Hey! I’m Izzy – a 22-year-old metalhead, academic, and live music obsessive from Manchester. I hold an undergraduate degree in Law and Criminology and a master’s degree in Music, Management and Marketing, both from The University of York, and I’m now planning to pursue a PhD exploring the use of Satanic imagery in metal and its impact on marketing: the perfect fusion of my academic interests and lifelong love for heavy music.
My research focuses on how Satanic and occult imagery is used not just as provocation, but as a powerful branding and marketing tool. I’m particularly interested in how shock and controversy shape audience reception, and how moral panics – like those during the 80s and 90s – influence the way we interpret music. This topic grew from earlier work I did around the Columbine effect, media scapegoating, and legal cases like Vance v. Judas Priest. It’s also shaped by my own experience navigating the metal scene as a woman and an academic – perspectives that are still underrepresented, and ones I’m proud to champion.
Metal has been part of my life since childhood – my Dad introduced me to Alice Cooper and Iron Maiden on the school run, and I never looked back. These days, I’m especially into NWOBHM, death metal and a bit of nu-metal – some of my all-time favourites include Rotting Christ, Skinless, Iron Maiden, Saxon, Limp Bizkit and Alestorm.
Satan Sells is where all my worlds collide – a space for academic research, gig reviews, album write-ups, interviews, and deep dives into metal culture from both a female and scholarly perspective. Metal has always been about challenging norms – it’s time to challenge a few within the scene itself…
Thanks for stopping by!