Playing the Field

23 artists who define "multi media" with their hidden talents

By Kelley Hecker
Published: March 29th, 2010 | 12:35am

Venus Zine's spring 2010 issue features an article entitled "Crossing Over," which profiles creative folks who, like our cover girl Melissa Auf der Maur, successfully cross art platforms. Musicians who can bake; writers who can illustrate; actors who can sing (no, Keanu did not make our list)—we've got 'em all. Pick up our print issue to see who made the cut and keep reading the continuing story here with another 23 people you should look out for.

ALEXEI PERRY
You know her best as one-half of the indie rock duo Handsome Furs, but what you may not know is she’s also a writer. Perry has been self-publishing short stories and poems for years and started selling her books on tour once she and husband Dan Boeckner (Wolf Parade) began touring as Handsome Furs. Perry has commented on how difficult writing lyrics can be, but has said it’s an important and enjoyable challenge…and, so far, she and Boeckner have done one hell of a job on their albums Plague Park (Sub Pop) and Face Control.

AZIZ ANSARI
You know him best as the scene-stealing Raaaaaaaandy in the Judd Apatow flick Funny People and Tom Haverford on Parks and Recreation, but what you may not know is the stand-up comedian is also a writer and producer. For two seasons, he and his friends Rob Huebel and Paul Scheer wrote and produced the MTV sketch comedy show, Human Giant. In January, Ansari released his first comedy album and DVD, Intimate Moments for a Sensual Evening (Comedy Central Records), and he’s currently working on a Raaaaaaaandy mixtape with Dave Sitek of TV on the Radio. Don’t miss Ansari this summer when he’ll be heading on the road and premiering new material on the “Dangerously Delicious Tour.”

B.J. NOVAK
You know him best as Ryan Howard on The Office, but what you may not know is he’s also a stand-up comedian, screenwriter, and TV director. After graduating from Harvard, Novak moved to L.A. where he played clubs and soon found himself on Variety’s 2003 list of the “Ten Comedians to Watch.” Novak’s first writing gig was for the short lived comedy—as in it lasted a mere two episodes—Raising Dad, and his big break came when he was hired as a writer for the U.S. version of The Office. Since then, Novak has gone on to serve as the producer, director, writer, and story editor for many of the show’s episodes. Additionally, he was recently seen in Quentin Tarantino’s much-lauded Inglorious Basterds, and Novak continues to impress with his stand-up for the lucky crowds who are able to catch him.

CAMILLA WYNNE-INGR
You know her best as an ex-member of indie-poppers Pony Up! and the current multi-instrumentalist in Sunset Rubdown, but what you may not know is she has a bakery named Backroom Bakeshoppe that is run out of Montreal’s Backroom Records. Wynne-Ingr likes to experiment with new recipes and you never know what she’ll have on hand on any given day—but in the past she has sold homemade preserves, marmalade, and various types of brownies, tarts, and cupcakes, along with a slew of other goodies.

CAREY MERCER
You know him best as the singer-songwriter and guitarist for Frog Eyes, Swan Lake, and Blackout Beach, but what you may not know is he’s a writer who contributed a short story to The Lifted Brow 4 and maintains a blog where he pens some pretty massive and entertaining entries. Mercer’s also a painter and created many of his album covers. Not to be outdone, he also teaches English at a school in British Columbia. Oh, to be a fly on the wall during one of his classes…

CHER
You know her best as the pop singer famous for songs including the ’70s duo “I Got You Babe” and the 1999 dance hit “Believe,” but what you may not know is she’s a serious actor as well. Cher was nominated for a slew of acting awards in the ’80s and won an Academy Award for her role in Moonstruck as well as a Golden Globe for being the best supporting actress in Silkwood. Currently, Cher is filming the musical Burlesque alongside Christina Aguilera, Kristen Bell, and Stanley Tucci, and is reportedly set to release her 26th studio album this year.

CHRISTINA AGUILERA
You know her best as the wildly successful belter behind such hits as “Fighter” and “Ain’t No Other Man,” but what you may not know is she’s starting her acting career. Aguilera will have a cameo in the Judd Apatow comedy Get Him to the Greek—about Russell Brand’s character in Forgetting Sarah Marshall—and the aforementioned Burlesque with Stanley Tucci, Cher, and Kristen Bell. Additionally, Aguilera will release her highly anticipated fourth English album, Bionic (RCA), in June, which features surprising contributions from the indie world including Sia, M.I.A., Santigold, Ladytron, Goldfrapp, and Le Tigre.

CONAN O'BRIEN
You know him best as Coco!, the former host of the Emmy-winning Late Night with Conan O’Brien and The Tonight Show, but what you may not know is the comedian began as a television writer and producer. O’Brien contributed skits to Saturday Night Live and acted as producer and writer on The Simpsons during the early ’90s where he penned some hilarious episodes including “Homer Goes to College” and “Marge vs. the Monorail.” Starting April 12, O’Brien will head across North America on “The Legally Prohibited from Being Funny on Television” tour and is expected to return to the airwaves this fall.

FRED ARMISEN
You know him best as a cast member on Saturday Night Live, but what you may not know is he started out as a musician. Armisen played drums for the punk band Trenchmouth in the ’90s, and after their breakup, went on to play drums for the Blue Man Group. Also of note, Armisen contributed talent to several tracks on Les Savy Fav’s 2007 album Let’s Stay Friends (Frenchkiss), and, with the help of LSF’s Seth Jabour, opened a few shows for Joanna Newsom’s Have One on Me (Drag City) tour as Jens Hannemann.

JAMES GUNN
You know him best as the writer and director of the horror comedy Slither and the writer of the 2004 remake of George Romero’s Dawn of the Dead, but what you may not know is he also has published two books (The Toy Collector and All I Need to Know about Filmmaking I Learned from the Toxic Avenger) and released an album with his former band, the Icons. Gunn most recently wrote and directed the web series PG Porn and currently has three films in the works.

JAMIE PRESSNALL (WILLIAMS)
You know her best as the tap-dancer for Omaha’s adorable indie-pop band Tilly and the Wall, but what you may not know is she’s also a singer-songwriter and guitarist. While in college, Pressnall sang, played guitar, and occasionally tapped for the twee band Park Ave. (alongside Conor Oberst and Tilly bandmate Neely Jenkins), and later, Magic Kiss alongside another Tilly, Kianna Alarid.

LEISHA HAILEY
You know her best as Alice Pieszecki on Showtime’s The L Word, but what you may not know is she began as a musician, forming the pop duo the Murmurs in 1991. In 2007, Hailey and Camila Grey formed the pop band Uh Huh Her, and the two are currently working on the follow-up to their debut full-length, Common Reaction (Nettwerk).

LILY ALLEN
You know her best as the singer-songwriter with hits such as “Smile” and “The Fear,” but what you may not know is she also hosted her own television show and created a fashion line. Allen’s talk show, Lily Allen and Friends, debuted on BBC Three in 2008 and has featured celebrities, online personalities, and musicians, as well as showcasing weird highlights from her YouTube and MySpace pages. Allen is reported to return for another season of her show, but because of other commitments, it’s unsure when that will happen. Prior to her TV show, Allen created a fashion line named Lily Loves in 2007, a collection of colorful dresses, sneakers, and heels—you know, the kind of stuff she always wore when Alright, Still (Regal) came out. Last fall, Allen also dabbled in modeling for Chanel’s line of luxury handbags.

MICHAEL DOERKSEN
You know him best as the drummer, guitarist, and bassist for Sunset Rubdown, but what you may not know is the musician is part of an artist collective named the Discriminating Gentleman’s Club and maintains a blog where he displays photographs of his artwork, which ranges from installations to Styrofoam models to drawings—all of which you can see for yourself here.

MORGAN NAGLER
You know her best as the singer-songwriter and guitarist for the indie rock band Whispertown 2000, but what you may not know is like her pals Jenny Lewis and Blake Sennett, she’s a former actor. Though most of Nagler’s parts were small, some were certainly memorable including her role as Tina, Ashley’s friend on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air who had a crush on Will Smith’s character.

NEKO CASE
You know her best as the alt-country singer-songwriter and musician, but what you may not know is she’s also an actor—voice actor, anyway. In 2008, Case starred in an episode of the animated series Aqua Teen Hunger Force, and she’s nabbed the lead in Adult Swim’s forthcoming cartoon Cheyenne Cinnamon and the Fantabulous Unicorn of Sugar Town Candy Fudge. Case will also star in Stephen King and John Mellencamp’s forthcoming musical, “Ghost Brothers of Darkland County,” with Elvis Costello, Kris Kristofferson, Rosanne Cash, Sheryl Crow, and other noted singers. The play will hit the stage in Atlanta in September, but those not able to attend will be able to buy a three-disc album of the play, which legendary producer T-Bone Burnett will helm.

RASHIDA JONES
You know her best as the actress who currently stars on Parks and Recreation, but what you may not know is Quincy Jones’ daughter has also dabbled in music, modeling, and writing. Jones has provided backing vocals on two of Maroon 5’s albums, as well as soundtracks for The Ten, Reno 911!: Miami, and The Baxter. In years past, Jones modeled for clothing companies Gap and Triple 5 Soul and briefly worked as a contributing editor at Teen Vogue. Just last year, Jones sold her first screenplay titled Celeste and Jesse Forever, which she is also set to star in.

RYAN GOSLING
You know him best as the hunky actor from movies including The Notebook, Half Nelson, and Lars and the Real Girl, but what you may not know is he’s also a singer-songwriter and musician in the band Dead Man’s Bones. In October, Gosling and his friend Zach Shields released their well-received, self-titled debut on ANTI—a haunting, theatric collaboration with the Silverlake Conservatory Children’s Choir. That same month, the duo toured North America, and performed with different, hand-picked choirs at every stop.

SCARLETT JOHANSSON
You know her best as the actress from indie hits Ghost World and Lost in Translation, but what you may not know is she’s released two albums, one comprised of Tom Waits covers (Anywhere I Lay My Head, Atco/Rhino); and one a collaboration with Pete Yorn (Break Up, Atco/Rhino). Unfortunately, neither album has fared particularly well with critics, a curse of the actor cum musician class also attended by Jared Leto, Russell Crowe, and Keanu Reeves among others.

SPENCER KRUG
You know him best as the multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter in bands like Wolf Parade, Sunset Rubdown, and Swan Lake, but what you may not know is he’s an active doodler and responsible for much of the Sunset Rubdown artwork, both on merchandise and albums. Krug writes, too, and has published one story in The Lifted Brow 4, as well as a collection of dreams that he released with his Moonface Dreamland EP: Marimbas and Shit-Drums (Jagjaguwar). Krug studied creative writing in college and has said he would like to focus more on that in the future. In the meantime, Wolf Parade is putting the finishing touches on their third album, due this summer.

SYDNEY VERMONT
You know her best as the singer-songwriter who, along with her boyfriend Dan Bejar, makes up the duo Hello, Blue Roses, but what you may not know is she’s first and foremost a visual artist. Vermont is responsible for Destroyer’s Trouble in Dreams (Merge) artwork and is working on a project named “Edith’s Diary” which incorporates sculpture, writing, and video. She’s also very involved with drawing, painting, silkscreening, and other crafts, and contributed a short story to The Lifted Brow 4. Some of her art can be viewed at her Web site, sydneyvermont.com.

TOM WAITS
You know him best as the immensely popular multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter with that oh-so-distinctive voice, but what you may not know is he has also acted since the ’70s. Waits started with a bit part as an uncredited "drunken bar owner" in Wolfen and later enjoyed the lead role in Jim Jarmusch’s Down By Law. There was also a role in 1992’s Dracula alongside Anthony Hopkins and Gary Oldman—and Waits’ most recent role was as the devil, Mr. Nick, in Terry Gilliam’s late 2009 movie, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.

ZOOEY DESCHANEL
You know her best as the quirky actress most famous for her roles in Almost Famous, Elf, and (500) Days of Summer, but what you may not know is Cotton’s it girl is also a seriously talented singer-songwriter and musician. OK… you probably did know that but She & Him, her collaboration with M. Ward, already has two excellent albums under its belt and it’s exciting to see what the doe-eyed ingénue will come up with next.