The Foxies' Julia is sugar, spice and everything nice

Sometimes you meet people and you can just feel positivity emanating from their every pore.

Julia Lauren Bullock smiled impishly at me behind the passion fruit Corona she’d fished from her fridge when we decided it was okay to have FaceTime Happy Hour at 12 pm (quarantine rules are airport rules, folx). Leading lady of Nashville band The Foxies, Julia is the hybrid between Blondie and young Madonna when she told a reporter that she wanted to “rule the world.”

Imagine a pink-haired, cosmic pixie that commands every room with her infectious laugh & captivating presence…maybe you’ll have some idea the effect Julia has on her immediate surroundings. Or just listen to her music. You’ll see.

The Foxies began as a more polished, “cotton-candy” pop solo project in Phoenix in 2015, though Julia’s raspy, powerful vocals have always leaned a little more towards punk than pop. After meeting her Nashville-based band their sound began to evolve into something “grittier, sexier, more tongue in cheek,” becoming the slightly androgynous “glitter-punk” project it was always meant to be.

“If it wasn’t for my band, we wouldn’t be doing what we’re doing right now…they’re my little cupcakes…my little Ding Dongs…my little Ho Ho’s!”

Following in the footsteps of Joy Division, The Smiths, & Cindi Lauper, The Foxies’ live performance is simultaneously seductive and “in your face,” like living in a goth disco.

Hey! Whats up? I love you…but you don’t know whether I’m going to kiss you or spit at you.

They have historically utilized music to unpack the trials & tribulations of relationships, but their upcoming project dives into internal exploration, boundary setting, and the intricacies of investing in yourself.

The world is being forced to tap into this deeper knowing as we speak. As we sit on our couches, we have no choice but to confront the culturally enforced idea that productivity is more important than learning to live with yourself. As described in The Foxies’ upcoming release, Antisocialite, it’s about “being totally fine with sitting on my ass watching Netflix and not having FOMO! It’s the ode to not being a social butterfly and being ok with it! It’s like, ‘okay coronavirus lets gooooo.’”

Julia, like many of the best artists we know and love, is an well-acquainted with harnessing the kinetic potential of dreams –

“I want to be successful in a sense that I make the whole world feel united with my music. It’s really hard, especially in times like these when people feel super lost. If our music is the thing that gives them hope, that’s what I want to do for my entire life. For one second, one song, everyone is the same.”

There is an access point in music to deeper awareness – “a primal instinct when you know it’s wonderful. Either your body and your soul loves it or it doesn’t.” The secret to this connection is vulnerability, and not the kind of “authenticity” being spread across social media. The real kind that comes from “having gone through really hard times, falling down, and having to pick yourself up again,” and the acknowledgement that “everybody’s going through stuff like this, and every viewpoint is subjective.”

The standard when assessing true quality – in art, politics, music, sex, etc. – is vulnerability. Julia has become a master of opening herself up through music – “being onstage is where I feel completely me – where I can shed all the layers of my onion.”

There isn’t fear of judgement or trying to please some invisible standard of success, just “cut me open and this is what you get.” People eat that shit up. It makes us feel like we’re less alone.

If this hasn’t convinced you to go presave The Foxies’ new single, Antisocialite, I’m not sure what will. Plus you’ll get to say you jumped on the bandwagon before they blew up. Blessed quarantine, bb’s.

Fun Facts

Biggest Idol:

Bowie is one of my biggest idols – he fought for years to be relevant, but it wasn’t until he decided to do his own thing that it stuck. It was finally what he wanted…and when he was honest about it, people took to it. He’s like a musical – fashion chameleon. I miss him every single day.

Freakiest thing you’ve ever done:

Taxi sex! I had sex on a taxi in Milwaukee

What is a social cause you can get behind?

Feminine strength – women supporting women. Women should be allowed to make decisions for themselves. I don’t want a man telling me what I can do with my uterus.