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ISSUE #85 - JULY 2018 #7YEARSNKD

by Catherine Powell

NAFESSA WILLIAMS

JULY 2018 04 BARRETT WILBERT WEED

18 JENNA ORTEGA

36 NAFESSA WILLIAMS

on her mother’s encouragement + her role on mean girls

on working on her various shows + her directing dreams

on her life-changing role on black lightning

08 ALEX ROE

24 CALE DODDS

46 TYLER RICH

on hot summer nights + season 2 of siren

on his new single “take you back” + his ever-growing live show

on his transition from california to tennessee

14 KIIARA

26 MICHAEL RAY

50 SONG SUFFRAGETTES

on her new single “messy” + collaborating with other artists

on paying tribute to his grandfather + challenging himself

the all-female songwriter round celebrates four years

32 THOMPSON SQUARE

on becoming an independent act + their son, cooper

CATHERINE POWELL

publisher, editor, photographer, designer, writer

CARLY BUSH

IAN HAYS

NICOLE MOOREFIELD

SELINA FALCON

RACHEL HILL

writer

LEXI SHANNON

AUTUMN HALLE

MARISSA JOHNSON

writer

writer writer

OLIVIA SINGH writer

barrett wilbert weed Words by SELINA FALCON Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

It almost goes without saying that Mean Girls is one of the defining films of millennial pop culture history. Its quotes have become a part of our everyday lexicon; its memes are just a part of what makes the Internet the Internet. And now it has come to life again in the form of a Tony-nominated Broadway musical. Starring as our favorite brooding grunge chick Janis Sarkisian is 29-year-old actress Barrett Wilbert Weed. Barrett grew up in Cambridge, Massachusetts as the daughter of two visual artists. Her mother made large-scale ceramic pottery and her father made large-scale sculptures before becoming a contractor. He purchased and rebuilt the Civil War-era house she grew up while in his early 30s. “It’s really funny if you’re in the house, there are things that someone who’s, like, a little bit older probably would have done differently – like more closets or more bathrooms [or] not putting a staircase in the middle of the floor,” she laughs. “But my mom hasn’t changed any of it. He passed away when I was 7, so it’s really just been me and my mom most of my life. My mom raised me by herself.” Barrett speaks highly of her mother, who she says put her through and paid for her to go to

an arts boarding school. “I think it’s like the closest thing that exists to Hogwarts,” she laughs. “I think it’s incredible that single parent households can support stuff like that. My mom makes dreams come true.” Growing up in a female-centered world, in a liberal place like Massachusetts, and going to a liberal boarding school, Barrett says she always thought of racism, misogyny, and homophobia as “foreign things”, so when she left for college, she says it was jarring for her to see those things firsthand. “I think I’m very fortunate to have grown up that way with everyone around me, and especially my mom choosing how she wanted her life to be and making sure that that happened, and making sure that it [also] happened for me,” she said Barrett went to Elon University in North Carolina for her undergraduate degree, which was the only college of the 13 she applied to that accepted her. After college she moved to New York and has been there for seven years. She says theater has always been her only career plan and she never had something to fall back on. “My mom never encouraged me to have a backup plan. I think even if she was privately just being like, ‘Oh dear God, please let her

pick another field to go into’, she never told me that,” she explains. “She never encouraged me to think in a more practical way. It was always just kind of like, ‘If that’s what you want, then you have to make it happen and I’ll help you as much as I can,’ but that’s going to have its limitations because she doesn’t know anybody.” Barrett says she has always been told how different she is for her field. “And sometimes it’s said with a negative connotation of like, ‘Well we can’t cast her because she’s a very different type of girl for this industry’, or like, ‘We’re going to cast her because it’s such a contrary vibe to everyone else’.” It’s her different vibe, she says, that is probably the reason she got cast as Janis in Mean Girls. “I love this character so much,” Barrett says. “I think she’s incredibly self-assured and very confident, and that’s rare. She doesn’t really have a lot of self-doubt. And we don’t really see that often in young female characters – we see that a lot in young male characters, but not a lot in young female characters even though it exists in young female women, like, really prevalently.” Barrett says she had no idea that she and Grey Henson (who plays Damian Hubbard) would be narrating the show. NKDMAG.COM 05

alex roe Words by RACHEL HILL Photos by CATHERINE POWELL Grooming by FAYE LAUREN

kiiara Words by MARISSA JOHNSON Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

Breakout star Kiiara rose to fame with her debut single “Gold” which has amassed over eighty million views and gained the attention of fans all over the world. Now, the Illinois native has collaborated with major artists such as Linkin Park and Lil Wayne, and is hard at work on her debut album. Her latest genre- bending single, “Messy”, is already climbing the Billboard charts and has established Kiiara as a full-fledged artist. Growing up, did music always play a big role or was there a specific point in your life when you realized that you wanted to be an artist? K: I played piano for five years, but would only play by ear, so I went through so many piano teachers because they’d all get frustrated that I didn’t want to play their notes, but other than that I played a lot of volleyball and did some ballet. Music sort of became a coping mechanism for me, I always had a lot on my mind so one day I decided that I wanted to try to write a song. A friend of mine told me that in

order to master the craft you just had to keep writing, to try to write as many songs as you can in one day, so I would sit down and write for sometimes eight hours a day, and from that I wrote “Gold” and everything just sort of happened from there. When you first started writing your own music, was there anyone that influenced your writing style? K: I listened to a variety of artists, I grew up listening to Linkin Park, Eminem, Rihanna, and a lot of Lana Del Rey, so it obviously has influence in a way, but I never really thought that much into it, I just wrote what I felt like writing. Your style has sometimes been labeled as “trap-pop”, how would you describe your sound to someone who has maybe never heard your music? K: It’s definitely electronic and pop, but it’s not typical pop. Genre is tough because it is kind of your own interpretation of the music.

You’ve collaborated with artists like Linkin Park, Lil Wayne and Lil Aaron, how did those collaborations come together and is there anyone that you would like to work with in the future? K: I met Linkin Park through Zane Lowe, who introduced me to Mike Shinoda. Mike invited me to the studio a couple times and it just went from there, he played me a lot of the album and I was just a fan and got to work with them from then. With Aaron, he’s been one of my best friends for four or five years, he was one of the first writers I worked with when I moved to Los Angeles and we became friends and have written together ever since, finally four years later we put out a song together. Aaron would come to all of my sessions, when I first moved out here I wasn’t used to working with other producers, so when I started working with other people it was very nerve wracking for me so he would come along to help write but also be a sort of buffer. I would really like to work with Justin Bieber, Rihanna and Eminem - they’re my dream collaborations. NKDMAG.COM

jenna ortega Words by LEXI SHANNON Photos by CATHERINE POWELL Glam by ANGELA CALISTI

DODDS

Words by NICOLE MOOREFIELD Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

CALE

Cale Dodds grew up in Columbus, Georgia with music in his soul. “Music has always played a huge role in my life. It never really was a question of what I wanted to do,” he explains. Cale was raised on country radio, an unfailing soundtrack to family fishing trips on the Chattahoochee River. These fondly-remembered bonding excursions shaped the man Cale would become. “It’s always stuck out to me as a very pivotal moment in my life of really discovering music and feeling something,” he notes. Although Cale’s family isn’t musical, they always encouraged his passion. “My dad could barely play the radio, but he always played it,” Cale reflects. “I’m very thankful for that.” Growing up, he always wanted to play guitar like the cowboys he admired, and taught himself how on a guitar gifted to his grandfather, stationed on nearby Fort Benning. “Every time we went over to his house, I’d always just want to run and grab it and play it. I didn’t know why, I just felt drawn to it,” he says. Cale wrote his first song at just 12 and it was, as he succinctly describes, “awful”. His first performance was the same year: a birthday party in someone’s garage. “We knew three songs and we played them over and over again for an hour and a half,” he recalls. That first gig, also “awful” for listeners, was eye-opening for the young musician. At that moment, Cale knew how he wanted to spend his life. “I didn’t really care about anything else,” he remembers. Over time, Cale began gigging bands in Georgia before moving to Nashville in 2011 to further his career. “I always wrote songs by myself and I didn’t know what it meant to co-write until I moved,” he shares, but in Music City, Cale began getting

cuts with other artists, including “(This Ain’t No) Drunk Dial” with A Thousand Horses in 2015. While he continued touring, Spotify’s constant support grew Cale’s fanbase and landed him a publishing deal. He just wrapped up a radio tour in early June, immediately followed by CMA Fest and a summer tour, and with the January release of his newest single “Take You Back”, Cale has been busy. A unique brand of country rooted in rock and inspired by classic musicians like Alan Jackson, Garth Brooks, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty and George Strait, Cale describes his music as “arena country,” with a “big chorus, big sound, [and the] feeling of a big drum.” His first two EPs, Wild and Reckless and People Watching, were released in 2014 and 2016, respectively. He has since released three song duos, starting in 2017 and leading up to the 2018 release of “Like We Do” and “Take You Back.” Of all his songs, Cale is proudest of “Take You Back,” which perfectly captures the nostalgia of running into someone you used to love and wondering what your life would be like with them still in it. “It’s so personal, and I’m watching people relate to it, and I’m seeing people continue to sing it in different places that I go, and that’s important to me,” he imparts. “Everyone at some point has experienced that feeling, so it’s cool to see it translate and transcend across different places that I’m touring,” he adds. The idea for “Take You Back” first came to Cale while living in a garage in Nashville. For months, “I woke up with this melody in my head and I didn’t know what the melody was trying to say to me,” he reveals. It wasn’t until he ran into an old flame

in Georgia over the holidays that the lyrics started coming together. “We picked up right where we had left off, and it just kind of wrote itself after that.” “One reason I love writing so much is because it’s never the same. As an ADD kid growing up, I [realized that] there’s no monotony to songwriting,” he shares. When writing, Cale will sometimes hear a melody first, or a guitar part, a beat, or even a single line. While the spontaneity of writing first sparked his interest, storytelling is what kindles the flame. “If I tell my stories in song, that’s when they connect the most. My songs are my stories: where I’ve been, where I’m going, and anything I’ve gone through. I want my music to feel how it sounds, and to sound how it feels,” he explains. From January to June, Cale lived on the road. While touring is exhausting, he admits, the chance to interact with supporters both old and new is worth it. “I love hearing their stories as much as I like telling mine,” he says. Since the release of “Take You Back,” Cale has heard from numerous fans who used the song to reach out to exes, which “is always cool to me, to hear how my songs are affecting people without me even knowing”. What Cale loves most about music is the way it brings people together. “There are no walls,” he remarks. “Whether we disagree on what we like or not, we all agree on music.” Even arguments create conversation between adversaries, he points out. Conversely, “I’ve seen people be armin-arm, crying with a stranger over a song,” Cale adds. “They might never speak again, but in that moment, they have [a bond]. That’s always been a powerful thing.” NKD NKDMAG.COM

michael ray Words by AUTUMN HALLE Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

THOMPSON SQUARE Words & Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

Thompson Square – comprised of married couple, Keifer and Shawna Thompson – shot to country stardom following the release of their 2010 single “Are You Gonna Kiss Me or Not” in 2010. Now, eight years later, the duo is back with their third studio album, Masterpiece, and a 2-year-old boy full of inspiration. “It would seem there was a break from the outside in,” Keifer reflects on the five years between albums. “But inside out, we haven’t stopped really doing anything.” The two were touring and writing consistently throughout that time, but because of a decomposing relationship with their former record label, they weren’t able to get any new music out. “We didn’t feel like we belonged there anymore,” Keifer admits. The “break-up” was amicable, and Thompson Square was able to seamlessly split from Broken Bow Records. During those five years, Keifer and Shawna also became parents. With their joint career being such a large part of their marriage, the two had to sit down and decide if they wanted to miss out on being parents while they navigated the ever-changing music industry.

They agreed they didn’t, and Cooper was born in January 2016. “The scary thing about asking yourself life questions is you can’t lie to yourself, and once we knew that answer, we, so to speak, got right to work,” Keifer says. Cooper (who really likes Batman, if you were wondering), travels with his parents everywhere and has been a new source of inspiration for songwriting. “Cooper was really at the forefront,” Keifer says. The title track, “Masterpiece” is written about Cooper, and as soon as Sharna heard it she knew the album had to be titled that. “As a writer, he’s filled my creative tank,” Keifer says of his son. Fans of Thompson Square have watched Cooper grow up on the band’s social media pages, so to now have songs that relate back to what listeners knew the couple was experiencing felt like a natural step for the Thompsons. While there was some interest from other labels once Thompson Square left Broken Bow, the band opted to “take the reins” on their career and released their latest album, Masterpiece, independently via their own label, T2. “It’s been rejuvenating,” Sharna says.

They went into this record with no intentions of writing a “radio friendly” hit, and just included songs that they both truly enjoyed and responded to. “I would rather be who we are and be smaller, than be someone else and be bigger,” Keifer says, “You have to sleep with yourself at night.” Because listeners are consuming music in a much different way that when Thompson Square started their careers, and radio play isn’t as important as it used to be, when writing this record, they found it easier to stretch their creative muscles knowing that there are more ways for the songs to be heard. “If you take that pressure off of yourself, which we have, the cream rises,” Keifer says. The two agree that Masterpiece is the best representation of them as artists. In addition to working with producers, they also produced two tracks on their own – “Masterpiece” and “Breakers” – because the songs were too personal to let anyone else touch them. “Breakers” especially was incredibly difficult for Sharna to sing and broke down crying multiple times while recording it. The track was pieced together from multiple takes, and the duo NKDMAG.COM

NAFESSA WILLIAMS Words by OLIVIA SINGH Photos by CATHERINE POWELL Hair by IYANA WINFIELD Make-Up by KAYDA GEORGE Styling by SCOT LOUIE

tyler rich Words by IAN HAYS Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

Music is a shared experience. For Tyler Rich, that means family. In Yuba City, a farming town in Northern California, holidays meant extended family. Music always trailed not too far behind. Holiday songs, pop and rock covers, nothing was off limits. The instigator seemed to always be Uncle Tim. “It didn’t matter if it was Christmas, or what. He and all his buddies would show up with my cousins. They would bust out the guitars and drinks. And the more they drank, the more they played. For hours, it was just The Beatles, Tom Petty, Garth Brooks, Brooks and Dunn,” Tyler said. Tyler’s love of music came with an emphasis on live music. Music wasn’t passive listening but a physical act. He witnessed his uncle control an entire room by tilting his voice and plucking a string. A force of good bringing everyone together. Ten separate conversations pause to join in a familiar song. Tyler saw time and time again live music bringing people together. Even at 14 with Tyler getting his first guitar, it was never about bands or stardom. He just wanted to be able to join in with his uncle on the fun. After a few lessons and a little persistence, Tyler found himself playing along with the gang by the following Christmas. Learning to play by covering popular songs taught him to make a cover his own.

“I say kudos and props to everyone who utilizes YouTube for cover songs. When I was younger, we didn’t have that as an option. It’s a lot of work and they spend hours not just on the covers but the videos, too,” Tyler says. While Tyler was not as public in those early experiences, he still put up videos now and then when it felt right. It was never about self-promotion or locking down his brand. It was just a way to share the music he was feeling at the time. Once he felt the point was made, he would just as quickly take the cover down. He was fully aware of the stigma within the music industry of being that one YouTube cover singer. While there are always exceptions to the rules, Tyler was meant for a different path. Even today, he puts together medleys and special live cover songs. “Right now, I’m in the middle of doing kind of a story of my upbringing and being in love with Pure Country with George Straight, as a kid. I go into a story about how it got me into country music. I go from playing a medley of songs from that story to playing Michael Jackson’s, ‘Billie Jean’. And while cover songs are important for coming into your own, but it’s just as important how you deliver it,” Tyler says. The influence from these covers is now innate in Tyler’s writing. While he’s working a song that is all country focused, a friend will tell him how

that melody reminds them of one of his pop influences. Genre follows the music, not the other way around. For years, Tyler played cover/ lounge gigs at casinos in Vegas and California wine country. Sets were four hours each. Some weeks, he played five nights in a row. That much time playing covers for audiences allowed him to fully make those covers his own. It taught him how to reign in crowds who honestly weren’t there for him. It was more than background noise to lull happy patrons into playing another round. Tyler took something established and made it recognizable in a refreshing way. “Those gigs taught me everything,” he says, “They taught me how to not lose my voice after four hours of singing. They prepared me for the chaos of everything going on right now.” Right out of high school, Tyler was in a pop-rock indie band that signed a record deal. A few years of touring unfortunately yielded no fruit. Keeping his promise to his family, he went to Sacramento State after the band broke up. He got a degree in economics. An Associate’s Degree, new guidelines for majors, and knowing he needed to get a “practical” degree led to the “living nightmare” of studying economics. “I mean, after graduating, I got offered a job at the state capitol as a financial advisor. Somehow, California was going to trust me with their NKDMAG.COM

FOUR YEARS OF

Words By CARLY BUSH Photos by CATHERINE POWELL

Since their inaugural event at 3rd and Lindsley Backstage in the spring of 2014, Nashville’s premier all-female songwriting collective has grown from a small group of ambitious young artists to a sweeping feminist movement with the poten-tial for global impact. The Song Suffragettes have, to date, helped thirty artists obtain publishing deals and seven land record deals. By providing a weekly platform that helps them reach the attention of enthusiastic fans and the eager listening ear of A&R scouts in the audience, the Suffragettes writers round has served as an undeniably benefi-cial outlet for women in country music. On an average Monday night, you can find the women of the

Suffragettes per-forming in groups of five at the Listening Room Café. These artists are some of Nashville’s best and brightest up-and-coming songwriters. Each week, the Suffragettes, known by their iconic tagline and hashtag “Let The Girls Play,” put on an especially immersive, intimate, and laidback show, with on-stage banter that makes them feel as authentic as their classic country lyrics sug-gest. Tickets sell out on a weekly basis, and new singer-songwriters are auditioning all the time, meaning that you never know exactly what you’re going to get on any given Monday night. The group recently celebrated their fourth anniversary with a special show at one of Nash-

ville’s coolest and most intimate lounges, the Analog at Hutton Hotel, which drew a large and enthusiastic crowd. Some members, like co-founder Kalie Shorr, known for her debut single “Fight Like a Girl”, walked in right off the bus from their hometown with nothing but a guitar and a dream. Kalie met founders Todd Cassetty and Helena Capps soon af-ter relocating from her hometown in Maine, and became involved with the project in its very early stages. Others are industry veterans, riled up by the realization that the clock seemed to be turning backwards. The country music scene that existed twenty-five years ago is now gone. To many singer-songwriters who have

“I was 18. I dIdn’t know anybody. I was lucky enough to meet thIs record company who had thIs crazy Idea to start an all-female roundtable and gIve gIrls a place to play at

a tIme when there weren’t any.”

kalIe shorr NKDMAG.COM

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