NIKKI SIXX: Hosting Radio Show Is 'The Most Fun I've Had Outside Of Playing Rock And Roll'

Anne Erickson of Gibson.com recently conducted an interview with MÖTLEY CRÜE/SIXX: A.M. bassist Nikki Sixx. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Gibson.com: Your forthcoming CD, "This is Gonna Hurt", is a companion to the book. How are the emotions of the book and album intertwined?

Sixx: Well, the book was originally going be a coffee table book with just the art. Having a huge body of work, I was able to look at it and try to find some consistency in it, to bring it together in one collection. I started writing a passage that would accompany the photography book, and it ended up being almost 500 pages. It really turned into a breakdown on social commentary on beauty and those messages that have been downloaded into my head and my life, and I was able to find that thread. In that moment of inspiration, the guys in SIXX: A.M. could see it, too. We had that moment where we sat together as a band and talked and they were like, "Dude, I relate to this," or "I felt like that, as well." So we started writing music, and that started to push me more as a photographer. It really became like one in itself.

Gibson.com: What are you most proud you were able to accomplish on the album?

Sixx: I'm proud of the fact we were able to be vulnerable and honest as songwriters and true to what we said we were going to do – to raise the standard of songwriting within the band and really push ourselves musically. That's a good feeling. That honest punk rock attitude: just doing it because you love it.

Gibson.com: Any plans for the return of Crüe Fest this year?

Sixx: Well, we're doing a headline tour with POISON and NEW YORK DOLLS that will take us through August. At that point, we're heading towards the end of summer, and I don't know at that point what we're going to do or whether we're going to tour anymore or not. So right now, no plans for Crüe Fest.

Gibson.com: On top of writing, performing, and photography, you also host a nationally syndicated rock radio show, "Sixx Sense". How do you do it all?

Sixx: Radio is an opportunity to say something into a microphone, and whether you play a song or say something provocative or funny, it makes people have an emotional reaction. They feel something. They feel good. They feel bad. They feel angry. They feel disappointed. You have an opportunity to change something, and for me, that's where radio has always been a bit like magic. When I turn on the radio, it creates a mood, and I really enjoy that. Kerri Kasem, my co-host, and I do seven shows in four days, and it's very organized. It's a lot of work, and it's the most fun I've had outside of playing rock and roll. We laugh every day. No matter what you're going through, you have to deliver. If you're going through a high, you have to control that, and if you're going through a low, you have to control that, because that part of your life is personal and you always have a responsibility to entertain them.

Read the entire interview from Gibson.com.