Baker breaks from Hollywood to pursue education

by Chelsea Baham, staff writer

 

It’s not what you know; it’s who you know.

At 21, Brooke Baker, a sophomore public relations major at South Plains College proves this theory to be very true. 

After graduating from high school in 2005, Baker auditioned for a movie called “Hallettsville,” that was produced by a former classmate. In March 2006, she moved out to Los Angeles, Calif., to do follow-up production for the movie.  Baker liked LA, so she moved into an apartment with a roommate.

Needing a job, she talked to friends of friends, eventually finding a temp job in a studio.  Baker went into her interview dressed and ready to impress. Travis Barker, best known for being the drummer of the band Blink-182, as well as Mark Hoppus, record producer and founder of Blink-182, were in the interview.

 “I knew who Travis was, tattoos and Mohawk and all, but I actually had to ‘Google’ Mark, who ended up being this huge rockstar!” says Baker about the celebrities.

Barker and Hoppus were looking for a studio assistant for their newest band +44.  Baker landed the job.  She described her job responsibilities as, “Anything they didn’t want to do, or didn’t have time to do, I did it.”  She did anything and everything, ranging from coffee runs to filling up the band members’ cars with gas.

Her hard work and willingness to be a great assistant didn’t go unnoticed. She was asked to stay and work in another part of the studio, which was home to Barker’s clothing line, Famous Stars and Straps. 

Barker opened his first store, Fast Life, on Aug. 3, 2007.  Baker then became an employee in the store, which carried celebrity clothing lines, including Barker’s line. 

During this time, she was going back and forth between the studio and the clothing store.  She was doing more clerical work at that time in the studio, working under Bill Nosal, spokesman for Famous Stars and Straps.

Meanwhile, Baker had signed up for classes at Santa Monica Community College, where she had to keep cutting her school hours for work.  She described it as being hectic, having to travel 45 minutes to school in heavy traffic.

 “I was driving in my car, making calls on my cell phone, working on my laptop the company gave me, and trying to keep up with school,” Baker says.

As far as her personal life, Baker was making plenty of friends and adapting to life as a part of “young Hollywood.”  She was going to parties and clubs all over LA.  She rubbed elbows with young starlets such as Paris Hilton and MTV’s “Laguna Beach” star, Kristin Cavallari, who she still keeps in contact with.

She also was invited to movie premiers, walking along side Cavallari on the red carpet.

“ All I did was stand in the background holding Kristin’s purse, just happy to be there,” Baker says.

Baker has tales of all-night partying during her first few months in LA, which is to be expected from a bright-eyed Texas girl who was settling into the big city.  Although she met many people and had a great time, Baker realized that she needed to get her focus back on what was important.  She settled down a bit and focused more on school, work, and most importantly, her well-being. 

Despite all the glamour and crazy lifestyles of Hollywood, Baker says that you definitely “have to stay grounded and humbled, and not let yourself get carried away.” 

She moved back to Lubbock in June 2008 because she was set on earning a college degree. Baker says that most people think she is crazy for moving back to a place such as Lubbock. But it proves how dedicated she is to her future career in public relations. She wanted the security of a degree to fall back on.

Barker assured Baker that she would always have a place to go back to and was considered a part of the family.  She is thankful for the experience, saying, “I get my college education here, and I learned life lessons there.”

Photo by Sagan Wilks/Plainsman Press