WEBVTT - Cultural Icons and Web3 w/ Jeff Staple 0:00:00.840 --> 0:00:02.880 At any point in the past twenty five years of 0:00:02.880 --> 0:00:05.040 Staples history, I could have said I want to start 0:00:05.080 --> 0:00:07.560 my own sneaker brand, right, I could have done that, 0:00:08.000 --> 0:00:09.520 but I was like, you know what, I've seen a 0:00:09.520 --> 0:00:11.400 lot of my friends try to start sneaker brands and 0:00:11.400 --> 0:00:14.760 it's challenging, and so why should I start a sneaker 0:00:14.760 --> 0:00:17.560 brand when I can call somebody at like Nike or 0:00:17.640 --> 0:00:19.680 New Balance or Timberland and be like, like, am I 0:00:19.680 --> 0:00:23.160 really gonna make a boot better than Timberland? Like maybe 0:00:23.160 --> 0:00:25.720 in twenty years I will, you know, So like, how 0:00:25.720 --> 0:00:27.840 about I just work with Timberland and we sort of 0:00:27.880 --> 0:00:30.160 like complement each other on what we like to do. 0:00:31.200 --> 0:00:33.800 Knows We'll look you see afro Tech, Black Tech, Green 0:00:33.840 --> 0:00:37.320 Money and welcome to the episode. And so check it 0:00:37.320 --> 0:00:39.000 out just a couple of weeks ago, maybe like two 0:00:39.040 --> 0:00:43.040 or three weeks ago Afro Tech World. We welcome Jeff 0:00:43.040 --> 0:00:46.559 Staple to this state. Jeff is a creative visionary with 0:00:47.360 --> 0:00:52.800 work encompassing graphic design, fashion design, fullware design, and brand marketing. 0:00:52.840 --> 0:00:56.480 He's a founder of the read Our Department, which is 0:00:56.520 --> 0:00:59.959 also known as Staples Design, and he's worked on career 0:01:00.040 --> 0:01:04.240 it IF projects ranging startup brands to fortune companies. He 0:01:04.280 --> 0:01:08.840 found a Staple in New York based pioneering streetwear brand 0:01:09.280 --> 0:01:12.600 with a now infamous pigeon logo. And Jeff Stable is 0:01:12.600 --> 0:01:16.360 talking to our Jeff Jeff Nelson, who is co founder 0:01:16.400 --> 0:01:22.200 and CTO ad blvity at afro tech World. Hey, what's 0:01:22.240 --> 0:01:25.040 up Afro tech World. This is Jeff Nelson. I am 0:01:25.080 --> 0:01:28.560 the co founder and chief technology officer of Bravity, Inc. 0:01:28.920 --> 0:01:31.880 I'm here with a very special guest, Jeff Staple. I 0:01:31.920 --> 0:01:34.200 gotta say I like the name, but I'm here and 0:01:34.280 --> 0:01:37.600 honored to have this conversation with you. With you, uh, 0:01:37.680 --> 0:01:41.200 many people in our audience I'm sure are familiar with you. 0:01:41.200 --> 0:01:44.440 You are one of the o G visionaries. Uh and 0:01:44.480 --> 0:01:48.720 so many, so many different industries, so streetwear, fashion, sneakers, 0:01:49.120 --> 0:01:52.680 design in general. Um So, it's cool to have this 0:01:52.760 --> 0:01:56.640 conversation with you. Just learn about how you know your 0:01:56.640 --> 0:01:59.440 passionate and how you develop your brands, but also how 0:01:59.480 --> 0:02:02.560 those brands as are intersecting with technology as we look 0:02:02.640 --> 0:02:06.000 forward to the future and talking about Web three and 0:02:06.000 --> 0:02:08.880 the metaverse and things like that. Um So, so my 0:02:08.960 --> 0:02:12.240 first question is, you know, I want to take a 0:02:12.240 --> 0:02:15.800 trip down memory lane. So in nineteen seven, you you 0:02:15.840 --> 0:02:19.000 started Staple Design. UM. When I hear I don't know 0:02:19.040 --> 0:02:21.520 about you, I'm like, oh, ninety seven, that wasn't that 0:02:21.600 --> 0:02:23.200 long ago. But when you do the math, that was 0:02:23.240 --> 0:02:26.320 twenty five years ago, right. So you built this brand 0:02:26.800 --> 0:02:30.600 that has been relevant for literally decades, and it's transcended 0:02:31.000 --> 0:02:33.960 so many different things, right that that I just mentioned, 0:02:33.960 --> 0:02:37.639 you know, fashion, design, etcetera, etcetera. Can you talk about 0:02:37.840 --> 0:02:42.240 when it clicked for you incorporating technology into these brands 0:02:42.240 --> 0:02:43.880 and all that you do know sort of what was 0:02:43.919 --> 0:02:46.280 the genesis of that idea and how how did that 0:02:46.320 --> 0:02:49.480 come to fruition? UM. Well, first of all, Jeff, thanks 0:02:49.480 --> 0:02:51.799 for having me on and shout out to AFRO Tech 0:02:51.840 --> 0:02:54.440 and everyone out there watching. UM. Definitely honored to be 0:02:55.360 --> 0:02:58.720 part of this talk and share some ideas. UM. And 0:02:58.919 --> 0:03:01.919 I guess we must be of similar generation, Jeff, because 0:03:01.960 --> 0:03:06.240 I'm the same Like when I hear that song Till Infinity, 0:03:06.280 --> 0:03:08.720 that doesn't feel that long ago to be. But ninety 0:03:08.880 --> 0:03:12.880 three is like most of my employees weren't even alive yet, 0:03:12.960 --> 0:03:15.320 you know, I have to like remember that. UM. So 0:03:15.400 --> 0:03:18.320 it is it is crazy how time flies, UM, And 0:03:18.360 --> 0:03:21.120 it's definitely a blessing that what I've been able to 0:03:21.160 --> 0:03:24.400 create has been able to transcend, you know, decades and generations. 0:03:24.400 --> 0:03:27.720 I see fathers and their kids both rocking Staple and 0:03:27.800 --> 0:03:29.600 you know, both rocking stuff that I've done. So it's 0:03:29.639 --> 0:03:33.040 really cool. Um. Well, to answer your question about like 0:03:33.280 --> 0:03:36.800 technology and how that plays into fashion and are this 0:03:36.800 --> 0:03:39.760 this occurred for me really really early on? Man? I mean, 0:03:40.400 --> 0:03:42.840 you know, I feel like half of this conversation is 0:03:42.880 --> 0:03:44.960 going to be about how how I'm gonna date myself. 0:03:45.320 --> 0:03:50.280 But I remember when we first started marketing, right, like 0:03:50.320 --> 0:03:54.880 the idea of like going viral or marketing meant, uh, 0:03:55.040 --> 0:03:58.000 you would make a postcard at like they had these 0:03:58.000 --> 0:04:01.560 companies called like One Postcard, which was honestly like a 0:04:01.600 --> 0:04:06.320 technological wonder because before that, making flyers posters of postcards 0:04:06.400 --> 0:04:09.920 was like a very gated process, like you really needed 0:04:09.960 --> 0:04:12.040 to know offset printers and stuff like that. Then these 0:04:12.040 --> 0:04:15.800 companies came out with this concept called called gang run printing, 0:04:15.800 --> 0:04:18.440 which I know sounds really like, you know, mischievous, but 0:04:18.480 --> 0:04:21.760 it's not gang run printing. Are these companies that basically said, hey, 0:04:21.960 --> 0:04:24.880 there's all these people throwing parties and they need flyers 0:04:24.880 --> 0:04:26.760 and they need invites, and all these DJs want to 0:04:26.760 --> 0:04:31.080 promote their night, why don't instead of working with them individually, 0:04:31.360 --> 0:04:33.400 why don't we call them all in, like fifty of 0:04:33.440 --> 0:04:36.839 them and basically put all their flyers on one big 0:04:36.880 --> 0:04:40.120 printer and then printed all at once and slice them 0:04:40.200 --> 0:04:43.520 up and give it to each person. But everyone saves money, right, 0:04:43.560 --> 0:04:45.520 So it's like this sort of like really communal thing. 0:04:46.120 --> 0:04:49.279 And I remember when I would get postcards made and 0:04:49.279 --> 0:04:52.080 I would drop them off at like record shops and 0:04:52.160 --> 0:04:56.200 cafes and bars. The my social media marketing butget at 0:04:56.200 --> 0:04:59.040 the time was basically how many inches of postcards I 0:04:59.040 --> 0:05:01.800 would leave at each establishment. So if I thought this 0:05:01.800 --> 0:05:04.200 place was like popping, I'd be like, they get two inches, 0:05:04.200 --> 0:05:06.080 I'm gonna give them a two inches that back, you know. 0:05:06.600 --> 0:05:08.280 But it's like if this place wasn't that popping, they 0:05:08.279 --> 0:05:10.120 get a quarter inch, you know what I mean. That 0:05:10.200 --> 0:05:13.200 was marketing back then, And even though it sounds really naive, 0:05:13.600 --> 0:05:17.360 but like I was using technology at the time of 0:05:17.400 --> 0:05:20.599 what I had, because before that it was literally hand 0:05:20.640 --> 0:05:22.400 to mouth, like you had to shake someone's hand and 0:05:22.400 --> 0:05:24.039 tell them about your brand. It was like word of 0:05:24.080 --> 0:05:28.039 mouth marketing. So this idea of using like postcards something 0:05:28.080 --> 0:05:31.880 as dumb as that. You know, Um, I learned really 0:05:31.920 --> 0:05:35.039 early that, like I have to go beyond myself and 0:05:35.120 --> 0:05:38.279 my ability to shake people's hands and kind of spread 0:05:38.279 --> 0:05:42.039 the knowledge as quickly as I possibly could. Obviously, print 0:05:42.080 --> 0:05:44.560 advertising was something that was happening back then, you know, 0:05:44.680 --> 0:05:49.159 magazines and stuff. But the moment the digital revolution started 0:05:49.160 --> 0:05:52.000 to happen, where instead of putting an ad in a 0:05:52.080 --> 0:05:54.640 magazine and sort of crossing your fingers and being like, 0:05:54.960 --> 0:05:57.080 I hope hundreds of people see this, but I actually 0:05:57.080 --> 0:06:00.600 have no validation or idea if that's actually happening. You know, once, 0:06:00.800 --> 0:06:04.599 once the analytics and the tracking of social media and 0:06:04.720 --> 0:06:07.359 you know, just web one really like website started to 0:06:07.400 --> 0:06:10.600 come I don't know if you remember Google came out 0:06:10.640 --> 0:06:14.000 with like blog Spot, and like blog Spot pages were 0:06:14.080 --> 0:06:17.280 like the first blog, right, and you could pick your 0:06:17.279 --> 0:06:19.800 template and stuff like that. And I remember they added 0:06:19.800 --> 0:06:22.159 this feature where you can add a little ticker to 0:06:22.240 --> 0:06:25.080 the side of your website to show how many people 0:06:25.480 --> 0:06:28.400 had visited your website. And that was like, you know, 0:06:28.480 --> 0:06:31.160 this is pre likes, pre retweets or anything, but it's 0:06:31.160 --> 0:06:32.719 like every day I would wake up and be like holy, 0:06:32.839 --> 0:06:35.240 like twelve people came over the over the course of 0:06:35.320 --> 0:06:37.000 last vague and visited, you know, and you would just 0:06:37.120 --> 0:06:39.560 wait to see that thing. But like that initial tracking 0:06:39.560 --> 0:06:42.400 of idea was so cool. Um. And I just think 0:06:42.440 --> 0:06:46.880 that I've always tried to stay um somewhat. I want 0:06:46.880 --> 0:06:49.320 to say abreast of the technology. I don't want to 0:06:49.320 --> 0:06:53.680 call myself a technological innovator. Um. I. I do wait 0:06:53.760 --> 0:06:56.719 to see if when a technology comes out, if it 0:06:56.760 --> 0:06:59.760 has stickiness before I invest my time. You know. One 0:06:59.760 --> 0:07:02.200 thing that I want to emphasize is that time is 0:07:02.279 --> 0:07:05.000 the most valuable asset that any of us have. So 0:07:05.600 --> 0:07:08.080 for me to go in and be like, you know, 0:07:08.120 --> 0:07:11.600 I'm gonna spend all of my money, time, energy and 0:07:11.640 --> 0:07:16.520 effort on video like that would have sucked. Like if 0:07:16.520 --> 0:07:18.680 I did that, you know, so like no, no disrespect 0:07:18.720 --> 0:07:20.960 the video, But like you gotta pick and choose your 0:07:20.960 --> 0:07:23.040 battles to see like where you're gonna go, Like, frankly, 0:07:23.400 --> 0:07:26.880 I'm not really on TikTok, nor is my brand. That 0:07:27.000 --> 0:07:29.160 might be a big mistake for my brand, you know, 0:07:29.240 --> 0:07:32.679 but we've chosen to be like no, let's go, let's 0:07:32.680 --> 0:07:36.480 go with Instagram. Um And now, as you mentioned, it 0:07:36.520 --> 0:07:38.720 alluded to Web three. I mean, I'm I'm all in 0:07:38.760 --> 0:07:41.480 on Web three, and I'm happy I am because I 0:07:41.480 --> 0:07:43.040 think if I had spent a lot of time and 0:07:43.160 --> 0:07:45.960 energy on TikTok, you know, maybe I might have looked 0:07:46.000 --> 0:07:47.600 at Web three and been like, I don't have time 0:07:47.640 --> 0:07:49.960 for another thing. You know, I can't go into that. 0:07:50.280 --> 0:07:53.720 So that's sort of like my my foreign into technology. 0:07:54.240 --> 0:07:57.080 That's so cool and and it's really interesting. I mean, 0:07:57.080 --> 0:07:59.280 you tell the story about the postcards and how you 0:07:59.320 --> 0:08:01.800 know back then we were using tech, even you know 0:08:02.040 --> 0:08:03.960 in the nineties when we don't think of those things 0:08:03.960 --> 0:08:06.320 as tech. But I think what it speaks to is 0:08:06.360 --> 0:08:10.360 just your ability to be, you know, relatively speaking, ahead 0:08:10.360 --> 0:08:12.760 of the curve, even if just a step ahead, right, um, 0:08:12.800 --> 0:08:15.520 And that's super super important, and so forwards I call 0:08:15.600 --> 0:08:20.680 it scrappy, you know, the hustler mentality, right, which which 0:08:20.720 --> 0:08:24.480 is so important. And so you made this bet on 0:08:24.600 --> 0:08:26.680 Web three and crypto. You're doing a lot of things 0:08:26.720 --> 0:08:29.600 in that space. I am curious for someone with your 0:08:29.640 --> 0:08:34.640 back background and you know, being a creative um, especially 0:08:34.960 --> 0:08:38.120 being a physical creator. Now you're you're and I don't 0:08:38.120 --> 0:08:39.800 want to say a transitioning because I don't think you're 0:08:39.880 --> 0:08:42.640 leaving that part of your your ethos behind, but you're 0:08:42.720 --> 0:08:46.160 augmenting and complementing that with being a digital creator. So 0:08:46.200 --> 0:08:48.600 can you talk a little bit about that transition, what's 0:08:48.679 --> 0:08:51.120 different about creating in the digital space, but also what's 0:08:51.120 --> 0:08:54.480 similar to your previous work. I mean, I got I 0:08:54.520 --> 0:08:57.680 got a first preface this by saying, my foray into 0:08:57.760 --> 0:09:01.280 web three is literally, as of today months old, like 0:09:01.400 --> 0:09:05.680 it is, it's brand spanking news, so it's completely fresh, 0:09:05.720 --> 0:09:08.319 it's completely it's changing all the time. I'm learning every 0:09:08.360 --> 0:09:11.480 single day. People think I'm an expert. I'm not. Nobody 0:09:11.559 --> 0:09:15.760 is an expert because it's constantly changing, you know. Um 0:09:15.880 --> 0:09:19.439 but I did dabble into uh the web three n 0:09:19.480 --> 0:09:23.160 f T space last year, um by through the means 0:09:23.200 --> 0:09:25.520 of collaboration, you know. And and if you look at 0:09:25.520 --> 0:09:29.079 the course of my career, uh, some people say that 0:09:29.280 --> 0:09:31.959 I'm like the King of collaborations. But it's not because 0:09:31.960 --> 0:09:35.000 I was trying to own collaborations as a concept. What 0:09:35.040 --> 0:09:37.480 I was always trying to do was again not go 0:09:37.600 --> 0:09:40.600 all in on something. So for example, when you know 0:09:40.600 --> 0:09:42.840 I'm I'm a big sneaker head, I really love sneakers, 0:09:43.360 --> 0:09:45.400 at any point in the past twenty five years of 0:09:45.400 --> 0:09:47.600 stables history, I could have said, I want to start 0:09:47.600 --> 0:09:50.080 my own sneaker brand, right, I could have done that, 0:09:50.520 --> 0:09:52.040 but I was like, you know what, I've seen a 0:09:52.040 --> 0:09:53.920 lot of my friends try to start sneaker brands and 0:09:53.960 --> 0:09:57.280 it's challenging, and so why should I start a sneaker 0:09:57.280 --> 0:10:00.120 brand when I can call somebody at like Nike or 0:10:00.200 --> 0:10:02.200 New Balance or Timberland and be like, like, am I 0:10:02.200 --> 0:10:05.680 really gonna make a boot better than Timberland? Like maybe 0:10:05.720 --> 0:10:08.240 in twenty years I will, you know, So like, how 0:10:08.240 --> 0:10:10.360 about I just work with Timberland and we sort of 0:10:10.400 --> 0:10:12.679 like complement each other on what we like to do. 0:10:12.800 --> 0:10:15.040 So when it when it came time to the n 0:10:15.080 --> 0:10:18.080 f T Crypto Web three space, I said, instead of 0:10:18.120 --> 0:10:20.600 me just going full boat all in on crypto and 0:10:20.720 --> 0:10:22.840 n f T, let me learn from people who have 0:10:22.920 --> 0:10:26.160 been in it slightly longer um And so my my 0:10:26.240 --> 0:10:29.720 first collaboration was the company called Zora z O r A, 0:10:29.960 --> 0:10:32.000 which I suggest all of you check out there like 0:10:32.000 --> 0:10:36.640 the new Marketplace. Secondly, then I collaborated with Artifact r 0:10:36.720 --> 0:10:39.560 T f k T, which is a you know, they're 0:10:39.640 --> 0:10:42.560 like the new digital web three brand if you will, 0:10:42.559 --> 0:10:45.560 they actually just got acquired by Nike UM and then 0:10:45.600 --> 0:10:47.959 the third one was Gary baynerchuk In and his b 0:10:48.160 --> 0:10:52.000 Friends program. So my first three steps into the space 0:10:52.120 --> 0:10:55.880 were with handheld with an expert or an expert at 0:10:55.880 --> 0:10:57.959 the time, and that allowed me to get a taste 0:10:58.000 --> 0:11:01.640 of it and again justify to myself whether this is 0:11:01.640 --> 0:11:03.320 gonna be something that I really want to invest a 0:11:03.320 --> 0:11:06.280 lot of time, energy and effort into. Obviously I did, 0:11:06.720 --> 0:11:08.760 And then so we launched Staple Versus just a couple 0:11:08.800 --> 0:11:11.600 of months ago UM and it's been a game changer. 0:11:11.640 --> 0:11:13.520 So to answer your question, what do I love about 0:11:14.280 --> 0:11:17.560 working in this space, there's two main things. Number one 0:11:18.280 --> 0:11:21.400 is that coming from someone who has made physical goods 0:11:21.440 --> 0:11:23.560 all their life, a lot of it overseas, you know, 0:11:24.120 --> 0:11:28.600 there are a ton of logistical hurdles that are in 0:11:28.640 --> 0:11:31.560 the creator's way in terms of getting something physically made, 0:11:31.559 --> 0:11:38.760 whether it's supply chain, minimum, motor quantities, middlemen, salesman, shipping, tariffs, customs, 0:11:38.800 --> 0:11:42.719 all of this BS is essentially set up so that 0:11:43.240 --> 0:11:46.280 as many people as possible can make their slice of 0:11:46.320 --> 0:11:49.400 the pie, you know, And and it's it's the most 0:11:49.480 --> 0:11:53.880 unstreamlined thing ever and the other thing is because of that, 0:11:54.760 --> 0:11:58.760 every time there's a hurdle, you are sacrificing a concept 0:11:58.960 --> 0:12:01.599 or an idea. You're like, oh, was it gonna be 0:12:01.679 --> 0:12:03.400 eight weeks to make that thing that I wanted? I 0:12:03.480 --> 0:12:05.240 forget that thing. Let's just get it done, you know. 0:12:05.320 --> 0:12:07.760 And so that's a that's a creative sacrifice that you're making, 0:12:07.800 --> 0:12:10.960 you know, in in this world, in the digital world, 0:12:12.200 --> 0:12:15.600 anything I dream, if it can be coded, it happens. 0:12:16.160 --> 0:12:18.319 It's like it's like me, my, It's like my brain 0:12:18.480 --> 0:12:22.240 a coder consumer. That's it. There's like no nothing else, 0:12:22.320 --> 0:12:25.079 you know, And so that's really beautiful. Uh. And then 0:12:25.080 --> 0:12:27.200 the second thing that I really love about this is 0:12:27.520 --> 0:12:31.000 obviously ownership of your I P. You know, traditionally, if 0:12:31.000 --> 0:12:33.480 you think about being a fashion brand or a footwear brand, 0:12:34.200 --> 0:12:36.480 the success of your of your brand is a lot 0:12:36.480 --> 0:12:39.880 of times be holding on a retail store or like 0:12:39.920 --> 0:12:41.319 a sneaker store. You know, like if you have a 0:12:41.320 --> 0:12:43.400 sneaker brand, if you're not doing business with a foot locker, 0:12:43.720 --> 0:12:46.120 you're probably not really doing business, you know what I mean. 0:12:46.600 --> 0:12:49.760 It's very very difficult. Same with like department stores, or 0:12:49.800 --> 0:12:51.880 if you're an artist, if you're not going to be 0:12:51.920 --> 0:12:55.120 signed by a gallery or like a museum. It's very 0:12:55.120 --> 0:12:57.360 hard for you to break through, you know. And think 0:12:57.400 --> 0:12:59.480 about it. Now, if you sell your work to a 0:12:59.520 --> 0:13:03.120 gallery ist, right you you get money for that transaction. 0:13:03.559 --> 0:13:07.560 Now that galleries is going to sell it to another collector, you, now, 0:13:07.720 --> 0:13:10.760 as a traditional artist or painter, does not get any 0:13:10.760 --> 0:13:13.840 more money. And then when that guy now sells it 0:13:13.880 --> 0:13:18.160 to another collector, use the chain of of revenue stream 0:13:18.240 --> 0:13:21.280 stops for you. Right in in the n f T world, 0:13:21.320 --> 0:13:24.960 because of the blockchain and smart contracts, I can put 0:13:24.960 --> 0:13:27.880 into my smart contract that I, the creator of this 0:13:27.960 --> 0:13:34.079 work forever in perpetuity, wants of of of royalty on 0:13:34.120 --> 0:13:36.600 this I can make up the percentage. And now every 0:13:36.600 --> 0:13:40.079 time that product or n f T or whatever is flipped, 0:13:40.200 --> 0:13:43.559 you just keep making perpetual royalties. And that's a game changer. 0:13:43.559 --> 0:13:45.640 And it's not even I mean, yes, it's a financial 0:13:45.679 --> 0:13:48.559 game changer, but it's a game changer because it's almost 0:13:48.559 --> 0:13:52.520 like it's almost like buying a car and having fuel 0:13:52.640 --> 0:13:56.520 in your car every day. It's like it's fuel for creativity. 0:13:56.559 --> 0:13:58.200 You know, I don't have to worry about the next 0:13:58.200 --> 0:14:01.079 thing because my my babies are out there making money 0:14:01.120 --> 0:14:03.520 for me, you know. So that's the beautiful thing about 0:14:03.840 --> 0:14:06.960 the space. And I'm glad that you mentioned that because 0:14:07.240 --> 0:14:10.160 we've been talking a lot um this year in our 0:14:10.240 --> 0:14:12.480 afro Tech series we've had, you know, we had afro 0:14:12.559 --> 0:14:15.920 Tech Miami in February. We talked a lot about n 0:14:15.960 --> 0:14:18.199 f t s and crypto and um, n f t 0:14:18.360 --> 0:14:20.840 s are are you know this new concept? And not 0:14:20.840 --> 0:14:24.320 not everybody gets it? Some people still And immediately myself, 0:14:24.360 --> 0:14:26.440 before I really dig into the space, I was like, oh, 0:14:26.480 --> 0:14:29.080 these are just JPEGs, right, But what you just mentioned 0:14:29.080 --> 0:14:31.960 that smart contract, there's so much power in that where 0:14:32.000 --> 0:14:34.440 you can if it can be coded right, and you 0:14:34.480 --> 0:14:37.880 talk about creators in the ability to literally program in 0:14:38.640 --> 0:14:43.120 royalties right where any time of transaction happens boom boom boom. 0:14:43.160 --> 0:14:45.120 It's all backed by crypto, it's all backed by the 0:14:45.120 --> 0:14:48.360 blockchain and it just happens right. That gives you that 0:14:48.480 --> 0:14:51.240 as an artist, that gives you so much leverage. So so, 0:14:51.440 --> 0:14:54.920 you know, thanks for really demystifying that and putting it 0:14:54.960 --> 0:14:58.720 in layman's terms. So I'll give you another analogy about 0:14:58.760 --> 0:15:01.680 people because I have a lot of like friendly debates 0:15:02.120 --> 0:15:04.200 have a lot of friendly debates with with friends who 0:15:04.240 --> 0:15:07.440 are like, you know, you're just selling JPEG's. It's it's worthless, 0:15:07.520 --> 0:15:10.280 you know. And I'm like, I'm like, remember the day 0:15:10.680 --> 0:15:13.280 when I got a blue check on Instagram? How salty 0:15:13.320 --> 0:15:16.120 you were? And they're like, yeah, I was like you 0:15:16.240 --> 0:15:19.160 actually told me that day you would pay money for 0:15:19.200 --> 0:15:21.360 a blue check. And I'm sure we all know people 0:15:21.680 --> 0:15:25.960 that would pay fifty fifty five, probably five thousand dollars 0:15:25.960 --> 0:15:28.800 for a blue check. So wait, you're gonna pay five 0:15:28.800 --> 0:15:33.440 thousand dollars for a jpeg that's this big? What does 0:15:33.480 --> 0:15:36.080 that mean? It's it's not because of the artwork of 0:15:36.120 --> 0:15:38.720 the blue check. It's because of the It's because of 0:15:38.760 --> 0:15:42.200 the value that it holds when it sits on your telephone. 0:15:42.560 --> 0:15:44.440 That's that's the only place that sits, you know what 0:15:44.520 --> 0:15:46.360 I mean. So when when I tell people that, they're 0:15:46.400 --> 0:15:50.240 like fine, I kind of understand. Yeah, It's like it's 0:15:50.280 --> 0:15:53.480 the connection that it has, you know. Um, So we 0:15:53.560 --> 0:15:57.240 are already as humans trading on a on a on 0:15:57.320 --> 0:16:00.200 a digital only landscape, you know, like, hey, if you 0:16:00.320 --> 0:16:02.760 if you go out and you buy an incredible piece 0:16:02.760 --> 0:16:05.720 of furniture like a Herman Miller chair or sofa. Right, great, 0:16:05.880 --> 0:16:09.920 congrats you and six of your closest friends and family 0:16:09.960 --> 0:16:12.960 have seen that chair. Every other person that you're gonna 0:16:12.960 --> 0:16:15.560 show that chair too, you're probably showing it to them 0:16:15.560 --> 0:16:19.400 on this device that like, the people they're gonna see 0:16:19.480 --> 0:16:23.320 see it through this device. So you're already trading equity 0:16:23.680 --> 0:16:27.840 and value and cloud on the mobile device digitally, and 0:16:28.080 --> 0:16:29.720 n f T s are just sort of like taking 0:16:29.760 --> 0:16:32.240 it all the way there where it's like, let's just 0:16:32.280 --> 0:16:35.480 forget the physical, like and that's that's the scary part 0:16:35.560 --> 0:16:37.640 is because people are like, I don't want to forget 0:16:37.640 --> 0:16:39.440 the physical. It makes me feel good, you know. But 0:16:39.480 --> 0:16:41.760 if you think about it, as you said, it's less 0:16:41.800 --> 0:16:45.720 about an abandoned abandonment of the physical, it's just an 0:16:45.800 --> 0:16:48.280 added extension of it, then I think it makes people 0:16:48.280 --> 0:16:52.440 feel more comfortable. That's a perfect analogy there. Um, And and 0:16:52.080 --> 0:16:55.200 and so there must be something about Jeff's right, because 0:16:55.200 --> 0:16:57.720 I can can relate to this aspect of your story. 0:16:57.840 --> 0:17:00.040 Is this inability to be satisfied, will just do and 0:17:00.160 --> 0:17:04.520 one thing right? So you know, we we talked about, um, 0:17:04.560 --> 0:17:06.800 you know, since the nineties, how you've been You've had 0:17:06.840 --> 0:17:09.400 your hands in so many different places, right, You're your 0:17:09.720 --> 0:17:14.560 certified sneaker head, streetwear, fashion design, You've got retail stores, 0:17:14.600 --> 0:17:18.000 all these different things. Now in the web three space 0:17:18.520 --> 0:17:20.639 we talked about, you know, and alluded to the n 0:17:20.720 --> 0:17:23.960 f T s. But you've got the Staple Verse, right, 0:17:24.000 --> 0:17:27.280 So we're we're here in Afrotech world, in the Afrotech metaverse. 0:17:27.800 --> 0:17:30.320 H You've got the Staple Verse. Tell me what is 0:17:30.320 --> 0:17:33.160 the Staple Verse, why it's cool, and why you decided 0:17:33.200 --> 0:17:37.400 to create that. The Staple Verse is my own personal 0:17:37.880 --> 0:17:41.399 Marvel cinematic universe, you know. So, like I don't know 0:17:41.400 --> 0:17:43.359 if if there's any Marvel fans out there, but like 0:17:43.400 --> 0:17:46.040 I'm a huge Marvel fan, and you know, one of 0:17:46.080 --> 0:17:48.919 the most impressive things is like the fact that you know, 0:17:49.000 --> 0:17:51.760 this this saga has gone on for like twenty five 0:17:51.960 --> 0:17:56.359 movies deep now even more decades long. You know, but 0:17:56.520 --> 0:17:59.479 if you think about the genius of like, you know, 0:17:59.480 --> 0:18:01.600 the lay one of the latest Marvel movies that came 0:18:01.600 --> 0:18:05.240 out is Changshi in the Ten Rings, Right, Those Ten 0:18:05.359 --> 0:18:10.680 Rings appeared in Iron Man one like over a decade ago, 0:18:10.920 --> 0:18:15.240 So you know, the producers just created this entire universe 0:18:15.280 --> 0:18:17.399 and they're just taking us along for the ride on 0:18:17.440 --> 0:18:20.480 this incredible journey. And so what I'm doing now with 0:18:20.560 --> 0:18:24.200 Staple Verse is very similar. I get to create. Sure, 0:18:24.240 --> 0:18:26.560 I love making clothes, I love making shoes, I love 0:18:26.600 --> 0:18:29.080 retail all that stuff. But now I get to create 0:18:30.080 --> 0:18:34.359 storytelling lore characters. I get to take them on different 0:18:34.440 --> 0:18:36.240 journeys all over the world. I even get to take 0:18:36.280 --> 0:18:38.919 them outside of planet Earth if I wanted to, Like, 0:18:38.960 --> 0:18:41.560 I could go to another another planet. Right, It's literally 0:18:41.600 --> 0:18:45.600 only limited by my imagination. But with that being said, 0:18:45.920 --> 0:18:50.560 we are starting chapter one of Staple Verse right here 0:18:50.640 --> 0:18:52.720 in New York City, where I came from. So I'm 0:18:52.760 --> 0:18:56.280 sort of mirroring my journey uh in the physical world 0:18:56.720 --> 0:18:58.920 through the n f T world so that people get 0:18:58.920 --> 0:19:01.639 a really good understanding of my roots and my history. 0:19:01.920 --> 0:19:04.720 So it's interesting, like our our mascot is a pigeon, 0:19:04.840 --> 0:19:07.159 and everyone really knows our brand because of the pigeon logo. 0:19:07.560 --> 0:19:09.360 So when there was news that we were coming out 0:19:09.400 --> 0:19:11.240 with this n f T project, they assumed it was 0:19:11.280 --> 0:19:15.160 gonna be like ten thousand pigeon profile pictures, right yeah, 0:19:15.200 --> 0:19:17.200 And I you know what, I probably would have made 0:19:17.320 --> 0:19:19.159 decent money if I did that. It probably would have 0:19:19.160 --> 0:19:21.800 been a fine project, but I sort of zigged when 0:19:21.840 --> 0:19:24.560 everyone thought I was gonna zag, and what we did 0:19:24.640 --> 0:19:28.920 was re released ten thousand feed items. Okay, so these 0:19:29.080 --> 0:19:32.720 feed items are basically, in my mind, foods that you 0:19:32.760 --> 0:19:36.080 would see a New York City pigeon eating. And they're real, 0:19:36.240 --> 0:19:39.840 like New York City strange things like you. We've got 0:19:39.880 --> 0:19:42.960 like obviously like pizzas and bagels and coffee beans and 0:19:43.040 --> 0:19:46.680 tea bags, but we also got weird things like a syringe, 0:19:47.160 --> 0:19:51.560 a subway token, like a used condom, a cockroach. There's 0:19:51.600 --> 0:19:54.359 just like real griming New York City stuff, right. And 0:19:54.480 --> 0:19:56.600 the idea is that you buy these feed and f 0:19:56.640 --> 0:19:59.919 t s and then later on and actually later on 0:20:00.000 --> 0:20:03.040 I'm talking about like in about two weeks, you would 0:20:03.040 --> 0:20:05.880 take that feed and you have to now toss it 0:20:06.280 --> 0:20:08.880 to try to catch a pigeon, similar to if you're 0:20:08.880 --> 0:20:11.360 sitting in Central Park and you're trying to get pigeons, 0:20:11.359 --> 0:20:14.280 you have to like toss them food, right. But sometimes 0:20:14.520 --> 0:20:16.560 when you toss food and try to get a pigeon, 0:20:16.960 --> 0:20:19.639 you get shot on by a pigeon also, right, So 0:20:19.800 --> 0:20:22.800 we have this whole gamification where like you buy feed, 0:20:23.320 --> 0:20:25.919 you now have to throw your feet out try to 0:20:25.960 --> 0:20:29.080 catch a pigeon, but you might catch a pigeon ship 0:20:29.160 --> 0:20:32.280 and f t also okay, And because now we have 0:20:32.359 --> 0:20:35.280 these three factions, we have the people who will get pigeons, 0:20:35.440 --> 0:20:37.480 the people who will get pooped, and the people who 0:20:37.520 --> 0:20:39.480 will not throw out their feet they want to keep 0:20:39.520 --> 0:20:43.920