BRNDD: Conversations with Creatives

Donte Cotton & Ronald James

Branded by dictionary definition in the commerce world means carrying the brand or trademark of a manufacture. In today’s world, the definition of a brand has opened up to much more. Brand’s can be the label names we wear, the companies we support, down to our own individual selves. This podcast will focus particularly on Brands in the streetwear world.

  • 1 hour 3 minutes
    Episode 33: Cheresse Thornhill-Goldson and Liz Connelly

    Donte and Ronald are joined by Cheresse Thornhill-Goldson (Design Director of Adidas S.E.E.D. and No Shoes Creative) and Liz Connelly (Co-founder and program manager of Adidas S.E.E.D.). The BRNDD duo get to chop it up with Liz and Cheresse about their history in design, forming the S.E.E.D. program and more!

     

    Highlights:

    5:50 - Introductions

    17:29 - What is Adidas S.E.E.D.?

    20:15 - Taking a Leap of Faith

    25:58 - Creating a Comfortable Space

    31:39 - The moment of Clarity

    33:56 - Getting into Adidas S.E.E.D.

    38:00 - Age Ain't Nothing but a Number

    42:34 - Working at the Brooklyn Farm

    50:05 - The Favorites

    55:33 - The BRNDD 10

    Check out Cheresse and Liz's BRNDD 10 Playlist on Spotify:

    Cheresse: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4fGt7Obz4cWRn1OBih90hh?si=Nob41-kURIy4f3KJx3F_Lg   Liz: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/78KPEK41I4YouHR77Esi3h?si=aVamPRkTS3y2FBLefOLe7w

    Visit http://brnddpodcast.com/ to subscribe to the podcast, listen to past episodes, and find out about future projects!

    Follow us: https://www.facebook.com/brnddpodcast https://www.instagram.com/brnddpodcast https://twitter.com/brnddpodcast

    27 February 2022, 5:00 am
  • 1 hour 13 minutes
    Episode 32: Dexton Deboree

    Dexton Deboree is a filmmaker and branded content creator who has worked with the likes of Nike and Jordan Brand. He's also the founder of Falkon, a creative production agency. Ronald and Donte sit down with Dexton to talk about his journey into becoming a director, working with Will Smith, his Unbanned: The Legend of the AJ1 documentary and more. Time Stamps:

    6:21 - Finding Sports

    12:03 - Moving from Athlete to Artist

    17:41 - From Cigar Talk to Commercial Work for Jordan Brand

    32:20 - Unbanned: The Legend of the AJ1

    38:24 - The Importance of Minority Storytelling

    48:45 - Will Smith's "Best Shape of My Life"

    58:19 - Favorites

    1:01:43 - The BRNDD 10

     

    Check out Dexton's BRNDD 10 Playlist on Spotify:

    https://open.spotify.com/playlist/46gdlUkr9xXSIcSfQ2ONje

    Visit http://brnddpodcast.com/ to subscribe to the podcast, listen to past episodes, and find out about future projects!

    Follow us: https://www.facebook.com/brnddpodcast https://www.instagram.com/brnddpodcast https://twitter.com/brnddpodcast

    13 February 2022, 5:00 am
  • 1 hour 56 minutes
    Episode 31: Numa Perrier

    Numa Perrier is a creative whose artistry extends to curation, acting, producing, directing and beyond. Her devotion to authenticity and quality has insured that she is a staple in the entertainment industry. Her movie Jezebel , distributed by Ava Duvernay's Array, is now streaming on Netflix.

    Highlights:

    • 0:00 Intro / Catch Up
    • 22:06 Numa Perrier Introduction
    • 28:15 BLACK + SEXY TV
    • 41:42 Smilf and Frankie Shaw
    • 48:09 When did you first start creating?
    • 52:30 Jezebel, Sex Work, and its relevance
    • 1:17:48 Queen Sugar
    • 1:18:52 Black People are Light
    • 1:24:17 Jordan Peele A.K.A. "Boyfriend Jordan"
    • 1:28:03 The Perfect Find, Blood Mother and Toxic
    • 1:35:19 Which artists are on Numa's radar?
    • 1:41:53 House of Numa
    • 1:43:03 The Favorites
    • 1:47:15 BRNDD 10 Playlist
    • 1:50:22 Closing / Parting Words To Creatives

    Check out Numa's Toxic Edition BRNDD 10 Playlist on Spotify:

    https://open.spotify.com/playlist/46gdlUkr9xXSIcSfQ2ONje

    Visit http://brnddpodcast.com/ to subscribe to the podcast, listen to past episodes, and find out about future projects!

    Follow us: https://www.facebook.com/brnddpodcast https://www.instagram.com/brnddpodcast https://twitter.com/brnddpodcast

    7 February 2021, 5:00 am
  • 1 hour 48 minutes
    Episode 30: Jazerai Allen-Lord

    Jazerai is a Sneaker Strategist, Designer and writer from California living in New York. She's worked with the likes of Reebok to put out her own shoe and is featured on Lena Waithe's Sneaker docu-series "You Ain't Got These" now streaming on Quibi. 

     

    Highlights: 

    • 4:07: Blue Chucks
    • 7:19: The Birth of Sneaker Internet
    • 9:30: The Challenges of being a woman in to Sneakers
    • 13:50: The Club C x Jazerai
    • 25:59: Sneaker Mom
    • 28:30: "You Ain't Got These"
    • 32:45: Lena Waithe
    • 34:58: Working with Reebok
    • 44:03: the importance of Women Empowerment
    • 47:40: Kicks on Fire
    • 55:28: Life after KOF
    • 1:04:21: Being "That Bitch"
    • 1:08:00: The Wall of Fame
    • 1:21:06: The Favorites
    • 1:37:00: The BRNDD 10
    2 August 2020, 4:00 am
  • 1 hour 20 minutes
    Episode 29: Tommie Battle

    Tommie Battle is a professional photographer who got his start shooting sneakers for fun and Baltimore Night life in college. Over the years he's progressed to shooting for the MLS in New York, podcasts and more.

    Highlights:

    • 3:50: Life in Quarantine
    • 6:25: sneakers and Kodak cameras
    • 13:06: radio is dead
    • 21:17: The Smoking Section and Early Blog Days
    • 24:54: Going off Instinct vs. Technique
    • 27:42: Taking a break from photography
    • 34:54: Nike Talk to Twitter
    • 45:03: picking the Camera back up
    • 57:07: The Favorites
    • 1:10:30: The BRNDD 10
    19 July 2020, 4:00 am
  • 57 minutes 16 seconds
    Episode 28: Jacques "Kustoo" Slade

    Jacques Slade is one of the biggest personalities in Youtube Sneaker media. His video of his tour of Michael Jordan's famous Illinois Mansion recently hit 16 million views. Donte and Ronald talk to Jacques on how he went from a music teacher to where he is today. 

    Highlights: 

    • 3:11: Who is Jaques Slade
    • 6:10: Kicks on Fire Days
    • 14:32: Jacques first video
    • 18:24: Quality vs. Content
    • 20:29: Can't smell your own roses
    • 27:24: The Brands are Watching
    • 31:35: The Future of Sneaker Media
    • 34:09: Working Outside of Youtube
    • 39:50: The Last Dance
    • 41:48: Technology in sneakers
    • 44:28The Favorites
    • 47:00: The BRNDD 10
    27 May 2020, 4:00 am
  • 1 hour 47 minutes
    Episode 26: Patrick Horvat

    Another episode from the BRNDD vault, Ronald brings on his good friend Patrick Horvat. Born in Upstate and working around the world, Patrick has worked with brands from the NHL to the NBA. 

    Highlights: 

    • 5:56: The B-More Flea
    • 8:10: Upstate, NY and Graffiti
    • 10:20: I fooled them...
    • 12:05: Syquest and Photoshop
    • 18:03: Post-College Tetris Disorder
    • 21:34: I Fooled them again...
    • 26:41: the NHL Days
    • 30:28: Creating a design language and identity
    • 37:09: the challenge of being creative
    • 43:11: The Nike Years, Hong Kong
    • 50:12: Australian Shark Attacks
    • 55:20: International Sneaker Releases
    • 59:53: The Under Armour years
    • 1:05:10: signing UA athletes(possibly)-
    • 1:10:00: Favorites
    17 May 2020, 4:00 am
  • 1 hour 22 minutes
    Episode 25: Arvay Adams

    From the unreleased archives; The Co-hosts of the BRNDD podcast caught up with Arvay Adams, Designer and creative behind This Sporting Life. They talk about his days at Phat Farm to having beef with HBO and everything in between!

     

    Highlights

    • 2:00 - Ronald and Donte' recap what they've been up to
    • 8:26 - Introduction of Arvay
    • 12:14 - from Woodlawn to New York
    • 14:02 - Skateboards & tees in L.A.
    • 18:34 - the Phat Farm Days
    • 21:25 - The birth of This Sporting Life
    • 23:26 - L.A. Living
    • 26:12 - the Secret Behind Design
    • 31:13 - Bethlehem Steel and the importance of Story telling
    • 35:00 - Coming Back East
    • 38:00 - The Change in Baltimore Streetwear Scene
    • 46:00 - The Business of Being Fresh
    • 52:36 - Working with Russell Simmons
    • 53:54 - Black Ice
    • 59:00 - Chain Stitching
    • 1:01:05 - God is in the Details
    • 1:03:06 - The Favorites
    • 1:12:30 - The BRNDD 10
    10 May 2020, 4:00 am
  • 1 hour 35 minutes
    Episode 24: Currency Michaels

    Donte' and Ronald catch up with an old friend, Michael Haskins Jr. Better known as Currency Michaels. Michael is the owner and founder of Currency Studios, a staple brand in Baltimore, established back in the late 2000's. They got a chance to talk about the history of Baltimore Streetwear, break down old industry beefs and more!

     

    Highlights: 

    • 4:15: The Legend of Garth
    • 12:12: "The Cool"
    • 16:57: Baltimore to Ball Harbor
    • 22:33: Building a Legacy Brand
    • 29:27: Respect Your Wealth
    • 37:15: PedX and Gentai
    • 48:06: The importance of a team
    • 55:23: Helping by not helping
    • 59:57: Ronald vs. the Baltimore Sun
    • 1:03:19: Reconciliation and understanding
    • 1:09:24: Seeding and Celebrities
    • 1:14:36: The stages of being a Creative
    • 1:20:57: Creating Spaces and the future
    • 1:23:51: The Favorites
    • 1:25:57: The BRNDD 10
    26 April 2020, 4:00 am
  • 1 hour 4 minutes
    Episode 23: Season 2 Wrap-Up

    Ronald and Donte' reflect on the podcast up until the last released episode and what happened in life in between. 

     

    Highlights

    • 2:50: The Pensole/Portland Experience
    • 9:20: What's next for BRNDD?
    • 12:03: Kaepernick vs. Trump
    • 13:49: Because the Internet
    • 13:35: Goals for BRNDD
    • 19:20: Behind the process
    • 24:54: Keys to Building for the Future
    • 36:00: room for improvement
    • 40:56: the Social Media Matrix
    • 44:51: Cops and Drops
    • 54:26: Favorite Podcast moments
    • 56:45: Future Guest wishlist
    • 59:53: The Favorites
    22 March 2020, 4:00 am
  • 58 minutes 29 seconds
    Episode 22: D'wayne Edwards

    D'Wayne Edwards is the founder of Pensole Footwear Design Academy, located in Portland, OR. He's spent over 30 years in the industry, from working with Tupac and Biggie at Karl Kani to working with the GOAT, Michael Jordan. After spending 10 years working at Jordan, D'Wayne decided to start a school for footwear designers to help the next generation and has established one of the top schools in the world for Footwear Design. Donte' not only got to learn under him but interview him for the podcast. Listen as Donte' and D'Wayne talk about the journey that led D'Wayne to Portland. 

     

    Highlights: 

    • 0:30: The Beginnings
    • 3:58: Baseball Cards to Sneakers
    • 5:10: the Reebok Design Competition
    • 7:30: Fast food to Footwear
    • 12:05: Footwear meets Hip-Hop
    • 15:33: The Advent of Sity and Skechers
    • 16:58: The Transition to Nike/Jordan
    • 20:41: Meeting Jordan
    • 23:33: The Nu Retro II
    • 24:21: Melo and the .5 Series
    • 29:33: Designing Signature Jordans
    • 31:29: Innovation and “The Experience”
    • 37:11: Founding Pensole
    • 45:28: How to Attend Pensole
    • 47:30: The Future of Pensole
    • 51:53: Bringing Industry Technology to Pensole
    • 54:07: The Favorites

     

    Pensole's 

    Website: http://www.pensole.com/

    Instagram: pensole_academy

    Twitter: @pensole_academy

    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pensole.footwear.design.academy/

     

     BRNDD Podcast:

    Website: debonairmaterial.com

    E-Mail: [email protected]

    Facebook Group: www.facebook.com/brnddpodcast

    Twitter:

    @BRNDDPodcast

    Instagram:

    @brnddpodcast

    facebook:

    https://www.facebook.com/brnddpodcast/

     

    Ronald James'

    Twitter and Instagram:

    @whoisronjames

    20 August 2017, 3:07 pm
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