9PLAYLIST | LEBRON JAMES

Read the Oct Issue #59 of Athleisure Mag and see 9PLAYLIST | LeBron James in mag.

THE DROP WITH STEVE AOKI

We're sure that we have all been listening to a lot more music as we have navigated these past few months as it's a way to transport ourselves to another level even when our environment may look way to familiar at this point. This month's cover of Athleisure Mag is entertainer, DJ, record producer, music executive and entrepreneur Steve Aoki. We've always been fans of the energy that he creates when he's at his shows, his music as well as his focus on putting good into the world with The AOKI FOUNDATION whose primary goal is supporting organizations in the brain science and research areas with a specific focus on regenerative medicine and brain preservation.

In addition to our virtual cover editorial shoot with Steve, we delved into his career, his label DIM MAK, his placement in the Smithsonian Museum, the importance of diversification while being true to the core of business, Neon Future series, Blue: The Color of Noise and his process in music and collaborative projects.

ATHLEISURE MAG: What was the moment when you realized that you wanted to be in the entertainment industry?

STEVE AOKI: Oh man entertainment is such a broad word and some of these answers are probably not going to be straight forward. I got into music when I was a teenager and then that became my whole life blood. Everything I did was involving music in every facet of life. It just became my lifestyle. From the friends I chose, to the food I ate – when I was growing up as a teenager – there was a very specific kind of music that I listened to and everyone was vegetarian. Pretty much everything down to the way that I dressed. It just became – it just became me so. So once I figured out what I wanted to devote my life to, that of course, changes over time. So from when I was a teenager, to college, to post college, young adult – my music style changed and the way that I interpreted music and played music changed as well.

So, I was in bands in the beginning and then I became a DJ and then at that point, in the early 2000’s, I actually started seeing that what I was doing with music was actually making a profit. It was making money. Because up until then, I never looked at music as a profitable enterprise. I never thought about it that way because you give so much to something, if you really care about, it’s not like you care about getting something back. What you get back is the love that it gives you, the feelings that it gives you, the community that it brings to you. As I started DJing, I started realizing that at that point I was DJing small clubs and festivals. That’s really when that major moment came when I was like, “wow I’m on a big stage and I need to not just play records and music” – which some of them were my own and a lot at that time, were of the culture. It then became, how do I engage with these people and entertain these people?

So then that term, “entertainment” came into the fold much later in my career. I would say that it came into the fold when I played Coachella the second time in 2009, not even the first time. It was that moment when I had the budget and I could build out the stage design and I could think about ideas that could present to different parts of my show like stage diving. These stage dives aren’t like a moment where you are methodical, you feel the moment, everyone’s ready for it and you jump into the crowd. There are moments when you think, this is going to engage with people, this is going to be entertaining. I bring my raft out and I start floating on the people, they haven’t seen that yet – that’s entertaining. There’s all these little things that I did with the people like the cakes. It’s an entertaining part of a Steve Aoki show. People remember for the rest of their lives and they’ll say, “40 years ago I saw a Steve Aoki show, I don’t remember the songs but he did cake my friend in the face and it was the best day of her life!" You know what I mean?

AM: Exactly yeah!

SA: I would say 2009 it all came together. Long answer for you!

AM: But that’s a great answer though. It’s all about a progression and just how things come together.

How would you define your musical style?

SA: My musical style is very fluid and of the moment and I like that. I like that like, it’s very much a gut and it’s based on feelings and it’s always going to change. It’s always going to change with my feelings and however way I feel about things or the moment on how I internalize that and not just consume, but how do I create that and how do I create from that?

I think that that’s something that I learned at a young age. When you are inspired or when you absorb something that makes you feel a certain way that it hasn’t made you feel before, like you know the best way for me to engage with that feeling is to create from it. It’s like anything, when you do it over and over again, you just get better at the process of doing it. You might not be great at it in terms of the output, but you get better at the process and that’s what’s more important than the output because the output is entirely subjective. Whether someone likes it or not is not what’s important. That’s another thing that I learned through this whole thing – whether people like my music or my output shouldn’t reflect why I did it and why I liked the process of it. I think about that question and it’s very complex. It’s not just I’m EDM or I’m this. Music is always going to change and it’s based on feelings. If you take down all the identities, all the titles and the genres – if there was no such thing as hip hop or rock or EDM and people were just like, “yo I just like the song.” When you hear a song for the first time and you’re listening to something that is totally different – you shouldn’t be limited to, “this is weird that I like it.” It shouldn’t make you feel weird. If it makes you feel really good, then that’s the whole point of it.

AM: Right and sometimes listening to the same artist and the same song at different points in your life, have a different connection and you can enjoy it. Our co-founder’s great uncle was tenor saxophonist, Joe Henderson and as a kid hearing him, she didn’t respect the fullness of his work.

SA: Yeah.

AM: And then in college, there was a whole other world of understanding that gave those songs meaning.

SA: Right right!

AM: You are someone who has worked with so many artists across so many different genres as a DJ, musician, producer, music exec – what is that process like for you when you’re thinking of collaborating with somebody?

SA: Yeah, when I’m collaborating with different artists, I think that one of the biggest lessons that I have learned is to just go in there and go in with a blank slate. A lot of people want you to come in there with all of your ammunition and basically all of your knowledge base. I’d rather go in there as a student. You know, they want to work with you and at this point in my career, they want to work with you too! I know what I can bring to the table, but it’s almost like when you watch an improv comedy skit, you never know what’s going to happen. Like, “hey someone say an action – running, someone say a sport – wrestling,” and then you kind of take those moments and you just be free on where it will go. That journey is really exciting to come from that place. Of course, your intuition and experience in terms of how and the way you process and supply chain your music and the way you work your music – how you’re going to work all of that – it’s innately going to come out. Sometimes you need the structure, but I prefer having the blank slate for the most part. Unless if you’re on a time crunch – a time crunch is a whole other story. Because then I’m like, “ok I just need to have the hook.” From the hook, I’m able to build you know – I can build that idea. I generally start from there if I can’t get into the studio with the artist. I just need a hook. I just need that part that gets stuck in my head and I will allow that to just linger in my head for a long time and then melodies start coming out in the studio and then I pick the best one. You stay on that melody for a day or two to make sure that it’s the right melody – because sometimes the first time you’ve heard it, it’s the best thing that you have ever heard and then you realize a day later, “oh my God, it’s awful.”

AM: Definitely! What’s that like when you have something that’s already existed. We love Michael Jackson – Thriller (Steve Aoki Midnight Hour Remix) and I also like Steve Aoki & Darren Criss - Crash Into Me cover of Dave Matthews Band. When people already know the songs, do you have a different approach when you’re deconstructing it to make it your own?

SA: Yeah, yeah exactly. When I do remixes of my own tracks – like in the case of Crash Into Me with Darren Criss (Glee, Hollywood, The Assassination of Gianni Versace), I can’t play the original at my own shows because it’s too mellow. When I’m playing an EDM show, I need that energy bursting at the seams and I need that drop to do exactly that. I need the dance floor to be bouncing. It’s all about Darren’s voice, Dave Matthews incredible lyrics, the melody and you combine that with a huge drop that’s signature to my sound and people will just lose their minds you know? You want to push purposeful.

AM: Are there genres that you've yet to do that you want to place the Aoki touch on?

SA: Yes. I mean there is no genre that can limit me. I just – I want to work with every genre and I really want to keep spanning the globe. That’s the other thing to, I travel so much and I’m so fortunate to be able to hear and know and learn about not just what’s happening in different parts of the world that are already popular, but also like what’s brewing. What’s brewing in South Africa, when I was out there, I was listening to some music and it was like, “yo this is the next wave in South Africa.” I want to know about it and I want to meet them. I want to hear the songs and I want to get the vibe, the flow and the dance culture that’s with it. You know, music brings people together so you have to understand what kind of dance moves that they are doing to it. How are they bringing it to their culture. Basically, I just want to keep expanding, keep exploring and it’s limitless. There’s always something new out there.

AM: How did you feel being the first EDM artist to be included in the Smithsonian? How impactful was it to see your gear housed in the same space as DJ Bob Casey’s from the 50's as well as Grand Masterflash’s turntables and now you’re literally being enshrined in such a historical place?

SA: Even when you say that out loud …

AM: It’s mindblowing.

SA: It’s totally wild you know? I remember when I went to the Smithsonian after they asked if we would be part of it. I met with them and did the interview there and walked through it and I felt like I was leaving my body and watching myself and I was like, “holy shit!” I just freaked out. I mean, it’s incredible you know – an incredible feeling. It’s the kind of thing that you’ll say, “wow in 60 years someone is going to say in the 2010’s there was an Asian DJ and there was a thing called EDM and this is what people did when they went out to festivals. And here is a typical show.” It was really cool to think that wow, 60 or 70 years later, someone is going to look at that and say, “that’s cool.” And you know, in that regard to, I’m proud that you know, I’m representing for Asians in that way too.

AM: As someone who is as busy as you are, who does travel so much, why is fitness, health and wellness so important to you?

SA: Oh God, it’s so crucial and integral. You have to train your body and mind to be able to run the marathon over and over again. You can’t just wake up – before you get out and run, you have to stretch. Before you do anything – I mean, I’m stretching constantly and that stretch is mindfulness. And as I do more mindfulness, actively, and I start learning more about myself – my mind, my body rhythms – it’s really fun. When you’re sitting there meditating, some people think, “oh it’s so boring.” When you get into that space, you get into where you’re finally supposed to be – it’s incredible to get into that space where nothing else really matters. That phone call, that schedule – all these things in life – comparing yourself to this person to that person – that thing – the anxieties of the world. If you can calm all of those things, it’s a really wonderful place to learn to get to. I think that it’s not just for someone like me that was running around like I was prior to COVID-19 like I did, I think it’s really helpful for everybody. For me especially, I need to absolutely make sure that I’m on the practice and I just love having it.

AM: Just looking at your portfolio, it’s so expansive between your music, Pizzaoki, your label DIM MAK as well as DIM MAK En Fuego, your clothing lines, companies that you have invested in like Liquid I.V. which we are huge fans of. How important was it for you that regardless of the vertical, to diversify your portfolio beyond your industry that you work in whether it’s creating ventures or investing?

SA: I mean, yeah, in life, I think that diversification is always a positive. Of course, you know it says a lot when you see someone that dives into their craft 110%. I’ve seen that in Japan especially, with artists that’s into their craft whether it’s even sushi chefs that spend their entire life just focusing on that and I love that – I love that. I’m such a fan of that and I admire and I respect that. It’s important that I have that too because my main core the whole of my operation is music. Music creation, music production and playing – playing my music out to the world. That has to be grounded. That has to be an anchor and platform and if I don’t have that, I can’t diversify. I think what the important lesson is here – is that diversification is always positive. You need to have your main business, whatever it is, whatever your main passion is – it has to be grounded so deeply into what you do and you have to be a craftsman in that space. Once you have that, then you can start building outward. You know, we only have one life, experience it. Experience as much as you can. All of these different things that were created in all of these different worlds is extremely fun for me. I enjoy it. I love it and if I didn’t love it, I wouldn’t be doing it. You have to love what you do and you have to love the process – not what is actually going to be in the end result. It’s always about the process.

AM: With so many artists, because of COVID-19 doing their performances virtually and I know that you’re known as a Techno Futurist Optimist with an interest in the intersectionality between humanity and technology, how do you think this digital reliance will impact the industry long term once we’re able to get back into a new normal.

SA: I think that in a hopeful sense that we will all get back to what we all love. You can’t deny live experiences and live shows. There is nothing that compares to that. A virtual show is like 1/10th of the experience and not a 100% of the experience. That’s why they were so big all around the world. We’re social creatures and beings. We love being around people and experiencing things together. We’re not a solo species. We need to feel energy and those feelings with other people. You can’t deny that and I think that hopefully, there will be a vaccine that will be administered around the world where we don’t have to worry about COVID deaths and COVID tragedies that are happening. But until then, the digital space is what I had to do. I think that all of us have had to take that because now there is an infrastructure being built around the digital space of experience and it’s evolving quite quickly. You know, I just played an Oculus show where you put on an Oculus headset and you’re talking to people from all around the world. As a fan watching the show, you can look to your right and your left and there’s another fan watching that same show from a different country. You can actually socially engage with them. The infrastructure is being built in such a way that there’s going to be more of a catch and they will be able to bring more of a better experience. I think that once we get back to IRL shows, there will still be that people will want to do that and be apart of that. I think that at least with COVID and people being in that business, it has created a space for it to grow. But, you can’t compare that when you’re talking about a live show.

AM: Last year, you published your memoir Blue: The Color of Noise, why did you want to write this and what was that process like for you?

SA: It took me about 6 years. It took me a long long time. It definitely wasn’t like, “ok, I’m going to get this done – I just need to do this.” It was an ongoing process and it started out being like the history of DIM MAK first. So I was like, DIM MAK is going to hit 20 years – we’re at almost 25 now. I thought I would do the history of DIM MAK, a 20 year book and I started writing stories about when I started DIM MAK back in ’96 when I was in college. I wrote about the struggles and all of the good stuff that you want to read – incredible stories. Then I realized, this was more about a memoir about my life and DIM MAK is a part of my life. It’s a big part of my life, but I felt that I should expand more and at that point, a few years after as I was touching on the history of my label, I started talking about the harder things that were very difficult to open up about like the death of my father (editors note: Hiroaki "Rocky" Aoki, a wrestler and restaurateur who founded the restaurant chain Benihana), the death of some of my friends that made a huge impact on my life and then as I got deeper, I started seeing a therapist that helped me to actually bring out some more of my introspective feelings that had to be kind of unearthed. You know, it was therapeutic to be able to write the book and a lot of that went into it. I also – you know when a lot of people think about the history of Steve Aoki, they say, “oh yeah, he’s the guy that throws cakes at people at shows.” Well I just wanted people to know that there is a lot more than just that.

AM: You dropped Neon Future IV this spring which I know is part of the Neon Future series that you began in 2015, tell us about the series in general and what can you share about the 27 track album that you just dropped?

SA: Neon Future is a concept that I came up with and is exactly what you said earlier. I really look at the future as an optimist and I look at technology with an optimist lens. I look at tech in a way that can help us and enhance us to be more of a creative or imaginative species. At the end of the day, we want to save ourselves and saving ourselves will be saving our planet as well. With tech, we can advance that and become more of an intelligent species. That’s why Neon Future is a colorful future. And so really making sure that for me personally, the musical concept, I wanted to educate it by having scientists on the album. So it’s not just about having a collection of songs for each album, but to really validate my point, I reached out to scientists that were very difficult to get a hold of. Some of the people were harder to get a hold of than some of the biggest talents that I have worked with. I had to do a lot of explaining, fly and meet people and do a lot of work in that regard because I care so much about that space and I also love bridging the science community and the electronic dance music community in a way that hasn’t been done before.

Like Ray Kurzweil to Yuval Harari to J.J. Abrams to Bill Nye and so forth and so forth. It started off as one album and the second album was going and then I said, you know what, it’s too good to end. Then the third and then I built the studio between the second and the third and I call it Neon Future Cave and then between the third and the fourth album, I started creating the comic Neon Future with Tom Bilyeu because Neon Future really deserves to be graphically laid out with its storyline. Which presents a world that we can imagine and with every comic book story, you need to have conflict so we had to make it like a dystopia that we want to make it like a utopia instead of the opposite. It just kept on growing and it had a mind of it’s own and it became AI! It became its own thing. It’s almost funny that this project almost became it’s own powerhouse that I couldn’t even stop which is kind of cool. We’ll see. Because of my next project, this puts Neon Future IV as the last of the series so far. We’ll see if it continues as I have a few other concepts that I want to develop. My main baby is Neon Future that’s for sure.

IG @SteveAoki

PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS

Athleisure Mag's virtual cover shoot was shot by Co-Founder + Celebrity Photographer Paul Farkas. Throughout this shoot, Paul used an iPhone XR, iPad Air 2, Facetime and Clos.

STYLE & GROOMING CREDITS

Athleisure Mag's Celeb Fashion Stylist, Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director Kimmie Smith and Groomer Sheena Zargari share what they used to create this fall menswear style editorial of Out & About Style, WFH and Fitness.

LOOK I | OUT & ABOUT STYLE

FRONT/BACK COVER PG 26 - 37 | DIM MAK COLLECTION X DIAMOND SUPPLY CO Denim Jacket | SIKSILK X STEVE AOKI S/S Oversized Essential Tee + Loose Fit Riot Denim | LACOSTE Storm 96 Lo Sneakers |

LOOK II | WFH

PG 22 - 25 | SIKSILK X STEVE AOKI Oversized Hoodie + Relaxed Short | LACOSTE Storm 96 Lo Textile Sneakers |

LOOK III | FITNESS

PG 16 -21 | ALPHA INDUSTRIES Apollo II Hoodie | DIM MAK COLLECTION Leggings | DECKERS X LAB S/S K-ST 21 Sneakers |

IG @PVFarkas

@Shes.Kimmie

@Sheena_Zar

Hear DJ/Producer Steve Aoki on our show, #TRIBEGOALS - which is a part of Athleisure Studio, our multimedia companion podcast network! Subscribe to be notified when the episode drops. Listen on iHeartRadio, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts or wherever you enjoy your podcasts.

Read the Oct Issue #58 of Athleisure Mag and see The Drop with Steve Aoki in mag.

WE'RE @ THE SPA WITH ICONA POP + SOFI TUKKER

Over the past few months, we have navigated a number of life changes that have given new meaning to the term and ever evolving, "new normal." In the midst of these crazy times, we have also embraced things that we have always enjoyed - even if it is in a new way! Once again, music comes to the rescue as it makes our activities enhanced on all levels. When we first heard of Icona Pop and SOFI TUKKER's song Spa, we loved the fact that it had fun lyrics, a catchy tune and embraces something that we have been enjoying from home.

We had to catch up with both groups to find out how this song came together, how they have been working in these times and what they have coming up!

ATHLEISURE MAG: We have been fans of Icona Pop and SOFI TUKKER for a number of years – from pre partying, at the club, fun dinners, at PROPEL CO:LABS Fitness Festival in NY, Ultra Music’s Party here in NY during NYFW and when we’re cycling in studio. We also love hearing your music in commercials, shows etc. So it’s no surprise that when your team sent us the link to Spa, we’ve been jamming to it for the past few days and feel that it definitely needs to be in the mix of Athleisure songs for sure. Before we get into the song, how have you been spending these past crazy months?

ICONA POP: Wow thank you for all the love and support, that means a lot!

In the beginning, we felt very lost. Everything got canceled and life was just weird.

We decided first to take the time to reflect and breathe for a second. But after that we got so inspired so we locked ourselves in the studio and been super creative from there.

It started with us djing online and then we started our ”rave spa”. We´ve been connecting with all our fans around the world. And the best part is that we’ve had the time to sit down and write a lot of new music.

We’ve come to really appreciate the things you can do from your studio and laptop.

SOFI TUKKER: We started livestreaming on basically the first day of lockdown. At first, it was really random. Soph was working out and Tuck was Djing and our photographer started livestreaming the whole thing. We did it again the next day with Soph also DJing and it was so fun to connect with people so we committed to doing it every single day. We have been doing daily live dj sets every day now for 122 days. It's turned out to be such a meaningful time, being able to connect with people daily and find joy and positivity, even in pretty dire times. The community that's built around the sets calls themselves the Freak Fam and it keeps growing!

AM: In terms of staying fit, what are your workouts like and have you embraced new modalities especially during these crazy times?

IP: Its been very cool to join live stream work outs and also a lot of Swedish gyms have been having outdoor activities.

We try to move everyday before going to the studio. Doesn’t matter if its gym, walking running or whatever. But that really gives you endorphins and makes you stay focused the rest of the day.

It’s also different depending on how stressful it is, how much time and also how you´re feeling in your body that day.

Usually when its stressful or you have a lot in your head and you still need to release some steam, its amazing to lift weights, but also to do things that make you calm down like yoga or pilates.

ST: I've found working out to help so much during these times. I don't feel as stir crazy cuz I really am using all my energy in a day! I go on really long bike rides, I do HIIT training in the backyard, I practice yoga, I use the Peloton, I go rollerblading, I go on runs, I workout on the beach... pretty much anything, I try to switch it up all the time and keep my body guessing!

AM: How has creating music been for you during this time?

IP: It's been both good and bad.

We get a lot of our inspiration from traveling and now we’ve been in the same place for months. But somehow it's like life catches up with you and you can tap in to emotions that you haven't had the time to explore before.

Also the pressure to release music has been very low. But somehow we’ve released more music then in years this year. Feels like people really need it right now.

ST: We've been able to get so much done, since we aren't traveling!! We've created a ton of new music, and we usually test it out during the livestream and then workshop it and bring it back into the studio to tweak. It's a really fun way to make music and really cool to involve everybody throughout the whole process more than ever.

AM: How do you stay inspired as there is more time being at home versus traveling and having in person events?

IP: We absolutely love hugging and kissing our fans, so we really miss that. Even though we love seeing the world, the traveling part can put a lot of pressure on your body. So we guess its been good to stay at one place and slow down for a minute. And also, it's been very interesting for us with all the new ”normal” routines.

ST: The daily DJ sets really inspire us. We are constantly listening to music and testing it out and seeing how people react. And we've started doing a couple days a week of guest dj sets, so we are really active in the livestreaming world and constantly feeling inspired by not just the music we're playing but also the music other people are playing in their sets.

AM: Both of you have found great ways to stay connected with your fans, do you have any virtual events that we should know about and have you started working on IRL events?

IP: We live for our "Rave spa” that we have on our instagram live.

We try to do it once a week and then people can ask us whatever they want while we dj and are having a spa. We also do QandAs with our fans and try to involve them a lot in our everyday life. We also been playing live at empty clubs or arenas and streaming it to different places. We have an amazing live show prepared so as soon as the world opens up for touring, we will be there. We can’t wait!

ST: Yessss! Aside from our daily dj sets which you can find @sofitukkeroffical on twitch and @sofitukker on facebook and IG live, we are doing our first ever eConcert!!!! It's on December 4th and it's really excited because with this technology, the community will actually be present with us during the live show. We will be able to really see and hear everybody who is with us, with big screens in front of us while we are performing live. We can't wait. We haven't done our live show since the pandemic started and this will be truly next level technology we can't wait to all be together! You can find tickets on our website sofitukker.com.

AM: How do you define the Icona Pop sound?

IP: Electronic pop, driving drums, chanting choirs and a punk attitude.

AM: How do you define the SOFI TUKKER sound?

ST: We try not to define it so that we can always stay open to whatever inspires us in the studio. But it's always made to dance to, and we try to keep things joyful. Even in more emotional lyrics, we are a big fan of the cry-dance track.

AM: How did Spa come about and what was the intent behind creating it?

IP: We´ve been big Sofi Tukker fans for years. We bumped into each other in a elevator in New York and fell in love with them and decided to write together. A couple of weeks later we sat in the studio together and we started to talk about how much we love going to the spa. And realized That, that is the best way of ending every evening. After a show, a stressful day, if your being at a club, imagine to end that party night in a spa :) What a dream!

ST: We had wanted to get into the studio together for a while so we were soooo giddy when we finally were in there together. We vibed so well together and had big friend crushes!! So we were just goofing off and having fun and I think spa just came up in conversation and naturally made its way into a song. we were both vibing on acid house and techno and at first thought it didn't even need lyrics, but then we had so much fun with them.

AM: What was the thought behind both groups coming together?

IP: It felt so right from the instant second we met. Its all about the energy, and we really felt how we were vibing the second we met. Like we’ve known them for years.

ST: We have been Icona Pop fans for a while and then we randomly met each other in an elevator in New York and became instant friends. We knew we had to get into the studio together cuz we had such a good vibe among us.

AM: What are you doing in terms of promoting this song?

IP: We've done a lot of online interviews, zoom chats with our fans, playing the song in our dj sets and the response have been great so far. We love our fans, they are so creative. We get so happy when they put up videos of themselves in robes, cucumbers on their eyes, having a sparty in their living room.

ST: Rebranding cucumbers as "cukes" from now on.

AM: Will you guys collab again on another song together?

IP: Absolutely, we've already talked to Sophie and Tucker that we have to write more music asap and go on spa tour together.

ST: We'd love to!

AM: When you’re spa’ing from home, what are 3 things that you have to have to get into that mood?

IP: A robe

A good facial (Zo skin care - sulfur mask) And to lite some candles (its all about the mood).

And some great music off course. Our absolute favourite thing is the sauna. Its the best way to relax :).

ST: A candle

A robe

A bathtub

IG @ICONAPOP

@SOFITUKKER

PHOTO CREDITS | PG 44 Icona Pop's Yoye Lapogian | PG 47 + 48 SOFI TUKKER Squid | PG 42 + 43 Composite Pictures Yoye Lapogian/Squid |

Read the Oct Issue #58 of Athleisure Mag and see We’re @ The Spa with Icona Pop + SOFI TUKKER in mag.

9LIST STORI3S | Mike Piazza

Read the Sep Issue #57 of Athleisure Mag and see 9LIST STORI3S in mag.

YOUR VOTE COUNTS WITH KAL PENN

As we get closer to the election (national, state and local), we've all been thinking about the issues, what we want our next 4 years to be and who will get us to where we want to go. This month's cover is Kal Penn who we have enjoyed in House MD, Designated Survivor and of course the Harold and Kumar movies. Kal has always had an interest in civics and even took time from acting to serve during the Obama Administration as the Associate Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs.

We were excited to hear about Kal Penn's new show that launches on Sept 22nd, National Voter Registration Day on one of our favorite networks - FreeForm. In Kal Penn Approves This Message, he talks about the issues in this non partisan show to get voters prepared and empowered to vote. We find out more about this show that he hosts and executive produces, how it ties into FreeForm's larger PSA focus and what he was surprised to learn.

ATHLEISURE MAG: We know that you’re the Co-Executive Producer and the host of Kal Penn Approves This Message. Before getting into the show itself, why did you want to create this 6 episode series?

KAL PENN: That’s a great question. Over the last few years, I’ve had different producers and folks reach out and say that they had this political show and they were looking for a host and what I thought of it. Those shows were fine, but they were a little more vitriolic and polarizing than I would have liked. It’s not really my thing and so when we had this window of time during this pandemic, my writing partner Robin and I were brainstorming and we thought about shows that we liked. I liked the Daily Show and I love CBS Sunday Morning – so what if we combine the two and had a show that was funny first and comedy morning. The monologue instead of talking about the 24 hour news cycle, what if we made the monologue about a particular issue? It’s funny, but it’s nonpartisan and it’s issue based. That way your field piece which is very funny, would be an extension of that which is around the issue and then your guest instead of someone who comes on to sell a book - and there is nothing wrong with that as I hope to be able to do that one day soon BUT for now, what if your guest was someone who was an expert in their field as opposed to someone who needed to sell the book or the movie which is the traditional guest bookings. In that case, your interview should end with some sort of call to action that people could take regardless of their political views if they care about a particular issue. Leading up to the election, it seemed like the best way to couch that for the miniseries leading up to the Nov election. If we’re lucky enough to get extended beyond that, then it would be on civics things broadly. So that’s kind of how it all came together.

AM: That’s very cool!

KP: Yeah, thank you.

AM: How important is it to tackle the issues of the day to empower Millennials and Gen-Z voters when they’re hitting the polls?

KP: Very important! I think that you look at of course the Presidential Election takes up a lot of the airwave space. There are so many local and state elections like school boards that people are voting on and a lot of those things have an impact on our communities much more than who sits in the White House on a day to day basis. They all go hand in hand though.

Some of these elections are being decided on by just a handful of votes. That’s the difference between whether you and your 8 friends showed up to vote or not. It can be pretty critical. Even in terms of the Presidential Election, of course if you live in a battleground state, your vote is weighted so much more than if you're a NYer or in Oklahoma. But even in NY or in Oklahoma, we get this question a lot – “I’m a Conservative in NY or I’m a Progressive and live in Oklahoma, my vote doesn’t really matter right?” It’s like, no it does because if enough people with your point of view even move the needle to where you see, "wow we have a 2 or 3% uptick of Progressive voters in this district in Oklahoma or vice versa with Conservative voters in NY”, the people in positions of power have to take that into account. They have to decide, “am I going to represent these people or will they get replaced one day because I’m not,” with this district moving into a particular direction. It’s all those reasons. So man, it’s so important for those couple of reasons that make a difference.

AM: Was there a specific issue that you guys will focus on in these 6 episodes where you learned something surprising in that episode or something that you hadn’t thought about previously?

KP: There’s a lot yeah! Even in our first episode, it’s about the youth vote in general and how the voting age got to be 18. So we were like, “ok how did the voting age get to be 18?” I remember it’s the 26th Amendment and it was passed in the 70s right?

AM: Right!

KP: Ok, there was that, but then it’s like, how did that happen? And the point of origin for that is after WWII all of these service members were coming home and they were 18/19/20 years old and they had just fought the Nazis and they come home and they’re not allowed to vote because they’re not 21. So they start this movement to get the right to vote at 18 – the age that you could go off to war to die for your country. It took decade just for that to become the 26th Amendment and that’s insane that it took that long. The reason why we talk about it is that it is an opportunity to recognize why we all have the right to vote at 18 to begin with. Whether you’re a Republican or a Democrat or a Third Party person - it's all still relevant. The point is, you should vote when you turn 18 because you have that right and a lot of people worked very hard for a very long period of time to get us that right to vote.

AM: How excited are you as we know this show launches on National Voter Registration Day to be apart of this movement and this ongoing campaign that FreeForm as a network is doing in terms of PSAs to get this awareness out there?

KP: I love it because the FreeForm PSAs and stuff have been very uplifting, jokey and it’s not taking things too seriously, but it also is underscoring the real opportunity here for young people to participate. And that’s what I like about our show here too. Our set is essentially a celebration and we have a pinball machine and some fun jokey stuff, but there’s also a lot of books on the shelf from icons of American History. Everyone from Angela Davis to Ronald Reagan. Now you don’t think of Angela Davis and Ronald Reagan in the same sentence often, but the point of both of them is that these are people in American History who as things get more and more polarizing, one person may be more familiar with one of those humans than the other and they both played such a pivotal role in who we are today and why. The other pieces of the set are things that we celebrate. There is a whole bunch of imagery around women and science, astronomy and all of those things are because people decided to vote for candidates who used our tax dollars to fund these things. So those things belong to us. We should celebrate them. That space station is ours! I mean we share it with other countries so maybe that’s a bad example, but you know that stuff is stuff that we created together as Americans and we should be celebrating. To me, I think that that tone works really well with the tone with FreeForm and obviously Hulu which we air on the following day. It’s celebratory and that’s what we want. We want to be able to make people laugh, come together and to understand the issues a little bit better.

IG @KalPenn

PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS | FRONT + BACK COVER, PG 16-25 Freeform/Robbie Fimmano | FRONT + BACK COVER, PG 16-19 + 25 Editorial Design by Athleisure Mag |

Hear Kal Penn Approves This Message Executive Producer and host, Kal Penn on our show, #TRIBEGOALS - which is a part of Athleisure Studio, our multi-media podcast network! Make sure to subscribe to find out when the episode drops. You can hear it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and wherever you enjoy listening to your favorite podcast.

Read the Sep Issue #57 of Athleisure Mag and see Your Vote Counts with Kal Penn in mag.

TURNING NEGATIVES INTO POSITIVES WITH SUZANNE SOMERS

This month, we caught up with one of TV's favorite sitcom actresses who also made an impact in the fitness world as an icon. We talked with Suzanne Somers about how a series of events took place that got her into the industry, how she nabbed one of her most known roles as Chrissy Snow of Three's Company, how leaving this role created an opportunity for Thighmaster as well as her focus on women living their best lives as the navigate the process of aging. She shared her insights as well as the negative moments that she forged into positives and her ultimate success.

ATHLEISURE MAG: What was the moment when you realized that you wanted to be in entertainment and to be an actor?

SUZANNE SOMERS: There was no moment. You’d think that there was a moment and you’d think that there was a dream. But I am a recovering Catholic and I got pregnant the first time that I had ever had sex. I was 17 or 18 – I was very young. The other day, my granddaughter said, “you got pregnant and lost your virginity on the same day?” I said, “yep”. So at that time, it didn’t matter whether you liked the boy or not, you were going to get married. I found myself walking down that aisle that I didn’t want to walk down in an outfit that I hated. My mother and I went to buy it and I remember her saying, “it shouldn’t be too white.”

What came out of that was this baby. I mean at 18, who wants to have a baby – I didn’t I’ve been very honest with my son about that and said, “who wants a baby at 18? I didn’t know you.” When I delivered him, I looked at these little eyes that were all bunchy and out of my mouth came this statement, “I promise that I am going to make a good life for you.” I did. I figured it out. I got pregnant at 18, I gave birth one month after my 19th birthday and I got divorced from the father and it was just me and my son against the world. I was never going to stay with the father, I knew that. I was the first person in my family to ever get a divorce and the first person in my hometown who ever got that divorce and I kept that promise.I didn’t know how to be a mother. My son never got into drugs, he never got into alcohol. I believe that we’re hard wired and when I had my baby, I knew I was going to make it right and I had the wisdom to know that part. I am so proud of him. He’s a good father, I wish that I had had a good father like him. He has 2 little girls that are now in their 20’s. They’re not screwed up although they are entitled – because that generation is. I did my part!

AM: Growing up, many of us remember seeing reruns of Three’s Company and then as we got older, seeing you on Step by Step. What was it about taking those roles and being on those shows that you enjoyed being part of them?

SS: By the time that I got to Step by Step, I was pretty ensconced in that world of sitcoms. But honestly, when you’re talking about the lead up to all of that, then it goes back to when I got the lead of Guys and Dolls in high school. I played Adelaide and I didn’t know that I had any talent. I tried out because the rest of the classes were too hard for me. But I did love Fine Arts. I loved music, singing, acting. I got a scholarship to college and there was no one in my family that had ever gone to college and no one in my hometown that I knew had gone to college.

I got a music scholarship and do you know what I chose? I was so dumb. I chose a Catholic girls college – that was the worst place that I could choose to go to college. Then 2 months into college, I got pregnant. Here I was, the first person in my family to go to college and the first one in my family to have that opportunity and I got pregnant. I thought that all my dreams were out the window. The last night of the show, that guy came and at the time, I didn’t know who he was. He was really well known in radio and his name was Walter Winchell – he had a trademark look of a beige raincoat and a pork pie hat. He walked up on stage that last night and he went right to me. He walked up to me in his NY accent which I had never heard before in my small hometown of California and he said, “you’re going some place sister.” That was fortuitous. Then when I got pregnant, I felt that my college dream was over and I had to go to work and I felt that I didn’t have any talent or skills that I knew of. I’m trying to make a living so I got a job as an extra, the lowest rung on the whole showbiz totem pole – you couldn’t go any lower. I made $32 a day and that was how I was able to survive.

My childhood was actually terrible. I look at people who have had negative things that happened in their life and I tell them, use it – make this be your asset. My father became my asset. The fact that he told me growing up that I was a piece of crap all the time, that I was a nothing, that I was a zero, he would make his hands shape into a big “o” – he would tell me all this stuff. So you believe how you are programmed and that was my programming. So when you ask me, “what was your dream and how did you end up in this business?" I'm an accident and I had talent that I didn’t know that I had. I now encourage people that come from a negative to use that as your opportunity – because you want it more then the average person. Every time my dad would say these things, I would think to myself, “I’ll show you.” One night, I was on stage and I was headlining a concert in Vegas at the biggest room in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand, he was in the audience and it wasn’t revenge or anything. I called him up on stage and if ever there was a moment where I had the “I’ll show you,” it was that night. He was so proud of me. I sang him a song – “you made me love you, I didn’t want to do it – I didn’t want to do it.”

AM: Wow

SS: Kind of poignant right? The negatives are the positives. So I had another thing that happened. After I divorced my husband who I never wanted to marry in the first place, I fell in love with Alan Hamel (Anniversary Game, Wedding Party, Lou Grant). I had taken an extra job and you know I walked into Studio C in ABC San Francisco and I was hired to be the prize model. It was like Vanna White but not as glamorous and all. I would open the refrigerator and pull the drawers out and show that it just wasn’t any kind of refrigerator but it was a refrigerator freezer.

When I walked into that studio, I met Alan Hamel and my knees felt weak. I had never felt like that. It was almost like we had known each other in another lifetime. So we started dating and I would meet him at his hotel. Everything that my mother would tell me not to do, I didn’t care. I felt like, I’ll show you. I’m in love with this guy and there is nobody like him in my hometown. I owned my power although at the time I didn’t see that. I did anything that I could to have a date with Alan Hamel.

I’m reading the trades one day and they say, there’s an interview for a guest starring part on a sitcom called Lotsa Luck with Dom DeLuise (Blazing Saddles, The Muppet Movie, Smokey and the Bandit II). The description was, small town girl doesn’t know who she is and doesn’t know who she wants. I thought, that’s me. I tell Alan and he says that’s great, I’ll pick you up at the airport. So I gather together 50 bucks – probably sold a jacket or something that I owned. I flew to Los Angeles and he picked me up. The whole reason I wanted to fly is because of that kiss he would give me in the car. It was this romantic kiss that I just couldn’t believe that you could feel like that. He drives me to Burbank for the interview. I didn’t know that you needed an agent, I didn’t know that you need them to set up an appointment. I just thought that you just go over there and had to be there at the time. I walk in and they ask me why I’m there and I say that I have an interview for the Dom DeLuise talshow. I had never had a professional part before as I was just an extra. I didn’t know that the one extra part that I had had when I was in the Thunderbird would catapult me and I was a writer at the time.

I see the girls walking in, signing in and receiving their scripts under my lashes. I read my part for a guy that I would end up doing sitcoms with, he said, “very nice.” I said, “I know that I’m exactly who you’re looking for because I’m a small town girl, I don’t know who I am and I don’t know what I look like.” He said he would give me a call back. I thought great and I went to reception and told them that I had a call back and she said that was great and I asked her what it was. Johnny Carson walks in. I look up and I’m like that’s Johnny Carson. He’s looking at me and walks over to me and says, “hey little lady, what are you doing here?” I proudly said that I had a call back because I now know the lingo. He asked for what show and I told him and he said that Dom DeLuise was a great friend of his and he wished me a lot of luck. I gave him my little book of poetry and didn’t realize that on the back the only credit that I had listed was that I was the mysterious blonde in the Thunderbird of the movie which I hadn’t seen because I couldn’t afford to go to the movie. I knew that it was a dumb credit and I didn’t know who George Lucas was. I eventually did do a one woman show on Broadway 10 years ago called, The Blonde in the Thunderbird – I didn’t know anything.

I guess when he went back to the office on Wed, he read the back of the cover and saw the credit. I was booked on the Tonight Show for that Fri – can you believe it? I didn't have a dress to go to the show. But I guess, I wrote a bag check or whatever you do when you're desperate – desperate people did desperate things. I always had the mentality of “I’ll figure out tomorrow what I did today.” I bought a one shoulder long gown to the floor - I should have worn a short one as I didn't realize that my legs were my asset. Fri night, Alan drives me over there as I couldn’t afford a taxi. I’m standing behind that famous curtain in that aqua dress – I’m the mysterious girl in the Thunderbird and I don’t know that that’s anything and I hear Johnny Carson say, “we’ve all wanted to know who the mysterious blonde in American Graffiti was. Well we found who the mysterious blond was and it’s Suzanne Somers.” I was so nervous and thinking, “you were?” The curtain opened and I walk out to an audience who was cheering and I didn’t know what that was for. I go out there and he liked that he had never met someone so naïve about Hollywood – he liked me. He was from Iowa – he liked simplicity. He was so nice to me and so good to me. I sit down after the applause stopped and he let me know that they didn’t get that kind of reaction from guests very often. I wasn’t acting like anything. He started having me on once a month to read from my book of poems and my little book of poetry became the best selling book of poetry in America from all the Tonight Show appearances. He was so great, they would place an isolated camera on him so that as I read my poems, he would have over the top reactions to go along with it.

One night, after so many appearances, a guy by the name of Fred Silverman who was the president of ABC Television had already casted Chrissy Snow and neither of them had tested very well. They knew that they had a hit with the show, but this one part was not testing very well. Fred later told me, “I got the girl. I’ve seen her on the Tonight Show all the time. So I get called in for an interview for a sitcom that I have never heard of and no one had because it hadn't been heard of called "Three's Company." The rest is history and you know. I got it and I was the most surprised person in the world to find myself on the #1 sitcom. That’s how I became who I became and I guess because I had natural talent, I was able to play the ping pong game with John Ritter (Hearts Afire, Bad Santa, Child’s Play). I didn’t realize then that he was the most talented physical and comedic actor. He was so good and I recognized that when I would watch him and I could see how talented he was. I learned by watching him. Within a year I understood comedy. Even though I didn’t study comedy, I understood the music of it and comedy is musical it’s set up – set up – beat. The writers got that and when they started writing John and I, it created a tension on the set with Joyce DeWitt because she had studied under scholarship, she was under contract. I had never had an acting class, had never studied and it made her so angry with me.

AM: We see you in that part and to see all of the happy accidents that took place to make that happen!

SS: I think for your readers, it’s a story to know that no matter where you come from and it’s about using the negative things in your life as positivity and that’s what I do. I’m looking outside right now on the 93 acre land that I live on watching sheep chase each other and I grew up living in a closet hiding from my father’s temper. We had a lock on the inside of the door so that no matter how hard he kicked at it – he couldn’t get us.

AM: How did you partner with ThighMaster? That’s a fitness icon right there!

SS: Right! I get these huge opportunities that come into my life. I get on Three’s Company which shoots to #1 at a time when it really mattered. Our show had the highest demographic across all television. I had the highest demographic of all women at that time and I had never heard of demographics. When I signed onto Three’s Company at the time, I was like where should I sign and just signed! I didn’t have a lawyer, I didn't care about how much the pay was, but by year 6 when my contract was up, I recognized that monetarily, I was worth something. It pisses people off when they realize that you know their worth. At the time, the men were making 10-15 times more than the women. I now recognize my worth and I wanted to be paid what they were being paid. Laverne and Shirley had just renegotiated with ABC and they gave them a colonic as I like to say so they were ready for my husband when he came in. They had already decided that the next big female star that would try to get paid what they were worth, would be made an example of. When my husband walked into the meeting with all the men, all the lawyers and all of that they decided as my husband says, “that you were fired before the moment that I walked in.” He said that I wanted to be paid X as that is what the men were being paid. I was waiting at home because he had left that morning – there were no cellphones there.

I can tell by the fact that he’s not running up the stairs and there’s not that long of a way to walk. He meets me where I am, looks me in the eyes and says, “you’re out.” I asked what he meant. He said you were fired before I walked in. I wasn’t getting a raise and I wasn’t going to be on the show he said, “you’re O-U-T out.” I died inside. The greatest job that I had ever had, I made a jewel and I figured out Chrissy Snow myself. I created this character where most people don’t like dumb blonds and I took this person from a small town, who didn’t know what she was or what she looked like and created someone that is beloved to this day. Wherever I go even in Jerusalem and Warsaw, Poland – people point out Chrissy Snow. Not only was I out, but it became this thing where not one woman backed me up and they all felt like, “who does she think she is?” Everyone was afraid to talk and I don’t hold it against them, but it was to their detriment because in not supporting me, I could have made life a lot sweeter for all of them.

Now, I had to find a job because we were living a life of means because we thought we could afford the house that we had just bought. My husband was very well known in Canada and ironically could become the Johnny Carson of Canada because that’s who he was up there. He had the late night talk shows – at one point he had 11 series on at the same time. So Alan made a deal for me at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. I knew that I could sing and that I could dance a little because of Guys & Dolls. People said, what's your credit and I said, “well I had the lead in Guys & Dolls in high school.”

Some people came to me and pitched us ThighMaster. It was originally called The V-Bar. My husband and I always debate on which one of us named it as he thinks he did and I think I did, so I just say we both did.

AM: You mutually named it.

SS: Yes we mutually named it. We both said, you put it between your knees and squeeze and that became the byline. Oh God, Johnny Carson loved it, Jay Leno loved it, David Letterman loved it and comedians loved the name and the byline! That’s what we started doing. After we sold 10 million – again no plan. Life is a journey and it’s about following the flow and life will take you on the right road. ThighMaster started us on the road and we became and we’re seen as brilliant marketers. So I lost one job and got another job and then I got another job with Step by Step. I was just talking to Patrick Duffy (Dallas, The Bold & The Beautiful, Welcome to Sweden) this morning – the other great husband that I have had in my life. He is the most kindest, funniest and we got along great. He is very humble, doesn’t care what he looks like, where he comes from and he simply loves to work. His wife passed away and that was the saddest thing as he so adored her. He and I got along so great – that’s what led me to what I now do. In this pandemic, I have thrived during this time. Do you want to know why?

AM: Yes.

SS: I fractured my hip. I’m on a crutch and I’m having a hard time moving. Alan and I have been doing the Facebook Live Show that people love! When the pandemic started, I invited everyone to bring their own tequila, salt and hors d’oeuvres where I tell people about my products and I just finished my 27th book called A New Way to Age and I don’t know how or why but when you write 27 books, you learn something. I have interviewed so many doctors and they trust me. I’m able to speak for them in a language that my followers understand. By the time I interview a doctor, I verify everything and get approval on their interview so that they can learn about hormones, how to replace what you do when you’re aging. I love the way I look and how many people when aging feel this way? I have a great sex drive and aging is about worn out parts. You have to understand that your hormones wear out at a certain level and they have to be replaced and to understand how to replace them through lab and blood work and to have your doctors analyze where this is and how to put back what you have lost in this process. It includes what you need. Aging is great – just know what you need to do to put those items back. The women who love me, have learned so much from me and that’s what we do every Tues and Fri night. 25 million of my books have sold globally and they have the opportunity to learn a lot, have fun with me and to see my husband and I who have been married for 50 years. That’s what happens when you replace worn out parts. It’s my proudest achievement. I loved Chrissy Snow and treated her demise like a death in the family and then I made that negative work for me and I made falling in love with Alan Hamel work for me and my baby who I had at a young age I turned that for me. I live a happy and blessed life that I can be proud of.

IG @ SuzanneSomers

PHOTOS COURTESY | Suzanne Somers

Read the Sep Issue #57 of Athleisure Mag and see Turning Negatives Into Positives with Suzanne Somers in mag.

SEEKING SOULMATES WITH MALIN ÅKERMAN

We caught up with Malin Åkerman who we enjoyed watching in SHOWTIME's Billions as Axe's wife. She's back in AMC's Anthology series Soulmates. Each episode has a different story and cast that talks about the meaning of this concept and what it means. We wanted to find out about the show, her process on shooting it and her upcoming projects which will launch later this year.

ATHLEISURE MAG: We love this concept of AMC’s new Anthology show, Soulmates which launches in Oct. Can you tell us about the show and the character?

MALIN ÅKERMAN: Yeah sure. We’re looking into the future a little bit where they have developed a test where you can find out who your soulmate is which is a crazy concept. It’s really crazy. It’s such an interesting show to create and everything that comes with it with all the complications, the victories and everything that is involved with creating a test like this. It’s an interesting concept. For our episode, my character’s name is Martha. We find her in not such a great place. She just has no luck in relationships and seems like she is always picking the wrong guy. She has no faith in herself and she does take this test because she feels like she does need to find her soulmate or she is going to mess up her life. But, it might not have been the best answer for her.

AM: What drew you to wanting to be part of this show?

MÅ: I love Brett and Will which are such fantastic writers. I loved the name of it – Soulmates and it got me to say, “ok. What’s this all about?” There’s always a big conversation about soulmates. Whether or not we have them, whether we have more than one is it even a pure concept. So I was fascinated and curious with what they were going to write about. I love this episode and I thought that it was really smart because it begs the question of soulmates, begs the question of whether or not we should be looking on the outside for things like that instead of going inward and working on ourselves and finding self love before going out into the world. We always search for a magic pill with someone else, but we can’t do that we have to find it in ourselves first. I think it was an interesting concept.

AM: As an actor, was it different for you to approach being in this show that’s only one episode versus something like Billions where you were in multiple ones? Is that different when you’re thinking about character development?

MÅ: It’s like a mini movie really. We pick up in a place where it’s shorter, but it still feels like the same concept, where you’re going, “ok this is the character’s arc for this amount of time.” It’s kind of nice because you get some kind of closure in the end of the episode. Most of the time episodes in other kinds of shows are left to be a bit open ended. It was great and it felt more like doing a film.

AM: You have some pretty cool films coming up. You have Chick Fight with Alec Baldwin. Can you tell us about this movie that you’re staring and producing?

MÅ: I’m really excited about that. It is coming out Nov 13th. I produced that film and I’m starring in it. Alec is you know, he’s a legend. He was amazing and I’m so happy and we were so lucky to have him. It’s a really great female forward, wonderfully cast movie that just focuses around women. My character basically is down on her luck, everything is falling apart and her mother has just passed on 2 years prior. This is where we find her. Her friend brings her to this Fight Club and it is essentially created by a therapist that realizes that women never have an outlet. We're taught that our femininity has to be portrayed differently than masculinity. We’re not allowed to be rageful or too tough because then we’re a bitch and all of that kind of stuff. This is a free place for women to be able to get their rage out, but consentually and in a ring. Therefore, it creates this really great opportunity to get some really great stunts in and a lot of comedic moments.

AM: And then there’s also Friendsgiving and that cast looks amazing to have so many people coming together for this. How did that come about?

MÅ: That’s a good friend of mine who wrote that. And that’s loosely based on that we were both going through a breakup and she started writing about how different people go through a breakup differently. She put it all into one day and made it on Thanksgiving because the holidays are so crazy. We had had some Friendsgivings together and she thought, what a great way to put a film together. These two women are going through a breakup in their own right and bringing all of their kooky friends together. It’s a really great holiday film with some great comedic actors.

IG @malinakerman

PHOTOS COURTESY | AMC Soulmates

Read the Sep Issue #57 of Athleisure Mag and see Seeking Soulmates with Malin Åkerman in mag.

9LIST STORI3S | KIM KIMBLE

Read the Aug Issue of Athleisure Mag #56 and see 9LIST STORI3S | KIM KIMBLE in mag.

LIVING WITH PURPOSE WITH BORIS KODJOE

As we begin to transition from summer to the fall, we've all been navigating this crazy year that continues to challenge us as we go about our days. For many, it has encouraged us to go beyond ourselves to live our best lives, bond with our families and to put a lot of good back into our world.

This month's cover is Boris Kodjoe, who we have enjoyed in Showtime's TV series Soul Food, CBS' Code Black, NETFLIX's House of Cards and on ABC's Station 19. We talked about how he came to acting, preparing to shoot the 4th season of this show. We also talk about how he has utilized his platform in order to provide masks for First Responders through his #HopeForHeroes initiative, focusing on social justice as well as inspiring everyone to get their physical and mental health aligned in order to be their most optimized selves.

ATHLEISURE MAG: We’ve been a fan of yours since Showtime’s Soul Food and seeing the interaction with the Josephs family and how they remind us of a number of our own family members and then other shows that are our favorites from CBS’ Code Black, Netflix’s House of Cards and now ABC’s Station 19, what was the moment that you realized that you wanted to be an actor?

BORIS KODJOE: You know, it was a process because I started going to acting class in my mid 20’s because I wanted to learn to be able to speak better English. Growing up in Germany and coming over here for college, I still wasn’t a very good English speaker. I could communicate but I had a very strong German accent. So in order to be able to speak better, a friend of mine suggested that I should go to acting class to show me how to enunciate and breathing techniques and stuff. That’s when I started going to class. Throughout auditing some classes and going through that and then being able to put up some scenes and stuff. I fell in love with it. It wasn’t a very traditional way to get into the business, but that’s my story.

AM: That’s a great story! At what point did you feel that you had made it as an actor? Was it a specific role, a show, an accolade or just the body of work that you had created?

BK: You know, I’m not sure what that is in terms of making it as an actor, right? I think that we have different objectives at different points in our careers and our lives really. It’s a journey and once you understand that, you can let go of some of the pressure that you put on yourself. Instead of focusing on the destination, you focus on enjoying the journey and I guess the moment that I realized that this was my way of making a living, was halfway through Soul Food. It’s when I realized, “ok, I am starting my career and this is what I am going to be doing." It’s a great feeling when you have an idea on which direction your journey is going to go. Even if it is just for a short moment in time. I’ve been lucky that I have been on this journey for 20 years now.

AM: Do you have a specific process when you’re deciding whether you’re going to take a role or a specific show? You take on so many characters that have such a depth to them. How do you decide what makes sense for you?

BK: You want to be able to relate to what the character is going through, We’re in a business where we get to work with so many talented people. I’ve learned so much with different actors, directors and producers so it’s a combination of the scripts, the production, who’s involved and also where I am in my life. I have 2 kids, I’m married, we live in Los Angeles and sometimes, I don’t want to spend 5 months in Bulgaria to shoot a movie in the winter, right? Because the kids need me around and I need to be around. In a case like that, I would say, “ok I am going to do a show here.” So it all depends on what the situation is at the time and what the script looks like.

AM: We enjoy seeing you as Captain Robert Sullivan on Station 19. What is it about the character that made you want to play him and what was it about the show that made you want to join that cast?

BK: It started with Shonda Rhimes. I have been a fan of hers for a very long time and I have always wanted to work with her and this was a great opportunity for me to be a part of Shondaland. Her and Krista Vernoff are changing the way that we watch TV. So that was the first reason and then the cast is family. They’re just beautiful, beautiful people that I have grown to love and just become close with. And then it’s fun to play a fire fighter. That’s something that I had wanted to do as a child. You know – that or being a cowboy or a train conductor haha. It was a childhood dream come true to be able to ride in these big trucks, put on the gear and be able to run around to be able to represent these real live heroes on the front lines. They’re risking their lives every single day for us – it’s an honor.

AM: This past season, we got to know a lot more about Robert as a person. We specifically remember when we watched the episode about ICE coming to raid the restaurant and looking at how impactful that scene was and your character was telling Pruitt Herrera (Miguel Sandoval) about why he felt compelled to intervene. Were there elements of your family history that were utilized in that scene and was that hard to play?

BK: Yes and no. Obviously, it’s a creative process so there were some fundamental building blocks that were taken from my real life. My maternal grandfather fought in the war in Germany and so he had a whole lot of stories that he told me when I was a really young kid that I remember. They obviously took creative license in order to make it applicable to the story and to create an analogy to what’s going on today. Which I thought that they did a great job with.

AM: Are there any nuggets that you can tell us about the upcoming season and when are you guys going back into production?

BK: We actually go into production this week!

AM: What!

BK: Yeah, they put a lot of safety measures in place in order to keep us safe and to keep everyone – the whole crew safe that is involved in the production. ABC and Disney, they have done a really good job in making sure that we are all safe and that we can do our jobs.

I have to speculate myself because I’m not sure what’s going to happen. All I can tell you is that clearly my character has been through a lot – getting married to Andi (Jaina Lee Ortiz), having the surgery to alleviate some of the chronic pain that he has been suffering through for years, the substance abuse that got him in trouble – so there are a lot of things that are at stake right now for Robert. In this new season, clearly we’re going to address all of that on top of this new world that we’re all living in – this COVID world. There’s also social justice and equality with the struggle that we’re in. Krista Vernoff, Shonda and everyone at Shondaland take pride in creating dialogue by way of storylines that are introduced that challenge people to confront some of the issues that we are dealing with. So I am certain that we will deal with some of them – the real life issues whether it’s the pandemic or the racial justice issues that we’re dealing with still and again. I’m sure that we will see some of these pop up in our scripts.

AM: We’re sure about that too. One of the things that we love about this show is the fact that there are these great crossover episodes with Grey’s Anatomy. How is it for you to be able to engage with that whole cast as well as to go into that portion of their audience as well? That must be such a fun thing that you are able to do a bit of a dual play there.

BK: You know, the Grey’s Anatomy family is a part of our family. We’re part of their family, they’re also tremendous human beings over there and they are super talented and super nice. Anytime we get to play with the other team, it’s always a lot of fun. Again, it’s an extended family so everybody is real close, we love each other and it’s a really great situation for us to be in.

AM: With COVID-19, it’s changing a lot of things that we would normally do. We’ve been preaching to our readers the importance of washing their hands, wearing face masks and social distancing. We first learned about GymWrap last year via our cover, WWE + E! Total Divas' Trinity Fatu/ Naomi who has been an ambassador for the brand. You have this amazing initiative with #HopeForHeroes. Can you tell us more about that and how GymWrap is involved as I know your wife, Nicole Ari Parker is the founder. How did it come together and what are you doing?

BK: Watching the news everyday in the beginning of March and realizing the devastating impact that this pandemic has had on this entire country and the entire world. Seeing how many people are struggling to put food on the table, losing their jobs and the essential workers and the first responders and all these people are putting their lives at risk and risking their safety every single day to keep us safe. They’re struggling without PPE and without appropriate gear to keep them safe, Nicole one day said, “hey, why don’t we manufacture masks? We have a great operation with great people that have been supporting us and have been working with us.” So we called the team together and said, “how quickly can we manufacture these masks?” Credit to our team, they did an amazing job to turn this around really fast and we were able to create the #HelpOurHeroes initiative. With this initiative, we have now shipped over half a million dollars worth of free masks for our heroes on the frontlines, essential w orkers and first responders. I’m so thankful for the support that we have gotten from our fans and from everybody that’s out there who has gotten together to support these initiatives and those who have bought these masks from us.

It’s the least that we can do. We’re in a fortunate position where we can support others or can lend a hand, I think that it is our responsibility to lead collectively and individually. We jumped right in. Again it was Nicole’s idea and the GymWrap team got together really quickly and hopefully we will be able to keep on doing this for a long time.

AM: It’s important while this is going on for everyone to come together and coalesce around this. While we have this pandemic going on, we also have the focus of social justice and the #BlackLivesMatter movement taking place as well. We enjoyed seeing on your Instagram that you have actually utilized your platform to have these videos to talk about deconstructing buzzwords and hot button issues. Why was that so important for you so that people can be aware and understand all of the different things that are surrounding this issue?

BK: Being Black and living in this country, I think it requires you to have a sense of awareness and it requires you to use whatever tools you have – voice or platform to support the movement. In order to support our struggle for equity, our struggle for equality, our struggle for social justice or equal housing, education, healthcare. Those should all be basic human rights granted to every single person who lives here and it hasn’t been that way in 400 years.

To me, it’s an inherent responsibility that POC, Black people carry that has to be expressed and voiced. That’s how we raise our children, we have these dialogues with these children every single day to equip them with knowledge to teach them about history – to make them understand how important it is for them to speak up and to be a part of the solution. I think we’re in a pivotal moment in history where the #BlackLivesMatter movement has touched every corner of the planet. We see more people than ever get on the streets and protest and voice their outrage about what has happened and not just with George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and countless others. The systemic racism that has been prevalent here for hundreds of years and has been put in place systematically and really mechanically to create this huge gigantic, generational wealth gap and inequality. I always try to see the silver lining and I think that the pandemic has helped us focus on these social justice and equality issues because in the past 6 months, when everything came to a standstill we were finally able to focus on this movement and not be distracted by other things.

That’s how I look at it. I think it’s important that we continue to mobilize and galvanize everybody out there to co-ordinate and make sure that we don’t just stand here and watch. I think it’s important that we formulate a real plan for action and that we appeal to our allies. Whether it’s corporations, organizations, communities and individuals, to state very clearly that it’s not enough not to be racist anymore. You have to be anti-racist. Because racism is not just the overt violence and the hatred that we see on TV. Racism is also ignorance. Racism is apathy. Racism is privilege. That’s all part of the system that has been put in place to systematically and continuously oppress Black people. It’s time for white people to join in and speak up and not look away because they’re not affected or they think that they’re not affected. People need to realize that with equality, with economic equity comes a stronger economy. So, this shouldn’t be a divisive issue movement. This movement should band us together in order to create a better country, a stronger country, an economically stronger country and a more equitable and equal country.

AM: We have the election coming up, do you plan on using that as well to make sure that people are registered to vote, the methods by which that they can do so and additional points that you will be speaking to?

BK: Absolutely! That’s where it starts. We have to mobilize and go out and vote. We have to fight for our right to be able to access polling stations and not fall into the trap of being discouraged to get out and vote. Every single vote counts. My wife and I have definitely supported the voting efforts. It’s so important and this election is the most important election that we have ever had. It’s crucial that we get this guy out of the White House as soon as possible.

AM: With all of these things that are going on as a parent, how difficult is it during these times to educate, protect and deal with all of these issues that have converged together at one time. We watch children who are involved from mask wearing, socialization, social justice etc. It must be a lot as a parent to have to navigate all of these things.

BK: It is a lot. The masks – the psychological effects of the pandemic, the social justice issues that are raging, not being able to see your friends, sitting in the house, being constricted, not having an outlet, not being able to go out and play basketball with your boys. Those are things that are going to affect children even as we’re going back to school now. There’s millions and millions of children now that don’t have the opportunity to engage online the way that they should because they don’t have the access to work wireless, they don’t have the devices, they don’t have parents present in the home because they have to work. It’s terrible – it’s really terrible and we are going to see children struggle for a long time because of these past 6 or 7 months. It’s sad. A so called super power, one of the top developed Western industrialized countries who are leading the world in technology and in science – arguably in the top 3 – isn’t able to appropriately support children in their schooling. It’s embarrassing. It’s embarrassing that the government hasn't done the necessary things to prevent almost 200K+ people from dying, to prevent over 5M people from being infected, to put testing in place for everybody as well as contact tracing. It’s absolutely embarrassing and disgusting. The effects are going to be felt for years and years to come and our children will have the burden and shoulder the weight of this year for the next 10 years. I’m really upset about it because it’s really so unnecessary.

AM: Wow it is.

One of the things that we looked up in preparing to talk with you today is the inaugural ESSENCE Full Circle Festival in Accra Ghana. We know a number of people that attended this event last year. What was the purpose of this event and why was it so important for you to be involved in it?

BK: It was important because first of all the president from Ghana, his excellency Nana Akufo-Addo he asked Bozoma Saint John and myself if we would host an event celebrating the Year of Return (Editors Note: The “Year of Return, Ghana 2019” was a major landmark spiritual and birth-right journey inviting the Global African family, home and abroad, to mark 400 years of the arrival of the first enslaved Africans in Jamestown, Virginia which affected the kith and kin that were forcefully taken from Africa. This event celebrated the cumulative resilience of all the victims of the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade who were scattered and displaced through the world in North America, South America, the Caribbean, Europe and Asia.) which was obviously in 2019. Of course we agreed, Bozoma was born in Ghana and my father is from Ghana. I have a very close relationship with the country and with my family there. We started working on Full Circle Festival as a celebration of our ancestry and our collective accomplishments looking back 400 years since the beginning of the slave trade. Traditionally, Western media has changed the picture of Africa that is disgraceful. That it’s a place and continent of war, corruption, poverty, hunger and starvation and this is just not true. We wanted to change that narrative and show people that Africa first of all is not a country, that Africa has the youngest population in the world of any other continent and that Africa also has 3 of the fastest growing economies in the world. Their technology and manufacturing is thriving in Africa. There’s amazing economic development opportunity on the continent. We come with a great culture and diversity with languages, food, music and beautiful locations. Not just for tourism, but like I said, for engaging in business.

The world’s reaction to what we did was tremendous. I had no idea that we would start this title wave and we ended up being able to contribute to adding $1.9B to the Ghanian economy in 1 year just by way of Year of Return. The increased interest and excitement of not just Ghana but Africa as a whole. It’s important for African Americans or any other members of the diaspora to understand that a lot of the issues or most of the issues that we’re dealing with here are directly related to the fact that we don’t know our history.

We don’t know where we came from. To reconnect with our ancestry and our heritage – our culture also means that we are reconnecting with our source. We’re reconnecting with our strength. We’re reconnecting with our power. We’re reconnecting with our beauty and our diversity. That redefines how we see ourselves and it redefines how we see our future and where we’re going with our future. It’s a tremendously important movement to create a bridge to our diaspora and the continent for more and more people to visit and to experience and to engage with the continent.

AM: I know that you have done 2 events there already, do you foresee doing other types of this nature obviously as things settle themselves down in terms of travel etc.

BK: Absolutely – we’re not going to stop. After Full Circle Festival started 2 years ago, other African countries started inquiring about having similar events and bringing more people. It’s a proud and humbling thing to be able to contribute to more and more people experiencing the continent.

AM: You’re known for being in really great shape and we enjoy finding out about workouts that you do that we should include in our own routines. Do you have workouts that you can share?

BK: I think that rather than focusing on specific exercises, it’s important to understand that you can be healthier, stronger and happier if you start including some healthy habits into your life. It doesn’t mean that you have to go into the gym for an hour and a half every day. All that means is that you commit to doing something each day to start adding some healthy habits to your day. That could be sitting for 5 minutes in total stillness and observing your breathing when you get up, meditate, doing easy and simple exercises for 5 or 10 minutes a day. Whether it’s squats or sit-ups or pushups – whatever you can do. You’ve got to start where you are. Oftentimes, we’re discouraged when we look at exercise videos and all of this advice that’s out there because we’re not there yet. Or it may not be the level that we’re able to obtain with the 6-packs and the gladiator physiques and it’s just not real for us because we have a job, responsibilities, bills to pay and kids to raise. We don’t have time to spend on ourselves for an hour and a half a day.

So with KoFit, we’re trying to show people that all it takes is 5 or 10 minutes a day to start moving and changing your life in a different direction. That’s what it’s all about. We do it as a family because it is more fun and it’s more sustainable.

AM: It’s fun to see that whole dynamic in there with KoFit. Why is health and wellness so important to you individually as well as to your family as a whole? AthleisureMag.

BK: Health and wellness is important because it goes hand in hand with your mental and your spiritual right? If you want to optimize your potential as a person, you can’t leave out your body. The body is where your emotions live and your physical dictates how you feel. If you are morbidly obese and struggling with conditions like heart disease and onset diabetes, you can’t fully enjoy your life and it’s just a fact. A lot of these issues we’re dealing with on a health level are avoidable. It’s important to claim your power by way of taking care of your body because your body is taking care of you. You have been blessed with your physical being, why not take care of it? The physical, the mental and the spiritual goes together. If one is lacking, you can never hope to maximize your potential.

AM: How do you take time for yourself as well as to focus on your coupleship with Nicole? It’s great to see you guys do projects and philanthropy together. How do you make sure that you guys are staying connected and that you take the time that you need to take care of yourself?

BK: You have to make it a priority and you have commit to each other and make sure that you are present, attentive and that you take care of each other and family comes first. There are struggles and you have to put in that effort and work. Sometimes there’s miscommunication and we go through our own things and go through patterns of things that we have had since we were kids that rear their ugly heads when we’re adults. We have to then confront those things and then talk, and talk some more and then some more. It’s a process – a journey. I think that you have to be able to give each other the space to make mistakes and not run for the hills. That’s the key.

AM: That’s true.

BK: Yeah, a lot of people when they see a little bit of a challenge, they run. So I think that’s one of the things that we really believe in that – I’m going to mess up, you’re going to mess up let’s give each other the space to grow, evolve and make mistakes. We all have flaws and great qualities like everyone else.

AM: Are there projects coming up that we should keep an eye out for that you’re working on?

BK: We’re going to really dive into KoFit the next couple of months because there’s no gyms open and even if, people are hesitant to go out and pay all of this money for gym memberships. We want to give people tools to stay healthy and happy at home. That’s not just working out, it’s mindfulness, breath work, meditation, yoga – things that as a culture we haven’t traditionally believed in but it is an important part of us being healthy and strong. We’re going to dive into that – my brother, his wife, Nicole and the kids to show people how easy it is to start creating some of these habits.

Then I’ll start working on Station 19 which will take me from all the way to May. We’re going to shoot from this week to May. It’s going to keep me busy for the next 9 months. I’m also working with the 2% Initiative that Robert Smith has introduced recently. It allows us to create pathways for big organizations and corporations of Fortune 100 companies to support Black communities across various sectors whether it’s banking, education, social justice, media, entertainment to start making some headway in reducing the generational wealth gap.

AM: What do you want your legacy to be?

BK: The most important part of my legacy is my kids. Those are 2 human beings that I raised and will be here long after I am gone. Hopefully, I have raised them in a way that has allowed them to find their purpose to be kind, empathetic, considerate and treat people with respect and love. Then I want to be known as some body who tried his best, learned from his mistakes and has hopefully touched a few people.

AM: We like talking to our changemakers as they inspire people and they are doing amazing things inside and outside of their verticals and communities. Who are 3 people that you have been inspired by that have assisted you where you are today?

BK: There are so many people – wow. I’ve always been inspired by great writers. Ta Nehisi Coates he’s a trailblazer, an activist that I really admire and respect. Right now, these are some of the people that I think are really important to the movement. Nikole Hannah Jones who started the 1619 Project with the New York Times. She’s somebody I admire and look up to. I admire some of the NBA players that are outspoken like LeBron and Chris Paul and people who are actively using their huge gigantic platform for change with police reform, social justice – I really admire these guys who are really outspoken right now.

IG @BorisKodjoe

PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS | FRONT + BACK COVER, PG 16, 38, 42 + 44 Brandon Bobbins | FRONT + BACK COVER, PG 16, 38 + 42 Editorial Design by Athleisure Mag | PG 18 - 37 + 40 ABC Network Stills, Promo and BTS |

Hear activist, philanthropist and Station 19's, Boris Kodjoe on our show, #TRIBEGOALS - which is a part of Athleisure Studio, our multi-media podcast network! Make sure to subscribe to find out when the episode drops. You can hear it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and wherever you enjoy listening to your favorite podcast.

Read the Aug Issue of Athleisure Mag #56 and see Living with Purpose with Boris Kodjoe in mag.

FINDING THE THROUGH LINE WITH JAMIE GRAY HYDER

We can't tell you how many times we've enjoyed watching NBC's Law & Order marathons whether it's the flagship program, Criminal Intent or SVU. We love our fair share of True Crime and the squad members that we get to know each season. When Law & Order: SVU came back last fall, its 21st season (they have now been renewed for an additional 3 seasons), marking it as the longest running drama series in history. Along with more stories ripped from the headlines, advocating for victims and getting to know many of our faves, Jamie Gray Hyder joined the cast as Officer Katriona "Kat" Azar Tamin who is learning the ropes, coming in with her style of tracking criminals and learning how to grow with her squad.

This month's shoot for our 50th issue showcases a number of pre-Spring looks worn by Jamie Gray Hyder who is known for her voice acting work in the Call of Duty video games, HBO's True Blood and a number of other projects. We took some time to find out more about how she got into the entertainment industry, how she prepares for her roles as well as how it is to be in this acclaimed and iconic show!

ATHLEISURE MAG: We’ve been fans of yours since you’ve been on HBO’s True Blood, a number of our readers play video games and have enjoyed your voice acting on them. Can you tell us how you got into the entertainment industry?

JAMIE GRAY HYDER: I’ve been acting since I was a kid. I’ve been a classically trained vocalist since I was really young. I have always been performing and then when I got into college and studying straight acting and kind of left the musical theater world, that’s when I sort of honed in on film and television and working on screens. So after college, I moved out to LA to try to get it going.

AM: What have been some of the shows that readers have seen you in prior to NBC’s Law & Order SVU?

JGH: My first sort of big break was on True Blood. They initially hired me to do a smaller part for 2 episodes and we all worked together really well and they liked the character. So I ended up staying for 2 seasons. For me, that was a huge learning experience and a huge validating experience. To work with HBO as my first home is something that I am really grateful for.

AM: You are so extremely versatile. We’ve enjoyed seeing you in a number of ways such as David Guetta’s music videos. How do you prepare yourself for all of these different types of opportunities?

JGH: You sort of have to find the through-line in what you bring to each one and for me that came down to getting comfortable with what I already bring to the table. Self-awareness is really important because that’s going to be the thread that binds it no matter whether you’re doing video games, television or music videos. If you’re not comfortable with yourself and comfortable with sort of what you provide on naturally, then you’re not really going to know where to go from there.

For me, becoming more comfortable with myself and increasing my self-awareness was a tool that I think has helped me through all of the different mediums.

AM: So Law & Order as a franchise, we can’t tell you how many hours a week that we have enjoyed watching it. It’s something we love watching whether it’s Law & Order, Criminal Intent or SVU. How did you get the call that you are joining the cast?

JGH: Initially, they brought me on to do a few episodes as a guest star and we were going to feel out her role as a regular. Then when they decided to keep me and called me, I lost it and I started crying. I couldn’t believe it because not only am I a part of such a legendary show, but such a historic season. So I get all the weight that comes with that even though this is my first season. So to be tied into such a monumental achievement for the show has been something that has is very rare and something that I am really grateful for.

AM: Tell us who is Officer Katriona “Kat” Azar Tamin?

JGH: Officer Kat and Jamie actually have a lot in common when it comes to being driven and sometimes stubborn and independent. Kat is more reserved when it comes to, I think, her personality, but when it comes to the way she approaches her work and fighting for these victims, she really leads with her heart. I think you’ll see her attempting to create more of a balance between her head and her heart as we continue on. Right now, she is still a little bit rough around the edges kind of learning how to conduct herself in this new world and this new set of rules and structure. While she is a little bit out of line here and there, I think that as she grows and becomes more comfortable with her role in the squad room I think you’ll see her settle in a little bit better.

AM: What is it like working with this amazing cast of characters and people such as Ice-T and Mariska Hargitay. What is that like as we have a number of Law & Order fans who would love to know.

JGH: I learned so much from them both professionally and personally every day. Ice has sort of had my back very much so from the beginning just like Finn has had Kat’s back from the beginning. He and I connected instantly over my work in the music industry. My side job in LA was working at a recording studio called Record Plant. So I worked there for 4 years and dealt with a lot of the same people and personality types and scenarios that Ice has kind of grown up in. So we shared a lot of those kinds of experiences. With Mariska, it’s sort of a daily lesson in how to lead and how to inspire and motivate people. All of my castmates have families and they all have children. They all come in and focus and bring a fresh energy every single day. That’s easy for me as a new person, but thinking into working on something for 5-10-20 years, you might get jaded. Every single one of my castmates comes in fresh daily which is something that I find super impressive.

AM: You guys cover a lot of really heavy topics. In terms of preparing, as your episodes are inspired by cases that took place in real life, and I’m sure there is a lot of work in terms of understanding the victim, how you would play the role, how it would be like for them to come to you etc. How do you take that on as it seems like that would take a lot to be in those positions?

JGH: Before we do each episode, we are sent a whole research packet that has a bunch of news articles and things that all deals with the scenario that we are dealing with on the show. While we don’t necessarily represent certain people or events, often times we are pulling from the news and real people. For me, it’s very much a motivating factor. You have to put aside whatever you’re dealing with personally and really give value to what you are doing because there are real people dealing with these types of issues in their real lives. While we have to keep it light on set as much as we can because we are dealing with heavy material every single day. I think that approaching it with a little bit of reverence is the way that we all really justify what we are doing and just knowing that there are real people out there that are being positively impacted by our show is something that is never lost on us.

AM: So you guys are currently filming season 21 right now. What is a week like when you’re balancing between filming for the show and then what do you do when you’re not on set?

JGH: I chill in my apartment a lot. Because we can work long hours. Some days are shorter than others. We typically shoot 5 days out of the week, 10 months out of the year. It’s a 9-5 and you really have to think of your dressing room as your office and your trailer as your office and take that down time and be productive with it. It can be grueling, but you just remind yourself how lucky you are to be in this position every day and that helps get you through it. When I get home, I just like to hang, and chill and cook and watch movies. I’m happy to be in NY and I have a lot of exploring to do.

AM: What do you do while you’re here – where could we see you working out, going shopping or grabbing a bite?

JGH: I love Japanese food so I am always trying out a new Japanese restaurant. As far as working out, I work out at a fight gym.

AM: So the recent episode you were in, we saw you boxing - that was not something new for you?

JGH: No, that was kind of inspired by my routine already and they said we want to incorporate that and they had a storyline that they had been working on and so it all worked together. So a few days a week, I’m over at Gotham Gym. I work with trainers there. My preferred method of workout is technique and fight training and that’s what I do a few times a week.

AM: With summer coming up and people wanting to look fit and their best, what are 3 boxing moves that people should put into their routines?

JGH: Something super simple that anyone can do at home and you don’t need to pay a lot of money to do it and you don’t have to have people tell you to do it is jumping rope.

AM: Ugh we’re not a fan, but it’s so good for you so we power through it.

JGH: When I first started, I said oh my God, I’m so shitty at this. But then you keep going and just doing 3 minutes before getting into my workout every day – it gets your co-ordination in check, it gets your rhythm in check. For me, it kind of wakes me up. So this is something that anyone can do and benefit from.

AM: So you love to cook, what are 3 things that we can see you cooking?

JGH: I like projects. So I will typically pick a cuisine and say, “what about Korean? I love the Korean Cheong Soups how can I make one at home?” I really enjoy cooking projects that involve going to specialty grocery stores whether it’s a Korean grocery store, a Japanese grocery store, an Indian grocery store – I kind of like exploring new ingredients. I will pick something that feels foreign to me to learn about different foods but then you get to know more about different cultures that way at the same time.

AM: What are philanthropies, charities or platforms that you like to give your time to and support as well as to draw awareness to?

JGH: I work a lot supporting the Armed Forces and Veterans causes that’s really important to me. I specifically work with organizations that help to aid the transition to active duty and civilian life. Some of those include the Student Veterans of America. They are an organization that has liaisons at over 1,500 campuses across the country that help newly, people who are newly coming out of the service and want to get their Bachelors degree. They’re older and have a full life that they have to work around so they have an organization that helps to get around those hurdles to make achieving a higher education easier for those that are coming out of service. When I worked at Call of Duty, I worked with the Call of Duty Endowment which helps place veterans at high paying full-time jobs and in addition to veterans, I work a lot with mental health organizations such as the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) and I work a lot with Cannabis Reform. So those are my 3 major things and they often overlap in a lot of ways as well.

AM: That’s inspiring. What are acting projects that you could imagine doing and would like to have offered to you that are on your bucket list?

JGH: For me, it comes down to the types of work. I love being physical and that’s one of the things that I love about the episode on SVU. I loved being able to be physical, to fight and to do stunt work and getting into it that way. Any job that really requires me to by physical or learn a new skill. Working in other languages and accents and things like that is something that also appeals to me. I also really love animation because you get to voice characters that you would never get to play on screen and it allows you to sort of stretch that muscle a little more.

AM: With the summer coming up, do you have any place you’re going or somewhere on your bucket list to go to?

JGH: Loving Japanese food the way that I do, I love traveling to Japan. I have been once before and so my fiancé and I are doing a honeymoon of sorts and going back to Japan to have a retreat - a relaxing week in some of the onsen towns that’s more nature based places. It would probably be in Northern Japan. That would be the next big trip.

AM: When you’re flying, what are 3 things that you like to have in your carry-on that make traveling more comfortable?

JGH: Snacks – I always like having those. I usually like to have an oil or lotion which keeps your hands from getting dry. I also like to bring my essential oils like lavender or peppermint and to put it behind my ears. It doesn’t disturb anyone else but it keeps me in my own cocoon of sorts and it keeps me in my comfort in that way.

IG @JGHyder

We shot our 50th cover at the Dream Downtown Hotel within TAO Group Hospitality's PHD Rooftop Lounge and at the Winter Rose Garden Lobby Bar. These areas are just a couple of properties available at this destination that vacationers, those traveling for business and those who are enjoying a staycation can enjoy when visiting. We wanted to find out more about them as well as what you can look forward to as we transition to the Spring and the Summer.

ATHLEISURE MAG: Before we delve into the specific spaces we shot in, please tell us about Tao Group Hospitality as we find these restaurants, nightclubs and day clubs are global multisensory experiences.

TAO GROUP HOSPITALITY: Tao Group Hospitality is a leading restaurant and nightlife company that develops, owns and operates many of the worlds most recognized restaurant and entertainment venues under various brands including but not limited to Tao, Marquee, Avenue, Lavo, Beauty & Essex, Vandal, The Highlight Room, Luchini and Koma in major markets across the world. Tao Group Hospitality’s corporate headquarters is located in New York City, with locally-based managing partners and a full-time marketing and operations staff in every other market.

AM: What cities are Tao Group Hospitality properties located in?

TGH: New York City, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Singapore, and Sydney.

AM: Are there new properties that we should keep an eye out for in 2020 for Tao Group Hospitality?

TGH: Top secret – stay tuned!

AM: The Lobby Bar is a fun space and for the winter, you have it themed as the Winter Rose Garden. What was the thought behind this installation, and will there be additional themes for this this year?

TGH: The Winter Rose Garden is complete with a bar & wall made out of 15,000 red roses complete with red accent furniture, candles, and rose-infused cocktails. Food and beverage offerings at The Winter Rose Garden include the Crispy Truffle Mac & Cheese Balls and the Primrose Cider cocktail with a side of rose-infused ice cubes. This magical rouge oasis at Dream Downtown was designed to cure a bad case of the winter blues and will be activated for a limited time only so stop in today!

AM: Are there 3 signature cocktails and dishes in this bar that guests should enjoy while in this space?

TGH: Blanc de Blanc ($19) – Ciroc Coconut, Creme de Cacao, Amaretto, Almond Milk, Almond Milk Foam, Shaved Chocolate; Lavender Dreams ($18) – Don Julio Blanco, Lemon, Pea Flower Tea, Simple Syrup, Egg White and Primrose Cider ($18) – Barking Irons Applejack, Cinnamon Syrup, Lemon Juice, Sparkling Rosé, Rose Ice Cube.

AM: We have spent a number of nights, NYFW events and more at PHD Rooftop Lounge. When did this space open and what is the vibe of this penthouse space?

TGH: Having opened in June 2011, PHD Rooftop Lounge continues to be the ultimate penthouse, featuring timeless and luxurious finishes. With an exquisite panoramic Manhattan skyline view that includes direct lines of site to the Hudson River and Empire State Building, guests come to relax on custom-built Italian leather banquettes with marble tables, and cozy seating niches located on the outdoor terrace.

AM: What are 3 signature cocktails and dishes that we should enjoy when being here?

TGH: Dream Girl ($19) – Bacardi Limon, Cointreau, Raspberry; Strawberry Fields ($19) – Don Juilo Blanco, Fresh Strawberry, Basil and Ginger Towers ($19) – Ketel One, Fresh Ginger, Mint, Ginger Beer.

AM: What kinds of events are held at PHD Rooftop and as we head into the Spring and the Summer, what events should we mark on our calendar?

TGH: TBD! Follow us at @PHDRooftopNY to stay up to date with things fun for Spring / Summer 2020!

AM: Tao Group Hospitality has additional spaces within Dream Hotel Downtown, please share those with a little information about these as well as upcoming Spring/Summer events?

TGH: Join us every Monday night at Meatpacking hotspot, Bodega Negra, for the weekly themed dinner party – Loco Mondays. Amidst the intimate and moodily-lit “Tudor Hacienda” decor, watch as performers kick off the evening of vibe dining with music from DJ Select, followed by tabletop performances from a rotating line-up of mesmerizing acts such as burlesque dancers and fire-breathers. Enjoy menu offerings from Corporate Executive Chef Brad Warner with small plates such as fresh ceviche, tacos and generously proportioned dishes like Shrimp Alambre and Enchiladas, complimented by a selection of handcrafted mezcal and tequila cocktails; followed by the famous Don Huevo dessert from Corporate Pastry Chef Paola Marocchi. The perfect spot to host your birthday, visiting friends or simply just a way to turn your Monday around, this is a party you do not want to miss.

Located on the lower level of Dream Downtown in New York City’s Meatpacking District, The Electric Room is the perfect spot for late-night dancing and after-dinner drinks. The intimate room accommodates approximately 100 people and features a full bar servicing high-end spirits and specialty cocktails. The room provides a distinct cool Britannia feel with sofas featuring the Union Jack Flag and custom back-painted antique mirrors by artist Chris Stain that adorn the banquette wall. Relax among photography and artwork by Sante D’Orazio and Marilyn Minter, while two gothic-inspired chandeliers provide intimate lighting for a curated, one-of-a-kind experience.

Escape to The Beach at Dream Downtown, the outdoor/indoor restaurant located at Dream Downtown hotel in Meatpacking District. Spanning 5,000 square feet, The Beach includes a glass-bottom pool, full-service bar, pool deck, sand beach, two private cabanas, and over 50 chaise lounges. The café located adjacent to the pool features a casual all-day menu created by Corporate Executive Chef Brad Warner with highlights such as The Beach Burger and Baja Fish Tacos, which pairs perfectly with a seasonal cocktail menu. As one of New York City’s most beloved Summer staples, The Beach features a pergola filled with lush greenery, hanging lamps, lattice chairs, overhead twinkling mason jars, and oversized plant walls all surrounding the pool area and is open during the Summer season only.

IG @DreamDowntown

@TaoGroup

@PHDRooftopNY

@DreamBeachNYC

@BodegaNegra

PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS

Athleisure Mag's cover story was shot by Co-Founder/Celeb Photographer Paul Farkas, using Canon Mark IV; and selected Canon lenses: EF 50 f/1.2 L, EF 24-70 f/2.8 L II, and EF 70-200 f/2.8 L II.

IG @PVFarkas

STYLE, MAKEUP & HAIR CREDITS

Athleisure Mag's Celeb Fashion Stylist, Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director Kimmie Smith, MUA Jessica Bonilla and Hairstylist Lea DeLoy share how Jamie Gray Hyder's look was created for the cover editorial.

LOOK I | FITNESS STYLE

PG 24-29 | ULTRACOR Aster Luna Bra, Aster Legging and Aster Polaris Zip Up Hoodie |

SKINCARE | PONDS Dry Skin Cream | GLOSSIER Coconut Skin Balm | GIOVANNI Refreshing Rose Water and Aloe Mist | MILK MAKEUP Hydro Grip Primer |

FOUNDATION | L'OREAL Infallible Foundation Shade 475 | RIMMEL LONDON Concealer Shade Buff | L'OREAL True Match Powder Shade W2 + W4 for the center of the face; W7 for the perimeter of the face | FENTY BEAUTY Sun Stalk'r Shady Biz Bronzer |

BLUSH | MILANI Luminoso |

HIGHLIGHT | JOUER Skinny Dip |

EYES | ANASTASIA BEVERLY HILLS X AMREZY Eyeshadow Palette using Shade OG on the eyes | MAYBELLINE Lash Sensational Mascara |

LIPS | FENTY BEAUTY Gloss Bomb |

HAIR | Added THEURGY Gypsy Soul Styling Lotion throughout dry hair to maintain control of the hair and creating smooth hair before creating two inverted French Braids | Pulled out a few wispy pieces for an undone effect |

LOOK II | RELAXED STYLE

PG 16-22 | PARADISED Kelsey Jumpsuit in Vanilla | LAGOS Blue Caviar Beaded Bracelet x 2 | ATHLETIC PROPULSION LABS Women's TechLoom Bliss in Rose Dust/Nude | NAVAL SURFACE AND MINE WARFIGHTING DEVELOPMENT CENTER Hat |

EYES | ANASTASIA BEVERLY HILLS X AMREZY Eyeshadow Palette using Shade OG, New Yawker and Yugo was added on the Lash Line | ARDELL Trio Lashes applied |

LIPS | COVERGIRL Sienna Lipstick |

HAIR | This look showcased soft beachy waves | Sprayed in THEURGY Out of Body throughout dry hair for hold and heat protection | The wrap curled throughout curling curling everything away from the face | Finished with THEURGY Shape Shift for added extra root lift and sexy, messy texture |

LOOK III | OUT & ABOUT STYLE

FRONT COVER, PG 30 - 34 | THE FOLD Seville Coat Multicoloured Wool | OLIVIA VON HALLE Bella Jet Black Silk Camisole | MAVI JEANS Adriana Mid Rise Super Skinny in Black Denim | UNO DE 50 A Tickle with a Feather Necklace | MLB WASHINGTON NATIONALS World Series Hat |

LIPS | The lip was changed to DOSE OF COLORS More Creamer Please |

HAIR | Previously for the 2nd look, the hair was curled | For this look, the hair was pinned back on the sides | The hair was finished with a light mist of THEURGY Retrograde Hairspray workable spray |

LOOK IV | SPRING NIGHT'S GLAM STYLE

BACK COVER PG 36 - 39 | OLIVIA VON HALLE Capability Nika Full Length Robe | LUNYA Washable Silk Slip Dress in Deep Night | LAGOS KSL Cuff Bracelet | VIRGINS, SAINTS & ANGELS San Benito Crystal Magdalena in Blue Velvet |

EYES | BK on the lash line

LIPS | MILANI Red Lipstick in Kiss Matte Necklace |

HAIR | Hair was pulled up into a “Done/ Undone” top knot pulling out pieces from all around the hairline for soft texture |

IG @Shes.Kimmie

@Laniidoa_Cosmetics

@HairByLeaDeLoy

Read the Feb Issue of Athleisure Mag and see Finding the Through Line with Jamie Gray Hyder in mag.

WHEN WOMEN SUPPORT ONE ANOTHER WITH WHITNEY PORT

One of our faves that we enjoy chatting with is Whitney Port. In addition to being someone that is positive, continues to grow her business interests and more, she truly enjoys reaching out to women and ensuring that they are connected with those that can assist them in their journey. We catch up with Whitney right before she starts filming for the second season of MTV's The Hills: New Beginnings. We talk with her about her upcoming projects, balancing her busy life as well as taking time for herself.

ATHLEISURE MAG: We talked to you last fall and touched on The Hills: New Beginnings and how we loved seeing you back on that show again! What can you tell us about the second season?

WHITNEY PORT: We haven’t started filming yet but I am eager to start back up and connect with everyone again! The show will dive deeper into our lives as parents and our relationships with each other.

AM: We have also become fans of your podcast and love how you share people that you are a fan of or talking with your husband to get to know more about you. Who are some upcoming guests that we should get excited about hearing?

WP: Well, last week I put out one of my favorite episodes ever! It was with BJ Fogg, a professor at Stanford. We talked all about how we can train our brains to be happier and more fulfilled by learning small habits to incorporate into our daily lives. We will also be having some fun peeps on soon like Kaitlyn Bristowe and Rosie Huntington Whiteley.

AM: Tell us about your partnership with Chloe Wine and Dress for Success?

WP: I’ve teamed up with Chloe Wine Collection to raise a glass to hardworking women everywhere this International Women’s Day. Together, we’re also raising awareness for ‘Your Hour Her Power,’ Dress for Success’ signature giving campaign, which encourages supporters to donate one hour of their pay to help women reach their full potential. I recently stopped by the Dress for Success LA boutique to style some of their clients in preparation for upcoming job interviews.

AM: Why does this partnership mean so much to you?

WP: As a business owner, I know how the right outfit can arm you with the confidence and charisma to make a great first impression, and how important it is to have a network of support cheering you on. I wouldn’t be where I am without the strong women in my life, so I’m proud to join Chloe Wine Collection in paying it forward.

AM: Many women are looking to live their best whether it’s starting a new business, delving into their communities and networks or just changing it up to go to a new city. What are your tips for women to optimize themselves through networking, putting their best foot forward as well as to establish themselves in a new city?

WP: Take advantage of social media apps like Bumble Bizz, Meetup and Facebook groups to make connections with likeminded women in industries you are interested in. Keep your eyes peeled for networking events or other fun after-work activities and make it a goal to go to at least one per week. If you work in a big office, send out an all-company slack message to see if anyone is free to grab lunch or a happy hour. It might sound intimidating to put yourself out there, but people are more willing to help than you think!

AM: How do you balance the needs of being a woman with a career, being present as a wife and being a mom?

WP: It’s definitely a challenge but I try to be ok with the imbalance as opposed to striving for perfect balance because that is just not very attainable. Some days may be very work heavy and there’s little time for Sonny or some days may be ALL about Sonny and my inbox might be flooded. It is all about being ok with this, being present in the moment you are in and almost most importantly, making sure your needs are being fulfilled so you can be present for your family and your career. For instance, to feel like a whole human, I need to work out a couple times a week so I make this a priority. It is ok to have needs. I make a working to-do list in a google doc and make sure my needs being met is something scheduled in.

AM: How do you support and motivate the women in your life?

WP: I try to always lend an ear when someone is in need. I try to listen without judgment and not just give advice. I try to hear where they are coming from and work through situations as opposed to just telling them what has worked for me. It is also important just to send random messages or quotes or words of inspiration to those you know need it! But really, just make it known that you are always there to work through tough situations.

AM: What are your 3 go-to power foods that you enjoy to keep your energy up when you’re constantly on the go?

WP: Sunflower seeds, almonds or pumpkin seeds, the Tranquility Smoothie from Kreation, and if I am running out the door but haven’t eaten I will toast some sourdough and slather on some peanut butter for a snack in the car!

IG @WhitneyEvePort

Read the Feb Issue of Athleisure Mag and see When Women Support One Another with Whitney Port in mag.

BACK TO THE HILLS WITH WHITNEY PORT

This summer, many of us enjoyed seeing The Hills: New Beginnings which brought back our favorite reality stars from The Hills as well as new castmembers to continue this MTV classic. One of our faves that we have interviewed previously on Athleisure Mag is back on the show, Whitney Port. We wanted to know more about her decision to bring her personal life back to the screen, projects she's working on and how she continues to lead a normal and full life even when a migraine hits!

ATHLEISURE MAG: Like many, we were glad to see you in the reboot of MTV The Hills Beginnings. We were fans of the original and loved you on this current season. What was it like for you to come back and what was your decision to do so?

WHITNEY PORT: I honestly wasn’t so sure about it at first. I was nervous to come back and to put my life and everything going on with my family back on TV. Then I just thought, it sounds fun, I’m in a good place with everybody and why not reconnect and give people something that’s nostalgic and something that they enjoyed watching. I do think that I had some nervousness about not knowing what people were going to be like or to start – you never know with Reality TV people. Are they just going to start drama out of nowhere? You have to be nervous and you have to have your guard up a little bit. But ultimately, I felt that the show was a huge part of my life and that it was a platform that allowed me to do everything that I do now so I thought, “why not?”

AM: Well it was so fun to see you again and are there other projects that you have going on that we should keep an eye out for?

WP: Yes for sure! Today, I’m talking about Excedrin Migraine – not that it’s a project, but this condition is something that I have suffered with for quite awhile. I feel that it’s my duty to talk about Excedrin because it’s the one thing that I can do to make them go away so that I can be present and can take care of all the things that I want to do and am passionate about, you know? It can be hard, especially as a mom, when you’re hit by one. Recording my podcast or my collection with Rent the Runway coming out in April – so there all these exciting things that I want to do that are dreams, goals and passions and keeping myself healthy and that I’m migraine free is really important to me.

AM: There are a lot of people that suffer with them. Do you have certain kinds of triggers that kick in with you that you know that it’s going to happen? What makes a migraine so different then a regular headache?

WP: I mean a migraine is all consuming. I start to not be able to see straight, I get sweaty palms, a lack of energy, I just get a pounding pain in my head and when these things start to happen – I know it’s coming. If I can drink a full glass of water, take my Excedrin and get a little protein in me those are usually the things that help them to go away before it gets to a place where I just can’t handle it.

AM: Why did you decide to partner with Excedrin and why is it so good for migraine conditions?

WP: I decided to partner because it’s what I was taking. I talk about my migraine issues on my podcast and on my social. I would talk about Excedrin and that it was something that helped. Naturally, they reached out and said that they wanted to work together because they saw that it was something that was a part of my life in a big way. In terms of what is in it – I’m not a doctor. But I know that what is in there with its ingredients that when it comes together it’s combined strength allows me to function!

AM: In terms of your partnership with Excedrin, what does your partnership look like with them whether they are things on your social, events etc?

WP: You can read my blog post on WhitneyPort.com to find out how I use it and how other people should use it as well.

AM: As someone who is so busy, as a mom, wife, entrepreneur and Reality Star, what are 3 things that you like to do to take time for yourself?

WP: A couple of things I do for myself are: I take a hot yoga class. It changes my whole mood and it’s an hour to myself where I am sweating out so much – I’m energized and I’m ready to get back to the grind on my career as well as being a mom! I am a huge proponent of massages! I know that they are a luxury, but I use the App Soothe which comes to your house. Once I put Sonny down for the night, I will order a massage and it’s pretty affordable and I don’t have to leave the house and can do it while Sonny is sleeping. You can tell the therapist that you have a migraine issue and they can work on certain areas to help like around the jaw, head or neck. Then, another thing is just trying my best to fill my body with things that are going to be good fuel for it instead of just empty calories. I drink these really good smoothies from Kreation that have turmeric, Kreation Juice, coconut and all of these good anti-inflammatory type things. I try not to eat a lot of processed sugar and I try to have a healthy dose of greens everyday and definitely meat, protein etc. My husband in the morning before my yoga will scramble me 2 eggs with a little grated cheddar in there for some extra protein. I think that physical activity, something luxurious and feeding your body with good stuff will set you up for success. Also taking time to just listen to good music and taking some deep breaths can make a big difference. A lot of us have a commute whether it’s in cars or buses – putting in my earpods, listening to some calming music and taking some deep breaths can really ground me and put me back into a present mind space.

IG @WhitneyPort

Read the Nov Issue of Athleisure Mag and see Back to the Hills with Whitney Port in mag.

S1. E6 | BUNGALOW SK WITH KIMBERLY FRIEDMUTTER

On today's episode of Bungalow SK, we delve into the power of the subconscious, going with your gut and leaning into your intuition! We sit down with Celebrity Hypnotherapist to a number of celebs, athletes and CEO's Kimberly Friedmutter. We find out how this skill can assist us through all aspects of our lives, how we're able to enhance this ability and using a checklist to ensure that we are optimizing it as well. Kimberly shares all of this, talks about her new book Subconscious Power: Use Your Inner Mind to Create the Life You've Always Wanted which is out now and loops us in on where she loves hanging out in Las Vegas as well as in Malibu!

Thanks for joining us for today’s episode of Bungalow SK. Make sure to follow, rate and review us on Apple Podcast. You can also follow and listen on additional podcast platforms including – Spotify, iHeart Radio, Google Play, Himalaya, Soundcloud and Stitcher Premium. Bungalow SK is a member of the multimedia podcast network, Athleisure Studio, part of Athleisure Media and Athleisure Mag. You can see our show notes at AthleisureStudio.com/Bungalow-SK and follow us on Instagram at @Bungalow.SK to find out who we’re talking with as well as what our guests are up to. Bungalow SK is executive produced by myself and Paul Farkas with sound editing by the Athleisure Studio team. Our music is courtesy of Icons8, with FOREVERT performing Renaissance. Our ad segment's music is EQUALS performed by Dural. I’m your host Kimmie Smith and I’ll see you next week at Bungalow SK.

9LIST STORI3S | HARLEY PASTERNAK

Read the Nov Issue of Athleisure Mag and see 9LIST STORI3S with Harley Pasternak in Mag. If you’ve missed previous 9LIST STORI3S or other 9PLAYLIST - see them here.

SOMETHING YOU SHOULD KNOW | MIGRAINE WITH DR. ELIZABETH SENG + LALA ANTHONY

When a headache hits, it makes doing the most rudimentary of tasks so difficult! All you can think about is the pounding in your head. For those that suffer from migraines, the affects are even more apparent and can really alter their day to day lives. Whether you or someone that you know is affected by this, we sat down and talked with Dr. Elizabeth Seng to find out about what migraines are, how they are started and why they are so problematic. In addition, we sat down with STARZ's Power and FOX's BH90210's LaLa Anthony to find out how she works through migraines and how she is able to cope when they take place!

ATHLEISURE MAG: What is a headache and what are the symptoms when one is coming up?

DR. ELIZABETH SENG: A headache is a neurological attack characterized by head pain. Depending on the headache type, there may be other neurological symptoms as well. Depending on headache type, the head pain can be caused by pain receptors in head and neck muscles or in the membrane around the brain and blood vessels. There are many different triggers for headaches and symptoms can vary from person to person.

AM: What is the difference between a headache and a migraine?

DR. ES: There are many different types of headache disorders. Tension-type headache, the most common type of headache, is typically a pressing pain on both sides of the head. A migraine attack typically includes a pulsing pain on one side of the head and is accompanied by a variety of additional symptoms from your average headache including pain, nausea, and sensitivity to light, sound, and/or smell. Anyone can suffer from migraine, but they are more likely to occur in women, ages 20 to 45. Three out of every four migraine sufferers are women, and roughly 39 million Americans suffer from migraine.

AM: What are the symptoms of a migraine and how do you know when one is coming on?

DR. ES: A migraine attack typically includes a pulsing pain on one side of the head and is accompanied by a variety of additional symptoms from your average headache including pain, nausea, and sensitivity to light, sound, and/or smell. For both tension-type headache and migraine, the factors that trigger attacks vary widely from person to person. Determining what triggers your migraine attacks can help you better manage them. Regular stress management and keeping a consistent sleep and eating schedule can help sufferers avoid a migraine attack. You should also keep an acute medication on you, such as Excedrin Migraine, to take at the first sign of a migraine attack could do that.

Migraine should always be diagnosed by a doctor, so if you think you are experiencing a migraine, talk to your doctor to get the proper diagnosis and treatment plan.

AM: What is it about a migraine that makes people have to miss events or even to change aspects of their lives?

DR. ES: Most of my professional research has a focus on head pain and specifically, migraines, and most people don’t realize that migraines can disrupt a person’s everyday life and pull them away from important moments. Some days my patients are completely bedridden due to a migraine and other days they’ll power through an event but won’t truly feel present even if they are physically there. That’s because while on the outside they may “look fine,” on the inside they are managing much more which pulls them away from being mentally present in the moment.

While not often discussed, unfortunately, this is very common. A recent survey from Excedrin found that nearly 9 in 10 migraine sufferers have had to miss an important event, like a wedding or graduation, due to a migraine, and 91% of people with migraines would like a second chance at all of the moments they’ve missed.

That’s why I’m excited to partner with Excedrin on Excedrin Take Two (Oct 7th - Oct 18th) to help shine a light on the physical and emotional toll that migraines can take, and to help sufferers relive the moments they’ve missed – this time without the migraine.

AM: In the category of migraines, are their varying levels?

DR. ES: Yes. The biggest category of migraine is different frequencies. About 10% of people have migraine that we consider episodic, which occurs on fewer than half of the days of the month. However, about 2% of people have chronic migraine, or migraine on which headache attacks occur on 15 or more days per month. Chronic migraine is particularly disabling. There are also different symptoms you can get with migraine: some people experience an aura prior to the head pain onset, which often manifests as visual symptoms like geometric patterns, flashing lights or possibly a shimmering effect (sort of like heat waves). If you think you have migraine, be sure to talk to a doctor to get an accurate diagnosis and treatment plan.

AM: Is there a number of migraines that one may have where a person suffering from them may feel that they need to visit their doctor to ensure that there isn’t something else that is going on?

DR. ES: We consider a person to have the disease of migraine if they have experienced five or more attacks in their lifetime. If you have experienced several headache attacks you think might be migraine, it is a good time to go to your doctor to get a proper diagnosis and treatment plan. There are two typed of migraine treatment: acute treatments are used at the moment of the attack to reduce the attack severity. Some people may use over the counter medication, like Excedrin Migraine, whereas others may use prescription medication acutely to treat the attack. All people with migraine, of any frequency, should have an acute migraine treatment plan. Preventive treatments are taken routinely to reduce migraine frequency, such as daily medications, injections every three months, or lifestyle changes. People with migraine who are experiencing 4 or more attacks per month should talk to their doctor about prevention options.

AM: What is it about Excedrin that helps those that suffer from migraines?

DR. ES: Excedrin Migraine is a combination of three components: acetaminophen, aspirin, and caffeine. Excedrin Migraine is an FDA-approved over-the-counter medication for migraine.

After chatting with Dr. Seng to find out about the differences between a headache and a migraine, how they start and the need to diagnose this condition, we sat down with LaLa Anthony to give us more information on how she handles this while living a busy life as a mom, actress and more!

ATHLEISURE MAG: We've enjoyed watching you in Power and I loved that you were in Beverly Hills 90210 Revival and hope that you and the show will be back for another season - what's your process like when you go about selecting shows that you will be apart of?

LALA ANTHONY: I like to pick characters that I’m drawn to and feel like I can bring to life. I try to look for different roles so I’m not always playing the same type of character. 90210 was definitely something that was different for me and I had a great time doing it.

AM: Being a busy mom and always having a number of shows and appearances you're a part of have migraines affected those experiences?

LA: Migraines have definitely affected many experiences and caused me to not feel present for certain moments. I always power through for work or to shoot – you have to because when you’re on set there is a whole production crew relying on you to show up. But there have been other days I can’t function or get out of bed.

I get really upset when a migraine impacts moments with my family. There have been events at my son’s school that I couldn’t go to because of a migraine and I had to rest in bed all day. Kiayn is in middle school now and with school, basketball practice and hanging out with friends, family moments are even more important. It's frustrating that migraines can get in the way.

Luckily, I’ve learned my triggers and to treat my migraine as soon as I feel it coming with Excedrin Migraine. It’s a brand that has really helped me get my life back.

AM: Many battle issues with migraines, what are your triggers when you know that it's coming on and what are you able to do to alleviate it?

LA: I know immediately when a migraine is coming. Changes to my routine including not sleeping, eating certain foods and stress will trigger a migraine and I'll be on edge all day. It starts off feeling like a mild headache but gets rapidly worse. I try to catch it and treat it right away with Excedrin Migraine so it doesn’t disrupt the rest of my day and I can continue to be present.

AM: Do migraines create situations where you're not able to participate in something or be at a 100%?

LA: All the time. I get a migraine about once a week and unfortunately, migraines can really leave me exhausted and with no energy. Even if I’m having a great day, a migraine can come on suddenly and make it difficult to feel in the moment. I was struggling with a migraine at a family reunion once and it was so hard to feel present. It was really disappointing since family reunions only happen once every couple of years and it’s something I was really looking forward to.

AM: What is the Excedrin Take Two program?

LA: This partnership with Excedrin was so authentic for me because, like I’ve said, it’s a brand that really does help me get back to myself when a migraine is trying to sideline me. And I’m not alone at all in that – in fact, almost 9 in 10 migraine sufferers say they have had to miss an important life event due to a migraine and 91% of them would like a second chance at their missed moments. So that’s what Excedrin Take Two is all about! Excedrin is giving migraine sufferers a second chance to relive and enjoy a moment missed by a migraine. All you have to do is share your story at for a chance to win a “Take Two!”

AM: As someone who spends a lot of time traveling, what are 3 things that are in your carryon or maybe a kit that you keep on set that you have at the ready to either make you comfortable or to feel like you have a bit of home with you.

LA: I always like to pack a candle and I always keep my favorite snacks (like trail mix / Crunch bars), and Excedrin Migrane, just in case!

PHOTOS COURTESY | LaLa Collection NY

IG @LaLa

Read the Oct Issue of Athleisure Mag and see Something You Should Know | Migraine with Dr. Elizabeth Seng and LaLa Anthony in mag.

9LIST STORI3S | NGHTMRE

Read the August Issue of Athleisure Mag and see 9LIST STORI3S | NGHTMRE in mag.

SUBCONSCIOUSLY SPEAKING WITH KIMBERLY FRIEDMUTTER

At Athleisure Mag, we've always been about the integration of mind x body x soul . We headed to the Ritz Carlton here in NYC to talk with Kimberly Friedmutter about her new book Subconscious Power: Use Your Inner Mind to Create the Life You've Always Wanted as well as her work as a Celebrity Hypnotherapist, the purpose and power of the subconscious, and how we can optimize these tools through all aspects of our lives.

ATHLEISURE MAG: So those that are not familiar with hypnotism, can you tell us what it is and what it entails?

KIMBERLY FRIEDMUTTER: Hypnosis is really a state of relaxation and a deep state at times. I’ve literally had clients snoring and drooling and I have had others that have stared back at me, but they are relaxed. It’s just different levels – just to explain that. So when people say what is trance and is it putting me in positions and a place that I don’t want to do – like when people see it in terms of being used for entertainment or in the movies with a swinging watch – that’s not what it is.

It’s a natural state of being for example, when you first wake up and you have that floaty feeling, that’s trance. When you’re just getting ready to drift off to sleep and you’re not really conscious, but not really unconscious, that’s trance. It’s basically setting the conscious thought aside, so that you’re more suggestable and more open to other things. Now this is also why people abuse drugs, they like that feeling and when you can do that naturally, it’s wonderful and you don’t have to use substances to get there as it is this beautiful natural state that we possess. Think of it in terms of when you’re watching a film and you know that the actors are the actors, but you shed a tear anyway. You’re emotionally caught up in it, they have entranced you. Or it’s like when you’re at a concert and everyone is waving their hands in sync with their phones on flame and your favorite entertainer hits the high note and everyone is in this moment of a euphoric feeling. You’re so relaxed that you feel like you’re having this out of body experience.

AM: Wow, sometimes we have taken a yoga/meditation class and when you are coming back from the meditation part, you sometimes do feel a little floaty and outside of yourself.

KF: Right and you are in a trance in meditation. Now the difference between meditation and hypnosis is simply that meditation is the zoning in on thought or in on non-thought. For example, “think of the breath, don’t think thoughts.” Whereas, trance is let it all come and zone out. So the zoning out is likening it to day dreaming. When you daydream, you’re not monitoring day dreams. You’re just letting it flow and that flow is trance as opposed to meditation where you’re linearly guiding something through to happen or not happen.

AM: How did you begin working in this field and how did you educate yourself on it?

KF: I would like to say that education really formed this structure where I sit. But really it’s the clients who really gave me the breadth of knowledge – getting in there and really exploring. I had a radio talk show in LA on KLSX 97.1 FM and it was the only FM talk station at the time. It was considered the Howard Stern Station at the time as that is where he was projecting from at the time. This was simply continuing education for the radio show and previous to that, I had been hypnotized for a lot of times for stage fright.

AM: Wow

KF: I know! I wanted to shrink in instead of shrink out! I didn’t want that to be an issue so I was a product of hypnosis and I thought, “wow is that all there really is too it?” In our society, we are taught “no pain, no gain”, “no guts, no glory” and it’s absolutely not the truth. So I thought, let’s see what happens and now you can’t shut me up – I’m all over the place! Clearly, I’m healed!

AM: So it had long term effects!

KF: Oh yeah, it can be the only thing you ever want to do if you want it to be. I happen to take direction well which is also why some people ask why I focus on high performing professionals and individuals that have really made a name for themselves in the world. The reason is exactly that – they will do it and they take direction well. They look for information from others and are not arguing their position or limitation which is very important.

AM: Is it hard for a Type A person to release their control to do that?

KF: No because Type A’s are Seekers, Searchers, Learners. Type A’s are out their for the game and out their to win it. They’re out there to succeed.

AM: Right a very – by any means necessary thought.

KF: Well when you say it that way, it comes off as it’s something that’s surgical and invasive and it’s not. It’s 100% organic, 100% natural and 100% sustainable. You are literally able to keep it private because it’s in your mind and you don’t have to telescope it out. The thing is we all have that search for inner peace and inner happiness and we all deeply know what that takes to get there. We have the answers – we really do. Hypnosis just gives you that little prod and permission that it’s ok to release those things and feel those things.

My husband was hypnotized for 20 minutes and he’s an architect – everything is very linear with him and it's all about facts.

Everything is very structured, planned and conscious this comes from your conscious. The subconscious is touchy feely and is all about your emotions. So he was hypnotized for 20 mins and he lost 60lbs. Now that’s that kind of character because he’s a Seeker, Searcher, Learner person that’s Type A and an architect.

My book is listed in the top 10 of what every lawyer should read. It’s the Top 25 books that America’s leading CEO’s are reading. So it does have this very interesting crossover with men in business. It’s a great gift for men and a great gift for boys coming up to learn – particularly the Get to Give chapter – I’m happy to point out. It’s not a gender specific book and there are very good principles in each chapter to read. I like to stress that because men really do get it and it does provide transformative changes in them too. Women like to corner intuition because we say, “women’s intuition” that we’re so smart and we use our gut, but the truth is that we all have that machinery and we all have that mechanism. It’s a beautiful thing and we do want to have our partner, your brother, our uncle to rise up to this. When we’re all going the same speed on the freeway, we can all do the same things and not be hampered by the one that doesn’t.

AM: So you were talking about how people can use this for weight loss –

KF: Yes and for sleep issues, anxiety and depression. Here’s the thing about hypnosis and trance is that it doesn’t have to be just for a problem. We’ve freed it and loosened it from it’s chains of being attached to a problem. It can also be out amplifying things that you do well to be better. So athletic performance for example. Performance such as something that I am doing with CNBC for entrepreneurs and CEOs which is also for performance-based things that you want to enhance or amplify.

AM: Hearing this now gives me an interesting perspective on what you do. Coming in, we were thinking of it from that 1800s parlor trick but learning that it’s a tool that can be used to optimize and oxygenate what you’re looking to enhance is really interesting.

KF: I love how you said that the 2 “O” words. This is what I say, if I brought in this fine piece of machinery and I sat it down in front of us and said here’s the plug, the machine and the manual – you’re going to take the book and to read how to use it. You have it and I’m not selling you the thing – you have it. You can’t get a surgery to get it, I can’t take it, you have what you have and you can’t get rid of it. So it’s about plugging in your mechanism and using your resources. The thing is, we’re all interested in ourselves and we all want an easy, happy life. How do we get there? So so simple. We have the mechanism and the ability to do it – it’s the use of it that we don’t know. All of our finest technology and software and beautiful things – nothing comes close to the mind. You take it with you, it’s packaged, it’s compact, it weighs 3lbs, it’s 4x4 and off you go. You don’t have to pack it – you won’t forget it. Science will say that you have it from the point on conception to the time you transition – some believe that it will just go on. That’s what I have the Soul/Spiritual section in here about Muhammad Ali and Mike Tyson. You’ll see that I have terrific blurbs from Jennifer Hudson and Martha Stewart, Michael Beckwith (he actually married me to the architect because he was a pastor because I was an agape taker) – so I had a lot of Hollywood support for this. They get it and they’re so creative. They’re interesting and they have big lives and a lot of times, big problems and no different from the rest of us as we have the same issues, we’re just watching them because the focus is on the high performing individual.

So the whole thing is just so simple to use. Like finding lost items around the house – who wants that – in the home or in the office. Even in an email. I was trying to find it before I was talking with you and I said to my husband that I couldn’t find it and he was asking me if it was there and I said, “I can’t find it in this state.” He’s thinking that I couldn’t find it in my phone or in my device. I knew that in the state I was in I couldn’t find it and even a device will fritz out when you’re in that state with all that frantic energy – it doesn’t jive when you’re like that. You need to adjust yourself or to stop looking. I calmed myself down and then I was able to find it. I needed to find it in the state of the love of it and not the problem of it. It’s about the find of it and not the loss of it. The truth is, it’s not lost – it’s in there.

AM: Ooo that’s interesting that you say that. Our Co-Founder, when he gets in that frazzled state, nothing will turn on in terms of electronics. So we have to either move our technology out of the room –

KF: Or him.

AM: Or him and we just say, calm down to get everything settled again. The joke is that he’s like a Marvel character or superhero. So there must be some kind of kinetic thing going on there.

KF: Oh it’s energy. So here’s what happens. Anything that works on energy, works on energy. Anything that works on energy, fries out when it’s too much. We had an interesting and scary incident where a camera would have caught this and the camera did not catch it. It’s a wireless system and the camera caught our dog groomer that was going inside and outside of the house and you could see the dog as well, but it didn’t catch the event. I didn’t bring my phone and I didn’t worry about it because I knew the camera was catching the whole thing. What did I come to find out? It didn’t. So that gives great pause to energy. It’s about keeping it cool and it shows you that life won’t work with that kind of energy.

Again, to make your life easy like finding great parking spaces, when you meet with someone getting to know if they are good for you in the short/long term that you meet them – think of the time savings alone and what you have access to. We have a far-reaching ability to ascertain this information and impressions to get access to that even a blind person can do it.

The conscious mind thinks that way you are instructing it to do; however, the subconscious is doing the imagery and the big picture portion of what is going on. When we’re children, we’re very tapped into our subconscious and we also tend to sit within our primal state as well – sometimes kids bite other kids and they haven’t learned that they can’t do that. In the book, I talk about that as we get older, we learn and educate ourselves outside of the subconscious, so when we go to work and someone annoys us, we don’t bite our colleagues in the elevator.

AM: So what made you create this book?

KF: I was approached by a woman at Harper Collins. She asked if I would do this as she had seen me online and head learned about my practice. I said absolutely and in getting the group together and figuring out the structure of the book, it took me about a year to take my practice and to see what was digestible and what could be chewed on. By the time I handed in my proposal to her, she had left Harper Collins. The agent thought that it was interesting and agreed to put it on the market to see what it could do. Simon & Schuster wanted it and Atria Books was the publishing/imprinting house that did The Secret. The beauty about The Secret was that there was a feeling that yes we could emit this desire to get whatever it is that we desire. Part in part is where my gift comes from but the real question is where is this being emitted from? It’s coming from your mind and no one debates that. It’s very well studied and science is all over that and the subconscious mind and has been forever as you had mentioned with the hypnosis.

The reality is that if you're stuck and have an addiction to food, shopping or even an addiction to someone, there is an exercise in the book called the Saver/Sever where if you have this over attachment to a person, place or thing you can literally call it before you and you can detach from that thing so that you’re no longer this prisoner of that attachment. Some people when I ask them to see that Energetic Core, some people see this beautiful wisps of energy and some people see chains or rope – true bondage to that thing. Cyber Stalking is one of those things where you just can’t not do it sometimes. Those are the perfect candidates for those exercises. Those are some of the little hacks and one of the things that I’m very proud of with the book is that you don’t need a pen and paper and I wanted to make it super easy because we don’t have a lot of time and I call them Shelf Help books. Because you feel a lot better because you bought it and you’re like, “ok healed and you put it on the shelf.” But the reality is, I want you to have that manual for your machinery – you already have it, but this is just the how to guide on how to manage it. The reality is, we want to do things with our lives that makes things easier for us. Knowing and getting those impulses – you think of a friend and they give you a call. Or you get an email from that person or you give a call to someone and they say, “oh you were on my mind this morning.” All that is energy and that is the place that we’re talking about with this. Your consciousness is your task maker and your calendar keeper for the day. The subconscious is your inner child the part that you haven’t unlearned yet. The unlearning process is what makes us cranky, crass, disappointed, depressed and anxious. There is a chapter in the book called Tonkas and Tutus and it’s about putting that Tutu back on because that’s where it belongs and I do that as a gift of action. You realize that we are meant to be these beautiful, shining and magnificent creatures of light – you realize that you have that inner self that is clawing to get out and wants that light to be turned on.

AM: Do you envision doing another book?

KF: Yes we’re already working on it now. The first book that you drop, as I’m a first-time author – is your cornerstone. It’s the base information and from there, we fly – we fly.

PHOTO COURTESY | Dreamstime/Helgardas

AM: So what are the 6 principles that ignite the conscious mind and can you walk us through that?

KF: Sure. The first one is Coming into Accountability and that’s the first step, I think of everything that is meaningful. We need to know where we are – even on maps, it says location. So the first principle is really about your location and so I want you to be able to look at yourself holistically and for real – warts and all we say. The reality is that we can’t do the work until we know what it is. I don’t even like calling it work because it feels so effortless. The second principle is Tapping into Your Subconscious which is obvious and a lot of people don't understand how powerful it is and how much of it that you have. I'm here to tell you that you you’re right. When you think of Aunt Sue and she calls you – you have to see consciously that you are right to understand the power of your subconscious. The third principle is Do You Move Toward or Away? Now I like this one a lot because it is about orientation. You have coming into accountability, your tapping into your subconscious – where is your orientation? So going back to maps again, you would orient towards the direction that you want to go. You do not plug into maps that you want to go away from where you just were. So when it says, where are you heading to, you don’t say I’m headed away from Point A, you say, I am going to Point B so when you’re constantly l ooking at your life in retrospect, and you see that you have been flinging yourself away from circumstances, chances are you’re flinging into something of the unknown which is ok. But if you’re not happy where you are, that very well could be the reason why as opposed to focusing on where you want to go. Orientation of self is hugely important. The next one is, and this is sticky, and they throw their hands up - It’s Judge Thy Neighbor as Thyself. The point of this that we have let our judgement go by the wayside just like we don’t bite our girlfriend when she makes us mad. In this, I say that you must use ecology of judgment for yourself. Once you talk to someone who is unhappy, once you explore a bit of someone’s chronic unhappiness they will say that they used this mistake in judgement and that mistake. Look at Judge Judy. I talk a lot about her in the book. Not only is she magnificent, but the show itself garners so much attention, and why, because the show shows us did you use the best judgment for your ecology, your survival, your success, etc – that’s all she wants to show. Did you use good judgement and those judgements that she calls simply comes down to who used good judgement and who didn’t. Sometimes the thing that happened the person didn't have something unlawful, but they didn’t use good judgement and she fines them anyway. So she’s going to teach you out of your own issue. So judgement is super important and I show you how to do that and I show you how to judge energetically. When you meet someone are they good for me in the midterm, short term and long term? Also a judgement about privacy. Let’s be a bit particular about the who, what, when, where and why please. It’s helpful about that beautiful 8 year old person that’s inside of you. If you had a physical 8 year old next to you, would you look at the things that you look at, would you listen to the things that you listen to, hang out with the people that you would hang out with, go to the places that you go to – I think not. We really think that we’re big stuff, but we’re just that beautiful 8 year old creature inside and we need to use the ecology of judgement for him/her. The next one that people love is Give to Get. This is that energetic cycle, that loop. So if I hold both of your hands, you and I form a loop and energy is running through your body back to my body – if we let go and you stretch your arm out, it doesn’t have any place to go to generate or to recirculate. So if you give to me and I’m not giving back, then you’re not getting back anything and vice versa. Even the tomato plant does this. It grows, it falls off the vine and dies and it becomes fertilizer for the next new plant. Giving and getting is a universal law. Women are the worst at getting because they don’t want to say it and they just continue to give to such a point that it takes us into the next chapter which is Drought. When a women is in drought, I ask what kind of a giver/getter are you? Are you getting and giving? Sometimes the people who don’t get or the least to give – there has to be a flow of energy that flows in and flows out. I read something the other day that there was a popular phrase that said “cash is king” and now it's "cashflow is king" because anything that flows is king. Flow keeps us going. If I get, I distribute that to you, if you get then you distribute to me. It’s this movement that we’re in and once again, it’s this universal law that we’re in. I didn’t make it up, I just recognize it as a law of happiness.

When people ask, I am married to a very generous husband, an architect and what is great about that is that he understands flow. People ask, how did I get what I got and I say, I asked, I made it known. He’s not a psychic. The last principle is Play Big. You deserve to get and you deserve to give. The idea of playing big is not posturing and puffing it’s show up for me and show up for you. The reality is that we all need each other. We’re in a time of social collective consciousness which is fine, but then we must rise from it. In that it’s go for your dreams. Playing big honors that creative thing that you want to do regardless of whether you’re coming from a field like being an attorney and realizing that you want to become a writer. Just because you started out one way doesn’t mean that you have to stay that way and not become what you are meant to do. So show up for that thing that you’re meant to do and then get on with it. When you get to that chapter and that final principle – then you’re ready because the other clutter is gone.

AM: What is your day to day like?

KF: Well, I’m basically a home type body, but I travel a lot so I make it home wherever I go. The traveling is a lot of fun so I try to do zones. When I’m on the East Coast, I reach out and contact to as many people as I want to book or to group it all in. We do it in Europe as well. I like to be accessible and I don’t like to say no. I’d rather say yes and then figure out how to make it work out. The other side especially with Brad and his business is that we clump things together. So the minute that I have go time over here, then he will book his things and that's how we do it. He has offices all over the world. It makes it easy to do that. There’s a few emergencies here and there, but now with FaceTime and Google – I can literally do that all day long. When you have your clients, seeing things is great because you have all of those micromovements. I’m an expert at determining what is going on. I use the term diagnose loosely – not as a medical diagnosis. It’s easy for me to see the issues as it rises up off the page so prominently that that’s my super power – the ability to see what’s going on and to be able to get it at the cellular level. Many times, I am able to just think it to get there and I like getting the confirmation.

AM: I know you’re based in LA and in Las Vegas. Where can we find you grabbing a meal/drink, working out and shopping?

KF: In Las Vegas, it would probably be Cipriani (Wynn) or more likely home. Because home – I’m a homebody. Any philanthropic event we’d probably be at. So when people say, do you go out on the strip – yes for charity events and probably only for that. If we’re having dinner or things like that, it’s probably at home. We eat super clean and I cook a lot. It’s super simple to cook like that and I do pride myself that I went to chef school when I was modeling in Europe – a night school for that. I did that because I wasn’t the clubby type to go out to meet people. In LA, we like the Waldorf Astoria. We’re at The Ivy on Robertson all the time – we love it there. Malibu of course is great and we love Nobu, I used to live there before I met Brad.

When it comes to shopping, I love Norma Kamali here in NY I was just there and was so excited. So Norma walked in and we had our little visit and it was so great and now she’s holding the book. She has a new skincare line that’s out, it’s cleanser, scrub, tanner and moisturizer. Can I just say that the moisturizer is made out of olive oil and lime and not the fruit – the mineral kind. Never have I felt something so emollient so I’m going to order that for sure as I was running in. The smell, fragrance and feel was extraordinary. Shopping there is my favorite thing.

I work out a few hours a day. I do True Fusion which is a pilates/yoga hybrid. The gal who teaches it and does it with me – we have a neighborhood group of ladies that do it. I also do heavy weight training which is a surprise to most. I like it because it really does keep me feeling in survival mode. It’s a gentleman that does it who is a body builder type. I like to be a strong girl a strong female. When we work out like that – it makes everything like blow drying your hair and going to the potty a challenge – where your muscles touch anything. It’s a great feeling. In the morning my husband and I we both walk around a 3 mile loop with our 20lb weights on – we walk it fast – it can be a 3 hour thing. Mind/Body is important. My husband’s trajectory of his day changes when he does it in the morning. Connecting with nature is something that your body and mind needs. We start early in the morning because if we didn’t we wouldn’t get it in.

I have a lot of weight loss clients right now and it’s not because it’s summer it’s because we’re fat to the point that we are upset with ourselves. A client will say, I’m stressed – I eat, I travel – I eat, I have a child – I eat, I have a job – I eat, I’m out of money – I eat. So every reason comes down to, I eat, I eat, I eat and it’s not that. That’s all the more reason that we have to be ready, be the warrior, having to be fit. You have to say, I’m going after this with everything that I have and that mind/body connection is that. I’m a big believer that you can’t work off an unhealthy diet. You’ll hear me say that the kitchen is the gym. You can eat to a good body or eat to a bad body.

IG @KimFriedmutter

PHOTO CREDITS | Kimberly Friedmutter

PHOTO COURTESY | Dreamstime/Jacques Kloppers

You can hear Kimberly Friedmutter later this month on our show, BUNGALOW SK which is a part of Athleisure Studio, our multi-media podcast network! Make sure to subscribe to find out when the episode drops. You can hear it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeart Radio, Google Podcasts and wherever you enjoy listening to your favorite podcast.

Read the August Issue of Athleisure Mag and see Subconsciously Speaking with Kimberly Friedmutter in mag.

LEAVING HER MARK WITH BOBBI BROWN

In the beauty industry, Bobbi Brown reigns as a woman that took her passion as a makeup artist to building a celebrity brand of cosmetics that would eventually be acquired by Estée Lauder. At the time, her appearances on TV shows illustrating her work as well as being a fixture in the backstages of NYFW paved the way for Celebrity Makeup Artists and other talents in the beauty industry. We took a moment with Bobbi to talk about her career, the moves she made in the industry and how she continues to be a trailblazer.

ATHLEISURE MAG: What was the moment when you realized that you wanted to work in the beauty industry?

BOBBI BROWN: I had just left my second college, and was feeling very confused because I didn’t really like school and I wasn’t happy where I had been. I was speaking with my mother and she said to me, “If it was your birthday and you could do anything in the world, what would you do?” and I told her “I’d go to Marshall Field’s and I’d play with makeup.” So my mom said to me “Then go to school to be a makeup artist.” I found Emerson College and they allowed me to create my own major, which was theatrical makeup, and I fell in love.

AM: You started as a makeup artist, what projects did you work on during that time prior to creating Bobbi Brown Cosmetics?

BB: After graduating college, I moved to NYC and went through the yellow pages calling every photographer, makeup artist, and hair stylist I could find, offering my assistance for free. I would travel wherever I was needed offering my services and learning as much as I could. Some of my favorite projects that I did during that time were my first Vogue cover shoot with Naomi Campbell (it was Naomi’s first Vogue cover as well,) working with designers like Michael Kors, Ralph Lauren, and Tommy Hilfiger, and doing makeup for Mick Jagger and The Rolling Stones.

AM: What inspired you to create Bobbi Brown Cosmetics?

BB: After being on all of these sets, I found I could not do the makeup that was in style correctly. I didn’t want to cover and hide women’s features and there was no skin tone correct makeup available at the time. I would mix together what colors I could to try to create a formula that accentuated rather than disguised how the women looked. It was at that time that I met a chemist in an elevator and was telling her what I wanted to do, and she said, “I’ll make the colors for you.” That relationship started the creation of my original 10 lipstick shades.

AM: You were known for a natural aesthetic with an array of amazing pink shades of lipsticks, why was that look important to you and the brand?

BB: They weren’t pink shades as much as they were pink, brown, orange, red – those colors that naturally exist within a woman’s lip. All of them natural looking because I believe that makeup should make a woman look and feel her best. That was my intention when I created Bobbi Brown Cosmetics and still is today.

AM: How did you incorporate being a Beauty Expert on the Today Show as another portion of your brand as a MUA and a founder of a cosmetic line?

BB: At a public appearance I was at, I took a question from a woman in the audience. She later told me that she was the grandmother of Jeff Zucker, the Executive Producer of The Today Show at the time. It had been my dream to be on The Today Show, and when she introduced me to Jeff, he and I created monthly segments that allowed me to teach women the correct products to use and the right way to apply them, allowing each woman to essentially become her own makeup artist. It was an amazing time in my life and I truly believe it catapulted the business of the brand to where it is now.

AM: Estée Lauder acquired Bobbi Brown Cosmetics and you stayed on with the brand, what was the transition like for you and as many of our readers own their own brands, can you share the process you went through in terms of coming to the decision that this was right for your brand and yourself?

BB: In 1995, I met with Leonard Lauder and he quickly became one of the greatest mentors in my life. He promised me that the integrity of the brand and its purpose would never be lost with me at the helm. I remained in complete creative control, while being lucky enough to benefit from the resources that the Estée Lauder companies provided. I stayed on as Chief Creative Officer until 2016, where I made the tough decision to leave the company to start another.

AM: Being a multifaceted person, we have enjoyed seeing you wear a number of hats such as being the Editor in Chief of Yahoo Beauty from 2014-2016, how have you been able to maintain your hat in various spaces while continuing to expand your platform in the beauty industry?

BB: I have an insatiable curiosity and love to learn and discover new things. Ultimately, I am a creative at heart and love to develop content across a multitude of platforms in order to share what I know. I make it a priority to hire really great people who can help me translate my vision across these platforms to the best of my ability.

AM: We loved when you partnered with Safilo to release a line of eyewear, what initiated this venture and do you foresee doing something like this again?

BB: I am a glasses person. I wear prescription glasses and sunglasses on a daily basis. I find that eyewear is an extension of makeup to a degree, in that the style and color you choose says a lot about yourself and what look you are trying to convey. It was a natural fit for me. I’d love to explore doing this again in the future.

AM: You have written 9 books on makeup and beauty, what was it like writing your first book and what is the process like in general from concept to release?

BB: My first book was very cathartic for me. It was taking all of the knowledge that I had learned and perfected over the years, and articulating that as best I could for everyone to read. Even though I have written 9 books, I still don’t know how to type. My process varies but consists of lots of handwritten notes in the back of cars, and swatches of color done on paper. I work very closely with my writers and my publisher from start to finish. I have been very fortunate to work with the best of the best in that regard.

AM: Will there be another book that we can expect to see from you?

BB: Never say never. I don’t know if it will be a traditional book or one that has a digital component to it. We’ll see what’s in store.

AM: We’re fans of JustBobbi.com as well as EVOLUTION_18 as we love your approach to beauty from the inside out. Why did you launch the site as well as the beauty brand and what can we expect to see from them as we continue throughout the remainder of the year?

BB: My lifelong philosophy has always been that beauty, and confidence, starts with what you put inside your body. The launch of my lifestyle inspired wellness line, EVOLUTION_18, is a natural extension of beauty from inside out. After spending 25+ years talking to women about their health and wellness challenges, I became a certified health coach and learned what it is women need to know in order to look and feel our best. EVOLUTION_18 is a collection of highly effective simple formulas that target a wide range of beauty concerns. They are made with clean, high quality ingredients that give you everything you need for a beauty boost from within. Justbobbi.com is a modern lifestyle platform for all things wellness, beauty, and everything in between. It’s a platform that aims to educate and inspire how you live your life through never-ending exploration and storytelling.

AM: With so many successes in the beauty world, you launched another amazing venture in a new vertical – hospitality. Tell us about The George and why did you want to do this?

BB: The day I left Bobbi Brown Cosmetics, my husband called me and asked if I wanted to be a part of a new project – The George Hotel. It is a historic property that he completely restored into a 32-room boutique hotel. I became the Creative Director of the hotel, and it was my mission to create a design-minded boutique hotel in the heart of Montclair where we live, that offered guests a unique and one of a kind experience.

AM: In addition to Athleisure Mag, we have a podcast network – Athleisure Studio which has 4 shows and we know that you have a podcast show, Long Story Short with Bobbi Brown – what can we expect on this show and who have been 3 of your favorite guests on this show?

BB: Long Story Short allows me to talk to some of the most accomplished people in the world who are true masters of their craft. The podcast offers a glimpse into their journeys, discussing both their highs and lows in order to get the essential takeaways of a life well lived. Everyone has a story and I love finding out what that story is. Three of my favorites are Mickey Drexler, my mentor, Elvis Duran, one of my best friends, and Jen Atkin.

AM: What philanthropic efforts are you involved in that you would like for us to know about?

BB: I am on the board of Reaching Out Montclair, in my hometown, which provides essential needs for underserved children and their families in our community.

AM: What are 3 beauty musts that you think that we should have with us when we travel?

BB: First, a good moisturizer – preferably one that contains an SPF. Protecting your skin from the sun is of the utmost importance. And when you’re traveling, especially on a plane, your skin can dry out easily, so make sure to keep skin moisturized in order to keep it looking hydrated and plump. Second, a probiotic beauty starts in your gut. Taking a probiotic daily will help with your digestion which in turn helps keep your microbiome balanced and your skin clear. Third, a cream blush – I like to travel with multipurpose products. A cream blush is perfect to give you a nice healthy glow and can be used on your lips as well.

AM: When it comes to your legacy, what do you want people to take away in terms of your impact on the beauty industry and just embracing life’s opportunities?

BB: Be a sponge, be kind, and work hard.

IG @JustBobbi

Read the August issue of Athleisure Mag and see Leaving Her Mark with Bobbi Brown in mag.

IT'S ELECTRIC

We headed to Randall's Island here in NYC to attend Electric Zoo Evolved which had 40+ hours of EDM DJs, 4 stages, an array of food and beverage options and more. Our Labor Day Weekend was jam packed with a number of sets from some of our faves that included Kaskade, Oliver Heldens, Diplo, Good Times Ahead and more. We also checked out acts that we were less familiar with. In the midst of getting in on the good vibes, we sat down with 5 acclaimed EDM DJs to catch up with them on what they're working on, hearing about their sound and more.

We caught up with DJ/Producer SayMyName who is also this month's cover. Known as the Godfather of Hard Trap, when it comes to style - he definitely has it. We found out about his style of music, his latest collaboration with Riot Ten and what he does when he's outside of the stage and studio.

ATHLEISURE MAG: So you are known as the Godfather of Hard Trap. What is that and what is it about this genre of music that you love so much?

SAYMYNAME: Ok so Hard Trap is a genre that I started in 2012. It’s basically a fusion between Hard Style and Trap or like Hip Hop and it’s the best of both worlds. My favorite part about Hard Trap is basically the energy and uniqueness of the sound that it brings to every set no matter whether it’s a festival or a club – it stands up.

AM: Does it change for you whether you’re in a massive venue like here at Electric Zoo or if you’re in an intimate club? How does that work for you in terms of vibe?

SMN: The vibe or the energy is always there. Whether it’s a 100 or 10,000 – like there’s always this raw energy that matches the music. I don’t like to go to a smaller room and change the setup because I still want to see that same energy.

AM: So you just collaborated with Riot Ten with Glocks which is pretty exciting. How did that come about and how excited are you to finally release this?

SMN: Oh I’m excited it’s finally out. Riot Ten and I, we go back and this is something that we have talked about for a minute. He’s done the harder music like more of the Dubstep stuff and just basically using the Dubstep and the Hard Trap and just giving something that our fan base wanted. I’m excited that we got to do it.

AM: We love the new magenta color. How do you love the fact that you can express yourself with your hair color?

SMN: I love that it’s like varied on the season or my mood. So I have done blue, red, orange and now I’m on magenta. I feel like when I go in I just say, “ok I’m going to do yellow.” I think that the louder and the brighter the color, it’s just a bigger representation of the style and that energy. When you see that color and you’re on stage – it’s just in your face!

AM: What other collaborations do you have going on that we should keep an eye out for?

SMN: Right now, I just finished a collaboration with Afrojack. So we’re working on a release for that so keep an eye out for that. R3HAB and I, Timmy Trumpet – there has been a lot of music that I have been working on during the summer so I’m just taking some time off.

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

AM: You’re a busy guy and you have been at a lot of festivals this season. How do you keep yourself relaxed and focused on what’s happening?

SMN: For me, it’s all about balance. When I’m not on the road, I’m in the gym when I’m not in the studio. I feel that the gym it’s not like I’m coming down because I’m working out, but it’s about really staying healthy physically and mentally. It keeps the creative flow going and the energy. Festival season – the festivals that I have played this year, it’s been insane.

AM: We’re excited to see you perform tomorrow!

SMN: I’m so excited! It’s my first Electric Zoo and this has been a bucket list festival. I think I caught a Hardwell festival clip in 2012 or 2013 and I was like, “what is this Electric Zoo – it’s crazy!”

AM: As someone who travels so much, what are 3 items that are in your carry on to feel like you’re at home and centered?

SMN: I feel like with my carry on, that’s a good question. This is going to sound super cliché, but my laptop. I can take my music with me on it when I want to work from the road. I have books on my phone. I think that the books and the music that I have on my phone keeps the connection between everything. Then just essential hygiene products – my skincare routine is a big one.

AM: You need to be fresh!

SMN: I’m trying, I’m trying – I have to stay on top of that.

IG @SayMyNameMusic

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

We sat down with 2019 Grammy Nominated DJ/Producer EDX moments before he hit the stage. He had just arrived after performing in Montreal to kick off Labor Day Weekend and was in NYC just long enough to play a set at Electric Zoo. We talked about being #1 on Spotify's Dance Rising Charts, musicality and more.

ATHLEISURE MAG: You’ve been known as a genius for all the amazing music production you've done. What is the symbiosis between musicality and production to you in terms of making the great sound that you do?

EDX: Well you know, I think that there first, there is always a good song, a nice chord progression and if it’s a vocal song, there is a meaningful vocal. Then you add to it your signature sound and like the high end production. I think that you can have the best production possible if the musicality is there. It’s very hard to touch people when that’s not there. I’m always focusing on touching people with my music and when I have been doing this for so many years, the quality today shouldn’t even be an issue anymore.

AM: So STAY is on the Dance Rising Charts on Spotify. How excited are you about that?

EDX: It’s awesome because it has actually been the #1 track on Dance Rising. That’s something that is so special each time. It’s like making you a Sir for music – every once in awhile when this happens! For me, I’m just a kid living in Switzerland in a neighborhood next to Zurich and just exposed to music and trying to reach the world. This achievement is like a big achievement in my point of view because you actually reach so many people all over the world with this and it’s a good opportunity to be on that Dance Rising once in awhile.

AM: What are your 3 favorite remixes that you have done?

EDX: Haha it’s a hard question! I think that I have done more than 50 or 100 remixes. I don’t know and I’m still counting. It’s hard to pick just 3. I like the remix to the Janelle Monae (‘Make Me Feel’) record because it was just a cool song and I liked the whole vibe from it in the original. All the others are like in themselves, are something special because they all have this collaboration with some other songwriter, singer, artist and being able to get influenced by the original version and to add your own vibe to it to make it your own. It’s something that’s a blessing if you get this opportunity and it’s hard to just pick my favorite ones. But the Janelle Monae remix from last year has really given me the challenge that I wanted once in awhile.

I just started a remix for the new single of Loud Luxury. Which was just sent recently to Sirius XM before the release for their playlist at BPM so it is coming out in 2 weeks. It ended up being an effective remix and I was very excited to tease it and play it out like right now.

AM: We love your remix with Kaskade for ‘Angel on My Shoulder’.

EDX: Oh yes, that was a good one.

AM: Labor Day Weekend has been very busy for you. You were in Montreal on Fri, you are here today in NYC at Electric Zoo and tomorrow you will be in Dallas, how do you keep all that energy going and feeding all of these people your music?

EDX: Well, it’s like a very rewarding industry that we are in. Being able to play out your own music in front of so many people that give you such great feedback each time. It’s actually cool. I’m actually flying out tonight to Dallas because I’m playing tonight and tomorrow I will be out back to Europe!

IG @EDXmusic

PHOTO COURTESY | aLIVE Coverage for ElectricZoo.com

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

Talking with the NJ based trio, Cash Cash, we defintiely got their vibe of just giving a great show that is filled with an array of genres that are just about having a good time. We sat down with them right before their show to find out about what they've been working on, how they work with one another and some of the tools of their trade.

ATHLEISURE MAG: So how do you define the Cash Cash sound?

CASH CASH: We’re a mix of a lot of different things. We’re kind of like a buffet. You get everything with us. You get chicken, beef, vegetables, carbs, salad, dessert – we do it all. We work with Hip Hop artists, we work with pop artists, rock artists, alternative artists. We love it all and we’re always mixing electronic music with different feels and styles of music. Even with just instruments or singers.

AM: How does that work to have 3 of you working together in terms of being on stage or in the studio? How do you deal with those dynamics?

CC: We run a majority rules kind of thing. So if 2 people agree on something, then that’s how it goes. If one person cries enough and pleads their case …

AM: Oh nice so the minority vote can come forward and win!

CC: Yeah if they can convince us yeah – haha the minority vote could win that’s funny!

AM: So the song with P!nk, ‘Can We Pretend’ – it’s amazing! How did it come about and how excited were you for that?

CC: Really excited. We did a remix for her in the last month of 2017 and the remix did really well. She was happy with it, the team was happy with it and we have been trying to send her songs for a long time and finally she sent us the acapella and we were like, “this is great, we can do something with this.” So we built a song around that and it came together that way. It was great to finally make that happen because artists are so busy these days. She’s out doing world tours and we’re in the club every night. It was great to finally make it happen.

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

AM: With you guys having so much club time, how do you take time for yourself?

CC: It’s minimal I guess! We’re used to it though. We’ve been doing this for awhile so we’re used to the up and go lifestyle. We’ve been going and you get time off when you get to come home and we love traveling to see the world. It’s always cool to go to new places and then to be able to go back and return.

AM: When you guys are recording, what are your 3 favorite pieces of equipment that you love to use?

CC: Probably the computers – it’s like a love hate thing. Because you think it sucks sometimes, but you couldn’t make music without it. You could have a tape machine, but the computer is better. I feel that it switches – you’ll love a certain synth or something and then you’ll get sick of it, move on and then you’ll look at the wall and there’s your acoustic guitar and you’re like – this is the best!

IG @CashCash

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

Around Athleisure Mag's office, we've been playing DRIP by Boombox Cartel, Dillon Francis featuring Desiigner on loop since it dropped a few days ago. During Electric Zoo, we took some time to hang out with the man himself to find out how he experiments with his sound to make distinctive music while continuing to express himself with his collabs as well as his clothing brand.

ATHLEISURE MAG: How do you define the Boombox Cartel sound?

BOOMBOX CARTEL: I define it as breaking the rules and doing everything wrong. Stuff that’s not supposed to be done and trying to make it work. I try to come up with original ideas and there is a lot of research and development.

AM: What's that like?

BC: Putting a lot of time in the studio and making a lot of weird demos. It’s like evil scientist vibes, but I think that that’s what it is. Then just staying true to the underground and staying true to where we all came from.

AM: How do you get inspired and where does that come from?

BC: Well just influences from when I was a kid. Indie bands, synth rock bands to like Hip Hop to Trap, to Houston stuff to just a big mix. I lived in Monterrey, Mexico for half of my life. I was born in Laredo, Texas in South Texas and I went to music school in Minneapolis. So it’s just kind of like gathering cultures and gathering styles and sounds and just putting it all together.

AM: We’re loving DRIP with you, Dillon Francis and featuring Desiigner from an Athleisure Mag perspective, amazing song to workout to! How did that come about?

BC: Thank you so much and that’s what we wanted! Dillon is one of the most happiest human beings that I know. He’s always really enthusiastic and we tried to make something that meets in the middle. Something euphoric, something happy, something bright, something really colorful and that’s what came to be. And also, with Desiigner, he’s one of the most down to Earth rappers. I work with so many rappers and I think that Desiigner is the only rapper that I can say he is like a genuinely good person that is down to work and to do it for the people. He was there and we were in the studio until 7am like coming up with ideas – smoking weed and my whole house smelled like weed for the next week.

AM: But it was worth it!

BC: But it was worth it! We made a really positive and happy song and we’re all happy to put it out.

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

AM: It’s a hot song. We can’t say how many times we’ve had it on loop.

BC: Thank you so much!

AM: So your FC custom jerseys – those are really cool! Where did that come from?

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

BC: That came from living in Monterrey, Mexico and just going to soccer games every week. I see a lot of baseball jerseys in the EDM community and there’s isn’t enough love for the soccer community. Soccer is just as big or I think bigger! So just playing soccer, every show I go to I ask for a soccer ball and collect a university ball or something like that. I’m a huge fan. So working on those from scratch with a friend in Downtown LA – right now we’re working on a brand partnership with a big company. We did it all from scratch. One of my good friends Colby, helped us out. He has a beautiful warehouse – cut and sew, he created the patches from scratch and they will be back in stock this next week!

AM: Exciting – eventually you can have a whole line!

BC: We have some shorts coming up, socks, the whole kit for the kids.

AM: What are 3 things that you do being so busy and spreading yourself in so many places – to just get back to you?

BC: Yeah, I grew up in Texas with my dad grilling twice a week. So me and my homies barbecue twice a week – or at least once a week. I have a Harley Davidson back at home and I take it out on the 1 highway to go get some fried shrimp and then I come back home and just head to the studio.

IG @BoomBoxCartel

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

One of our favorite remixes is 'Red Lips' by Good Times Ahead as it's been earcandy on our playlist for nearly a decade. So sitting down with this duo talking about a number of exciting changes taking place in the group was a lot of fun. In addition to hearing about their new label, their rebrand and what they've been up to this year, we also found out about where we should be eating the next time we're in Miami.

ATHLEISURE MAG: You guys have had a lot of going on lately – you have the rebrand of your name and your own label. Can you tell us about this?

GOOD TIMES AHEAD: The label is called Good Times/Bad Times and I think that one of our favorite things about having our own label is being able to put out our own music whenever we want. It’s kind of like the main reason. At the same time, it’s also a good platform for us to showcase the Latin influence we have in our music and a lot of the people that we play in our sets and just showcasing that to everyone. Kind of bringing a new thing to the game.

AM: When it came to introducing us to some of his favorite music, our Co-Founder Paul, introduced us to your music. We covered the Fold Festival and we saw you there as well. What is it about your free of genre music and just really bringing together good music?

GTA: For us, it’s mostly just about the energy that music has and the type of energy that makes you feel the way that you do. That’s why whenever we play music, any music that we play either hand selecting it or making it – it, has a certain kind of energy to it. It’s kind of what lets people just have fun as it’s such a fun sound to it. That’s pretty much what attracts us to music in general. It’s about having a good energy about it.

AM: Once again you guys have been super busy with so many festivals. How many have you done just this summer alone?

GTA: This summer probably like 4, but that’s light for us. We still played a lot of festivals and shows, but this year, we took it a little easier because we were focusing on finishing up so much music. 2 or 3 weeks ago we put out our album. We had the record label launch and the whole rebranding of everything. We have been working a lot behind the scenes and just taking this year kind of slow to just work on that. We’ve been doing this now for 8 or 9 years so it’s kind of nice to have a little easy period.

AM: You guys also have a clothing line as well – tell us about that.

GTA: Oh yeah, so it’s kind of something that we dabbled in a little bit. I’m personally a fan of fashion and that kind of thing and street brands. Shout out to Jay of Triple 7 – he hooked us up with so much knowledge on just how to make your own label and your own kind of style. We just kind of wanted to bring that to the festivals that we went to and the parties that we go to and it’s been cool. It’s kind of the same thing that we do with our music. We kind of let the clothes speak for themselves – they’re just really cool and really good quality. They’re good to wear and you can wear them at a festival or just to go out in. It’s kind of in line with our same kind of style as well.

AM: What are you working on right now in terms of collabs?

GTA: We’re definitely doing a lot of stuff as far as on our own with our own label and stuff. We have a lot of collabs. We’ve been playing this one thing we did with this group called Fight Club which they’re actually from here. We have a couple of other ones too. A lot of club music a lot of Latin music. We have been working with a lot of Latin artists. We've had some writing camps last year and this year in Mexico and playing in Brazil and stuff. We’re working with a lot of up and coming people and it’s really exciting especially now that we’re about to launch the label. All of that was for the label and now it’s about being able to put it out and being able to show everyone.

AM: What are 3 restaurants that you guys love eating at in Miami?

GTA: In Miami? Crab Man 305 that’s our number 1! Shout out to Crab Man 305. We’ll also say that there are many many Cuban restaurants, but Sergio’s is a very good restaurant - it’s classic Miami. And then I’d say that obviously Joe’s Stone Crab is a good one – it’s a fancy one but one to go to!

IG @GoodTimesAhead

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

This past Electric Zoo not only included DJ/producer NGHTMRE performing, but he had a stage for the artists on his label Gud Vibrations which he cofounded with SLANDER. We talked with him about his sound, the responsibilities of running his labels, his current tour and of course being at this year's EZoo.

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

ATHLEISURE MAG: How do you define the NGHTMRE sound?

NGHTMRE: I like to just call it bass music. I try to incorporate and tempos and various styles of electronic music in my records and live shows. It’s a mixture of melodic and heavy. I focus on keeping everything high-energy!

AM: In addition to working on your music, you’re also the Co-Founder of your own label along with SLANDER. How is it juggling those responsibilities and needs?

N: It’s great actually. We have a great team helping us and it really allows us to focus on the music rather than having to worry about small details and infrastructure building. It’s only just getting started in our eyes.

AM: You’re back at EZoo and not only are you performing but you have an entire stage with Gud Vibrations artists – how did this come about and how exciting is it to have this going on this going on this year?

N: I think the Gud Vibrations label and brand in general works so well because it came about organically. Me and the Slander boys are great friends and our tastes align so well that we eventually started our own events and parties. We’re extremely grateful for Electric Zoo for inviting us to bring the Gud Vibrations energy to New York.

AM: Gud Vibrations also has its own clothing line – the Bomber Jackets are definitely something cool that we would include in a future shoot – how do you go about deciding what goes into the line and how it feeds the ethos of your label?

N: Gud Vibrations in general is an outlet for us to put out what we think is cool into the world. We don’t have any specific method to deciding what goes out, but if there’s something we particularly love or feel is cool we take our time developing it to make sure it’s exactly how we like it, then share it!

AM: Tell us about The Alchemy Tour.

N: For this tour I’m doing a b2b set with Slander for each show and this is the first time we’ve been able to bring our stage “The Atom” on the road with us! To top it off we’ve been looking up to Seven Lions and The Glitch Mob for years so to be performing alongside them is amazing!

AM: Tell us about collabs and projects that you have dropping within your music as well as things that we should know about regarding the label.

N: Earlier this year I released a record with ASAP Ferg called Redlight! He’s another person I’ve looked up to for a long time so being able to work together and create a full music video together was a special experience. I have a new track with “Zhu” called Man’s First Inhibition that just dropped and is a bit different from my other stuff. I am always collaborating on new music!

PHOTO COURTESY | aLIVE Coverage for ElectricZoo.com

AM: You’re constantly on the road going from one gig to the next. Do you have 3 things that you do prior to a gig to get in the right mindset to perform in front of your fans?

N: Nothing usually actually. I spend time in Rekordbox on my computer before each show. Its a software that allows me to plan out and organize my music a bit better so when I’m in stage it’s easier to switch things up.

AM: In addition to traveling, I’m sure you workout, what are 3 workouts that you feel are the core of your fitness routine?

N: I actually only just started doing this recently but I got a personal trailer to help me while I was home for a bit and this is my “on the road” routine.

STRETCHES | Samson Lunge, Worlds Greatest Stretch, Downdog, Frog Stretch and Pigeon | CORE WORK @ 3 Rounds | (Rotation) Russian Twist x30, (Flexion) Leg Raise x30, (Static hold) Plank 30 sec | @ 4 Rounds | Squats x40, SIT UPS x30, Push Up x20 |

IG @NGHTMRE

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

PHOTO | Paul Farkas

PHOTO CREDITS | PG 26, 52 + 54 aLIVE Coverage for ElectricZoo.com | This editorial contains elements of images, courtesy Dreamstime.com: PG 16 Richochet69, PG 19 Rolffimages, PG 29 Nadezda Mikusova, PG 30 Philip Openshaw, PG 34 Golfxx, PG 36 Steve Ford, PG 41 Alisbab, PG 42 Tatiana Kuklina, PG 46 Alphonse99 + Back Cover Santi Ri |

Read the August Issue of Athleisure Mag and see It’s Electric in mag.

THE FITNESS ICON WITH DENISE AUSTIN

Growing up, many of us may remember our moms, aunts, babysitters etc having VHS and eventually DVD's of Denise Austin! You may have even started your day working out with her. When it comes to a fitness icon, she is one of them and we loved sitting down with her last week to talk about how she came into the fitness industry, her success with her VHS, DVD and daily TV Show on ESPN - Get Fit with Denise Austin. We talk about her impact in the fitness industry and serving 2 terms of the President's Council of Physical Fitness and Sports and working alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger. We also talk about her fitness focuses as well as her work with her daughter, Katie Austin!

ATHLEISURE MAG: What was the moment that you realized that you wanted to be in the fitness industry?

DENISE AUSTIN: Well, I was a gymnast since I was a little girl and got a full athletic scholarship to college and I went to the University of Arizona and and then I got my degree in exercise physiology and aerobics was just beginning. It was the early 80’s and I moved back to California where I’m from and I met Jack LaLanne, the godfather of fitness and he gave me my first start on television. I loved it so much! I was teaching aerobic classes all over LA at the time and of course at that time, we only had little rooms to teach. There weren’t any big gyms. I taught in racquet ball courts and things like that. We really enjoyed the TV part and I got my own show on KABC LA. I got married and then I moved to Washington DC and started on the Today Show. I then had my own show on ESPN and Lifetime – everything just kept going.

When I was in college, I knew that I could teach some type of fitness with music because that’s gymnastics anyhow. So I just parlayed it into a career!

AM: Wow! Thinking back to a number of us who were growing up when you were starting, we did it with our moms – you had TV shows, VHS and DVDs, you were literally everywhere! Did you consciously think to yourself that you were going to have this brand and it’s going to be something where people are going to say, “oh Denise Austin – that’s a thing?”

DA: Well, not really! I didn’t know the name brand back in the day, 35 years ago! But I loved what I was doing because I was getting letters from people telling me that I was making a difference in what I was doing in their lives. It’s such a fulfilling job and to this day, I do it because I love hearing that it changes them and it changes the way that they feel. They have said that I have saved them, their marriage and I have had people cry and thank me. To know that you are out there helping people just made me want to keep being out there and doing more! I figured out how to keep going and it was kind of a “learn as I go” and I helped create some of this stuff!

I was learning as I was going along and I’d say, “oh yes, I can do a monthly segment on the Today Show – yes I can on fitness!” Then it was like, “yes, I can do VHS.” So it just kept going and I work very hard and persistence did pay off. I’d work on weekends and make appearances. I constantly love what I do so I’m a hard worker so that helped!

AM: Well, that’s an understatement! What was the first time like when you created your first video? You knew you were on a set and its production time. What was that like?

DA: Oh it was a dream come true! I was 27 and it was my first VHS. I was able to film it at the first MTV Studios and they were just kind of starting and I used their sets and I was right here in NYC. I had top makeup people for the very first time and I was like ok – I just did it. I had my routine, but I went for it and I was who I was. It was Rock Hard Abs and Rock Aerobics, I had two VHSs out of it and they were hits at the same time that my friend, Jane Fonda was coming out with her VHS tapes. It was a vary exciting time for the industry because aerobics was just starting in the early 80s.

AM: Did you come up with the outfits yourself? As a young girl doing the workouts, the fun part was seeing the style involved. To this day, there are photoshoots that have appeared in the magazine that have taken concepts off of looks that you wore then and then bringing them into present day shoots!

DA: What I did for Rock Aerobics is that I had a unitard and I said to myself, “this is all about the abs – I’m going to do a cutout.” So I cut out my material around the belly button and I used my pair of scissors to cut out the whole around my stomach so that they could see my abs while I was doing my workout. That’s one of the biggest pictures that I had and I saved all of those items. Now my daughter has fallen into the fitness footsteps now. Thank God I saved so many leggings, high cut up the butt leotards and hot pinks and hot lime green! It’s fun because it’s now all coming back – “let’s get physical.”

AM: How do you keep your energy?

DA: You know what? I’m like this. I wake up like this! Everyone asks my kids, “does your mom wake up like this?” I’m like, “yeah if you spend the night with me, you’ll see! Good morning!”

AM: Your a morning person clearly – what’s your flow like during the day?

DA: Yes! It changes if I’m traveling but mostly I get up, I do like my cup of coffee in the morning. I squeeze in my workout on most days for 30 mintues in the morning. I try to get in my workout. I do lots of online, post, my social media, I answer all my messages, do my email and then I make appearances, give speeches. I eat lunch, I eat dinner – I never skip a meal. I just love food and I eat well. 80% of the time, I eat well and have my treats 20% of the time. Evening time, I'm ready to have my glass of red wine - that is my treat and I enjoy that. I have lots of girlfriends, a great husband, 2 daughters and a huge family. Family means a lot to me and so do my girlfriends. So I do many things with friends!

AM: It’s so important to be balanced!

DA: Yes, I eat most everything just all in small bites as it’s all about moderation.

AM: You served 2 terms on the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, can you tell us about the council, how you came to joining it and what were your roles and responsibilities by being apart of it?

DA: It was years ago when President Bush appointed me and Arnold Schwarzenegger was the chairman of it. The appointment was made by President Bush 41, God rest his soul as he was the sweetest man in the world and very fit. I was under Arnold as our chairman and we went to schools all over the nation. It was a volunteer job and we were trying to get kids into physical education at the schools which was really hard and we did appearances and Arnold paid out of his own money in every state we went to. I would lead aerobics to young kids and it was the beginnings of this grass roots for the President’s Council. It was a really fun time because we were trying to get fitness out there during the 90’s so it was a very important time you know. We were trying to change people’s eating habits. We were trying to get rid of some of the sugars in people’s cereals. So we lobbied on The Hill in front of Congress and pleaded with them to make changes for the school to get kids moving more and to get physical education back into the schools. We worked hard!

AM: That council was so huge. I graduated in 1997 from High School and starting in my Sophomore year, in addition to the traditional gym classes, you could have aerobics as an entire class. We also had potato and salad bars at our school. Our school system was seen as progressive and a lot of times, we talked about the fact that because of the council, it allowed our school system to understand that this was so important. I appreciate the efforts that you guys did to make this happen!

DA: Your school system was progressive and it was a lot of work, but I’m glad you had that opportunity available to you! We also made recommendations and guidelines with top doctors which was years of work and I learned so much to be around the brilliant minds of medical, health and wellness. I learned a lot which helped me to grow to teach other people especially women and to this day, I still get on the phone and talk to these top doctors all over the country! I use them as great resources to this day. It was a wonderful time and good networking.

AM: Amazing and you also helped launched the Food Pyramid System as well! How was that and what was it like as this is huge!

DA: I sure did! Well, they worked with nutritionists all over the country to come up with this pyramid guide making sure that the sugars were low and that the whole grains and fruits and vegetables that were at the bottom, took up a lot of our plate. They asked me to be the one to kick it off at The Department of Agriculture in Washington DC in this whole glorious building and it was a huge honor!

AM: It’s amazing to hear so many things that you have done and been apart of that you didn’t even think about, but that is the cornerstone of what we know today. How are you so humble about that?

DA: I almost forget that I did it! I’m moving ahead so much that I don’t really think about it!

AM: When you think about how you, Jack LaLanne and Jane Fonda laid the ground work for what fitness videos are, various programs etc. They were the precursor to today’s studio and boutique fitness locations.

DA: Oh I just love what I do! I keep going and I just feel that I do look ahead and my focus now is looking at women that are over 40. I have a Stop the Clock Guide – which is a nutrition and fitness guide for women because this age group has women that aren’t really seen anymore. I truly believe that those in this group - we want to be healthy, we want to be attractive, we want to look good and we want to do everything. That’s why I’m here and I want to tell them, yes we can. I have the best exercises to do away with belly fat after menopause. I know how to firm up your arms so that we look good when we wave goodbye. Muscles work wonders on your metabolism and I know through research that it does work. I believe in it so much because fitness is the best preventative medicine that there is. I preach it and I want my women over 40 to hear me, to learn and to not give up! They need to have a positive attitude about it as many women get clogged down with stress in this age in our life but there is so much to look forward to because we live longer now and we want to feel better.

AM: When you look at ages from 40-50 etc the way you work out when you are in those ages is different then when you’re in your 20’s and 30’s – what are the focuses in these age groups?

DA: Well in your 40’s, I still think that women need a lot of cardio to burn the fat. In the 50’s I focus mainly on target toning exercises because that’s when you start to have your metabolism drop during this age. One of the reasons is because you lack good muscle tone. The more muscle cells in your body, they’re active at rest. So the second you start losing muscle tone, that’s when you gain weight and that’s why the correlation between this in your 50’s is so important. I want to save women right away before it gets away from them. That’s why they need to focus on muscle condition which is what the guide is all about. Then in your 60’s, I hit this age group which is why I do more toning of course, but then I also turned it into stability exercises more core, strength training, stretching and balance.

AM: How important is recover to you in terms of working out?

DA: Very important! I take very good care of myself. I do Epson Salt baths now, I do foam rollers in my workouts, I believe in smoothing out my muscles for less stress. I try to once a month get a full body massage and those are just some of the little things that I do for wellness and recovery. I’m a big believer in eating healthy too! I’ve added in my nutrition guide, new recipes that have a lot to do with Omega-3’s as we need those as we age. Also some great healthy fats to make our skin still look supple and our hair looking fresh. So beauty plays a key role in what you are eating. I add a lot of different elements into the recipes that I make. Everything that I make is quick and easy, because if it isn’t easy in the kitchen, I won’t do it!

AM: What are 3 workouts that you think that everyone should be doing regardless of their age or wherever they are in life that are great for their abs, butts and legs?

DA: Absolutely. Always the simple rule of thumb is something for your upper body – a push up. If you don’t want to do it on the ground, you can do it against your kitchen counter or the office desk. It gets the arms and it gets your chest – so that takes care of your upper body. Mid Section, the old fashioned plank or sit-up it takes care of your belly and that whole core. I like to hold it up to a minute or change it up and do different things like bicycles or anything for your abs. For the lower body, squats and lunges for your hips, thighs and butt. If your knees hurt you, just go half way and do many squats. You can hold onto a chair or a countertop to use it for extra support. So you get something for your upper body, your mid section and your lower body.

AM: How many books have you written?

DA: Oh 12 books and I'm writing a book as we speak!

AM: What is that process like for you?

DA: Oh I’m terrible. It’s the worst job of my life because I talk so much that I would rather talk it, then write it. I feel like I am giving a speech to help women and then, that’s how I write my book – exactly like how I would talk it. Then I have to have an editor for English and then it’s a process.

AM: So what projects are you working on?

DA: Well on my DeniseAustin.com site, I bought back all of my TV shows that everyone used to watch and that they have missed. They now have Denise on Demand for their workouts just like they used to! You can time it so that even at 7am you can go to my website and bam it’s there so that you can stream it. Now I’m working on focusing all of my energies on Stop the Clock because it is so popular. We’re doing challenges on that. Recently, we had a 4 day arm challenge so that you could get sexy arms for the summer. So we’ll be doing some new challenges for the month of July so come back to DeniseAustin.com to see that. All of the challenges are free and I do have an online membership that is under $100 for the entire year. Everything that you want from me from my old workouts, new workouts, old shows, new shows, new challenges and an eating plan. If you need a focus on your meal plans I have this for you and if you need to focus on the way that I eat, vegetarian, gluten-free, heart healthy etc. – we have something for everybody!

AM: Do you and Katie workout together?

DA: Yes! That’s another focus I have! Katie Austin is my little daughter – well she is 25 but we do mother-daughter workouts together. She is doing a tour and I am joining her in some of the cities. I’m very excited about that. This is really fun being able to work with my daughter. She teaches me things about Social Media. She’s the one that got me on Instagram – I had Facebook, but now I have this. And then I try to help her on what I have learned in my industry, focusing on good form and little details. You know, I have 2 daughters. My oldest Kelly, is in the music industry, when I would film my TV Show when they were younger, Katie would stand there by the camera and do it with me. Kelly would be out there looking for shells or who knows what! Katie was always watching and I had no idea after college that that was what she wanted to do. So it was so fun that she loved it, is a natural and she learned from years of being there. Everyday – she was even in a workout video that I did years ago when she was 7 for Fit Kids. She had already filmed videos and been on shows for years.

AM: There is something about when you have parents that are in a business that you can see or be around and how it ends up being a part of your career!

DA: Yes so true! My oldest daughter is a Music Supervisor. She picks songs for movies. My husband is a sports lawyer, but he is a music nut! When she was little, they used to put playlists together so it’s like one focused on what his passion was and one focused on what mine was. It’s kind of fun!

AM: In LA, where can we find you grabbing a bite, shopping and working out?

DA: Yes we had been based in Washington DC for 32 years and now we’re in LA – back home! In LA I like Earth Café for food and coffee, it’s one of my favorite stops in Santa Monica. For dinner, I love Scopa, I just went there in Venice it was delicious and it’s Italian! I do eat pasta, but only from good places – why not? Oh gosh, you’ll see me walking on the beach a lot. You’ll see me doing the Strand Walk which is a 5 mile walk on the strand which is like a boardwalk. You’ll see my husband and I play tennis a lot and we go on bike rides a lot too! We bike ride to Happy Hour as I only have one glass!

I love walking in NY and Chicago. The second that I land, I throw my bags in the hotel and I get out and walk. I don't care what time it is, I get out and walk for 30 minutes. It's a great thing to get out and stretch.

AM: We’re all about #TRIBEGOALS. Who are 3 people that inspire you?

DA: I would say my daughters. They inspire me to work harder to be a good person. They’re watching and as a mom that means the world to me – as my family means everything! I would also say my husband – his loyalty and his integrity to people. I look up to him. In business there are so many, I can’t even just pick one in my industry. There was Jack LaLanne and now I also look up to writers that are really cool like Tim Farris and Dave Asprey.

PHOTO CREDIT | PG 143, 147 + 148 Denise Austin | PG 144 Jaguarps | PG 151 Featureflash |

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