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I just feel like you should always

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tell your truth.

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I just feel

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you should always speak up

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and say what you mean, how you,

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how you feel.

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And so

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most people are so non-confrontational,

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and I don't think

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you have to be confrontational

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to tell your truth.

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Welcome to disruption now

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I'm your host,

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and moderator, Rob Richardson, as always,

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it's an honor to be here with you.

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I'm here with a Isoul

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Harris, who is the editor

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in chief and founder of Edition Magazine.

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We have a lot to talk about with him.

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But before that,

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if you're watching us here

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on YouTube, please,

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hit that like button, please

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hit that subscribe button, we want to

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make sure more people can know about Isoul

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all and all the great disruptors

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we've had on the show.

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If you're listening to us on

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Apple iTunes, please like us, please

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hit a review.

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That's how more people can learn about

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what we're doing to help

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change the world change constructs

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and make sure we can get all of these

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inspiring stories out there.

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So we appreciate you as always.

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Also want to make sure

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we give a shout out

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to many of our our sponsors,

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Martin Logistics, P&G Ventures,

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as well as fifth third Bank

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and many others.

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We're thankful for your support.

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Definitely support these vendors.

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They've been supportive of us.

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So but for now, Isoul Harris.

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How are you doing, brother?

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I'm good. I'm good.

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How are you?

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I'm doing well.

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You know, I can't complain. It's

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wrapping up the end of the year,

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been a very good year.

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And,

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you know,

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looking forward to 2022 and hope,

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hopefully we're not still talking

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about the coronavirus.

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So no, exactly, exactly.

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But you're right,

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2021 has been a great year.

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It has.

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Yeah, it has.

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So you launched a Edition magazine,

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lots of other things.

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And I want to get to all of that.

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And all the great work

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that you're doing to support

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black creatives means a lot to us here.

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We do a lot to support black creatives

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and anybody doing that.

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I'm very happy about so.

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Well, let's talk

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about how you even got

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into this business, into this,

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into a Edition magazine.

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So how did you end up like envisioning,

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in Edition magazine

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in terms of like what, what,

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what was the thought process?

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What was the vision

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that you

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that that you thought about

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and how was that coming so far as you,

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as you got,

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as you just had your launch this year?

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Okay.

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So Edition

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I'm going to backtrack just a little

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Editions I'm not actually the founder. So OK.

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So the publishers of modern luxury,

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which is the largest publishing.

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You're the editor in chief.

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I'm the Editor in chief exactly

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Yeah. So I didn't.

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I was.

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I upgraded you my bad. I know.

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I know, I know.

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I just I just put it out there.

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The future you're going to be

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founder of some other things

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in the future, but go ahead.

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Absolutely. I believe in manifestation.

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So that's why there you go.

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That's fine.

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So, yeah,

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so they the publishers of modern luxury,

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the they have their largest chain of

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luxury magazines in the country,

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and they had an idea to basically

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basically connect black people

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or people of color, rather

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to the luxury space

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and historically

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and traditionally black people

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and people of color

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have been disconnected from that space,

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and they have been

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basically disillusioned

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and not from that.

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So they came to me, I was

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I had just come back left Atlanta

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was there for COVID

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stayed and helped my parents

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everything and came back to New York

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because I'm

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working on some other projects

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and they just called me out of the blue

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and they told me that they had this idea

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to do a magazine that blends

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luxury with,

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you know, with black culture.

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And I was like, Whoa,

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that's basically my career,

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in a nutshell.

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So I think everything that I've done

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so far has brought me to this point.

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And it's not a coincidence.

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I think that

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also working with

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Roc Nation,

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who are partners in this venture.

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Jana Flieshman

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I've known Jana for, I guess, 20 years.

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You know,

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we've worked together over the years.

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So just in working with people

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who I've known for so long

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who have been supportive of my career,

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you know, it's been really great.

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But I would like to know part

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of your journey with you know

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So you've been in fashion for a while,

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I guess in.

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Talk to me about a time

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when, you know, things

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didn't go according to plan.

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It might have been a setback,

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and you now see that as

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an opportunity

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that actually made you better.

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Can you think about the time that

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sticks out of your mind?

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Well, I think

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anything ever goes as planned.

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No, a dull life is definitely not linear.

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Nothing goes according to plan.

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But let's say

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something like a major setback,

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something that really didn't

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go according to plan.

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And you're like, OK,

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this is not

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how I envisioned it to happen.

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Well,

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I think my whole career is really that I

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I went to grad school,

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I went to the Morehouse

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then I went to grad school. 

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You are Morehouse. OK?

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And so after grad school,

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I decided that I wanted to teach.

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I've always wanted to teach.

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It wasn't like some kind of

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fallback career.

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I actually did want to have

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a teaching experience.

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And so I did that for two years.

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And while I was teaching,

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I quickly realized

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that this is not something

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I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

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And so when my kids were sitting there

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like working,

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I would

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look out the window of my patio,

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that was attached to the classroom,

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and I could see

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the whole world out there like,

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what am I doing?

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What am I going to do beyond this?

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And so I would complain to my parents

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all the time. You know.

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And one of my birthdays my 24th birthday came around

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and I was complaining to my father

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and my father said, he's basically

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like Isoul just stop it.

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What in the hell do you want to do?

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And I said, I want to write.

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And he was like, Well, just write.

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And I said, well it's not that easy Dad.

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He said, It is.

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It is that easy. Go do it. And so

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Right exactly

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Like our parents to tell you

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they don't allow you to get it, get it.

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Make that excuse. Like, No, it is.

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Exactly

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According to my dad I can just go

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by a magazine to say,

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Hey, give me the editors job

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But so I was in Atlanta at the time

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and I was literally

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walking down the street

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and I saw this newspaper.

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It's like one of those free weeklies,

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you know?

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And I picked it up

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and I looked at the message

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and I found the editor's name

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and I called her

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I just called her out of the blue

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and I just told her

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who I was, who was nobody, really.

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And so

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and so I told her what I wanted to do.

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And she she said, Come down, talk to me.

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So I went and talked to her.

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And from that day

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on, I became her assistant

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So I would teach from like seven to three

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and then I would work.

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It was

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the paper was Rolling Out

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that was the up,

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and I was working for Rolling Out from like four

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to like two in the morning,

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and I did that for two years straight.

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And so after that,

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I had they gave me

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the managing

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the managing editors position and I actually replaced her after two years

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Wow. So that's yeah.

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So that's how I got into it.

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That's how I got into, you know, into it.

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I started as an entertainment journalist.

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Yeah, I mean, are so many lessons

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in what you just said, right?

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I mean,

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you know,

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your father just told you to go out

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and do it.

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You saw an opportunity

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and an opportunity

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wasn't like the most glorious thing.

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Being an assistant is hard, hard work.

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But you put everything into that,

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and I tell people this all the time,

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especially early on in their

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in their career,

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that you value learning over money

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because if you learn

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and you put everything into it,

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the money will follow.

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Especially if you're passionate

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about it, right?

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Absolutely. Like, I have to be here.

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I have to be editor in chief right away

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because I have the talent

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It's not how it works that way, right?

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I mean.

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That's that's such a great point.

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And I have this conversation with people

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all the time about don't

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be married to titles

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like so many people are married

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to titles all the time.

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And I understand why because, you know,

289
00:07:28,320 --> 00:07:29,320
especially people of color,

290
00:07:29,320 --> 00:07:31,480
you do want to have respect.

291
00:07:31,480 --> 00:07:33,760
You do want to have that attached to it.

292
00:07:33,800 --> 00:07:35,560
You want your experience

293
00:07:35,560 --> 00:07:36,080
and your title

294
00:07:36,080 --> 00:07:37,080
to speak to your experience.

295
00:07:37,080 --> 00:07:38,440
And I get that right.

296
00:07:38,440 --> 00:07:41,240
But I would not be sitting here right now

297
00:07:41,240 --> 00:07:43,400
if I was married, or attached to titles.

298
00:07:43,520 --> 00:07:45,360
Now I've taken the job

299
00:07:45,360 --> 00:07:46,360
that got me back to New York.

300
00:07:46,360 --> 00:07:48,040
that got me to become the editor

301
00:07:48,040 --> 00:07:49,680
in chief of Uptown.

302
00:07:49,680 --> 00:07:52,400
It was actually a demotion in a sense to,

303
00:07:52,760 --> 00:07:54,280
I guess, in a traditional sense

304
00:07:54,280 --> 00:07:56,040
because I was a managing editor

305
00:07:56,040 --> 00:07:58,560
at a magazine called 944.

306
00:07:58,560 --> 00:07:59,840
But when the opportunity

307
00:07:59,840 --> 00:08:00,680
came up for uptown,

308
00:08:00,680 --> 00:08:02,480
it was for a senior editor.

309
00:08:02,480 --> 00:08:03,560
I had already been senior editor

310
00:08:03,560 --> 00:08:05,400
maybe two or three years before that,

311
00:08:05,400 --> 00:08:07,520
but I saw beyond that.

312
00:08:07,520 --> 00:08:09,120
I saw this as a chance to get me

313
00:08:09,120 --> 00:08:11,400
to the media capital of the world again.

314
00:08:11,400 --> 00:08:13,120
And then I knew I could go on from there.

315
00:08:13,120 --> 00:08:13,920
So I took it.

316
00:08:13,920 --> 00:08:14,480
You know,

317
00:08:14,480 --> 00:08:14,960
and people are like,

318
00:08:14,960 --> 00:08:15,760
Why are you doing that?

319
00:08:15,760 --> 00:08:18,320
I said, Because I have a plan, you know,

320
00:08:18,320 --> 00:08:18,960
and it worked

321
00:08:18,960 --> 00:08:19,400
you know,

322
00:08:19,400 --> 00:08:21,480
within a year and a half, I was Editor and Chief of Uptown.

323
00:08:21,920 --> 00:08:22,480
So.

324
00:08:22,680 --> 00:08:24,240
Yeah, I mean, people get into these paths

325
00:08:24,240 --> 00:08:25,840
like they get caught up in titles

326
00:08:25,840 --> 00:08:26,360
and Isoul

327
00:08:26,360 --> 00:08:27,760
I think the other problem is people

328
00:08:27,760 --> 00:08:28,640
also get into what I call

329
00:08:28,640 --> 00:08:29,520
the golden handcuffs.

330
00:08:29,520 --> 00:08:30,280
You have a

331
00:08:30,280 --> 00:08:31,760
you have a job that you don't like,

332
00:08:31,760 --> 00:08:34,040
but it pays well and you stay there

333
00:08:34,400 --> 00:08:35,320
and you think, like, Well,

334
00:08:35,320 --> 00:08:36,760
I need to have a job

335
00:08:36,760 --> 00:08:38,360
that pays just as good as this

336
00:08:38,360 --> 00:08:40,240
before I move on and look,

337
00:08:40,240 --> 00:08:42,120
bills are there realities are there,

338
00:08:42,120 --> 00:08:43,800
but also I mean your life is there.

339
00:08:43,800 --> 00:08:45,120
If you stay tied to something

340
00:08:45,120 --> 00:08:46,840
that have these golden handcuffs,

341
00:08:46,840 --> 00:08:48,400
you will have a whole lot of regrets

342
00:08:48,400 --> 00:08:50,160
10 15 years from now

343
00:08:50,160 --> 00:08:50,760
that you weren't able

344
00:08:50,760 --> 00:08:52,360
to fulfill your purpose.

345
00:08:52,360 --> 00:08:53,560
At least that's how I feel.

346
00:08:53,560 --> 00:08:54,440
Absolutely, absolutely.

347
00:08:54,440 --> 00:08:55,400
And I see it all the time

348
00:08:55,400 --> 00:08:57,200
and I have conversations with friends.

349
00:08:57,200 --> 00:08:58,280
You know, some of my friends.

350
00:08:58,280 --> 00:08:58,880
from back in the day,

351
00:08:58,880 --> 00:08:59,920
they no longer my friends,

352
00:08:59,920 --> 00:09:02,040
but they questioned my decisions,

353
00:09:02,080 --> 00:09:04,400
you know they're like, why are you leaving?

354
00:09:04,400 --> 00:09:05,920
Like a secure a job in teaching,

355
00:09:05,920 --> 00:09:07,080
you know, you have your summers off

356
00:09:07,080 --> 00:09:08,920
as if that's like, that's like this.

357
00:09:08,920 --> 00:09:10,040
That's like, yeah.

358
00:09:10,040 --> 00:09:11,720
yeah you got your summers off.  I'm like.

359
00:09:11,720 --> 00:09:12,840
But now I think about it,

360
00:09:12,840 --> 00:09:14,080
had I listened to them.

361
00:09:14,080 --> 00:09:14,800
I would not have.

362
00:09:14,800 --> 00:09:16,480
Any of the experiences I've had,

363
00:09:16,480 --> 00:09:17,120
like I literally

364
00:09:17,120 --> 00:09:18,480
have traveled the world.

365
00:09:18,480 --> 00:09:20,240
They're speaking out of their own fears

366
00:09:20,240 --> 00:09:21,200
and insecurities,

367
00:09:21,200 --> 00:09:22,360
whether they realize it or not,

368
00:09:22,360 --> 00:09:23,800
and these can be well-meaning friends

369
00:09:23,800 --> 00:09:24,480
and they could also

370
00:09:24,480 --> 00:09:25,800
be parents or loved ones,

371
00:09:25,800 --> 00:09:28,680
they're speaking out of their fear

372
00:09:28,680 --> 00:09:30,200
to take that leap.

373
00:09:30,200 --> 00:09:30,800
And they're,

374
00:09:30,800 --> 00:09:32,160
I mean, secretly kind of like,

375
00:09:32,160 --> 00:09:34,600
have a little bit of misunderstanding.

376
00:09:34,600 --> 00:09:36,080
Sometimes there's jealousy,

377
00:09:36,080 --> 00:09:36,920
there's levels to that.

378
00:09:36,920 --> 00:09:38,360
I'm not saying people are going out

379
00:09:38,360 --> 00:09:38,960
hating on you,

380
00:09:38,960 --> 00:09:40,480
but I'm saying, like, there's like,

381
00:09:40,480 --> 00:09:40,880
I wish

382
00:09:40,880 --> 00:09:42,800
I could be that person to take that leap.

383
00:09:42,800 --> 00:09:44,480
And if someone's taking that leap,

384
00:09:44,480 --> 00:09:46,040
they must not be thinking it through.

385
00:09:46,040 --> 00:09:47,080
Or at least they say that in their mind

386
00:09:47,080 --> 00:09:49,240
to justify why they haven't taken

387
00:09:49,640 --> 00:09:50,760
why they haven't taken that leap,

388
00:09:50,760 --> 00:09:52,000
why they haven't

389
00:09:52,000 --> 00:09:53,320
lived to their full purpose.

390
00:09:53,320 --> 00:09:54,680
And look, I tell people like,

391
00:09:54,680 --> 00:09:55,560
you can make every excuse

392
00:09:55,560 --> 00:09:56,800
you want to in the world,

393
00:09:56,800 --> 00:09:59,200
but you do not have to stay in the job.

394
00:09:59,200 --> 00:10:01,240
The world is really, really abundant.

395
00:10:01,240 --> 00:10:02,320
The world is more abundant

396
00:10:02,320 --> 00:10:03,200
than it's ever been.

397
00:10:03,200 --> 00:10:04,120
It's just your mindset

398
00:10:04,120 --> 00:10:05,440
and how you approach things.

399
00:10:05,440 --> 00:10:06,880
So, so my really

400
00:10:06,880 --> 00:10:07,480
good friend of mine, Nikia Hicks

401
00:10:09,200 --> 00:10:11,000
We always say to each other

402
00:10:11,000 --> 00:10:12,440
whenever we start to talk about

403
00:10:12,440 --> 00:10:13,280
what we don't have or

404
00:10:13,280 --> 00:10:14,080
what doesn't exist

405
00:10:14,080 --> 00:10:14,920
and we stop ourselves

406
00:10:14,920 --> 00:10:16,320
because we don't live in lack

407
00:10:16,320 --> 00:10:16,880
But you just

408
00:10:16,880 --> 00:10:19,160
you cannot live in any kind of deficiency

409
00:10:19,160 --> 00:10:20,680
like, we are not deficient in

410
00:10:20,680 --> 00:10:22,560
anything like if you're rushing.

411
00:10:22,560 --> 00:10:23,800
Stop, breathe.

412
00:10:23,800 --> 00:10:24,560
You have enough time

413
00:10:24,560 --> 00:10:25,400
to do what you're doing

414
00:10:25,400 --> 00:10:26,560
and to get where you're going.

415
00:10:26,560 --> 00:10:28,240
You know, stop breathe.

416
00:10:28,240 --> 00:10:28,440
You know,

417
00:10:28,440 --> 00:10:29,240
 you have enough time

418
00:10:29,240 --> 00:10:30,880
to make your deadlines you know

419
00:10:30,880 --> 00:10:32,840
But when we start acting so frantic

420
00:10:32,840 --> 00:10:34,640
and so frenetic.

421
00:10:34,640 --> 00:10:36,200
That's when everything just crumbles.

422
00:10:36,200 --> 00:10:38,440
You know and other things just fall apart.

423
00:10:38,960 --> 00:10:39,440
So you're.

424
00:10:39,440 --> 00:10:40,520
Absolutely right. I completely agree.

425
00:10:40,520 --> 00:10:41,360
That's good advice for me

426
00:10:41,360 --> 00:10:42,680
because we all get overwhelmed sometimes.

427
00:10:42,680 --> 00:10:43,360
too I feel that way

428
00:10:43,360 --> 00:10:43,640
like you're

429
00:10:43,640 --> 00:10:45,200
not going to be able to hit it?

430
00:10:45,200 --> 00:10:46,160
You got to just sit back,

431
00:10:46,160 --> 00:10:47,920
breathe when you get to that point

432
00:10:47,920 --> 00:10:49,120
and have yourself enough time

433
00:10:49,120 --> 00:10:51,200
to be able to see the whole.

434
00:10:51,200 --> 00:10:52,960
The vision and then step back.

435
00:10:52,960 --> 00:10:54,520
Right? Exactly, exactly.

436
00:10:54,520 --> 00:10:54,800
All right.

437
00:10:54,800 --> 00:10:55,240
So let's talk a little

438
00:10:55,240 --> 00:10:56,600
bit about Edition. So you

439
00:10:57,600 --> 00:10:59,120
you're the editor in chief.

440
00:10:59,120 --> 00:10:59,520
Mm-Hmm.

441
00:10:59,800 --> 00:11:00,720
What do you see

442
00:11:00,720 --> 00:11:02,920
as the vision for Edition

443
00:11:02,920 --> 00:11:04,640
right now in the next five years?

444
00:11:04,640 --> 00:11:05,080
Like, what is it

445
00:11:05,080 --> 00:11:07,640
that you want Edition to be known for?

446
00:11:07,640 --> 00:11:09,080
So I was talking about this

447
00:11:09,080 --> 00:11:10,120
with our vice

448
00:11:10,120 --> 00:11:11,920
president of marketing, Eric.

449
00:11:11,920 --> 00:11:13,880
Who's a really brilliant guy.

450
00:11:13,880 --> 00:11:15,920
So we share the same vision

451
00:11:15,920 --> 00:11:18,400
about Edition. Originally

452
00:11:18,560 --> 00:11:20,680
So I have a envisioned Edition

453
00:11:20,680 --> 00:11:23,160
as a place where

454
00:11:23,160 --> 00:11:25,520
a platform where black people of color

455
00:11:26,160 --> 00:11:27,440
can come together

456
00:11:27,440 --> 00:11:30,360
and really have the support.

457
00:11:30,360 --> 00:11:33,560
And the resources to create

458
00:11:33,720 --> 00:11:35,840
and to be on the same playing field

459
00:11:35,880 --> 00:11:38,240
as their mainstream counterparts

460
00:11:39,200 --> 00:11:39,960
have over time.

461
00:11:39,960 --> 00:11:42,640
You know, I feel like we've had

462
00:11:43,600 --> 00:11:45,920
we've had great black publications, you know,

463
00:11:46,440 --> 00:11:50,240
Ebony, Jet, Essence, Black Enterprise,

464
00:11:51,360 --> 00:11:52,080
all these

465
00:11:52,320 --> 00:11:52,800
great publications

466
00:11:52,800 --> 00:11:54,760
but we all know that they have

467
00:11:54,760 --> 00:11:56,240
a certain set of problems

468
00:11:56,240 --> 00:11:57,360
that other mainstream

469
00:11:57,360 --> 00:11:59,200
publications do not have.

470
00:11:59,200 --> 00:12:00,560
And I feel like

471
00:12:00,560 --> 00:12:01,760
that is something

472
00:12:01,760 --> 00:12:03,320
that we need to address.

473
00:12:03,320 --> 00:12:05,480
And so what do you think that it is?

474
00:12:06,200 --> 00:12:07,920
But you can get to that too finish your point,

475
00:12:07,920 --> 00:12:08,800
but I want to know what you think.

476
00:12:08,800 --> 00:12:09,640
Those problems are.

477
00:12:10,800 --> 00:12:11,520
What it means to me.

478
00:12:11,520 --> 00:12:12,800
Well, the main problem is, you know,

479
00:12:12,800 --> 00:12:14,560
everything comes down to money, right?

480
00:12:14,560 --> 00:12:16,680
And so it's advertising

481
00:12:16,680 --> 00:12:19,640
and it's advertising and.

482
00:12:19,640 --> 00:12:20,760
Corporate America,

483
00:12:20,760 --> 00:12:23,120
looking at certain magazines

484
00:12:23,120 --> 00:12:25,080
as not being luxury

485
00:12:25,160 --> 00:12:25,800
or black people

486
00:12:25,800 --> 00:12:27,240
not understanding luxury

487
00:12:27,240 --> 00:12:30,080
or our understanding of luxury

488
00:12:30,120 --> 00:12:30,680
being different

489
00:12:30,680 --> 00:12:33,000
than our white counterparts understanding of luxury.

490
00:12:33,440 --> 00:12:34,680
I've experienced this firsthand.

491
00:12:34,680 --> 00:12:36,840
I've worked throughout my entire career.

492
00:12:36,880 --> 00:12:38,480
I've worked at black publications

493
00:12:38,480 --> 00:12:40,080
I've worked at niche publications,

494
00:12:40,080 --> 00:12:42,120
I've worked at mainstream publications,

495
00:12:42,120 --> 00:12:43,960
I worked at one of the top architecture

496
00:12:43,960 --> 00:12:45,360
magazines in the world.

497
00:12:45,360 --> 00:12:47,840
And during my time there, I realized that

498
00:12:48,040 --> 00:12:48,920
I would talk

499
00:12:48,920 --> 00:12:51,120
to people in the sales department

500
00:12:51,120 --> 00:12:52,760
and they would ask, or

501
00:12:52,760 --> 00:12:54,840
let's find someone to do like this spread.

502
00:12:55,440 --> 00:12:57,320
So I would find someone.

503
00:12:57,320 --> 00:12:59,120
And then they would say, well,

504
00:12:59,120 --> 00:13:00,320
they're not really our esthetic.

505
00:13:04,320 --> 00:13:05,680
And what would that esthetic be?

506
00:13:05,680 --> 00:13:07,320
So it's things like that.

507
00:13:07,320 --> 00:13:08,920
It's like that coded language

508
00:13:08,920 --> 00:13:10,240
that's created

509
00:13:10,240 --> 00:13:11,760
to keep certain people

510
00:13:11,760 --> 00:13:13,840
outside of this world.

511
00:13:14,360 --> 00:13:17,120
And I feel like Edition is that.

512
00:13:17,440 --> 00:13:18,320
They're getting to define

513
00:13:18,320 --> 00:13:19,240
what luxury is,

514
00:13:19,240 --> 00:13:21,200
and that luxury is a very

515
00:13:21,200 --> 00:13:23,040
narrow point of view.

516
00:13:23,040 --> 00:13:24,480
Exactly, exactly. Exactly.

517
00:13:24,480 --> 00:13:25,600
So I feel like

518
00:13:25,600 --> 00:13:27,320
we want to give people the codes

519
00:13:27,320 --> 00:13:29,920
we want to give people the tools to decipher

520
00:13:30,280 --> 00:13:30,920
all these things

521
00:13:30,920 --> 00:13:33,120
that have been working against you

522
00:13:33,120 --> 00:13:34,200
as a creator.

523
00:13:34,200 --> 00:13:35,320
All this time, you know,

524
00:13:35,320 --> 00:13:38,040
So I feel like Edition is really that

525
00:13:38,040 --> 00:13:39,080
So how will you?

526
00:13:39,080 --> 00:13:41,440
Because I think one of the issues with

527
00:13:41,960 --> 00:13:43,920
some of our traditional publications,

528
00:13:43,920 --> 00:13:44,440
they've done a lot of

529
00:13:44,440 --> 00:13:45,400
great work, obviously.

530
00:13:45,400 --> 00:13:47,480
But I also believe that

531
00:13:47,480 --> 00:13:49,080
they don't innovate fast enough

532
00:13:49,080 --> 00:13:50,600
or fail to really innovate.

533
00:13:50,600 --> 00:13:51,920
I think as part of the issue, right,

534
00:13:51,920 --> 00:13:52,760
they want to.

535
00:13:52,920 --> 00:13:53,560
I mean, I've seen this

536
00:13:53,560 --> 00:13:54,800
a lot of our legacy

537
00:13:54,800 --> 00:13:57,200
civil rights institutions, the NAACP,

538
00:13:58,080 --> 00:13:58,520
you know,