COVER

Cheesy dreams, changing identities and living inside Netflix

We had the chance to catch up with drag and performance artists Scaredy Kat (Alex) and Pussy Kat (Remi) to talk all things first crushes, being inseparable (quite literally) and how to express your true self.

Q – Of course we know all about you, but how would you describe your current iteration of your art and characters?
Every persona we take on is a character – very little is real. To be honest, I sometimes look in the mirror and I don’t recognise the creature looking back anymore. Remi (Pussy Kat) is the same.

I often find her violently screaming at her reflection on a spoon.

However I’m not sure whether it’s her identity struggles or if it just freaks her out that her reflection is upside down.
Either way, it’s not something you want to wake up to most mornings. As for the art, again, it has control over us. What is and isn’t art? I’m pouring out Cheerios and wondering whether to frame it.
We are constantly creating stuff in all different ways, and often the art and the characters go hand in hand.

Alex is to the left and is wearing a thick black and white striped t-shirt with faux leather spiked wrist and neck cuffs. He has clown style makeup, white face, red cheeks, lips and nose. He has light brown short hair. Remi is to the right, she is wearing a long sleeved thin striped black and white t-shirt. She has similar makeup to Alex with darker eye makeup. Her hair is long and dark with a short full fringe. They are facing the camera, Only from chest up is visible. The background is a light baby blue faux fur blanket.

Q – How did you two meet?
The story of how we met is mental. I was trapped in a dream where I was a little mouse when suddenly I stumbled across Remi as a square piece of cheddar.

I was about to eat her but she started to profess her love for me – it was quite cheesy but what do you expect?

At that point, a fat ginger Tom came galloping in, began to chase us. I ran, grasping the Remi cheddar in my small mouse arms, and managed to jump through a vortex and back into the real world.
That’s when I woke up and Remi was lying next to me. We knew from then on that it was meant to be. That’s also why she has a fungal tang to her scent.

Q – Talking about your earlier personas, Scaredy Kat & Pussy Cat, where did you come up with these characters?
Scaredy and Pussy come from a few things.

Scaredy is the manifestation of fear and anxiety

seemingly innocent on the face of it but intensely twisted on the inside. She’s also like a doll/ puppet that has little emotion and wears too much makeup.

Pussy, on the other hand, is the evil twin/ lover to Scaredy. Dead for 666 years,

she was resurrected to cure the world of sin and make straight men uncomfortable.

Remi is to the right, she is wearing a long sleeved thin striped black and white t-shirt. She has clown style makeup on with a gothic twist. Red lips, cheeks and nose with dark smudged eye makeup. Her hair is long and dark with a short full fringe. She is facing the camera with a neutral expression. The background is a light baby blue faux fur blanket.

They’re both based on cats because there’s not much better in the world than a pussy.

Q – Have you always created art and content together?
Yes, ever since school. You should see our a-level sketchbooks.

We made an art exhibition all about social media once with modern day Mary the Virgin

– who was a nerd – and her bedroom full of monsters, a suicidal hamster, screenshots all over the walls, and a shrine to the iPhone.

You can check it out on the Scaredy Kat website. Everything we do, we do it together and it couldn’t happen in any other way.

Q – How do you balance working together and living together?
We don’t really. We’re insane. Balance doesn’t ever come into it.

We go to the toilet together.

We’re looking into getting medically connected, possibly by the big toe, but we haven’t decided.

Q – We saw your recent video series ‘Blare & Klare show’ can you tell us a bit about how that came to life?
Ah, so you’re the one. Thanks for watching. Bare and Klare have been living in our minds for years, desperate to show the human race the right way to live – like Blue Peter if Blue Peter wasn’t total crap.
We hate most things on TV and online and with the rise of reality T.V. and social media,

we feel that a lot of entertainment has been diluted.

'Bare' (Right) and 'Klare' (Left) are standing in a blur room with white shelved filled with childrens toys. Bare has a neutral face, Klare has a small smile. They are both holding a siamese colour fluffly cat in the middle which is looking to the camera.

Bare and Klare is our attempt at a kind of sketch show which is hopefully funny but also gets a few messages across. The main one being that Piers Morgan is a wanker.

Q – The theme of our Pride issue is CRUSH. Do you both remember your first crushes?
My first Crush (Hi, Alex here) was Lesley from Bridge to Terabithia but also Ralph from Horrid Henry –

it’s difficult being a bi child.

Also Marylin Monroe, Amy Winehouse, Dougie from McFly. So many choices, honestly it was a nightmare to decide.
Remi: mine was Shego from Kim Possible.

The queer vibes were too clear to be ignored.

Q – Scaredy Kat, we can’t interview you without asking how was your experience on Ru Paul’s Drag Race UK?

Anxiety-riddled, terrifying, freaky, all the above.

It’s weird being inside Netflix,

it’s not as innocent as being outside, looking in. I’m not sure reality T.V. is for me – to be honest, if it’s for you, you’re probably psychopathic.
And with the reality stars I’ve met, that theory definitely checks out. However it was cool being close to famous people –

Alan Carr smells like baby powder

for some reason. I wonder what he’s hiding.

Q – What would you advise upcoming performance artists who are looking at getting into drag?

Express your true self and don’t copy what you see on Drag Race.

Scaredy Kat (Alex Cubb) is facing the sunset in 'golden hour' with a backdrop of brambles and country road that is out of focus. They have long pink hair that is pinned out of their face and are wearing a faux leather neck cuff with spikes and two wrist cuffs with spikes. Their t-shirt says 'LAZY' in AC/DC pointy letters and has an illustration of an anthropomorphic yellow rabbit with long pink hair, arm tattoos, knee high boots and short shorts.

Scaredy Kat (Alex Cubb) is dressed in drag standing in the middle of a rural road, there are trees lining the road each side. They are dressed in a yellow mac, pink skirt and blue top with all the outlines drawn in black marker, to look like a cartoon. They are holding a cutout of a bear drawing and an umbrella. They have pink lips, harsh blue eye makeup and long brown hair.

Also, before you go in for the full big wig, eye lashes, nails, heels etc., think about how you’ll feel doing that in a year or two, or more.
Remember, RuPaul doesn’t do his own makeup for a reason. Apart from that, do something new and original with it and do a better job than me (shouldn’t be too difficult).

Q – We’re big fans of eco friendly artists and love that you have tips on your website. Given that it’s PRIDE month what are your top tips for keeping PRIDE parties more eco friendly? E.g glitter / paper cups

Of course, glitter is a big aspect of pride – the queers don’t know what to do with themselves without it.

But, it’s so important to make sure it’s eco-glitter so that you’re not putting nano-plastics into the environment – you can easily get that online.

Also, make sure that you use paper cups instead of plastic; try to eat vegan as much as possible (the meat and dairy industries have one of the biggest negative impacts on the planet); recycle all your waste; and try and make outfits from second hand materials! That’s if we’re ever allowed out of our houses.

But when we are, STAY ALERT. Whatever that means.

Q – We think it’s important to highlight sexuality, Scaredy Kat – you were very vocal about being bisexual in Ru Paul’s Drag Race UK. Are you both bi and how does that work with your relationship?
We are both bi, pan, whatever it is. We fall in love with personality and the individual person, which, to us, makes sense. As for our relationship, we both express all parts of our personality, femininity, masculinity, insanity.
Because of that, we get to share clothes, talk about everything openly, and have great sex.

If more, especially straight, couples were open about stuff, then a lot more women would be orgasming.

Then the world would be a better place.

Q – Let’s finish with some quick fire questions: Favourite bicon (bisexual or pansexual icon of all time)?
Alex: Amy Winehouse.
Remi: Aubrey Plaza

Q – What’s your bi stereotype you’d ban if you could?
Alex: That you’re actually just gay or straight.
Remi: That it’s a phase.

Q – What’s your lockdown theme song?
Alex: Standing in the Dew by me.
Remi: anything and everything by Courtney Barnett

They’re great choices! Thanks for taking the time to chat with us. If you want to keep track of what these cool Kats are up to you can check out their website here.

Interviewer | Lucy Everett
Photographer | Scaredy & Pussy

Scaredy Kat & Pussy Kat

Alex (SK) and Remi (PK) | London | Drag / Performance artists

Pussy Kat Instagram | Scaredy Kat Instagram| Website| Youtube

Scaredy and Pussy were interviewed by Lucy Everett