For our first episode of Subvrt Speed Dating, we invited LA-based performance artist and musical icon Saturn Rising and Denver-based virtual bubblegum popstar That Kid to meet for the first time in an online trivia date to find out some fun facts about each other. The conversation started off in the cutest way possible, with both artists praising each other’s music, choreography and cover art, and then quickly voicing the need to reapply lip gloss. We gave each artist 7 trivia questions to ask, and instructed them to end the date with a virtual photoshoot.

Check out the 4-minute video we compiled below of some of the highlights, followed by snippets from the interview.

That Kid: What’s your fear?

Saturn Rising: It’s really stupid. I don’t think it’s stupid, I’ve fought for this. It is a phobia that started as a kid and continues till now…it’s gum. 

That Kid: Wait…what? *laughs* Okay, I need an explanation. What is this fear?

Saturn Rising: Okay, so I’m a big germophobe and as much as I enjoy oral-esque things, I don’t enjoy other people’s gum, toothpaste, anything that is spending a lot of time inside your mouth, food, I don’t want to see it. But gum especially, because it’s sticky. Gum is usually left over somewhere, and it accumulates all this shit and you end up touching it somehow. You know how people they chew and play with it.

That Kid: Okay, yeah, I get it.

Saturn Rising: Right, and my mom was a crazy germaphobe, so I had this idea that things were gross and I just fixated on gum. To this day, if someone is like *makes smacking noises with their mouth*, you will catch me slow eye.

That Kid: It makes sense, especially now that we’re dealing with COVID. Germs – you’re onto something.

Saturn Rising’s latest music video, “Ready”.

Saturn: Comics or cartoons?

That Kid: Okay, this is tough. I love both, I’m more of an anime fan, but I would say comics because my dad has a huge comic book collection, he’s a collector. I grew up going to Comic Cons, so they’re a little bit more special to me.

That Kid: So what did you grow up watching?

Saturn Rising: I was into Charmed, anything witchy. I loved Anna Nicole’s show. Very Lucille Ball, genius of performance. I loved watching strong female leads.

That Kid: Asides from anime, I watched a lot of reality TV with my mom. We would watch “Flavor of Love” or any sort of love show or “I love money”. If it was on VH1 I would probably be watching it, or CNN.

Saturn Rising: Love. Larry King Live?

That Kid: No. (both laugh) Okay, I talk about this all the time, I have the hugest crush on Anderson Cooper. I am in love with him, I am convinced I am going to marry him.

Saturn Rising: Yes girl, he likes us *rubs skin* (both laugh).

That Kid: I would watch him every day after school, I would’ve been around 10. I had no idea what he was talking about, I was just like I love this man. I used to watch the TV show he had, Youtube, I was obsessed.

Saturn Rising: I probably shouldn’t say this because it’s politically incorrect, but fuck it. I told Casi, my roommate, I wish Cuomo was an okay guy to like, because I saw him shirtless and thought he’s so hot. And I think that agro-news anchor hotness is really a turn on. 

That Kid: Hey. You do you.

Saturn Rising: But not Andrew, just Chris, the brother on CNN.

Saturn Rising: If you wrote a memoir, what would it be called? 

That Kid: Honestly, I don’t even know. Actually, “America’s Favorite Twink”, that’s been in my bio everywhere.

Skater Boy single, That Kid’s latest release.

That Kid: What was your favorite subject at school?

Saturn Rising: I didn’t look forward to school whatsoever. If there was a class that I liked it was theatre. I was skipping too. Actually, let’s plug Ms Kamala Harris because she actually wrote my mom a truancy letter when I was in school. Vote Kamala and Biden. However, when I was ditching, her job was to threaten legal action against the parents. I should’ve had my ass in school, and my mom should’ve been making me go to school. But she was like, “if your child doesn’t go to school, you will go to jail”.

Saturn Rising: If you had to wear one outfit for the rest of your life what would it be?

That Kid: Probably just a crop top and a tennis skirt. That’s my favorite outfit to wear. Or anything with cat ears, I love to put on cat ears, they’re so fun. Maybe if nudity wasn’t a sexualised thing, just be naked.

Saturn Rising: You’d wear yourself. I would wear a mesh baggy jumpsuit. Fine mesh that is basically see-through.

That Kid: If you could be invisible for a day, what would you do?

Saturn Rising: Well, I would probably listen in on the conversations I would like to hear. I would go door-to-door just sitting in people’s living rooms as they say things that I needed the answers to. I’d probably die and go to heaven after that, having all of the tea that I need. 

That Kid: I feel like that’s an easy way to get your feelings hurt though.

Saturn Rising: I don’t like getting my feelings hurt, but I would prefer to get them hurt and move on. I hate limbo, I hate limbo. Move it on.

Saturn Rising: Finish this sentence. “I will never forgot the time I…”

That Kid: The time my dad and I went to a flea market. I was in eighth grade, and I don’t know why it was such an impactful thing for me. That was a really good day for me though.

Thank you to both That Kid and Saturn Rising for kicking off the Subvrt Speed Dating series.

Find Saturn Rising’s music on Bandcamp and their adventures on Instagram.

Check out That Kid on Spotify, and his thoughts on Twitter.