We are proud to present to you our Miss Metal-Blast For May! As we already established, to be a Miss Metal-Blast you gotta have personality, creativity, and be a true metal head! Well Rana (pronounced Ray-na) is all that and more as you'll see in a moment. So without further adieu, let's check out why Rana is the perfect Miss Metal-Blast. Here's what Rana wrote to us when she applied to be Miss Metal-Blast:

Why I love Metal-Blast:

Celebrities take themselves so seriously, I don't need to! I love the grass roots of this place. Here is the table where fans and musicians come lay their cards down equally. It's an even keel and you can hang. That's why I like it. I'm a fan, yeah, but I'm not a groupie. No inflammatory bandginitis here. As far as I'm concerned, music people must be good people in order to associate with me. Otherwise, I don't have time for it. I'm not interested in sucking up to assholes with cool jobs. That's what most musicians are. I'm a writer and I work with animals, these are cool jobs, but I'm only an asshole part-time. Teachers have cool jobs. Janitors and Doctors, yeah, not so much. Actresses? No. Tattoo artists? Very much so. I think celebrity is silly. Musicians should not be entitled, and at Metal Blast, everything is very laid back, it's not about cock size or the color of their cars. It's just aweshum. Me, I love to poke fun at celebrity and it's usually nothing personal. You're allowed to do that here. That's why I come.



Why I should be Miss Metal-Blast:

I'm different. As I said, I'm not a groupie. I'm not the one hanging out by the tour bus in clear heels hoping to ask Peter Steele if it's real. I'm the one showing musicians my art work and talking to them about books. I'm definitely not flat on my back. I have nice eyes, I can walk in high heels, yada yada yada, but that is not who I am. I don't constantly go to shows and I don't wear lipstick. I've never done anything like this before. I've never been a pin-up girl or been in any kind of beauty contest whatsoever. I was never interested in it. I'm not the ordinary girl with cut-offs, a leopard print cowboy hat, pink cowboy boots, a really bad George Lynch tan, and a Gn'R shirt on. Watch, I'll get an email from that girl today wearing the exact outfit I just described and she'll call me a whore, ha ha. I'm not self-involved. I'm not polished. I'm not L.A. I'm not N.Y.C. (but I wish I was). I'm just a writer who happens to have a bit of what men fancy, and I think the latter there is a bit of a stretch, but that's what I hear.




Ok, tell us a little bit about yourself.

Well, um, the best way to know me is through my close friends. Me, I'm moderately crazy and intense. I pour myself into everything I love to do. I'm a great dancer, but I can't seem to walk gracefully... I love heavy metal, but I also love opera. I'm eccentric to say the very least.




Where are you from and what kind of work do you do?

I was born in the deep south, and my heart still lives there. I was raised mostly in Tampa, Florida and all over Europe. Work? I'm a writer first, artist second, and veterinary nurse.



Animal lover huh? Tell us about your pets.

Every animal I meet (except Rottweilers and Chow Chows) are my pets. The critter that sleeps at my left shoulder every night is Hobgoblin, a Persian of the Highest Order in the Royal Line of Feline Goddesses, at least she likes to remind me of that several times a day. I'm an avid hunter/jumper rider, and have lived with and loved horses all of my life. I'm an aspiring Neapolitan Mastiff owner, and an Irish Wolfhound wouldn't be so bad either. I'm short, and have a love for giant dogs to alleviate my complex.



What kind of ambitions or goals do you have?

I have a novel in the works now, which my future agent is patiently waiting for. (I love you, Gary!)



What kind of hobbies do you have?

I'm a belly dancer, tribal is my calling. Working out is the shittiest hobby I have, but alas, I do it anyway.





Favorite bands?

I'm pretty old fashioned. Badlands is by far my favorite band, Ray Gillen is one of my biggest heroes. Chris Whitley was also one of my heroes in the music world. Both of those created magic for me that I will never get past or forget. Their ghosts remain with me... Rancid, Lynch Mob (first album is the favorite there even if I can't stand George), LA Guns (with Phiw Lewis, thank you very much). As far as the newer stuff, I like distinctive. There is a lot of sugar cookie bands out there right now, but I love My Chemical Romance, I think they're very strong lyrically and musically, and I love the punk influence they have. The Darkness, and Jet, to me, are phenomenal.



Which type of musician are you most likely to go after, The singer, the guitar player, the bass player or the drummer?

Bass players. They're the bottom line. While the guitarist is going all shitty and tangential, the bass players are pounding out the groove that builds the whole song. They're the backdrop, and there's always a bit of quietude to them on stage, and I'm attracted to that.



What does it take to win you over?

A sharp wit and black humor, a willingness to be open, and a certain kind of honesty, even when it pisses me off.




You've taken more than a passing interest in the West Memphis Three saga. Tell us about that.

I've followed the West Memphis Three case for eight years now. I believed in them from the very beginning, so much so that I got kicked out of my parent's life over it. My parents and I have since reconciled, but the justice of this case has not yet. But soon, soon, I'll be on the courthouse steps welcoming them home. Go to http://www.wm3.org for a huge resource of information about the case. Write to them, they need your correspondence! They have been in purgatory for fourteen years with no respite, for horrible crimes that they did not commit. Get involved!



You're even going to be the Reverend for Jason Baldwin's wedding? How did that come about?

I'll never get to be a bridesmaid again, now all my friends want me to do their weddings. I did these portraits of the three that I originally donated for an auction, but I pulled them because of mismanagement and ulterior motives. But anyway, Jason's bride to be contacted me about the paintings, we hit it off, and she asked me one day if I would perform the ceremony.




You're probably the hottest reverend ever. What faith do you practice and how did you become a woman of the cloth?

Hey, now, the Pope is hot, no one can deny it. Faith is a slippery thing no matter what path you follow. I'm a little bit pagan, a little bit Hindu, a little Buddhist, and even catholicism moves my heart, but I am not one denomination. I was ordained especially for the wedding, and it's the last thing I ever expected to do... a woman of the cloth, sheesh. I am clergy. Weird.




One issue you wanted to address is domestic abuse. Go for it.

I am a victim of Domestic Violence. It's a thing that is very much taboo, even still. The statistics of women abused and murdered at the hands of their men are phenomenal and it is something I feel very strongly about. What I want to put out there is awareness, do my part. My closest friends, especially one dear one, all helped me heal myself and realize that there may be love after the agony. If there are any victims out there who need to talk to someone, I am an ear. Contact me anonymously, anyone, whatever, just get help! I'm here for those because I'm one of the ones that got out, and I need to give back. Go to http://www.brokenspirits.com/. They are a wonderful resource.



Got anything else to pimp? Bands, charities, favorite websites (besides Metal-Blast.com), TV shows, etc.

Just a link to my myspace, as i'm always open to new friendships, and a link to my latest publication, for the curious like myself.

http://www.myspace.com/feygrrrl






So how does it feel to be Miss Metal-Blast?

Aweshum! Shweet Shaushage. Thank you so much!




Final thoughts?

Thanks to the contributing photographers who spent their time taking my mug and making it a cup of sweet tea...



Congratulations to Rana for being our Miss Metal-Blast for May. Not only is she beautiful, she' got brains, creativity and talent to boot which is why we're honored to have her represent our site as a Miss Metal-Blast. If ou think you have what it takes to be the next Miss Metal-Blast, send in an application and you might just be Miss June.