"I'm Naomi. I go by Siren Sixxkiller. I've been sober, it'll be 13 years this year, from alcohol and other things. I'm 35 today. Feeling alive."
Lex and Siren met in 2019 at an intimate gathering for the International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers, but they'd been orbiting each other since 2008. They later discovered they'd attended the same film school in Chicago during the same years, more than a decade before they ever met. They've supported each other's work creatively and personally ever since. This time, they brought it to 27 Interviews.
The word that comes to mind is loneliness
"When I think back to that time of my life, the word that comes to mind is loneliness. I didn't have anyone around me who was also sober, or thinking about getting sober. I was living with people who were very unsober, in a relationship with someone who wanted to and wasn't able to get sober. It was a lonely time because I didn't feel like I had someone who understood what I was going through."
"And I feel kind of the opposite feeling of that today. I feel an abundance of love and really inspiring community around me. I'm grateful to have that support system that feels super solid."
Burlesque, and being present in your body
Siren is a staple of the Denver burlesque community, and she's clear that the art form and the sobriety hold each other up.
"When I perform, I'm able to reclaim my body autonomy, and reclaim aspects of my brain and my story. I literally have to be present in my body to perform. So that's an exercise of — okay, you're safe. You're present in your body. You're not only safe, you're doing something active, fun, and you're experiencing pleasure. And people are cheering for you for that."
"Every time I perform, I rewire my brain — which is a real thing. To just know that I'm safe in my body. I can have these pleasurable experiences in my body. That is a possibility. As trauma survivors, and as people who used to use drugs, that's so important. Helpful isn't even the right word. Crucial. Life saving."
She says the same about SlutWalk.
"SlutWalk saved my life, because it did. The SlutWalks taught me so much of what I know — how to treat myself in a way that was giving myself full respect, safety. Moving from a state of survival to a state of thriving."
On weed, honestly
"I did quit smoking weed for the majority of last year, which I was proud of myself for. I'm always like, oh, I could use this like it's a medicine — but then I just always totally abuse it. And I do that with anything in my life. That's been a realization for me around sobriety: it has more to do with how my brain works than what I'm specifically doing. My brain will attach itself to anything I get invested in."
She marks multiple sobriety dates for different things, and she's found real meaning in that.
"All those little dates, getting sober from different things — they're helpful reminders that we can do hard things. And sometimes you have the motivation and you still can't do it, and it's still really hard, and that's a totally valid place to be in too."
She's also honest that sobriety didn't make life easy.
"Sometimes I'm like, damn, being sober is tough, because I have to deal with every emotion that comes up, every situation that comes up. Things get better, but they also just stay hard. If I looked or seemed stressed, I probably was."
Harm reduction as a pillar
"I think even before I knew the words to describe it, I was practicing it in certain ways. And now I do it for my job, which is really awesome."
"Everybody's best life looks different. Not everybody's best life has to include sobriety, and everybody deserves the chance to decide what that looks like for themselves. Autonomy is a big part of it."
She traces the line back to SlutWalk, where the group handed out naloxone long before it was her profession.
"Sometimes people would be like, what does this have to do with SlutWalk? And we were like — well, it has everything to do with body autonomy. You should feel empowered to protect yourself and protect your community. Even with something like doing drugs, you should feel empowered to know how to do that yourself so you're not depending on someone else."
"A lot of sex workers, people who use drugs, experience a lot of stigma that we can relate to each other on. It's important to all wrap around each other communally."
Death into rebirth
We asked where she finds herself in the life, death, rebirth cycle on her 35th year around the sun.
"Maybe in a bit of a death moving into rebirth. It's hard to choose because they all just go into each other. I wish I could say this was a life crisis, but I do this every year — I'm constantly in crisis. Things people do to crash out, that's just my regular routine. Like a haircut or a tattoo."
The biggest gift
"A portal of joy has definitely been opened up to me through sobriety. That has allowed me to stack these other pillars of joy around me — burlesque, SlutWalk, and the healing work: Reiki, AcuDetox, all of these beautiful medicines that I have access to, and now have the knowledge to share with others as well. Sobriety has given me all the gifts."
Her pick from the original 27 Club
"I'd have to go with Amy Winehouse, because I feel akin to her. I have a lot of love for her in my heart."
Follow Siren
- @siren6killer on Instagram
Interview filmed and edited by Lex Chamizo. 2026.
Siren is wearing the Overdose Awareness T-Shirt.
TWNTYSVNCLUB exists to hold space for both grief and celebration. Remembering the lives lost to addiction and raising awareness with those who found a way out. Meet more artists in 27 Interviews, honor someone you love on our Remembrance Wall, or find free support on our Resources page. Proof that 27 can mark a beginning, not just an end.