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I still remember the first flight I ever took and the magazine I was reading during it. My favorite band at the time was the Jonas Brothers, and I was on my way to see them at Madison Square Garden in NYC. I had a bag full of lip gloss, a couple of magazines that I grabbed from the local supermarket, and my CD player. I was ready to go and didn’t have the pressure to over prepare that I get when traveling today. Granted, I was 12, so I still had the childhood innocence and lack of inner critique, but it’s still interesting to compare how I packed for a trip then vs. how I do now.
The preteen years were definitely a mixed bag, but overall I can confidently say that I was much less of an over thinker, I had a crazy creative confidence that I wish I could crack open nowadays, and I sat around daydreaming about working for Rolling Stone and/or starting my own record label.
When I think back to that time, I love that I was reading a magazine on the flight while listening to my CD player. I had one mix that I played repeatedly and never felt the need to constantly look for something new. It feels crazy now to even consider packing multiple CDs in your bag in case you get tired of one, when everything is so readily available on our phones. The simplicity of that time was wonderful. My favorite artists would release an album, and I would wear it out until the next release came.
There is such an urgency and massive push to get things faster and faster, especially when it comes to music. It’s totally normal for an artist to take a few years to release new music, and yet after a single is released, it seems that the public is already hungry for what’s next, despite not knowing the time and creativity that go into releasing that one single. And yes, I am also one of the people that gets sucked into this cycle (don’t even get me started on binging tv shows, lol).
That could be another thing that draws me into print media. It’s consistent, you know when it’s coming, and you can count on the fact that it’s coming when you expect it. I am one of those people who anxiously waits for my new edition of Vogue to arrive every month. Despite already knowing some of what’s going to be inside through social media and the growing advertising pages that seem to continue devouring everything around us, I still love flipping through and reading the features. Ugh, I dream of working for a magazine, but until that dream comes true, I’ll just continue making my own and perusing others.
That is the one thing that has always stayed with me from then to now. I still love things in print rather than digital, and no one can tell me differently. One of my go-to souvenirs that I always grab is a magazine. It’s great for travel days, and especially if you’re going to a sunny destination.
There is something so nice about seeing something come to life in print. You can’t edit it last minute or fix anything after the fact. It’s a final piece that gets locked in time. A perfect little time capsule of your creativity (whether that be a magazine, printed marketing material, package design, etc.). The permanence of print is just such a refreshing thing. Being able to check "final" and have it be printed—and really be final—is great. One thing I struggle with within my own process is the idea of something being final. There’s always another edit to make, another image to use, or another way to say something. And if I focus too hard on those little things, then I never come up with the will to finalize it.
Maybe that’s why I always subconsciously gravitate toward print. It’s a forced finalization that I need. And although I’d probably make an edit or two to the work once it’s printed, the fact that I can’t gives me a great sense of calm.
For the past two years, I have been feeling all kinds of nostalgia, and though I couldn’t find my own copy of the Jonas Brothers 2008 issue of Rolling Stone, I did find a pristine copy on eBay, and yes, I bought it SO quickly.
While flipping through, I took some pics of my favorite pages and spreads. I love the type treatments, grid layouts, and advertising. I always wanted a BlackBerry, but unfortunately I only had access to a variety of flip phones and a Voyager (which I still have, by the way).
I love the BlackBerry ad below especially. All of the colors and nostalgic imagery. I also really, really love the top 10 lists and song charts. I remember waiting for these lists to come up so I could look up the emerging artists and songs. Such a fun time.
In honor of nostalgia, here’s a song for you to listen to as you scroll through these pages. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
To be honest there were a lot of great hits in 2008, but these felt the most relaxing (and were a couple of my most played tracks).
If you’ve made it this far, you deserve a little surprise… here’s 12-year-old me with my camcorder glued to my hand, watching my favorite childhood band. Enjoy!
THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE!!!
Until next time,
Bailey
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And if you’d like to work together on a creative project in 2026, feel free to email me at bailey@staticcatstudio.com
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