Speaker 1: Even in school, like we would switch classes pretty often,
Speaker 1: and I just remember always taking her like english and
Speaker 1: history tests and exams, and she would take my like
Speaker 1: math and science stuff up to or in science for example,
Speaker 1: like the more like I would do biology and she
Speaker 1: would like do chemistry. And you got away with it.
Speaker 1: Oh yeah, no one ever found out. No found out.
Speaker 1: Hey everyone, welcome back to On Purpose, the number one
Speaker 1: health podcast in the world. Thanks to each and every
Speaker 1: single one of you that come back every week to listen,
Speaker 1: learn and grow. Now. I love it when I get
Speaker 1: to sit down with people that have had conversations offline
Speaker 1: before put it on the podcast, record it and share
Speaker 1: it with each and every one of you. Today's guests
Speaker 1: are two people that I am fascinated by. I'm curious
Speaker 1: to learn more about them today. I admire them for
Speaker 1: how they show up in the world, the energy they carry,
Speaker 1: and how they make me and my wife feel whenever
Speaker 1: we're around them. We got introduced to them by our
Speaker 1: dear friend Raquel, who also happens me in the room,
Speaker 1: who be on the podcast very very soon as well.
Speaker 1: But I'm so grateful that she's in the room because
Speaker 1: she's the one who connected us Today's guest our Fashion
Speaker 1: Duo DJ Duo Simmy and Hayes. Thank you for being here,
Speaker 1: Thank you for having us. This is really rare because
Speaker 1: we never really interview people are always like, we've never
Speaker 1: heard your voices, so yeah, we rarely like even talk
Speaker 1: on our Instagram stories or anything. But we trust you
Speaker 1: and we love you, so here we are. I feel
Speaker 1: honored hearing that, and my team said the same thing
Speaker 1: to me. They were like, we want to find interviews
Speaker 1: with them on it and researching and you know what
Speaker 1: they like. And I was like, yeah, but that's why
Speaker 1: I want to sit down with you, because, like I said,
Speaker 1: when Raquel introduced us, and we've had a couple of
Speaker 1: dinners here and there, and we've always had like these deep,
Speaker 1: reflective conversations, and you both have such a wonderful warmth
Speaker 1: and positive energy about you. And then I was like,
Speaker 1: they do have voices, they have one opinions, they have
Speaker 1: great ideas, and I love hearing that. Why why don't
Speaker 1: you do interviews? Let's start there is what has stopped
Speaker 1: you over the years from doing interviews. We're just very
Speaker 1: selective about who we talk to, especially if it's you know,
Speaker 1: live like this, We've also done like a lot of
Speaker 1: like magazine interview stuff where like a lot of stuff
Speaker 1: has been taken out of context. I'd also sometimes rather
Speaker 1: have the people who are closest to me and the
Speaker 1: people who really know us know how we really are
Speaker 1: and not really focus on outside opinions or something we
Speaker 1: said being taken out of context. Yeah, that makes a
Speaker 1: lot of sense. Hey, do you want to tell me
Speaker 1: what you just told me before the podcast? Because then
Speaker 1: everyone can have the disclaimer because I was, I was,
Speaker 1: I was cracking up when you told me this, and
Speaker 1: I feel like everyone needs to know this. I basically
Speaker 1: Simmy is like the spokesperson of the twins. I guess
Speaker 1: that's yeah, so she does more of the talking between us.
Speaker 1: When did that decision get made? It just happened kind
Speaker 1: of naturally. I feel like even in school, like we
Speaker 1: would switch classes pretty often, especially because we had the
Speaker 1: same subject but we didn't have the same classes, so
Speaker 1: and I just remember always taking her like English and
Speaker 1: history tests and exams, and she would take my like
Speaker 1: math and science, the stuff like or in science for example,
Speaker 1: like the more like I would do biology and she
Speaker 1: would like do chemistry. So it's like there's you know,
Speaker 1: there's like a left brain right brain kind of delegation
Speaker 1: that we have between each other that comes really naturally,
Speaker 1: and you got away with it. Oh yeah, no one
Speaker 1: ever found out found out. We kind of started doing
Speaker 1: it because we just thought like why not we could?
Speaker 1: We couldn't we can do this, so why not try?
Speaker 1: And then it just we just kept getting away with it. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I kept going with it. Yeah, that's amazing. I love that. Well.
Speaker 1: One of the things that you know, both of you
Speaker 1: are Palestinian and we've spoken about that offline as well
Speaker 1: when we've been connecting. But I wanted to hear about
Speaker 1: you know, I want to hear about your story, your journey,
Speaker 1: your background, the growth, because, like you said, I don't
Speaker 1: think many people know, and when we don't know, we
Speaker 1: start putting people in boxes and we make decisions. What
Speaker 1: do you think some of the framing that you have,
Speaker 1: but what who are you? I want to know about
Speaker 1: that difference between how you think. Sometimes people may frame you,
Speaker 1: but then how you frame yourself. I would say, I'm
Speaker 1: just very curious and interested in learning, Like I'm really
Speaker 1: big on self improvement and self development. I always feel
Speaker 1: like I don't know anything. So with that mindset, I
Speaker 1: feel like I can, you know, every day learn something
Speaker 1: new because there's so much opportunity in every day to
Speaker 1: learn stuff from anyone and from any experience, any book
Speaker 1: that I pick up. I think investing in yourself is
Speaker 1: such a huge thing, and I think that we that's
Speaker 1: a value that we've been taught since we were kids.
Speaker 1: Like my mom is always like was always like, you know,
Speaker 1: learn an instrument, pick up a book, do this. Like
Speaker 1: we were like in so many clubs in um high
Speaker 1: school and middle school. We were like on every sports
Speaker 1: team and we still maintained a four point two GPA.
Speaker 1: So it's so crazy because we actually graduated with the
Speaker 1: exact same gpa, but what just added up to be
Speaker 1: the same. Yeah, very strange. Hey, how do you describe yourself?
Speaker 1: Pretty much the same as what Simmy said. People only
Speaker 1: get a small glimpse of us, so they don't really
Speaker 1: get the full picture, which isn't there. I mean, like
Speaker 1: we said, we'd barely do any interviews or anything, so
Speaker 1: that's what they see on the surface. But like, obviously
Speaker 1: there's way more. We're like involved in so many different projects,
Speaker 1: involved and so many different things, Like are very eager
Speaker 1: learners and four point two GPA is like ridiculously good, right,
Speaker 1: so you have to be super smart to get a four. Right,
Speaker 1: tell me a bit about your parents, because you said
Speaker 1: there and I love what you said, Like you know,
Speaker 1: just I think today we have lots of conversations about privilege,
Speaker 1: and often it's it's something that you know gets looked
Speaker 1: down upon. But obviously your parents worked really really hard,
Speaker 1: or your grandparents and your great grandparents, Like that's how
Speaker 1: my mom was born in Yemen and moved to London
Speaker 1: when she was sixteen, and they moved there with nothing
Speaker 1: and built a life and then gave me opportunities that
Speaker 1: they didn't have. Tell us a bit about your parents.
Speaker 1: Want to hear a bit about your mother and father.
Speaker 1: I know you post a lot you have family trips,
Speaker 1: Like I want to know about a bit more about
Speaker 1: their journey and maybe about their story that you'd be
Speaker 1: comfortable sharing with us, about how they got to where
Speaker 1: they got to. My mom she started her fashion she
Speaker 1: has she has a shop and I think it's I
Speaker 1: mean it started off as a shop in Saudi Arabia
Speaker 1: and she started off as a buyer and we started
Speaker 1: going to fashion week with her at the time to
Speaker 1: buy for her store, and then the shop expanded and
Speaker 1: it became, like, you know, it became much bigger than
Speaker 1: I think she anticipated because bringing a high end designers
Speaker 1: to the Middle East, to that region was really new,
Speaker 1: and Hayes and I were sort of, you know, trained
Speaker 1: in showrooms with designers to create new collections for the
Speaker 1: region based off of the collections that were already shown
Speaker 1: on the runway in Paris. We were really focused on proportions, shapes, textures,
Speaker 1: what is flattering to the body, what's just all those
Speaker 1: things that helped us develop an eye for like functionality
Speaker 1: and how old were you when you go to it?
Speaker 1: We were like, I think we first started going when
Speaker 1: we were fourteen. Yeah, and I think that really helped
Speaker 1: us even where we are today. It's like a study,
Speaker 1: like we've been studying this since we were fourteen, and
Speaker 1: we started doing our own buying appointments and you know,
Speaker 1: doing being in showrooms alone. We were like fifteen sixteen,
Speaker 1: and it was awesome that she trusted us, but I
Speaker 1: guess we did a good job, so she actually trusted
Speaker 1: you to like and to come up with ideas on
Speaker 1: how to make something more flattering to a body type
Speaker 1: that's not like a model body type. Yeah, and my
Speaker 1: parents are amazing. They've been together for thirty years, and
Speaker 1: you know, I think it's it's really amazing to see
Speaker 1: how in a relationship that is lasting, you have to
Speaker 1: keep choosing each other and keep healing and doing the work.
Speaker 1: And I've seen my parents change like since we were
Speaker 1: you know, from when we were kids to now, they're
Speaker 1: just such different people, and that's aspirational. I mean, I
Speaker 1: really hope that one day I can have that in
Speaker 1: a partner too. Yeah, that's amazing. I love hearing that,
Speaker 1: and it's it's amazing to see how you know, a
Speaker 1: lot of people don't want to go on and grow
Speaker 1: older and do what their parents do, but both of
Speaker 1: you became so passionate about something that your mother was
Speaker 1: passionate about. And I love what you said that we've
Speaker 1: been studying this for such a long time because I
Speaker 1: think when people think about fashion, and you know, I
Speaker 1: think anyone who ever sees you guys, whether it's online
Speaker 1: or when I've seen you at events or whatever, it
Speaker 1: may be, the way you guys dress and you're fashioned,
Speaker 1: everything is just like wow, that's so unique. Like, I've
Speaker 1: never seen that before, and I think that you know,
Speaker 1: I mean, rather you always feel that way when we
Speaker 1: see you, guys are like wow, like yeah that we
Speaker 1: literally going like what, Like it's so unpredictable, it's so unique.
Speaker 1: And so when you say you've studied something I think fashion,
Speaker 1: often people who don't necessarily can't appreciate it, maybe like, oh,
Speaker 1: but it's just clothes or it's just colors, and it's
Speaker 1: like but actually, when you see someone invent something new
Speaker 1: or someone who creates something that's very rare, you then
Speaker 1: start looking at it and saying, oh, there's a real
Speaker 1: art and a skill to that. Tell us about how
Speaker 1: that art and skill developed independently and collectively between you both.
Speaker 1: Because would you describe you both as having a similar
Speaker 1: sense of taste and style it would you say you
Speaker 1: actually have a very different How would you describe it?
Speaker 1: I feel very similar, very similar taste. I think it's
Speaker 1: inevitable with you know, just our experiences and developing the
Speaker 1: vocabulary that we have just in terms of like taste
Speaker 1: and how we see things. We've all talked about spirituality
Speaker 1: and conscienness before. Do you guys feel that with your
Speaker 1: connection like is there a conscious twin connection that you
Speaker 1: guys experience and feel and tell me about where you
Speaker 1: experience it the most independently and collectively. I feel like
Speaker 1: because we spend so much time to time together and
Speaker 1: because we work together and we have like mostly the
Speaker 1: same friends, we inevitably have like I know what she's thinking,
Speaker 1: she knows what I'm thinking. So in that sense, I
Speaker 1: would say we do have like collective consciousness. There's like
Speaker 1: trippy moments that happen being a twin, Like I feel
Speaker 1: like only twins will understand this, where like I'll walk
Speaker 1: into room and Haze will be there and for like
Speaker 1: a split second, I know this sounds crazy. The first second,
Speaker 1: I'll be like, wait, what am I doing there? And
Speaker 1: then I'll just come back into like real life. But
Speaker 1: it's like a really nuanced thing that happens in very
Speaker 1: small moments, and I think that's I don't know, I
Speaker 1: feel like it's a magic power. Yeah, I wish I
Speaker 1: could experience that. And I always tell Rad I'm like,
Speaker 1: I really want twins, Like that's that's what I want.
Speaker 1: We don't have twins on either side of the families.
Speaker 1: I don't know, like ladies because they always have each other. Yeah, yeah,
Speaker 1: And I think that's really special because you know, even
Speaker 1: in like our friendships and like in relationships and stuff like,
Speaker 1: we don't look for a companionship. That's not something that's
Speaker 1: like the crucial to us, Like we don't need to
Speaker 1: have just companionship. We look for other values and because
Speaker 1: obviously we have each other. So I think that we're
Speaker 1: really lucky that we have that experience because even moving
Speaker 1: schools and things like that, growing up, we never had
Speaker 1: I was never scary, like I always hear like my
Speaker 1: friends like moving schools, like it was always like a
Speaker 1: big thing for them, But for us, we were like
Speaker 1: excited because like we had each other. So that's so beautiful.
Speaker 1: How many schools did you guys go to when you
Speaker 1: were young, Like it sounds that you moved around a law. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I mean we lived. We were born in Saudi Arabia,
Speaker 1: so we went to a probably two schools there when
Speaker 1: we were little, and then we moved to London and
Speaker 1: we went to one school there it was an all
Speaker 1: girls school. And then in high school we were in
Speaker 1: Dubai and we went to two schools there. That's a few, yeah,
Speaker 1: and then we came to LA and loved to college here.
Speaker 1: So you did you did you always know this is
Speaker 1: what you wanted to be, this is what you wanted
Speaker 1: to do or has it been more of a natural
Speaker 1: organic evolution? Was there anything else? It definitely happened quite naturally.
Speaker 1: I feel like I always knew I was gonna end
Speaker 1: up in a creative field, Like even with music, we
Speaker 1: didn't know we were going to end up in music
Speaker 1: at all. We were actually studying film and then our
Speaker 1: friend group was so immersed in music that we just
Speaker 1: kind of stumbled into it and that's how we became DJs.
Speaker 1: So yeah, I feel like we're kind of lucky that
Speaker 1: it kind of happened quite naturally for us. I love that.
Speaker 1: And where where did music and fashion collide or where
Speaker 1: did those two worlds become so important to you? When
Speaker 1: did you both feel like this is something not only
Speaker 1: are we going to do this, but we're going to
Speaker 1: do this together? And that where was the beginning of
Speaker 1: that journey? Well? Fashion has just always been a part
Speaker 1: of our DNA with our mom and you know, just
Speaker 1: growing up in fashion and go in a fashion week
Speaker 1: since we were kids. I think that it was just
Speaker 1: already in place for us, and then music. Well, we
Speaker 1: studied fine art and film production in college. And then,
Speaker 1: as Hayes was saying, we were just we were in
Speaker 1: the studio a lot with our friends who were musicians,
Speaker 1: and we just sort of started DJing our friends parties
Speaker 1: just on the low, just because we love music and
Speaker 1: we love playing music, and we love doing transitions. We
Speaker 1: were really interested in transitions like from you know, song
Speaker 1: to song, and I think that there's like an artistry
Speaker 1: in that, and also, you know, reading the room. As
Speaker 1: a DJ, it's like you have to be really good
Speaker 1: at energy and like feeling people's energy, especially if it's
Speaker 1: a smaller event, because we did start doing smaller events
Speaker 1: in the beginning. We were just like asked to do
Speaker 1: a favor for a friend at like a party at Coachella,
Speaker 1: and then we were approached by a bunch of managers
Speaker 1: to started to yeah, to manage. Yeah. We were always
Speaker 1: kind of skeptical about being DJs. We had a lot
Speaker 1: of DJ friends that we respected so much that we weren't.
Speaker 1: We didn't want to be like, oh, we're just gonna come,
Speaker 1: and we kind of pushed it away. Yeah, we resisted
Speaker 1: it lot, but then we were like whatever. We just
Speaker 1: like playing music, Let's just do this and then we
Speaker 1: I mean, we just started doing so many events around
Speaker 1: the world and it took us, you know, djaying took
Speaker 1: us to places and helped us like meet a lot
Speaker 1: of interesting people. And I think that we never forced it,
Speaker 1: you know, it just sort of happened for us. And
Speaker 1: because we were doing something that we found was really
Speaker 1: fun and that we loved djaying, fashion, our music, everything,
Speaker 1: it just like informed each other and yeah, it's just
Speaker 1: Simmy and Hayes founded Simmy Hayes Beauty, which is super exciting.
Speaker 1: I saw the launch and that's when I like message
Speaker 1: you guys, and I was so excited for you because
Speaker 1: I think creating something with someone you love is such
Speaker 1: a special offering into the world and you getting everyone
Speaker 1: else to have an opportunity to be a part of
Speaker 1: that world. Tell us about why you created Simmy Hayes Beauty.
Speaker 1: What was the intention behind it, what was the essence
Speaker 1: of it, and what are you excited about sharing it
Speaker 1: with people. Sim's Beauty came out of our need to
Speaker 1: create something that didn't exist. So we didn't want to
Speaker 1: create a beauty line for the sake of slapping our
Speaker 1: names on a product and selling something that's been out already.
Speaker 1: It's been in the making for three years. Wow, that's
Speaker 1: a long time. Yeah, and it's you know, it's been
Speaker 1: such a long process. Like our first product is this
Speaker 1: product called Velvet Blur, and it's a matte lip bomb,
Speaker 1: which anyone in the beauty industry would be like, that's impossible.
Speaker 1: How can you make a mat lipstick that's also moisturizing
Speaker 1: because the formulations, it's like, really it's really challenging to
Speaker 1: create that sort of texture and still achieve that effect.
Speaker 1: But that's why it took so long, because we had
Speaker 1: we realize that that's what's missing in the market, something
Speaker 1: that you could just do with one swipe and it
Speaker 1: feels like a lip bomb. It's really comfortable, but it
Speaker 1: has the effect of a mate lipstick. Yeah, we all
Speaker 1: just wanted that for our personal use. Like we would
Speaker 1: go into like these beauty stores and pick out like
Speaker 1: the same shade and like all these different brands, and
Speaker 1: there was like one thing we liked in that one,
Speaker 1: and one thing we liked in that one, but like
Speaker 1: there was nothing, there was nothing that was like combined
Speaker 1: and that specific lipstick is like an amalgamation of the
Speaker 1: perfect things and all the beauty products, all the lipsticks
Speaker 1: that we tried. Yeah, and then there's like this amazing
Speaker 1: sun flush um formula that we also created that just
Speaker 1: gives you like a healthy flush. I think it's also
Speaker 1: the brand came out of you know, what we're saying
Speaker 1: is there was stuff that's missing from the market that
Speaker 1: we wanted to create that would make our lives easier.
Speaker 1: And that's what we want to do. We want to
Speaker 1: just facilitate an easier lifestyle for people. We don't want
Speaker 1: people to take ten hours doing their makeup. We want
Speaker 1: people to have reliable, well, very high quality, efficient products,
Speaker 1: and we're going to do the research to make sure
Speaker 1: you have that product in your hand and that it
Speaker 1: looks beautiful and that you're proud of it, and that
Speaker 1: you want to put it on your counter and you know,
Speaker 1: and have it be this like full sensory experience from
Speaker 1: like holding the packaging to put it, putting it on.
Speaker 1: And I think that the reviews have been so exciting
Speaker 1: to see because that's exactly what people are saying. Yeah, congratulations.
Speaker 1: By the way, I read them, and I was reading
Speaker 1: I was reading some of the articles where people are saying, like,
Speaker 1: just how easy it is and how accessible you've made makeup,
Speaker 1: And you know, I think that that's fascinating in an
Speaker 1: industry which, like you're saying, a lot of the time,
Speaker 1: you can spend hours in front of the mirror trying
Speaker 1: to look a certain way, and then you don't feel
Speaker 1: happy with yourself and it hasn't been made easy, Like,
Speaker 1: but you've created something that is accessible, that is easy,
Speaker 1: that's shareable, that people can Like you said, I love
Speaker 1: the year of what you described as a sensory experience
Speaker 1: from the moment they open it, the moment they put
Speaker 1: it on. Was there something about the process that surprised you,
Speaker 1: like in actually creating makeup, like going from actually wearing
Speaker 1: makeup and using other people makeup, but the process of
Speaker 1: creating it, it was there or anything that was interesting
Speaker 1: or challenging or unique about the process for someone who's
Speaker 1: like maybe someone's listening they're like, oh, I'd love to
Speaker 1: create makeup one day, or someone's sitting there going like, oh,
Speaker 1: I you know, I've never understood. Was there something that
Speaker 1: was hard or difficult about it? Like how many times? Yeah,
Speaker 1: that everything affects everything. So let's say there's like a
Speaker 1: powder and the more you compress the powder, the less
Speaker 1: pigmented it's going to be. But then you want pigment,
Speaker 1: so then you so if you put it in a
Speaker 1: packaging and then it all falls out, that's not going
Speaker 1: to work. So there's like it's a rubic ski like
Speaker 1: you can't you can't use the same packaging for like
Speaker 1: all the same formulas. Like there are some moments where
Speaker 1: we wanted to have a concealer in a but they
Speaker 1: were like, oh no, this formula only works in this
Speaker 1: sort of tube. And it's how you know, every all
Speaker 1: these elements work together to deliver like a certain effect,
Speaker 1: and you can't you know, do whatever you want. It's
Speaker 1: sort of like a trial and error. There's like a
Speaker 1: lot of challenges within creating a specific product. It's definitely
Speaker 1: a chemistry and I think that it's important to work
Speaker 1: with people who really love what they're doing and who
Speaker 1: really believe in your product because Hayes and I are
Speaker 1: always pushing for innovation and Simmy Hayes Beauty is here
Speaker 1: for to be that bridge to what beauty is going
Speaker 1: to be. And yeah, we definitely pushed the lab to
Speaker 1: create products that didn't exist before and that's you know,
Speaker 1: and having it become, having it be successful, having a
Speaker 1: product that is that actually works is you know, further
Speaker 1: impetus to create more um innovation. So are you doing
Speaker 1: all the testing and innovation out in Milan or is
Speaker 1: that one of the places or is that the place
Speaker 1: you're sourcing. No, that's where we do like all the testing.
Speaker 1: Why why did you choose Milan? Like apart from the
Speaker 1: obvious reasons, but was this something that drew you there
Speaker 1: when you said you wanted to create with people who
Speaker 1: actually love what they're doing? Is well, Milan has the
Speaker 1: well it's it's not really in Milan, it's sort of
Speaker 1: in the country. Yeah, there's like maybe four labs that
Speaker 1: are like the biggest labs in the world that create
Speaker 1: the best makeup in the world for like all different brands,
Speaker 1: for the highest end brands. And so we visited over
Speaker 1: the three years every single makeup lab that you can
Speaker 1: get in. We even like ended up in Malta. It's
Speaker 1: it's amazing. I rathery and I just launched our tea
Speaker 1: company Sama, which is able and hot tea company. I
Speaker 1: love that you mugs for the I know which is
Speaker 1: which is I didn't sell it, Yeah, which is perfect,
Speaker 1: Like I can't wait to open them, like we subconsciously knew. Yes,
Speaker 1: that's true. I'm not getting you. We just announced it
Speaker 1: like two days ago. That's people appreciate tea like I
Speaker 1: have a special bond and connection. Yeah, well when you
Speaker 1: love to give us real feedback when when we give
Speaker 1: them to you. But we we you know, we've just
Speaker 1: been through that whole process as well of like sourcing
Speaker 1: the tea leaves and the ingredients and obviously a lot
Speaker 1: of our ingredients India. So a lot of our like
Speaker 1: root herbs in each of the teas is from India,
Speaker 1: and we've used these adapted gens and specific herbs with
Speaker 1: distressing qualities and calming amazing, and Rather's obviously the expert
Speaker 1: all of that stuff. So we've been trying to find
Speaker 1: them and you know, we've just been through that process.
Speaker 1: So I know, even though it's not makeup, it's like
Speaker 1: there's a there's a similarity in the idea of again
Speaker 1: what you said, like finding people actually love what they do,
Speaker 1: Like we found people who we consider potion mind masters,
Speaker 1: were like this person like literally is like a food
Speaker 1: scientist and knows how and rather knows which flavors to blend,
Speaker 1: but then having someone who can help us blend them
Speaker 1: effectively has been such a fun process. Yeah who you trust?
Speaker 1: Yeah from across the world. Yeah, exactly, exactly right too. Yeah,
Speaker 1: we can't be there every time. My god, I'm so
Speaker 1: excited to try. I can't wait to share it with me. Yeah. Yeah,
Speaker 1: And I'm sure rather he's excited to try to make
Speaker 1: up too, So it's going to be a good and
Speaker 1: I'm sure you'll figure out something for me to try to.
Speaker 1: The lip bomb sounds great, Like a lip bomb sounds great.
Speaker 1: I definitely. Yeah. Both of you've talked today about like
Speaker 1: how you love learning and you're curious and you're always
Speaker 1: trying your best in whatever it weigh is to be
Speaker 1: to be open to stuff. I want to know what's
Speaker 1: something recently that you've both been trying to learn more
Speaker 1: about this year or in the last twelve months or
Speaker 1: even recently, Like what's been something that you think has
Speaker 1: been sparking your curiosity individually? Like, what's what's been that
Speaker 1: thing it's been like want to learn a bit more
Speaker 1: about that this? Yeah, I'm just gonna go I'm gonna
Speaker 1: answer this question from like the last book I read
Speaker 1: totally because I read a lot of books and they're
Speaker 1: all on different topics. Like I just reread The Four
Speaker 1: Agreements and then at the same time was reading On Palestine,
Speaker 1: the Noam Chomsky Ellen Pape book. This incredible physicist Carlos Rovelli,
Speaker 1: and he is amazing because he talks about physics from
Speaker 1: a very poetic perspective. And I'm really into allegories, especially
Speaker 1: in topics that are as complex as physics, and he
Speaker 1: makes it so easy to understand, because you know, physics
Speaker 1: is like from like the smallest atom, how things are created,
Speaker 1: and I'm really interested in creation. I think reading books
Speaker 1: on like different subjects help my mind kind of put
Speaker 1: things together. I always remember when Steve Jobs said creativity
Speaker 1: is just connecting things. In the beginning, I was like,
Speaker 1: I need to just focus on one book, you know,
Speaker 1: like I need to just do the one book. But
Speaker 1: I just like started embracing the fact that I'm yeah,
Speaker 1: we like jumping around. I just jump around a lot
Speaker 1: from book to book, and I think it informs informs
Speaker 1: my intellect and a more creative way. But yeah, On
Speaker 1: Palestine is like a really important book on the subject,
Speaker 1: and I also read this amazing book called The Way
Speaker 1: of the Spring by Ben Aharon Reich that is about
Speaker 1: the situation in Palestine, but mostly through anecdotes with people
Speaker 1: who live there, like Palestinians who live in the West Bank.
Speaker 1: I love both those books on the subject, so if
Speaker 1: you're looking to learn more. But I'm a big Noam
Speaker 1: Chomsky fan. Yeah, linguistics hero, and I think something that's
Speaker 1: really important that he brings up in that book is
Speaker 1: how the language used around Palestine and the situation in
Speaker 1: Palestine sort of has perpetuated the cycle of ineffective debate
Speaker 1: that you know, using terms like the peace process or
Speaker 1: negotiations or both sides. Words like that or expressions like that,
Speaker 1: they perpetuate the sloop of what Elin Pape calls a
Speaker 1: conceptual paralysis, and it's it's a really ineffective way of
Speaker 1: talking about the situation. You know, terms like decolonization, regime change, apartheid,
Speaker 1: ethnic lensing, those are the terms that are conducive to
Speaker 1: real change. And I think it's so exciting to see
Speaker 1: that finally the world is waking up and using that
Speaker 1: those terminologies to talk about the situation in Palestine. Yeah,
Speaker 1: that's such a great answer. I love that. I'm glad.
Speaker 1: I love getting book recommendations, and so you've you've given
Speaker 1: us a ton of great ones. There. Don Miguel Ruiz
Speaker 1: has actually come in the podcast into from oh my god,
Speaker 1: I need to be here. I figured that we'll figure
Speaker 1: that out. I'll let you guys know. But but also
Speaker 1: like when you know obviously, when why is learning about
Speaker 1: or your heritage been so important to you and also
Speaker 1: sharing about it too, And you know, I know that
Speaker 1: when we connected, both of you shared so wonderfully and
Speaker 1: also just you're both so what's the right word. I
Speaker 1: don't want I want to say this. You're both so
Speaker 1: curated and elegant with your words as well when you're
Speaker 1: writing about something like you're not you're not being cautious
Speaker 1: or you're not being careful, You're just being thoughtful. And
Speaker 1: so tell me about why it's been so interesting for
Speaker 1: both of you to learn about your heritage and to
Speaker 1: learn about what's happening and how is that in formed
Speaker 1: some of the work you've been dying. Being Middle Eastern
Speaker 1: is inextricable to how we are and how we see
Speaker 1: the world, and in so many you know, anybody who's
Speaker 1: come across Middle Eastern culture. You know, it's a hotbed
Speaker 1: of literature, architecture, mysticism. You know, there's a lot of
Speaker 1: incredible values, generosity, understanding, loyalty, like there's that those values
Speaker 1: are just paradigmatic of Arab culture wherever you find it
Speaker 1: in the world. And learning about our culture, and I
Speaker 1: think even talking on Palestine on our platform, I feel
Speaker 1: lucky because we are Palestinians, so in some ways we
Speaker 1: have carte blanche to talk about it, and people are
Speaker 1: not going to criticize us the way that they would
Speaker 1: criticize somebody who's not Palestinian. But I think we do
Speaker 1: have a responsibility to highlights people that, you know, the
Speaker 1: situation in Palestine isn't it isn't a new situation. It's
Speaker 1: a story of it's not a new story. Like it's
Speaker 1: a story of colonialism and dispossession and it's happened in
Speaker 1: history over and over and over again. You know, European
Speaker 1: settlers coming to a foreign land, expelling or committing genocide
Speaker 1: against the indigenous people. But when you talk about it
Speaker 1: in terms of Palestine, they make it seem just like
Speaker 1: like this crazy, multifaceted, complex issue and anything that any
Speaker 1: criticism against it is cassiated as anti semitic, and I
Speaker 1: think that's where a lot of the the tension comes in.
Speaker 1: It's like anything you say is going to be labeled
Speaker 1: anti Semitic. But that's what the mainstream media wants you
Speaker 1: to believe because they, you know, the whole function of
Speaker 1: the media is to control your focus. And you know,
Speaker 1: they don't you to be concerned over the lives of
Speaker 1: ordinary people. They want you to be you. They want
Speaker 1: you to focus on whether this person is anti Semitic,
Speaker 1: and that's like the crucial value of the media. And
Speaker 1: I think engaging in a a little bit of critical thinking
Speaker 1: takes you out of that cheap kind of like audience
Speaker 1: that are sort of passive participants in the media, which
Speaker 1: Walter Lippmann calls the bewildered Hurd. I love that term.
Speaker 1: But yeah, all it takes is a little bit of
Speaker 1: critical thinking and looking at the Jewish scholars like look
Speaker 1: like listen to listen. I always tell my Jewish friends,
Speaker 1: like I've had so many conversations with them about Palestine,
Speaker 1: and I always say, listen to your scholars. There's some
Speaker 1: of my favorites, you know, Noam Chomsky, Norman Finkelstein, Urie Davis,
Speaker 1: Gabor Mattei, Stephen Silda. There's so many amazing Jewish scholars
Speaker 1: who speak on the situation in Palestine. They will show
Speaker 1: you the indoctrination that a lot of people have been
Speaker 1: through growing up, you know, seeing Paltign in a certain way,
Speaker 1: seeing Palastinians in a certain way, and yeah, teaching them
Speaker 1: to relearn and engage in the critical thinking requires to
Speaker 1: see the world as it is. Thank you for sharing that.
Speaker 1: And you know, I just love what I really appreciate
Speaker 1: about both of you. And I see this obviously based
Speaker 1: on some of the conversations we've had, but also from
Speaker 1: following you guys, Like, there's just so much thought and
Speaker 1: research and reading and thinking happening behind the scenes that
Speaker 1: people may not be aware of. And I think if
Speaker 1: something that we can all learn is what you just
Speaker 1: rightly said, is the skill of critical thinking and the
Speaker 1: skill of questioning without being judgmental, without having to put
Speaker 1: things in a box, without division. And I think often
Speaker 1: we think those skills come together. We think, if you're
Speaker 1: a critical thinker, you have to be able to like
Speaker 1: divide and segregate, whereas actually, if you're a critical thinker,
Speaker 1: you can actually find places for everything to make sense.
Speaker 1: And so I appreciate what you've just shared with us
Speaker 1: from the perspective of, hey, guys, this is this is
Speaker 1: what we need to be thinking about. This is the
Speaker 1: kind of stuff we need to be questioning. Yeah does
Speaker 1: that Yeah? Yeah, And I think it does take a
Speaker 1: lot of international pressure to change the situation, and it's
Speaker 1: awesome to see that now. You know, there's like the
Speaker 1: BDS movement, it's really making a difference. There's like Israel
Speaker 1: Apartheid Week across campuses that started off in Canada and
Speaker 1: now it's like the biggest um sort of activist week, yeah,
Speaker 1: campaign on the situation. And then there's a lot of infographics,
Speaker 1: there's reading, there's like just so much information. And when
Speaker 1: my friends come up to me and they, you know,
Speaker 1: they asked me about it, especially when it was happening,
Speaker 1: when like a couple of months ago, it was really
Speaker 1: emotional for me to like even talk about because those
Speaker 1: kids that you see in the videos they look like
Speaker 1: my cousins. Like it's just it's heartbreaking. So you know,
Speaker 1: I was always encouraging my friends, like I'll talk to
Speaker 1: you about it, but like go online and do the research.
Speaker 1: It's right there, and I think it's it's hard to
Speaker 1: go and look at yourself and look at what you've
Speaker 1: learned and say, oh, maybe I wasn't, you know, taught
Speaker 1: what the truth is. And I've I've had direct experiences
Speaker 1: with this. Like I went to USC and studied film,
Speaker 1: but one of my elective classes was Middle Eastern studies,
Speaker 1: and I remember my professor was Canadian. She studied her
Speaker 1: She studied Middle Eastern studies her whole life, she was
Speaker 1: a PhD. There was like a quiz happening that day,
Speaker 1: and I remember, like we were talking about Israel Palestine,
Speaker 1: and one of the one of my classmates, was like
Speaker 1: razor hand. She was like, oh, well, what if I
Speaker 1: don't believe that this is what happened, will I get
Speaker 1: the question wrong? And my teacher was like, that's what happened,
Speaker 1: that's history, you know. Like that interaction was just so
Speaker 1: emblematic of the indoctrination that kids go through. Once you
Speaker 1: look at what's happening over there through colonial perspective, you
Speaker 1: can no longer hide behind the claim of complexity or
Speaker 1: anti semitism or anything else. It is just is what
Speaker 1: it is. And it's a humanitarian crisis, and we have
Speaker 1: a responsibility to affect change. It's really cool to be
Speaker 1: able to help in any way. And when people, you know,
Speaker 1: say like, oh, like influence, you're an influencer, you're this
Speaker 1: or that, it's like, I don't even get offended by
Speaker 1: that term, because you know, there's a deeper function within
Speaker 1: the term influencer, and that's that you have a voice
Speaker 1: and that people will listen to you, and I thank
Speaker 1: you for you and your platform in that way. It's
Speaker 1: you know, it's always it's so wonderful to be around
Speaker 1: purposeful individuals and have purposeful friends doing things that are
Speaker 1: meaningful to them and serving and helping, especially when it
Speaker 1: comes to children. I feel like children's one thing that
Speaker 1: I hope that no one in the world can disagree
Speaker 1: on that you know, requires nurturing, requires love, requires the basics.
Speaker 1: It's just basic necessity. Because actually, in that Ben Aaron
Speaker 1: Reich book The Way of the Spring, something that really
Speaker 1: like caught me off guard was this, like there was
Speaker 1: this character in the book that just kept getting charged
Speaker 1: for no reason and being put in jail for no reason.
Speaker 1: And he came out of jail and he was asked like, oh,
Speaker 1: so do you miss anything about your experience in prison,
Speaker 1: like as a joke, and he was like, actually, prison
Speaker 1: soul virtue was the water pressure, Like I could take
Speaker 1: a good shower. Yeah, And it's just crazy how something
Speaker 1: so basic as taking a shower is possible Yeah in
Speaker 1: the West Bank and Gaza. Yeah, yeah, because they only
Speaker 1: really have twenty percent access of the Mountain aquifer that's
Speaker 1: literally in Gaza. So yeah, basic necessities. I mean, how
Speaker 1: many people don't have? Yeah? Yeah, So anyone who's listening
Speaker 1: right now. Raquel, our dear friend who introduced us, she's
Speaker 1: sitting here and she was sharing in a really important
Speaker 1: reflection that I can't articulate quite as well as she
Speaker 1: did because it came from her heart. Yes, exactly, that's
Speaker 1: what I'm saying. But I'm going to repeat what Raquel
Speaker 1: was saying that And this is what I'm hoping that
Speaker 1: people are going to get from this episode. Like I
Speaker 1: think that's the point, Like I think what Raquel just
Speaker 1: said is what I'm genuinely hoping. Are people going to
Speaker 1: get what people are going to get from this conversation
Speaker 1: that they're going to see two people that we get
Speaker 1: a very limited view on all ideas upon. But then
Speaker 1: today we've got to realize just how broad your experiences are,
Speaker 1: your life experience in life story are from Raquel was saying,
Speaker 1: you know, born in Saudi Arabia, you've studied in London,
Speaker 1: in Dubai, in la You've had the experience of music,
Speaker 1: a fashion of neuroscience, Like who brings those three things together?
Speaker 1: And the reason why you're such tastemakers is because you're
Speaker 1: global citizens and you live with a global heart. And
Speaker 1: it's not just the external expression of how artistic you are,
Speaker 1: but even your heart has been impacted by all these
Speaker 1: other stories, philosophies and ideas that you've heard. And I'm
Speaker 1: hoping that that does some justice. Even that is not
Speaker 1: all of who you are, but I'm hoping that that
Speaker 1: there's some justice into people understanding who you are. I
Speaker 1: think having all these experiences and being so many places
Speaker 1: and meeting people of all different cultures, it's given us
Speaker 1: a heightened sense of empathy and compassion for being a
Speaker 1: human being, and a sense of understanding that somebody who
Speaker 1: grew up in one place wouldn't have. Yeah, and obviously
Speaker 1: that's what Raquel is saying, Like your experiences of being
Speaker 1: able to connect with so many different hearts and so
Speaker 1: many different minds, and you've lived across so many different
Speaker 1: places that you've you've got to experience a lot of
Speaker 1: different cultures. And that's what you were saying earlier that
Speaker 1: you were like, well, some people would call that privileged,
Speaker 1: but actually you've turned your privilege into purpose and into
Speaker 1: service and connecting with people. Like yes, like you said,
Speaker 1: you could be privileged that you've got to travel, But
Speaker 1: traveling hasn't made you more eager to travel. It's made
Speaker 1: you more eager to love and serve and try and
Speaker 1: help people. If that feels right, Yeah, it feels like
Speaker 1: well put, yeah, your your experiences have just they haven't
Speaker 1: made you more hungry to have more experiences and see
Speaker 1: more places. It's like, actually, it's helped us connect with
Speaker 1: each human that we meet and want them to feel
Speaker 1: a certain way. What have I not asked you? Or
Speaker 1: what have you not spoken about today? That's on your heart,
Speaker 1: that's in your mind, and you both like, Jay, I
Speaker 1: have to share this today. I have to tell your
Speaker 1: community or if there is an you may say, yeah,
Speaker 1: there's nothing you've asked us, But I want to make
Speaker 1: sure that because your friends and people I care about,
Speaker 1: I want to make sure you feel you've had a
Speaker 1: chance to share your heart. I don't know, I feel
Speaker 1: like we talked about so much good. I mean, if
Speaker 1: you feel happy and satisfied with everything we've talked about,
Speaker 1: that makes me feel good because I just, you know,
Speaker 1: I just wanted everyone, and I'm grateful you trusted me,
Speaker 1: but I wanted everyone to just see just how intelligent, thoughtful,
Speaker 1: masterful you both are in so many ways. And yeah,
Speaker 1: I mean, I'm honored to call you guys a friend
Speaker 1: honestly because it's likewise. I mean, we're We're so honored
Speaker 1: to be on this podcast. I'm so honored to hear
Speaker 1: that from both of you because I also think the
Speaker 1: same of you that you know, you're known for being
Speaker 1: incredible like masters in music and in fashion and in taste,
Speaker 1: but you're using that platform for purpose for reasons like that.
Speaker 1: To me is it's the same trade, you know, like
Speaker 1: I'm trying to take. So I'm trying to take what
Speaker 1: I've learned and from my teachers, and I'm trying to
Speaker 1: share it globally, and you're doing something that's globally recognized.
Speaker 1: But you're trying to elevate that, and I think that's
Speaker 1: what is so beautiful to see, but also how thoughtful
Speaker 1: and deep your research is in reading. I think you know,
Speaker 1: I think people often think that whatever word you use
Speaker 1: in Raquel, and I felt the same way, whether you
Speaker 1: use the word influence or whatever whatever that word is, like,
Speaker 1: you often just think that people don't they're not reading,
Speaker 1: they're not thinking, they're not learning, And it's like, but
Speaker 1: both of you are. I know the events we all
Speaker 1: go to together, we're always learning from other people, and
Speaker 1: you know, I think there's there's so much there. So
Speaker 1: I thank you both from the bottom of my heart
Speaker 1: for trusting me for being in my life. I thank
Speaker 1: Raquel for bringing us together and surprising us all today
Speaker 1: and also also creating that added piece of depth that
Speaker 1: we all get to uncover. But I hope we get
Speaker 1: to have there we go. I hope you get I
Speaker 1: hope you all get to have many more of these conversations.
Speaker 1: I hope you will come back on the part cast
Speaker 1: in the future. I hope that Simmy Hayes Beauty as
Speaker 1: the most incredible and successful first twelve months and beyond.
Speaker 1: Thank you, and I hope that you keep serving and
Speaker 1: making a difference to everything you do. You both lights
Speaker 1: in this world and you're making such an impact through
Speaker 1: everything you touch. And I'm fully behind the fundraises. However
Speaker 1: I can get involved, please let me know. I'd love
Speaker 1: to be a part of it as well. So thank
Speaker 1: you so so much for having us. Yeah, thank you guys,
Speaker 1: and thank you everyone who's listening. Yes, thank you to
Speaker 1: everyone has been listening down the podcast. They have they
Speaker 1: made it, Simmy and please love you. We do. Yeah,
Speaker 1: tell you, tell them, you tell them that you love them.
Speaker 1: That would be in a lot more, but no, I
Speaker 1: want to thank you everyone who's been listening and watching.
Speaker 1: I know you made it this far because you're an
Speaker 1: amazing community. Please anything that Simmy and a shared that
Speaker 1: stood out to you, that resonated with you, I'd love
Speaker 1: you to tag them on Instagram and post it. I
Speaker 1: want them to feel the love from this episode. So
Speaker 1: if you love me, if you love on purpose, and
Speaker 1: you loved anything they said today, please share that tagged them.
Speaker 1: I want them to see what resonated with you. Because
Speaker 1: they've been so kind to us today and opening up
Speaker 1: and sharing their story and sharing their journey. I want
Speaker 1: them to know what an impact I had on your life.
Speaker 1: So thank you everyone for listening and watching, and we'll
Speaker 1: be back soon