Spotted!

Friday September 18th:

Tom Welling aka Superman from TV show "Smallville" was walking around downtown near the Shangri-La Hotel at around 8:00pm. We saw him but he was walking so fast that we didn't get to talk to him. (and plus, I'll admit I totally froze...haha). He's so good looking! :)

-Christinaaa

Scooby Doo! PART 2!

Hey everyone, if you didn't catch the premiere of Scooby Doo! The Mystery Begins on Sept. 13 on Cartoon Network, you can still see it on Teletoon (for us Canadians channel 50 haha) on September 26 @ 7:00pm OR on October 3 @ 7:00pm! So don't miss out! Or you can check it out on DVD on September 22! So either way, I really think you should go see it :) Anyways, so if you missed my previous post about Scooby Doo, go take a look. Here's part two of the Scooby Doo post series featuring... Nick Palatas! AKA Shaggy :)

1. How did you get started in acting? How old were you when you started?

Basically, I did a school play back when I was in 6th grade. I really liked the energy I felt up on stage and continued in the theater up until I graduated from high school. My senior year, however, I had my first taste of film when I landed a Wal-mart commercial. I loved the experience, and with the tugging on my heart, I decided not to pursue my collegiate studies (despite having a nearly full-ride scholarship to a nice university in Missouri), but instead to take the plunge and pray for the best. I have now been in Hollywood for 3 years, making me 21!

2. Is Scooby Doo the first movie that you play a lead role in?

Technically, no. I have played lead roles in other film projects, but they were all either student films, independent films, or commercials. This is my first feature. That can also answer question 3!

4. What made you want to get into acting?

Although I've always found it exhilarating, the biggest influence on my decision to bypass education and a job, and go straight to practice and a career, was the persuasion I felt from God telling me that it was what I should be doing. I just prayed about it often and the responses all pointed me towards Hollywood.

5. How did you land the role of Shaggy? What was your reaction?

Truthfully, it was a giant blessing. I auditioned just like every other kid, but happened to have something that set me apart. Brian Levant (our director) has often commented that he knew I was Shaggy from the first audition he of me. As for my reaction, I basically cried, lol. I was so freaking happy. Not only was it a feature, but it's Shaggy! There are maybe a handful of characters to play that equal such a fun and recognizable icon as Shaggy.

6. So what was it like to play Shaggy?

The best part about being Shaggy, is that you simply have to drop all inhibitions and take everything as it comes. He is super friendly, happy, and genuine, with a ton of energy, and just enough naivety to make everyone laugh.

7. Do you think you and Shaggy are similar at all? Why or why not?

It's funny, because a lot of people say that I just AM Shaggy, but there are also many who don't see it at all. We're similar, in that I love to have fun, I try my best to always be happy, and I love to make other people laugh. In fact, I've often said that my greatest goal in life, is to make every person I meet and/or know laugh at least once that day. You cannot have a bad time when you're smiling and laughing.

8. What was it like having to act and pretend that “Scooby” was on set?

It was quite a challenge. I've always had quite an imagination, but it really pushed all of us to the limits. I remember the hardest time I had, was during the "You and I" montage, because I had to spin around in a circle while pretending to hold hands and spin WITH SCOOBY. Not only do I get motion-sick when I spin, but it was like 100 degrees outside that day, I had long sleeves and corduroy pants, and we were doing the shot in slow motion, so I had to step awkwardly. We must have done 20 takes just trying to get my circle right and making it so I looked like I was actually holding Scooby.

9. What was your favourite part about filming Scooby Doo?

Favorite part? Just being on set and getting to know so many great people. I love the whole process, and love to be with the crew and cast each and every day we filmed.

10. So when I visited the set, it seemed like a pretty fun atmosphere...what was one of the funniest things that happened on set?

Wow. There were a ton. I really can't narrow one down. There was Kate and her "adorably accident-prone" self, there were many inside jokes on set, there were mishaps and bruises galore, there were out-takes and bloopers... Just suffice it to say that we shared a lot of laughs!

11. What was it like working with Director Brian Levant?

To be completely honest, Brian Levant is like a second father to me. What a gentle, kind-hearted, genuine, and fun guy. I cannot say enough about how sincerely amazing Brian is. Truthfully, he takes a little getting used to, as I was pretty afraid of him for the first week or so of filming (maybe intimidated by is a better word, but nevertheless). However, after that first week of acquainting myself with his... style? I learned to absolutely love the man. We couldn't have asked for a better director.

12. So how did you like filming in BC? Have you ever been here before?

Nope, I've never been to Canada before, despite having lived and traveled all over the world as the son of a Naval officer... Vancouver was beautiful, and the Canadians were all very nice. I was expecting it to be so much different than America, for some odd reason, but as it turns out, it was quite similar. And again, it was beautiful.

13. If you could work with any other actor/actress in the world, who would it be and why?

If I could work with ANY other actor? Oh goodness. I'm gonna go with Jim Carrey. The guy has inspired more laughs than should be humanly possible.

14. Lastly, do you have any upcoming projects?

So far, I have no upcoming projects, but the movie hasn't even come out yet! So, right now, I'm just enjoying the ride and waiting patiently to see what God has in store for me.



Thank you Nick for the interview! :)

COMING NEXT: Video interviews with KATE MELTON (aka Daphne) & ROBBIE AMELL (aka Fred)
-Christinaaa :)

MITCHEL MUSSO INTERVIEW

I was able to have a phone interview with Hannah Montana star, Mitchel Musso and he gave us some insight into his life and his music career! He was really nice and great to talk to. My article is only in the Alberta issue of Youthink this month, so I'll post it once I get a copy of it from the Youthink office!

Here it is for you to read though! (I might post the recorded conversation later)

1. So tell me how you’re feeling about the recent release of your debut album. Has it been in the works for a long time?

M - It has been in the works for a good amount of time. I’ve been playing music since I was about...oh man...Six years old was when I got my first grand piano, so I guess involved with instruments and stuff like that. I picked up a guitar for the first time at like 10. I started playing the drums at 11 or 12. So just overall, I’ve always had a passion for music, an ear for music, I loved just music in general; from tempos, keys and chords and everything else that comes with it. But most recently, probably about 6-8 months ago, we were in discussion about creating this album to drop right around my birthday when I turned 18; and just this whole new look, you know what I mean, just completely changed. And it has! But I think it’s all for the better, you know what I mean? Music has opened so many doors and I do love it so so much so it’s been very good!

2. How would you describe the overall feel or theme of this album?

M - The overall feel...I guess as far as topics that we really talked about in the album where I discussed is like you know, girls, parties and not fitting in but how it’s okay. And I guess mainly the sound, like if you want to hear what genre it really falls in, I’d say it’s kind of a rock, hip hop, dance, electro kind of a vibe. Yeah, because I listen to everything from classical to hard rap. Like Billy Joel to Three 6 Mafia or Lil Wayne to Elton John, you know I mean, so like everything in between. You probably won’t find very many country sounds in my album but as far as everything else is; I try to add as much as I could; get a variety.

3. How did you balance working on the album with your work on Hannah Montana?

M - You tell me! I’m not sure, it just kind of happened, you know what I mean? I wouldn’t say...working on Hannah’s not too difficult and recording music’s not too difficult, so both of them together wasn’t too bad.

4. Was everyone on the cast and crew supportive of you pursuing this endeavour?

M - Yeah, yeah for sure! They were like the first people who got the album. I came in with like a whole; everybody was asking me for one so I came in with a whole suitcase full and gave everybody one. I wanted to hear everyone’s opinions. I know Miley was like the first person I showed my CD to and she thought it was great and she wants to do music later on in the future. Like for the second album, she’s written 2 songs: one just for me and a duet between me and her, but you never know.

5. So Miley was really supportive, did she give you any advice about the project?

M - Yeah she was. And not really, other than she wants to do a duet.

6. So did Disney approach you to do an album or was it you taking the initiative and approaching them?

M - No, no, that was me wanting to do it. Yeah, they did a long time ago, and I was like “No.” The thing about music is that I just truthfully...I wanted to be an artist before I was an artist, so like what that means is...Like when I was little, I learned a couple big editing softwares like Pro Tools and Logic and Reason. Because like nowadays I can go to the studio and lay down all of my tracks, which are you know, the keyboard, the drums, guitar and edit and mix it all by myself. And that was what I wanted to do, or at least to be able to do. Just being able to know music before I really became a musician and that was what we did.

7. You worked with a number of well known industry heavy hitters such as Max Martin, Curt Schneider, and Matthew Wilder...How was the experience working with them?

M - Phenomenal. I mean, even, we also worked with S*A*M & Sluggo, which is Sam & Dave, who did Fall Out Boy, Panic at the Disco, Gym Class Heroes, also Metro Station, my older brother’s band. And then PJ Bianco who did “Look Me in the Eyes” for the Jonas Brothers, branched them off in the top 40. But overall, yeah, I try to tell everybody that there was so much talent put in this record, not on my own behalf, just by everybody else’s help, that it really made it sound like a rockin’ album. It’s not just me, it’s a lot of help, you know what I mean, there’s so much talent in the world...it’s ridiculous.

8. So how much input did you have when you were in the studio?

M - A lot. All creative rights and everything else; creative control.

9. You co-wrote a few songs on this album? How did you enjoy that process?

M - It definitely was a thrill. I wrote two of them by myself and then I co-wrote mostly all of them except for like two that were already written. But it’s been cool. I wanted to add my own ideas and I feel like we covered all of that. I feel like we came out with a pretty rockin album.

10. So your brother Mason is also in the music industry and is featured on the track “Shout It”...How has he helped you or influenced your career as a musician?

M - Well as far as Mason goes, he’s really like my role model when it comes to music, you know what I mean? Not just music, I mean he’s my role model in general. He’s my older brother; usually your older sibling is the person you look up to. But I think he’s helped me, I mean, a good amount, he’s definitely taught me a lot of guitar. He taught me mostly all the instruments before I knew because he picked them up first. And then, when he was progressing in it, excelling in it, I was like “I want to do that”, and he helped me out, taught me some chords. He taught me how to write. I mean, when I was little, he taught me what chorus, you know, the meaning of the chorus, and the meaning of a verse, and a prechorus and a bridge...just pretty much how to make music to be completely honest with you. And I’m so stoked because we’re going on tour the 28th of this month, so real real soon we’ll be on tour together.

11. So earlier, you mentioned that you have a wide range of music that you listen to...are there any in particular that you like more, or any bands that stand out for you?

M - Well you know what, there’s so much talent in this world, that it’s very difficult to really pick my favourite artist, you know what I mean? But I love bands like...let’s see I love Blink 182, I love The Used, I love the Clash, I love Metro Station. And then again, I like stuff like...I love Eminem. I love Dr Dre, I love Three 6 Mafia...it really all depends. I like everything.

12. Have you always known that you wanted to get into the music industry as well as acting? When did you decide to pursue your music career?

M - Truthfully, just after I knew I could do it. When I felt like I was an artist, that’s when I felt like I wanted to pursue it. I was like, I don’t want anybody to just look at me like another one of those kids who comes out with music and is all bubblegum pop and everything else like that; no creative control and just gets fed stuff and does it. I wanted to really be able to take over. I get up on stage and I play every instrument and I just want to be a musician in general.

13. How has being an actor helped your career as a musician?

M - You know, the fan base of course. And I have the coolest fans in the world, I always like to shout them out; they’re the best always, always filling out the shows and everything else. As far as acting goes...When I write I guess, it’s not necessarily... I don’t want to word this wrong but it’s not necessarily always true, you know what I mean? When I write, some of it’s from the heart but I try to mix up a couple things. Because when I write, I don’t like to write about necessarily my personal personal life. If I write about things, it’s very under wraps, you would never know, only I would know and maybe the person who it’s written about, you know what I mean? You’re not going to catch me in a room with an acoustic guitar writing a song about a girl named Ashley who broke my heart, you know what I mean? The music’s more about...it’s always going to be upbeat. I will always want everybody to dance to it and I want everybody to be able to feel free and let loose and that’s what the music truthfully is for me. But everybody has their own opinions on making music.

14. How do you keep yourself grounded in such a crazy business, particularly because you are so recognizable from your TV career?

M - I don’t know, I think me and Mason especially, are pretty good about it because we’re very...how do I say this...we love to share I guess is the right word for it. We’re huge into sharing. We like everybody to be able to...Like if we’re going to play a concert, we love throwing the mic in front of the kids’ faces so that they can sing with us! We want everybody to feel involved to be completely honest with you. We also come from the smallest county in the largest state of Rockwall of Texas where everyone’s all hicks and I mean, I walk outside and you see cows and then you see a lake, you know what I mean, like whatever. So I feel like maybe that kind of has a little help. But then again, we just look at it like a job. We’re just regular kids with just extraordinary jobs. It’s weird, I feel like if you talk about being grounded, you actually have a big head, so it’s kind of weird. You know, like [in sarcastic tone] “Oh I’m so grounded, I’m just the nicest of the nicest” you know what I mean? No.

15. What is it like to be a part of such a phenomenally successful TV show as “Hannah Montana?”

M - It’s nice! Ever since, I was about thirteen was when we started so it’s definitely been the right area for me to get involved in. I mean Disney was definitely a good stepping stone and will always be right there to back me up. I’ve definitely been blessed I guess to be a part of the channel. Disney is phenomenal; they’ve helped me pursue this dream, not just of being an actor, now they’re so open armed into letting me be this musician and everything else.

16. So how did you land the role of Oliver Oken?

M - Auditions. A nice little audition process. It took a good amount of time but when it all comes down to it, it started with um I guess I was in Texas, it’s actually a long story here, but it started out I was in Texas and I got this call for “Hey you have an audition for a show called Hannah Montana” so I was like okay cool, you know what I mean? No one knew what Hannah Montana was, no one knew what Hannah Montana was going to be. And so, it’s a Wednesday, we were flying out Friday to L.A. My mom says, “Don’t bring your skateboard Mitchel,” that’s all I used to do, is be a skater, that was like my life. “Don’t bring your skateboard Mitch, you’re going to hurt yourself, don’t do it. We gotta leave in 2 days, just keep it easy tonight.” “Okay Mom, I swear I’m not going to, I swear, I’ll be good. I’m not going to bring my board, I’m going to be fine, it’s all good, don’t even worry about me.” Went outside, ran around the back, grabbed my skateboard. Pretty much an hour into skating, I go up a ramp, I have no idea what I did, I just remember coming down and snapping my arm completely in half. I snapped my radius and my forearm; my arm looked like a V, seriously it looked like a zig zag. And so 6 weeks later, 7 weeks later, we fly out to L.A for pilot season; they’re still casting for Oliver. I go in for the audition and there’s this chair and they’re telling me to climb up on the chair because if you can remember from the pilot, Oliver’s character is climbing up into Hannah Montana’s balcony and I guess asking her to sign something for him; god we’ve shot so many episodes I’m sorry I don’t even remember what it was about. But I just remember climbing into the window but I was supposed to be climbing this chair that was the idea. So I was like “okay yeah for sure, definitely.” I dropped to the ground and I noticed like they’re all sitting behind this, there’s about 15 execs including Gary Marsh and Robert Iger who is the head of Disney and then the head of Disney channel. So like all the huge execs are sitting behind this table that’s like this mahogany leathered; this table looks like it’s more expensive than a Ferrari. It’s like a million million dollar table that’s got Disney engraved in it and it’s got Mickey Mouse coming up out of it; it’s crazy. So I dropped to the ground, no one could see me, and I just start crawling up on their table. And I figured, I don’t know, I felt like that was a change. Change it up a little bit.

17. Your character Oliver “Smokin” Oken is a pretty funny guy...Can you relate to Oliver and his crazy situations?

M - Sure. I guess Oliver, he’s a little bit “goobery” and I’m not as wild as he is for sure. Also, Oliver is more of a clean cut kind of a kid. I’m more of like a Southern, you know, I like to go out and play in the dirt and stuff like that; that’s the kind of stuff I like to do. Oliver is more like, likes to look proper and nice. He wears his, not khakis, but more like suit pants and stuff like that. See, I never do that kind of things. I like to go out in my black jeans and my black shirt with my black shoes on, you know what I mean, I’m not too fond of all the colours.

18. How do you feel being on Hannah Montana has affected your career in television as well as the music industry?

M - It’s affected everything really. I guess because you get known as a character and people learn to love that character and they want to see this character all the time and then they figure out that it’s not just you, it’s a character that you’re playing. So then there’s this other ego and then they want to learn about that. And then you’re playing another character on another show or another movie or music, you know what I mean? That was just kind of the first stepping stone that opened up the career. Even though, I’ve done tons of stuff beforehand and that was just, you know, but when you get booked on a show, you get stuck as that character because you play that character for years. I’ve played Oliver for the past 6 or 7 years, you know?

19. Moving forward, what will be in the forefront – your music or acting career?

M - It’s a tough question but when it all comes down to it, I would pick music because music I’m playing Mitchel; acting I’m playing another character. Although, I love acting, you know what I mean; I can always improv and make it my own and stuff like that but when it comes to music, I make my own call time, I write what I want to write about, it’s more of my project, it’s me being my own artist and I think that’s cooler.


Mitchel, thanks for the interview!
-Christinaaa :)

Scooby Doo! PART 1!

Part 1: THE ARTICLE!

I wrote an article for Youthink Magazine about a new movie coming out on TV & DVD called "Scooby Doo! The Mystery Begins" Last summer, during filming here in BC, I was able to visit the set and take a look inside the world of making a Scooby Doo movie. It finally comes out on Cartoon Network on Sept.13, on Teletoon on Sept.26 & Oct.3 and on DVD on Sept.22! The movie is a prequel to the other Scooby Doo films so it has all new actors! I was able to meet the gang: Robbie Amell, Hayley Kiyoko Alcroft, Nick Palatas and Kate Melton! My article has come out on the youthink website so please check it out at:

http://www.youthink.ca/yt/fun/movie-reviews/scooby-doo-newcomers-fill-mystery-machine

(it wont let me add the link to click on it, so just copy & past it!)

This is part 1 of my Scooby Doo posts so keep checking back for more pictures, video clips and interviews with the cast!

Spotted!

Today, August 27, after a delicious dinner at Azia with my aunt, we were walking to the skytrain and we just happened to walk in front of the Sutton Place Hotel and we were walking across the driveway and a cab is pulling out. A woman was approaching the cab saying "oh my god, that's them, that's them!" So I turned to look at the cab and who was inside? Nikki Reed & Elizabeth Reaser! This was at around 7:20pm. So, since I wasn't able to get my camera out quick enough, I just merely smiled and waved at Nikki, in awe, and Nikki was nice enough to smile and wave back. It was a nice way to end the evening :)

THE LOVELY BONES

From books to the big screen...

I randomly came across a trailer for a new movie called The Lovely Bones and I'm am overly excited for it. I read the book a while ago and it instantly became one of my all-time favourites. This novel by Alice Sebold is full of mystery, suspense and excitement. I definitely recommend this novel to anyone because it's such a great read!

Andddd here is the trailer:



Ahhh, gives me shivers everytime I watch it. It comes out on December 11...so excited!

Let me know your thoughts about the book, the movie or anything that's on your mind!

-Christinaaa

From books to the big screen...

I'm adding a new series of posts to my blog called BOOKS TO BIG SCREEN !
I'll be sharing my favourite books that have been made into movies or adding some movies that are yet to come out and even giving some ideas of some books that I think should be made into movies!

More Kaycee Stroh & Chris Warren Jr

From my previous post called "One day in new york city..." (I posted it back in April) I showed you guys pictures from my encounter with Kaycee Stroh and Chris Warren Jr from High School Musical in New York 2 years ago; but just recently, I found some of the videos I took of them answering some questions too! So here ya go :)











-Christinaaa

Wanna Hear?

So I finally was able to get some of my tape recorded interviews onto my computer so I decided to share them with you! This first one is my interview with Nicole Scherzinger. You can recall this interview by going back to check out my previous post with the written transcript...but now you can hear her voice! Only on christinadun.blogspot.com: Listen below to my exclusive interview with Nicole herself.



Thanks!
Send comments/feedback/ideas/random thoughts to:
christina.dun@hotmail.com

-Christinaaa

Gotta love NYC

...why do I love New York?

Because you never know who you will see along the way. So, on my fabulous New York vacation, I went on a Gossip Girl locations tour (which was totally fun!) and we went to a bakery called Babycakes (For you Gossip Girl fans: this was the bakery where Dan bought the pumpkin pie in the Thanksgiving episode). So we go to the bakery and who is sitting inside?! ANNE HATHAWAY. yes, THE Anne Hathaway.
Before she was leaving, I asked her for a picture, but unfortunately she said "oh im sorry, there are a lot of people here now and I'm really exposed right now" and kind of gave me a sad look. then she said
"But what's your name?"
"Christina"
"Nice to meet you Christina, I'm Annie" shakes my hand
Then she had to leave. she was really nice though
It was a nice little encounter for the day :)

Drew Seeley Reunion!

I recently got back from a fantastic vacation in New York (my favourite place on this planet, I might add) and I am so glad that I went to go see the Disney Broadway production of The Little Mermaid. If you remember from my previous posts, I interviewed Drew Seeley from Another Cinderella Story on the set about two years ago and I discovered that he was playing the role of Prince Eric in The Little Mermaid! So I was able to see him after the show when he went outside to greet his fans. I was smart and remembered to bring a copy of my youthink article to give to him and he actually remembered me, which was cool! So I got to have a nice chat with him. HAHA and he "tweeted" back to me on Twitter, which was nice.



-Christinaaa :)

sorry it's late...jobros concert!

Just a quick little recap:
Jonas Brothers Concert on June 29&30 was amazing. Had great seats, great friends, an amazing time. Honor Society, Jordin Sparks and the Wondergirls were a great asset to the show and pumped up the already overly pumped crowd. The Jonas Brothers were absolutely amazing. Sighhh, I love them, 'nuff said :)

INTERVIEW WITH DOMINIC FROM QUEST CREW AND SYTYCD

Hey guys! Well a couple months ago (I believe end of April or beginning of May) I was able to do a phone interview with Dominic Sandoval (who also goes by the name of D-Trix). You may remember him from So You Think You Can Dance and from America's Best Dance Crew as a member of the Quest Crew! He was super nice and it was great talking to him. My interview was recently put onto www.youthink.ca, so that's why I am putting this interview up kinda late. So yeah here's the full interview!

1. So when did you start dancing?
I started dancing February 28, 1999 at a Valentine’s Day dance in 8th grade. Do you need more details on that? Just kidding.

2. What is your favourite style of dance?
Wow, I’d have to say...like, we don’t really have a style, or a name for it, so I guess just improve or free styling like everything all at one. I don’t know what that name is, so I guess we’ll just call it improv.

3. Growing up, did you have all the support from your friends and family to dance and follow your dreams?
Well the majority of my friends, well we supported each other but the thing is, is that we didn’t really have anything to work for, except for maybe breakdance competitions but even then, it wasn’t really something you could make a living off of. My parents didn’t really see much of a future for it, probably also because there weren’t a lot of dance shows back then and it wasn’t as big in the media. So it wouldn’t really sell, so I wouldn’t really make money off it. So we were kind of like shooting in the dark, just dancing in our garages for reasons we don’t even know. And then opportunities like SYTYCD and ABDC definitely helped out the dance community and of course myself and quest crew.

4. So, before Quest Crew, what other dance groups were you in?
Well I’m currently in two other ones as well, but these are the ones I grew up with since around 2001 and 2005 ish. I’m in a world renowned break dancing crew called Flexible Flays. And they are based out of Sacramento. We’ve been around probably around since 1999 as well. I actually got in that crew around 2001, I’d say, maybe 2000. And then I’m also part of an entertainment dance group called Step Boys, so I’m still running with them because it will always be family stuff, but just recently it’s just been more Quest stuff of course.

5. So how long have you all been together as the Quest Crew?
Quest Crew has been together for about 2(3?) and a half years now and I recently joined as soon as I got off of SYTYCD season 3. You know, going through that together, we spent a lot of time together, we became really close friends. Through that, I started training and getting down with Quest in probably about December of 2007.

6. So, since being on So You Think You Can Dance, how was that show different from ABDC?
SYTYCD was more out of the elements so basically I was just making a fool of myself on national TV because I didn’t really know what I was doing. So it’s like every week you get thrown these dances and you only have like a matter of a couple of days or a few days...it’s really hours...Cuz you kinda learn something that you’ve never done before and try to present it to the world hoping that they don’t think you’re as dumb as you feel. Then on MTV it’s more our own art. We definitely came more prepared as far as chemistry with the crew. And just training up to that point so there’s more of what we do. So basically that’d be the big difference: SYT is not really what you do, but you learn a lot and then MTV you finally get to do what you’ve been training for your whole life.

7. So, before auditioning for ABDC, did you have any expectations about what the show was going to be like? If so, was it actually different from what you thought it would be?
It definitely was different because I never thought we would have won, so that was the biggest difference. Since I heard the Beat Freakz were going to be on the show I honestly felt from the beginning that they were going to win. And just because of the reputation that they have, they’re just so amazing I mean, everybody can tell that, you know. So I just felt that as far as being on the show, we were hoping to get on the show and just become memorable so people would remember who we were. Because I think that’s really important. I think that if you’re memorable, then you’ll still be able to do work and show America what you can do, regardless if you win or not.

8. Each week, you were given different challenges, so in your opinion, what was the hardest challenge?
Let’s see. I would have to say…I would say…Hmm….I would have to say magic week was really tough because we kind of got a crappy magic trick…actually we got 2 crappy magic tricks…and then we had a song and we didn’t know how, like… we figured everybody else, no one really caught the fact that we blended all 3 of those ideas together but it was just the thinking behind it probably took 2-3 days so we didn’t really start the piece until a couple days before we had to show it. So I think the little thing about Quest crew is that we always think too much. I don’t know, we think way too much into things, and that one took A LOT of thought process. And that was probably the most difficult to make that stupid money trick and that stupid trick at the end and the music work all together.

9. What was your favourite part about being on the show?
Oh man, ummm… I’d have to say, just being in front of an audience again, being able to perform with my brothers. Because you know when you work for something, we trained for this show for probably about little over a year, probably like a year and a couple months and being able to finally show people what we’ve been working at for that long. That feeling is just a pay off in itself. Win or lose.

10. What was the hardest thing about being on the show?
Um…There’s a lot. Let’s see…Not crying. Yeah that’s probably the hardest one because like I felt like Quest had so much to prove. The girls were really amazing and everybody was really pushing for them to win and a male team has always won so we figured we had to work twice as hard. So, I’d have to say the hardest part was definitely not crying…I don’t know how I got into the other stuff…but yeah, just not crying because…I didn’t want to seem like a wimp on TV. That’s kind of sad, you gotta go back home and all your friends and boys are just making fun of you. So yeah, crying.

11. So do you guys have a favourite routine that you performed?
Yeah. Our…I’m sure it’s everybody in Quest’s…is Orquestra...is the piano piece. And that is basically the ultimate definition of what quest is because we’ve been trying to…there’s so many people in quest, not really myself actually, but everyone else in quest has some type of musical or art talent and it’s something that they’re all so amazing at. Like dance is something that brought us together, but actually there’s other things that people have been working on their whole lives. Like Ryan with his piano, we finally got a chance to put something together that collaborates music and dance, so just that was an honour to do.

12. So it must have been pretty nerve racking at the finale, did you ever think that you guys would make it that far?
We didn’t think so, just to be in the top 2 with the beat freakz, like that was amazing for us. But nerve wracking wise, I don’t know, I think we just, I don’t know, we didn’t expect Quest I guess, we expected Beat Freakz. It’s just so hard because it could have went either way. And we took it as more of a bonus if we won, you know so it’s like we were already in the top 2 so if we win, that would just be a bonus because I felt like with the piano piece and decathalon, which was the week before last, that was enough, I felt, to make Quest memorable so that was the whole goal. So anything after that would just be a bonus.

13. So what were the benefits after being on ABDC?
Um...Clothes. Clothes and food...Food! Like now when we go to restaurants, sometimes the managers recognize us and they give us free dessert. Yeah that’s like the best part, because now we don’t have to pay for dessert! Hmm...benefits? More Myspace friends. Definitely now we get to travel as a crew, you know, like before it was like me and Hok would travel a lot together and some would travel on their own or whatever the case may be. But now we finally get to make a living off dance, off of something we love. Some people in the crew quit school, quit their job, to train for this competition and now we finally get to make a living off of it. Just to know that we get to do that together and our parents are proud of us, like that’s the biggest come up after the show.

14. Being a dancer myself, what advice do you have for teens who want to make it in the dance world?
Umm. I’d have to say with whatever you do, work towards something. And whatever people might say towards that, if it’s positive, then of course you’re going to understand that and accept that. But all the negativity that you’re going to get, because everybody goes through it that’s trying to do something, whether it’s a friend that might be jealous or whether its parents that might not believe in you or whatever the case may be...Take that negative energy that you get and put it towards your art because it’s only going to make you ten times stronger. And I feel like when people have something negative that happened, for example like kids that go through their parents getting divorced and they feel like it’s the end of the world. But if you take that energy and you put it towards your art, you’re going to come out with something extravagant, something you didn’t think you could ever do. So just take the negative energy and turn it as a positive. That’d be my probably ultimate tip.

15. Where would you like to see yourself in 5 to 10 years?
Making money without having to dance because our bodies are going to be dead and soft. Travelling and still doing stuff with Quest and really I want to see what the piano piece has started for us. I feel like that’s the beginning of something that can be extraordinary. And I want to see what Quest is doing in 5 years altogether as far as putting all those talents together.

16. So what’s next for Quest Crew?
Besides travelling, all I’m going to say is...Christmas Day...Go to the movie theatres...and watch Alvin and the Chipmunks The Squeakquel. Visit Questcrew.com and that’ll tell you everything we’re doing.

Check out the full article at :
http://www.youthink.ca/yt/music/interviews/america%E2%80%99s-best-dance-crew-life-after-winning-title

-christinaaa

Feedback

Hey guys!

I don't actually know if anyone actually reads my blog or anything, BUT I'd love to get some feedback or thoughts or ideas or pretty much anything! So please let me know what you think by emailing me at:

christina.dun@hotmail.com

Thanks, I appreciate it!
Christina

Another Cinderella Story...MORE!

Here are some pictures that I forgot to add earlier on from the filming of Another Cinderella Story :)












There's more, but I'll upload them later on if I have time

-Christinaaa

PUBLISHED IN TV WEEK MAGAZINE! :)

I'm super excited that last week, I had an article/ interview published in TV Week Magazine! I got to interview Josh Ramsay, lead singer of the band Marianas Trench over the phone! He was really nice and had great answers :)





Here is the rest of the exclusive interview!

1. So the MMVAs are coming up next month. How does it feel to be nominated for not only one award, but a total of four?
Surprising! I did not… I definitely didn’t see it coming. I was excited when I found out about the first one. Because they announced one beforehand, before they did the other ones because we’re only up for one where there’s like online voting and stuff involved so they had to announce it earlier. And I was really excited about that one and I didn’t think there would be any others. Turns out we’ve won and I felt really fortunate to get that and then when I found out that it was like we got all these nominations and all the stuff that I’d heard about, I thought someone was joking at first when they first said it, when they were like “Dude, you’re like the second highest nomination!” [his reaction] “You’re F***ing serious?!” I don’t know, I was just…quite surprised with the whole thing, I still am a little shocked about it actually.

2. Have you prepared your acceptance speech? What will you say?
Oh god no, I don’t think we’re actually going to win anything. The only thing is…well see when we got nominated for the Junos, from our last record, we knew we were going to lose, like I knew were going into it umm, gonna lose. Like I was just kind of there for the fun of it and like I had…literally zero part of me thought we were going to win. The only thing I was surprised at was I didn’t think that Blue Rodeo were going to win it because it was an award for a video. And I was like I didn’t even know Blue Rodeo still existed, I mean I don’t mean that in disrespect for them but, it’s just, I doubt I’m on their radar either, you know? So somehow I’m expecting this year at the MMVAs, even though Blue Rodeo are not even nominated, they are somehow going to win in all the categories that we’re nominated in. I’m telling you, somehow.

3. All of your nominations are for the “Cross My Heart” video. What was your favourite part about making that video?
My favourite part about making… [laughs] wow…one of my favourite parts about making that video was that it was inside! Because we seemed to have this thing where we had like 3 videos in a row that were either completely or mostly shot outside and shooting outside was stressful for a lot of reasons. Like especially like there’s the daylight issue because you lose the light as the day goes on and there can be a lot of continuity problems in that and it’s also so weather dependant. Like still in hindsight, our video for Shaketramp, I still love that video but the only thing that was unfortunate about that video is that it was all outside but it happened to be a drizzly rainy Vancouver day so it was hard to make a video that was a parody of musical theatre look bright and glitzy how it’s supposed to look because it was cloudy! You know what I mean. And it was freezing cold too, so was Cross My Heart. It was so cold when we shot that video. I was cold for like a couple days after it. I could only imagine how cold the extras were. So I was quite excited this time round to do a video that was inside for any reason.

4. What was it like working with director Colin Minihan?
Colin’s awesome. I first met Colin um before I had worked with him on one of our videos, I worked with him a little bit on a video for a band called Social Code that I knew, and they’re friends of ours, and they called and asked me if I could do a little cameo in their video and Colin was directing it. And I met him there, it was like a video, it was a silly video about baseball and we had a lot of fun together and we just sort of struck up a relationship from there. And then when it was time to do Cross My Heart. We just said “Hey how about we try Colin?” I think what Colin’s skill is, is that it’s always hard to work within the restraints of Canadian budgets on videos because the Canadian market is just so small that you can’t really justify spending a million dollars on a video. So one of Colin’s many strengths is that he is able to make a video that was shot on a Canadian budget look like it was shot on an American budget. And that’s impressive for anybody.

5. Who came up with the concept for the “Cross My Heart” video?
Um well we both did. It was funny, I went in and met with him and umm…I actually haven’t told this story…I went in and met with him and I didn’t have any ideas and he didn’t either. And then he said you know the only thing I thought of is if we do something like a parade. Then I said Oh that’s funny because this song was going to be our second single, called “All To Myself,” and one of the lyrics in it in the chorus is “…please just follow me” So I was thinking about this video for that song. Where I would follow a girl who didn’t know that I was following her and slowly people would follow me until it became a giant parade and then we both went “well let’s just do that for this video!” So that video was actually written to be the video for “All To Myself” I had come up with that idea in the summer and I then thought that it was an interesting coincidence that I had come up with that idea and that Colin had also thought about doing something involving a parade so I figured it as a sign that we were supposed to do it for that video instead.

6. How involved are you and the band in the creative aspect/vision of your videos?
I’m usually pretty involved. I only got involved because I fell into it. When we started making videos on the first album, the way they do videos usually is like you send the song out to like say 5 or 6 directors who you like their stuff and they write what you call a “treatment” which is like a script for the video. And then you pick a director based on what their treatment was. So when it was on our first album, and our first video, I didn’t really like any of the treatments. They just didn’t seem right for capturing what we kind of wanted to be like, especially for your first video, you know, it’s kind of important what kind of personality you want to have. So I came up with this idea for a video for a song called Say Anything. Then I met with the director Kyle, who directed all the videos on our first record, and him and I just sort of started working on it together. I brought him the idea and then he liked it and he added to it, and then from that point forward, I just kept doing it like that. Like the 3 videos on the first record were sort of I would come up with an idea and then Kyle would add to it or in some circumstances Jonathan, one of the guys at our record label would add to it as well. So I just sort of stayed doing that. When it was with Colin as well, because it was something I enjoyed.

7. In your opinion, how important are videos for a band’s career these days?
It depends on the band. For my band specifically, they are very important because I think…on our first record we had a lot of problems about getting radio play because every radio station were confused about what format we were. Like rock stations said we sounded too pop and pop stations said we sounded too rock so nobody played it. So we couldn’t get any radio play really outside of Vancouver, Vancouver really embraced us, but outside of there we couldn’t get any action. So without Much Music getting behind us because they were the first big company that really got behind us, I think we have them to thank for…a whole bunch of our success is due to much music for supporting us. And they started playing our stuff and we were fortunate enough to have a really strong fan base that we have built up from internet stuff and touring, that they were requesting the videos a lot. And then we still hadn’t had a hit until Shake Tramp, which never really did that well on radio, but it went #1 on much music. And so for us, like that was really what opened the doors for us. Like after having one hit video, then when it was the next single from the next album, then radio stations knew who we were because they’ve at least heard about it and had seen that video, so then they started playing our songs from the second record. So for our band specifically, I’d say videos are like one of the top most important things that we’ve done. The thing with something like much music is…with a radio station, you have to get your song on every radio station for people to know it, like 2 per city, And much music is the only thing in the country that’s like a national founding board, you know what I mean. Everybody watches it and it can really really make an impact for the band. I know for us, it was like the hugest hugest…it was the most dramatic change we ever had in our career, when mm started playing us.


8. What is your favourite music video that you have made so far?
I like them all for different reasons, I think. I think the one most fun I’ve had making a video and the most grueling was probably shake tramp because it was so ridiculous, the whole idea of me dancing is just so bad because I can’t dance. So that was fun for me to do something that stupid. Cross my Heart was really fun because it was by far the largest scope video that we had done, like I was so pleasantly surprised because I was nervous going into it because it was the first single off the new album and I didn’t know if our fans were even still there because it had been a while since we put out anything and then we sent out an open call saying any fan who wanted to come to the video can be in it. So the call time for the extras was like 10:00 in the morning and the call time for the band was at like 6:30 or 7 and I got there at 7 and there was already a line up around the block of people who wanted to be in the video. And it was such an awesome thing for us to see and it was such an awesome energy too because, I thought it was a really cool thing that the fans who had been requesting our videos were now going to get to be in one so I thought it was a really cool sort of full circle moment for us.

9. What’s your favourite video of all time?
Wow, anything by Gondry is amazing. He’s one of my favourite directors for sure. Especially the Foo Fighters video for Ever Long I think is amazing. The video he did for Kylie Minogue where she walks around the block over and over again and there’s more of her every time she walks around, that one’s incredible. He did both those videos, he’s amazing. I think those are probably my 2 favourite ones I would say.

10. The MMVAs are all about the fans. How much of your success do you attribute to your fans?
All of it. Well I mean, it doesn’t matter how good your songs are, if you don’t have fans, what are you doing. That’s who buys your records, that’s who comes to your show, that’s who, you know, without that, you’re playing your songs by yourself in your mom’s basement and what’s fun about that? So I think we are so indebted to having the fan base that we do. And somehow, the thing I really love about our fans compared to the ones I see for other bands is that the people that like us are really die-hard about it and I don’t know what we did to deserve that, but it’s amazing. It’s such a neat experience to go up on stage and you can really feel that energy when you get up there. That’s a crazy crazy thing to experience.

11. Of all the MMVA nominees this year, who are you a fan of?
That’s a good question. I think I would have to look at the list to be totally accurate. I’m a fan… I like Billy Talent. Are they nominated for something? They probably are right, or maybe their videos came out too late actually…Funny thing is that Danny Fernandes, he’s got one more nomination than we do, and him and I don’t do the same music at all, but we did a TV show together and I really like him, he’s a really cool guy. And I’m looking forward to seeing him again at the MMVAs, I think that should be fun. And it’ll be fun too…I mean people seem to love or hate Nickelback, but clearly somebody out there is rooting for them because they’ve certainly got the sales, so yeah I’m looking forward to hanging out with them and stuff. Chad and I are friends but we don’t see each other that often, so that should be fun. I like the Midway State. I think that’s a really cool record. They opened for us two years before they had their album done, so maybe 2 years ago or something and I thought they were great, so I’ve been a fan ever since.

12. You took a couple of years after your debut record to release you latest album, “Masterpiece Theatre.” Why did you feel you needed the time?
I think there’s a bit of a misconception there because it felt to people like it there was a long time, but the reason why it felt like there was a long stage in between the records was because the hit we had on our first record was our last single but we had already been out and doing stuff for like a year and a half before that happened so I think for a lot of people who became fans of us at the end of that album cycle, didn’t really get that much time with us because they weren’t aware of the songs that we had released before that. And then we had that one song that did well, so it would seem like it was a really quick album cycle. So I think that’s part of why it feels like a long time. Because really to me, I don’t even think I had a day off in between. Like it was like we released the first album in 2006, toured for like 2 years which is the average life span for touring a record, toured it for like 2 years and then I took 6 months to write the album and then 6 months to record it and then here we are again. So I mean to me, I didn’t really have much time at all. I had like a couple weeks off and that’s about it.

13. Was it obvious from the start that “Cross My Heart” would be the first single off this album?
Not specifically. It was obvious that it was probably one of them, but I didn’t know it was going to be the first one at first. There were a couple contenders for what should be the first one. Cross My Heart was one of the first songs that I wrote for the record. The first 2 songs I wrote for the album actually are the first 2 singles. Cross My Heart and the one that just came out All To Myself, those 2 were the first 2 demos that I delivered. So what I tried to do was kind of get the singles out of the way so that I could focus on the stuff I enjoy writing more, which is the more artistic danger songs, for lack of a better phrase. So to get the pressure off of the singles, I kind of tried to make sure to write those first so I could focus on the crazier songs. So I had those ones in the bag first, and then I knew it was going to be one of those 2 but we didn’t know which one it would be until later on and then sort of when the album was close to finish, we all agreed that it should be that one and off we went.

14. So you’re nominated for four awards and Nickelback leads the pack with five nominations. What is it about Vancouver that breeds so many successful rock bands?
I don’t know. Maybe…that’s a good question man. I don’t maybe, maybe it’s…maybe people are more angsty in van because it rains all the time but I don’t think that’s the case because from my experience in Canada, the west coast was sort of the most mellow place. So it’s not that…I don’t know what that’s about. I think there’s a cool scene happening in Vancouver. I mean, for every talented band that’s successful from Vancouver, there’s another 10 that you haven’t heard of, who are equally as awesome. And I think that people are starting to notice that there’s a lot of cool stuff going on here.

15. How has being from Vancouver helped you grow/evolve as musicians?
I think for me, in some ways, it helped me not sound…I don’t mean this to sound bad and I hope that this won’t be taken the wrong way, but there’s a certain Canadian sound that people generally want to stay away from, like Canadian content sounding thing. Like the kind of song that really wouldn’t be on the radio unless they were forced to play Canadian music, you know what I mean, there’s that “Can-con” sound and I never wanted to be any part of that. And I think Vancouver is a little more isolated than most of the country because it’s behind the Rockies and BC is sort of its own little world that way. And I think it’s sort of that little bit of isolation that you get by living here, you get exposed to the good stuff but kind of keeps you not exposed to the stuff that’s no good, you know what I mean? So I think it was good for me that way for sure. There’s some really great history in Vancouver of a lot of great musicians coming from here. And I think myself being from here, because my dad owned a big recording studio, I was exposed to so many successful musicians, a lot of whom were from Vancouver. I think it made me feel like Vancouver is a small enough city that the peer group of really good musicians is a really tight knit community. And once you’re in with those people, you feel like you’re doing something. I mean it’s the same with any scene…I don’t really, I’m not too scenestry that way but I think when we were coming up when we were still very independent, there was a cool local scene that way that was fun to be a part of.

16. What do you miss most about Vancouver when you’re out on tour?
Well friends and family by far the most, more than any city. I miss the people that make up my life because it’s a really weird juggling act, juggling between, balancing between living on the road and living at home because it’s so drastically different. And it’s hard to maintain those close relationships and that’s something I always miss when we’re gone. Then about the city itself, I know most people complain about the rain in Vancouver, but being from here, rain is like my favourite weather. So I totally miss the rainy wet BC vibe.

17. Growing up, watching other band’s and artists’ videos on TV, did you ever think that you would be where you are today in the music industry?
That’s a loaded question. Because you have to believe in yourself enough or else you won’t get to that point so part of you had to have always thought that but at the same time you never actually think it’s going to happen. That’s the best way I can describe it. And yes, I did used to watch videos and be like one day I’m going to do that. One of the funnest things for me so far in terms of something I actually said like years ago that I actually got to do was: I remember saying like a long time ago, like being in high school and saying, when they first started Video On Trial, being like “you know what I’m going to be a judge on this show and I’m going to make fun of one of my own videos.” And then I got to do that about a year and a half ago and that was a fun feeling.

18. Finally, what’s up next for Marianas Trench?
Well we just released a new single and I’m always nervous every time we release a song because it was so hard for us to get a hit in the first place that every time since that we’ve had a successful song I always feels like it’s going to be the last one. That’s the neurotic in me I guess, but that’s sort of the healthy spirit that keeps me driven to work hard. But we just released a new song that is thankfully starting to do well, which I’m grateful about. And for the summer, we’re playing a lot of the big festival shows, which I’m really looking forward to because it gives you an opportunity to play with so many people, like tons. So we’re playing, like I think we’re headlining the opening night of the Calgary Stampede. Then the next day, this is going to be a bit of a sh*tty couple of days travel-wise, but then the next day we play in Prince Edward Island at a thing called the Festival of Lights. We’re playing the North by Northeast in Toronto and a festival in Winnipeg, one in the Okanogan in BC; we’re sort of bouncing around a lot, sort of touring all the festival circuits. I mean, that’s kind of what everyone does for the summer, most musicians do that for the summer because it gives you a chance to play, because so many people go to a festival where there’s like, like if you’re going to some festival where there’s like 20 bands, you may happen to be a fan of 5 of those bands, right, so chances are that you probably haven’t even heard a couple of them. So for a lot of bands it’s a great way to expose your music to new people and be exposed to new people because maybe they haven’t heard of you but instead of playing to 4000 people like you be would at your own show, you’re playing for 25 000 people and maybe some of them, hopefully at least some of them will go away as new fans of your band. It’s a great way of doing that in mass numbers.


still cant believe it :)

a day @ CTV

Well one day (I think it was May23, but I dont really remember lol), CTV on Burrard Street was having a free open house, so I really wanted to go! I waited in a line up outside to get inside of the studio and it was pretty cool. Once I got inside, we got to meet/talk to some of our favourite news anchors and stuff. I met Tamara Taggart, Perry Solkowski, Chris Olsen, and Rhonda Low. I asked for their advice about how to get into this industry and they were pretty helpful. So then we got to go on a tour of the studio where they do the news. We got to take a picture sitting at the newsdesk with Colleen Christie and some other guy, and they gave us a polaroid of it. That was pretty much it, but it was definitely worth going to !


Tamara Taggart

Perry Solkowski ("Perry's Prospects"

Chris Olsen ("Olsen on your side")

Rhonda Low









The Beat 94.5 was also there and I got a free CD! hahaha

-christinaaa

SMOKIN ACES 2

Okay, well these are kind of old, but a couple months ago, I visited the set of Smokin Aces 2 at the Riverview Hospital and so here are a few pictures that I took with my phone because I dont think I was allowed to take any LOL. So the quality is pretty bad, but oh well. I didn't talk to any of the actors in it, but I saw them film some scenes and stuff. And I met a lot of the crew, who were really nice and offered a lot of advice and stuff. It was pretty cool!


just a random room in the hospital


where I hung out most of the time haha


"the hotel lobby"

SAM BRADLEY INTERVIEW

I was able to have an interview with Sam Bradley who co-wrote a song on the TWILIGHT soundtrack with his best friend Robert Pattinson :) (The interview took place on the same day that I ran into Ashley Greene and Kellan Lutz!) So the article has just come out in this month's issue of youthink, so go grab one! It has Shia Lebeouf and Megan Fox on the cover :)

Q: Before getting involved in the world of twilight. Did you have any idea of the popularity of this phenomenon?
A: No, not really. I only discovered that once it became official that I was gonna be part of the soundtrack and then I just sort of saw my numbers rise and rise and rise. I did a little bit of research because Rob who is in the movie, he really had no idea. So I did a bit of research and so I kind of explained that it was going to be larger than he thought. So yeah I had a little bit of an idea.

Q: Have you read the books at all?
A: No, it’s on my to-do list. I have to because I really should, seeing as I am asked that a lot. Maybe I’ll do it on some travels.

Q: So can you tell me exactly how you found out that your song would be included on the soundtrack?
A: I just got a phone call. It was a phone call, it was simple. The phone call said that a lawyer is going to call you as soon as I hang up and the song is in. And congratulations.
Christina : “That’s exciting!”
It’s really not…It was for me, I was pretty happy, jumping up and down , peed myself a little…

Q: So, growing up with Robert Pattison, did you ever think that you two would be where you are today?
A: Yes, this is all intentional. Every single little bit of it. Since we were 12. There’s a group of us guys: there’s Marcus Foster, there’s Bobby Long, there’s Tom Storage, there’s rob pattison, there’s a few other people that are going to come out with some wonderful literature I’m sure. We’re all chasing a dream to be able to do what we love and for the world to appreciate what we’re trying to do. You know, what the idea was is that if one of us sort of pushed ahead in their career, then it would help bring some others. And then this would happen, like some of us will go further and bring up the others. And it’ll be like a sort of a hand up, kind of a step-ladder. So yeah, we all have very fulfilling lives.

Q: What was your reaction when you found out that the Twilight soundtrack had hit #1 on the Billboard album chart?
A: My honest reaction, which you can choose to print or not…was “I told you so.” I thought it would. Once I realized sort of the power of the fan base, I just knew it. And I told everyone that I knew that this was just going to be way bigger than anyone could have imagined. And yeah I think it sold something stupid like over 2 and a half million copies world wide, which is pretty unheard of as far as record sales go in this day. So yeah my honest reaction was I told you so, but the one you can print is probably “Oh my goodness, this is unbelievable! This is such a surprise!” Print the first one haha.

Q: What was it like to hear your song in the movie for the first time?
A: Well I was in LA and I went to the premiere and I was sitting with a couple friends and yeah it was good. I had my hands cupped with my friends on either side and they were squeezing very hard and I was just like “GASP! YEAHH! That’s it! That’s the one!” Then the song was over…then I went back to watching the rest of it…

Q: So how did you like the movie?
A: I liked the movie, I liked the movie. I liked everyone’s performances. I’m proud of my friend. I’ve seen it 3 times, so…it doesn’t get old. I’ll probably watch it again…not on purpose…but I would.

Q: Since Twilight, how has your career changed as an artist? What have been the benefits?
A: People are listening! That is the first big change. I’ve been able to record an album, which I have made myself and I went to Paris to do so. My shows are sold out usually. I’m going to be able to go on tour. I have a lot of people within the music industry watching me and looking to see where I go and take my career and if they can get involved…and kind of lurking around…People are sniffin at my door! Haha But yeah I don’t know, lots has changed. But everything you could imagine. I’ve now got a foundation for a music career.

Q: Will you be/ have you been working on any more songs with Robert?
A: Yeah we’ve been writing almost every other night! Not that that means a song every other night…but yeah we’ve been writing lots! We’ve got a really good one actually that I’m really happy with and I’m probably going to play in a few days.

Q: By travelling a lot while you were growing up, how do you think that it has helped you grow as an artist?
A: It’s helped by just being more worldly, having met more people I think has enabled me to write about more and possibly touch on more of my life experiences than what it would have been if I had stayed in one place.

Q: What made you choose to become a musician?
A: Well I was actually trying to be a soccer player when I was 15 and I was doing pretty well. I was playing for a team called Fulham in England, a junior team and I was doing really really well like kind of England trials and stuff. Then I kind of got bullied out of that because I was…yeah I was just bullied regardless because I was…actually, no doesn’t matter haha. And so what happened was…most of my friends were musical and I really wanted to be a part of their musicality, sort of. And I wanted to be involved. And my mom was a musician as well; she’s a singer-songwriter, so I’d always been around it but never myself as a player or singer. And then when I was 17, I just sort of started learning the guitar, by myself, just picking it up occasionally and I wrote a song with 2 chords, and played it at an open mic and I got completely nervous, I got dizzy, and almost kind of fainted and finished my song and realized like everyone was sort of saying wow that was really good. Congratulations I didn’t even know you could sing. And it was really like wow this is so cool and I like people saying that they enjoyed it. And so I just kind of tried a bit harder and got better and better until...you know, I’m still not great but it’ll get there.

So you’ve never taken any lessons?
No…well my guitar skills are something that I need to work on, but as far as song writing goes, it’s alright.

Q: What inspires you to write songs?
A: People…people and experiences.

Q: Why did you choose to come to Vancouver?
A: I didn’t, what happened was…I do love Vancouver, but what happened was we were here on holiday…We went to the Merritt mountain music festival with my mom and my sister. And we have cousins here…my mom’s Canadian. So she sort of said “Should we go look at a house? Let’s look at a house for fun!” and I said “Sure! Let’s look at a house! Let’s go!” I was 17 and we looked at a house and it was on a river and it was amazing and everything was like ooh look at this, this is like a magical fairyland house. And so she said shall we move and me and my sister said ok. And we moved. But it wasn’t really a decision. We couldn’t really afford to live in London anymore it was a bit expensive and I certainly didn’t want to live anywhere else but London in England. But, so yeah it seemed fair that we moved to Canada seeing as my mom had wanted to move here for…well probably since she left. And yeah, that was why.

Q: Who is your biggest inspiration in the music industry?
A: I would say my biggest inspiration is either Tom Waits or Bob Dylan…no…Tom Waits or Van Morrison…no…Tom Waits! Tom Waits.

Q: What are your hopes and expectations for your upcoming album?
A: Well my hopes are that it sells as many as the twilight soundtrack. And that it touches people and people pass it on and that people come out and want to see the live shows and want to really be a part of what I hope is good music and good spirit. In a very non-hippie way, I’m about positivity and I’m about being in touch with yourself and your emotions and the people around you.

Q: Where would you like to see your music career in 5 to 10 years?
A: I’d like to see myself having recorded a few different albums. I’d like to be able to say in 5 to 10 years I’ve played a stadium or 2. I’d like to say that I’m respected and I’ve got my own thing going on. I’d like to say that I could be able to do what I want, when I want…you know what I mean?
Christina: Like control…freedom…
Yeah to have that freedom, to not have to worry. And for that to come from just being musical would be quite spectacular.



He was really funny and great to talk to! Here's the article!

Sunday May 17 was a good day on Robson Street :)

Hey guys! Well this past weekend, luck must have been on my side, because I had another celebrity encounter! So, I was killing time before meeting up the family for dinner and who do I run into? TAYLOR LAUTNER AND SELENA GOMEZ! They were nice enough to take a couple pictures with me and here's the coolest part...Selena actually remembered me from that interview from Another Cinderella Story 2 years ago! Here's a little bit of our conversation:
Me: I interviewed you when you came to my school!
Selena: Ohh yeah! Wow that was like 2 years ago...your video on youtube has so many views now!
Me: Haha yeahh! But like people are taking it and stuff...
Selena: Yeah soooo many people have taken it!

yadda yadda...
and then...they left and she said "It was nice seeing you again!"

So yeah, I'm pretty happy about this May Long weekend :)

INTERVIEW WITH NICOLE SCHERZINGER FROM THE PUSSYCAT DOLLS

So on April 8th, the pussycat dolls came up to Vancouver along with Britney Spears for the Circus tour and I was fortunate enough to be able to have an in-person interview with Nicole Scherzinger, lead singer of the PCD. It was an AMAZING experience. She is seriously as gorgeous in person as she is on tv. She's really nice and she's very genuine, yenno, down to earth.

Q: So how has your tour been going so far?
A: The Britney tour has been amazing...amazing. We’ve been with her for about a month now and it’s been a lot of fun being back in the US and in Canada.

Q: What is it like being on Tour with Britney? Are you a fan?
A: Yeah, I’m a fan. I know the girls are really big fans of Britney Spears and I think it’s kind of unreal to be on tour with her because you know you grow up and you watch Britney and she’s such a huge pop icon and all the songs and albums and the music that she’s had. Just to know that you are on the biggest, probably the biggest tour this year, a part of that. It’s just an honour, it’s really cool to be a part of that.

Q: How would you describe your live performance?
A: How would I describe the pussycat dolls live performance...I would describe it as a lot of fun and a lot of energy, a lot of stamina, just full out singing and dancing, rock and roll. It’s just uhh we love...one of the most important things for us as performers is to connect with the audience. We’re pretty fearless pussycat dolls on stage. I think that what makes us so different from other acts is not only do we dance but we sing...hardcore. So we’re pretty fearless on stage and we get everybody into it.

Q: What does it feel like to perform in front of thousands of people?
A: I love performing in front of thousands of people...it’s kind of crazy when you ask me I’m like wow do we perform in front of thousands of people? I love the energy. I feel like the more people out there, then the more people you feed off of and it’s just an unbelievable feeling when you get onstage and the music turns on and the lights turn on and you just become a whole other person and even though there’s like thousands of people out there, I look out and feel like I can connect with every single person.

Q: So how much input did you get in the studio while recording Doll Domination?
[How much, as a group, input did you and the girls have in terms of what was going on]
A: I helped to co executive produce the album myself. That was my role when i signed on to be a part of the group, not only to be the lead singer, but to have a huge part in the music as well. So I’ve been blessed to have a hand in writing, co-writing some of the songs, vocally producing some of the songs...So that’s probably my greatest role, is the music, and my contribution to doll domination. A lot of the songs on doll domination are from the workings of my solo project that i was working on before.

Q: Are there any songs in particular that you have a stronger connection to on this album?
A: Yeah, I really do. Happily Never After...I’m very close to that song, that originally came from my solo project. I feel like i lived that song. Ne-yo wrote that song and gave it to me and it’s about being in a relationship and thinking that it’s it and you’re going to live happily ever after but there is no happily ever after until you really realize yourself within your true happiness. Sometimes you find yourself in a relationship and that person doesn’t treat you right and you gotta be strong enough to move on and move forward without them, so I really love Happily Never After. I love I hate this part. I’m really emotionally connected to that song and I’m Done is very personal to me and one more song is...In Person...A lot of people don’t talk about that song, but I did that with timberland and its such a fun song and i remember i was listening to a lot of old tina turner, james brown at the time so i have a lot of influences of tina, james brown on that song.

Q: What’s the significance of the title Doll Domination? Does it ties into an overall theme at all?
A: I guess so, right? It does tie everything together because we’re these radical, fearless pussycat dolls and we’re just touring, we’re always touring non-stop and our music is all over the world and we’re just taking over with PCD love and our music. To be honest with you when we first started as a group , we went over to the UK and our fans kinda gave us the..we used to say “we are just trying to you know, inject pcd into every place that we go to” and out fans would be like “yeah it’s like doll domination!” and it was just fun and it stuck with us.

Q: In your opinion, how has your style or sound evolved over the years?
A: How has our style and sound evolved? I think our style is always evolving. I’m not the greatest person with the styling. We’ve got Robin Antin to help us with that and a wardrobe stylist to help to help us with that. We’re always trying to do the next newest thing whether its latex or you know, plaid, like you’re wearing right now, whatever we’re doing, it always looks like a rhinestone monster threw up on us...that’s cool but as far as the sound, I think our sound has definitely evolved since out last album. Myself, I know, always trying to work harder for the group, as a vocalist. And just the depth of our music i feel like doll domination has more emotion and more substance and goes deeper than pcd the first album. But overall, i think it’s pretty much, I think it’s good quality pop music.

Q: What legacy do you want to leave behind in the music industry?
A: Wow I haven’t even begun I feel like in the music industry. It’s been a blessing to be in the pussycat dolls and a dream but my ultimate dream is to do my own music and put that out one day and I think the legacy in the end I will want my music to have really taken people to a higher place and really helped people out in some way. Whether it’s through laughing or giving them self confidence or maybe helping them get through a relationship or something that’s going on personally within themselves. But my music is more spiritual and soulful.

Q: So what do you think it takes to achieve longevity in this business?
A: Wow, what do I ...wow you’re asking really great questions... What do I think it takes to achieve longevity in this business...a really smart person, meaning you just got to be smart with timing, timing of things. Know when to put music out, when to not put music out, what kind of music to do... to always be evolving as an artist, that’s why people like Madonna. Even beyonce is becoming her own legend like people are always changing up their styles and their music and never stop growing and that’s what I intend to do. I intend to put out music that will just always continue to keep people guessing.

Q: How does it feel to know that you are role models to so many girls out there?
A: Wow, it’s pretty unbelievable to think that the Pussycat Dolls are role models to so many girls out there. But I’m proud of myself and the girls because we try to lead by example by the way that we live. And we’ve got really good morals, really good family backgrounds and they stay close to us. We stay pretty grounded and try to stay out of all the hype and the stuff that’s not real, you know. And we’re really, we are just really good girls that don’t get into the mess of like drugs or drinking or any of that too much partying and all that stuff. You know, so, just try to lead by example because that’s really who we are and it’s cool to be that way and it’s the most important. The message in our music is to just really love yourself and get to know who you are individually and be proud of that and be fearless.

Q: So what advice do you have for teens who dream of making it in the music industry?
A: Be careful what you wish for because you just might get it...Teens who wanna make it in the music industry, just make sure that’s what you want to do, you’re in it for the right reasons. You know, I don’t think people who set out to be in it for the fame and stuff, you might not get what you want in the end, you might not be happy. But if it’s because you have a certain talent and the passion and the drive and a goal, then never give up. That’s what Nelson Mandala always says: Never give up. And follow your heart and stay true to yourself, just be you, don’t try to jeopardize or compromise yourself or anyone else in this business.

Q: So this June will be the 10th anniversary for YOUTHINK Magazine, so on that note, we’d love to know what your favourite album was over the past decade.
A: Oh my gosh, my favourite album...what’s your favourite album? Maybe you can help me out...I gotta ask what everybody’s favourite album was because I hate when I have to...it’s so hard. That was created in the last decade? Hmm what’s yours? There have been some pretty great albums made. You can’t say like Thriller or something because that wasn’t made in the past decade...and you can’t say like the Beatles or...What’s a good album that was made?

(this part was more of a conversation so its kinda weird to write it lol)
Q: What kind of music were you into?
I used to...I don’t even know if it was 10 years, i think it’s past 10 years...I loved OK Computer.

I think Robin Thicke’s Evolution is a pretty good album too...I don’t know. There’s so many good ones. Oh wow this is such a good question. I would have said like the Legend but Bob Marley was definitely not in the past decade.

Feist! That’s a dope album...I was just listening to Feist yesterday and she’s Canadian and I’ve seen her in concert a few times. It’s not 1234, it’s the other album. Let It die, yeah that’s what it is Let It Die, that’s the dope one.





My article is in the latest issue of YOUTHINK right now! go get it! :)
Here's the article!