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Cooking Up Sneaker Leaks with ChefDoomy
0 Playsin 18 hours
This week I am joined by Adham, we talk about growing up in Canada. Being chronically online and how that helped him start in sneakers. What he feels when it comes to leaking sneaker information. How he found the problem he wanted to solve when it came to the sneaker's. I also share my thoughts on content creation, my struggles when I first started creating. How Adham feels about getting in front of the camera. Plus a whole ton more!
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Music by The DoppleGangaz: https://thedoppelgangaz.bandcamp.com/
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Transcript
Authenticity in Content Creation
00:00:00
Speaker
We're seeing a lot more success of people that are just kind of just doing it for fun. Yeah. And I think as long as you are still having fun, then that's going to go farther because if you're just constantly being like, all right, I'm going to keep refining until the brands like me, until the brands like me, until the brands like you're just going to be like, now you're just cookie cutter at some point. Exactly. and people are just going to be like, oh, why would I buy into that? So I think that if you're,
00:00:25
Speaker
Like, i mean, this is just me personally. I think, I think there needs to be a lot more personality now because if we're not, if we're not, then we're not growing. We're not growing as a culture. We're not growing as individuals. We're not growing as cute creatives or creators.
00:00:40
Speaker
And if we don't, if we continue to just let, you know, people with money dictate how we're, how we are being creative, then it's not being creative anymore. You're just, now you're just part of ah another cog in the system. So, yeah.
00:00:53
Speaker
So to me, like brand friendly, being brand friendly is a thing. Yeah. But to me, heard it and I've heard it used derogatory. Yeah. too so But I think brand friendly does not mean, okay, you got to be exactly like XYZ. Yeah.
00:01:11
Speaker
For example.
Chef Dumi's Journey: Sneakers and Photography
00:01:15
Speaker
What's good, everyone? Welcome back to My First Kicks. This is episode 245. And this week I bring to you but Basically a new friend, right? Would you say that, I would say that. Adam.
00:01:26
Speaker
Yeah, or Adham. I'd say Adham. Or Adham. Chef Dumi. Chef Dumi. The chef is in the building. Yes, yes. Welcome to the podcast, man. Thanks, man. feel like this was this is supposed to happen.
00:01:38
Speaker
Yeah, know. Thanks for having me, man. Like, I'm really glad to be here. No, yeah. We linked up at ComplexCon last year. We can talk about last year. yeah Last year we ran into each other and it was like, hey.
00:01:48
Speaker
And you were like, I'm Chef Dumi. I'm like, oh, and then that was it. And then we were just like separated after that. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. So like, yeah. So it's good to now actually like, well, this year's ComplexCon, we actually got to hang out, chat a bit more. And now here we are. Yeah.
00:02:03
Speaker
But for people who are not ah familiar with you how about you introduce yourself? Yeah, so Chef Doomy. I go by Adam or Ad Ham, yeah as Haas would like me to say. Yes, please. ah Been into sneakers for probably almost like nine years now.
00:02:19
Speaker
And kind of hand in hand is when I started to pick up photography as well. So leveraged my love for sneakers alongside um trying to learn photography to try and grow my page. Yeah. um And then now looking eight years later, i do you know photography, ah video. um I have my like Twitter, and my Instagram, you know, like a lot more growth. And I would say a lot of my growth came in the last year or two, as opposed to the first six years of doing it which is just that's just how it is how that's how it works man you know uh i was just uh don't know if you saw my post i was reflecting on ah this year i mean the uh the sixth marks five years i started this podcast did see that yeah which is a big milestone yeah and so like yeah i think this year this last year was like the crazy growth yeah around around it but like yeah so i i feel your pain yeah Yeah. So especially it's like you're slow going when it's like slow go. It's hard to be like motivated to keep posting.
00:03:17
Speaker
I agree. And it's hard to when you see that there's other creators who they kind of just start and it's maybe like the algorithm works out or they said something that's really controversial, viral, and that just helps them really grow at such a quick pace in a short period of time. And when you see that and then you're you know, you've been doing it for a long time and your growth is really slow. It It can be demotivating a bit, but the important thing is that, you know, if you really love it and you love what you're doing, just try not to focus on the numbers too, too much.
00:03:47
Speaker
Try to learn from your content, try to always improve, and then the growth will just come when the time's right. No, yeah.
Transition to Video Content
00:03:52
Speaker
I mean, but especially because i wanted to talk to you about that, too. Just like your growth with your content, like you went from pictures to actually being talking.
00:04:00
Speaker
Doing maybe the I said this and I think you remember when I said this I was like this is the most like calming a video review, sneaker review. yeah And so like I'm sure like I'm sure if you ever cross Chef Dumi's videos you're he's just like sits you down. It feels like you're sitting somebody down and be like let me talk you through this hitting collab. You're just like yeah. Yeah I I think so. When I started, i always saw myself as a photographer. And i know like reels and TikTok were picking up. I guess it would have been like right around COVID or right before.
00:04:33
Speaker
And actually funny story. and this is a side story. But I didn't get Instagram reels until like a year or two later after everyone. What? So long story short, and apparently Facebook put my account in some sort of test control group where we just didn't get reels.
00:04:48
Speaker
And then they finally got me out of it. But even when I came out of it and i was like, yeah, I could do videos now. Like i always saw myself like I can't do video. Like I don't get it. and I don't think I have the knack for it. So i always used to be kind of stubborn on the I'm just a photographer. That's what I do. That's what I want to do.
00:05:04
Speaker
But I think part of it too was when I saw how people did their videos, like there's some great sneaker reviewers out there and they have their style and they also cater to the TikTok kind of like poppy quick sort of thing.
00:05:16
Speaker
And that's not really me. Like, I just feel like that's just not who I am as a personality. So at some point I kind of realized, okay, like I really want to take content more seriously. This was about two years ago. And I was like, I want to take content more seriously. Cause I was kind of taking, it was kind of in the backseat and I was kind of just going whenever, but I was like, I want to take content more seriously. i got to do
Unique Style and Storytelling
00:05:38
Speaker
more video. So actually it's funny. Cause I talked to my buddy Lewis at the time about it and he kind of gave me some tips of like, Hey, like this is what you could do. That sort of thing. Shout out Lewis. He's in the building. yes i'm i vibe
00:05:48
Speaker
Also D's in the building. Um, yeah. Yeah. So kind of took his advice. Like he's always been a mentor for me, like with photography, videography, like ever since I started, because when I got into sneakers and when I got into photography, it was right about the same time i met Lewis and another ah couple other buddies of ours. And, you know, they helped me really like grow and mentorship. So took what he said, really like, you know, got the gear, got everything and decided, OK, let's try it and see what we could do. And Kind of went, you know, trying to do the poppy thing and then realizing all the editing time, the way people talk, not for me. yeah And just really try to find what works for me as a style.
00:06:29
Speaker
And, you know, for me, that was, I like things that are a bit more cinematic. I want to make sure like lighting's good. i want to make sure the quality is good. I want to be able to focus on the details of the shoe. and talk about the shoe in a way where it's not so like like, boom, boom, boom, like all these different things, information being thrown at you all at once. And it's more like, let me take you through a story. Let me explain what's special about the shoe. What are some details? And you know it took time to get that style. So I mean, for me, like my advice to anyone doing it is like, yes, there are people who do things a certain way. yeah
00:07:02
Speaker
And there are, they're going to have large audiences people are going to like it. So the, you'll have the kind of urge or, um, I guess the feeling of, i have to imitate them. Right. But you know, you really don't have to, you got to find what works for you and what you're comfortable with. And, you know, eventually that will fall into the hands of the right people to see, and then you'll
Sneaker Culture and Authenticity Shift
00:07:27
Speaker
get that growth.
00:07:27
Speaker
Yeah, I think I think that's like the testament of this day and age now where 2020 kind of just like pushed and ushered in all the people that were just like, I'm just going to figure out how to play the algorithm. Yeah. And now we're we're part of the we're coming out of that part, I feel 2025, where.
00:07:43
Speaker
a lot of the people are just looking for people to be genuine in front of them. Right. And so the reflection of that is starting to see some of these pages that have been grinding past 2020 really showing themselves and then being like, you know what, I'm must still be consistent, you know, 2025, I'm still pushing. and And I feel like the the audiences have started to come in and find that like your page, you know, like my page, Sneaker Fetish, you know, AAD, all Aaron, like Mike from Sneaker History. Yeah.
00:08:12
Speaker
a lot of the people that like are trying to have conversations because they want to be part of something. And i think the the way that content creators really honed in on like trying to get the bag yeah during 2020, 2021 was like, yo, we're just going to copy everything. I remember like TikTok was so saturated with like everybody doing the same thing that it was insane to see. Like you scroll and everybody got all the same sneakers. Everybody's pushing Nesquik like, yeah it was crazy.
00:08:40
Speaker
yeah and like Yeah, and there's shoes that you would call TikTok shoes yeah as a result because everyone is like, oh, like what was the shoe? like The Jordan 1 Obsidian, the Jordan 1 Mocha High. yeah like Both those shoes were like, people liked them. People would see on TikTok, they would do so well engagement-wise. So everyone wants that shoe. Everyone wants to talk about that shoe. And I think also kind of a product of getting the more genuine audiences now has to do with where sneaker culture as a whole is now. like We're going away from the...
00:09:09
Speaker
whatever is trendy, whatever has resale to the more like the more people who are ah like genuine essentially and actually like the culture and actually want to talk about it and invest in it and, you know, give back to people and talk about the shoe in a way where the love is from just the love of the game versus the love of the money or the love of the attention, you know, and that that plays a big role of where content is now versus five years ago. Yeah.
First Sneaker and Cultural Spark
00:09:37
Speaker
Well, before we get deeper into this, ah listen let me hit you with the question that ask everybody each week. And that question is, what's your first kicks? Was that first pair of sneakers you absolutely needed to have? My first pair of sneakers I absolutely needed to have, which it's a bit embarrassing saying, but it was an Adidas NMD. Okay. It was the...
00:09:55
Speaker
I think it I forgot. Was it the OG? It like wasn't the OG actually. It was called the clear gray, I believe. It had a circunit upper and it had like a light blue big block. um And then the block in the front was like a light gray. Mm hmm.
00:10:10
Speaker
And the reason I did, and then I found out about the OG after that. And the reason I wanted that shoe honestly was I was starting to get into Instagram kind of, I would say like late 2014, 2015, but I was not it like, I knew nothing about sneakers back then. I was into like band merch. I was a big EDM head, okay a huge fan of Skrillex and like Ausla and that sort of culture. still in Are you still in?
00:10:33
Speaker
Not as crazy as before. Now i'm more like, i would say my music taste is more generalized. I feel like everybody had a, like during that time, like 2014-ish, that Skrillist phase. Oh, yeah. Everybody had a phase. I still listen to his stuff like to this day, but like definitely not as hardcore. But anyway. Remember when Hauser or Bauer?
00:10:50
Speaker
Oh, yeah. yeah Harlem Shake. Yes. Harlem Shake was going crazy. Which I actually watched a documentary. Well, I'm going off topic, but I watched a documentary about Bauer and that Harlem Shake stuff. Yeah. really interesting. you know that? um What's his name in it? He's the he's now an artist. He's in the pink suit.
00:11:07
Speaker
And that's the video that went viral. What's his name? What's his name? got to know because I don't know if I know this lore. It's going to hit me. It's not Magda Marco, but it's like in that vein. It's like. It's like an Asian dude. oh It's going to hit me.
00:11:22
Speaker
Just keep it going, though. But yeah, anyways, um so into band merch, Skrillex, Ausla, they used to rep this brand called Youth Machine, which was an L.A. based brand, which unfortunately doesn't exist anymore. But they used to make these really like nice band tees, essentially, for a lot of electronic artists. They also had their own ah in-house line of merch. And I used to just collect the tees.
00:11:44
Speaker
And I thought it would be cool at the time, like, hey, why don't I showcase the tees and like take photos? And I was living in Canada at the time. So i was like, why don't I take photos of me wearing them, have a caption, just talking about different aspects of life, try to be more motivational. And the one thing I noticed and and like the fits weren't like anything like I wasn't like getting off fits or anything, really. It was legit. Just the T jeans and then like whatever shoes I had at the time.
00:12:08
Speaker
But when I'd look at the photos, I'd be like, what would elevate these photos? I was like, shoes. And I was like, i need to get a pair, a nice pair of sneakers. And I've always had like a bias to Adidas at the time where I was like, growing up, I always used to get Adidas. My parents used to always buy Adidas stuff for me. So I used to just gravitate towards Adidas. So I kind of did some research, looked around.
00:12:30
Speaker
um I was following a lot of like ah different electronic artists at the time, too, on Instagram. I noticed a lot of them were pushing the NMD. Really? i was Yeah. that was ah That was an EDM shoe? i mean, that makes sense. Yeah, and a lot of DJs were pushing them. It was crazy. So I would see them wear them, and I was like, okay, I got to get into an Adidas NMD. yeah That's the shoe that's going to start it off for me, and I think that's going to be a good shoe to do with my photos. Mm-hmm.
00:12:53
Speaker
That Circonet pair, I think, was the second big release they had. It was in March 2016. And I was on the Adidas website two and a half hours, ended up checking out still, and then got the pair. And then from there, like, I really love that pair. I babied it. I wore it a lot, but I babied it. And then at a certain point, I was like, I just need more sneakers. And then that that just started the flood of purchasing.
00:13:17
Speaker
Did you like find like, did you go to like a forum at one point? Like what, like what it was, or was it just straight Instagram that like pulled you in? I think for me it was straight Instagram. I wasn't really into forums or like, I don't know if Reddit was around back then. I think it was, but I wasn't really it. It wasn't like poppin'. Yeah. Like I wasn't into really, I wasn't into forums when I was a lot younger, but like, I wasn't really part of the Nike talk era, for example, or like any of the other forums. Cause I wasn't, I wasn't really into the sneaker culture at the time. But were you on EDM forums?
00:13:46
Speaker
I don't think I was either. Like, I just wasn't a forums guy. like But to be fair, I would say back then, like, I didn't care too much about social media. Like, I had a Twitter, because I always thought Twitter was cool. And I had it like, I got it in like 2011, always thought it was cool. But Instagram was where I got a lot more of the information for like artists and stuff. And, you know, eventually the NMDs.
00:14:08
Speaker
So that's what influenced me, I guess. ah Bought the shoe, loved the shoe, got more shoes. And then from Instagram, that's when I started to branch out and notice like, oh, there's like a sneaker culture on Twitter. Oh, Reddit was a really good place. I think I actually was more involved in Reddit before Twitter picked up. Yeah, for sneakers. Our sneakers. Our sneakers, yeah. Our sneakers was quite different back then than it is now. It's crazy now. Yeah. Yeah, like now I'm not really a fan. Back then, it was really easy. Like i used to just post FitPix, get recommendations.
00:14:40
Speaker
Like I could ask stuff and I don't feel like i would get like clowned for it per se like you do now. yeah And it was just a good source. And that's how I got
Ethics of Sharing Sneaker Information
00:14:48
Speaker
it really. Like I wasn't really... like I know now like a lot of people rely on me for like info yeah on Twitter. like I wasn't really good with info like that back then. I really had to rely on Reddit and whatnot. But I think it was like COVID where I feel like information was a lot easier to get and there's different sources. so covid COVID was like a birth of a lot of things sneaker-related, honestly, good and bad.
00:15:12
Speaker
Hope you've been enjoying this week's episode with Doomy. And if you've really been enjoying it, please make sure you are liking, subscribing and leaving a comment on the YouTube video.
00:15:23
Speaker
And if you're listening to this on an audio platform, please make sure to rate this five stars and leave a review. I will totally be reading any new reviews at the end of an episode, along with the Patreon shout outs. And of course, speaking of Patreon shout outs, don't forget to subscribe to the Patreon or become a patron at Patreon.com slash my first kicks.
00:15:44
Speaker
Any amount of money, the $3 or the $5 tiers, really goes to helping me with the podcast. Producing, getting some help, as much as I can.
00:15:55
Speaker
It all goes back into the podcast. And, of course, let's jump back right into the episode. But, like, I mean, because you talked about doing that, too. And then, like, like finding information. how that Where did that, like, curiosity for you?
00:16:11
Speaker
and when for you And also, like, when did you want to start sharing it So, and I guess this is kind of a controversial topic too, because it's like the the topic of like gatekeeping yeah and whatnot.
00:16:23
Speaker
I have a philosophy that if something's on the internet, it's on the internet. If I don't see it, someone else is going to see it. And I think it's also disservice to people who want to buy the stuff, who are truly part of the culture, but maybe not tapped in. Yeah.
00:16:40
Speaker
to find that information like it's a disservice to them if they're not able to know especially if they're a fan of a specific collaborator or designer or brand so i think i tuned in finding information over the years just like knowing where to look on twitter knowing where to look on instagram even reddit in some cases like some of the subreddits like for example um you know like jown has a subreddit um some other obscure brands cpfm has subreddits and a lot of tidbits get posted in there and people don't know that they can tap in.
00:17:12
Speaker
um One of my, I guess one of the recent examples, is even with like Salehi Bembry and his Pollux Crocs, like there's a subreddit. And I remember like no one on Twitter, no one in Instagram knew that Crocs was selling his Realtree collab that was never released. Yeah. for like 50% off on TikTok shop. And even myself, I just saw it like the day after and I was like, oh, no one posted about this, so gonna share it. So I just think like if it's on the internet and it's there, like why gatekeep? Like let people enjoy, let people have the fun.
00:17:47
Speaker
Now, if it's something that's word of mouth, and it's coming direct from ah like a collaborator or a brand, and they're sharing information that is gonna be public eventually, but maybe they don't want people to know yet, or even if it's just something that like it's kind of like hearsay, then I get gatekeeping in that aspect. But if it's on on the internet, like it's fair game. like Even with leaks, like I know sometimes I share leaks too, but it's like, I i will never be the first person to leak something.
00:18:18
Speaker
But if it's on there, i just I just see this fair game to talk about it. mean, that's interesting. I think I mean, I'm not in the business of leaking or information. So pause. But the ah the the way that like, I don't know, I because like I've been at being been getting asked, like, where do I find my sneaker information? And I'm just kind of just like I'm always just my response is always just like it just finds me. Yeah, because, you know, I'll I'll pay attention to stuff, but I'm never really like looking unless I'm for me. It's for me. It's like, oh, there's a sneaker I've heard that's coming out.
00:18:51
Speaker
All right. Now let me find out what's the date, what it's about, what like what what like what's going to get me to really want to be like, all right, cool. I need to find more about this. and And I remember like being younger and and wanting to really be all up on like the information before a shoot comes out or something like that. Yeah. And so, I mean, if I was a collaborator, I feel like, yes, if something I was keeping close to chest was being told on the Internet, like without me saying like, yo, like go out and say this. Right. Yeah.
00:19:22
Speaker
Then I would feel the way it's the same way. Like I was i was talking to. my boy s Sango and s Sango was just like, he was playing me this song and he was just like, he's like, he's like, he's he's like, yo, gonna send it to you. Leak it. And I'm like, okay.
00:19:34
Speaker
He never sent me the song. But like that, that whole like, yo, I got the, if you sent it to me, yeah, I'm gonna be like, yo, y'all gotta listen to this, you know? But I don't know. I think that like, I mean, in your, in your instance where it's just like, you know, you're just going to places where people aren't finding it and people aren't there and they're not present and you're just like,
00:19:53
Speaker
you're You're not here. I'm going to bring it to you. yeah i feel like you shouldn't be getting you know backlash on that. ah Yeah. like i And I don't think I do. like I think the best example that I have is you know i I met Joe Fresh Goods at ComplexCon and I chatted with him a bit. And really nice guy. like i don't I didn't really have a perception of him like in terms of like is he nice or not nice online. And I think it's just his online persona is a bit...
00:20:20
Speaker
elusive And he was a really nice guy and talking to him, super nice guy. And I thought that- Did you introduce yourself? I did introduce myself. I'm Chef Dumi. Yeah, I did introduce myself and was really impressed that he actually like, I guess he recognized me. And you know, I saw his shoes were on the side, the upcoming collab of the And we had like this funny exchange where I was initially taking like full photo shots yeah of the shoe, like full shoe.
00:20:45
Speaker
And was like, na no, no, no, don't do that because, and then he was explaining to me, he was like, I know your content's going to turn out good and everything, but he's like, I wear size 12. They're going to look like boats. So like only detail shots. And he was like, Yeah, even those in-hand photos that I do to like preview shoe, he does it with a size eight and a half, you saying? Because he's like, that just looks more a aesthetic. Yeah, like ah I guess framing-wise. It does does show off like the overall shoe Exactly. yeah But to get to the point is,
00:21:12
Speaker
we had, there's that big debacle about his 992s at the start of the year, if you don't if you remember. um i guess there were stolen pairs and this boutique in Chicago had the pairs and they were selling it for like, I think like retail or like slightly below retail, which that's obviously a red flag nowadays. Like if someone's selling something that's kind of hype and it's like that price, it's like, okay, or something's fishy, right? weird And then that photo made it to Reddit.
00:21:41
Speaker
So I saw it on Instagram. I think it went on Instagram one day and then it went on Reddit either later in the day or the next day. But once it went on Reddit, I was like, okay, like it's on Reddit at this point. I'm going to share it. Yeah. So I shared it.
00:21:53
Speaker
And then you saw like there was a lot of communication. was like, no, like people, I'm not going to share this. It's bad for Joe, like whatever. Like you can't believe pages are doing it, which most people reference like news pages. But I mean, I was one of the first people to post it. So I just assumed, okay, I lumped in that. Yeah. But so I kind of was worried that Joe would be like, hey, like maybe I have a bad taste or anything. Yeah, exactly. I'd just be like, oh, I don't mess with you because he did this. But he didn't even bring it up. And I thought like either he didn't care or like he just knew that like I wasn't like the leaker. I wasn't the person that stole it. So was chill.
00:22:27
Speaker
But yeah, ultimately, like, I just think, you know, like I said, and I have been saying if it's out there, like nothing wrong getting to people.
Balancing Brand Relationships
00:22:35
Speaker
It's fair game. yeah um Some leaks I will I'll see and I'll be like, OK, like just for the collaborators sake, like I won't share it, um especially when it's stuff on like really obscure. Like sometimes I just find stuff on really obscure Instagram pages. Yeah. I'm just like, OK, like I'm not going to share this because.
00:22:53
Speaker
If someone else shares it, good for them. Maybe I will at that point. But sometimes, you know, obviously people want the first scoop. And sometimes it's nice to have the first scoop and you get the engagements up. But sometimes it's just it's not worth it. Yeah. And collaborators and other people have told me stuff before early.
00:23:09
Speaker
Like even Joe had told me some stuff about the 2010. Like, I'm not going to share it now. But he even said, like, don't share it. I'm like, I don't want to break the trust of collaborators unless they explicitly say, oh, yeah, share it. Yeah.
00:23:20
Speaker
I mean, yeah, because a lot of people who aren't within, like, I guess, our vicinity you have an interesting take on this because they i and they're not the ones that are are in the position where somebody's telling you something and then you're kind of like, yo, I want to tell everybody. But then...
00:23:37
Speaker
it's It's like, I mean, I hear a ton shit. I hear a ton of shit all the time. But I'm so used to not telling anybody anything. So I don't tell anybody anything regardless. So I'm i'm just like, but it's just like when you're when you're a person that's just like, yo, I am the person people come to for information. It's hard to be like, I'm not i'm just going to hold it back now.
00:23:57
Speaker
you know Yeah, i it's hard. um Luckily, it's not like I get my DMs like crazy blown up asking for stuff. yeah like Usually everything's on public timeline.
00:24:08
Speaker
So like I can like really put a level of secrecy on how I answer. um I mean, perfect example, I think is like with Kith stuff. I think people think like I'm tapped. Okay.
00:24:20
Speaker
So to clear the air, I'm not a Kith employee. you're you're a right You're a right hand man for Ronnie. I am not a right hand man for Ronnie. I am not tapped in by any means. But but i I just really liked Kith. And I've always liked Kith from like... but didn the you break didn't I feel like you were the person that was just like, Kith's dropping this loyalty program. And I remember reading it from you. And I was like, I've never heard... like And then you're like, the week after, they dropped the loyalty program.
Work-Life Balance in Content Creation
00:24:49
Speaker
i think I think there was Man, did I really drop it? or Well, i didn't know him and I didn't know about the loyalty program before it came around. i yeah but i do I have to say like... Even even the Kith Ivy stuff. You were the first person to talk about the Kith Ivy stuff, I think. So I think the reason i went there yeah because you wrote it posted the address. And I went there. There's nothing there.
00:25:14
Speaker
i don't know what's going on with Kith Ivy right now because I feel like they did the announcement and everything. and like, there hasn't been talking about it since. Since, yeah. But I will say like Kith Chicago, ah I knew about because browsed like the Kith career site. I also saw that news article about them buying the real estate. So it kind of like was cat was out of the bag.
00:25:35
Speaker
Um, Kith Ivy I knew was a thing because the New York post, made an article but earlier this year where they were saying residents were mad because Ronnie Feig is building some club. And then you read the article and it goes into the details that he bought this land. He's going to make some fancy club. And you don't really know like all the details. And, you know, those things kind of do hurt the brand rollout in a sense. But again, going back to the philosophy, if it's out there, just share it. Like I do that. yeah Some things to my discretion, like I don't think I shared that article because I feel like that article is negative to Kith. don't want to be viewed as someone who is negative. so
00:26:07
Speaker
Whatever. yeah but But anyways, yeah um i noticed what I noticed when I started posting a lot more information is that Kith shares on Instagram and does a really bad job relaying it to Twitter.
00:26:21
Speaker
So I would see the stuff on Instagram and post it to Twitter as a service to people who do like Kith and do like the brand so that if they're not on Instagram for some reason or if they don't they aren't chronically online like I am, they have a chance to see it. and So I think that's how I knew got the loyalty program. That's how I got, you know, um information about Keith Ivy as well. And then they do stuff kind of elusive where like they might tag the page, but they don't like bring it up front and say, hey, we have a new page, Keith Ivy. And then I'll go to Keith Ivy Instagram and then I'll see stuff about it. and
00:26:54
Speaker
I just I'm chronically online and I dig and then I just make some information. You're hopefully saying you're chronically online. Yeah, I'm just I'm just chronically online. Like really, that's all it is. Like yeah and i like Kith. So like I'm just partial to really like digging more about it, knowing about the collabs.
00:27:09
Speaker
The only thing that I know about Kith ever early is sometimes word of mouth from people who may not work with Kith, but are in industry. So like Kith Marvel, for example, like everyone was kind of surprised that it didn't come in the summer. Yeah.
00:27:23
Speaker
And I don't remember who I talked to, but they're saying, yeah, like Kith Marvel is still coming just later in the year. So I knew this collab that they have next week is coming, but I just, I didn't, I don't know the details of when, like really exactly when, I don't know what it's about. And I'm not just going to publicly share, oh yeah, Kith Marvel is coming just off of word of mouth because I'm Yes, I share information and I want to help people. But then there's also a fine line with my content and me trying to, um you know, work with brands that if they're going to tell me stuff, I want to at least give them that trust that, hey, if you tell me something, I can make the decision of and I know that you telling me something does not mean I'm going to go share it. yeah I understand when something is private. I understand when something is public and I'm not going blab to everyone if you tell me something in confidence. Yeah.
00:28:11
Speaker
I want to know. So you mentioned that you lived in Canada for a bit. bit So where are you from originally? Okay. So heritage yes Egyptian. Okay. A hundred percent. So both my parents born and raised in Alexandria and they even got married in Alexandria. Wow.
00:28:24
Speaker
And then my dad wanted to pursue more schooling. um He had his, both my parents have bachelor's in engineering. My dad wanted to get, go the PhD route. um So they decided to go to Canada, specifically Calgary. um So for people who don't know Calgary, albert it's in Alberta, which is north of Montana.
00:28:41
Speaker
And Calgary is really known for two things. If you're into hockey, Calgary flame Flames. yeah And then the Calgary Stampede is the big show. Oh, so what's the third thing? The Heart Dungeon. Wait, I don't even know what the Hart Dungeon What? Bret Hart? Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh, sorry. Wrestling. Yeah, you're right. The Dungeon Family. I apologize. And then, what was the, I guess they made a wrestling competitor to WWE at the time. Yeah, yeah, it was called, was it Stampede? No.
00:29:12
Speaker
No, it was also made by McMahon as well. It was? I'm going to have to think about that for a second. And it was also based in Calgary. So I guess that's the, I guess that goes into the wrestling. The guy's name Joe I think his name was. Joe Ju in the pink suit at Bauer.
00:29:26
Speaker
He thinks he's like a famous singer now. I think so, yeah. And it means like they tried to make you try to make a a competitor wrestling. So I guess you're right. It's three things. Something Stampede. Wasn't it Stampede?
00:29:37
Speaker
It was like Something Stampede? Something like that. I don't remember. But that's where like Owen Hart and like all the hearts would wrestle Yeah, and they tried to do it and then it flopped and then they all just eventually went to WWE. guess it WWF at the time. but yeah But anyways, yeah. So born and raised there. Mm-hmm.
00:29:54
Speaker
I first moved to California, the Bay Area specifically, when I was young in 99. So I was about five or six at the time. ah Lived there for almost 10 years and moved back to Calgary. Did my high school, did my college there.
00:30:08
Speaker
And then i I'm also an engineer by background. yeah And I wanted to pursue a master's and i figured it would be better to go to U.S. school. So that's when I moved back to California, did that. And then not going to bore people with my nine to five, but I have a nine to five in stuff and stuff. No, yeah. I mean, acres I mean, that that is it's interesting because like I do want to talk about that a little bit more because I also have a nine to five as also pursuing this. And so some people don't really understand that. Like some people, to be honest, if we're only just posting sneaker content, people only think that we're just doing sneaker. Exactly. You know, so, you know, like a lot of the people that that we are familiar with. And I mean, outside of like Seth or Winona, who are full time. content creators, a lot of us also have nine to fives because sneakers don't really pay like that. Content doesn't really pay like that. I mean, everyone has nine to fives, they just don't advertise it. I will i will also say that like when you when we are people of our skin color, especially like brown people, yeah it's like we are the I think we are the people that are representing it
00:31:08
Speaker
and so We have to continuously try to show because it's not just a simple, hey, just start reviewing sneakers. And now you've got it. Like there's still other ah different things because it's like, you know, algorithms would be like, no, we're going to push this type of person forward. And then you're going to be, you know, and so like I was very curious about like what what is has been the reception once you started getting in front of the camera and and started to, you know, be yourself and and stuff like that.
00:31:34
Speaker
So I personally think I still need to work on it a bit because I was talking to Quan recently, shout out Quan. Shout out Quan. And he, and I met him, it was if i a lot of people I meet online and I know them for years and then I finally see them in person. So this was like the first time I met him person after years. but he, he works like he had worked with Nike for a long time and now he's just an industry and he does his own thing, but he gave me a lot of tidbits. And one of the things he said is, you know, you're Egyptian, like tap into that, like tap into it way more, like express that more. And, you know, you're saying not even through sneakers, like even if you're talking about the culture, even if you're talking about the food or even if you add pieces of it in your own content that you already do, like tap into it more. So I feel like
00:32:19
Speaker
I don't really do a good job of that yet. And I'm trying to be more expressive of who I am, where I come from in my content. Yeah. But yeah, I mean, I think it's important as a level of individuality and like standing out that, yeah, you definitely got to show who you are and be who you are in front of camera. It's important.
00:32:38
Speaker
I mean, yeah, that's what I've been trying to do a little bit more too. but is is It's interesting because you're like, should should I play into that or should i you know really focus on my love for the sneakers or just like how do I play into both? And and you can do everything. You can. yeah You can. And again, Louis, shout out Louis. I mean, he he has also mentioned many times to me that like you want your personality to shine with content. That's really what separates you from other people.
00:33:06
Speaker
is the individuality that you have, your personality, the way you speak, the way you do things. And letting that show is what gets brands more intrigued by you.
00:33:18
Speaker
And I feel like, yes, like I love photography and I find it so easy to do photography. I could take photos in 20, 30 minutes, another 20 minutes, 20, 30 minutes to edit.
00:33:30
Speaker
Done. I got a photo set. Yeah. Video is a lot more work because I feel like I always have to care about the lighting, care about the setup. I have to think about how how am I going to frame everything? I got to make a script. I got to memorize the script.
00:33:42
Speaker
And it's a lot more work involved before, during, and post to get good content. yeah But the trade-off is...
00:33:54
Speaker
If you're able to be comfortable in front of a camera and let your personality show off, then brands can really understand and see who you are, what you're about, what you like, what you're good at. yeah And that can also be a a piece of leverage to get more, I mean, let's keep it simple, to get more seated product. Oh, no, don't bring that up in here. I mean, I don't want to bring it up, but that's the reality. Like,
00:34:21
Speaker
Seated product. And then eventually like for all content creators, like if they could kick the nine to five nine to five, they want to kick the nine to five. so the eventual goal is getting paid content and it's in like something that's consistent, right which the reality. If taking it seriously, if you're taking it like, you like Hey, I'm going to make this an actual like job.
00:34:39
Speaker
then yes, for sure. You do kind of like have to hone into something that's s sellable at all times. um I do think we are we're seeing a lot more success of people that are just kind of just doing it for fun. yeah And I think as long as you are still having fun, then that's going to go farther because If you're just constantly being like, I'm just going to keep refining until the brand's like me, until the brand's like me, until the brand's like me, you're just going to be like, now you're just cookie cutter at some point. Exactly. people are just going to be like, oh, why would I buy into that? So think that if you're like, I mean, this is just me personally. I think there needs to be a lot more personality now because if we're not, then...
00:35:20
Speaker
We're not growing. We're not growing as a culture. We're not growing as individuals. We're not growing as cute creatives or creators. And if we don't, if we continue to just let, you know, people with money dictate how we're how we are being creative, then it's not being creative anymore. You're just now you're just part of ah another cog in the system. So, yeah.
00:35:40
Speaker
So to me, like brand friendly, being brand friendly is a thing. Yeah. But to me, heard it and I've heard it used derogatory. Yeah. too so But I think brand friendly does not mean, okay, you got to be exactly like XYZ. Yeah.
00:35:58
Speaker
For example, 80 sneaks. He has great content. He doesn't do a lot of video, but he has great content. He has a way of doing things and he got a lot of growth out of it. And the reality is a lot of brands tap him to him, whether they just send them free product or paid content or just product photography.
00:36:15
Speaker
That's reality. And he is who he is. Like just who he is is what made him get all of that, which happens to be aligned with what would be considered a brand friendly pro.
00:36:30
Speaker
But i mean, but and okay. The thing is ah that I wanna say is just because AD Sneaks got to that point his way, that's not the only way to be right brand friendly.
00:36:41
Speaker
Going back to what you were saying about you need to be creative so that it's still a you're still creating, you're not just being a cog in a and a system, is you still be yourself, you still do the things you wanna do the way, but the way you talk about things, the way you talk about talk about community or talk to the community We talk about brands or talk to brands or even criticize brands.
00:37:03
Speaker
Because a lot of people say that being negative about a brand is a bad thing. no No. It's not a bad thing because the criticism is good. Yeah. But if you're just going to go straight up and say... This is whack and then that's it. This whack. You guys do the same thing over and over and that's all you're offering. Of course, that's not nice. But if you're going to say like...
00:37:23
Speaker
I got this shoe and it's a nice shoe and everything, but it's very similar to something that was done in the past. And, you know, maybe XYZ would make it better, but, you know, I still think the shoe is a good shoe. Like you're offering something more constructive that can still so be perceived as brand friendly because the whole point of brands getting, see well, we're going back to seated content. here I guess the whole point brands give seated content. Twitter's going to love this episode. Yeah, right. It's marketing though, right? yeah Like it's marketing. That's the whole point. So,
00:37:54
Speaker
Yes, you have to try and put a positive spin as best as you can. But if there's something that you really truly don't agree with or don't like, there are positive constructive ways of saying it. And that's brand friendly still.
00:38:08
Speaker
So I guess I'm saying all that to get to. Yes, there are the people who are, as Sokjig would say, the trailblazers yes that people want to mimic. But you can find a way to do your own thing and still have all the correct things done with your own individuality, your own creativity.
00:38:26
Speaker
And still, you know, sooner or later you you get successful. And to kind of hit the nail on the head, one of my buddies, Kyle, shout out Kyle from Waterwind Dry. Oh yeah, shout Kyle. he always has the perspective that at the end, good content wins.
00:38:40
Speaker
Yeah, for sure. It might take a year. It might take 10 years, but good content wins. As long as you're genuine, as long as you're consistent, which consistent does not mean yeah have to post every day or you have to like, and that's a whole different conversation. We could have that conversation. But, you know, as long as you're,
00:38:58
Speaker
you know, nice, consistent, always engaged with the community and always trying to be better and grow in a healthy way. Yeah. The good content will win in the end and you will get your flowers. yeah And I think that's something that creatives, whether they're big now or they're trying to grow, they got to
Experimenting with Content Styles
00:39:16
Speaker
keep that in mind. yeah i mean and for anybody listening to this i think that like you know i mean i've had i've heard from people that are creators there there are people who are in the industry that really listen to this and and i do think that like this is a topic i don't really get to touch on a lot like i have like i'll have in content creators here and there but like we usually stick to you know what they're what they're really want to talk about it or their stories and stuff like that but like
00:39:42
Speaker
when it comes to like content creation when I think about it is is like, I've tried a ton. And if you're not trying, then you're not, you're not trying to to figure out your, cause you are the puzzle in this in this is essence, right? Where you're like, all right, for example, Louis, who's like, you know, in this building and you won't be able to see him on camera, but Louis has done this thing across his years of creating where he decided to bring in his family. He decided to like, you know, and him and Jared, I'm saying his name wrong, am I? 215.
00:40:11
Speaker
Jerome, sorry. Former guest Jerome, 215 shooter. But like yeah you y'all you you have a creative you have a creative collective. And so it's always like if you don't have that, you're not you're not trying to figure out your piece of the puzzle of like, yo, know how does what does this look like? Or what does that look like? Or, you know, let me try this. How do I – yo, what do you think about this topic? And so a lot of people – Especially when you're content creating.
00:40:36
Speaker
You're just like. You're just throwing stuff at the wall. yeah You're just hoping something will hit. And then you when you see something hits. Then you're like. I got to do that over and over. Until it doesn't. It doesn't work anymore.
00:40:47
Speaker
And I hate that fucking process. I hate it. I hate it. yeah hate it I hate it. hate it. um But I was doing that the first two years. Of just like. I'm just going to do a video. TikTok. Talk about this. Talk about. Oh. This new stuff came out. Let me talk about that.
00:40:59
Speaker
And I think I got the most frustrated in my life. About that shit. It's. It's a lot of work. um I'm trying to think of an example with my experience, which I think would be Twitter. yeah i i always had my I had my Twitter for a long time, and and it had been in sneakers in a long time, but um it got pretty stagnant for years, yeah yeah for years, for years. But when I said to myself, okay, we're going to take content more seriously again. Let's get into video. Let's take more photos. Let's be more intentional about the content.
00:41:31
Speaker
And when I realized there was that gap of information not being shared, I said, let's share information. yeah And what I found is when I started sharing information, it just worked. It would get a lot of engagement. So in my mind, I'm like, okay, I'm just i'm just always going to share information. I'm always going to share my content.
00:41:46
Speaker
And that's who I am. And I think in that process, It wasn't really a oh, like, let me try a ton of things and see what stick and just go with it. I still feel like it's true to what I want, which is I want to share the stuff that I think is cool yeah and dope.
00:42:03
Speaker
And I think people are just going to like that I share the information and maybe people like my perspective that... Most people focus on Nikes and Jordans. I talk, I like Asics, New Bounces, Salomons, Sauconies, like a lot more. You're team wealthy. Yeah, yeah exactly. I'm team wealthy. So I i just happen to talk about that more. And it just, it's just a reality. But it's also, that's also missing too, because everybody oh usually talks about the the big three. yeah And so, you know, I,
00:42:31
Speaker
I mean, I've been to every single brand. I've held every single brand. And so, you know, when you're just a person that's kind of just like, oh, i you know, I'm also used to, I'm always always hearing about Romero's and stuff like that, but you're just like, but what about, you know, the A6, I don't know, GTO 10 or whatever. whatever Yeah, the 2160s. 2160s or something like that, you know?
00:42:50
Speaker
And, the and, yeah There's nobody that's really touching on those things outside of wealthy for real. Yeah. And so the new balances of that, like it you only get here about that through collabs. You're not same with like a six and hidden. Like now they're starting to get a little bit more love or invincibles. Like I saw you, you pack those.
00:43:08
Speaker
nice I love those. Those are great. And so, um, and There is like a lane for that. it is It is limited, but at the same time, you know these brands, those technically smaller brands than the other big three are just like... What am I saying? Big three? Big two, maybe? Would I consider...
00:43:26
Speaker
I mean, Adidas is technically... I'm assuming you're saying big three, like Nike, Jordan, and Adidas, right? No, Nike... I would consider Nike and Jordan same. That's why i'm saying big two. Okay. Let's go big two. So it's Nike, Jordan, and Adidas, though. Okay. Yeah, we're on the same page. And so the there's like nobody really sending out that information for like all those like ASICs, Sauconies, and stuff like that. So it is a need. You're solving a problem. Yeah. um And so that's like...
00:43:54
Speaker
Like some people are just quick to be like, all right, what's going to give me the best looks? All right. ah If I have this new whatever Jordan that's coming out in 2026, let me pump pump that out. And you're just like, all right, cool. Eight other pages are doing that, you know, and you're just like, you'll come up. ah Recently you did that, the hidden ASICs drop ah showing the like special box and stuff like that, which was crazy. That canister
Criteria for Sneaker of the Year
00:44:15
Speaker
is fire. ba yeah is really nice I it sold out and it did it was it had a even a pre even with the premium it sold out so the shoes retailed 180 but with the case I think it was 275 but it's just a really nice collector's item fire but it's just like yeah a lot of that stuff is definitely not hitting Twitter I don't you barely see it on Instagram as well because everybody's pushing a lot of Nikes too yeah you know And then you you'll have your one-offs where you'll have a big collab with JTips and Saucony and that will get pushed out through everything. But all the smaller stuff that's like going down the wayside. or like i mean I recently posted the like the two greens but that two greens post.
00:44:51
Speaker
It was more of just like I was trying to be like, these two look the same, but I didn't want to be like, these two look the same. But the the Fade Solomons and the Amine New Balances, which I do not like that model. i'll go I will stand on it. That's the sneaker of the year. 2000? The 2000s are the Those sneakers are terrible, bro. I say that wax multiple times. New Balances 2000 absorbs is terrible. No, it's a it's a great shoe.
00:45:15
Speaker
It is an improvement from the 1906. I was talking to and I go The colors are great on that shoe. That was it. That's all I said. Oh, come on. So I really like that. I just, I don't know. Those 2000s is just, a to me, are just a great model. It's, you got the futuristic look. You're tapping in to what's in style now, but then you're improving on the 1906. I know you're you're just like, nope, nope. But like you're also improving on the chunkiness look of the 1906 and making it like still have that chunk vibe, but it's a lot slimmer.
00:45:52
Speaker
And I just think with shorts, it looks good. With pants, it looks good. The fit is good. The comfort is good. It's super ah forgiving on the midsole. And it's just good for all day wear. And I just...
00:46:05
Speaker
I like that New Balance and, well, but you know, literally New Balance and ASIC specifically yeah do a really good job of trying new things. Yeah, sure. I feel like with the 2000 this year, that's like for sure New Balance's best new silhouette. I mean, to me, it's a sneaker of the year. I know not really anyone agrees, but it's a sneaker of the year because it just, to me, hits all the marks. His views are his own, not the podcast views. So it just it hits all the marks. And then ASICS also does like a good job.
00:46:35
Speaker
They had a few new models this year. I feel like kind of fell flat. And I think just the reason is a lot of them are very similar to what's already on market. They're not necessarily bad. But ASICS dropped that new model. ah My boy Mikey was pushing it.
00:46:49
Speaker
What was the name of it? It was like very sleek. I think I posted like several different colorways of it. I forgot the name of it. Was it the Gel Securand? No, that was what JD Sports has. It was like, it has like a full ah air bubble on the bottom, but it's like no real branding over it. Is it the Gel Kinetic Fluent?
00:47:06
Speaker
I don't know your name and stuff. I'm just saying and they've they've done they've definitely pushed out of different types of models. And I think for sure, I mean, I was recently on Sock Jigs podcast and we we're talking about the sneaker of the year list. and i And I do think I stand on this. I i like if you're going to make a sneaker of the year list and it needs to start being newer models, because what my biggest takeaway from that is just like and we were we were sitting in that. Right.
00:47:30
Speaker
Even though I was fucking sick, I was like, I was out, everybody, Aaron kept turning to me be like, yo, he's falling asleep. And I'm like, I'm just there like. yeah But I do think it's just like in the sneaker of the year um list, I think we need to really hone in on models versus what storytelling is pushing a lot of this stuff, because then we're just gonna keep getting retros over and over again. Like, it's not cool that there's three different models across, like three three separate Nike models.
00:48:01
Speaker
got the love on that. Instead of being like, yo, we could take this off, put in the terrible 2000s. Or, you know, like, yeah. I mean, i think there's two things at play there with the Sneaker of the Year list. Is one that, yeah, like the fact that they put a lot of retros. Mm-hmm.
00:48:19
Speaker
is not really advancing us as a in terms of innovation of sneakers because now the perception is, oh, the retros are popular, so why would we stop the retros?
00:48:30
Speaker
Now, I think this year specifically, the reason we had so many retros on that list is just like an effect of, oh, we decided, Nike and Jordan decided this year will be all about nostalgia.
00:48:42
Speaker
You got Undefeated 4s releasing. You brought back Air Max 95s with Big Bubble. You brought back Tokyo 5s. You brought back the Black Metallic 5s reimagined. And think that really drove why the list is what it is, especially when you have an entity like Complex, which is, at the end of the day, Complex is a Nike Jordan favoring publication. I wouldn't even say that, okay?
00:49:05
Speaker
Look, I have pushback on that. I don't think you don't think they favor Nike Jordan? I think... What they favor is what's hot. Because if you look last year, they did AE1's Sneaker of the Year.
00:49:18
Speaker
The previous year before that, Saucony J-Tips. But Saucony J-Tips wasn't was number one, was it? Yeah, number one. i not ah Not, what was it, 20, it was 2023.
00:49:31
Speaker
Oh, I didn't know they were number one. Whatever that year, Remember Who Fronted came out. but I didn't know they were number one. For some reason, I thought they didn't make number one. And and then J-Tips. No, it's been different. And then last year was last year it was. Well, last year was the A-E ones.
00:49:48
Speaker
Which one was the. No, no. Yeah. i'm kind almost there's a I thought there was a Travis Scott year. I'm thinking. Oh, there was a Travis Scott. Jumpman Jacks were like number three or number four on there. Nah, but there was what there was a draft there was a Travis Scott year for number one at one point. I think it was like a Mocha low, I think.
00:50:04
Speaker
Oh yeah, that's possible. right so So you're right. I think what's hot is a factor. But again, they're a publication, right? right I'm just saying, yes, they're big media. And and like you know i was I was sick and I was fucking sick that day. But i turned I remember I turned to you. or was It not probably was Aaron. Was I sitting beside you?
00:50:24
Speaker
No, was sitting beside AdSneaks. It must have been Aaron or AdSneaks. Oh, I turned to AD and I was like, this is paid media. And I was like... I was like, I'm thinking about him like, no, man, I'm fucking bugging. But I think it's just like what they were trying to put across. Right. If you're sitting in a room. Right. And the barometer and this can be whatever you want to take it as. But the barometer for what they deem as a successful sneaker of the year list is when you pick the sneakers that everybody continuously talked about throughout the year.
00:50:58
Speaker
Right. And so what were the sneakers that were being talked about throughout the year? It was mostly those. and yeah alex Yeah. Yeah. So like, come on. I mean, Metallic Fives had to be on that list. Like if if I was in that room, I'd be like, Metallic Fives had to be on that list because I haven't seen kids like kids, like kids in all cities run towards a sneaker. Yeah. Like there was people there. were The last time I seen somebody get beat up for a pair of sneakers was like 2014. Yeah, it was COVID probably. Yeah. Or not 2014. I'm talking about in person.
00:51:25
Speaker
Oh, in person, oh, okay. But I saw somebody get vetoed for fucking Metallic Fives. So it's just like, yeah you know, like if the kids are, like it as a media company, that's why I say it like that, as a media company, you're your audience is bigger than who's ever on Twitter, who's ever really in the sneaker community, because what you're trying to do is you're trying to get people to come click on that page And what sneakers are going to make them click on that page? this All 10 sneakers that they listed.
00:51:50
Speaker
But here's the thing, which is my counter, which is I still think Complex favors Nike Jordan in general because you have five, six people making this list. Yeah. They get together. They...
00:52:02
Speaker
And I don't know what the process is. And I know Welty kind of touched on it on Twitter a bit where it said, oh, yeah, five, six people. And I don't know if it's like they're in a room and they just agree or if they all lists and they bring it together. last I heard was like it's a slack room. It's like a sneaker of the year slack room.
00:52:17
Speaker
They talk. They then they they put in the sneakers and then they they take it from the room from the slack room and then they put it into a meeting. OK, it. Yeah. So my thought and my theory is and that everyone in that. Maybe i'm exposing something. I'm sorry. But in that slack room, if everyone favors or partial to Nike Jordan, yeah all they're going to suggest are Nike Jordans. Because even when you look at sneaker, the year list from complex year to year,
00:52:45
Speaker
What was it? They used to always, well, even Joe LaPuma joked about it, but literally, what was it? Either spot seven or spot six was like, I used to joe think about it too and be like, oh, this is like the new balance spot. This is where they'll always put a new balance.
00:52:58
Speaker
And so it consistently, it was like Joe Fresh Goods for a while. And Bronson. And Bronson had a had a spot there too. And it's just like, they're always consistent in that way. And it's still the majority of the list is Nike Jordan. So I just feel like those people who put it in do that. And if you're using the barometer of, Oh, this is what people talk all the time about, man, like this year, there was six people talk about all the time. There was new balances. People talk about all the time. Like,
00:53:26
Speaker
Bronson stuff people talk about all the time. yeah But I just think if the people making the list are just favorite to a brand or more in tune with a specific brand, then these other brands just won't have a chance on the list. So when I saw the list, I'm like, okay, yeah, you have one Converse.
00:53:44
Speaker
What was it? One Converse, eight Nike Jordan, and one Adidas. And you see that list, it's like, okay, like you're snubbing Asics, you're snubbing Hoka, you're snubbing Salomon. Hoka. new bound Like Hoka actually... You know, like... we both we're the We're the both Marni collab. We are Marni collab owners. i um That's going be the name of this episode. Yeah, the Marni collab. But I mean, I love the Marni collab. I wouldn't call the Marni collab a sneaker of the year, but definitely, like, I like that it's different and unique. Yeah. um i think the I think they're called Anna, which is this, like, Swedish, Danish boutique.
00:54:17
Speaker
That collab, I thought, was really well done. ah Really well done. But that's one, like... Yeah, like I could say it's sneaker in the year, but like literally i bet you like maybe one person watching this is going to know what in the world I'm talking about. Hey, this I mean, this is for the sneaker community as well. Yeah. you know So it's it's it's the it's interesting. I do think that like we like I said, I think were we're definitely coming out of this wave and a lot of people are, you know, showing themselves who like really appreciate this stuff and and we're going towards...
00:54:47
Speaker
I would say a progressively better sneaker era. ah era um But the sneaker of the year list got to, they got to have like, I keep, I keep complaining about it.
00:54:58
Speaker
There needs to be like a legit criteria. Just give me like five specific things. Be like, yo, creativity, ah you know, marketing, um design, comfort, and like, you know, mass appeal or some shit like that. Five points.
00:55:11
Speaker
And then you do, you do that. You combine it to make it a hundred and then, Then there's an actual, you know, thing. Yeah. Then it's purely ranked. Like I know they said, like, they don't agree with panel. They don't agree with like award show or there's different categories. But even if you just like in the, you know, in the show and they do it or the panel, if they just put the shoe and then, yeah, you have those categories like storytelling, design, creativity or whatever. And then you just have like a bar out of five and you just like. Yeah. show like how it falls in and like like you said, like you just get a total score out of that and that's how it gets its spot. then think there'll be less arguing. if that There would be less arguing and then people would be like, well, I don't know if there'd be less arguing because now you're going to get into the conversation of, oh, they said this shoe had good storytelling. No, the storytelling of this was not good or you know. Yeah, but then it that gives us actual talking points versus like we they put up this the list and people are just like,
00:56:02
Speaker
oh, this is and this is insane. I can't believe the Wake 5s didn't do better than that. like And you're just like, but but why?
Advice to Younger Self
00:56:08
Speaker
and yeah But if you give people being like, hey, look, they gave it a five they gave it a five on marketing and they gave it a five on creativity. And so then you're just like, now you have an actual and actual conversation that can happen because usually what's, and I don't know what what's going on, but this year, it was like people just started devolving into personal attacks. And like- It was crazy. It was crazy. And people are talking about Sneaker of the Year for what, a week?
00:56:31
Speaker
Yeah. Like a week. And it was actually the first time I visibly saw joela po Joe LaPuma and Brendan Dunn and Welty all pitch in. And I was like, okay, like, and it was funny because I think they pitched in like later. Yeah.
00:56:46
Speaker
So like the conversation was starting to die down and then they pitched in and then it just then it became crazy. I was like, okay, like I get why they want to pitch in and they want to like, you know, stand on business of this is why it is the way it is. But like just sometimes you just got to yeah just let it be. You guys put it out there.
00:57:05
Speaker
You put it out. Two months before the end of the year, the list is going to get updated like it did last year. um i think last year, though, AE1 was still the number one shoe, but they kind of like reordered some shoes, put different shoes in. But they're going to do that this year, too. You got very good collabs coming. We got Kith Marvel Asics with Capcom.
00:57:24
Speaker
Very excited about that. You got... Wait, what? That was... I know they... That was... So... You just believe just, I didn't, I thought, I know the KIF Marvel collab that just dropped from Marvel vs. Capcom 2. Now they're doing an actual ASICs for those? So...
00:57:39
Speaker
I knew they were coming a while ago, but ah Ronnie Feig on his, he has like a, he has an Instagram channel called Just Us. And he posted a really quick video of him recording the, unbo you know how with the last ASICs, he recorded like an unboxing video to show off the shoes and stuff. You could see that he was recording that video in that um and that like clip that he put. crazy And it's, so it's a Marvel versus Capcom. I'm going to be broke the end of this year.
00:58:06
Speaker
Dude, I already said straight up on Twitter, like, just run my card. I'm buying every shoe. I need those. Like the ones last year. That's one of favorite games of all time. Oh, really? Yeah. Okay, yeah. I have it on Dreamcast. Yeah. Oh, wow. Okay. No, had it on PS2.
00:58:19
Speaker
So it looks like, too, that they're gonna have, like, double boxes again, where it's like you buy the box two pairs. Yeah. And I don't know if it's going to be... i assume it's going to be like, last year. ABC's been trying to figure that out. Oh, man.
00:58:33
Speaker
Yeah, but it was unfortunate. We we're were towards the end of the podcast and and and I want to ask you one last question deals with a little visualization. Once you think back to when younger you was getting those and NMDs. Right.
00:58:43
Speaker
And now you're older. You behind your younger self. What would you tell your younger self as he opens that box? I think I would tell myself that You know, like you're doing good, you're trying to find yourself and to stick with it.
00:59:00
Speaker
ah Reason being is i think I was still really finding out who I was, what I liked, what I wanted to do at that time. And there were many instances where I felt like, why am I doing this? Like, why am I trying buy sneakers? Why am I trying to do photography? Like, is there even a point of content creation? And I think I would just tell myself, like, you know, keep with it and consistency and being like a good, genuine person always wins.
00:59:29
Speaker
And, you know, i'm not a perfect human, but I feel like for the most part, I try not to do wrong by people. I try to focus my content, make it really good. I try to stay away from all the different realms of drama that exist with sneaker culture, unfortunately. And would just tell him like, hey, like, just hang in there and you're going to find who you are and and really thrive.
00:59:49
Speaker
yeah And you know, like when I look back where I was then and where I am today, wouldn't change
Episode Conclusion and Social Engagement
00:59:54
Speaker
a thing. Hey man, that's beautiful. Yeah. Man, let everybody where to find you. Oh yeah, so Chef Dumi, spelled Chef D-O-O-M-Y. I am on all socials, but most active on Instagram and Twitter.
01:00:11
Speaker
And yeah, like, I mean, I like talking to people. So if you shoot me a follow, just say what's up and I'll chat. I won't ignore you. As you say something out of pocket. I mean I hope not you know where to find me who is hostile on social medias follow the podcast my first kicks pod follow d3es me guy just just i he's be he he always gets repost you know he always in the picture that's fam and you gotta follow Lewis yeah Lewis I'm Ill Vibe Okay.
01:00:40
Speaker
And this guy is the inspiration and the homie. So yeah sir do me a favor and follow him. Yo, please. um And then kick it to myself to ah to do Patreon shout outs and my outro. Peace.
01:00:51
Speaker
Thank you. I hope you enjoyed this week's episode with Chef Doomy or Adham. you know We got to really dial into the current state of content creation and what I have been seeing going on as of late.
01:01:05
Speaker
ah Next week's episode, I'll probably just might as well announce it. I'll talk to Chris Chance a little bit more in depth with that with that as well, coming from somebody that appreciates this culture and wants to continue progressing it. um But this week's episode...
01:01:23
Speaker
It was really cool to just sit down with Chef Dumi. You know, he's gotten into sneakers through it an un um know unconditional, not unconditional, untraditional. There we go. Untraditional way.
01:01:36
Speaker
And I thought it was very interesting to hear his upringing upbringing and how that translated into him finding sneakers and, you know, the way he peruses the internet, um you know, saying he was chronically online.
01:01:52
Speaker
I used to be super chronically online in terms of just like being like in the know of what's going on on the internet. And now I've taken a much, much, much needed step back because of that, of just wanting to be all up in the know. I like like I want to experience things more.
01:02:13
Speaker
And so that's why I'll go to an event or I'll, you know, try to like go to stores and have conversations with people at stores like I'll hit a brand art sometime time hang out with Mikey just to.
01:02:25
Speaker
and Samia and Cisco and Julian out there just to be like, you know, just to see what's going on and see how the neighborhood is. Also, I'll hit up All The Right with JP because these are like my home area, like my home bases in terms of just like not dealing with just always finding about the new stuff coming out on the Internet. So I thought that's like it's just very interesting because, you know,
01:02:55
Speaker
when you're coming up in the sneaker universe and you know you don't have a lot of money you you can afford your internet and you can afford your computer at the time and you just peruse the forums and have conversations all day uh have arguments about sneakers and or just do really deep dives uh the forums is where you were at and so hearing how he got into this and how he takes that and maneuvers around the internet now is very interesting because, you know, if you follow him, which I'm pretty sure a lot of you do, he's very forward with the information. he's always putting stuff out. Like, he announced
Marvel vs. Capcom Kit Critique
01:03:38
Speaker
the... what It's crazy that I did not know that the Marvel vs. Capcom kit stuff was happening until he said it on the episode.
01:03:47
Speaker
And this episode was releasing the day it drops. So... I'm like kind of not happy with the whole collection, and in my opinion. I've said i said recently on Twitter that I am a little bit confused and it's scratching my head. Like, I'm wondering if the people from Kith that designed this stuff really played the game because it's dabbling into you know pieces of Marvel and it's dabbling to pieces of Capcom.
01:04:21
Speaker
And then they'll have some Marvel's Capcom pieces like the hoodie or the fleece or the hockey jersey, which these are things that I want. But then you look at some of the shirts and you're like, why are they putting this Street Fighter stuff from Street Fighter 2, Street Fighter Ultra, Street Fighter 4 on on a shirt for Marvel's Capcom.
01:04:42
Speaker
It does not resonate with me in terms of that because I'm all about, I'm going to take you for a ride. Like, a yo, i knew I know the whole song. I have all the games. And i played all every single Marvel's Capcom. Why didn't they just, like, you know, really, really just tap in to just the three games, right? um And so...
01:05:04
Speaker
That's just a side note. I'm pretty sure somebody else. be I'm pretty sure somebody's going to hear this and be like, yeah, he's right. Or or be like, yeah, he's wrong.
Internet's Impact on Sneaker Culture
01:05:11
Speaker
But, you know, I think that the way sneakers has moved around in the Internet as of late has been very interesting to say, you know, I've gotten a couple of tweets go viral a little bit or whatever they're called now.
01:05:23
Speaker
um And I've also had some clips I had recently. I had ah the cool kids clip go crazy on Instagram.
01:05:35
Speaker
So I appreciate y'all if you shared it, reposted it or sent it to somebody. It's been crazy since then. The the uptick in followers and people consuming my content has been going up.
01:05:50
Speaker
So i'm really appreciative of everybody for that.
Engagement with Supporters and Future Projects
01:05:52
Speaker
And if this is your first time tapping into my podcast, You've got 244 episodes to catch up on. First 10 are going to be on Patreon, Patreon only. And because um I'm using that as a segue, let's do the Patreon shout outs right now. So let's shout out Plox.
01:06:08
Speaker
Shout out Derek Hawkins. Shout out Jesse G. Jesse. Shout out Derek Lipkin, Fresh Poetic. Shout out Adam Butler, MSR. Check out his podcast.
01:06:21
Speaker
And of course, shout out Ross Adams and Adam Neustadter. All y'all have been helping me out tremendously with your subscription or your becoming a patron. And you can also become a patron at patreon.com slash my first kicks.
01:06:37
Speaker
I appreciate. And as I said, i appreciate all y'all. And as I said in the be interstitial or whatever, the when I cut in to tell you how to subscribe. All the money that goes into the patron Patreon, will it goes straight back into the podcast. I got some stuff coming up.
01:06:55
Speaker
you know Me and Dee working on getting some merch going again. um We're updating the website. where We're going to add some cool stuff. I don't know if this can be announced just yet, but I think I'm doing show next next Wednesday the 19th so if you're watching this when this comes out just be uh be aware I think I should be announcing it soon I hopefully hopefully um just if you're hearing in this and you're like well I haven't seen this yet ping me or something because I i am sure this is happening um uh just waiting for some extra stuff to come on but
01:07:37
Speaker
The really appreciate y'all if you stuck around for, you know, this long. um Just want to say thank you for tapping in.
Podcast Journey Reflection and Farewell
01:07:46
Speaker
I've been getting a lot of messages as of late saying people are noticing my work.
01:07:51
Speaker
People are noticing how open and honest I am. People are noticing how much, you know, Uh, what's the word? People are noticing how much I care about the culture and how much I care about these conversations I'm having.
01:08:05
Speaker
And I'm putting my hard earned dollars in my my, I guess my worth that my work ethic into getting these episodes out for everybody.
01:08:16
Speaker
And yes, I do owe every patron some extra episodes on the Patreon. Those are coming soon. gotta to get them recorded. And but I just want y'all to know, you know, this has been a five year journey and it feels like I'm just getting started.
01:08:34
Speaker
So I really appreciate y'all. If you've been here from the first episode, if you've been here from the 20th episode, you've been here from the, you know, the middle, you've just found this just now. I appreciate y'all for tapping in.
01:08:46
Speaker
And so make sure you share this and make sure you tell somebody. Because if you don't tell anybody, this doesn't grow anymore. So make sure you share. Don't gatekeep this. Gatekeep the culture.
01:08:57
Speaker
But don't gatekeep the podcast. Because if you share show them this, maybe they'll have an appreciation for the culture. Hopefully, you know, I've interviewed a lot of people and I want to keep interviewing anybody under the the whole just whoever's roman in this earth that piques my interest.
01:09:16
Speaker
And I want to learn more about them and their journey, especially the sneakers as a through line. So without. Without y'all, there's no more of this. So just want to say thank you.
01:09:27
Speaker
And if you want to check out more episodes of this podcast, check out these two episodes here. Subscribe the podcast. And of course, don't forget, wear your kicks. Peace.