Photos by Mark the Cobrasnake

Jared Southard
Musician: Low Flying Owls
26 years old, Sacramento
Musical hero: Iggy Pop
“Iggy Pop is rock & roll is punk rock. When everyone was doing all that
hippie bullshit, he was fucking stabbing himself with glass bottles. Peace,
love and happiness meant nothing to him. We need another Iggy Pop.”
Chuck O’Neil
Actor, 29 years old
Silver Lake
Musical hero: David Byrne
“Because I dig his syncopated weirdness. Because the first time I heard ‘Sugar
on My Tongue,’ I had never heard anything like it before. Because he is constantly
reinventing himself. Now he’s teaching computer programming somewhere.”
Glenn Medina
High school student, 16 years old, Atwater
Musical hero: Billy Idol
“He was one of the first real original punks. He’s better than what a lot of
the kids listen to now. His songs are not played out on the radio, and he’s
a really good singer. I don’t hear anyone like him. My favorite song is ‘Tainted
Love,’ he covered it.” Glenn missed the bus to
share this with you.
Mounir Hajjar
Surgeon, Silver Lake
Musical hero: Madonna
“She’s powerful. She’s strong. She’s liberated. She does what she wants, regardless
of society’s expectations.”
Lindsay Pulsipher
Musician/actress/Seattle transplant, 26 years old,
Huntington Beach
Musical heroes: The Intelligence
“I think they’re the best band out right now. They’re definitely the most inspiring
band I’ve heard in a long time. Just for diversity and a ‘not giving
a fuck’ attitude, straightforward music.”
Arthur Garcia
Jewelry designer, 69 years old, Hollywood
Musical heroes: TThe Moody Blues
“Because [they] bring up so many beautiful memories of my life, nothing but
good times. Their unique sound, and that wonderful, wonderful voice.
I saw them at the Inglewood Forum, when it was still
‘the Forum.’ It’s been a while since I’ve been to a concert,
but I certainly remember them! Just their presence. Everyone was right
there with them. I have all the albums, every single one of
them. I have them in long play, and on CDs now.”
Anthony Valdez
Student, 18 years old, Silver Lake
Musical hero: Johnny Ramone
“His attitude, his appearance, he had what it took to be successful. And Dee
Dee Ramone! Even though he was the dumbest guy in the world, he wrote the most
brilliant songs. All the Ramones. They were fast. They were good. I like their
style. I just purchased [the Ramones documentary] End of the
Century, yesterday.”
Lucy Spriggs
The Jack Hanley Gallery employee, 27 years old, Echo Park
Musical hero: Morrissey
“Because he’s from Manchester, and so am I. Because when I was miserable, he
was miserable, and when I got happier, he was happier. I love him! He’s my dream
man! I like the fact that he has flowers coming out of his trousers when he
performs, and I like his quiff. I like that he likes Nancy Sinatra, who I
hate. I like that he likes tea and always talks about England, though
he hasn’t lived there in forever. I just think he’s funny.
“I went to New York, and my friends took me to a Morrissey party for my birthday.
They just played Morrissey. It was amazing. I wore my Morrissey T-shirt.”
Rex Kesterson
Journalism student/editor of The Collegian, L.A. City College’s newspaper,
53 years old, Silver Lake
Musical hero: Patti LuPone
“She’s the best! Her choice of roles . . . when she did Norma Desmond in Sunset
Blvd. in London, she really put a lot of feeling and emotion into
it. She was, like, channeling Gloria Swanson. It was just astounding! Her vocal
range, as evidenced in Evita, when she was younger, was probably a full
octave and a half. You just don’t find that kind
of range. Merman was better. But she was not the actress that
Patti is. That’s the other thing, she’s an amazing
actress! A good comedian, a good dramatic actress, she covers the spectrum.”
Ingrid Allen
Portrait painter, 29 years old, Echo Park
Musical hero: PJ Harvey
“She is just so raw. She is extremely powerful, and feminine, at the same time.
I love the way she looks. I love her style. I love her hairy legs. Have you
ever been to one of her shows? You get up front and she’s a hairy monster. I
love it! She is always showing off her legs. Rocking the supersexy look, but
she’s fuzzy as all get-out. I love her voice.”
Andy Entrekin
Circus of Books employee/Chicago transplant, 19 years old, Hollywood
Musical heroes: Kill Hannah
“They’re a local Chicago band, and I’m from Chicago. I followed them for a long
time. Their lyrics hit close to home and helped me through hard times. I met
the band several times, they always wait outside and talk to people and stuff.
They’ve always been nice. They’re just, all around, an awesome band. They have
three guitarists and especially, once they got their new album, they were able
to layer the different guitar riffs the way it is supposed to sound. A lot of
bands can’t do that, ’cause they only have one or two guitarists. That has a
lot to do with it.”
Apple Via
Sleepwear designer/event planner, 31 years old, Silver Lake
Musical hero: Bob Dylan
“That’s like asking, ‘What’s your favorite color?’ It changes
every day, just like my favorite color changes every day. Bob Dylan is my musical
hero. A show I saw brought me to tears, even though I didn’t
understand a single word he said the
entire time. I absolutely felt what he was saying.
His music translates emotionally, it could be French, it could be Japanese,
it would still bring you to tears.”
Eyexyk
Prasadam employee/fashion designer, 22 years old, MacArthur Park
Musical hero: Björk
“Of course, I love Björk! She’s magic, I think she’s a witch. She cast a spell
on me. What is the spell? A love spell. I want to
marry her. If she were a man and I was a woman, that’s the only way it would
be Björk, I think.”
Neslihan Kaplan
Fine-arts graduate/Istanbul transplant, 26 years
old
Looking for an apartment, staying with
a friend in East L.A.
Musical hero: Jim Morrison
“Because of his lifestyle. That time [the ’60s] was my favorite time; it brought
all new thinking. We are just building steps on that time.”
Malnie Jones
Art director, 42 years old, Highland Park
Musical hero: Joni Mitchell
“My older sister turned me on to her. In 1974, I was 12 years old and listening
to Joni Mitchell. As a young woman, her lyrics about trials and tribulations,
love and loss were inspirational. I grew up listening to her. She is just brilliant.”

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