Young Poor & Angry Press

Name: Kat

Position: Managing Editor

Album of the Week: Boyz II Men - Love

Weekly Song Obsession: Dead Boys - What Love Is

Movie You HAVE to see or saw this week: I have been SO behind with movies. I really want to see 2012 despite the poor things I’ve heard about it.

Most random text message: “Where have you been? It’s been Rape Joke Population: 1 until you came back!”

Most embarrassing: Checking out the employee stocking shelves at Dollar Tree and right as we caught each other’s eyes, I crashed into a box of wrapping paper.

Geek Indulgence: This question is so hard to answer, because every day is a geek indulging day for me.

Funniest follower tweet: I never pay attention enough and nothing in particular stands out this week!

Favorite Staff Moment: Things have honestly been so hectic lately, it’s hard to pick any specific moments out of our days.

What is your favorite thanksgiving memory?: I haven’t really ‘celebrated’ Thanksgiving for very long. I went to a friend’s house once and it was so disastrous it was awesome.

What are you thankful for?: I’m almost certain this is so stereotypical, but my family, friends, music, and amazing opportunities that somehow fall into my lap. And my dog, duh.

Teenage celebrity crush?: Oh god, I don’t even know where to start! Johnathan Taylor Thomas, Ben Foster, Rider Strong. And an insane girl crush on Amy Jo Johnson!

What do you do when you’re not working or yelling at Justin YPA?: I take Psychology classes and do a lot of art-related things. Naming everything I enjoy doing in my spare time would be boring.

What’s your staff nickname?: KatKat, English muffin.. whatever comes to mind at the time, I reckon!

Do you have a boyfriend/girlfriend?: No, I’m kind of the ultimate male repellant, and definitely not really the relationship type of person. But I’m slowly easing myself out of that and into a crush on a certain boy.

Are you easy to get along with?: A lot of the time my sarcasm or dry humour is mistaken for bitchiness, but I’d like to think it’s easy!

Jayme Foxx started her modeling career at the tender age of twelve when most girls her age were just starting to put away Barbie Dolls and get into boys.  In the past six years she has made a name for herself not only as a model, but in the punk, hardcore and metal scenes as well.  Foxx recently joined in the “Fur is Dead” campaign for Peta2, Fred Segal and Skelanimals 2008.  She was just seen in the Jared Gold Fashion Show for La Fashion Week.  Currently Foxx has her own show on Altitude TV called “Crazy Like a Foxx” where she interviews some of the top bands in the industry. Recently I sat down with Jayme to talk about her life as a TV host, some of the things she’s had to over come and her distaste for socks.

Where are you from originally?

Fort Worth, Texas

Where do you live now?

Dallas Texas and Los Angeles, California

How long have you been in the metal/punk/hardcore scene?

Since I was in 8th grade. I remember my friend Scott was really into punk rock because of his older brother. He would always play tapes on his walkman. He shared with me his info on the music and the bands. I just got really into it.

What kept you in the genre?

I think it was the freedom it gave me.. to say what I want, wear what I want, think what I want…  As cheesy as that sounds, it’s true. I hung out with squatters,cute punk rock boys, hardcore punk rock chicks, pop-punk kids… It has just always been a part of me.

What exactly do you do?

Well currently I am a TV host of Crazy Like a Foxx for Altitude TV, an interviewer for Altitude TV, and a model.

How did you get involved in TV?

The executive producer from Altitude TV contacted me on myspace. Said he loved my look and wanted me to come in and do some green screen promos. At first, I wasn’t that into the idea. I figured it was more like acting and that isn’t something I really want to do.  Well when I ent in for my interview I got really pumped.  I couldn’t believe how much fun I had and how much I got into it.

Was it a big culture shock to go from modeling to TV?

I was completely excited when I got hired on at Altitude TV.  I love it so much. Modeling was always my passion. I never put my focus on anything else.  When I started doing TV it just came so natural.

What’s your average day consist of?

Well, aside from waking up and feeding my dog, I try to organize my life.. DAILY!  haha!  I am currently trying to expand myself as much as possible. Working on TV projects, modeling gigs. Whatever gets my hands dirty.

What’s the most entertaining part of your job?

Well I would definitely say meeting all the bands and fans.  Some of the stories I’ve gotten to hear are awesome. I have met some of the most interesting people. The fans are amazing, to say the least. They are the ones who make the bands who they are…  it’s a great family

What do you do in your spare time?

In my spare time I love checking up on new bands.. I also like to spend time with my fiance’ Brad and my dog Monroe. Traveling, eating Mexican food, watching movies, hanging out with friends and family, getting tattooed. Oh! and robbing banks  (Editor’s Note: I think Jayme is kidding, but you never know….)

Being the busy bee that you are, is having balance in your life between work and a social life difficult?

When I was living in Los Angeles it made it hard becuase Brad lived in Dallas. So seeing each other once a month was hard. Especially when the other person is even busier than you are. We made it work and now im currently in Dallas going back to Los Angeles for work. Traveling back and forth sucks too when the other person is traveling. You make it work and are happy when you have time with each other. My social life kind of struggles sometimes because my friends live all over, so its hard for me to see everyone all the time.

Any bands you’re currently really excited about?

I have started to really get into LadyHawke.  I love her voice and her lyrics. I know im probably going to make a few people mad for saying this but, I really am starting to like Lady Gaga! Her videos are amazing and her style is different than anything going on right now. I love it when people have their own style and it doesnt fit a certain criteria and they are still very successful.

Do you feel as if you’ve got a responsibility as a role model for the girls in the scene currently?

I guess so… I mean I would like to be a good influence on the ladies, but honestly I’d rather be an inspiration than a role model. It would be awesome if a girl told me that she followed her dreams and worked really hard because she saw me do the same thing.

Do you feel as if you don’t get taken as seriously in the music industry because you’re a woman? Or has it been something that’s been helpful instead of harmful?

I have had alot of respect in the industry. I think being a woman helps. People still take me serious but also are more open to talking with me or working with me because I am a woman.  Being talkative and friendly always helps, plus being sexy.

Tell us something that very few people know about you.

I’m Polish, I am allergic to Pomegranates, I quit drinking 3 years ago, I haven’t had anything carbonated in almost 10 years, I don’t like to wear socks, and I HATE pencils.

What is your nerdiest trait?

I wear sunscreen everyday!

Recently I had my twenty-seventh birthday. For some this is considered still being young, but in the scene I’m now considered middle age. Maybe it’s because the longevity for your average scene kid is only a few years. Most come in, stay for awhile and then move on to other things like fraternities or golfing with friends and forget all about their professed love for the scene. What I’ve noticed over the years is there are certain people who stick around. These people all seem to share the same sense of morals and values despite some of their major differences.

I have a good friend named Laura aka Laura Galaxy. Laura loves guns, she’s got a big tattoo of a confederate flag (no she is not racist, she’s friends with me isn’t she?), believes Jesus Christ is her lord and savior, regularly attends church and hates Hayley Williams from Paramore with a passion. Laura and I couldn’t be more different. I really don’t like guns (although I’m a pretty good shot), I’m a Jew (and an atheist but that’s for another editorial…) and I think that Paramore is pretty damn good and have all their albums.

The big thing Laura and I have in common is the scene (I hate to even use that word because it’s been co-opted by media to portray a group of teenage hipsters who purchase their street cred from a Hot Topic and get their musical tastes from Myspace friends lists.) We both love punk and hardcore. While Laura may worship at a Church she, like me, also finds comfort and acceptance in going to see her favorite hardcore band play. While I disagree with her stances politically (Laura knows very well that I think that the concept of Christianity is retarded, but she loves me anyhow. I know Laura thinks that me being a liberal is pure insanity, but she smiles and listens when I talk about Barack Obama) we both have hatred for intolerance and racism. We accept each others differences because that’s what we’ve learned from the hardcore scene. We’ve found family and friendship here, we’ve built memories here and will have stories to tell our kids. This scene is our home, a part of our value system, and a tie that binds us together as a collective. As Sham 69 once said “If the kids are united, we will never be divided.”

It’s been now fifteen years since I heard my first punk and hardcore albums. Fifteen years since I started my love affair with this scene. The scene’s face has changed over the years. Ska was huge, then punk, and now it seems hardcore and metal are taking center stage. The kids seem so much younger than they were before (and maybe they are, it’s hard to tell because anyone under the age of 21 looks the same to me now) and the styles of clothing have changed. The one thing that hasn’t are people like Laura and myself. While we might wear nice clothing to work for important meetings, we might have big world issues we feel passionately about, but we still always find solace and comfort in a good hardcore or punk album. The one thing we’ve both learned in our lifetime in this scene is that growing up doesn’t necessarily mean growing out of the things you love, it’s adding more things to that list.

Styling of metalcore is something that is often find criticized by those who claim they listen to “hardcore.” Ragged on for the lack of diversity, many bands within the genre are more often then not condemned as generic–drowned out by mundane breakdowns and epic only in the sense of length of the songs, but often lacking a sense of skill. Not intricate or technical enough to be metal and not raw or punk-influenced enough to be hardcore, metalcore suffers as the middle child of the heavy music family. Defying the odds, The Ghost Inside’s display of technical skill, catchy lyrics, and ability to form their own musical identity within the common stagnancy of their genre have stood out to me and have set them apart from the pack.

Their 12-track debut album Fury And The Fallen Ones released back in April 2008 is what set it off. Their hit Faith Or Forgiveness has all the things essential for a great metalcore song: mosh-inspiring breakdowns, a catchy chorus and a occasional melodic part to offset some of the heaviness. Offering dramatic breaks and meaningful lyrics, its no wonder that this song has caught everyone’s attention recently. Consequently it has become a song whose lyrics (“never fearful and always hopeful” and “missing but mended, some hearts never break.”) many fans have chosen get tattooed. One of the biggest standouts has to be “Siren Song” which opens with a memorable breakdown, but sings unexpected poetic and emotional lyrics like, “Desert dry and tired, sleeping underneath the stars,” through its entirety. “Lion War” joins as an equally subjective piece with its words: “The sonnace sent out, sometimes, more pacifying than words will ever be.” “Inherent Youth” and “Revolutionary” remind us of our duty to the principles of carpe diem–taking advantage of what we have today, leaving the past behind to be proud of the things we have accomplished–and to lead our own “revolution” to keep our dreams alive. The song that ties it all together is “Shiner.” Starting off with gripping drums and a rhythmic guitar, the lyrics weave in words of inspiration and call us to “shine on” through melodies and breakdowns. This song encompasses the overall effect of the album and gives a warm positive feeling and a figurative pat on the back with each listen.

Currently on tour in Europe with Despised Icon and label mates As Blood Runs Black and set to release their new album The Returners in early 2010, The Ghost Inside is growing bigger everyday, expanding their reach to listeners everywhere to give them the taste of what has been missing from their iTunes library.