Cara Zayn is as aware as anyone, that unfortunately, how you look often defines how you’re treated. At just twenty-three years old, the tattooed blonde from California is running a multi-million dollar record label and the affiliate companies that go along with that, which includes a music venue, a recording studio and a clothing line. Born and raised mere seconds away from the sandy beaches of San Francisco, California, you’d be right in picturing an image startlingly similar to that of Cara Zayn, but if you’ve already begun crafting an idea of the personality that goes with that image, then you may want to stop in your tracks, because what you will surely find in reality will be far beyond the beach party, free living, five-seconds of fame searching image that you may have concocted in your mind and instead what you may discover is somebody with a fire and drive and determination to not only succeed, but to succeed in a fashion all of their own doing and to show that no matter who you are, or how you look, or where you come from, you are in fact not limited in any way, shape or form, essentially instead it’s what you do that defines you.

---

Now based in Manhattan, New York City, New York, a welcome and almost needed change in the life of Cara Zayn, who had previously spent her entire life around the sunshine and easy-living world of California. It was back in early 2014 when Cara was hired at the then indie label ‘Songs to Love and Die By’, it was a relatively low-key role as an A+R and promotions girl, although her passion for discovering new artists and sounds were spotted early on by label owner Amy Meyer who then swiftly increased Cara’s duties with the label to include a scouting capacity. Moving out to New York mere weeks before her twenty-first birthday was a massive change in the lifestyle of a young girl just desperate to do something, anything within the music industry. But she had fallen onto an incredible opportunity that she was always going to make sure she took full advantage of. Having worked for the label in a number of varied roles over the first three months and essentially being taken under the wing of the then label owner ‘Amy Meyer’, it was almost fate that an even bigger opportunity would arise in the coming months, a whole lot sooner than Cara would have ever imagined.

The owner of the label was always going to have a lot on her plate with her music career, and so as Amy Meyer made the decision to step away from her hand-on role at ‘Songs to Love and Die By’, she begun interviewing for somebody to step into her shoes, the musician related to Cara greatly, the two being only almost exactly one year apart in age, with Meyer being the younger of the two. But she stated that she was always routing for Cara to take over the reigns at some point, noting that she believed that taking such a responsibility-oriented role at what had now become a major label at a very young age would be incredibly important to Cara and would force her to mature a lot faster than the average twenty-two year old. However, Cara still had to interview for the role three times, the final time being the one where Amy would make the final decision. But it was the passion and vision that Cara had for the label that impressed a panel of financial backers, it was the fact that Cara’s aims were not to just ride off of what Amy had created and instead to bring a much more diverse outlook to everything from the label that was primarily rock orientated, it was the expansion ideas that included the opening of a music venue and nightclub and the ideas of a clothing label that would make the labels ‘half-moon’ banner more than just an associated buzz word but instead a moniker for a certain type of lifestyle.

Essentially, Cara Zayn killed in the interviewing process and with that the job was hers, although additional support on the job came from Faith Browdy who also interviewed for the vacancy to run the label but narrowly lost out. It was a decision that initially was highly criticized by a number of people around the industry who rightly saw the change as a step back for the label that were formerly run by a musician who was highly respected for what she had achieved in such a short space of time. But as the initial storm passed, the changes begun to be made. The first signing in this re-modelled version of the label was the unique rap-pop singer ‘Lotus’, it showed that Cara was determined to follow through with her aims for the label to become much more diverse in terms of genres and signing one the brightest young talents with a completely unique style was instrumental for Cara’s new vision for the label.
More new signings came, with metal and rock acts like ‘Aeons’ and ‘James Urie’ to continue to maintain the labels rock fanbase and those two were later joined by post-hardcore upstarts ‘Penetralia’ who had already proven to be the new dominant force in that area of the industry. But it was the signings of relative unknowns ‘Barbie Doll’ and more notably ‘Valentina Hart’ that really showed the type of completely fresh and unique sounding artist that Cara was most interested in adding to an already talented roster.

Cut to October 2015 and we find Ms. Zayn sitting inside her office at the ‘Songs to Love and Die By’ base in Manhattan. As a whole, the building is relatively minimal, recently renovated to include a second floor which is now where the person in charge of the day to day running’s office is located. She’s started to move out beyond just the label and the large promo poster for Obsession is instantly noticeable on her wall, the show was created and primarily written by Cara. She sits at her desk, checking her mobile phone occasionally as we join her for a few questions;

---

You’ve been around the industry for a little over a year now, but this is the first major cover story that you’ve taken part in. In reality you don’t make a lot of media appearances, is there a particular reason for that? We can’t imagine that you’re a shy individual.

“I don’t know why exactly, I suppose I don’t really see that as a big part of my job. I’m not a musician or an actress. I’ve been a little more open to it recently as I’ve sort of had a few other things going on away from my label stuff. But in reality, the label is my job. The other stuff are just interests or hobbies I guess. Of course I did real talk earlier this summer which was just so much fun and really different from anything that I had done so far. It is a lot of fun, in small doses. But I don’t plan on doing the whole promotional tour thing, I think I’ll leave that side of things to the musicians.
Besides, I think people get a little bored if they see too much of you. I don’t want people thinking, ‘Oh, not this fucking chick again’. I think I much prefer to show what I’ve done, rather than just doing things for the sake of doing things. That’s maybe a problem these days, people sometimes think that as long as their face or their name is out there whether it’s for a good or for a bad reason, then that’s a good thing. We live in a social media driven world now which I think has made it worse entirely.”

You mentioned “Real Talk”, which has proven to be a hugely popular vehicle for Ezra Allen. You were a guest on the third episode of the show. What did you make of it?

“It was a whole lot of fun. It was the first time I had really done an interview like that, in front of an audience and everything, so of course there were a few nerves. I’m not really a front and centre sort of girl, if you can believe that. Photo-shoots I’m fine with, blogs and social media I’m okay with those, but to be the source of attention on that sort of scale is a weird thing for me. But I did enjoy my time on the show, it was a very relaxed environment. It appeared like the show was a whole lot of fun for everybody involved too.
I’m also fascinated with how things are created too, not just the end product but everything involved and Ezra was more than accommodating in introducing me to the show properly and we talked at length backstage about how everything was done and all the work that goes into creating the show, which gave me a new respect for those that are involved in such things on a regular basis and of course it was good prep for when it came time to create a TV show of my own”

Would that be something you’d be interested in doing at some point in the future? With ‘Real Talk’ and ‘Late Night’ we have two very popular shows of that style. Perhaps hosting your own chat show could be on the cards at some stage in the near future?

“I don’t know about that. The idea in principle is a one that would definitely interest me. But I think there’d be too many questions that would have to be answered before I could even get to it. What would make it different from those two shows? I know Real Talk has a slightly edgier vibe, where Late Night is a lot more like your standard chat show. Also and I think just as importantly, if not more importantly, would I be able to pick and choose who I get to interview. Because there’s certainly a few people that I don’t know that I could interview.
I’d definitely have trouble putting aside personal feelings regarding guests. It would possibly be interesting TV to see somebody interview somebody that they don’t particularly like or respect. There’d be a lot of strong language being used, so it’d maybe have to be after the watershed, but yeah I could see how a extra late show could possibly work. The more I think about it, the more fun it sounds. But I don’t think it’s on the cards any time soon”

Well you certainly have a few things on your plate at the moment as it is. Let’s talk about the TV show, obsession which recently aired the first two episodes. Is that an area that you’re hoping to continue working in, it feels like it may be something that can work for you.

“I’ve had fun creating that show, working with everybody on it and seeing things finally starting to come together. It’s been in the pipeline for quite a little while now. It’s also greatly frustrating too, but the hope is always that the end result makes the annoying things worthwhile. We’ve had two episodes air so far, we’re looking to get the next episode out there fairly soon and hopefully the season can start to pick up. But working with those people on the show has been so much fun, especially the fact that the characters that these people are playing are really quite different from the people that they actually are and what their fans expect of them. Alex and Izzy in particular are such fun to watch as they play these characters that have a little edge to themselves.”

And what about beyond that first season? Any longer term plans?

“I feel like it’s quite important to make it clear early on that there are no plans for a second season of the show. The plan from the beginning was to make it a one season show and the ending of this season will definitely mirror that point of view. There’ll be no way that the show would be able to continue into a second season, without giving too much away.”

So would there be an opportunity for you to develop another new show after that or is that an avenue that you’ve tried and will look to move on to other things?

“There is always that possibility. If the chance came up then I’m quite sure that I’d take it because it is something that I find to be enjoyable and different enough from my daily routine to keep me interested. I have a short attention span by nature, so when I get the chance to do things that challenge me in a way that other things just don’t then I’m always willing to take those things on. But who knows what will come up in the future. I wouldn’t want to limit myself to just one specific area, whether it’s writing or something else completely.”

And to continue briefly with the writing, you’ve also recently started to venture into songwriting territory too. It was confirmed that you had worked with Chantel Hayes on a track and a couple of others. Again is this something that you see yourself moving into more often?

“Sure. That’s the hope. I mean, if that’s something that I feel that I can do more of then sure! I wrote something with Chantel recently which was great to just be in that creative environment and there’s a couple of singles coming out this year I believe that I’ll have had a hand in creating, whether that’s as a songwriter or as a producer. I think it’s important to keep trying as many different things as possible, if anything just to keep life interesting and challenging.”

Alright, so let’s go back a little and get to know where you came from. Because the truth is that your rise within the entertainment industry was a fairly rapid one, albeit that rise was more behind the scenes than anything else, but it was a rapid rise nonetheless. So you grew up in San Francisco, California. Were you the quintessential California girl?

“You know what, that’s how I sometimes get labelled, I’m either a cali-girl or a suicide-girl. It’s real funny the way people make associations. But I’d say that I’m neither. I pride myself on the fact that I believe that I can relate to a wide-range of people. I was a tom-boy growing up, I really was. I played a lot of sports and I can hang with the guys over a beer and talk Football. I was a little bit of a collector and a gamer too, I was a fan of Pokemon, Dragonball Z and Naruto. I like my comic books too, a major Batman fan, death of the family and year one were all I was reading for a while a couple of years back. I love my bands, pop-punk and post-hardcore stuff. I can talk all day about fashion, I like adventures, mountain climbing. I’d go fishing with my dad and uncles, I’ve never been afraid to get my hands dirty. Basically I’m a f*cking mess of all kinds of random interests.
But of course, I look the way that I look and so I’m either a cali-girl or a suicide-girl. I’m past the point where I even try fighting it, because I’ve learnt that people are gonna label you with whatever they want and it’s just easier to let them. I’m more than comfortable in knowing who I am. If people assume that I have everything that I have because of the way I look, or because of whatever superficial thing they see then that’s fine. But as long I know who I am, where I come from and how I got here, then I’m happy because I know the work that I’ve put in.”

You were close friends with another group of people from California that later became the band ‘Penetralia’ that you eventually signed to your label as well as a lot of local acts from your home state, how would you describe that time in your life?

“In reality that time of my life was only like two or three years ago. But it was probably the time I had the most fun, because those four guys were on the verge of making it, so it was a lot of touring from them. But of course they couldn’t afford to hire people, so it was essentially them and a bunch of friends just travelling around the west coast in a pretty shitty van for months at a time. I’m the biggest fan of those guys and I’ve worked all kinds of jobs for them without pay [laughs] I’ve worked on their merch stand, I’ve went around town centre’s putting up flyers. Everything you can think of, I have done and all without receiving a penny.
They’re good guys though, they always made sure I never had to buy my own alcohol . But in all seriousness, that time was the most chaotic and exciting time to experience. I don’t think I’d do it again though, but it was an experience that I’m so glad that I was a part of.”

You moved from California to New York for the job at ‘Songs to Love and Die By’. Did you expect that that role would open the doors as quickly as it did?

“No, of course not! I consider that part of things to be down to luck and timing. That’s not to say that I didn’t work my ass of from the moment that I got out to New York because I really did. I have friends who have the easiest of lives and that’s fine for them, but I’ve never been interested in that. I like a sense of achievement, I like the thought that I’m working towards a bigger picture. And sure there’s some pretty shitty days along the way, but on the whole, it’s a really good fucking life and I’m enjoying all of it immensely at the moment.
I don’t think there’s a specific reason why I’m where I am now. I just worked as hard as I could from the moment that I was brought to the label, I tried to make sure that I was doing the best that I could and when that job became available for somebody to take over from Amy, I figured I’d give it a go, see what happens. Thankfully, Amy was the proof that somebody young and inexperienced in terms of business, could actually surprise you and prove to be more than capable and I think that was something that definitely helped.”

And about the label, you have a larger roster now than ever before. Are you pleased with where it’s at, or are you still looking to make it even bigger and better?

“We’re always looking to add to what we have. I think that what we have is really something special, I think it’s an environment where we allow time and space and freedom for our artists to create and I think in the end we get better results that way and we get albums and singles that are much better because of that lack of pressure to meet deadlines. But yeah, if you look at what we have, you’ll see a pretty diverse roster full of talent, capable of competing with any label. I think we have strong individuals that understand who they are and what they want to say with their music. People like Arianna Harley, Lotus, Julia Volkova and Edward Barat.
I feel like we appeal to a mass audience more than at any other point in the labels history and I’m proud of that. But of course, there is always space to add to that and I feel like we’re careful on decisions that we make, but I think history has said that we’ve made the right decisions in the past.”

And are there any dream names that you’d like to bring to the label?

“No, there’s a lot of talent out there. Most of them have contracts and so they aren’t on our radar. But if we’re talking fantasy signings to the label, sure I can give you a massive list. Just from personal favourites, Jennifer Armstrong, Vanity, SYNCO, Kai Rollins, Drew Westbrook. I mean there’s a list that is just endless, but those aren’t options.”

And finally, you’ve been involved in the entertainment industry for a short while now. What would be your advice to anybody thinking of going the same route?

“Just work as hard as you possibly can. Because people are always gonna find a way to pick you apart, but as long as you can say to yourself that you’ve put in the effort to get to where you are then you’ll be alright.