You might think that tattoo artist, television personality and entrepreneur Kat Von D phoning into Hot Press from rural Indiana doesn’t add up, but when you factor in the artist’s knack for subverting expectations, it makes a lot more sense.

Calling from her home in the small town of Vevay - with one of her beloved sphinx cats wrapped around her shoulders - the tattoo artist turned entrepreneur turned musician is enjoying a brief respite from an undeniably busy spell.

This summer, she will set off on a lengthy tour around Europe and the UK, which includes a headliner in The Academy in Dublin on 21st June. With unending grá for the Emerald Isle, Kat Von D is excited to make her Irish return.

“The first time I went to Dublin was for a meet and greet,” Kat says. “There was such an interesting creative energy there. This is obviously a generalisation but, out of all the meet-and-greets I had that year, Dublin really struck a chord with me. The girls that came to see me were very sensitive and expressive. I would admire the fan art that they would bring and I felt a relatability to the people of Dublin. This is my first time going back in a decade, and I’m so excited”.

It will be her first musical performance in Dublin, following on from her career pivot towards music in 2021 with her debut full-length album Love Made Me Do It. 

Long before the tattoos, television fame, top-selling books and a treasured beauty empire, Kat Von D was a classically-trained piano prodigy. But such musical aspirations were placed on the back-burner when she appeared as the stalwart, tell-it-like-it-is tattoo artist on the reality TV shows Miami Ink and later LA Ink.

After that, she went on to start a highly-successful beauty brand, open an art gallery, narrate an animal rights documentary and pen NYT bestsellers. It is this sentiment of being a driven creative that places Kat Von D’s art in a world of its own. There is an air of raw profusion to her output. Keeping that notion of unfiltered honesty in mind, she has returned to her first love: music.

In September 2024, she released her sophomore album My Side of the Mountain. The recording process saw Kat tap into her earlier inspirations.

“When I first started writing music, people assumed that I’d make something along the lines of metal, just because I've been in the metal world for so long," Kat chimes. "I love metal, but I'm a huge fan of electronic music, analogue sounds and bands like Depeche Mode, The Cure and Siouxsie and the Banshees.

“Although I don't believe we sound anything like them. But that’s more where my heart resides, in this idea of melting the two worlds of technology and the human fingerprint. I think it’s important to give the robot a soul”.

With this, My Side of the Mountain pedals a pulverising soundscape that blends disco goth with synthwave, post-punk and ‘80s electronic sensibilities. But perhaps more than an aural transformation, the album sees Kat Von D pushing at the boundaries of her ambition.

“I feel that when I wrote my first album, I was a lot younger and not as confident vocally," she recalls. "So on this album, I really wanted to step out of my comfort zone and push myself. I worked with a vocal coach and collaborated with Ferras, who typically works with pop acts like Katy Perry.

“Obviously, I don’t sound like Katy Perry, but I think adding pop elements to my gothic industrial [sound] makes for an interesting blend of worlds. Right now it’s kind of trendy to have a little goth band, and I feel like a lot of them start blurring and sounding like each other. That’s always been a turn off for me. It’s one thing to pay homage to the bands you love. Like, I love Bauhaus, but I don’t want to sound like Peter Murphy.

“People write differently. But for me, I typically start with chords on the piano. So there’s no electronics and fancy mics involved. But getting to watch an idea become tangible – the ability to follow through – is the proudest feeling I could have. I’m a dreamer, but at the end of the day, I like to execute”.

It might be said that this desire to balance dreaming and execution is best laid out on the stage, where the unfiltered chaos and awe unfold in real time. Naturally, I’m curious how Kat is preparing to formulate her intricate sound for a live performance.

“There’s a lot more work that goes into it,” she offers. “It’s just a different world. I love the ability to tell a story in person and not just focus on the sound. Getting to share the stage with my bandmate Sammi Doll is so bonding and emotional for me, she’s like the sister I’ve always wanted.

“There are great things about being in the studio versus being on stage. I became best friends with the songwriters I worked with on this album, and they’re my heroes. I think it’s something that’s so cool to do. The live part is mainly the interaction that I get to have with people".

Kat Von D performs The Academy on Saturday, 21st June. Tickets are on sale now via Ticketmaster.