[Music up and under, Sprite by BSNYEA]
Mr. Mildor: Everybody is scrambling around, waiting, because some people didn’t get on the list. I didn’t get on the list. I tried. It went like one second. I failed too. Saying tomorrow might be a chance. There’s a lot of rumors, too!
Welcome back to Relentless, a podcast about unusual aspirations, farfetched ideas, or that perfect pair of sneakers.
If you’ve listened to the first four episodes of this story, well, first of all, thank you! Second of all, that means you’ve accompanied me on my journey to understand who lines up to buy Supreme’s merchandise, and why. Today, with the 2017 fall season over, I’m thinking about everything I’ve learned. For those of you who have not yet listened to the prior episodes, I encourage you to do so before listening to this one.
Tracking Supreme over the course of this season turned out to be a particularly auspicious time to be paying attention to the brand, though I had to constantly sort out fact from fiction.
Mr. Mildor: It’s sad that they closed LA shop on Fairfax [music fades out] but everything on Fairfax moved to Brooklyn.
Maddy: Wait, they closed the store in Los Angeles?
Mildor: Yes.
Not true. The store in Los Angeles is still open. But, as you know, the thing with rumors is that some turn out to be true. Supreme really did take on a major outside investment from the Carlyle Group. It valued the company at one billion dollars. That made headlines. And the rumors about a new store, in Brooklyn, those were true, too.
[SCENE: BROOKLYN STORE OPENING]
[Sound of L train to Bedford Ave stop, “This is Rockaway Park bound L-train.” Sound of feet on stairs. Runs underneath standup.]
Maddy: There were rumors about a new store and then rumors it was opening October 5 and now it is opening October 5. Here to see who shows up, familiar faces from Soho… People out in Supreme finest, other rare Supreme t-shirts, skate bowl in the new store so some people get to skate inside the store.
Dante: My name is Dante, they call me Squeaky. I’m 20.
Maddy: Why do they call you Squeaky?
Dante: Cause I’m squeaky clean. You don’t see me?
Maddy: Your sweatshirt is very clean. White, crisp.
Dante: It’s the Brooklyn look.
Maddy: What do you think about the store opening in Brooklyn?
Dante: They should of opened one in Brooklyn first. If you come to NY and don’t come to Brooklyn it’s like you don’t come to New York, feel me?
[SCENE: COMPETITION ON THE LINE]
In Brooklyn, I met all kinds of fans, some of whom were featured on prior episodes. Remember Tony from Queens, the long-time collector? And those guys from Baltimore who arestarting a consignment shop? There was also this guy,
My name is Edward. I’m 26 years old and I’m from Indonesia.
Maddy: What are you doing here today?
Edward: Basically, trying to get box logo, hype, whole world going crazy, only way to get it you need to be in New York.
Maddy: When did you come to New York?
Edward: Just today, I’m going back at 7pm at night.
Got that? He flew from Indonesia to New York City for one day, just to buy a tee-shirt commemorating the store opening.
Edward: My name is Edward, 26, currently working as banker and this is side job. I usually buy online, use proxy in US, then ship to US and then to Indonesia. Hoping somebody will sell me but so far, culture is a bit rough. A lot of people saying harsh stuff like “go away” like nasty stuff. I know culture may be a bit racist for Asian in some way. I don’t know anyone. It’s pretty scary.
I don’t know if Edward got a shirt. But the menacing overtones are worth noting. When I interviewed Anton, who was in the last episode of Relentless, we talked a bit about the dynamic on the line,
Anton: The fun part is when you buying t-shirt for 40 bucks and selling for 400. That part is fun. The thing which is not fun, and stressful, is because you have to be tight, you have to be almost every time, you almost have to be ready to fight. Me, personally, I don’t enjoy to be in stressful situation like that.
I did not witness that kind of behavior in New York, but I did hear stories about what it was like before the current reservation system.
Brian: Like in the past, everyone used to be walling, fighting. Two seasons ago a guy got slashed in his face, you heard about that right? No? Yeah, this kind got slashed in the face for skipping the line. I was there for that, he was right behind me, he was right behind me before he got slashed.
Rafe: Now it’s a lot more low-key, now it’s normal.
Maddy: Is it less fun for being less crazy?
Rafe: Not really. That stuff was way too extra, there was people getting haircuts on the street. It was just dumb.
Maddy: Literally people getting haircuts?
Rafe: This one guy, Racks, he had his barber come out, had him cutting his hair while we were waiting outside.
Maddy: While he was in line he had his hair cut?
Rafe: He wasn’t even waiting in line, I’m pretty sure he has kids who go in for him. He just stands outside and gets a haircut, I guess.
I mean, as an outside observer, I kind of wish I hadseen something like that haircut.
Where I encountered a more menacing vibe on the line was in Los Angeles. There, fans start lining up on Tuesday, across the street from the store, to get their places in line for Thursday morning. I visited on a Wednesday night and witnessed a man in the line screaming and throwing a camp chair in a fit of rage while a security guard idled nearby, engrossed in his iPad. When I got to the people at the front of the line, they told me they don’t allow any photographs and that when passerby take photos, they confiscate their phones. I don’t know if that’s true but it sounded… threatening.
There were also clouds of marijuana smoke wafting over the whole area. But, then again, I was in California.
[Music up and under, Take Off the Tommy by Stripe Like Tommy]
[SCENE: BARBARA KRUGER]
In New York City this fall, a multi-faceted conceptual art project by Barbara Kruger spread across Manhattan for the Dadaist art festival, Performa.
Remember, Barbara Kruger is the artist whose work Supreme riffed on in the creation of their box logo. Since 1994, Barbara Kruger has commented only a few times publicly about Supreme’s appropriation of her work. Interpretations of her comments have varied. [Music fades out] She’s been characterized as untroubled, as bemused, as indignant.
In November and December, she covered a popular skate park in Manhattan with slogans and also filled a storefront in Soho with skate merchandise featuring the same phrases. All of it was in her iconic white lettering on a red background. The skate park, as usual, was open to the public.
[Fade up sound of skate decks.]
Milo: I’m 18, Milo, from Seattle.
Maddy: You’re visiting or you moved here?
Milo: I moved here.
Milo: I come to watch everybody else go him. I could do that! I’m gonna try my hardest.
I just came back from Atlanta, hadn’t been here for two weeks. This is insane. I like it a lot. It’s inspirational. May not speak to everybody, it’s cool.
Maddy: Tell me some phrases that speak to you.
Milo: “Show off, Jerk.” Go as hard as you can.
Maddy: Do any of the other ones stand out to you?
Milo: “Love it, shove it, praise it, please it.” Ooh, I love that one, wow! I like it, that’s cool, I’m gonna put that in my room. “Love it, shove it, praise it, please it.” I like that. Ok. And then, “Whose hopes, whose fears?” Damn.
Others at the park that day had different reactions to the installation,
Christian: Christian Chris, from all over NY, 34.
Maddy: How long have you been skating here?
Christian: Been skating here since it was wooden ramps, a long time.
Maddy: The last couple weeks there’s been this added element, right?
Christian: I thought it’s kind of messed up that big artist’s trying to buy into our culture, should have collaborated with local artists, graffiti artists. She comes here and tags all over our stuff, disrespectful.
Maddy: You read it as she came in and tagged all over your stuff.
Christian: She didn’t ask permission. Trying to buy into our culture. And we didn’t get nothing for it. She’s getting all the money and we’re falling off all over the place because it’s slippery. You know, it’s mostly an eyesore, red stuff on the ledges that made it pretty slippery, that’s why the kids took it all off. They didn’t want it there. There’s tons of artists here who are on the come up, she could have talked to those guys.
Maddy: The New York Times wrote about it, covered in legitimate media outlets, saying look at this public art installation.
Christian: Nothing about skaters, though.
[Music up and under, Take Off Tommy]
On to the pop-up shop. That was advertised as a performance and required a ticketed reservation. Performances were scheduled for several weeks, only on Thursdays.
[Music fades out, fade up street]
Upon arrival at the popup shop, the first thing I noticed was the line outside the performance space, and the security guard in black, strolling up and down, asking,
Does anybody here have a question that is not dumb?
If anyone had a question that wasn’t dumb.
MacKenzie: Waiting for BK Performa event. I don’t know anything about what it’s going to be. I like to go in blind and be fully immersed. Fan of Barbara Kruger. I’m a graphic designer, what attracts me to it.
Maddy: What do you wait in line for?
MacKenzie: Mostly art events.
Guess who else was there? Some regulars from the Supreme line,
Chris: The concept is cool. I experience doing line ups for sneakers, art as well, clothes mostly. The whole concept is cool. Supreme releases every Thursday. The concept she took from Supreme because Supreme took her concept. I like the revenge thing behind this.
Sean: I think what they use to call this in the 60’s was a happening. Being there is the thing. I guess that’s why we’re standing in line.
Chris: Every human being is curious. Having a line is gonna attract attention.
Sean: That’s performance art. It’s a spectacle. What are you looking at? Why do I want to look at it?
Chris: Creative, even though it’s a rip.
What was it like inside?
MacKenzie #2: Red wall against back says Performa 17 Biennale, Barbara Kruger. Right wall is sloped like a quarter-pipe, it has four red frames, in each frame different article of clothing, white shirt, black shirt, black hat, and black hoodie. Other wall, her skate decks that say, “don’t be a jerk.” Video installation of skate park in Lower East Side.
Here’s a typical experience on the line that evening,
Julia: We just waited in an incredibly long line, 45 minutes, for 5 minutes in a shop, in a store-slash-performance space to purchase items from Barbara Kruger that she designed. I went with the metro card, very New York moment and cool thing to have, and metro cards are rarely interesting.
These metro cards are red on the back with phrases in white letters, Who is healed? Who is housed? Who is silent? Who speaks?
Julia: Then I got a beanie that says, “Want it, buy it, forget it.”
And that, ladies and gentlemen, was the performance.
Julia: Obviously you’re doing the thing she is exactly talking about. You’re equal parts feel good engaging in art piece but also embarrassed ‘cause you bought it, you bit. Nice in sense that makes you think about what you are doing but don’t stop doing it. Still going to buy that thing and odds are forget it and we wanted it because we waited in line for 45 minutes. She nailed it.
For some people, that was enough to make it worthwhile,
Gia: Exactly what I expected.
Sean: Be part of the experience, it’s really about waiting in line, not about getting inside.
Katie: So much fun to wait in line to spend money.
Sean: Where is she?
Katie: She’s probably at home, laughing all the way to the bank. Good for you, Barbara.
Sean: She got us waiting out here. The joke’s on us.
MacKenzie #2: Supreme stole her font, put it in a box logo, people don’t do research at all. This is funny. Lining up for this instead of for Supreme store.
When I was inside the store, the woman ahead of me got to the register and was told by the salespeople that this was the performance. She responded, “I knew I would hate this. This is totally disappointing.” Then she bought a metro card.
[Take Off Tommy underneath]
If you are curious about what these installations looked like, I posted a few photos of the shop and a video of the skate park on Instagram at the relentless podcast. As far as I know, Supreme did not make any comments publicly about the performance or the installation.
[Music fades out]
[SCENE: UNEXPLORED TOPICS]
I’m trying to wrap up this story, but there are so many things I haven’t even touched on yet!
[Brief excerpt from Levels by Taj Mahal]
Like: the Supreme diaspora of influential designers who have worked in-house at Supreme and then gone on to establish or grow existing labels of their own. It’s an intricate web and at some point I want to explore it.
[Brief excerpt from Levels by Taj Mahal]
Another topic I could analyze is Supreme’s portrayal of women. Supreme holds women up as icons, like Kate Moss who is featured on a photo tee. But Supreme also arguably objectifies women, like in the controversial and popular 2005 Larry Clark calendar that featured a series of full-body portraits of young naked women. I wonder what Supreme’s employees and top decision-makers think about the ways in which female imagery is incorporated into the designs. Or what about the female models themselves? And what do fans, both women and men, think?
[Brief excerpt from Levels by Taj Mahal]
I could also explore more of the political messages the brand embeds and broadcasts, which lean pretty liberal, progressive, left. Could a brand like this be successful with politically conservative messaging?
If I can get someone from Supreme to engage on any of these topics, you’ll hear about it.
There are also other obstacles that make it harder for fans to purchase Supreme, like bots. Bots are automated software and services. You can pay to increase your chances of success buying from Supreme’s online store. Bots are a big part of the reason why weekly registration fills lightening fast and why popular items sell out online in seconds.
And then there are the fakes. Yes, fake Supreme. Imitations abound. Some better than others. And many are sold online as originals. So buyer, beware. There is an art to identifying real Supreme merchandise and for that, the internet can be your guide. If you are buying fakes, you certainly don’t want to pay resale prices. But if Supreme is too expensive for you, then a good fake could be a welcome find.
[Music up and under, Madi$on’s Garden by Khalil Almighty]
[SCENE: LOHEADS]
I also have this question: how unique is the fandom that surrounds Supreme?
One Thursday this fall, after finishing my session outside the supreme store in week 4, I wandered east on Prince Street in Soho, in search of a lunch spot. After a few blocks, at Greene Street, I turned my gaze northward and was startled to see the narrow cobblestoned street full of people milling about. There was an energetic hum in the air. I paused to take in the scene. That’s when I noticed a long line outside the Ralph Lauren store on the corner. Continuing to assess the crowd, I noticed that on average, people looked to be in their 40’s, not nearly as young a crowd as I typically saw at Supreme. I approached a few guys who were huddled together on the opposite sidewalk, sitting on cement construction blockades.
Ricky: Today Ralph Lauren released a collection, limited edition of previous items he once sold, which was the Stadium collection from 1992. Those items are very rare. Old item can go on eBay easy for $1000 to $2000. Easy. So he re-issued limited edition of those items. So that’s why we have a line here.
Totally unexpectedly, and to my delight, I’d stumbled upon another fashion subculture! Loheads – fans of the brand Polo
[Music fades out]
Ricky: Roughly, handing out tickets, bracelets to about 400 people, today, and they don’t have enough items to go around.
Maddy: Did you get a wristband?
Ricky: Yup, number 179 and I’m still waiting since 8 o’clock this morning. I’m Ricky Rodriguez, from Brooklyn, NY.
Maddy: How old are you, Ricky?
Ricky: 44 years old. Fan of this since high school, junior high. To see some of these vintage releases come back out brings back memories. You want that piece. Now we grown men, we can afford it now.
Maddy: Have you run into people you know?
Ricky: Man, I run into a lot of people I haven’t seen in years, in years. I met some new people, good people, today. This should have been done years ago. The same way Nike retro the Jordans, Ralph should’ve retro’d the clothes. Let me tell you something, everybody is excited to get their hands on one of these pieces. It’s history. It brings back memories.
Maddy: Why are younger people here?
Ricky: For the fashion.
Maddy: Were you into this stuff when it first came out?
Anon: I was into when it first came out but my mother was not allowing me to buy it. He’s 43, I’m 37. So they were the older kids. They would have beaten me up and taken mine. Now that I can defend myself, I can wear it [laughs].
I’m Sharee, from New York, born and raised.
Marlon Willis, Brooklyn. 44, 43.
Marlon: The Lo Head thing is basically people who wear Polo. It’s just clothes, nice clothes. That’s all.
Sharee: It’s from one of the American designers. We all American and out here to support him.
Maddy: How did you know this was happening?
Sharee:Word of mouth, internet.
Maddy: Were you into this before?
Sharee: When we was kids. Now we adults and we still into it. To see all the people out here, they were younger and now they’re old.
Maddy: What else would bring you all together?
Sharee: Clothes and music will always bring people together, no matter what race you are.
Marlon: Small, tightknit community. Look at age, some people aren’t aware of what’s going on, so it’s not as hectic as it would be with Supreme. With Supreme, you know every Thursday you can get something you can turn around and sell. Not necessarily the case here. If it happens, it happens. My personal aim is to have it for my collection, genuinely appreciate the pieces.
Some people had another agenda,
Anon: I’m gonna sell it online, the whole set for $2800.
Maddy: How much did you pay?
Anon: Paid about $347. I can sell it right away because limited, never coming back again.
But overall, people seemed genuinely energized by the release because of nostalgia,
Sharee: This is beautiful. It’s all races and that’s what I love about it. Feels good. People of my age group, kind of cool. Supreme running with 22 year olds, 19 year olds, wanting to fight, cause they testosterone is at a level, you know. Here it’s calm, people are just so happy getting pieces you couldn’t get when you were younger, now you can get it when you’re old.
Marlon: The quality. It’s unique. It’s a style you haven’t seen for 25 years. It’s been around but you haven’t seen it for 25 years. So, to see it again, and be able to obtain a piece of it again, a piece of history again, not bad.
Maddy: You’ve got such a nice smile on your face as you describe that. Do you have feelings about that?
Marlon: Not strong feelings, but kind of elated yeah, nice feelings about the whole day. Smoothe day. Not raining. Everything went nice.
Sharee: The clothes are wonderful and they last forever. I can die and my granddaughter can wear something he makes.
[Music - Madison’s Garden]
Ok, that was a bit of a tangent but I wanted to tell you about the Loheads because encountering them shifted my perspective on Supreme. Or rather, it broadened my perspective. Now Supreme fit into this larger jigsaw puzzle of subcultures related to fashion and urban pop-culture. And there were the 1990’s again, acting as a potent touchstone for a lot of people, or at least a lot of people in New York City.
[Music fades out]
[SCENE: FINAL REFLECTIONS]
Supreme in its wide-reaching and varied popularity is enmeshed in many elements of capitalism: youth employment,entrepreneurialism, marketing, fashion,celebrities,globalization, access to the formal economy. As one young man stated,
Joshua: What the human mind can perceive as value even though it’s just cloth.
Why people are so attached to Supreme is a question I have not fully answered. Supreme capitalizes on the cool of rebellious cultural icons and taps into the nostalgia that lots of people have for the 1990s, all through branded merchandise. But perhaps ultimately, Supreme fans,
Callow: We’re all a victim of the market, really.
A friend pointed out to me that subcultures often embody a common tension: the push and pull people feel to simultaneously assert their own individuality while also desiring a connection to others. Supreme fandom embodies those two poles.
Another acquaintance of mine said these stories led her to contemplate the seriousness with which people approach, covet, and value material objects. And how much we expect from those things in return. That they will define us, help us convey our true selves to others, accompany us, physically embody ephemeral memories.
I think about how many artistic portraits over the span of hundreds of years of western art feature totemic objects that represent the sitters’ personalities, social status, accomplishments, aspirations. This obsession with things is not new. Whether you love to accumulate things or fundamentally reject the importance of things, either stance reinforces the inherent value that human beings assign to things, especially those of our own, manmade, creation.
[Music, Vado by Angel]
As you know, I set out to answer a few questions: who are these people who line up for hours, week after week, to buy Supreme merchandise? Why are they so into this brand? And those questions lead inevitably to this one,
Maddy: A lot of people say, couldn’t these guys, mostly guys, be spending their time better? They’re willing to put all this time into something but they’re putting it in to this. What do you say in response to that?
Anon 1: They just don’t understand the hype. It’s something we grew up with, big part of our lives at this point. It’s a big part of our lives. I really don’t know how to explain it. They just won’t understand. People may say, it’s just clothes, but it’s different to us.
Anon 2: It’s a lifestyle. This is what we like, what we enjoy, this is happy for us. It’s what we like.
Maddy: What is enjoyable for you about this?
Anon 1: Knowing I have something that other people don’t. That’s the best part of it. I just met people on the line. It’s cool, cause you meet people, people who’ve been doing it for a while, maybe build connections, get this easier next time. That’s what it’s about. It’s a really fun experience. I think people should try it.
Maddy: What’s enjoyable about it for you?
Anon 2: Having something limited that most people can’t get. Then yeah, you get a little bit of bragging rights. Not easy to get. Knowing you got it is a good feeling, it’s an accomplishment.
I’m still pursuing answers. After this episode of Relentless, the podcast will turn its attention to other kinds of tenacity, but I’ll be revisiting supreme on occasion. So if you have questions that have gone unanswered or if you have a supreme story to tell or a major supreme collection you’d like to share, please contact me through our website, the relentless dot org
[Music fades out]
[SCENE: BOX LOGO HOODIE]
I’m going to end this leg of my Supreme journey by going back to where it started: the box logo. Last year, as you know, my husband gifted me a box logo beanie. This fall, I wanted to return the favor. By gifting him one of the most desirable items of the entire season. Something everybody wanted, including Anton,
Anton: The most anticipated things for me, the things I personally like. From Supreme, I never had enough luck and chance to get box logo hoodie. That’s what I’m looking forward, not trying to resell it, want to keep it.
Maddy: So you enjoy wearing this, why?
Anton: Absolutely. It fits well. And I’m getting a lot of compliments. I like when people give me compliments. Everyone would like it.
The box logo hoodie dropped in week 16, three weeks before the end of the season. I caught up with Anton the following week on a freezing cold evening in Soho.
Anton: Last week was my worst number, it was 489. My best number was 93…My worst number, last week, I could get box logo. I was very happy with my worst number…I haven’t worn it yet. With me, I like to own stuff, I like to know, that yes, I do have it. It feels good when you know you have it. Maybe I’m going to wear for new year, or big occasion, but I’m happy I have it. Next release, I’ll be trying to get box logo again, again, and again.
Anton looked so pleased as he recounted this to me.
Anton: See you next season!
I didn’t get a chance to tell him about my own box logo adventure. On Thursday, December 7, a little before 11am, I set up my laptop on my kitchen counter.
Maddy: Put the clock on desktop for the second countdown
I monitored the time advancing on the screen as I closed every open application on my computer, leaving just one webpage open: Supreme’s online store, already loaded to the page for sweatshirts.
Maddy: 5 seconds, 4, 3, 2, 1, refresh.
At 11am exactly, I refreshed the page. No change. At 11am and 5 seconds,
Maddy: Refresh, no, 10 seconds. 15 seconds, nope. [sounds of clicking one button]
I kept refreshing every 5 seconds,
Maddy: 25 seconds, no. 30, nope [laughs]
Until finally over a minute later,
Maddy: Here it is, ah!
The new merchandise appeared. I clicked on the image of the black hooded sweatshirt with a neon green box logo. I selected size small.
Maddy: [reading] Add to cart, check out now
I pressed the check out button.
Maddy: [reading] Process payment [sound of typing under narration]
I entered my shipping address and credit card as critical seconds elapsed. I clicked purchase.
Maddy: [reading] Please wait
A dial started turning on the screen, elipses appeared and disappeared. Then, nothing happened.
For minutes on end, I monitored the page. I could see that the item was still in my cart but I couldn’t get the payment to process. Gah!
My friends, patience prevailed. As the Supreme webmasters did their best to fend off bots, individual real customers, including yourstruly, made it to the finish line. At 11:20am, my purchase went through.
How did I feel? Ok, this did not make my heart swell as it did when I exchanged wedding vows with my husband. And this was not as confidence-boosting as arriving at the top of Half Dome in Yosemite National Park after an 8-hour hike uphill. But, if I’m honest, my heart was racing. I was laser-focused for twenty minutes. And then, success! I totally felt a sense of accomplishment. I thought to myself, I did it. I thought to myself, I won. I thought to myself, that was fun.
My husband was pleased too! When I asked him to reflect on the Supreme season, he listed what was exciting to him,
Husband: Getting a couple items that I wanted, the box logo hoodie, which you really got, not me, and a couple pieces from the North Face collaboration and a crazy patchwork hoodie.
Maddy: Somebody asked me if you got everything you listed in first episode.
Husband: I did not.
Maddy: Do you still feel as enthralled by the brand?
Husband: I think I do still feel as enthralled by the brand. I think it’s still exciting to see what sort of collaborations they’re doing, what designs they’re putting out, what they’re referencing culturally, what accessories they’re doing. I’m a little less interested in consuming it after this season because there are a couple key pieces I was after and have now acquired. Still have a lot of admiration for what they do. I don’t think I’m a collector who is trying to get everything.
[Closing credits music up and under – China Town by BSNYEA]
Husband: But who knows what they’ll do next season!
[Music continues underneath until the end.]
You know what else is fun for me, besides copping a box logo hoodie? Making this podcast! I am already working on a new set of stories in my ongoing exploration of tenacity. But it’s going to be a little while before I’m ready to release another episode. So to ensure you don’t miss out on what’s coming next, sign up on our website to receive just one email for each new episode. Or subscribe to Relentless on iTunes, GooglePlay, SoundCloud, or Stitcher.
No one on the Supreme security team ever spoke with me for this podcast and I did my best to stay out of their way. But I want to thank them nonetheless for tolerating my presence on the periphery.
Thank you also once again to everyone who spoke with me outside the Supreme stores in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Los Angeles, and London. And to Britta, Jill, and Eve, generous volunteer editors.
Relentless is produced by me, Maddy Russell-Shapiro. Music in this week’s episode was produced by BSNYEA, Stripe Like Tommy, Taj Mahal, Khalil Almighty, and Angel at Building Beats, a DJ and music program that teaches entrepreneurial, leadership, and life skills to youth in New York City. If you’ve enjoyed the music in the show so far, consider making a donation to Building Beats, and come back for the next episode!