Daydream Playbook Entry #27
A Q&A with Jayme Darling, CREEM Magazine Merchandise Manager
Working for CREEM Magazine, “America’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll Magazine,” is a lesson in unfiltered music, individuality, and raw journalism. In this Q&A, learn more about where Jayme Darling, CREEM Magazine’s Merchandise Manager, draws inspiration from, as she fights the good fight to keep rock (and print) alive and well for future generations of music-lovers and rebels!
From where do you draw creative inspiration?
Music! Vintage rock/counter culture ephemera: flyers, zines, whacky patches, pins, and bumper stickers. Old cartoons, illustrations and ads from the CREEM archive, analog anything. Being in nature, walks with my dog, conversations with friends. Life in general. Inspiration is everywhere – you just have to open your mind.
How does CREEM act as a creative outlet for you and other rock 'n' roll lovers?
I curate the New Music Friday playlist each week. Discovering new artists from colleagues and fans of CREEM has been very rewarding. “You gotta listen to this song” is a love language!
It’s easy to get stuck in your own way in the algorithm hellscape. CREEM is loud, opinionated, and controversial. We might piss you off, but at least we make you think. And we’ll probably make a T-shirt about it.
What is your favorite project that you've done with CREEM?
This is a tough one! There have been so many. One standout project was our Fan Club collaboration with Le Puzz, which featured a photo spread from the May 1980 feature ‘Between The Buttons’ and a pack of new pins. As a collector of old shit, it’s something I’d hope my nieces, nephews, and the next generation will look back on in some odd years and draw inspiration from, or at least think is really cool.
What is the most fulfilling part of the creative process for you and why?
Building community, getting product out into the world to fellow rock ’n’ roll obsessives, bringing joy to people who care about this thing as much as we do. That gives me the warm fuzzies.
How important is collaboration to your creative process and to the creative success of CREEM?
It’s dependent on it. We wouldn’t be here first without the musicians, and then the writers, photographers, illustrators, art directors, partners, printers, and everybody else behind the scenes who make it happen. There’s no ‘I’ in CREEM!