When did you start playing music?
Pretty much since I was in my mother’s womb! My parents always made me listen to music and encouraged me to play the guitar. I nearly gave it up because it hurt my fingers, though. I also played at church where I picked up a lot of music tips.

How is your life after The Voice?
It’s completely changed. It transformed me from a white collar worker to a singer. I used to be quite against reality shows as I felt they didn’t reflect the real reality. But when I watched the US and UK version of The Voice, it blew me away. The competitors are all really talented. I just wanted to have a go when The Voice Thailand arrived.

What was life like before The Voice?
I was working as a marketing consultant after I graduated from economics at Thammasat University. I didn’t know how far I would go in The Voice, but my boss was kind enough to let me chase my dream by not firing me during my time on the show. In the end, though, I decided to quit my job to continue chasing my dream to become a singer. Now I’ve just released my first single, “Free Love.”

Was it a hard decision to dump your career?
Not really. I see myself as a young man who still has lots of energy to do the things that I really want to do. My family is also cool with this.

What do you think of Thailand’s music industry?
I want Thai people broaden what they listen to, to steer away from only Thai pop or luk tung. I think we need to encourage people to really appreciate the diversity of art more, and that includes music. For instance, the price of buying an album online is the same as buying two cups of Starbucks coffee. These songs can inspire you, so respect the songs by paying for them.

What’s next for you?
I want to express myself as a musician, not just some guy who got famous from The Voice. I will continue playing the music that I love. I’m also interested in the business side of things as I studied economics, which I see as the art of understanding your consumer. Marketing, too, is the art of convincing people to buy stuff without feeling that they have been tricked. I hope to use my knowledge of marketing to advance the Thai music industry. Rewat “Ter” Buddhinan is my idol for the way he revolutionized our music industry with GMM.

BK: When did you first get into ice sculpting?
I graduated with an electrical engineering major, but I didn’t do well at school so I couldn’t get a job. Then my brother-in-law introduced me to ice sculpting. He taught me and I started to like it. I first worked at the Indra Hotel and moved around to other hotels before I joined the Royal Orchid Sheraton 18 years ago.

BK: How have you fared competitively?
I’ve entered many ice sculpting competitions around Thailand and Asia, and I’ve already won the Asian Championship, but I wanted to go further, to use my talents to do my homeland proud, so I targeted the Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival. My first time, five years ago, was a total failure. I knew nothing of the rules and temperatures because no one from Thailand had ever entered before. I even had to pay for the tickets of two other members, because they didn’t have the money. The next year was also a big disappointment.

BK: Why didn’t you give up?
I nearly did because I had no money to continue. But my colleagues encouraged me to find sponsors and I sent out proposals to about five places. Luckily, the Singha Corporation agreed to sponsor me. We came in second in ice sculpting in 2011 and this year, out of 20 teams from 11 countries, we won third place in snow sculpting. Our piece is titled “The Emotion of Human” and deals with the concept that humans have good and bad sides, so we have to decide which one we want to be. It’s in a heart shape, on one side is the face of a giant and on the other is the face of an angel. It took us three and a half days to finish.

BK: What’s the difference between the ice and snow sculpting categories?
The size of the ice is smaller and requires fewer members, but it’s more difficult work because it’s very solid in the cold weather conditions. Balancing your force is the key. If you put too much force into it, the ice will explode. Snow is soft, but you have to plan the proportions very well, because of the very large scale (4m height, 3m width, 3m length).

BK: What are the difficulties of the competition?
Firstly, the language, because most people speak Chinese. Then it’s the temperature; some sculptors were in shock. Unlike some teams, our snow sculptures have never collapsed. There have been times when I’ve been working on ice and snow sculptures too hurriedly and I fell from the scaffolding. Ice sculptures are not as tall, but the ground is really hard so falling hurts a lot more.

BK: What’s your view of ice sculpting in Thailand?
There are many talented Thai ice sculptors, but they lack support because people here don’t see it as an art, unlike people abroad who respect these professionals as artists.

BK: When did you start rapping?
At first, I wrote a pop-rock song to promote Dome Pakorn’s Iconic Records, which I followed up with “RapAke” which is all about my life. It’s my favorite and most popular song so far, since I started doing this in July 2012. This song took me a few months to write, unlike my other 27 songs. My fans often help me put my words to music. I don’t only rap, I like many types of music. I recently did a metal song called “Ni Yaam Metal” (“Metal Definition”).

What’s been the feedback so far?
My Facebook fan page currently has about 2,000 followers. Most comments are positive and applaud me for being creative and confident. I recently covered a single by Dome Pakorn, which drew both admiration and “dislikes,” however Dome himself said he liked it on my YouTube. My boss supports what I do as long as I don’t do it during work hours. My family encourages me to pursue what I love. On the other hand, some people say I can’t keep rhythm. Others have much worse things to say. But overall, it’s not so bad, based on the number of people who have contacted me to write songs to promote their products or restaurants. Now I’m one of the MCs at Squeeze Job, a TV program that features interviews with talented people.

Why do your songs attract so many viewers on YouTube?
I think it’s because my songs are original, I generally don’t like to do covers. My songs broaden people’s imagination. I present my own perspective. I want to tell the people who say bad things about me that they shouldn’t get so angry at others as it destroys their spirit and potential. If they want to comment, be reasonable.

What do you think about the rapping culture in Thailand?
It’s too heavy on a single thing: love. They should rap about culture or anything else, really. There’s also no need for rude language because it’s not good for the youth. People download music for free a lot these days which discourages artists from producing top quality songs. I believe we need to enforce a very strict copyright law.

What’s next?
I star as a teacher in the movie Gang Preed Ja Read Jai Ter, from D.O.A. Film, which will be in cinemas this year. I like acting so if there is a good role in a movie, I would like to do it. However, I really just want to produce more music. I want to put out an album, but it’s very difficult due to a lack of funding. On top of all that, I’d really like to have my own TV program to raise awareness about the dangers in society.

How did you become an internet idol?
At the beginning, a few people clicked like on my Facebook pictures. The number grew until my pictures started getting 100,000 likes. Now I have more than 500,000 followers on Facebook. Most of them are girls.

Have you been recognized by people on the street?
Yes, especially at university. Some of them walk up to me for photos and a chat. I get all types of feedback: compliments that I’m pretty or not as conceited as people expected, while some speak sarcastically while walking past me or just shout at me. Some comments make me feel bad, but they also push me prove myself. I hope people can be open-minded and judge me by my work instead.

How do you feel when someone posts a message about wanting to have sex with you?
Sexually explicit comments are the worst. But in the end it’s just nonsense from someone who doesn’t know me. I shouldn’t care as I’m not doing anything wrong. I’m used to them now. I’ve never met any perverts in person, but some send me dirty messages. I want to tell them that if they feel that way, they should fulfill their desires themselves, and not post about it on Facebook.

Tell us about your background?
I’m a Nepali girl. My grandparents were evacuated to Thailand during World War II, so my parents were born here. They lived in the Nepali community in Kanchanaburi before coming to work in Bangkok and getting married. I was born in Bangkok, but moved to live in Chiang Rai for 10 years due to the financial crisis. I came back for high school in Bangkok. Now I’m studying information technology and in my second year at Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University.

Are you afraid that starring in a movie about sex like Fingering contradicts your reputation as a cute and naïve girl?
It’s not a sexually explicit movie although the trailer might make it look that way. I want everyone to see it. For those who look down on people with cutesy or abbaew clothing, I want to say that people who dress like that have a dream and they are free to follow it. It’s wrong to judge someone from their personal preferences.

What is your sexual orientation?
I’m okay with both men and women because I think love can happen with any sex or any nationality. But as I’m Nepali, it’s our tradition to marry only Nepali and my parents expect me to do just that. I’ve talked to my mother about it, saying times have changed, but she only listened and thought it over. I’m not a person who’s going to break every rule, but I don’t believe in locking myself into one nationality. I want to be free to love anybody, male or female.
Find Emmy at www.facebook.com/zuperem

I was an unwitting follower of fashion. I loved it before I even knew what it was. I always kept an eye on my elementary school teacher’s fashion sense and would sketch details down in my textbooks.

I studied fashion design at the University of North Texas and discovered a real passion for fashion history. After I graduated, I came back to work in Bangkok as a junior designer for a small brand before becoming a freelancer for the Thai edition of Elle Magazine.

1997 saw a big change in the fashion industry. All the big names like Gucci, Christian Dior and Louis Vuitton altered their marketing strategies, giving chances to new designers, installing head offices in the Far East and pouring money into advertising. I was lucky that this was when I started up as fashion editor at Elle Thailand.

You never know what your passion is until you start doing it. I’m lucky to have found what I love to do. I still get excited every day when I drive to work.

Fashion is not entertainment; it’s a business. People always ask me if I had fun at international fashion weeks, and I tell them there’s a whole lot of not-so-fun work to do to get a show up on the catwalk for only 10 minutes.

Working in fashion is like getting dressed up. It doesn’t need to be as stressful as some people make it.

My life is quite surreal with all the exclusive treats and luxuries I receive as a fashion magazine editor. So it’s really important that you surround yourself with the right people so as to not forget who you are and abuse your power and everyone around you.

Hanging out with those you love helps keep you grounded. I love to balance my fancy work life by spending time with my family. There are no exaggerations when I am with them. At the end of the day, even the editor of the Vogue’s US edition, Anna Wintour, is a mother to her daughters.

Vogue’s arrival is an indicator that the Thai market is ready to expand. People are spending more money on luxury brands. Vogue Thailand will change the local fashion scene immensely over the next six months.

Becoming Vogue editor is my biggest challenge yet. I’ve always said that you learn something new every day and this confirms it. Just because I have worked for Elle Thailand for 15 years doesn’t mean I know how this job is going to turn out. We’re starting from scratch so I’ve already met with the editors who took Vogue to Britain and Spain.

Each edition of Vogue must reflect its country’s culture. I love that the Vogue team doesn’t have a template for us to follow. We can create what we want so long as it matches Vogue’s standards. It’s up to us to portray Thai sensibilities in such a way that people know they’re reading Vogue Thailand.

I want to celebrate Thai talents; not only designers, but anything related to fashion, from photographers, models and make-up artists to Thai craftspeople. I want Vogue to be a platform for them to shine.

A top fashion magazine doesn’t need to be avant-garde. My ideal magazine is easily accessible and has the power to inspire every girl on the street to express their own sense of fashion.

I’m one of the biggest fans of HM Queen Sirikit. I can recall accurately what she wore at any number of ceremonies. I achieved one of my great goals by being a part of the creation of the Queen Sirikit Museum of Textiles. I’m enchanted by Thai textiles and hope to keep developing them for the Thai fashion scene.

Thai fashion labels are being run by rich kids who oversee both the design and business aspects. That means there’s no real focus on designing clothes, unlike in global fashion cities where investors pour money into allowing designers to get creative.

I consider it my next duty to encourage investors to see the good opportunities in Thai fashion and to help expand it.

I pride myself on moderation. I never believe or like anything too much, until I’ve looked at it from another perspective. It pays to have an open mind. Reading and traveling will polish your thoughts.

Deadlines are the scariest thing in my line of work, much harder than dealing with people or keeping on top of trends.

Acknowledge your mistakes and move on. Don’t look back and don’t let it happen again. My big errors of judgment include choosing covers that didn’t sell.

Everyone has trial-and-error moments in fashion, myself included.
I have no noble philosophy. I just live with the truth. Even if one day I don’t have everything I have now, I’ll have no regrets.

Other Vogue editors have told me to live my life to the fullest now, because my social life will all but disappear once the magazine’s first issue is released.

Be prepared for everything that life might throw at you. You can never know how bad things are going to be.

How did you come up with ShowbaTV?
Ben: We all studied communication arts so wanted to go into either film or TV production, but we couldn’t find a way to get work in that field. We also share the trait of bugging and driving people crazy, so one day Jent asked, “Why we don’t turn this into something productive?” Many people see the problems in society, but are afraid to talk about them. We are curious to know how much reality Thai society can really take.
Jent: The name is derived from the Thai word for “basic” because we want to portray the basic problems that need to be discussed.

How do you come up with your topics?
Jent: Mostly it’s simply when we find a story and think something’s not quite right. For example, I used to work in Siam and I would have trouble finding a taxi home, so I decided to take up the subject and it turned out to be one of our most popular videos so far.

How do you feel when authorities don’t do anything to solve problems like these?
Ben: I was shocked at first. We, the citizens, rely on them when something goes wrong, but often the law doesn’t adequately address these issues. For example, in our “Ghost tickets” episode we found that middlemen were charging outrageous prices for normal tickets, meaning real football fans couldn’t afford them. But the police said they could not arrest the scalpers because there is no specific law against selling overpriced tickets. They can only charge them for nuisance.

What has been your favorite episode so far?
Ben: My favorite one is called “Handicapped people or handicapped society?” Life is not so easy here even for the able-bodied, so things are much more difficult for the handicapped. The authorities don’t do a lot to help. In Japan, the handicapped get very good treatment from the government and people, which reflects the development of that society.
Jent: The government here gives them 500 baht a month instead of helping them find careers that can benefit them in the long-term. They don’t have a sustainable solution for these people.

What do these problems say about Thai society?
Jent: People always want to cover their eyes and ears. They want to live in an imaginary world where everything is beautiful. But we want to present the truth. Problems at the individual level impact all of society.

What are your plans for the future?
Jent: I want to have my own internet channel with many programs that open people’s eyes and ears.
Ben: We all quit our jobs to start doing our show. Although we are a small group, we want to really change the state of Thai media. I want to dispel the commonly held perception that quality programs get low ratings.
 

How did you become a street sweeper?
I’m originally from Amnat Charoen province. After I finished my army conscription, I came to work in Bangkok. My first job was in a dry battery factory where I earned B70 a day. I quit because I wanted a more independent job and started working as a motorcycle taxi driver. I made B200-300 a day and did that for five or six years before I heard about this job from my wife, who worked in a district office. My initial salary was B4,100 per month which I earned for three years as a temporary worker. Once I became an official worker I started receiving welfare benefits including medical cover and tuition fees for my children. For my first six months I was assigned to clean Narathiwas Road, then I was moved to Silom Road, where I’ve been for 12 years now.

What’s your daily routine?
Every day I start work at 5am, take a break at 8am, and then continue working from 9am to noon. The street inspector comes around at 5:30am to check on progress and the garbage truck comes at 6:30am. There are eight sweepers on my side of Silom Road. When we finish up working, we have to go to the district office to sign our names. After I’m done, I join my wife at our secondhand book stall at Soi Suanplu. I take the afternoon shift there, while she goes to work as a street sweeper on Sathorn Road. I close up the stall at 3pm and go home to rest and then do it all over again the next day. I usually get Sunday off. I can’t take more than five days off at a time because the street must be kept clean. Recently some workers have quit, so I have more work to do.

Is there anything dangerous about your work?
I have to be careful when I sweep the street, especially in the early hours of the morning, as there could be drunk or sleepy people driving recklessly.

What new policies would you like to see implemented by the newly-elected governor?
I want a better trash collection system. Bars and restaurants put their garbage in bags, but many food stalls just throw it on the ground where it can be hit by cars or buses. Sometimes people go digging for plastic bottles or other things they can sell, and leave behind a mess on the sidewalk. Some just want the garbage bag, so they dump whatever’s inside it onto the ground.

What’s your dream job?
I think I will work as I do now until my son, who is in grade 11, graduates from university, then I might open an amulet shop because I find them very interesting.

BK: How did you guys meet?
Best: We knew each other from high school in Lampang province, but we were all in different bands. Then about a year ago, Key uploaded his song “Sam Rub Krai Kon Nan” under the name SomeMoreRooms on YouTube. It became a hit and we’ve since come together as a band while attending university.

BK: Why are you so popular despite having only a few original songs?
Key: Our music is very easy listening pop. I think our popularity can be put down to the cover song trend on YouTube. People initially came to check out the songs we covered and then learned of our own music. Then some artists started to cover our songs.

BK: Were you worried that you might lose fans by changing your band name?
Key: I was a bit afraid of losing fans from my ex-band, but we really had to change the name once we became serious about playing together. I noticed that when people said the old name quickly, it sounded like SmallRoom, the popular record label. Anyway, we’re just happy making music, and I think real music lovers will appreciate what we do regardless of what name it’s under.

BK: What inspired you to play music and who is your idol?
Best: Honestly, it was to impress girls. I tried to make up for my looks when I was in the first year of secondary school.
Key: I was inspired by my father who I can remember playing the guitar every day since I was a little boy. I like John Mayer. His lyrics and tunes are touching. They tell stories. I also like Tesla Boy from Russia.
Tonyang: I formed a band when I was about 13. Joey Boy is my idol. I like his lifestyle, his attitude and his Gancore Club record label.
Dew: My favorite artists are Maroon 5, Santana, and Eric Clapton.

BK: What is your biggest dream as a musician?
Best: I want to release a legendary song; on that people still listen to ten years later.
Key: I’m not aiming to be super popular. I just want people to like the songs I sing.

BK: What are your day jobs?
Dew: I work at the Metropolitan Waterworks Authority as a demographics information officer.
Tonyang: I’m still looking for a job. I’m interested in working in TV because I graduated from communication arts.
Best: I’m a creative at TV Thunder, on The Master Key show.
Key: I’m a broker at Kasikornthai Bank. I didn’t plan to work there. But I was offered a job and I quite like it now.

Tell us what’s behind Ex-Libris?
The title is Latin for “from books.” During my primary school years I didn’t have many friends, so I always spent time in the library. I used to be a librarian, too. This inspired me to create artworks from my favorite books that I read when I was little. The installation is like a 3D book sculpture using mixed media, paintings, and collages. Since it’s not in an art gallery, I had to try fitting my quiet library theme into a lively restaurant atmosphere.

How do the artworks in this exhibition reflect you?
The books that I chose to cover share the same characteristics: a boy is the main character and it’s not a happy ending. I can relate to them as I’ve learned that in reality there is no such thing as happily ever after. For example, there is a piece from There’s a Boy in the Girls’ Bathroom by Louis Sachar. The main character is naughty Bradley, he is trying to find a standpoint in school, and I see a similarity between him and I because I was naughty, too. It’s a coming-of-age book and I think many kids have been in a same situation. Reading those books was also a way to build my own identity; I was part of the adventure with the main characters. The story doesn’t end with the book, our imaginations keep them going.

What inspires you to create art?
I create artworks in various styles and formats; I especially like emotional and thoughtful works. My work is mostly about identity, asking questions like “Why am I who I am?” I’m very honest in my work. If the feeling is not right, I will work on it until I’m satisfied. My work process takes from one week to a few months. Right now I’m doing a drawing for A Day Magazine under the concept of teenagers that change the world. I’m enjoying it a lot because I can relate many characteristics to myself.

Who is your favorite artist?
I’m very inspired by the English artist William Blake. I love his prints and color tone. Although his works were not popular during his lifetime, he kept on doing things the way he liked. He believed in his instincts.

What is your next plan?
After closing this exhibition at Mellow Thonglor in Feb 2013, I will hold it at The Book Club in London in May. I haven’t really planned beyond that. I prefer to focus on the present and do the best I can.
 

What’s the concept behind Fat Live?
Holding a concert is the most direct way Fat Radio can interact with our listeners. Fat Live generally happens more than once a year. It gives us the chance to showcase interesting bands of our own choosing. When we do these concerts, we focus on the artists’ strengths and who they are. We’re not putting them on to do anything that’s not true to themselves. We present them in a way that turns the artists’ weak points into strong ones and frees them up to do what they have never done before.

why did you call an end to the Fat Fest?
Fat Fest started in 2001 and continued for over ten years. We were surprised that it was so successful for so long. But we knew it couldn’t go on forever. It had reached the point where we thought we’d rather stop and leave our audience with a good impression.

What’s special about Fat Live Smallroom?
This time around, we picked Smallroom Records because they represent something more than just songs or artists. They are more like our friends that we’ve grown up with. I believe that Smallroom is the music of today, and the future, too. They have a firm standpoint, do what they believe in, and don’t change their style to suit the mainstream. Nowadays that’s rare and admirable. Music lovers will understand this.

How will it be different from the last concert?
We received really good feedback from Fat Live Friday, our last concert held in May this year. Of course, production is different every time; in this case we are bringing together 17 bands, so we’re focusing on quantity and quality to ensure the happiness of our audience. The bands include Tattoo Colour, The Richman Toy, Slur, Yarinda, Superbaker, Penguin Villa, Greasy Café, The Jukks, The Yers, Polycat, Lomosonic, Lemonsoup, Spoonfulz, Gene Kasidit, Barbies, Somkiat and Summer Stop. You can expect four to five hours of non-stop fun.

What do you think about today’s indie rock scene?
Indie music is productive. If an indie song is gets popular, it’s because of the song, unlike with mainstream pop songs, which have all these other factors contributing to their success. Such songs are used as marketing tools and people are forced in a way to listen to them. However, people still seek those real songs that make you feel good when listening to them. And when we look back after five to ten years, it’s the indie songs that stick with us. This is because the musicians and producers are working according to their beliefs.