Destination Different

I am going to say something and I'm only going to say it once...

Rose Kelso is pure, unfiltered chaos. And I can't get enough.

Rose (or Long Island Dirt as she is known in internet circles) is a writer, performer, producer, photographer, director, song-writer, TikTokker... the list goes on and on and on.

Professionally speaking, she is a writer and director at Comedy Central. Not bad for a young 20-something. She has worked for SNL, The Jim Gaffigan Show, BuzzFeed, and landed her promotion to a writer at Comedy Central by taking a chance and pitching some sketches.

Outside of the "real" world, she has amassed a following of 200K+ on TikTok with what can only be described as pure, unhinged brilliance.

Rose was an absolute joy to interview. We talked creating opportunities for herself, learning how to do every single job on a video set, and asking her mother to film her fake masturbating in a Chase Bank parking lot for a sketch...

You can follow Rose over on TikTok @longislanddirt_ or check out her portfolio of work at rosekelso.com.

Go write me a letter for the Podca$h Contest! It takes 2 seconds and I really think we can win.

SUBMIT YOU LOVE LETTER HERE

Website - destinationdifferent.co 

Instagram - @destinationdifferent 

TikTok - @destinationdifferent

There are certain people you meet who just have a way of making you smile.

Jef Caine is one of those people.

Everything from his art, to his style, to his voice, to his overall outlook on life. It's hard not to love him.

Jef has been doodling in sketchbooks for nearly his entire life, and now he makes a living as a graphic designer, illustrator, and animator for brands, creators, and nonprofits. PS... He taught himself to animate during the pandemic by the way (casual).

When you look through his portfolio there is a certain childlike creativity that, again, just makes you smile. He's designed everything from a mustached pineapple smoking a cigarette to a giant walking nose, and doesn't show any sign of slowing down.

In the process, Jef has racked up 1.5B (that's Billion with a B) views of his GIFs on Giphy and has a TikTok following that continues to grow by the minute. We talked about a little bit of everything in this episode from how Jef markets himself as an artist, to the chaotic nature of freelance work, to a little game of Fact or Fiction about South Dakota.

Jef is an absolute GEM and I think you'll love this episode. If you want to follow along with Jef or hire him for some design work you can get in touch on his website at jefcaine.com or on Instagram @jefcaine.

Go write me a letter for the Podca$h Contest! It takes 2 seconds and I really think we can win. 

SUBMIT YOU LOVE LETTER HERE

Website - destinationdifferent.co 

Instagram - @destinationdifferent 

TikTok - @destinationdifferent

Patrick Dudek aka Patrick On Cameo aka The 4th Most Famous Person On FamousBirthdays.com With the Last Name Dudek.

Who would have thought I'd host someone who cracked a Top 5 list on Famous Birthdays on my show... but here we are.

Patrick Dudek is good at the internet. He has been experimenting with social media and video creation for the better part of the last decade and he seems to have a knack for making content that goes viral.

His Best Man speech at his brother's wedding has been viewed over 25 million times. He is undoubtedly the least famous "famous" person on the celebrity video messaging app, Cameo. And he regularly churns out TikToks that wrack up over a million views.

Patrick is a comedian, prankster, troll, sketch writer, host, and facilitator of chaos all wrapped up into one. I truly couldn't mean that in a more complimentary fashion.

We talked all about what makes something funny, his process to video creation, and how he hired paid actors to make him look good on a Bumble date.

Incredible episode. If you want to check out some of Patrick's videos you can follow him over on TikTok @itspatrickdudek or request a special video from him on Cameo @patrickoncameo.

I'm basically a TikTok star now. Go troll me over there.

Website - destinationdifferent.co 

Instagram - @destinationdifferent 

TikTok - @destinationdiffere

Every kid has had the dream at one point or another... "I'll just start a clothing brand and get super rich."

It's a tale as old as time.

But few, and I mean VERY few, ever even follow through with the idea. And for those who do the level of success is minimal.

On this week's Destination Different we've got someone who is defying the odds.

Farouq Gidado has always been an artistic kid with an eye for fashion. When he was in high school him and some friends coined the phrase "Always Be About Something" (or ABAS for short).

Farouq kept the phrase in his back pocket until one day he decided to make tee shirts with the phrase across the chest. The first drop sold out and he thought it would be smooth sailing on the way to fame and fortune... It wasn't.

Years went by where he was working multiple other jobs, wasn't making any money with ABAS, and it seemed like his brand was never going to get going. Then one after another after another he started piling up small wins to the point where he was able to quit his day job and go all-in on ABAS full time.

In this episode we talked about Farouq's approach to slowly building the brand, teaching himself how to be a businessman, and why one day everyone at Nike will know his name.

If you want to buy a piece of ABAS Clothing you can check out their site at abasclothing.com or follow along with their latest updates over on Instagram @abasclothing.

I'm basically a TikTok star now. Go troll me over there.

Website - destinationdifferent.co 

Instagram - @destinationdifferent 

TikTok - @destinationdifferent

I am very familiar with the concept of recycling. You drink a beer, then you put your can in the little green bin with the circular arrows.

Upcycling on the other hand... not as familiar.

Thankfully Alexa and Blake, the co-founders of Scrapped Clothing helped me out.

Upcycling is when you take thrifted or second-hand materials and turn them into something new. In the case of Scrapped, they are taking everything from table clothes, to curtains, to old tee-shirts, and turning them into these unreal one-of-a-kind tote bags.

Alexa and Blake were both still in college when they decided to start their business. Blake had just taught himself to sew and Alexa was majoring in graphic design. The duo put their skills to work and Scrapped was born.

In this episode we talked about their "let's just figure it out" attitude and how it helped them get the business off the ground. We also covered everything from favorite obscure fabrics, to their multiple "warehouse" changes, to how Blake invented the tote bag.

I absolutely loved these two. If you want to support Scrapped you can follow along on Instagram for news on their latest drops @scrapped.co or check out their website scrappedclothing.com to purchase a tote for yourself.

I'm basically a TikTok star now. Go troll me over there.

Website - destinationdifferent.co 

Instagram - @destinationdifferent 

TikTok - @destinationdifferent

You ever create a custom jacket for one of the biggest rappers in the world, but don't put your name on it so you get absolutely zero credit...?

Yeah, me neither.

But Nathan DeVaughn has. And he learned a valuable lesson that day.

Nathan was always an artistic kid growing up and a few years ago he started messing around with painting on jackets. One of his favorite rappers, Lil Yachty, put out a call to fans asking for them to send him their work. Nathan obliged and it wasn't long until Lil Yachty was rockin' the custom piece all over his social platforms. The only problem was that Nathan hadn't documented any of the process, so he had no proof it was his art.

Flash forward to today and his jackets are now worn by NFL and NBA stars. This time, however, he's documenting his whole process with DeVo Customs. Nathan takes commissions to paint portraits, landscapes, animals, you name it, on all sorts of wearables. The kicker is that he's running this whole operation while holding down a full-time job as a Product Manager at Adidas (casual) and being a dad of two.

In this episode we talked about everything from juggling all of those responsibilities, to exploring new mediums (like painting with bleach or digital art / NFTs), to how he markets his work. Nathan is INSANELY sharp and I have zero doubt by the end of 2022 he's going to be making a full-time living with his art. If you want to keep up with him you can check out devocustoms.com or follow along for commission openings on Instagram @devocustoms

The new Destination Different website is now LIVE. Check it out and let me know how much you hate it.

Website - destinationdifferent.co 

Instagram - @destinationdifferent 

TikTok - @destinationdifferent

I've always found the whole "do what you love and you'll never work a day in your life" thing to be kind of bullshit. Who actually LOVES what they do?

Well, if you're Mantas Zvinas, you just love what you love and then create a business around that. 

Mantas grew up loving surfing and yoga, and in his later years developed an affinity for the party scene... soooo, naturally he started a business called Surf, Yoga, Beer. 

Surf, Yoga, Beer started with an adventure to Costa Rica where Mantas carefully balanced the perfect amount of fitness and fun. Since then he has hosted over 50 of these adventures in countries around the world while also building communities for local meetups and workouts in numerous cities. He has expanded beyond just surfing and yoga too. Adventures today could include anything from hiking to HIIT classes, and everything in between.

And what does he do in between those trips around the world...? Well, he practices what he preaches. Mantas took a gig as one of the first-ever Soulcycle instructors back in 2013 and he has been teaching fitness classes with them ever since.

We talked about how Mantas balances his "fitness" job with his "entrepreneur" job, his immigrant value of hard work, how a travel company navigates Covid, and how often he actually has a shirt on...

You can follow along with Mantas on Instagram @mantaszvinas and you can learn more about Surf, Yoga, Beer on its website at surfyogabeer.com

The new Destination Different website is now LIVE. Check it out and let me know how much you hate it.

Website - destinationdifferent.co 

Instagram - @destinationdifferent 

TikTok - @destinationdifferent

There is a word out there called "multi-hyphenate." It is defined as "a person, especially a celebrity, with several professions or skills."

Quentin Allums fits that definition to a T.

I've written and rewritten this description approximately 2,000 times trying to summarize all of the creative work he has done over the years and it's nearly impossible to put a nice tidy bow on it.

Quentin is an entrepreneur by nature. He has started not 1, not 2, but 3 companies in his 20s, including most recently an agency called Urban Misfit Ventures that helped some of the biggest names in business develop their personal brands.

Quentin is also a podcaster. His show, Stupid Deep, was a Top 50 show on Apple Podcasts in the first month of existence (it also helped him land his current job leading the marketing team for Lewis Howes at Greatness Media). 

Quentin is also a video creator. And a damn good one at that. He was one of the first people in the world to put original video content on LinkedIn and it has since helped him amass a massive audience to the tune of over 15+ million views on his content.

The list goes on and on. He has a newsletter called Dear Strange People with over 30,000 subscribers. He has spoken at TedX. He is building out social experiments to be shared on YouTube.

And the best is yet to come...

We talked about a little bit of everything in this episode from his "create twice, post once" creative process, to being bad at things, to his buttery smooth radio voice. You can follow Quentin over on Instagram @quentinmallums or check out his website quentinallums.com

The new Destination Different website is now LIVE. Check it out and let me know how much you hate it.

Website - destinationdifferent.co 

Instagram - @destinationdifferent 

TikTok - @destinationdifferent

If you put a table saw or even just a simple 2x4 in my hands I would almost certainly cut my fingers off.

Somehow Kristina & Nick originally knew nothing about the business of carpentry and have managed to turn it into a full-scale operation.

Since the time she was 3-years-old Kristina has wanted to run her own business, but everything from bakeries to sign shops didn't quite hit the mark. That's until she started messing around with the art of wood and realized she might be onto something.

Flash forward a few years later and the husband and wife duo of Nick and Kristina built themselves an extremely consistent direct-to-consumer furniture company with aspirations of scaling even bigger.

I always love my guests, but I particularly just want to grab beers with Nick and Kristina. They are kind and smart and charming and just the perfect types of entrepreneurs. We talked about how they taught themselves woodworking, starting and scaling a business, and what's next for 25 and Pine after brilliantly crafted wine-glass-holder end tables. 

If you want to follow along with 25 & Pine you can check out their Instagram here @twentyfiveandpine or get their furniture directly at twentyfiveandpine.com.

The new Destination Different website is now LIVE. Check it out and let me know how much you hate it.

Website - destinationdifferent.co 

Instagram - @destinationdifferent 

TikTok - @destinationdifferent

I can promise you right now... I swear on everything that is dear to me in this world... you have never seen art like this in your life.

This week I've got Zachary Aronson on the show and, as the name of the episode suggests, he makes art out of fire.

Like, actually. He really does. 

10+ years ago Zachary forgot his sketch pad on the way to class at Cal Arts. Rather than head back to his dorm to retrieve it, he picked up a blow torch and a block of wood, and an entirely new medium of art was born.

Now, nearly a decade later, he has continued honing his craft creating THOUSANDS of these pieces of fire art along the way, focusing mostly on portraiture and the human figure. 

In this episode we talked about what it's like to create a one-of-a-kind medium, the multiple sources of income Zachary generates through his art, and making sure he doesn't light anything on fire...

If you want to see Zachary's art for yourself you can visit his Instagram @zacharyaronson or check out his website at zaronson.com

The new Destination Different website is now LIVE. Check it out and let me know how much you hate it.

Website - destinationdifferent.co 

Instagram - @destinationdifferent 

TikTok - @destinationdifferent