP this summer to coincide with a summer tour. He spent about a year working on this specific project, writing his own music in the studio and putting his all into it.

“I wrote, primarily, my whole project, which is something I’m very serious about,” Tahj says. “I don’t just go in the studio and have lyrics already there.”

Tahj has never written his own music before, so this was a nerve-racking move for him.

“It’s been really cool because I didn’t really know that I could write songs, I used to be kind of afraid just because it’s kind of vulnerable and you don’t know if people will sing along,” Tahj says. “I just forced myself into writing it on my own because I did want, essentially, control over it.”

Acting and music are both forms of expression that Tahj is deeply passionate about. “I’ve been acting for a very long time, doing sitcoms and all that. I’m sort of now venturing off into music on my down time from Baby Daddy.” Tahj says.

Music is something new and different for Tahj and it’s something that gives him a break from the hustle of an actor’s life. “It’s honestly like therapy,” he says. “It really is, it’s a way to escape.”

This summer will be a busy one for Tahj, but it’s nothing that a little music can’t help. NKD

Kelsea Ballerini

Words by JORDAN MELENDREZ | Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

There’s a stereotype about people in the South speaking slowly. Kelsea Ballerini breaks those stereotypes. Speaking with Kelsea feels like catching up with an old friend; you buzz through topics because of her bright, uplifting voice. So imagine talking about something she is really passionate about: music.

Originally from Knoxville, Tennessee, Kelsea grew up on a farm. Well, sort of a farm, she concedes. “It’s totally not really a farm. It was like three cows and one goat.”

Whether she was singing in church choirs, musicals or glee clubs, she was always involved in music. But despite living in the South, country wasn’t necessarily a genre that grabbed her attention early on.

“I always listened to Top 40 pop. And I still do, I still love it. But I didn’t really know country existed,” she says. “My parents surrounded me with Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett and all of those artists that are so classic.”

But that changed when she was 13.

“I heard the song ‘Stupid Boy’ by Keith Urban, and that was the first country song I remember stopping and listening to and thinking, ‘Oh my goodness, where did this come from?’” she recalls. “So I went and got Keith Urban’s record, Dixie Chicks, Sugarland and Taylor Swift.”

“I just started falling in love with it and studying it and writing it all the time,” she says. “Songwriting is always kind of been about venting and about getting stuff out.

It’s kind of like a little therapy session for me.”

For Kelsea, writing came as naturally as singing. She started by writing about her life experiences, using it as a creative outlet. “When you’re 12 or 13, it’s an awkward age, and boys are start looking cute, and you’re like, ‘What in the world is this,’” she laughs, adding that her songwriting naturally sounded like country music.

“I think it’s just because of my roots and where I was raised and all that stuff. But I didn’t really know where that fit yet.”

It didn’t take long to figure out, though.

At age 15, Kelsea and her mother moved to Nashville so she could pursue songwriting. She spent much of her time seeking a team that suited her publishing

desires. “I signed a publishing deal with Black River as a songwriter full-time,” she says. “And really just dove into that.

For just a full year, focused on discovering who I was as a songwriter and as an artist, separately and together. And I feel like that year I really found my voice and sound.”

Apparently Black River thought so as well, because in December of 2013, they signed a record deal with her. As she looks back at her experience, Kelsea realizes that she’s come a long way; she didn’t even play an instrument until she was 14. She used to sing melodies when she wrote songs, and then her voice coach would play accompany her on the piano.

But now, at 21, Kelsea can play the guitar and has released a single, an EP and is awaiting — eagerly, at that — the May 19 release of her first full-length, The First Time, which will feature the five songs from the EP and seven new songs.

“With the EP, I really wanted to follow up the single,” she explains. “The rest of the album is more of the story telling and more of the depth. So, as a songwriter, that’s the stuff that I’m really anxious to get out there.”

“I’ve been dreaming about this since I was a little girl,” she adds. “So to be able to see that come to life and get music out there is a big deal to me.”

While things with the single and EP moved quickly, Kelsea says the full-length production with Forest Glen Whitehead and Jason Massey was smooth sailing.

“They’re two of my good friends, and it’s their first time producing a record,” she explains. “There’s such a freshness to it because we had time to work on it and they had time to try different things.”

“Some of the best songwriters are able to take a word or a phrase or a movie and create a whole story or song around that.

That’s something that I’ve really challenged myself to do,” Kelsea comments.

“Especially in this last year, just to go outside of my comfort zone and go outside of myself.” Releasing a full-length album in and of itself would seem to be a challenge in and of itself. But it’s been too quick to dwell on issues; Kelsea’s had to overcome

plenty of hurdles already.

“It’s been such a fast process,” she explains. “In the last year, we’ve picked the single, we did the EP, we did a oneweek radio tour. And we just finished the record, we just got the master, so it’s been a whirlwind.”

Part of stepping out of her comfort zone in the past year and a half has included co-writing songs. “It’s harder now because when you get into the co-writing world you find those people that you depend on and that you want to see what they’re going to bring to the song,” she explains.

Even though the album comes out later this month, Kelsea is eagerly anticipating live shows, maybe a fall tour and even a second album. “There’s a couple songs that I had written right after the deadline for the album that I’m already dying to record,” she says.

Kelsea’s single, “Love Me Like You Mean It,” took off, and Taylor Swift even tweeted about how much she was enjoying the EP. “There was a nice little wave of followers from that,” Kelsea says about the social media shout out. But despite attention from big names, Kelsea says one of her favorite things to do is check out videos her fans post.

“I search hashtags, like ‘lovemelikeyoumeanit,’ I’ll search it and find all these videos,” she says. “I’ll stalk all these people that are jamming and comment on all of it because I get so excited.”

While she enjoys seeing her fans jam to her music, she isn’t much different from them when it comes to music. “Before I’m an artist, I’m a fan,” she states. “My dream co-write is with Hillary Lindsey. I just love strong, powerful, awesome females in the music industry.”

With some Grand Ole Opry “fangirling” under her belt, a cover of “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” (“I am like a little elf,” she says about her holiday spirit), and an upcoming Radio Disney Music Award appearance, Kelsea has already found her voice in the music world. If she aspires to be a powerful and awesome figure in the music industry, Kelsea has a promising start. NKD NKDMAG.COM

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rita volk Words by ALYSSA GIRDWAIN Photos by CATHERINE POWELL Hair & Make-Up by SARAH JOFFE

Rita Volk is a modern-day example of the American Dream, regardless of whether the concept seems antiquated or not. She has gone from immigrating to the United States to the becoming face of a breaking boundaries show on MTV, a marker of American youth culture. And that is only the beginning.

Rita and her family moved from Tashkent, Uzbekistan, to the United States when she was 6, and they decided to settle down in San Francisco. “The transition was hard for my family and myself because we had to assimilate into a different culture and a different language,” Rita explains. “I still don’t know how my parents managed it all.”

While elementary school is synonymous with afternoons on the playgrounds and learning how to write cursive, Rita dealt with mean children. “I didn’t know English, and while I was learning it kids were pretty mean. My parents would dress me up in hand-me-downs, so I looked like a little boy up until I was, like, 10,” she recalls. “That didn’t help with the bullying.”

Yet overcoming this adversity led to a greater feat: falling in love with acting. A self-declared drama geek, Rita became involved with theater and film in middle school.

At this point, acting was still a hobby, something she did in her free time. After school and after theater rehearsals, Rita would go home to watch TV. “I was glued to the TV,” she says. “I had a pretty active imagination that I think serves well for what I do.”

Rita is incredibly self aware, which stems from her upbringing.

“Growing up I felt like I had an earlier understanding of people and the complexities of life because I had to kind of grow up faster than the other kids. My parents had experienced so much in their own lives and that always resonated with me,”

she comments. “I had an appreciation for the different ways people live and what goes on in the world.”

This broad understanding of the world flowed into her growing passion for acting, and she believes it was this mindset that allowed her to fall in love with the craft. “When I started doing theater and watching everything, it all came together, and I just felt this solace in being on a stage. It was comforting and mindopening to explore different characters through myself,” she explains. “I fell in love with it.”

Rita continued following her acting path through high school and college (she attended Duke University in North Carolina), and also dabbled in tennis while prioritizing school itself. While Rita’s professional filmography career is short, the phrase quality over quantity is more applicable with her than many others. Snagging a lead role of Amy Raudenfeld in MTV’s scripted sitcom Faking It cannot be eclipsed by anything else.

The show centers around the dynamic of two best girl friends, Amy and Karma (Katie Stevens) as they navigate high school after coming out as lesbians. The show navigates sexuality, both for Amy as she questions her relationship with Karma, and other characters. Rita was drawn to Amy’s character because of her humility and admirability. “Amy is a representation of every person out there who has no idea who they are, but try to get by everyday all while putting other people first,” Rita describes.

So far, the show confronts sexuality and homosexuality in ways that are not currently provided by media, thus breaking boundaries in traditional mainstream media.

MTV has a recent history of appealing to otherwise ignored or critiqued facets of society. Enter Faking It, a show that incorporates these themes and characters in a positive,

normalized way. And, despite the possibly controversial or exploitative themes and plots, the reception has been positive. The main feat is that it provides visibility for the LGBT community.

“We just hope it continues to be a light for people, whatever they want to make of it,” Rita says, noting the versatility of the show’s themes.

“Whether it’s a coming of age story, an inspiration, or just a diversion, I just hope it continue to be something that makes people happy.”

She hopes the show especially acts as a light for young females “who are growing up in a society that’s filled with mixed messages on how they should act or look like.”

However, being a major part of a show that deals with identity and deep themes is not without its own adversities. Fans are quick to appeal to the actors portraying characters they relate to and are heralded as role models without having the option. While this is a powerful and applauded dynamic, it can also be followed with an uneasy, but complimentary, sense of responsibility.

Rita and her co-stars have encountered this.

“I had young fans ask me how they should come out to their parents, or what I would do in certain situations,” she said. “With this show I was welcomed into a community that I now know so much more about, but was asked questions or experience that I can’t always relate to.”

A powerful side effect of a comedy — something that at first glance can seem light and entertaining but can hold weight — is the underlying educational value.

“I think we were all thrust into these role model figures, which is incredibly flattering, but scary because you don’t want to steer anyone wrong,” she said, “People look to you for answers, and you want to be encouraging, but sometimes we are NKDMAG.COM

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just as clueless as anyone else.”

The fan base has delved into the underground of the Internet as well, boasting hundreds of fanfictions that Rita has not read, or even found (hint: ArchiveofOurOwn has nearly 300 stories, and FanFiction.ent has upwards of 600.) While not wellversed in this counter-hegemonic outlet, Rita loves that it allows fans to be more involved in the show while simultaneously incorporating their own creativity. (Rita has one suggestion for the writers: a Faking It comic book with Amy as a superhero. Get writing, fans.)

On set of Faking It, you will probably find Rita and co-star Katie gabbing away — there’s no façade here; they are genuine friends. Forget any on set horror stories or drama tales of he-said-she-said because this cast gets closer and closer with each passing day. “We’re all pretty intimate with each other,” Rita notes. “Lots of hugs and butt slapping on set.” The true marker of a close cast.

Rita continues focusing on growing with the cast and hopes to be a part of future projects that are as well-written and progressive as Faking It. “I’m so proud of this coming season,” she says. “The show has grown so much.”

Rita has grown as a person and actress as well. Even from the moment she realized she wanted to pursue acting: She was 12 years old, playing Wendy in a school production of Peter Pan. The teacher had harnesses installed so the students could fly across the stage. “I think he wanted to impress everyone,” she remembers. Regardless, it was the first moment she knew she wanted to act.

“I think I knew earlier than that that I wanted to act, but when I was flying over the stage, I felt like a rock star,” Rita says. “I still remember that one minute when we were in the air,” she said, “I was like, ‘Yup, I can definitely do this forever.’” NKD NKDMAG.COM

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PLAIN WHITE T’S Words by JOANNA BOURAS Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

It all began in 1997 when high school friends Tom Higgenson and Dave Tirio decided to start playing some music. Tom took the reins as the singer and guitarist.

Tom wrote a couple songs, but since he couldn’t couldn’t play the drums, guitar and sing at the same time, Dave took the place behind the drumkit for a few years.

“Flash forward, here we are, Gramercy baby,” Tom says as the band prepares for their show at the Gramercy Theater. Not only that, but Plain White T’s are getting ready to debut American Nights, their seventh studio album, that was released on March 31.

The band, which consists of Tom (vocals), Dave (guitar), Tim Lopez (guitar), Mike Retondo (bass), and De’Mar Hamilton (drums), hasn’t released music since their EP Should’ve Gone To Bed in 2013. They were ready to release American Nights three years ago, but their then label, Hollywood Records, wasn’t. The release was pushed back twice because of “x, y, and z, financials and politics,” the band members explain.

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“They kept pushing it back, pushing it back, pushing it back,” Tom says . “They put us into a band limbo, so we negotiated our way out of it.”

“About 90 percent of a band’s problem is dealing with labels, and it was our time to deal with it,” they say.

Fortunately, they were able to walk away with their album, and they can breathe a sigh of relief.

The Plain White T’s received several tempting offers from other label, but they thought that if the labels weren’t going to adapt to their style, the best thing for them to do was try it on their own.

“If we want to record a song tonight and put it out tomorrow, we can,” Tom says.

“The good thing about being 16

independent now is that, whenever we feel like it, we can record some stuff and put it out,” Dave explains.

“We don’t have to be on someone else’s schedule,’ Mike adds.

Their next move was to get rid of half of their album and record new songs in Tom’s basement. As a result of waiting around three years to finally release the album, many songs that didn’t make the final cut. The songs either didn’t fit cohesively with the other tracks or the band members no longer had the emotional bond that existed when they originally recorded them.

“The six [new songs] we recorded ended up being our six favorite in the entire album,” Tom says.

The band was extremely excited to own their own album and decide when to release it. Naturally, they did so as soon as they felt it was complete. Dave and Tim said that being able to record and put out their album on their own felt like the really early days of the band when they just started out.

“There’s something in the back of your head saying we should try and do something different,” Tim says. “We’ve been doing business as usual for seven years.”

“You start a band to have fun and make music. It became more of a business and a job,” Tim says.

“You had someone telling you, ‘Oh this song isn’t catchy enough or radio-friendly enough.’ There were so many people you had to appease along the way.”

But, as Tim says, “It’s all about the fans.”

Since it had been three years since the band released any music, the guys could feel their fans growing impatient. They also believe that fans are expecting more music more often because of social media’s speed. But sometimes this causes an unrealistic timetable.

“It kind of makes you feel bad,” Dave says. “You want to give them what they want.”

The band members enjoy getting to know some of their friends through social media, but they are also careful about how they interact on social media. But some fans try to get more personal with them, which can get uncomfortable, “We’re not used to being glued to social media so there’s a part of us that feels like, I don’t want to tweet and Instagram all the time,” the band members share.

“You don’t want them to know everything, like here’s what I eat everyday.”

They believe that social media has taken some excitement out of random interactions with famous people on the street. Before, if they saw someone’s tour bus or someone eating a hot dog, it would resonate for years. Today fans think they are consuming more through social media when they are really just consuming exactly what a publicist wants their image to be.

“People nowadays don’t know what they’re missing,” the band says. “If I follow someone on Twitter I’ve uncovered every stone.”

They find that people are almost complaining now if they can’t get a glimpse into everything. It’s all about finding the right balance, they say, because it can also be a great tool. Part

of that balance comes when fans react and appreciate their music.

“I like it when people ask questions,” Dave says. “Actually engage me, how me how I feel about something.”

The band says they have always had to try very hard themselves to promote and that nothing has come easy. They don’t expect the current album to be either. However, they do think that if American Nights is successful, it will feel like a huge accomplishment. When it comes to anticipating a possible top hit, though, the band says they never know what fans are going to react to. They have no idea which songs will capture fan attention this time around.

“We didn’t call ‘Delilah,’ the band says. “It was track 13, it was such an outlier.”

The band and label didn’t realize how hot the song was. Everyone was singing along to “Hate (I Really Don’t Like you)” at a concert. But then when they started playing “Hey There Delilah,” the crowd went wild, which stunned them.

“It was such an unlikely radio hit,” Dave recalls.

“Hey There Delilah” was the last track on their third album, All That We Needed, and eventually became number one of the Billboard Hot 100 in 2007. Fans would share and spread it online like wildfire.

They have no intention or thought of the last track on American Nights to be number one. But it has happened before, so it could happen again. and it could be a song that any of the guys wrote. Mike says Tom had originally written a majority of the lyrics. But the final product is split pretty evenly — a first for the group.

“Tim has four songs, I have

one, Tom has six,” Mike explains.

“We’ve never had that kind of creative split.”

Mike says he is attached to the songs that he wrote because he feels a personal connection to them.

Each bandmate has his favorite tracks. Tim loves “Stay,” and Dave agrees that it is also one of his favorites. But Dave has multiple favorite songs — “Stay,” “You Belong,” “Here Come That Sunrise,” and “Pause.” But he also wrote songs for the album, and he has a soft spot for them.

“Stay” has been around for several years, but it they recorded three different versions, before they nailed the sound they wanted.

“My favorite tune that Tom turned in is ‘You Belong,’” Mike says.

Depending on how American Nights is received by the rest of the world, the band hopes to continue working on their own.

The members would be thrilled if they can function the same as independents as they did on a major label.

“It would be awesome to be a success independently,” Dave shares.

“When you’re on a label, they take everything,” Tom adds. “It would be great to see us do this, our five brains, put them together, and do it ourselves.”

A positive aspect of sitting on familiar songs for so long is that the band says they have become really good at playing the album live. And the timing couldn’t be better, as they’re scheduled to tour all summer with Rob Thomas to promote American Nights.

The band is already thinking ahead and looking forward to releasing their next album. They don’t have a date set yet, but now they can do things on their time. NKD NKDMAG.COM

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Danielle Panabaker Words by TANYA TRANER Photos by CATHERINE POWELL Hair by CREIGHTON BOWMAN Make-Up by ROSIE JOHNSTON

Actress Danielle Panabaker has accomplished so much at just 27. Recently, she has broken out of the child actor and “Disney Bubble” and rocketed to a flourishing career with her latest gig as Dr. Caitlin Snow on The CW’s hit series, The Flash.

Her childhood wasn’t exactly normal. Her family moved about every two years for her father’s job. Moving so much was difficult for her, and it was hard to be the new kid in school everywhere they went, so she and sister, Kay Panabaker, became very close. She says this nomad lifestyle spurred both of their acting careers.

“My little sister’s nickname from my second grade teacher was Miss Hollywood,” she says.

But Danielle, on the other hand, was painfully shy. “If she was Miss Hollywood, I was hiding behind my parents’ legs.” The two began 32

acting at a community theater in Georgia to give Kay an outlet for her energy and Danielle a chance to break out of her shell.

The family then moved to Chicago where the two continued doing community theater and also began to dip their toes in a bit of commercial work, and auditioning for small roles in movies. “[Cap’n Crunch] used my voice as a tagline in their commercials for forever, which is really cool,” she says. As both of the girls experienced success in Chicago, people began to encourage the Panabakers to move to Los Angeles and give acting a real shot. “At the time, my mom didn’t even drive on freeways,” she says. “If we had to go to an audition in Chicago, we took the train.

So trying L.A. was really scary.

But we wanted to so badly that we convinced our parents that it would be a good idea.”

Danielle’s first real job was a guest appearance on an HBO miniseries Empire Falls. She attributes her success as an actress to this experience. “I’ll never have an experience like that again.” Her director, Fred Schepisi and co-star, Ed Harris were patient with her and really taught her the ropes of being on a set. “I don’t know if there is a class that teaches you how to be on set because it’s different,” she explains. “You can prepare, and you make your choices as an actor — and obviously I had a lot of training, but being on set and knowing that you shouldn’t crinkle your props in front of your mic because then you can’t be heard, that’s things you don’t learn until you’re there.”

While she landed that gig right away, Danielle says Empire Falls didn’t come out for about two years after shooting, and being a

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15-year-old actor in Hollywood, roles are fairly limited. This is when her Disney career began.

“Disney Channel is where it’s at when you’re a kid actor,” she says.

Danielle says the Disney Channel was a great experience for her.

She recognizes, however, some actors get stuck in a bubble where they will always be known as the wholesome family type, not allowed to “grow up.” She says her saving grace in this regard is that she worked on Disney films as opposed to television. When you’re in a Disney series, the shows are running multiple times a day and kids are watching continually, regardless of whether or not it’s their first time watching. The characters become household names, and it’s harder to break out of that role. “I was never that girl,” Danielle says. “I was never on a television show for Disney where I was constantly identified as that character.” She played different characters in different movies. “I wasn’t Miley Cyrus, and I didn’t have to fight the stereotype in quite the same way.”

Because of this, Danielle was allowed to grow up and landed her current role on The Flash.

Before the show aired, there was a lot of hype, and everyone was so excited about its success. But Danielle was cautious. “I was less enthusiastic,” she says.” I was like, well, we’ll wait and we’ll see.

I’ve done things like this where they thought they were going to be something amazing, and they weren’t. So I think I had a little bit lower expectations.” She couldn’t have imagined or been more thrilled at how well the show actually did.

Danielle says the show has been a constant progression from day one, with characters, storylines and special effects. “I think that’s the fun part about casting,”

she says. “You have an idea of a character, and then when you find the person, it can be tailored to so much more. Once they cast actors, they get inspired by these actors.”

Danielle says her own character was quite cold in the beginning, and the writers have gradually infused her with vulnerability and warmth. “When you understand the pain that she’s been through, you empathize with her a bit more.”

The show has been renewed for a second season, and everyone recognizes the first was a huge learning curve. “I don’t know if anyone anticipated how difficult the special effects would be, and they are quite time consuming,” she says, expressing how challenging the first eight to 10 episodes were for the entire team. “Even things like Grant’s suit, [his] suit in the pilot episode was extraordinarily uncomfortable, and it’s evolved.”

Danielle says adjusting to the special effects has been especially demanding. The technicality of it alone is something to master. “I was joking the other day, it’s like we’re kids on the playground playing freeze. It’s a very serious game of don’t move.” She says you also have to rely on your imagination more. “Sometimes you’re acting to a tennis ball. Sometimes you’re acting to a piece of tape.”

The show’s special effects aren’t the only thing Danielle has had to get used to. The social media aspect of her show, or any modern show, has been difficult for her, specifically The CW’s live tweeting during new episodes. “I don’t know that they have found a way to measure how Twitter specifically impacts ratings.” She recognizes that being buzzed about on Twitter is a great thing and that it’s an awesome way to connect with her fans. When people are tweeting

positive things, it makes her feel like all the hard work, early mornings and long hours are worth it. But she says “with live tweeting specifically, I feel like people should be watching the show and not looking at their phones.” This is why she isn’t as quick to answer questions during the show.

Danielle also struggles with how much of her personal life to portray via social media. She knows we’re a generation where everyone expects to know everything. But she sees her Twitter account as a public persona and doesn’t post many personal details. If she’s posting about a delicious meal, she’s careful not to post until she’s already left the restaurant. It’s more serious for her than a cup of coffee on Instagram, though. “Things you put on the Internet are there forever, as evidenced by that terrible photo hack last year when all those women had all those photos stolen, and that wasn’t even things that people were posting on social media. It’s terrifying,” she says.

She also knows how easily certain things can be misconstrued or ill received online, so she plans keep her personal life out of the realm of social media.

Right now, Danielle has about two months off before she heads back to Vancouver to shoot season two of The Flash. She hopes to do more stunt work this season, as she really enjoys that aspect of her job. As for her future? The sky’s the limit, at this point. “I have the luxury of being very picky right now,” she says.

She’s extremely happy with her job, and hasn’t found the perfect project to work on outside of The Flash — yet. Her ultimate goal is simple: She hopes to always find challenging work with interesting filmmakers and continue pushing herself. NKD NKDMAG.COM

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BEAU MIRCHOFF Words by SHELBY CHARGIN Photos by CATHERINE POWELL Hair & Make-Up by SARAH JOFFE

Beau Mirchoff, who stars in MTV’s Awkward., is one of the most intense souls out there. Between dedication to his performances, and his true silly nature, it’s not hard to see why he’s captured so many hearts as Matty, the on-again-off-again boyfriend of Jenna (Ashley Rickards).

After he was born in Seattle — and lived there for three days — his mother brought him to Victoria Island along the coast of Vancouver, where he grew up. He started acting when he was 12 and would take a ferry ride into the mainland for auditions. In 2009, he moved in with his grandmother in Los Angeles. “She would make me food every night, and it was wonderful,” he reminisces. “And my commute to auditions and work it was only like an hour and 15 minutes, and to me that was amazing.”

Although Beau experienced a unique upbringing, he feels as though his life was as normal as any other. “I graduated high school, went to prom,” 22

he says, before quipping. “Prom should be renamed expectation … If you go into it with low expectations, you’ll have a good time.” His light attitude attributes to his growth as an actor and how he gradually worked up to where he is now.

He enrolled in acting classes and auditioned for years before landing his first job: a Hummer H2 commercial. “You can find it on YouTube,” he says dramatically. “It’s called ‘The Big Race.’” It was a major step in the right direction for Beau, as it led him to Scary Movie 4, his first major film.

“That was with the Zucker brothers, which was awesome,” he says.

Things continued to grow, and he landed a role on Desperate Housewives, which made him part of a huge cultural phenomenon. When speaking with Beau, it’s hard to tell he’s become a widely recognized character because he’s so down-to-Earth.

Awkward. is in it’s final season, and he’s made some amazing memories.

Throughout the filming of the past seasons, one of Beau’s favorite moments was his fictional prom. “Speaking of prom, we had a prom episode.

So that prom experience was better than my original prom experience,” he recalls. “I had a hot date, I had a romantic moment, a slow motion music swell, and wind in my hair. So that was cool.”

Looking back on his time with the show, he says the first season is his favorite. “It was really smart. You hadn’t seen anything quite like it the genre for quite some time,” he shares. “It was different, and it kinda shook things up a little bit. And it was fun to originate a character. I had never originated a character on television or anything.”

In the early seasons of the show, Beau felt his character, Matty, was quite different from his own personality. But over time Beau felt himself grow closer and have more in common with his role. “As the seasons have progressed I feel like we’ve been on

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the same path more so,” he explains.

“Maybe that’s just because Matty’s maturing, you know, maturing alongside of me. Or I’m getting less mature and Matty’s getting more mature. So we’re meeting on common ground.”

In the final season of Awkward., we can expect the show to keep its essence. “It maintains it’s tone. Obviously things change, there’s new storylines.

It’s great to deal with new themes. It’s the end of high school as you know it, the finish line is right there,” Beau says.

“It’s exciting, it’s trepadatious, it’s nerve wracking, it’s all of the above.” And while he’s ready to move onto other things, he will greatly miss the “people and the camaraderie.”

“It really doesn’t feel like work. I enjoy it. I enjoy going there, and it’s fun when we get to play,” he states. “It’s bittersweet.”

Beau never really expected to be part of something so huge, but that only makes him more grateful for the experience. “You never know with anything. You go on an audition and you do your best … you never know what you’re going to make … you just have to have that magic to make something work, and we have a bit of that.” It was something that he felt made a difference in his life as much as the viewers lives.

His life is generally the same since Awkward. began, with a few small changes. “Down to the nitty gritty [it hasn’t changed] that much, I have the same girlfriend, the same dog, a few wrinkles have laid claim, but other than that you know, it’s allotted me to do some fun things,” Beau says. “More opportunity presents itself, which is always a positive thing.”

While not on set for Awkward., Beau has worked on a few other major projects such as See You In Valhalla with Sarah Hyland. “She’s really great, really smart, too. I love her, she’s just a ball of ‘Yes,’” he laughs. The movie’s plot involves a death in the family, and the siblings are forced to go back to their hometowns and confront past reNKDMAG.COM

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lationships. “It’s a common story done in a new way,” Beau adds.

The show Aquarius, a new series out later this month on Fox, brings a new light to Beau. Centered around the Charles Manson saga, it’s a much darker story than Awkward. “It’s really dark and gritty. I did a cop drama called Poker Night,” he explains about his background in this genre. “I’m the young rookie cop who gets himself in a dire experience.” His work in 2014 with Poker Night allowed to make a seamless transition to playing Aquarius’s Rick Donovan.

Outside pursuing acting, Beau also spends his time with music. “I sing and play guitar in a band.” While kindly putting on a British accent to explain how “You can’t really but a label on us ... funk, rock, blues, rap.”

His charisma and acting ability seem to shine through everything he says.

With so many things coming in and out for him, it’s hard not to see more success down the line. For 2015, Beau has interesting goals. “I want to get in beach shape, and I want to score a goal as one of my goals, any kind, soccer goal, hockey goal, doesn’t matter,” he says. “I just want to keep doing what I’m doing.”

Long-term goals are not something Beau likes to pin on himself. While be confronted with them, he makes it clear he wants to experience all he can, and keep pushing forward. “I want to keep doing things that excite me, keep doing theater, make my all stuff. I like it all ... I just want to stay busy.” He doesn’t have a preference for the type of acting he does, just as long as there is good writing. “At the end of the day, an actor is indebted to his writing,” he explains.

The silliness and positive attitude Beau brings to the table is only matched by his drive to keep going. It’s a crazy world that he seems to want to be a part of in any way possible, while still being himself. Beau’s future is bright, and it’s a career that will be worth following. NKD NKDMAG.COM

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PHOEBE RYAN // words by riley stenhejem // photos by catherine powell

Musician Phoebe Ryan is taking the pop world by storm with the release of her first singles. But a few years ago, she was headed to a different stage: one where she would be performing the likes of Twelfth Night and A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Growing up, Phoebe spent most of her time was vying for the leads in the school plays. “I started pursuing acting from a really young age,” Phoebe says. “I would always get really upset if I didn’t get the leads.” With a laugh, she adds, “I think that’s when my parents realized, ‘Oh, we have a problem here. This is going to be one of those dramatic-ass kids.’”

She attended a performing arts high school, where she majored in theater with a focus on Shakespearean plays. “Shakespeare was everything,” Phoebe recalls.

“I even competed in the national Shakespeare competition at Lincoln Center, which was hilarious, and so nerdy.”

At the time, music was just a hobby.

Her first real musical venture was a Grateful Dead cover band she joined at age 15.

“It was always really fun, and I started going to recording studios and trying to record my songs with my friends who were musicians,” she says. “I always wanted to pursue [it], but I felt like I would go for the acting thing.”

When it came time to decide on a college, Phoebe was still looking to continue her training as an actor. “I was looking at a lot of fancy acting schools,” she explains.

“Then somehow I ended up taking a tour of New York University’s Clive Davis Institute, and walking down the hallway, I looked into the rooms of all the studios and I was just like, ‘Oh, shit, this is where I have to go to school.’ I didn’t know why all of a sudden I changed my mind, like literally at the drop of a hat, I was like, ‘I am going to be a musician now.’”

Though her split-second decision to only apply to an extremely selective university — the Clive Davis Institute accepts about 30 students per year — could have backfired, everything fell into place for

Phoebe. “My parents were pretty shocked and weirded out,” she remarks. “But it ended up working out, and I started writing music for homework and learning about music business and engineering and production, and everything that goes on behind the scenes. I took a bunch of performance classes and singing classes.”

Fast-forward four years to February 2013, when Phoebe moved to Los Angeles after graduation. “I started writing full-time and working on building my confidence as a songwriter,” she says. “I was writing solely for other artists. I just wanted to focus on other peoples’ lives.”

After working on other projects for a while Phoebe began focusing on her own music project during the summer of 2014.

Phoebe realizes some difficulties associated with both writing personal songs and writing for other artists. “It’s challenging when you’re writing for other artists, because you have to get in their head, and you have to understand their personality and their character,” she explains. “It’s challenging if you’re writing for yourself, because you have to get into your own head, and be strong enough to be open, and share yourself and not be scared.”

In June, she decided to fully commit herself to her own project and write her EP with the help of producer Kyle Shear.

“I had been working with [Kyle] in Nashville, and I had been taking some writing trips out there, and I just fell in love his vibe, his production, everything was super great about him,” she says. “I just had a feeling that I needed to get down there and just do this EP and make it happen.”

So far, she’s released two songs off of the debut EP, “Mine” and “Dead.” The songs she chose to release first “reflect all the other songs,” Phoebe says. “[‘Mine’] just felt so right to be the first one to come out. It’s a song about accepting yourself, good or bad, and a lot of my songs are like, ‘Maybe I’m not that great of a person, maybe I am being a good person, I don’t know, but this is what it is,’ and I feel like that’s what the song embodies.”

Thus far, reactions have been positive.

“It’s amazing, and I feel like it’s about time.

I’ve been doing this for so long, and I’ve always been so jealous when I see people I look up to, like bigger artists, and I’ve been like, ‘Ugh, I could be with them. I could do what they’re doing, and people would like it,’” she says. “I feel like it’s starting to just get attention now, and I feel like I’ve been working so hard for this, and I feel like I deserve it.”

Looking ahead, Phoebe plans to tour and release the full EP, which should be coming out sometime this summer. “It’s going to be a lot of traveling, a lot of meeting new people and trying to build a community that’s excited about my project,” she explains.

So far, her live show is coming together well — the biggest challenge has been working out all of the technological glitches. “There’s always little technical difficulties — most of rehearsal is just figuring out what’s going wrong, so when you’re onstage you can know how to do it right,” Phoebe explains. “That’s something I’m not used to, coming from a background of being [in] like, folk bands and using real instruments … It’s weird.”

Writing your own music in the pop world is still a rarity, and Phoebe feels that her ability to write her own songs is one of her best qualities. “I’m lucky that people have been encouraging me to write my own songs for a really long time,” she says.

“It’s so amazing to see a lot of girls my age that are doing what I’m doing, and they’re also writing their own music. It just gives you your own voice, and that’s everything.”

The coming months will certainly be busy for Phoebe. But she’s just going to continue writing for others while touring and promoting the new EP. “I’ll probably stop sleeping altogether,” she jokes, before adding, “I’m very adamant about keeping my songwriting skill up by writing for other artists.” With a drive and determination such as hers, big things should be on the horizon for Phoebe. NKD NKDMAG.COM

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Kathryn Prescott Words by TARA DEVINCENZO Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

The many faces of Kathryn Prescott include a gay teen fighting for the acceptance of her family, a woman turned warrior in 70 CE Israel, and a kidnapped and brainwashed child. And this is all before you factor in her twin sister.

Kathryn Prescott and her twin sister, Megan, got their start acting from their own hard work and research before they even graduated high school. They participated in a few drama classes and amateur acting groups, but, coming from a family completely on the outside of the acting community, they knew they were going to have to dig a little deeper. “We did some research and heard that you needed an agent to actually go from liking acting to actually getting jobs,” Kathryn says.

They set out to searching online, and they took their first step toward the big screen. They landed a role on a daytime soap, but got their big break on the already wildly popu-

lar UK show Skins. The show was preparing for season two production, which would include a completely different cast than season one. Luckily for Kathryn and Megan, they were looking for twins. “That was kind of our foot in the door,” Kathryn recalls.

“We never wanted to do work as twins, that wasn’t really our aim. It just happened to work out. I guess it’s rare that twins that are both into acting, which made it easier to get work like that, though it’s still hard.”

On this show, Kathryn plays Emily, a girl who begins to fall in love with a girl and understand her sexuality, while her fictional twin sister Katie does not want to believe it’s true.

Perhaps the only thing that could match the twins connection in real life is their tension in the show. Kathryn found that the character of Emily was important to start to bring to light the difficulty that lies in beginning to find oneself at a young age,

and the notion is heightened by having an identical twin who is growing in the opposite direction. Her story is prominent in society, but as Kathryn contends, it is not explored nearly enough. It is often a topic that is reserved for the adult audience, but the story is all too prevalent among teenagers. “Kids are really cruel, so if they’ve got something extra they can pick on you for, they will,” she says.

While filming Skins, Kathryn was still in school with her sights focused on staying on the screen. She wanted to go to drama school, but gradually she allowed herself to realize that it was a bit of a financial struggle.

With Skins on her résumé, she got a new agent and started looking for the next opportunity. It took a lot of effort for her to continue looking for work. For the better part of four years, Kathryn would earn money at home in England so she could live in Los Angeles for extended periods of time and continue auditioning.

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When her funds ran dry, she would return home to England and start the process all over again.

Finally, she found herself auditioning for the lead role of an MTV show called Finding Carter. She was eventually cast to play Carter Stevens. Carter, like her last role and her real life, was a twin, but in this situation, Megan would not be in tow.

Kathryn understands the twin dynamic, but she admits it’s different than life with Megan and acting alongside her identical sister. On the show, Carter is given the opportunity to face an all-too-familiar dynamic, except for the fact that her on-screen twin is fraternal. “We look so different that it doesn’t even occur to me that we’re supposed to be twins,” Kathryn say Though it’s all she has known her entire life, Kathryn still understands the unique bond of being an actual twin. Her character on Skins was able to translate this by saying, “Katie and I, we’re always together. Eating.

Sleeping. Until we were 9 we used to take a dump at the same time.”

Kathryn has been able to implement that real-life experience when she’s in front of the camera. “I feel like twins have a very specific type of bond because you literally have been with each other and have been experiencing life with each other since birth,” she says, “which is a crazy thing to share with someone.”

Her outlook of her on-screen twin is different than what the audience might perceive. Being an actual twin and having no other siblings, Kathryn found it easier to harness a typical sisterly relationship to help create one between Carter and her on-screen twin, Taylor. “In the first season of Finding Carter, when the show was about the relationships between people, being a twin certainly helped.” She says. “Really when we’re doing the show I just think of Anna [Jacoby-Heron] as my sister in the show.”

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Playing a twin sister was something very familiar to Kathryn, but to play Carter she had to be able to also revert from 23 to 16. Oddly enough, it seemed that the maturity level of the character made it easy for Kathryn. “Carter is not like a typical teenager,” she says. “She’s more like an adult trapped in a teenager’s body.” Kathryn explains that the storyline in season one allowed Carter to act much older than her age because of the freedom her “mother” (or kidnapper) allowed her to have. It was only when she went to live with her cookie-cutter, biological family that she had to assume the role of a teenager.

“In her head in a lot of ways she’s more worldly than some other people her age because of her experience,” she explains. “She’s got thinking behind her actions and intelligence beyond her years a bit.”

Kathryn’s unlikely roles continued when she was cast on CBS’s adaptation of Alice Hoffman’s The Dovekeepers. The mini-series is a period piece set in 70 CE Israel, during the siege of Masada, and it follows the intertwining lives of four women. Kathryn’s character, Aziza, is a woman with the heart and soul of a warrior who faces the troubles of oppression.

Kathryn found the relatability to Aziza and honed that to make her come alive on screen.Though it takes place in a very foreign time and place, Kathryn avoided overthinking the setting and focused on human nature. “Even though it’s set up on a backdrop of a different time and era, the relationships and the difficulties they’re facing are still faced today,” she says. “You can translate it into a modern time in your head so at least you can play it as a character living in the here and now rather than doing a dramatic version.”

Kathryn seems to repeatedly be casted as characters facing adversity, giving her power to create a voice NKDMAG.COM

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for underrepresented communities. Playing Emily on Skins was her jumping point for the concept of speaking to the audience while allowing them to be entertained.

Her role as Emily was one that she considered so honest that she felt personally fulfilled by being able to portray a character in a community that so rarely seems to get recognition. “I thought it was a story that needed to be told,” she says. It is her opinion as an actor that movies are the way to speak to the masses in a much more impactful way than the news or documentaries.

“I think TV and film have this great medium to tell stories but also educate people on things and get people to empathize with people who otherwise they wouldn’t have without them necessarily realize it’s happening to them,” she says. “I’ve had it happen to me where I’ve watched a film for entertainment purposes and suddenly at the end of it I feel completely different about something that I had felt the complete opposite of before watching.”

There are few (if any at all) politically driven roles that Kathryn wouldn’t consider assuming, but she has a longing to be able to act as, and by extension, speak on modern-day troubles based on current events.

“Things happen in real life and movies reflect them,” she says.

With a Twitter account driven primarily by news sharing and discussion, she admits that a modern controversy that she’d be interested in considering having an on-screen translation of is the horrors of racism and police brutality. “I feel like that is a very prevalent topic, and prevalent for good reason,” she says.

“That would be cool to be in a movie about something like that because it’s something I feel need to be talked about.”

As an actor, she finds that she can be able to do her job to entertain as well as educate. “If you go and watch

the news you’re already deciding to educate yourself on something,” she says. “If you watch a movie that maybe you don’t even know that that’s the undercurrent, I feel like that has the potential to reach a lot of people.”

In terms of using her own voice, Kathryn also has found solace in photography. Even given her passion for acting on screen, she is less keen on directing and keeps her main photography focus on still life. “If I’m on set, I want to be the actor,” she explains, before joking “maybe that will change if I get sick of acting.”

She’s always had the support to build on this passion. “I feel like we were really lucky,” she says of her parents’ support for her and and her sister’s acting dreams. “Both of us just had this idea about acting, and it was just never shut down.”

Though she does love to be in front of the camera, one of her next big goals is teaming up with her sister again to write something that they can then translate to the screen.

She has been able to draw from her own life to let her character come to life, but now she wants to be able to create a story that is completely born from her life. The main topic that Kathryn and Megan are considering is one they know the most about: twins. “When I watch movies that I think are really good, usually I’ll do research on them and find out that person who wrote it lived that life,” she says. “They knew it inside and out.”

Until they put their life experiences on paper, Kathryn is focusing on many yet-to-be-revealed projects and far beyond. As far as the roles she has played and the perspectives she has created, she wants to continue to portray characters that entertain while still getting people to think in a different way. “If I could be in a movie that had that effect on someone, that would be the best thing ever.” NKD NKDMAG.COM

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SHEPPARD Words by ALEX LANE Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

Not many people can say that they knocked Pharrell Williams down a peg.

But Sheppard, a band of family and friends from Brisbane, Australia, took the top slot on the ARIA Singles Chart in spring of 2014, bumping the producer’s “Happy” from the top slot after 12 weeks at number one.

Since then, “Geronimo” has gone 5x platinum, and their debut release Bombs Away (2014) has gone ARIA Gold. The band is now recognized internationally, and they are touring in support of their album on a global circuit.

For lead singer (and eldest sibling) George Sheppard, it’s hard to believe that the group was born from a university assignment of his little sister Amy, and had humble beginnings in the bedrooms of his childhood home.

Amy, the middle Sheppard sibling, never considered her brother as a likely singing partner. But when the pair came together on her school project, George says, “That light bulb of ‘We could do this’ went off.”

So they did. The brother/sister duo starting singing and writing songs together in the vein of folk 36

and indie pop, and they thought sounded pretty good.

“Then Angus and Julia Stone came along and pretty much owned that whole summer,” George recalls. “So we thought, ‘OK, we have to do something unique and something our own.’”

They brought on old friends and talented musicians: guitarist/producer Jay Bovino, guitarist Dean Gordon, and drummer Michael Butler. They added the missing piece of the puzzle when Emma Sheppard, Amy and George’s baby sister, joined the group on bass.

“She didn’t play bass at the time, but we managed to convince her to learn,” George says. “She went out to Papua New Guinea to learn with our old primary school music teacher and to do a boot camp. Like a three-week bass boot camp. She came back in three weeks and was playing gigs with us.”

Those early gigs, where they were just getting their music heard and getting exposure in their hometown, were integral for the building of the band. Establishing that following and support system at home gave them the courage to

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“really go for it.” During that summer, Sheppard wrote 30 songs before deciding to enter a recording studio. At this point, they realized they needed funding.

It helped that the Sheppard’s mom and dad supported the band.

Greg and Lisa Sheppard acted as band managers in the early years, and they financially assisted the band during their early days.

They even started their own label, Empire of Song, as a part of the genesis of the group.

“Oh, it was absolutely pivotal that we had that support group,” George remembers. “It was actually a huge help to have someone to start the process with. It’s not cheap to record an album. It’s not cheap to go touring. It’s actually incredibly expensive.”

All the investment paid off though, as the band was signed to Republic and hit-maker Scooter Braun’s Schoolboy Records, an affiliate of Universal Music Group, in August of 2014.

Since then, life has been a whirlwind for the group. They are touring and learning the industry, all while trying to brainstorm ideas for their second album.

For a group of six, the songwriting process is a unique one.

“The three of us — James, Amy and I — write the songs,” George explains. “But there is definitely a democracy. It’s all about compromise and being able to try and see it from the other person’s perspective.”

But even with all those creative minds at work, the process is not always easy, George says. Whether it is getting everyone on the same page, or even in the same room, recording doesn’t happen seamlessly.

“As far as writing while we are on the road, we’re obviously working on ideas,” George says. “But it’s pretty rare that the three of us

are all in a state of mind to put it all together on the road.”

But George isn’t worried. In fact, he seems rather calm about the whole idea of writing another album. Perhaps it’s because they group has decided to wait until they are home — where it all started — to really get to work on their next batch of songs.

“Its hard when you’re in the middle of a cycle,” George explains. “Trying to write the second album while you’re in the thick of touring the first one, is quite difficult, for us anyway. You’d like to be able to put the whole thing to bed before starting the second one.”

While they might not be sure what the second album will sound like, George is willing to bet that — much like their inspirations of America, Fleetwood Mac and Cat Stevens — it will be a collection of songs that don’t necessarily correlate with one particular era.

He notes that as long as they can continue to write songs with fun harmonies and choruses, then they will stay true to the idea of Sheppard.

“We put a lot of focus on interacting with the audience,” George says. “We want to have a good time up there. So I guess we hope that people catch on to that energy and leave feeling reinvigorated.”

People are definitely getting something out of Sheppard’s music. Audiences all over the globe feel a connection, and the more they tour and travel, the more George, Amy, Emma, Jay, Michael and Dave realize their impact.

“It still doesn’t feel quite real to be honest,” George says. “Until you have reached the country to experience it firsthand, and you see the shows and are harassed by the fans, properly — until you’re in the country, you don’t really

feel how much of an impact you’re making.”

Currently in Italy, George says the one thing he is constantly amazed by are the relationships that music can create. “It’s a really beautiful thing to know that the music is a universal language.

Like, our fans here in Italy don’t speak English, but they can still recognize the band,” he shares.

“Music is universal.”

That impact is the reward for doing something they truly love, George says. And for each member of the band, making the songs the best they can be means keeping their focus on “developing our craft,” George says. “Learning new skills, as songwriters, as musicians. There is always room to grow.”

As for the more immediate future, George says the group is focused on the numerous shows that they have scheduled, which includes venues in Europe, various Summer Jam concerts and the ever-popular Lollapalooza music festival in Chicago.

George says that while all of these shows are great opportunities to learn and grow as a band, the best aspect to being a part of Sheppard is playing with his sisters and best friends.

“I think the most important thing in any creative relationship is trust. And regardless of the fact that they’re my sisters, I trust them. And that’s the same with Jason and Dave and Michael.

I completely trust these guys,” he says. “We’re a family.”

“I don’t know if it would be the same sort of thrill if it was just people who started a band and had a purely professional relationship,” George adds. “We are siblings though, so we do bicker and fight. But at the end of the day, I think I’m pretty lucky to be doing this with my family.” NKD NKDMAG.COM

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TYLER OAKLEY Words & Photos by CATHERINE POWELL Hair & Make-Up by SARAH JOFFE

When Tyler Oakley first started posting videos on YouTube, he never thought it would launch his career. At the time, vlogging was not a job; making money off of YouTube was a foreign concept. But now, eight years later, Internet personalities are a huge part of pop culture — and Tyler is leading the pack.

Tyler was born in Michigan in 1989 and has been on camera literally since the second he was born. “I have my birth on tape, and I recently did a video of me and my mom reacting to my birth, which felt like the perfect full circle of it all,” he says.

Tyler began posting to YouTube seven years ago when he was a freshman at Michigan State University. He used it as a way to keep in touch with friends from high school and tell stories, sort of like a diary.

Even now he still approaches his videos with that same mindset. But it wasn’t until a few years into posting that he decided to make vlogging a full-time gig. “I was doing it for fun, and when I first started nobody was doing it full-time,” he explains. “It wasn’t a thing.

It wasn’t something you could do as a career.” His aspirations from the get go were just to share what was going on with his life — money and other perks were not at the forefront of his mind.

While still in college, Tyler interned at The Trevor Project, an LGBTQ suicide prevention organization. “I realized I really wanted to do something in the ‘doing good’ world,” he says.

When he graduated from MSU, he struggled to find a job. He wanted to go back to The Trevor Project, but they didn’t have any openings at the time. He opted to move to San Francisco, where he found work running social media for various websites. But every night when he got home, he was working on his own social media and seeing

a positive response. In 2012, he put in his two weeks notice at work and devoted himself to vlogging on YouTube.

“I went more rigid with my upload schedule just so I could treat it more like a career,” he explains. He started collaborating with other YouTubers and working with various campaigns and brands to build his audience. But it wasn’t until this past year that he thinks things really took off. “It took five or six years to hit the first million subscribers, and then the next year I got 5 million more,” he says. He is almost at 7 million subscribers, and he keeps his audience engaged by simply being himself. “If I’m trying to like, make something artsy, that’s not me,” he laughs.

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means there’s absolutely no such thing as an average week.

“It’s different for everybody,” he says. “For me it means making sure I’m on my upload schedule, going to the studio for the podcast — ” Tyler trails off and begins discussing his worldwide Slumber Party tour. “It goes around the world, and everyone comes in their pajamas, and it’s a lot of fun,” he says.

His success on YouTube has paved the way for Tyler to find success in other forms of media. “It’s weird because, as a YouTuber, usually you film, you edit and then you upload it on your own time frame,” he notes.

“But I’ve been lucky enough that a lot of what I do on YouTube has opened a lot of doors in traditional media. And in traditional media, everything moves so slow.” Because of this, he’s “working on a million things” that he can’t discuss yet.

One thing he can talk about — and loves to talk about — is his podcast, Psychobabble, which he hosts with his best friend, Korey Kuhl. The two had always collaborated on videos, but they also wanted to do more. Tyler listened to other podcasts and learned about the genre before diving into it in 2014. “The reason we do it is because we think we’re hilarious,” Tyler laughs.

In the YouTube world, it’s important for vloggers to compact their videos into a few minutes so viewers don’t get bored. In the podcast world, 30 minutes is considered short. With Psychobabble, Tyler and Korey can explore topics they care about and elaborate in a way that isn’t possible on YouTube.

Psychobabble gained recognition in the podcast community; it was nominated for both a 44

Shorty Award and a Podcast Award, as well as named one of iTunes Best New Podcasts of 2014. “I didn’t want to jump into that world without respecting it,” he explains.

His dedicated YouTube viewers also seem to love the podcast, but what’s most important to Tyler is that his friends and family back home really love it. “Our friends back in Michigan say it’s the most ‘us’ out of everything we do,” Tyler says.

“It’s like hanging out in a room with us.”

With his YouTube channel, the biggest challenge is keeping things fresh and interesting for viewers that have been with him since day one. He makes a point to collaborate with different people, try out new ideas and put a fresh spin on old ideas. Above all, he makes a point to always be having fun.

One thing he does every August is his “Auguest” series.

Five days a week for the entire month of August he will have a new guest, whether it’s another YouTuber or a celebrity. “I like to do things and have them be a thing that people know that I do,” Tyler says about the series.

Ever since he signed to management in 2012, Tyler’s life has not just been posting videos.

He started working with smaller brands, which eventually led to working with massive organizations. He also began hosting and interviewing on red carpets at various award shows and events. His first hosting gig was with The Trevor Project, who knew from Tyler’s intern days that he was passionate about the cause. He happily accepted their offer to host the red carpet at their annual gala, which opened him up to other opportunities such as The

Grammys for CBS, the VMAS, The Kids Choice Awards and more. “It’s one of those things where no matter how much you prepare, you never know what’s going to happen,” Tyler explains.

While he’s been going to award shows for quite a while, in 2014 he was nominated for a Teen Choice Award. This was the first year the annual ceremony recognized web stars on the live broadcast. “Whether I won or not, this felt like a turning point for award shows,” Tyler notes. But he did win for both Choice Web Star and Choice Web Collaboration with Troye Sivan. “I never even thought I could win a Teen Choice Award, so let alone two in a night was weird,” he laughs.

As much as people have been “getting it” as long as Tyler and other YouTubers have been doing this, the strides taken for “#TeamInternet” (as they call themselves) in the past year have had an extremely positive reaction. There are still people who condescendingly ask Tyler what he really does, but he understands. “I have to explain it to my family, I have to explain it to a lot of people I go into meetings with,” Tyler says.

“But it’s becoming one of those things where if you don’t get it, you’re kind of going to get left behind.” Regardless of how many people “get it,” Tyler and the YouTube community are still able to accomplish plenty amazing things.

When asked what his biggest OMG moment has been, Tyler doesn’t hesitate. “Meeting the president,” he quickly states.

“He reached out and had a handful of YouTube celebrities come to the White House for a meeting.” President Obama was

genuinely interested with how YouTubers get their audiences — specifically young people — so involved. “That was a really special moment,” Tyler recalls. “You never know who your content is going to come across.”

And while sitting down for a meeting with one of the most powerful people in the world is a huge deal, the most rewarding moment for Tyler was being able to raise $525,000 for The Trevor Project for his 25th birthday last year. This year, he beat that, raising over $532,000.

“It was an organization that was close to my heart before I even had people watching me,” Tyler says.

He meets fans at conventions who tell him how much his advocacy for LGBTQ youth has helped them, so to know that these are the people who are utilizing The Trevor Project’s resources makes raising money each year incredibly rewarding for him.

For the rest of 2015, Tyler will be heading back on tour in Australia, the United Kingdom, North America and more. “It’s the most fun I have,” Tyler says.

“It’s like bringing together all my favorites.”

He’ll continue with his podcast, YouTube channel and hosting gigs, and teases something “really exciting” coming out later in May. But he had to keep the details to himself.

As for Tyler’s long-term goals, he plans to make videos with Beyoncé and Ellen, as well as to vlog in space. But more importantly, he plans to just enjoy it all and share it all.

“I’m a firm believer that the secret in life is just putting it out there,” Tyler laughs. “I just feel like anything is doable.” NKD NKDMAG.COM

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LEXI ATKINS Words by BRITTANY LANDAU Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

From the age of 5, Lexi Atkins, now age 22, knew that she wanted to be in the entertainment industry in some form.

“I had my own TV show when I was little that I would perform in front of the fireplace every single day. Then, I had runway shows that I made my family come to,” Lexi says about her childhood dream to become an actress.

Her background in dance led her to the Miss Teen Illi50

nois 2010 competition, where she took the title of first runner up. When she didn’t win, she moved to Chicago to take improv classes at The Second City. A year later, Lexi moved from the Windy City to the City of Angels. Of course, like most aspiring actresses, Lexi was uncertain if her family or friends would support her chosen path.

“I definitely was out of the norm of everyone that comes from my hometown,” she recalls. “Either

they’re a teacher or a stay-athome mom. They all stay there and go to college. So for me to say I’m not going to college, and I’m moving across the country was kind of a shock to them.”

The more she does, though, the more they believe that she’s in it for the long haul. Lexi even has her brother, a student at the University of California, Los Angeles, and her sister also lives in L.A. When Lexi moved there, she

continued taking improv classes, which helped her immediately sign a deal with a management company. A few auditions later and she landed her first role in Zombeavers, an action-packed comedy and thriller about a group of teens who rent a cabin for a weekend and become menaced by a pack of zombie beavers. Lexi’s character, Jenn, transforms into a beaver during the film. “That was my first anything,” she says. “Not only my first movie, but I had to go through full prosthetics as well, which was crazy.”

Lexi moved straight into her next project, working alongside Jennifer Lopez and Ryan Guzman in the thriller, The Boy Next Door, as student Allie Callahan. “It was really, really awesome because it didn’t feel real,” she recalls. “I could be on set and be really casual, and then leave set and be like, ‘Oh my god, I was working with Jennifer Lopez.’

“That was really a cool experience,” Lexi adds. “I had to pinch myself all the time because not only was I working with her, but Kristin Chenoweth and Ryan Guzman and John Corbett.”

The blonde haired, hazel eyed actress is in the lineup of one of The CW’s most anticipated shows, The Messengers, which had its premiere on April 10.

The show is about five people who died, but immediately come back to life with superpowers and a mission to save the world.

Lexi plays Alice, a high school student and love interest for one of the messengers. “I’m hoping that I die and I can become a messenger soon,” Lexi says, anticipating potential powers for Alice. The CW is known for its hugely successful supernatural shows, which makes Lexi hope-

ful that The Messengers will fare well with audiences.

“It’s different than any other sci-fi, and I love that it follows five different stories,” Lexi says.

“It’s not just one story, so that makes it more interesting because there are so many different stories and characters to go off of.”

Lexi’s career has moved rapidly over the past year, but she’s learned from her peers to appreciate every second of it. “I think the biggest advice that anyone’s given me is that, if you love every aspect of this industry, then the sky’s the limit. I think that’s with anything in life,” she shares.

While entertainment is typically considered a glamorous and ritzy business, Lexi knows there’s another side. “It is really hard and sometimes. People don’t see behind-the-scenes.

It’s not just photos and photoshoots,” she says. “But I think if you love every part of it, you can only go up from there. And that it’s not easy, but just love what you do.”

From performing for her family to being on pageant stages, it’s no secret that Lexi has worked hard to get where she is.

“I definitely don’t want to say it’s just luck because I have worked really hard,” she comments. “I have been really blessed to have everything line up so close to each other. I think what’s really interesting is that every few months, I kind of have something new, so that’s been really exciting.”

One new item on Lexi’s plate is her role in Ted 2, which comes to theaters on June 26. In the movie, Lexi plays a waitress at a cafe. “I had a really cool scene with Mark Wahlberg, Ted and Amanda Seyfried, and get to interact with them. That was really

fun to work with all three at the same time. It was a really cool dynamic,” she says.

The sequel will be completely different from the first; it’s told from Ted’s perspective and Mila Kunis isn’t in this film. “It’ll really keep everyone on the edge of their seats because they don’t expect what’s going to happen,” Lexi says.

With connections like Jennifer Lopez and Mark Wahlberg under her belt, it may seem as though Lexi already has it all. But she has even more in store. Lexi still finds time to work on other projects with her busy schedule.

Moving to L.A. inspired Lexi to become conscientious about her health and nutrition, and now she’s a brand ambassador for Essential Living Foods, the largest supplier of superfoods in the world. Lexi is also is on her way to becoming an herbalist. While working with them, she found out about ZAO Organic Makeup, the first certified organic makeup line in the United States, and became a brand ambassador for them as well.

The multi-talented starlet is also preparing to launch her music career. “I really look up to Banks and Birdy, so I’m kind of like a mix between both,” she says about her genre. “It’s hard because acting, I can be so many different people, but for music, they’re like, ‘We really have to package you and label you as one thing.’ That’s been hard for me to find who I want to be and which part of me I really want to be as an artist.” Currently, Lexi is working on four songs and two music videos which she hopes to release very soon.

With a packed schedule and bright future, it’s safe to say that Lexi’s 5-year-old self would be very proud. NKD NKDMAG.COM

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JACOB WHITESIDES Words by SAM ROSENTHAL | Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

From starting out on the playing fields to playing sold out shows, Jacob Whitesides has been making a name for himself since he posted first YouTube Video. Although this video has lead to his tremendous success, he admits that his first YouTube video definitely wasn’t the best.

“I posted a cover of one of Justin Bieber’s songs on my dad’s laptop webcam,” he shares. “It was right when laptops started having webcams, and it was terrible quality.”

However, he adds that “everyone told me I was amazing, and it really boosted my confidence.”

You would never believe it now, but the 17-year-old’s passion hasn’t always been music. Growing up in Tennessee, Jacob played soccer, football and basketball. “I was really, really, really, good,” he says. “I was just a natural athlete.” But when he was in middle school, he became interested in learning how to play the guitar. To add to his natural talents, Jacob was able to teach himself how to play. His love of music started simple, and Jacob shared what he did with his father. This was the early phase of his music career. “We were playing around town in bars and restaurants, playing classic rock and old

stuff,” he says. Jacobs admits that although he played with his father, he never really sang at first. “I started singing a little bit more and slowly transitioned from doing the thing with my dad and started doing the YouTube thing.”

Slowly but surely, Jacob started receiving the recognition that he had been hoping for and working toward. “I was doing all right,” he recalls about his early cover song hits. “I was getting 20,000 views, 50,000 views nothing crazy.”

But on the Fourth of July in 2012, he posted a One Direction cover song, which captured their attention. “I had 100,000 followers at the time, they were super duper dedicated. I had a personal connection with them, and we were really in touch with each other,” he remembers.

“They were tweeting my cover of ‘One Thing’ to Liam Payne, who was online tweeting some covers of their songs, and he actually saw it. He tweeted it and was like ‘Hope you go far, you’re super talented.’”

That moment is when everything changed for Jacob, and it couldn’t have changed in a better way. “It blew up everything.

My Facebook went up 20,000 likes, my YouTube went up,” he says. “I had half a million views

on the cover so, that kind of gave me the incentive to take YouTube seriously and see the power of it.”

Ever since that fateful day, Jacob’s career has taken off. He started playing shows such as the OMG Fest, his first headlining show. He sold out two nights in Chicago and got involved with Vine and Magcon. Attending the events and conventions for those “really boosted everything,” including his knowledge of other sites to get his name out there. Going into the Vine conference, Jacob didn’t have an account. “Those kids were some of the biggest Viners on Vine,” he explains. “They were like ‘Let’s follow you on Vine’ … I made a Vine and by the end of that tour I had like half a million followers and everything was really coming together.”

After spending time with Magcon and other Viners, Jacob knew it was time for him to break off and build himself into an artist. He went out on the OMG tour and then went on to do an entire tour with other YouTube-famous artists.

The tour lasted 30 dates, and Jacob played all over the United States. When that tour ended, he immediately jumped on another. “It was my own headlining tour where I had Dylan HolNKDMAG.COM

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land open up for me, and Zach Matari was another kid that opened up for me,” he explains.

“So, I did two headlining tours, West Coast and East Coast.”

After his headlining tour, Jacob snagged a spot as an opening act on Fifth Harmony’s Reflection Tour. “[Those shows were] super amazing, and it’s been pretty incredible,” Jacob recalls.

Even though the tour experience was mostly incredible, it also presented some difficulties at first; Jacob was the only boy on the whole tour. “I feel like Fifth Harmony’s fans and the other’s fans really like girls, obviously. There are five of them, girl power,” he says.

His genre of music also wasn’t exactly the same as Fifth Harmony. “I was still learning my EP, and on top of that I was having to figure out how to play my set list out so that Fifth Harmony’s fans enjoyed it the most because they’re used to really upbeat pop music, dance music,” he explains. “I’m like a little slower music, more acoustic and more laid back.”

He wanted to make his experience on the Reflection Tour special for some lucky fans.

He started a contest of sorts: Anyone who purchased his EP, A Piece of Me, on the tour was able to come to his tour bus for a meet-and-greet. “That got out of control because I was selling 200 or 300 EPs a night and it was just like a massive volume of fans outside the bus,” he says.

“I came up with a more personal idea so I could actually talk to the fans and get to know them because meet-and-greets could be so rushed.”

What better way to do those than to sit down and have an post-show breakfast with them?

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Jacob’s next idea grabbed the attention of everyone at the shows and made many memories for both him and the fans.

He selected five fans to join him for a bowl of cereal. “The cover of the EP is me eating cereal, and it’s really random,” he shares, adding that he preferred the breakfast meetings. “The conversation is a lot better and more personal.”

Jacob was finally able to share his original music on the Reflection Tour, which he says was “a lot more justifying.” One of his favorite tour memories was at a show in Ohio. “I have a song called ‘Ohio’ on my EP, and Fifth Harmony had a show in Youngstown,” he explains.

“Singing that and hearing the massive volume of all of them singing that back to me was such an amazing feeling.”

“I was doing all these tours and stuff and had no original music. The fans were still coming to see me,” he says. “But I just didn’t feel as good about it as I do now.”

While his music skews to slower rhythms, Jacob is accustomed to a fast-paced lifestyle. “We had four weeks to get this EP done, and we had to write everything. We didn’t have any original content,” he remembers. “But I really liked how everything turned out, and I’m really excited to get back to Nashville after my vacation.”

Jacob is returning to Nashville to start on his full-length album, which doesn’t have a specific release date set. But he’s looking forward to it nonetheless. “I don’t want to put myself in a crunch like I did last time but hopefully the beginning of next year.” Now that he has the EP under his belt, Jacob’s ready to dig in for round two. NKD

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