You may know who recently-retired world champion boxer Oscar De La Hoya is, but what about the Golden Boy’s niece? The blonde, tattooed rocker made million of viewers do a double take when she spent weeks inside a mansion with groupies battling for the heart of Poison’s front man Bret Michaels on VH1‘s “ Rock of Love.” Yet, not even all the lip locking with the 80’s icon could have saved De La Hoya from elimination when Michaels brutally rejected her on television. However, like her uncle, she’s tough enough to take another swing at finding love. Back by popular demand, she stars in another VH1 reality series, but this time, she gets to watch as guys from around the country fight for her heart.
In time for “Daisy of Love,” we spoke with De La Hoya, who had a lot of explaining to do. From her days as a bassist in a goth band, to all those rumors of whether she’s really related to the beloved boxer, fans have long wondered the truth behind her irresistible mystique. She finally reveals the truth behind her famous heritage, her plans on becoming a bigger rock star than the men she’s reportedly dated (Tommy Lee and Dave Navarro), and if she’s really looking for love or just a steamy hookup.
nocheLatina: After having your heart broken in front of millions, why did you choose to find love again on TV?
Daisy De La Hoya: I just figured that this is a great opportunity for me. I was lucky enough to be chosen by the production company to have this show become a reality. Plus, I don’t think any girl would give up the opportunity to have 20 guys fight for their attention! I said absolutely because I always believe that you should get back on that horse and go for love.
nocheLatina: It must be exciting to have all those guys go after you.
Daisy De La Hoya: Oh yeah, for sure!
nocheLatina: Have you and Bret Michaels spoken since ‘Rock of Love’ ended?
Daisy De La Hoya: We spoke once or twice briefly. He’s doing his thing and I’m doing mine. I think he’s an awesome person and I don’t have anything against him at all.
nocheLatina: How would you describe ‘Daisy of Love?’
Daisy De La Hoya: I would describe ‘Daisy of Love’ as one big crazy adventure. It was an amazing journey and I’m so glad that I got to take it. The guys are crazy and there’s something for everyone. There’s eye candy, fighting, and then there’s the drama and the crying. What you see is what you get.
nocheLatina: Did you have any concerns on whether the contestants were really there for you or to get their 15 minutes of fame?
Daisy De La Hoya: Sure, those concerns are always going to come into play. It’s not always necessarily the case and I can’t be mad at anyone who came on the show and they had other things in their life going on in the entertainment industry because I too work in a similar area myself. If they want to come on the show to better themselves, have fun, and meet me, that’s awesome. If someone just comes on the show just for their own benefit then obviously I’m not cool with that.
nocheLatina: Are you looking for a long-term relationship or a random hookup? What’s the agenda behind ‘Daisy of Love?’
Daisy De La Hoya: I’ve always been the type to have serious, long-term relationships. I think it really all depends on the person that you find. I’m always going to go for a long-term relationship, but I also believe that this should be discussed between the two people as far as where you want the relationship to go. I may want a serious relationship, but you don’t always get what you want when you’re with someone, so it’s better to find out early and avoid getting your heart broken. That’s a question the two people should discuss themselves, but I myself lean towards long-term relationships or a relationship that can turn into one in the future.
nocheLatina: How would you describe the perfect guy?
Daisy De La Hoya: The perfect guy? I don’t even think there’s such a thing! Just when you think you found the perfect guy, something goes wrong. I think the perfect guy for me would be…wow, I don’t know! It’s really hard to pinpoint what would be ‘perfect.’
nocheLatina: It’s a simple question, but it can be pretty complicated.
Daisy De La Hoya: Right. Obviously, I want to be with someone whom I share great chemistry with and can just cherish me, honor me, you know?
nocheLatina: Well, it seems like you’re into bad boys and rock stars.
Daisy De La Hoya: Yeah, definitely.
nocheLatina: Speaking of rock stars, I know that you’re also a musician yourself. Tell me about how you became involved with music.
Daisy De La Hoya: I started off in a band when I was 18 and played bass guitar. I traveled all around the country for many years and then did backing vocals. I got to be part of Seraphim Shock for a while. Then, I decided that I wanted to do my own thing. So, I sat down and wrote an album with the writer from Seraphim Shock. It’s been going great from there and I’m currently getting ready to head to the studio and drop some new tracks.
nocheLatina: Do you have an album in the works?
Daisy De La Hoya: Yeah, well I have an EP out already and people can hear more of my music on my Myspace. Now, I’m getting ready to do new music. I’ll be dropping the single in the next month or in a couple of weeks, so it’s going to be pretty fast.
nocheLatina: Everyone has questioned whether you’re really Oscar De La Hoya’s niece. I even read that you didn’t know that you were related to Oscar until not too long ago when his sister contacted you, correct?
Daisy De La Hoya: No, that’s not true actually. I don’t really have a close relationship with my family. My mom and dad split up when I was about three-years-old. My mom informed me of who my uncle was when I was about 12, so that’s when I found out. I didn’t really care because it didn’t mean anything to me. That’s when everything began.
nocheLatina: You found out when you were 12?
Daisy De La Hoya: Yeah, I found out about my whole family situation when I was 12.
nocheLatina: Do you have any type of relationship with Oscar at all?
Daisy De La Hoya: I don’t have a relationship with any of my family. I’m not a very family-oriented person and I just grew up in a very different situation.
nocheLatina: What is one thing that you wish people would understand about you?
Daisy De La Hoya: I’m just a real person and everything that you see about me is real. My emotions are all mine. I’m a positive person so those people who talk bad about me are only giving me fuel to be that much more successful. I always hear of all the mean things that people say about me, and in reality, it’s those people that inspire me to do better. At the end of the day, I can’t let every rumor get to me. My goal is to get better at everything that I do, not get upset over every piece of gossip that’s written about me.
nocheLatina: You’re not from Los Angeles, correct?
Daisy De La Hoya: I was born in California, but I grew up in Denver my whole life and about a year ago, I moved to Los Angeles. I love it here. It’s my home.
nocheLatina: Where have you gone to party in the city?
Daisy De La Hoya: Everywhere! Name a place and I’ve been there.
nocheLatina: Your Latin fans have particularly talked about whether you’ve really embraced your Latin side. I know you don’t have a close relationship with your family, so do you have any thoughts on that?
Daisy De La Hoya: I really don’t consider myself as anything, I consider myself as a person. I’m a human being, I’m a woman, and I’m trying to be a strong woman. I don’t think of myself as anything or if I’m this or that. I think of myself as a human being and that’s what I try to do everyday, be me.
nocheLatina: Is there anything that you would like to let readers know before the show premieres?
Daisy De La Hoya: I want to let my fans know that I’m very grateful for all of their support. I think I have the greatest fans ever! I hope that they will watch ‘Daisy of Love’ and the journey that I went through, the whole process in trying to find love. It’s going to be a great show and I promise that I’m not going to let them down. Also, they can go to my Myspace where they can hear my music, find out where I’m going to be, and check out my merchandise, including a women’s limited edition t-shirt. Everything they want to know about me, it’s on there.
nocheLatina: Are you interested in possibly creating your own fashion line?
Daisy De La Hoya: Eventually yes, I want to do that. Everything that I do in my life is artistic, which includes music, writing, singing, dancing, acting, modeling, everything. Fashion is also a huge part of my life so I absolutely want to do my own line. In the meantime, I’m working with different designers to do special, limited edition stuff, and one of those things is a special edition t-shirt by a company called Good Girl Bad Girl. They actually just changed their name to Beautiful Disaster, so look out for that because it’s going to be awesome.
"Daisy of Love" premieres on Sunday, April 26 at 9PM EST on VH1. Photos courtesy of Daisy De La Hoya.
