Hiya! I’m great thank you. Thanks for having me!

I love life in Glasgow. It’s a unique city with all sorts of different types of people and places. It’s got a great music scene as well, I would 100% recommend everyone to try a trip to Glasgow at least once.

I was born and bred in Glasgow, and I currently live with my mum, dad and brother. My mum and dad were both 80’s mods gone scooter boy/girl, so I have always grew up surrounded by the music and scooters. From around the age of 7 or 8, I would go on the back of my dad’s scoot to different days out and ride out’s and stuff, and wound up getting my own at 16, thanks to my dad. I vividly remember listening to stuff like Toots or The Who. From Ska to Northern Soul to Mod, I already had a love for the music, it was just the style I was lacking.

I work full time in a photo shop in and around Glasgow so that takes up most of my days. I enjoy going out most evenings whether it be for casual drinks, a gig or a Northern Soul do but most my days are spent working and chilling out afterwards. My day’s off usually include recovering from the night before, as I try make the most of it as I don’t get weekends off. I often travel to England to see my Skinhead/scooter friends but I suppose that wouldn’t be my daily life as I only go a weekend or two a month.

As I said, my mum and dad were into the mod/scooter scene as well as other family members, such as my Auntie Nicola and my now Uncle Andy, were both Skinheads too, so I’ve grown up surrounded by the scene. I used to get my Dad’s hand-me-down Fred Perry’s and shirts so I already wore some bits and bobs. When I was 15, pre-Skinhead, I would wear outfits such as a polo with a black denim or tartan skirt paired with Docs and fishnets. Not because I was a Skinhead, as I definitely was not, but it was these type of outfits that lead my dad to mention the Skinhead scene to me. He said if I cut my hair short at the back but left the fringe, side and back feathers then I look like I could be a Skinhead girl if I altered my style. I never understood the hair style as it was unique and different, I actually rejected the idea at first as it was very different to anything I had seen at the time.

I wound up researching the scene, such as the style and history and absolutely fell in love, and just knew I wanted to be involved. Not even a week later I ended up finding a Skinhead girl, Elle’s, TikTok page. I messaged her and just explained my interest in the scene and she ended up adding me to a group chat filled with loads of young Skinhead girls. With the encouragement of new friends and my family too, I chopped my hair to a feather cut less than 2 weeks after from when my dad first mentioned it. I already like the music and the scooters, just had to piece together a wardrobe now, but this was only the start.

My style has varied over the last couple years, at first I would throw together outfits and calling it a day, looking back I now know it didn’t look great, so I would say my style has definitely matured. I wouldn’t say I have an ”80’s” skin style as I have quite a long feather cut along with other factors but I’m definitely not a “traditional 60’” skin either. I just wear what I think is nice, once you’re a Skinhead you know what you like and that’s that, you don’t need to stick to one era. I wouldn’t say my style is “unique” per say, considering there is hundreds of thousands of Skinheads who have the same style and hair, but there is definitely a Terry twist on it.

The top 3 things that draw me to the Skinhead scene have to be the style, the music and the people. Regarding the style, I had a new found confidence as a Skinhead, I don’t know what it is but there is something about the hair and the clothes that automatically gives you a certain attitude. I can’t imagine myself dressing any other way, apart from the occasional scooter/soul girl outfit, you end up being consumed by the scene in the best way possible. The music is a big one for me, as well as the scene attached to it. I have a mixture of tastes, from original reggae and ska to Northern Soul and even a bit of 2Tone, and the fact I’ve been listening to it all since I was a tot, it just makes it more meaningful. Every single person I’ve met at an event, have been the most welcoming and loveliest people ever. I sometimes will go to a gig or do alone, purely because A. I will know somebody there, B. I will make friends or C. just go for the tunes and a good time. The soul and ska scene in Glasgow and Paisley have kept me going, all the people who are a minimum of 20 years older than me but I still get along with as well as the fact that they are all so friendly and encouraging.

Although there is a pretty relevant alternative scene in Glasgow, it’s not as large and tight knit as it used to be. Especially for the Skinhead scene, from my knowledge there is a maximum of about 5 young Skinheads in Glasgow, with only two of them actually interacting. I know loads of different alternative people in and around Glasgow, but as far as a “scene” goes, I may have to take miss on commenting. The only scenes I interact with are the scooter, soul and ska scene which are relatively rife in their own ways, but if we’re talking about Goth, punk and further alternative scenes etc, then unfortunately I wouldn’t know, but a lot of it isn’t as alive as it used to be.

To be honest if I were to pick a brand I like the most it would probably have to be Fred Perry. I do wear bits like my Docs or Solovairs, or a Ben Sherman and my Adidas Gazelles but I feel my Fred Perry polo’s and shirts trump them, by far my favourite. Like Docs or Levi’s, the Fred Perry polo was one of the most iconic pieces of the Skinhead fashion between both waves, so will have to be my pick. Also the fact I have a laurel wreath tattooed on my wrist which I got at 17.

The most important part of being different is just being true to yourself. Don’t define yourself into a box because you’re scared of what people might think, I did it myself while growing up. Within 2020, I had went from my long blond hair to having a short black feather cut. It’s all about doing what you want to do, and what feels right. I like to be different for that reason, and for the fact that while I’m different, there’s hundreds and thousands of people just like me so it’s also got a sense of community in a way. My main advice is to just be you, even if that is different, because you’ll regret it if you don’t.

I have faced situations as a skinbyrd with both people in and out of the scene. I became a Skinhead while I was 15 and still in school, so as expected I got all the typical words thrown at me but I never really let it bother me. Even got shouted from in the streets from random teens, naturally living in Glasgow. I learned to build a shield, because if they don’t get or like my style, then it just means they’re not my type of person, not everyone’s going to get it. Regarding problems in the scene, the only thing I can think of is when I would be out with my ex-boyfriend, who was a skin, and people would come up to us to chat about the Skinhead thing, and I would get totally blanked. They would ask how he got into the scene and I would chip in saying it was myself who got him in and get completely disregarded. Happened quite a few times, it’s as if they don’t register that Skinhead girls exist, but I’ve never had that problem online. Even the other day, my male Skinhead friend and I were out and about together, he had 3 Skinhead comments from random people and I had not even a glare. Skinhead girls are Skinheads too.

I don’t really have a particular favourite outfit that I like to wear as I really do just cycle through my wardrobe and chop and change my tops and skirts. A nice and classic outfit for me would be a polo shirt or tee with a patterned skirt paired with fishnets/tights and white socks, along with my Harrington the majority of the time. I have many shoes too, as most skins do, sometimes I wear my docs but I do fancy my doc shoes or loafers, especially if I’m going to a soul do.

Every year the Skinhead scene fluctuates, if we were to compare the young skins and mods from when I joined the scene in 2020, compared to the young people involved now, there has been a considerable amount of changes. The biggest one of all would be the people, as the majority of skins from 2020 aren’t even Skinheads anymore. The same goes for the young skin generation from the last 10 years, I’m still friends with a good few of them but not many of them are still Skinheads. Every year young people join and leave the Skinhead scene, some have went psychobilly, mod or just plain scooter boy. It’s hard to say if there has been an official revival, as the scene is so far spread across the whole of the UK.

The young scene is now more dotted about as oppose to having set groups in certain towns or cities, we do all still meet up every month or so but it’s not ideal. I suppose there has been a “mini-revival” amongst the youngsters, just obviously not as prominent as the 80’s revival. My hopes for the scene are for more and more young people to keep joining, as I believe the scene could die completely within the next 20 years, which hopefully we can avoid.

There will always be differences between the generations, just as there were many between the 60’s and 80’s skins, both style and music wise but it’s a little different today. The younger generation seems to be a lot more open minded, people need to remember that it was a youth subculture, so the young folk will always have their own twist on it. Such as a piercings or different makeup etc, and it always falls back on the older skins to take it upon themselves to have a go. The older scene is 50/50, some are so welcoming and encouraging, and others have a shout at baby skins as it’s “not done right”. It took me a few months to “get it right”, but who’s place is it to declare that? As I said it’s not all of the older generation, but I think the young skins can agree that they are substantially more snobby as oppose to the kids involved already.

I’ve heard this debate for a few years now, and personally it is subjective to an extent. The boys don’t have an excuse, if you have long hair and claim to be a “Skinhead”, it kind of defeats the point, and it’s in the bloody name too. But for the girls it can be a bit funny, boys can get away with a buzz cut however not all the girls can get away with the feather or Chelsea cut because of school, work etc. I’m not one to be a snob or to judge but it’s simple as, in my eyes if you have long hair you’re not a Skinhead. As I said I understand some can’t due to circumstances, but you’ve got the Suedeheads or even the Rude Boys and girls, none of which require a baldy so it’s not as if you’re banished from the scene entirely, I just believe that to be a Skinhead then you need to have a Skinhead, or cropped hair for the ladies. But that’s just my personal opinion, do what you want.

I’m not necessarily in a “skin-women gang” but I do have my fair share of skinbyrd pals. As I said the first group I interacted with in the scene were all skingirls so I have been friends with them for the last couple years. Some of us had never actually met until February 2022 and then I never met them again until 2023. Having everyone spread out across England, or Scotland in my case, it’s tricky to regularly see everyone. But it’s not just Skinhead girls in my group either, I have scooter boys and girls, mods, and Freya being Goth too for example. I just talk to everyone and travel down when I can, I would love for everyone to be in the one place but unfortunately that’s not how the cookie crumbles.

Firstly, What I would recommend is to get yourself clued up on the Skinhead scene, the history, values etc. Anybody can look like a Skinhead, but what it actually means to be a Skinhead is just as important. Another is to attempt to make yourself some friends, even if they are online, encouragement and advice from people already in the scene goes a long way. Anyone can become a Skinhead, but once you join the scene you know whether it’s for you or not.

The message I would like to spread is just be you, don’t let anyone else’s opinion affect you and the way you want to dress and look. I promise you’ll regret it in the long run.

TikTok is a heavily American, left wing influenced app, which already says enough for itself. WE know that the scene is apolitical, and purely music and fashion based but I can’t say the same for the people who run that silly app. As far as TikTok is aware, we’re all white supremacists.

Well, I’d like to think that people walk by and think “that’s a cool wee guy who is into her music and fashion” however I know that’s most definitely not the case, but one can dream. To be fair people probably do, I just don’t hear of it.

That’s a hard one, even choosing my top 5. But scene-wise, I’m big into my northern soul. My dad introduced me to it and I fell in love, I taught myself to do the dancing which just made me love it even more, I got a big northern soul tattoo on my forearm when I turned 18 too. I also adore my traditional ska, rocksteady and reggae, it just makes me happy to listen to no matter the day. I am partial to a bit of 2Tone as well, however not has heavily as northern soul or Rocksteady. I do also like other genres such as Motown, soul, indie/indie-rock and even some house and garage music. If I were to name my top 5 artists in the though, they would have to be Toots and the Maytals, Edwin Starr, Desmond Dekker, Otis Redding and Paulo Nutini.

I do have a few, both in and around Glasgow. A good one would be King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut, famous for housing Oasis the day they got discovered. King Tut’s has always been a very welcoming and iconic venue, I’ve never had a bad experience there. Mcchuills is also worth mentioning, a venue that has provided for the scene for years, whether that be mod, scooter boy or skin. I remember going to mcchuills as a young lass, on the back of my dad’s scooter for meet-ups so it’s definetly a scene staple. My last mention would be The Bungalow, I had my 18th birthday in there.

Like many others, music means the world to me. I’ve always loved it, I have videos of me as a toddler dancing to Abba, and then I did dancing for a good 10 years. It was also the music mainly, along with the scooters, which brought me back to the scene again. I’m also a bassist, so music means the world to me. Music isn’t just about the tunes, it’s about the history, passion and community that goes along with it. Music has also helped me through some rough times, which a lot of people can relate to as well.

So as far as the music scene goes, id personally say I’m involved in the ska and soul scene. To me, there is a few parts to the scene. The ska scene in Glasgow/Paisley is relative, there is fairly regular 2Tone gigs and such on around the general area, which I always have a good time at. I’m not the biggest 2Tone listener however I love the gigs, it’s all about getting drunk, having a dance and socializing. The people in this specific scene are also some of the loveliest and caring people, not a bad word to say about them. The Glasgow/Paisley soul scene is also great, there isn’t nearly enough northern soul nights on, but when there is, it’s always ecstatic. A lot of the same people go to both the ska and soul events, but it’s one of my favourite communities I’ve ever been a part of.

There is probably only really two big things that I hate about the scene. The main one would be the constant misconception of the scene, which has been an issue for decades. I try do my part to educate people on the history of the scene and the actual morals and beliefs of Skinheads, but if they don’t want to be educated, then they simply won’t due to sheer ignorance. The other one would be is the “snobbery” of some of the older members of the scene, which I’ve mentioned already. The scene has always been a youth subculture, like in the 80’s it changed with the trends, subtle changes have happened today too. Such as girls are more tattooed and pierced than back in the day, which “original skins” always seem to have a problem with. Same goes with other bits and bobs, if your turn ups or braces are too big then expect a telling off from older skins.

In all honesty, I don’t know, as I’ve not even thought as far ahead as 3 years’ time, never mind 5-10. The only future plans I have is I’m moving to England early 2025 for a few years, as the scene is so much bigger down there. All I do is work in Glasgow while I watch all my friends travel to different soul, ska or scooter events so I thought f*ck it, I’m joining them down there. I hope to get back into education as well at some point but that’s not for a while. I hope in 5-10 years, I’ve done everything I wanted to, go to all my rallies and dances etc. It’s not a very ambitious life plan but my main priority is to have fun, so as long as I did then I’m happy.

As the years go on, the more accepting society becomes, so I hope and believe that the alternative scene will stay rife. More and more people are starting to not care about what their family, or what the rest of the world thinks, and I think that’s great. As far as the Skinhead scene goes, more and more young people are joining and I hope it stays that way. It will never be as popular as it once was, but I would hate for it to die out once all the “oldies” have went away. I can’t predict the future, but can only be hopeful for what it may become.

Never ever let anyone’s words or opinions affect you or the way you choose to present yourself. If I had listened to my “normal friends” who told me the hair cut I wanted to get was “weird” and not to get it, I wouldn’t be a Skinhead today. I had always been quite good at ignoring people but I know I could have went further if I just did what I wanted to do. Just do you babe.

Never ever let anyone’s words or opinions affect you or the way you choose to present yourself. If I had listened to my “normal friends” who told me the hair cut I wanted to get was “weird” and not to get it, I wouldn’t be a Skinhead today. I had always been quite good at ignoring people but I know I could have went further if I just did what I wanted to do. Just do you babe.I think I went over everything that I wanted to, but the Skinhead/soul/scooter scene has changed my life. If you want to get involved with the scene and subculture, please do as you won’t regret it. Thanks to everyone at All Buttoned Up for asking me to do this as well, I had a blast doing this interview!