Archive for October, 2008
Tuesday, October 14th, 2008
My Britney remix has been downloaded over 127,000 times already – in just a week! – but my Kanye remix, which I like infinitely better, is a little sicker. For a while there, a video that somebody south of the equator made for my Britney mix was in the top ten most viewed Youtube videos in Brazil, which is kind of like being the ninth man on the moon.
Today I experienced a sort of strange amalgam of universal nudges. A little while back Josh gave me the Metro Station album from the label and told me I’d like it, but I didn’t listen to it until recently. Turns out I did like it, in the same way I liked the first Panic at the Disco: a guilty pleasure that I ended up feeling no shame about and played incessantly. Actually, now, I’m convinced that “Shake It” is the “What Do All the People Know” of this generation.
So today Rob Hitt (who’s got one of those first-last name combinations like mine where everyone apparently has to call us by both) said I should do a Metro Station remix, and I’m up for it, so he e-mailed the management to work it out. Then I mentioned it to Geneva and she told me that her agency books Metro Station’s tours. So basically, every person I talk to lately has some working connection to the band, which I am taking as a good sign. Now all I need to hear is that Karen and Gurj double-teamed Trace Cyrus and it will be as solid as Bible verse.
Tonight is a big cancer benefit at the Top of the Rock, tomorrow is another black tie thing that Christian’s hosting, Thursday is Sirius radio, Friday is LA. Maybe this weekend I will meet Miley, Trace’s lesser-known, indie sister. I’m not surprised none of you have heard of her. She’s really underground, a well-kept industry secret. Pitchfork hasn’t even heard of her yet. You wish you knew who Miley Cyrus was!
Monday, October 13th, 2008
We went to Baltimore this weekend for an event at the American Visionary Art Museum called Steps to the Cure, which included a fashion show of student and local designers dressing cancer surviving runway models, and Christian was the guest host. He was introduced at the event and interviewed earlier in the day by Sally Thorner of WJZ, who we hung out with a lot. Love her. It was really refreshing to have so many really actually nice, interesting, smart people around us the whole time. Lori Lickstein, who organized it all and sponsored the event with her husband Larry, was great too. I had the good fortune of sitting with her during the event and hearing the back stories of all the models as they came out. The most incredble part of the trip, though, was when I got a personal guided tour of the museum from Rebecca Hoffberger, its founder, while Christian was doing his press stuff. She knew everything about everything, and every piece in there had a crazy and amazing history. I highly recommend visiting if you‘re in the area. It’s not specifically a childrens’ museum, but Travel & Leisure ranked it #1 in the country for children under ten to visit, above even the Grand Canyon.
On Saturday we played tourists on the harbor with Christian’s mom, and then on Sunday we were back in New York and had brunch with Sarah and Ryann. We tried to eat at Freeman’s Alley but got inside and were told there was an hour and a half wait, so we left. As we were walking out, Sandra Bullock and Jesse James were coming in, and then a minute later they left as well. I imagine they were also told to wait an hour and a half, which is… I don’t know. I mean, if Sandra Bullock walked into my house and said “hey, can you get up and leave? I want to eat some eggs” I would be like “of course! Just make sure you push the fridge closed or else it won’t stick,” and then I wouldn’t even be mad if she forgot and all the rest of the eggs went bad. She’s Sandra Bullock.
We tried shopping yesterday downtown because it was Sunday and we figured it wouldn’t be as bad as a Saturday, where every other person stops us to make Christian take a picture with them, but since it was a three day weekend, everybody and their mother and their mother’s mother were on the streets and in rare form. Needless to say we haven’t left the house yet today. Anybody want to come over for dinner? I won’t be making eggs.
Sunday, October 12th, 2008
You can now buy both songs that I created for Christian Siriano’s two New York runway shows (the Project Runway finale and the recent Spring/Summer ‘09), on iTunes, Amazon, and eMusic.
For Christian Siriano (Runway EP) 2008
1. Control Me (Project Runway Season 4 Finale Soundtrack)
2. Pop (feat. Michael Jurin of Stellastarr*) (Spring 2009 Show Soundtrack)
Friday, October 10th, 2008
Markus Persson is a friend of friends, visiting New York again from Sweden where he is a band management startup, dodgeball player, and sometime model. He came over the other day to do some photos before heading out to one of his many parties. He is now more bearded than I remember him being the last time he was here.
Today we’re going to Baltimore, where Christian’s got a radio thing in the late afternoon and then an event in the evening. I won’t mind the travel this time because I just got a new blue Acer Aspire One mini laptop. It’s got a huge hard drive that I’ve already loaded with all my photo and music software and favorite movies and songs. It’s basically the coolest and slickest little electronic contraption I own now, and I never have to talk to another person on a plane or train again! I’ve only had it a couple days but so far I really think it’s worth getting one if you’re so inclined.
This message has been brought to you today by several sponsors of my uprightness: the divine-like people at Nestle who sent Christian a big fancy Nespresso machine with which I make a cappuccino every morning; Artie and the near deities at Red Bull for powering me the rest of the day; and Karl effing Lagerfeld because these sunglasses of his from the Emmys gifting suite are basically the prettiest thing I own and work well to cover my big sleepless eyes with a layer of awesome. It’s like the world is trying to turn us into Mary-Kate.
Thursday, October 9th, 2008
Last night Christian once again hosted the live Project Runway post-episode show at Bravo where the designer that was just kicked off comes and talks a bit. Andy Cohen normally hosts, but he was away, so they asked Christian to do it again. Jerell was the one who was off, and Jillian Lewis from last season was the special guest. I’ve only met her a few times before, but all Christian ever says about her is how sweet and pretty and helpful and genuine she is, and it’s really true. Jerell was very nice, too, if a bit overkilling it with constant praise of the other two. Maybe he’s just a really overly complimentary person from LA and we’re not entirely used to that, being surrounded by assholes in New York all the time!
Normally I come along to these sorts of things because they are low key and there’s a lot of downtime, so he likes to have me around so we can talk and hang out and hit each other. And of course, I love going to 30 Rock any chance I get! Tory took us around a bit this time to see some of the other nearby studios, Conan and SNL.
The dead looking Miss Piggy that Christian is molesting above was lying lifeless in a prop room. I figure if life goes to hell and a new depression starts and nobody buys his clothes any more, we can always make a living performing lewd puppet shows on street corners. Maybe on the street corner right below this.
Wednesday, October 8th, 2008
When I was fourteen I was caught shoplifting a lava lamp at a really low-end freestanding department store. It was during the summer and in the afternoon, and my mom had to leave work to come and get me from the little detention center at the back of the store, where a security guard (round and dirty, as I remember, though mom remembers differently) tried his best to intimidate me. He caught me outside the store, barking at me on my getaway, actually. I didn’t know at the time that I could have just kept walking because 1) I was out of the store already and 2) what was he going to do? Grab me? Pull me back into the store? Trade a $14 lava lamp and $80 minor shoplifting fine for a multi-thousand dollar lawsuit? I should have kept walking. Klept walking. (more…)
Monday, October 6th, 2008
Kanye West – Love Lockdown (Brad Walsh Remix)
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Monday, October 6th, 2008
Recently I’ve been doing a lot of head shots and band promo and stuff like that. My friend Nancy needed a head shot for the program of an exciting event she’s doing, but she hates having her picture taken. So we goofed around a little bit and played dress up with all the random stuff Christian had lying around (those sequins used to be a dress for Pink). We got some good straightforward ones that we liked, as well.
I also did some photos of the band US Royalty. A lot of times when I shoot musicians, it’s difficult and I’m just doing it for the work. But lately it’s been talented people I really like. I have the US Royalty EP, and it’s really good! And last in that row above is a jacket photo for author Jenny Han’s new book The Summer I Turned Pretty. It was her choice, and it’s not at all a bad photo of her, but it’s safe. I liked some of the crazier/weirder ones that we shot much more. But of course, the photo she chose is a very straightforward and young adult-friendly book jacket photo, whereas a full body, splayed dress, hair tossed shot is a little more Vanity Fair profile. It makes sense! Maybe I will share some others this week…
This was a rare weekend that Christian and I could just hang out and do nothing. We made rice krispie treats and used his fancy new Nespresso machine that he got at the Emmys, I built a cardboard fort on the couch, we watched lots of old movies and cartoons, and we ate macaroni & cheese. Next weekend is Baltimore, then the weekend after that is LA, then the weekend after that is San Diego, then in November there is stuff all month long all around the country and I top it off with a trip up north to judge Miss Maine. Not to mention his birthday, Thanksgiving, and then worrying about December travel and Christmas. And then there’s all the stuff we have going on right here at home in New York… I love thinking about everything at once. I’m going to give myself a heart attack and an ulcer all wrapped up in one delightful bundle! Merry Christmas!
Thursday, October 2nd, 2008
Last weekend I photographed Franchesca, a really ridiculously amazing singer I first heard on one of Junior’s tracks that he played for us in the car, called “Luv Suxx” (a newer, different version than the one on her Myspace page). I made him send it to me right away and it immediately went on repeat. Wait ‘til you hear what he did with this song! It’s going to be on his album Junior High. Then I found out Franchesca was the same Franchesca I went to school with, same year, back in Ohio, because there really are only ten people. Then the world imploded and everyone turned into one person and babies and ninety year olds were all in the same empirical timespace and dogs gave birth to airplanes because why does this keep happening?
Anyway, Franchesca’s going to be big. This was her first photo shoot, and we had a great time, I was really honored to do these photos with her.
