The Beauty of Social Media: A Connectionless Writer’s Unconventional Interview with Nikki Sixx of Mötley Crüe By Jessica Lydon

Since I’ve had access to the Internet (and the various videos and magazines it’s put at my fingertips), I’ve been deeply envious of all the music journalists, DJs, podcasters, and comedians who’ve gotten to interview my favorite musicians. I mean, getting to hang out with rock stars, write about them, and get paid for it? Is there any better job in the world? 

I had zero expectations of landing that gig myself. Until August of 2025, I was a nobody, trapped in suburban Pennsylvania with zero music industry connections and zero opportunities to make any. Even now, in California, I’m just a college student. How was I supposed to get anywhere near bands like Mötley Crüe, Guns N’ Roses, Metallica, Aerosmith, or AC/DC? My only potential options were paid meet and greets (a single one of which would cost a full season of earnings from my summer job) or sneaking backstage (which, for an average-looking girl with B cups, is a pipe dream). Even if either of those were feasible options, they don’t lead to interviews. 

Fortunately, it turned out, I had another option I’d never even considered: social media. Instagram was always just the place where my friends and I spammed each other reels, and I had never used X (or, as I still defiantly call it, Twitter) at all. That all changed when I found out Nikki Sixx, my personal hero and the primary songwriter of my favorite band, occasionally uses those platforms to interact with his fans. Suddenly, I had to be on them and active, no matter how low the chances were. 

Apparently, they weren’t all that low after all. Mr. Sixx must have either liked my vibe or taken pity on me, because he’s given my comments eleven likes and seven replies, which is eleven likes and seven replies more than I ever expected. Thanks to his generosity with his time and effort, despite all the odds stacked against me, I have been able to construct my first rock n’ roll interview. 

Nikki Sixx: Home Sweet Home- So happy to be back [in Wyoming] with @how2girl [Courtney Sixx] and the family. Jessica Lydon: Have fun getting back to…yeah, nvm, I have no idea what people do in Wyoming. NS: We spend a lot of time with friends and family outside. And NO TRAFFIC. �� 

JL: Okay, the no traffic part is lowkey tempting. I hate winter too much, though. 

NS: There are so many exciting projects ahead this year and next. Mötley only has 33 shows this summer, leaving room for other creative ventures. I’ve never been good at doing just one thing at a time. JL: “Only 33”? Dude, your work ethic terrifies me (keep it up tho) 

NS: That’s a walk in the park with the way we tour these days. I come home every 10 days or so for a few weeks to be with my family. That’s what really matters. 

JL: Everybody always asks about favorite music, but do you have a LEAST favorite song, artist, or genre? I know you really don’t like Rush, but is there anything else? 

NS: I basically like all music. In my DNA will always be the music I love to play live, but there are so many cool genres out there. I say take a little bit from all of them. Some you’ll love, some maybe not so much. I’m not a big fan of a lot of modern rap with pop layered all over it. I like the old-school stuff. It just felt so fucking real. That’s all any of us really want—to be real to who we are at that moment. 

JL: Do you have a favorite of your books, or any that were a better writing process than the others? NS: They are all so different. The First 21 was a joy to write. 

JL: Do you own the horses [in your Instagram pictures]? If you do, how do you get them from Wyoming to L.A.? NS: Alien ship.

JL: I dressed up as you for Halloween this year, does the GOAT approve? (Fun fact, my birthday is November 1st, and I was out past midnight, so I turned 19 while looking like this) 

NS: Love it. How fun. Did anybody recognize you? 

JL: Yes, multiple people did! One girl came up to me and took pics with me for her Insta at the party. I felt so cool. 

NS: Any off-the-cuff questions I can try and answer? Stuff like: “What was the very rare and never-released song Nobody Knows What It’s Like To Be Lonely about?” Those kinds of questions. 

JL: Yes, sir �� What was the very rare and never-released song “Nobody Knows What It’s Like To Be Lonely” about? NS: You’ll find out in the new book. �� 

Social media definitely has its downsides. There will always be cyberbullying, creepy DMs, and off-putting looksmaxxers encouraging impressionable children to smash their facial bones with hammers. But with enough passion and dedication, it can also provide incredible opportunities. In this case, it has done what no amount of schooling, degrees, good grades, hard work, or wishing at 11:11 could: give an East Coast nobody with nothing but a deep love for music and a dream the chance to converse and connect with her hero. For that (and to Mr. Sixx), I will always be grateful.

Connect with Nikki Sixx:
Instagram: @nikkisixx
Website: nikkisixx.net
Mötley Crüe: motley.com

By: Jessica Lydon