With a passion for music in her blood and a childhood surrounded by the sounds of everyone from Michael Jackson to Diana Ross in the air, Dyan G knew what she was meant to do in this world. Today, she not only has her own label, but a new single that was destined to brighten anyone’s day. We talked about DiGold, “Naranja,” and more in this back and forth exchange…

Kendra: While “Naranja” is your first single of the year, it’s your 10th since heading down this musical path. What growth have you seen in yourself as a songwriter and performer from your first to your most recent release?

Dyan G: A lot of growth. In music I wanted to do more R&B, a genre that is not well known or explored in Mexico, which took me more work to position, but the sound has evolved to electronic pop to date. As a composer I was able to leave many personal issues behind, I tried to reflect on what I experienced in my love relationships and I already left that behind. I want to be a more complete artist and I am in the process of exploring more social issues. The biggest growth I have seen is in music videos, from the first video to the most recent which was “Daño (Remix)” I feel much more comfortable and loose.

Kendra: Would you say your overall style is comparable to that of a naranja, or rather an orange? Vibrant and filling?

Dyan G: The style, in general, is very “Orange;” vibrant, juicy, sweet, and sunny…as if you were on the beach just drinking orange juice and it makes you want to dance, run or exercise while listening to the music. There are some past songs like “Único”, “Mirame (Sexy crush)” and “Tan Real” that feel like this.

Kendra: The song is just that – vibrant from start to finish – and that most definitely helps push its positive message. Was this song inspired by the negativity that has come from the past year?

Dyan G: Yes, but for me, it was like half a year before the pandemic, I had just finished a relationship of three years, which did not work and I was in a depression that had no end, until I made the songs of “Te Descubrí” and “Daño,” I was able to get out what was hurting me. Hence the lyrics of “Naranja” and those spirits of wanting to get ahead, I was practically cheering myself on to be better and to be able to spread that energy to others.

Kendra: Can you tell us more about your label, DiGold? When did you start that and what are your plans for it in the coming months?

Dyan G: It started precisely in the pandemic. I have worked for years with producers, beatmakers, musicians, and marketers, so I have the idea of making a music label to be able to join forces and thus help other artists start their careers. We are just preparing some live shows for the next few months to publicize the projects of the port of Acapulco, Guerrero, and continue promoting new music. Apart from Dyan G, this is my new baby.

Kendra: It’s getting a little easier with the vaccine rollouts, but it’s still kind of hard to have a definite answer when it comes to future plans given the current state of everything, but as far as what you can control when it comes to your career and creativity – what do you have planned in the coming months for yourself?

Dyan G: We have music ready to launch, the next single is called “Pa la Playa” which is a Latin pop song that we have saved for a few months because we are hoping that it will be safer to travel and just go to the beach to relax. With the vaccines, we hope that everything will return to “normal” since we want to do events with the public but as long as it is safe for everyone. We also plan to make several music videos although they are more homemade to avoid productions with a lot of people.

The post Dyan G: The Slice of Life appeared first on ZO Magazine.

With a passion for what she calls “pink early 2000’s,” Sarah started to think of how she could bring that to life back in 2013. Five years later she opened her first Cotton Candy Apparel store and soon realized she wasn’t alone in her love of all things pink and 2000s.

Kendra: The aesthetic of your brand is wonderful. Pulling from the ’90s and early ’00s, you give off a real Mean Girls meets Paris Hilton vibe that cannot be denied. Who were some of your fashion inspirations during that time that you call upon when creating new designs?

Sarah: Considering that I am 22, I lived at the height of Bratz, Mean Girls, My Scene, and a lot of pink plastic heels with fake fur in my childhood. I consider that time so sweet but because I was a rebel girl who felt rockstar, my biggest inspirations who I was and am very inspired by are Megan Fox, Hello Kitty, Dior, Chanel, movies like Heathers, Clueless, Bratz Rock Angelz, the latter really inspired me as a child, at the time they made their own magazine and all that.

Kendra: It’s crazy to think the year 2000 was almost 20 years ago. That year I was transitioning from boy band fanatic to an angsty emo-laced teen. But throughout the last 20 years, we’ve seen so many things come and go from Hannah Montana to iPods to saying “that’s hot.” For you, what three things will forever be relics of the first 20 years of the 2000s?

Sarah: Definitely Bratz Cloe (first edition), those Juicy Couture sweatsuit sets Paris Hilton – only as I was a child at the time, mine were Hello Kitty, and finally, those feathers lined with pink ribbon and stuffed with fur.

Kendra: On top of all the pop culture and fashion inspo, you pull from, there’s also a heavy Latina influence throughout your brand. Was that something you wanted to make sure stood out as a brand based in Mexico?

Sarah: Of course! I have always been a fan of brands in the United States or the UK, but there was still an equally cute brand but Latin to identify 100% so I made it!

Kendra: Moving forward into 2020, how are you looking to grow Cotton Candy Apparel and when are you planning on restocking the “That Bitch” tee? Because I needed one like, yesterday.

Sarah: I have many plans for Cotton, for example, to solve the mistakes that I have had now, to have more in the products, and to travel.

The post Cotton Candy Apparel: New Millennium Nostalgia appeared first on ZO Magazine.

Kendra: Looking through your work, especially some of the watercolors, I got taken back to old school fairytale books. Do you draw any inspiration from those storybooks in terms of style?

Kikyz1313: Not purposefully, I started my aesthetic more influenced by Sumi-e and Japanese artists like Takato Yamamoto where line work have preponderance over all. Old fairytale illustrators on the other hand like Arthur Rackhamm, for example, came much later to my knowledge, and at that time I felt too some kind of myself in there. Although I discovered this too late as at that time I wanted my work to approach more to objective realism and less to caricatures.

Kendra: As you got older, was the choice to study art at university apparent? Or did you ever think you’d wind up doing something else?

Kikyz1313: It was apparent since my mid-teens. I enjoyed drawing so much I pursued it to become a professional. Only younger me fantasized of becoming everything, but just like any other kid really.

Kendra: You’ve noted how your work displays levels of discomfort. With that, what then made children come to mind as subjects?

Kikyz1313: Sometimes an unpleasant sensation is what it takes to arouse thought. That’s what life has taught me so far. As comfort in our mind, it’s given for fact and numbs the brain. It’s needed to challenge the audience with scenarios where objects and characters with no apparent relation in the real world coexist in a new little cosmos of my own, makes people wonder and awaken curiosity.

Children are my preferred characters to use and the protagonists in these scenarios because to me they are the representation of truth in oneself. It is where life begins and yet this period of life remains preserved forever in our minds, as all our obsessions are forged along with our traumas and strengths. Adulthood, it’s just the rest of our lifespan where we try to untangle the mess social institutions have made within us. We, in the end, are just hung-up kids with debt.

Kendra: When you left Mexico for Sweden, were there any culture shocks that took some time to get used to?

Kikyz1313: My time in Sweden was very, very short. There were of course culture shock events in that time, but there was no need to become accustomed to them. Just interesting to note them in travel journeys.

Kendra: What about the art scene? You’d come up at home in Mexico and then got to learn a whole new one overseas. How was it getting to know that art scene?

Kikyz1313: The art scene outside Latin America is really the same. In Latin America, we have our little weird games too. The only thing to consider before going out to the art circles is to do good art, have the conviction to do it, and have something important to say and to be honest with yourself. If one needs to accustom to an art circle it would be only because one it’s willing to please and therefore that person will seek the rules on which the game is played only to belonging there. I only play by my rules and I like to follow my principles along with my instincts. If somehow I don’t fit in certain art scene then I’ll leave.

Kendra: Being a gamer, what classic video game would you enjoy redesigning in your own style?

Kikyz1313: I don’t really know if I would like to redesign an entire game as I appreciate and respect so much the original aesthetic of the game designers, but I would love to contribute in any type of way in a remake of Rule of Rose; if there would ever going to be one in the future. THAT would fill my sense of accomplishment for sure. That game, it’s a treasure!

Kendra: Can you tell the people what you have going on? Any art shows you’re going to be a part of?

Kikyz1313: There’s currently a group show (right now as I’m writing this) where I’m honored to be part of. It’s the Paintguide group show entitled SAGA. It’s view in Hong Kong and where I have the fortune to share the space with extraordinary artists and personal art heroes like John Brosio. Later in the year, I’ll be joining Thinkspace Projects in their massive group show for Moniker Art Fair. That will be in London this upcoming October and Scope Miami in December. Other than that, I’ll keep my efforts teaching myself how to oil painting and improve my bakery skills!

The post Kikyz1313 Finds Beauty in Discomfort appeared first on ZO Magazine.