After teaming up on America’s The Amazing Race, stunning Sports Illustrated Swimsuit models, and former ring girls, DESSIE MITCHESON & Kayla Fitz are definitely one dynamic duo to keep your eyes peeled on…
Hey Dessie and Kayla, congrats on your first MAXIM Australia feature together. Tell us a bit about the shoot.
DESSIE: Believe it or not this is going to be my second feature with MAXIM Australia, but first with Kayla, and I couldn’t be happier about it! Myself, Kayla and the photographer Drew Dailey wanted to do something fun for Summer. So, we decided to use my friend’s yacht and get some killer shots in Newport Harbor in Orange County, LA. We’re super excited for MAXIM Australia readers to be the first to see this!
KAYLA: I loved being able to shoot in a beautiful location and have fun with my best friend. We always have a good time.
Well, you both look gorgeous. When do you feel sexy?
D: When I feel confident, having a killer outfit on or swimsuit and with natural hair and make-up. Exactly like we did for this shoot!
K: I always feel my sexiest when I’m in my bikini. I’m a Florida girl who’s currently living in California and I just think it’s always stuck with me.
What is your best asset?
D: I always get compliments on my eyes.
K: I also get told I have pretty eyes, which I always find funny because I don’t think so. I’m always asked if my boobs fake — which they’re not — so I’d also say these are my best assets.
When you’re not posing for MAXIM what are you girls doing?
D: Kayla and I host a show three times a week on Twitch. We’re also on YouTube and growing our audience pretty fast — our channel, Ignite House, is about to hit 100k followers! Other than that, Kayla and I are busy doing catalogue shoots and castings.
K: Yeah, I model full-time but the show occupies most of my other time.
What is the show all about and where can we watch it?
D: It’s a livestream show on Twitch and YouTube. Ignite is a cannabis company so we do everything from education about CBD to sumo wrestling! It’s a fun show and you never know what we might be doing. You can find it at www.twitch.tv/ignite or on YouTube under Ignite House.
Sounds good. Give us a little more background about yourselves.
D: I was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I was a gymnast growing up and then did track and field, diving and golf in high school. I was also in every school musical and play, so I was always keeping myself busy. My whole family is still there, but I decided, almost six years ago, to move to SoCal to pursue modelling. Before I moved I became MAXIM USA’s Hometown Hottie so that really drove me to see what else I could achieve. I’m definitely glad I did — I love it here as there are so many opportunities.
K: I grew up in a small town outside Orlando, Florida and moved to Los Angeles at 22 to fully pursue my modelling career. I love to eat and try new foods and absolutely love to travel.
What would people be most surprised to know about you both?
D: People are always shocked when I tell them I’ve had four surgeries on my left knee from sports.
K: I think people would be surprised to know I can rap every Lil Wayne song.
How did you two meet?
D: Kayla and I met while we were both in Las Vegas for a swimsuit competition about seven years ago. Kayla was competing and I was hosting and people kept telling us that we reminded them of each other. When I finally met Kayla it was love at first sight!
So, then, what do you love most about each other?
K: We love that we always understand each other and literally love ALL of the same things.
D: Yeah, Kayla and I are on the same page with almost everything. We think alike and agree on pretty much every topic. Sometimes I think we’re the same person. And she’s also so easy to get along with, fun-loving and reliable.
Is there anything you find annoying about each other?
D: I’d have to say that we are both stubborn. If we believe in something we will not budge!
K: Yes, we’re both pretty stubborn and it can be annoying.
You were both contestants on the The Amazing Race (U.S.) last year. How would you best describe your experience on the show?
D: Kayla and I have always wanted to do The Amazing Race so when they reached out to me, and wanted a girl team, I knew it was our chance. We did great on every challenge we did and, at one point, Kayla had to traverse across a glacier — she’s scared of heights and still killed it – and I had to physically pull her back but we beat a strong male team! Unfortunately, we lost in the end – I peed my pants running to the finish line in socks flopping off of my feet! Then Kayla and I flew to Rome to enjoy the rest of our time expense free! We had no phone, cable or internet for a month! It was an experience of a lifetime and I wouldn’t have been able to do it with anyone else.
K: We loved being on the The Amazing Race. Unfortunately we were the first to be eliminated so it was short lived, but we had the time of our lives in Rome. Being disconnected from social media and not having access to any type of technology had us really soaking everything in and met some amazing people!
What’s the biggest misconception about reality TV?
D: That when you get kicked off the show you go home. No, you don’t go home – you go to an exclusive location and wait until the show is done.
K: The biggest misconception is that it’s real! Nothing you see on TV is real.
You’ve also been photographed for Sports Illustrated Swimsuit. How did that come about?
D: SI Swimsuit had their first-ever open casting call last year. Kayla and I both entered via a video submission on Instagram – 5,000 women entered and we were both chosen in the top 15! We got to shoot SI Swimsit’s first-ever swimsuit catalogue and walk in their first runway show! It was a goal I always dreamt of and it was even better because Kayla and I did it together. That’s when we came up with our nickname “The MitchFitz”.
K: Yeah, we flew to New York to do our first test shoot and interviews. From there, we were flown to Miami to shoot and walk their runway during Swim Week. It was the most amazing experience with the best team, and even better because we got to do it together.
You were also both former Tecate Girls (boxing’s ring girls) but got fired from the Canelo vs GGG fight over a “sexy” video. Tell us more.
D: Tecate was my main job for years. I got Kayla involved and we worked some of the biggest fights. Chris Applebaum, a famous American director of the Carl’s JR commercials, reached out to us to do a fun video. We knew we couldn’t use any other beer in the video other than Tecate, so we made a badass, sexy video of us drinking the beer. We released it on our social media channels during the GGG vs Canelo fight and I physically got pulled off the stage during the weigh-ins. At first everyone who worked for Tecate seemed to like it, and then “people” were complaining, saying it was too sexy. Kayla and I thought it was going to be a fun video for our personal Instgrams – we never thought it would result in us being fired from the company.
Party poopers! So, what have you learned about men over the years?
D: That when you finally find a good one, keep him!
K: Let them be because you can’t change them!
What’s one thing men should always know about women?
D: If she responds with an “OK”, or another one-word answer, she’s PISSED off.
K: You should always know that women NEED attention.
What do you find sexy in a man?
D: I’m a personality girl but love a guy with nice eyes who can make me laugh.
K: I find it sexy when a man can make me laugh and not take himself too seriously.
Describe your ideal date.
D: I love food and wine, but I also love seeing the sunset while on the water.
K: I’m super simple, so I’d be happy with just hanging out at the beach with some snacks and wine.
Would you kiss a guy on the first date?
D: If it felt right, I don’t see anything wrong with kissing on the first date.
K: I would absolutely kiss a guy on the first date. If it’s going well enough then what’s the point in waiting? I’m not scared to take initiative and make sure that the chemistry is there.
Have you ever been to Australia?
D: We’ve never been to Australia but I’m dying to go! Everyone I’ve met from Australia are amazing.
K: It’s definitely at the top of our list!
Finally, where would you ladies like to be in five years?
D: I hope I’m still doing what I love, with the people I love, successfully!
K: I like to live my life in the moment, so as far as having a definitive five-year plan – I don’t! I just hope I’m happy and sharing life with the people I love. ■
STATUS UPDATE
FULL NAME: Dessie Mitcheson
HOMETOWN: Pittsburgh, PA
LIVES: Orange County, CA
FIVE-WORD SELF-DESCRIPTION: “Vibrant, passionate, sweet, silly and driven.”
HIDDEN TALENT: “I used to be a hairstylist.”
PHOBIA: “I’m claustrophobic.”
FAVE DRINK: “TEQUILA!”
HANGOVER CURE: “Smoke a little smoke or take some Pedialyte.”
LIFE MOTTO: “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened!”
INSTAGRAM: @dessiemitcheson
STATUS UPDATE
FULL NAME: Kayla Fitz
BORN: August 5, 1991
HOMETOWN: Clermont, FL
LIVES: Los Angeles, CA
FIVE-WORD SELF-DESCRIPTION: “Spicy, bubbly, outgoing, goofball and hungry.”
HIDDEN TALENT: “I’m pretty good at gymnastics.”
PHOBIA: “Spiders!”
FAVE DRINK: “My go to is always Don Julio, preferably Don Julio 70.”
HANGOVER CURE: “An iced cold beer and a little bit of weed.”
LIFE MOTTO: “C’est la vie.”
INSTAGRAM: @kaylafitz3
TWITTER: @kaylafitz
PHOTOGRAPHED BY DREW DAILEY IMAGES
INTERVIEW SANTI PINTADO
STYLING: BEACHBABE SWIMWEAR
LOCATION: NEWPORT BEACH, CA
YACHT: CELEBRATION
For the full article grab the May 2019 issue of MAXIM Australia from newsagents and convenience locations. Subscribe here.
