Exclusive Interview with Kate Lawler

Note: The author's views are entirely his or her own and may not reflect the views of RetoxMagazine.com

Kate Lawler Retoxed

Retox, ever the resourceful and intrepid explorer, secured itself an interview with Kate Lawler, Do you know Kate? She's a Kerrang! DJ, model, reality TV winner, TV presenter and recording artist (did we miss anything?). She's also funny, as you'll soon see.

Kate @ A|X Armani Exchange next Saturday

Kate is going to be performing at the A|X Armani Exchange store in Birmingham on Saturday 3rd December. If you are in 'Brum you may want to stop by, she's a proper good DJ you know...

 

Retox Magazine: When you were really young, what did you wanna be? Did you ever imagine you'd get so far doing so many things?

Kate Lawler: At primary school my classmates and I were asked what we wanted to be when we grew up. My answer was 'The Manager of Topshop'. I never imagined having such a variety of jobs or working as a DJ.

 

Retox Magazine: You've worked in the radio business for quite some time now. Capital FM & Kerrang! What's your most fun DJing gig been so far? How do you even get started in something like that?

Kate Lawler: I worked at Capital for a while but Kerrang! Radio is by far the most fun I've ever had in broadcasting. I was interviewed on Kerrang! Radio about Big Brother then invited to sit in on Tim Shaw's Asylum one evening. The night before I'd been DJing in Birmingham so on Sunday night, sat in on Tim's show and more or less co-hosted with him. He then said if he ever got offered the breakfast show, he'd want me to work with him. 3 months later, he was on breakfast and so was I. I'm now on Drive Time on Kerrang! and it's the best job ever.

 

Retox Magazine: Where do you find new tracks and music to put into your mixes? Do you comb the web for new talent or does it work some other way?

Kate Lawler: I get sent promos and use Beatport. I've used Beatport since it first started and always will but don't buy the top 10, I use alternative ways on there to source music for my mixes and DJ sets.

 

Retox Magazine: You appear to be a rather busy person! So, after a hard day's work what do you do for relaxation?

Kate Lawler: When I get home, I play with my two dogs Baxter & Kevin for half an hour, and then enjoy dinner, which is always cooked by my boyfriend who I live with. I'm useless in the kitchen. Watching TV is about as relaxing as it gets!

 

Retox Magazine: What's a typical DJing day like? Do you start early?

Kate Lawler: I wake up to the sound of the dogs crying at 7am on the nose every day, I take them out for toilet time and come back to bed until 8am. Wake up, do some laundry, housework, drive to the park at 9am and walk the dogs for an hour - 90 minutes, drive home, shower, give them breakfast, give me breakfast whilst reading a few news websites for possible content I can use on my radio show, get ready for work and leave the house at 12:15pm. Work 12:30pm - 7pm, on air 3pm-7pm and then home to eat, watch TV, download music, do any interviews or mixes etc., and off to bed at 11pm most nights.

 

Retox Magazine: How would you describe your experience in the Big Brother house? What's it like knowing that you are under the constant surveillance of millions of TV viewers?

Kate Lawler: You forget about the cameras when you're inside the house as the majority are behind mirrors. It was an overwhelming, really emotional experience but also I was drunk most nights of the 9 weeks I spent inside the house so I don't remember a great deal plus it was 9 years ago. I know that I'm really glad I took part in the game show and really proud to be the first female winner. It changed my career for the better and I think one day I'll watch back the tapes which I've not done yet as it'd be cool to see what was shown on TV.

 

Retox Magazine: What made you? - What was the most memorable moment in all of that for you?

Kate Lawler: The most memorable moment was actually stepping outside the car and seeing a crowd cheering and my family in the crowd, crying and hugging me then going to stand in front of a load of photographers who were taking my photo and shouting my name then walking past crowds of people and then opening the door to the big brother house. It was all very surreal and I was sober so remember it clearly.

 

Retox Magazine: Is modelling as cold as it looks?

Kate Lawler: Colder. It's not fun. I feel sorry for any full time models.

 

Retox Magazine: Modelling, music, DJing, reality TV, TV presenting, being a mag columnist (anything I missed?) A goddamn heroic work ethic for sure. But, of everything you've done, what have you enjoyed most?

Kate Lawler: I actually enjoy doing stuff for charity. I ran the London Marathon twice and that is by far my biggest achievement. I raised over £5000 for Cancer Reseach and over £2000 for Cystic Fibrosis. I can look back now after the pain of it all and say I enjoyed it. I also took part in Celebrity Total Wipeout, which is my favourite show ever. I got to fly to Argentina and meet some brilliant people but also take part in the show, which was the most fun ever.

 

Retox Magazine: And, what have you got coming up next? Another career leap into something completely unrelated perhaps?

Kate Lawler: I just feel like I've found my home with being on the radio and have just signed another two years at Kerrang! Radio. DJing at the weekends is something I like to do every now and then but I don't know how much longer I've got left in me. I'm 31 and starting to feel like I'm too old for late nights in clubs - I feel like a grandma when I see how young the clubbers on the dance floor are!

 

Retox Magazine: Musically speaking - how does the process of writing a track go for you?

Kate Lawler: I've always been inspired by parts of music that I've listened to prior to going into the studio. I'll also go online and grab loads of samples from different websites that I want to use and when I go into the studio with Dave my engineer, we chat about the vibe of the song I want to make, listen to some old vinyls and songs from the early days of house to get more inspiration, have a few beers and go from there.

 

Retox Magazine: Who would your ideal musical collaborator be?

Kate Lawler: If I could choose anyone knowing they'd want to work with me too of course it'd be Eric Prydz.

 

Retox Magazine: During your musical world tour, which country gave you the best reception?

Kate Lawler: Lithuania and Singapore City, really nice crowds.

 

Retox Magazine: What genre of music would you never, ever work in or DJ, not in a million years. What do you hate? (We all hate something, right?)

Kate Lawler: If I had to do the heaviest metal or thrash metal and death core set I'd probably kill myself. I work on Kerrang! Radio where we actually play some metal, but my passion is rock and alternative, indie and classic stuff like Led Zep, The Rolling Stones, The Who and The Beatles. I've heard some horrific songs in the last 4 years that make my ears bleed. That or Hardcore 160bpm rip your own face off rave music I strongly dislike!

 

OK. Now we ask our customary insanely deranged yet fantastic and insightful questions.

Retox Magazine: If you had your soul transported into the body of any male person on the planet, whom would you choose to be (you get to live their life too if you want)?

Kate Lawler: I think Barak Obama would be quite an interesting male to live as. Him or David Beckham.

 

Exclusive interview with Kate Lawler

Exclusive interview with Kate Lawler.

Retox Magazine: If you were the first to discover a planet full of alien life, what would you name it?

Kate Lawler: Planet Dave.

 

Retox Magazine: If you were granted the ability to speak to animals (Dr. Doolittle style), what things would you discuss with...

 

Retox Magazine: A Burmese python?

Kate Lawler: I'd want to know just how fucked off they were that they didn't have arms and legs.

 

Retox Magazine: A buffalo?

Kate Lawler: I'd beg him not to kill me probably.

 

Retox Magazine: A T-Rex (yes, the revived one so you could chat with it).

Kate Lawler: How they felt about a band naming themselves after them.

 

Retox Magazine: An eel.

Kate Lawler: Again, how they feel about another band being named after them. And I'd also assure the eel I'd never opt to eat one with my pie and mash.

 

Retox Magazine: The last ever dodo?

Kate Lawler: I'd feel a little sad if it was the last ever dodo, maybe talk about his past loves and take him down the pub to get smashed.

 

Retox Magazine: Your dogs?

Kate Lawler: I'd ask Baxter if he minds that we got another dog. I'd talk about why we got his nuts chopped off. And I'd ask Kevin my other dog what his history is as it's a bit vague. I'd also have a serious sit down with him about his constant weeing in the house and talk about incentives to stop him doing it. And ask if he minds having his balls off, seeing as I couldn't ask Baxter.

 

Retox Magazine: If Beckenham was a chocolate bar, which would it be, and why?

Kate Lawler: A Topic because it's full of people who gossip!

 

Retox Magazine: If you could go back in time to any point in history without any time paradoxes, where/when would you visit?

Kate Lawler: I know it's not long ago but I'd love to have been alive during the 70's and lived as a hippie

 

Retox Magazine: Who would win in a fistfight between Che Guevara and Adolf Hitler. Why?

Kate Lawler: Che Guevara and hopefully he'd kill Hitler slowly and painfully with every punch. Why? Because Hitler was a bell.

 

Retox Magazine: If you were given a factory and the resources to produce whatever you wanted, what would you churn out?

Kate Lawler: Replicas of every item currently in stock at Topshop - bags, clothes, shoes, accessories, coats, the lot.

 

Retox Magazine: If your music was a colour, what would it be and why?

Kate Lawler: That's a tricky one, I guess white. My music isn't dark enough to be black, nor camp enough to be pink.

 

Retox Magazine: Who would you pick to interpret your life so far via the medium of freestyle dance?

Kate Lawler: My nanny Doreen who's 78.

 

Retox Magazine: If you could commission your own TV show, but it had to have Sylvester Stallone with a major part in it, what would the show be about, and what would it be called?

Kate Lawler: Sylvester Stallone on the throne. It'd basically be a show where Sly travels around the world seeing how many different countries he can go to the toilet in, but he only has 28 days.

 

Retox Magazine: If you had to move to Svalbard to study ice and stuff, for a few years, what 3 things would you bring to remind you of home?

Kate Lawler: My laptop so I could Skype everyone. An everlasting supply of Morrisons own coffee granules and my slippers.

 

Retox Magazine: If you could have invented any of the many dances in the world today, which would you pick?

Kate Lawler: The Macarena.

 

Now for some word association - we say a word, you tell us the first thing that comes to your head.

Retox: Hydrant
Kate: Fire

Retox: Pinnacle
Kate: A local leisure centre

Retox: Waffles
Kate: An image of waffles with ice cream and chocolate sauce on

Retox: Waffle machine
Kate: The kitchen out the back of Rendevous coffee shop where I was once a waitress.

Retox: Gluten free waffles
Kate: My friend Danielle

Retox: Moss
Kate: Bros (The Boy Band)

Retox: Dihydrofolate reductase
Kate: My dentist’s face

Retox: Sherpa
Kate: Nepal

Retox: Languish
Kate: A thesaurus dictionary

Retox: Boiled
Kate: Eggs in cup holders

Retox: Hank Marvin
Kate: Steve Mac

Retox: Hardcore
Kate: Glow sticks

Retox: House
Kate: Ibiza

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