Interview by Kimber Monroe Art Direction by Taylor Mew/Photography by Mankastleman Kyrsten Bates (she/her) isn’t just your average musician. She is a Musician, DJ, Model, Singer, Dancer and Event Curator. Yes, she really does it all. I met Kyrsten over the fall, and have had the opportunity to witness her in action behind her turntable. … Read more(Issue 6) Music Feature: Kyrsten Bates
Photography by Joana Meurkens Interview by Carolina Meurkens Taj E. M. Burroughs (he/him/his) is a Black queer actor, writer and all-around artist from Queens, New York. He is currently receiving his BFA in acting from Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University. Taj recently was a part of AYE DEFY’S reading of Model … Read more(Issue 6) Poetry Feature: Taj Burroughs
Artistic Director Joana Meurkens interviews model, singer, and student Daleela, a born and raised New Yorker with strong Moroccan roots. In this interview the two discuss the discipline needed to pursue modeling, representation of Muslim women in the fashion industry, and the power of honoring your heritage.
Artist Statement: My paintings are based on photographs of my mixed race family. My skin tone gives the impression that I don’t struggle fitting into the majority, which is untrue. I use photographs of my father’s side of the family because I feel there was so much beauty in their lives, even as they struggled … Read moreAddie Kae Figurative Paintings
Anna Nguyen is a social worker specializing in child welfare, school social work, and child trauma. She is from Orange, CA and is passionate about mental health, graphic novels, and minimalist design. Her art focuses on depicting feelings and experiences that had a large impact on her. She enjoys using her art as a platform to bring attention to social justice issues, as well as mental health.
Melon Wong is an apparel designer based in NY. Her current work is in sustainable zero waste knitwear. She is often draws inspiration from American born Chinese culture, kitsch aesthetics, cowboys and 60s era vintage.
Photo by Jacob Boll I first became familiar with Chris L. Terry when his novel, Zero Fade, and mine, Don’t Start Me Talkin’, were being published in 2013 and 2014 by a hip, indie press, Curbside Splendor. So rare has it been to encounter not only another mixed writer, but one with similar parentage and … Read moreAn Interview with Author Chris L. Terry by Tom Williams
Cover photo by Livy Wicks Following her departure from Berlin, Germany, after her Fall semester in 2019 Abby T returned to the states with new music, sharpened Djing skills, and an appetite for performing the new material she just spent months creating. In February of 2020, after an exhaustive school search for NYU program boards … Read moreThe Allure of Abby T. by Ania B. Holland
Tamara Al-Qaisi-Coleman is a bi-racial Muslim writer, poet, and artist. She holds a dual Bachelors in Creative Writing and Middle Eastern History. She is the Editor-In-Chief of Defunkt Magazine. She is a 2021 Desert Nights: Rising Stars Writers Conference Fellow through the Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing at Arizona State University. She was a featured performer at The Museum of Fine Arts and Houston Grand Opera’s event “The Art of Intimacy” January 16, 2020. Her fiction, poetry, essays, interviews, and translation publications can be found or are forthcoming in (Fiction) Crack the Spine Literary Magazine, Scintilla Magazine, Paper Trains Journal, The Bayou Review: The Women’s Issue. (Essays, interviews, and translations) Glass Mountain, Volume 21, Dead Eyes Literary Magazine Volume .01, and Defunkt Magazine. (Poetry) The Houston Review of Books, her visual art can be found in Cosumnes River Journal, Sonder Midwest Review, Wordpeace Magazine, and The Blue Minaret.
Illustration by Andrea Miranda Big Sean and Nicki Minaj described it best when they said “ass, ass, ass, ass, ass” on “Dance (A$$)” in 2011. America is finally in love with big booties. Nicki Minaj, Meg Thee Stallion, and Kim Kardashian are women known for their curvy figures and they have a collective 346.3 million … Read moreIs Hip-Hop Making the Beauty of Black and Brown Bodies More Digestible to the white Americans? by Trinity Townsend