JIM SHAW — LOVE



I interviewed LA-based psychedelic artist Jim Shaw for LOVE Magazine last weekend. Nice guy. Full feature below.

This week, we received a copy of Los Angeles artist Jim Shaw’s comprehensive monograph, My Mirage. Filled with over 170 genre-spanning works created between 1986 and 1991, it tells the story of Billy: a white, middleclass kid sucked into the world of psychedelia in the sixties, before being born again as a fundamentalist Christian as a young adult. We were supposed to discuss the book with him (our apologies to the publisher), but spent most of the interview talking about prog rock, sexy dreams and what it would be like to have a papa in porn.

LOVE: Jim! What are you up to today?
JS: I’m painting someone wearing a plaid shirt — it’s hell. It’s pure hell. If they were wearing a solid colour, this would be easy!

That sucks.
At the time I was like, “Oh yeah, I’ll totally do it.” And now it’s like, “Ugh…”

You’re hard to find information on Jim. Do you like to keep a little mystery?
Not really… I tend to blab a lot. I should probably be more mysterious than I am. Sometimes it pays to keep your mouth shut. I know people who talk way too much, and I really hope I’m not one of those.

What are you working on at the moment?
Well, I’ve got a show coming up this year in the fall near New Castle at the Baltic. What’s the city that’s across the river from Newcastle?

Gateshead?
Yeah, I think so. Well, anyway, it’s the Baltic Museum, and I was hoping to get this prog rock opera ready for it, but it’s something that I can’t afford to take the time off of art-making to do right now, because I also need to earn a living.


Sinbad and the Seven Sleepers, 1991

You’re writing a prog rock opera?
Yeah, but I’m getting help from some real musicians. Originally it was based on the failure of Tales of Topographic Oceans, but I have a feeling it’s going to end up like a strange mix of ‘666’ by Aphrodite’s Child, Arthur Brown’s Kingdom Come and any other variety of strange thing. Obviously, Yes could play anything they wanted to, but I just want to play bits and pieces of it ‘cause I’m a terrible musician, even though the people that I play with are very good.

But you’ve been in a band before!
Yeah, but, you know, we weren’t good at playing music. We were good at playing noise, which is different. I would like to open up a noise music church one day, but it’s kind of hard to figure out the zoning rules and the taxation rules on stuff like that.


You Break It, You Buy It, 1986 (left) and Billy's Self Portrait, 1987 (right)
 
So, I’m really interested in your book Dreams, because the thought of publishing a book filled with images depicting all of my intimate dreams would freak me out to no end.
Well, it didn’t really freak me out too much. There were some images that I was only going to publish after I died, but after the crash, you know, I needed to release another book! I didn’t really want to publish any of my pornographic dreams until after my daughter was old enough to not think that her parents kissing was purely disgusting.

Right. Do you worry about what people think about you? Is there any dream you’d never publish?
I’m definitely not going to show my daughter or the other parents at her school the catalogue from the Destroy All Monsters show that’s coming out, because there’s a lot of stuff from S&M magazines from the seventies that I’ve put up in there. Actually, there’s an actor whose kid goes to my daughter’s school, and he’s in a variety of R-rated films.

Having a parent in porn would really suck if you were in school.
It’s sort of a strange situation having a kid. I remember talking to Paul McCarthy many years ago, and he was saying, “Well, I’ve got this porno film I want to make, but I’ve got kids.” Once they grew up, things changed. They were directing the films!


Billy Goes to a Party I, 1986 (left) and Sin of Pride, 1988 (right)

What do you think dreams mean?
A lot of the symbolism is decodable via puns, and they’re not necessarily profound, but they can be entertaining. Profound dreams aren’t common.

What would be an example of a profound dream that you’ve had?
I don’t remember the entire storyline, but I had a dream involving a spiraling landscape of straw on top of which was my house. It kind of relates to an old Native American saying, which says, “You don’t own your stuff. Your stuff owns you.”

Do you believe that saying? You’re a notorious hoarder!
I’m going to have to get rid of a lot of crap. I’ve realized, “What’s The Point?” I mean, it’s nice to have things like reference materials and music, but beyond that, what are you going to do with it? Drag it out to show people every once in a while?


Power Battle, 1990 (left) and Space, 1990 (right)

Do you still have your famous collection of thrift store art, or did you sell it?
No… In a previous recession, it was spilling out of my basement, and I ended up selling it to a Belgian collector.

Really?
Yeah. And then I kept adding to it, because I kept finding stuff. He paid me a lot… I felt like I’d earned money I didn’t deserve, so I kept adding to it. It’s more than double what it was when he bought it. One good thing about thrift store paintings is that they’re still getting made.


Everybody's Dancing Around The Sun, 1990 (left) and Devotional Art, 1987 (right)

We should probably talk about My Mirage. How did the idea of the character Billy come about?
Well, he was just an amalgam of myself and all of my friends, and all the incidents that happened to us back in the sixties in a small town in the Midwest. The character’s not much of a character, if that makes sense. He’s from a puritan background, so the story is about the inescapability of Puritanism in America and how it just keeps bouncing back. The Born Again Christian Movement coming out of the ashes of psychedelia is a good example. I was interested in that sort of thing, and wanted to construct a narrative utilizing all these different aesthetics. I wanted to deal with the 1960s before the sixties had been done to death. It’s been done to death in the intervening years, but I started in the early eighties.

What’s the difference between yourself and Billy?
Well, I never joined a cult, and never killed a dog… I never went quite as far as Billy. I was always more of a watcher than a doer.

Even with drugs?
Yeah, basically. I had friends who were taking LSD every day all summer long, and I was too scared to take it. It took me a long time to smoke marijuana, and I didn’t smoke it for very long. Some of my friends became heroin addicts; others became Born Again Christians.


Frontispiece V, 1988

Last question:  What are the things that you love and hate most about the world?
What I love most about the world is its creativity. What do I hate most about the world? There’s a line from the Three Penny Opera, which is sung by one of the negative characters in it — I don’t know if it’s meant to be taken seriously — and it goes, “Man kind is kept alive by beastly acts.” It's kind of true when you think about the way that the West lives comfortably because of people working in open pit mines in the Congo, and...

Jim — I’ve run out of phone credit and you’re starting to sound like Steven Hawking.
No, no. I’m just turning into a robot.  


One Way, 1991 (left) and Everything Must Go, 1989 (right)

 

Mr. Alpha & Omega, 1990 (left) and Oil on Velvet, 1988 (right)


Mound of Skulls (Utopian Landscape V), 1988

My Mirage is out now through JRP Ringier.
  
www.thelovemagazine.co.uk

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ACTIVE CHILD — DAZED DIGITAL




This week, I interviewed LA-based singer/songwriter Pat Grossi aka Active Child for Dazed Digital. 

Pat Grossi is the LA-based, harp-wielding singer-songwriter creating hypnotic, hauntingly beautiful music under the moniker Active Child. After a stint in the Philadelphia Boys Choir, he picked up a harp and began penning his ethereal, canonical songs, and was eventually inspired to experiment with old electronic equipment.

Since then, he’s performed alongside artists like White Rabbits, School of Seven Bells and James Blake, but the unsettling combination of unearthly-layered vocals and contemporary electro beats makes Active Child unlike any other act on tour right now. We caught up with Pat to discuss his evolution as an artist, creepy cathedral stories and his fascination with the mystical, mythological and macabre.

Dazed Digital: How would you describe your sound to people that are new to your music?
Active Child: I would say imagine just for a second that you are in a futuristic cathedral. One that is 50 stories tall and shaped like a giant pillar of marble. The pews have been removed and replaced with bean bag chairs. The walls are carved out with sheets of stained glass glowing with tubes of neon. And where normally an altar sits, there is a giant harp playing itself and a synthesizer droning over a rumbling beat. In the distance a choir of ten young boys sing a layered harmony in Latin as they float inches above the ground with their eyes closed. Wow, that sounds ridiculous, but might make a good music video.

DD: What were the things on your mind while writing the songs in the album? Was there a question you wanted to answer?
Active Child: I had so many things on my mind when I sat down to write this album. But my main focus was diving head on into a mood, and at the time my mood and state of mind was pretty dark. I was going through a rough time in my relationship and I think I used the music as a way to escape and reflect on what I was feeling. Because in general I think men don't really discuss "feelings" we just kind of bottle all of this shit up and pretend like it's not bothering us. Writing music and especially this album is a way for me to deal with my own worries, its an incredible source of reflection. A chance to stand in front of the mirror and then watch it fog up again.

DD: You've toured with a heap of talented people. Who's been your favourite, and can you share an anecdote from your time with them?
Active Child: Oh man, how do I pick a favourite?! That would just be wrong. It's funny every time I go on tour I'm always a little worried that I won't click with the other band, but without fail every artist I've toured with has been an amazing person. One of my favourite tours was the very first, with a band called White Rabbits. We toured Europe together for about a month and it was easily one of the best tours I have ever been a part of. I look back now and laugh because I had no idea what the fuck I was doing.

DD: Had you tried any of your new songs on tour before the album release, and what has the crowd response been like to them since you started introducing them into your live act?
Active Child: We did a month long residency at a local venue called The Echo here in LA so we had some time to basically rehearse a lot of the new album in front of a crowd. I think naturally a lot of people were more familiar with the songs from the Curtis Lane EP but as we continued to tour the US last month it was clear that people were getting more and more excited about hearing the new album. Which felt good because I feel much more attached to the new stuff than to the old.

DD: You were in a choir as a boy, you play the harp, your music has been described as canonical and you have a song called 'High Priestess'. Is your music religious or spiritual in any way?
Active Child: I would say it is definitely spiritual, regardless of lyrics or song titles, there is something about it that puts you in that head space. Not all of the songs of course, but the songs that I connect with the most have a hymnal meditative spirit about them. Hence, my acid trip of a description from the first question.

DD: Do you have an interest in the mystical, mythological and/or macabre, and, if so, how have you entertained this interest throughout your life? How does it come through in your music?
Active Child: Again you are right on with this question. I most definitely have a strange fascination with the mystical world and religions in general. I studied world religions in college and as an art major my work almost always had some sort of religious symbolism to it. And although I didn't grow up going to church I did attend a Catholic High School which is where my real curiosity started.

It was weird for me being thrown into a religious school setting after being in public schools all my life. Suddenly my teachers were friars and priests of the Franciscan order and they were preaching to me about the creation of earth, morals, and the afterlife. I had so many questions and a lot of confusion, especially when it seemed that everyone else in the class was completely indifferent to what was being taught. I ended getting into lots of heated arguments with my teachers.

DD: What's the creepiest or most spiritual moment you've experienced in your life?
Active Child: I studied abroad in Italy for six months at a university in Perugia about six years ago. I shared an apartment with four other people and we all became very close through those months. Naturally we went out plenty and partied and stayed out til the sun came up. And every time we made our way home from class or a bar we would pass this giant abandoned church that was surrounded by fencing and construction equipment. We always joked about climbing the fence and sneaking in and one night I gathered the courage and led the charge into the dark church. Once inside I was stunned by the interior.

The roof of the church was completely gone exposing the starlit sky. The moon was pretty full so the stained glass windows that ran the length of the walls beamed just enough to make out the religious imagery. The pews had been removed completely and the floor was dirt. Sarcophagi were strewn about in dark corners. The scene was essentially something out of an Indiana Jones movie. After we had explored the area for a while we all sort of gathered in the middle and laid down. I started singing just to see how far my voice would carry and eventually we all started singing together. After the last note, our voices carried out and up the walls into the sky leaving us all in silence. Still get chills just thinking about it.

DD: How'd you get into the harp?
Active Child: Another long story, but essentially I had always had a curiosity for the instrument, since way way back. One day about eight years ago by happenstance I ended up going home with one from a music rental shop. It's been a part of my daily life ever since.

DD: Tell us about the transition from sing-songwriter playing the harp to someone using electronics and being quite experimental with sound?
Active Child: That transition took a lot longer than I wanted it to. Essentially it was a matter of me becoming bored with just playing harp and singing. I had all of the other sounds in my head, but I didn't really know how to bring them to life. Eventually I got off my ass and taught myself how to make it happen, how to use a synthesizer, how to work reverbs, compressors, how to produce really. Once I opened that door, my imagination just ran with it.

DD: What's next for you?
Active Child: Well, a lot of touring. I just got home from a month long US tour and I leave Saturday for Iceland. After that we just keep going, its beginning to feel like things are getting real. Before all of the attention was so incredible, but now it seems that that attention is being translated into some serious work, which I am beyond excited about.

DD: What are three lesser-known books/artists/films/myths that Dazed readers should be aware of?
Active Child: I love films almost as much as music, so here are three that will expand your mind...
  1. The Holy Mountain by Alejandro Jodorowsky
  2. Brazil by Terry Gilliam
  3. Night of the Hunter by Charles Laughton


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JOSH MCLELLAN — HERO #6



HERO #6 is out now, featuring my interview with Turbogeist drummer and TopMan model Josh McLellan. Get it here! Interview below!

Hey Josh!
Hey man. How are you?
Good! What are you doing?
I’ve just finished setting up my drum set. My band TURBOGEIST is playing tonight.
Sweet. Are you one of those drummers whose like, ‘Don’t touch my set!’
Haha! No, I’m not at all. I don’t give a shit who touches my set. All the band will probably be playing them tonight. If I had nicer drums, things might be different.
So, I heard you guys were signed recently.
Not exactly. We’ve been offered a deal, but there’s so much involved before anything’s set in stone…
Right. How long has TURBOGEIST been around?
It’s probably been about two years now.
How old are you?
21, but most of the other guys are older.
So, your band has been described as quite macabre. Do you have a taste for the occult? 
There are definitely some occult influences, but it’s always very tongue-in-cheek!
Do you believe in the supernatural? Like, have you ever seen a ghost?
No, I haven’t, unfortunately. My friends say my garden is haunted though. They’ve seen a ghost!
Really?
Yeah. I’ve managed to avoid it.
What does it look like?
It’s called ‘The Blue Lady’, and it lives in the shed at the end of my garden.
That’s crazy! Is it a really old shed?
Not particularly. Actually, I don’t know! It’s just your average, everyday, haunted wooden shed.
Right. I read that, apparently, people who believe in the supernatural are more likely to be creative.
Ok! I’m pretty sceptical. I’d tend to look for a scientific explanation if anything crazy was going on.
Did you study science in school?
Err… No. I didn’t really go to school that much. Now, I’m trying to catch up.
Did you watch X-Files?
No! Well, maybe when I was little.
That theme tune still freaks me out.
Yeah, that was a good one! Who’s that dude in it?
David Duchovny?
Yeah, apparently he’s a massive wreck-head. Always fighting, that Mulder.
Did you see him in drag in Twin Peaks?
No! I’ve been meaning to watch that show for ages, though.
Have you ever dressed in drag?
Have I ever dressed in drag? Definitely when I was younger. Recently, the band did a photo shoot, and the theme was a 1950s family. Jimmy was dressed up as the mother and someone had to dress up as a little girl, but luckily, I ended up being the little boy. I narrowly avoided ending up in a dress for that one.




What were you like as a kid?
Hyperactive.
Were you naughty?
Maybe… I’ve done some stupid, stupid things in my life. Nothing too serious—mainly drunken idiocy!
We can all relate to that. 
Mostly Section 5 Public Orders.
Section 5?
Yeah. It’s like, swearing in front of a policeman more than once when you’re drunk and stuff.
Rebel, rebel!
Definitely.
So what bands do you listen to?
Right now I’m listening to a lot of old stuff, like Queens of the Stone Age and Nirvana.
Do you have a favourite band?
That’s the impossible question! Nobody can really answer it. Maybe I’d say ‘Radiohead’.
Is there a band more people should listen to? 
Now that’s a good question! TURBOGEIST?
Is there a band less people should listen to?
No, man! If it makes you happy, go for it.
Totally. What’s the craziest thing you’ve done when you’re playing?
It’s not easy for a drummer to do wild stuff, because you’re stuck sitting down. The most you can do is throw your sticks and crowd surf at the end.
Can you sing?
I think I might be able to, but I haven’t tried properly.
What would you sing?
In karaoke I’d choose ‘Livin’ On A Prayer’, by Bon Jovi.
That’s a good one! 
[both laugh]
Yeah, I’d definitely give it a shot…
Do you have a lucky pair of socks or jocks that you wear when you’re playing?
I just bought these cool adidas shorts that I love. Well, I’m not sure if they are cool. People keep taking photos and laughing, so they’re probably not.
Maybe that’s the definition of cool?
Yeah. [laughs] Hopefully!
Who’s the most amazing person you’ve met when you’re touring? 
One of the coolest people I’ve met is definitely this guy called ‘Mike’. He passed away quite recently, sadly, but everyone’s got such happy memories of him, so that’s really cool.
That’s good. 
Yeah. He was always up for a good time.


What are you guys working on next?
We’ve just done an EP, and I think it’ll be an album next.
Cool. Geez, we’ve been hammering on about music quite a bit. 
Ask something different!
What’s your favourite place to be?
In bed with a film, definitely.
Who’s your favourite menswear designer?
I have quite a few, but honestly, I don’t buy clothes! I get given them, or find them, or steal them from friends, or whatever…
How good! What’s something in your life that you couldn’t live with out?
These questions are really hard! I’ll have to come back to you on that one.
What’s your favourite memory from the day of your HERO shoot?
I loved the location! It was this broken down old house, and everyone was happy and having fun!
What do you do in your spare time?
Ummm….
Do you read much?
Yeah, I try to. I don’t have a favourite author or anything. I’m too indecisive! I just go with whatever people force upon me. Lately I’ve been reading a lot about war.
Cool. Are you more of a lover or a fighter?
I’d say that I’m a lover. Despite my broken nose and my rough look, I’m a lover.
How did you break your nose?
I can’t remember. I think someone punched me in the face, but I don’t really know why.
Do you think it was a Section 5 situation?
Yeah, I think it could have been one of those Section 5 situations! Hey, what was the question I couldn’t answer?
Your favourite place to be.
No, the answer was definitely ‘bed’!
Oh yeah! Something you can’t live without?
That was it. The answer is: my notepad, so that I can write stuff down. If I don’t have that, everything becomes turmoil. I’m the epitome of an unorganised person. I’m really forgetful.
What do you write down?
Everything.
What’s your motto?
Progress, not perfection. Clearly that’s what I’m all about!
Anything else I should ask you? 
Not really.
Anything I shouldn’t ask you?
What the thing that I can’t live without is!
You’ve already answered that one!
Shit. See? I am forgetful.


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OYSTER ISSUE #95



The Oct/Nov issue of Oyster is out now (I think?)! I interviewed beautiful transgender Puerto Rican pop queen Nomi Ruiz of Brooklyn nu disco trio Jessica 6.  The accompanying portrait is by Dossier Journal's super talented Creative Director Skye Parrott.

 

 

I also wrote a story about the colour red... 



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ALEK WEK FOR WOOOOO #7



Wooooo #7 is out now, containing my interview with the sweetest woman in the world, Alek Wek. Full feature below!


Recently, while interviewing a designer who shared my own warped sense of humor, the topic of conversation turned to something that was pretty much unpublishable. When my Editor read the final Q&A, he asked me to rewrite it on the grounds that it was “inappropriate and completely gross.” Which was true. Reading the finished product was an uncomfortable experience, much like getting a back rub from your grandma or hearing your roommates shaking the sheets in the room next door.
So when I finally got the chance to interview for Wooooo, I thought I’d really go to town and offend some people. But then I ended up interviewing one of the sweetest, loveliest, most down-to-earth lasses you’ll ever come across: Alek Wek. A Sudanese refugee, Alek escaped to London in her early teens and became one of the most successful models of her time. She was the first African model to cover Elle, and later, i-D named her model of the decade. Don’t make that face! It’s not going to be one of ‘those’ interviews. We pretty much just rambled about cats and poodles for the better part of a half hour. Shut up and read the interview already.

Hi Alek! How are you?

Gooood.
Thanks for doing it!
Excuse me?
Thanks for doing the interview.
Not at all.
So what have you been up to today?
I was supposed to have a few meetings, but it’s snowing like there’s no tomorrow.
Really?

Yeah. It just won’t stop snowing. I tried to postpone them [the meetings] obviously, to work out of the office. I’m just following up on various projects really.
How do you find the snow? Are you into it, or you prefer the heat?
Um… To be honest, who wouldn’t want to be in sunshine? I want to soooo bad, but unfortunately when you have to work in New York or on this side of the world you have to take the winter with the summer. It’s not bad actually. Once it snows it’s not that cold, you just have to deal with the snow.
I can’t even imagine. I’m sitting outside right now sweating and being eaten alive by mosquitoes.
Man. Isn’t that something?

 It is.
Isn’t it?

You said it.
Anyhow, I have a Jack Russel, and when I take her for a walk I’m like, “come on!” I’m like, “you have to darling! Everyone has to troop it.”
Awww! Do you end up carrying her?
Yeah, there are lots of puddles in the middle of the street. They’re very hyper [Jack Russels], but when it comes to the cold and the snow, they just don’t even want to run. She gets me out though, which is great.
You look like you run — you’ve got that runner’s build.
I don’t know about that! I would definitely love to run more. I did do a marathon once and it was a really positive thing. I had friends of mine in it, and they were like, “you can do it!” Then I’d go into the gym, run for forty minutes and I’m like, [breathing heavily] “I don’t know if I can do it.”
Forty minutes is pretty good! I try not to sit up for that long.
Slowly, you go slowly. First you start walking, then you speed up the pace and before you know it you’re jogging then you’re running.
I imagine, since you’re a model, you get asked lots of really dumb questions about your exercise regime in interviews.
You know, when maybe there’s a piece getting written about health and fitness, sometimes they do ask me. Absolutely. But you know, I just eat in moderation. I love to eat fish and salad and hot milk and lots of water. I always feel good when I eat a lot of my greens. I love my vegetables. And if I crave something, I won’t deprive myself of it.
I’m the same, except for the hot milk, fish and greens part. So what did you do for New Years?
To be honest, I would love to tell you I lived la vida loca at some party I went to, but actually… We got snowed in, first of all, after Christmas. That wasn’t fun. That snow was ridiculous. Literally just didn’t stop for three days straight.
Oh no!
So that was a good excuse to stay in, cook, watch documentaries, watch new movies. I had friends in town, so I caught up with them.
Oh, that sounds nice.
My mates down the road called and were like, “Come down! Come down!” I was just eating pasta on my couch with my dog and my cat.
You have a dog and a cat?

 Yeah, a Persian.
Ever make them fight?
Sorry?
I said, do they ever fight?
The cat I’ve had for eleven years. She was given to me when I was moving in, and I was like, “what do I do with this?” Then she moved into the house, and now I’m stuck with her. And the dog came about the same way. I was like, “oh! Look at that dog, she’s so cute.” And they were like, “you want her?” I was like, “oh my god!” and she’s been with me ever since. They get along so well. They sleep beside one another.
That’s adorable. Are you a dog or a cat person? Which one would you pick if the house was on fire?
You know, I’m a cat person, but with a dog I feel, like they always say, it’s a man’s best friend. They can literally talk to you.
Sure they can.
It’s bizarre, but they know exactly what you’re talking about. It’s just a very good companion, I feel. When you’re reading, they sit beside you. Whatever you’re doing—writing, painting—she’s relaxed as long as she’s near you. But with a cat, she’s independent; she likes to do her own thing. The more you want her, the more likely she is to walk off.


You know, I’ve always been a cat person, but I’ve got allergies all of a sudden. Like I touch a cat and my left eye swells up, my hands get itchy…
Oh yeah, that’s no joke. My friend has that as well. She starts sneezing and she breaks out. You have to be careful.
It’s so annoying. I’ve always been a cat person, and then BAM! Right out of nowhere. I think I gotta be a dog person now.
Dogs are good, and I don’t think you’ll be allergic to dogs. You should see! There are also dogs that have hair where if you’re allergic you can still have them. They’re kind of like poodles.
Do you have allergies?

I used to have psoriasis, which is kind of like eczema. It was like, literally all over my body until I was fourteen. And that wasn’t fun. And there’s no cure for it. Right now my skin is very clear. You won’t see it. 
It’s funny, because your complexion always looks so perfect in pictures.
Yeah, when I was fourteen I moved to London, and that’s when it cleared up. It’s kind of a mystery how it did… But I’ve noticed when it’s not humid and hot, my skin doesn’t break out. So I’ve realised I have to stay out of the sun, which is funny for me.
Being Sudanese and all.
Yeah. Absolutely. It’s very, very strange. That’s something I’ve realised for a few years now, but I do love to take a nice sunny holiday. To walk in the sun... It’s a lovely thing, you know? But it’s like what you said about the cats. What can you do, right? You love something, but when you’re allergic to it, you have to take care.
It’s still annoying.
Yes, it is very annoying, but you know what? There could be more annoying things.
True. We’re very lucky.
We are.
Hey! I meant to ask you this before we got caught up on cats: did you make a resolution this year?
Ummm… I’m not big on crash resolutions. I’m really not a big planner. I’m a bit more like “I wish I could get through this year and accomplish the things that keep me on the path that I want to continue.” And you know if it’s a new journey then let’s do it. My overall thing is just about being positive and um… Yeah. To be blunt: no drama! 
So, I know that you’re an Aries.
Ok.
That’s your star sign.
Right.
According to the Internet, Arians like to be first in everything that they do.
Interesting. Really?
Sure.
Even when they’re running?

Ha!
That’s kind of full on. Like, oh my god. Every time? That’s hilarious. I do the best that I can, and I think that’s what we always should do. And if you come to a good place, I think you can really be satisfied, whether you’re first or not.
Ok.
But that’s quite hilarious.
You know, I thought it might have read true. I read your book, and I was so amazed that, towards the end of your book, when you’d done all these big things and you were going back to Sudan for the first time to represent a major charity, you were only 22.
The first visit, yes.
I was so amazed because you’d done so much. I mean, I’m 22 now, and god, I haven’t done half as much as what you’d done at that age.
Not at all! I mean, I had gone to live in London at the time, and then I went to New York, and of course I travelled for three years at the end of my teens, in my early twenties.
Aha.
You know, I was really blessed to have that opportunity. I mean, you’re talking about coming from Sudan to London, living there for no more than eight years, like seven, and then all of a sudden you get this opportunity that your average Joe-
Or Zac.
-Never gets. I mean it’s great. Even if you can take a year out of school to travel, I think it’s amazing. And plus, as a model, you get to work.
Amazing.
And it’s a platform too.
Sure is. Hey—you got to meet Oprah once right?
Yeah!
Is she a bit weird now? You know, years in showbiz and all?
She’s so wonderful. She’s an example of what I was trying to tell you. Success is happiness, and happiness is success. And a platform is one of the best things you can be blessed to have. That’s one of the greatest things fashion has given me. And I think I’m on a path in my life where I’m getting inspired all over and… You know what? I’m at a good place right now.
That’s awesome to hear. Thanks so much for your time Alek.
Thanks Zac.
Bye!
Bye!
Hi!
Hello?

Bye!

Images of Alek from i-D

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