“Atmosphere”
Photoshoot / Interview
What was it like growing up in Arkansas?
Growing up in Arkansas was the picture-perfect lesson of patience, and it really taught me the importance of listening. The days were slow and storytelling was exclusively long-form. I didn’t watch much TV (other than the news) as a kid and resorted to spending most of my time outside exploring rivers.
How would you describe your personal style?
I’m usually dressed like a half-naked cowboy.
When did you move to LA, how did this affect your career?
The day I moved to LA it was on May 1st, which is my mother’s birthday, so she was bawling and crying and it broke my heart. And I knew if I didn’t succeed she would never speak to me again. I’m kidding she loves me unconditionally but honestly, it did put huge healthy pressure on me, as I moved thousands of miles away from her and abandoned all the comfort I had ever known.
How did your start your modeling career?
When I moved to LA I knew one person. She was also from Arkansas and was discovered on America’s Next Top Model, so she was very versed in that world and told me I should go to the open calls of all the modeling agencies in town. I didn’t have enough money to even take the bus so I had to walk to all of them, each being a several-hour hike there and back. I only had one pair of boots and by the end of my first month, my feet had walked a hole through them. I still have the boots on a shelf in my house to remind me of those times.
Looking back at your accomplishments, are you happy with your progression?
I’m not really one to look back and applaud myself for the things I’ve done. I’ve always had this mentality of being ultra-present in whatever it is I’m doing, but ultimately with my mind focused on what’s next and what more there is to accomplish. I’m very grateful for everything I’ve been a part of thus far, but what excites me most and makes me the happiest is thinking about what’s to come.
How did you start out as an actor?
The modeling agency that I signed with happened to have an acting agency connected to it, so I wiggled my way into that side of the building and convinced one of the agents there to give me a shot. She started sending me out on auditions and taking general meetings with casting directors. One of those casting directors, Amber Horn, happened to work about a mile from where I was living so I asked if I could come into their office a few times a week and help operate the camera during auditions for other actors. That experience taught me so much about the process of auditioning, what to do and what not to do. Auditioning etiquette. That was really such a crucial part of my success.
How did your role on “Riverdale” impact your life? What did you learn, would you do anything differently?
Well, I was essentially starving and homeless before I booked “Riverdale”, so that show gave me the ability to not worry about when I was going to eat anymore and for that, just on a human level, I will forever be grateful. It also gave me some of my closest friendships. As far as changing anything goes, I’m very hard on myself when it comes to judging the way I’ve done things in the past so of course, if I had the actual option to change things, who knows maybe I would, but that’s impossible to do so for the sake of my sanity I have to just accept that everything happened the way it was supposed to.
What inspired you for your newest single “Atmosphere”?
I was locked inside a hotel room for two weeks in quarantine. I was writing and playing guitar all day every day. I had just finished “One Strange Rock” by Darren Aronofsky and it blew my mind. That’s by far my favorite nature documentary I’ve ever seen. It opened my eyes to so much. Also, I had just gotten back from a three-month-long road trip around the United States. I drove 13,000 miles and saw the earth in a way I have never seen before. I went through such a massive shift in my personal life during that time. I was journaling every day and answering some of the most honest and most difficult questions I had ever asked myself before. I love, love again and for a long time, I was terrified of it. “Atmosphere” is a love letter about how it feels to be away from the person I love so deeply.
Are there any future collaborations you are looking forward to?
Yes, but unfortunately I can’t talk about it right now. And even if I could I don’t like talking about things that haven’t happened yet. Los Angeles, as I’m sure many places do, has a way of promising things that never come true. I’ve found it best to just focus on what’s possible to control and let the universe work the rest out.
What goals and dreams do you have for the future?
I like moving around and not being in one place for too long so I would love multiple houses in different parts of the world that I can constantly dip away to. Different environments breed different thoughts and different creative mindsets. My 13,000-mile road trip showed me that. And just more love, more laughs, more music, more movies, more life.