Pushing textbooks and projects aside, University students are able to use the environment as a place to collaborate and produce content outside of an assigned syllabus. Pop Rox Zine is no exception.
English sophomore Hailey Manint, and textiles, apparel design and merchandising sophomore Tommy Do are the innovative minds behind Pop Rox.
Launched in January on Squarespace, the online zine places an emphasis on local pop culture and fashion. Manint and Do are the primary contributors but welcome collaborations with guest contributors.
Manint approached Do, a long-time friend and previous employee of The Daily Reveille, about the possibility of starting a creative project that allowed for freedom of expression and fluidity of ideas and content.
“We’re trying to tap into an artistic community in the south, especially in this area where it sometimes feels like it’s not really youth-based or encouraged,” she said. “We want to encourage that culture of sharing with your fellow people who are also creative and who are also trying to get their ideas out on a platform.”
Along with Squarespace, Manint said Instagram is the main medium that their audience is using to keep up with the zine’s content.
Manint and Do usually alternate between the roles of creative director and stylist for their photo shoots, which are accompanied by shorter articles.
Both co-creators work in the retail industry, and knew they wanted to find a way to incorporate fashion, style and culture into their publication. Manint works at Time Warp Boutique, a local shop known for its vintage clothing selection.
Manint often borrows from Time Warp to style models for photo shoots, and she said one shirt can be an inspiration for an entire shoot. While the zine has a heavy focus on fashion, Pop Rox has no genre limitations as to what type of content it produces.
“We bounce ideas off of each other until we find something we both really like and can build an article around,” Manint said.
Manint said she plans to work with Do to expand the project for the remainder of her college career. She said Pop Rox combines her passions for writing, fashion and creativity into one project.
“It’s melding my interests. When you bring that together and it has a theme and a cultural undertone to it, it makes doing it a lot easier,” she said.
Because Pop Rox is still in its early stages, only a couple of pieces have been produced so far. Manint said she hopes to build up to more full-scale features, and that the eventual goal of the project is to be in print. Gaining funds to support the production of the zine is a long-term objective for the duo.
“We would hope to eventually incorporate product into our shoots,” she said. “Eventual sponsorship would be ideal.”
Pop Rox aims to publish new content every one to two weeks.
“The official definition of a zine is a print book, so we’re naming it that to set our goal,” Manint said. “Right now, what we have is a blog, but we’re working toward this zine aspect.”

Gallery • 15 Photos

Anjana Nair

LSU English and Creative Writing major Hailey Manint has created an alternative culture and fashion outlet called Pop Rox Zine.