Mike Giant Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Episode 19: Bobby Ruiz Oct 18, 2019

Show notes

Giant's interview with Bobby Ruiz, owner of Tribal Streetwear. Recorded in Mr. Ruiz’s office at the Tribal headquarters in San Diego, California on Thursday, October 17, 2019.

Topics discussed include: Growing up in Los Angeles in the 1960s, Hacienda Heights, moving to south San Diego in 1972, initial exposure to lowriding, skateboarding, gang culture, moving to Mira Mesa (the suburbs), gang writing, musical influences, stoner culture, high school, Chicano Power movement, appearing in Lowrider magazine in 1981, customizing a 1964 Thunderbird, first experiences with "hip-hop” graffiti while working as a janitor, meeting San Diego writers, earning a bachelors degree with Honors at SDSU in Chicano Studies and Business Management over the course of ten years, difficulties with math, Tommy Guerrero, ska and punk music, Beastie Boys, Run DMC, NWA, Cypress Hill, breakdancing, Rocksteady Crew, the exploitation of subcultures, fashion vs. streetwear, Limp Bizkit, Korn, starting Tribal Gear in 1989, POD, Linkin Park, Los Lobos, Santana, Sublime, Psycho Realm, The Beat Nuts, Lollapalooza, Mixmaster Mike, Suge Knight, Risk/Third Rail, the early years of Streetwear, rubylith, Fat, Stoopid, ASR trade shows, Eazy-E, Boo-Ya Tribe, the 432F show, Bill McMullen, pre-internet indie brands and magazines, Conart, GAT, Japanese buyers, touring in Japan, CCC Satoshi Furuya, VHS camcorder, the Tribal videos, Kien Lieu, John Reeves, Zard, Japanese lowriding, Bosozoku, changing scenes, 1970s Cholo style, going back underground, Dogtown, Jay Adams, Louie Zodak, cutting back with spraypaint, Sake, Joker, Brown, Dyse, MC Rock, photo trading, Phil Kosaka, racking from Kmart, Mr. Cartoon, OG Abel, WCA crew, Chaz Bojorquez, Steve Soto, Carlos Torres, Usugrow, Alex Garcia, Mouse Lopez, the Legacy project/show, Carl Arellano, Pink Floyd, Swank, business decisions/staying exclusive, boutique shops, Big Proof, unpaid celebrity endorsements, Fred Durst, social media, licensing and distribution deals, mall stores in the Philippines, sharing manufacturing, the future of Tribal, RIP Norm and Jesse Valadez (The Gypsy Rose).

Episode 18: Francisco Agudo Jul 12, 2019

Show notes

Giant's interview with Francisco Agudo, a tatttooer and fine artist currently based in Los Angeles. Recorded in Francisco's guest house in Mid City, Los Angeles on July 5th, 2019.

Topics discussed include: growing up in the East Bay, writing graffiti at 12 years old, playing with freight trains, the late 1990s Bay Area graffiti scene, youth sports, early drawing influences, copying skateboard graphics, Jase, the Upper Playground studio, setting goals, leaving home as a teenager, selling drugs, getting started in San Francisco, local haunts, risk vs reward balance, hassles with police, reputation, Show and Prove, asshole mode, late night transportation problems, evading a house raid, backing out of the drug trade, the college track, taking the right opportunities, storefront studio on Divisadero near Haight, Chad Mooney, Academy of Art, Skullz Press blogspot, Mark Snor, kings, studio assistants, Japanese collectors, monthly studio parties, neighborhood tree panic, city comparisons, Tenderloin studio/apartment, self tattooing, living on Hyde Street, the show outside the window, cracktivity, dead people in public, Dave Schubert, the Baltimore/Philly/DC heads, Felon, integrity, Icon’s loft, East Bay thugs, North Beach, Dolores Park, writing graffiti on Upper Haight, adventures with cops, game-changing beatdowns, daytime MUNI graffiti action, jail time, community service, felony vs misdemeanor, hater judge, the Albuquerque Anti-Graffiti Task Force, the friend in the justice system, good vs bad cops, networking amongst friends, entering tattoo business at Picture Machine, use of aliases, Paco Excel, Jason Kundell, good spots, Fate, Norm, huge graffiti, Everlasting Tattoo, Idle Hands, shop help job, move to LA, cannabis trimming, Midtown Tattoo, skateboard graphics, varying business practices, Marks Tattoo.

@mrfranciscoagudo
@markstattoo_la

Episode 17: Deb Jul 05, 2019

Show notes

Giant's interview with Deb, a fine artist and muralist from Australia, currently based in Los Angeles. Recorded in a guest house in Mid City, Los Angeles on July 4th, 2019 during the set-up for a party.

Topics discussed include: a difficult birth, growing up in Melbourne, art programs in private/public school, vandalizing desks, anorexia, recovery, pre-internet networking, being a female artist, getting a graphic design diploma mid-20s, the early years of computers and cellphones, pager codes, the effect of cellphones on graffiti writing, modems, the invention of email, AOL chatrooms, traditional vs. digital drawing, the earthquake, reproductions vs. originals, craft vs. idea, finding your audience, Tumblr, getting on Instagram, changes in the art economy, technology appreciation, Melbourne vs. Sydney, San Francisco, Eddie Zammit, the first studio visit, chance encounters, logistics of moving to the US, semi-legal status, working internationally, subletting Giant’s apartment, sketchy landlords in San Francisco, San Jose, Boulder, Jeremy Fish, working on the street, the loss of heritage businesses in San Francisco, Summer of Love, changing neighborhoods, downtown LA, collecting skateboards, getting mugged, Beauty Bar, traumatic brain injury, recovery, chronic migraines, Apex, spray paint, Bigfoot, mops, latex house paint, mural work, 6th Street, pedestrian traffic, Santa Fe, lowrider culture, the new Los Angeles.

@deb

Episode 16: Leo Gonzales Jul 02, 2019

Show notes

Giant's interview with Leo Gonzales, a tattoo artist and fine art painter based in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Recorded in Mr. Gonzales' home on June 30, 2019.

Topics discussed include: Growing up in Pojoaque, NM, drawing at 2 years old, replicating Disney characters, Garfield, Prince Valiant, Dungeons and Dragons, The Hobbit, browsing book and album covers, frequency range, music/audio books as background noise, mindfulness, Cat Stevens, Kansas, KISS, Lorelei, Sikhs, Logical Nonsense, the punk scene, drugs, The Dark Nineties, tagbanging, Santa Fe vs. Albuquerque, backyard parties, hand poke tattoos, rites of passage, The Decline of Western Civilization, tattooing at school, The Hat, judging people by their tattoos, Dan-O Sanchez, self tattooing, dedication to the craft, apprenticeships, art school, Boris Vallejo’s advice, learning directly from artists, recognizable style, tattoo conventions, Guy Aitchison, Grime, Mike Davis, recognizing tattoos not clients, the pitfalls of getting your own drawings tattooed, quality vs. story, word tattoos, Hardware, assholes in business, good customer interactions, Richard Stell, Lucky 13, Ten In One, Stay Gold, Steve Truitt, body modifications, suspensions, public lynching, fatherhood, Warhammer, 5x Golden Demon Champion, miniature figures, Shawn Warcot, Stranger Things, hiking, the satisfaction of physical exhaustion, skateboarding, Shoggoth, making intestines, Asian Water Monitor, snake breeding, cross platforming.

@cthuleo

Episode 15: Mike Peters May 16, 2019

Show notes

Giant's interview with Mike Peters, a custom automotive fabricator based in Denver, Colorado. Recorded in Mr. Peters' garage in Northglenn, Colorado on May 12, 2019.

Topics discussed include: Moving to San Diego from Denver in 1983, skateboarding, running into cars, litho printing in high school, hot rod/custom family, car shows in the 1980s, lowrider love, El Cajon, The Phantom, ditching at the ditch, backyard half pipe, skating vert, injuries, tagbanging, witnessing murder, graffiti as a career, Aerosol Psychotics Crew, spray techniques/can control, Sake/spitter caps, (broken chair), aviation, dropping out of high school, 1973 Bulletside Datsun, the Trades, Miracles Truck Club/Negative Camber, 1960s hot rods, 1956 Merc, custom audio, Phoenix, returning to Denver, camaraderie, SEMA 2017, showing work in front of fellow professionals, the critical eye, 1980s punk rock, beach life, Tribal Gear, cruising/bass music (DJ Magic Mike), Rel, shooting, San Diego taco shops, horchata, regional cultures/styles, Cholo style/respect, graffiti identity, Teck, following security patrols, fatcaps on freeways, Bobby Ruiz, 1990s street wear, ASR/432F, speeding through a border patrol checkpoint, times of change/perseverance, the Art Hussle, Uneekbilt, fabrication on Giant’s box van, project stress, workflow, “30,000 Parts”, Denver truck scene, Española, motorcycles, mentorship/Art Night and Trades ethics.

@mikepeters56
@uneekbilt

Episode 14: Jeremy Fish May 02, 2019

Show notes

Mike's interview with Jeremy Fish, an artist based in San Francisco, California. Recorded at Black Book Gallery in Denver, Colorado on April 14, 2019.

Topics discussed include: Growing up in the Northeast, Saratoga Springs, smuggling, art teachers, winter activities, crafty moms, Lee J. Ames, Hip-Hop, DJ Pink Panther, BMX, skateboarding, Caroline Street, Saratoga Springs Skatepark, local pros, Lake George, Burden Lake Pool, Santa Cruz Skateboards/Jim Phillips, high school advertising class, Chuck Gaukel, class clown, Junior College of Albany/painting major, Barry McGee aka Twist, architecture, working drawings, The Twin Towers, The Art Institute, Bush Street, bus routes, silkscreen printing, Winfield Wallpaper, lunch spots, Eddy’s Diner, rubber floors, Good Vibrations/Barry the Beaver, Bear magazine, Folsom Street Fair, Printtime, Think Skateboards, Slap magazine/The Big Stupid, Silly Pink Bunnies, growing art business/traveling, commercial art challenges, Grime, Rick Griffin, North Beach, local relationships, current work, expressing sadness/female energy.

sillypinkbunnies.com
@mrjeremyfish

Episode 13: Derek Keenan Mar 31, 2019

Show notes

Mike's interview with Derek Keenan, an artist based in Denver, Colorado. Recorded in Mike's home in Boulder, Colorado on March 31, 2019.

Topics discussed include: Growing up in Arvada (Colorado), ’57 Chevys, learning from older siblings, organized sports, skateboarding, BMX bikes, Yellow Designs, DIY entrepreneurship, art education, Colorado Institute of Art, industrial design, marker rendering, internships in footwear business, working as a technical aviation illustrator, working as a picture framer, The Peace Corps, The Gambia, village life, Toubobs, African Mahogany charcoal, cultural differences, meditative awakenings, International Jazz Festival of Senegal, weed/psychedelics in Africa, Palm hooch, gender-based experience, Malik Njie, inside jokes/local knowledge, Not Self, hair in a bird’s nest, construction work, work options for felons, Fuzzy, toking on the job, street photography, recycling skateboards, craft fairs, earring hustle, Mukee, $15,000 laser, AT-AT, touring, support from the ladies, viral moment, booth design/fabrication, street-level business development, the stoney teepee, rubbing elbows, Etsy.

mukee.etsy.com
@derek_keenan
@mukee_design

Episode 12: Derick Montez Mar 15, 2019

Show notes

Mike's interview with Derick Montez, a tattoo artist based in San Francisco, California. Recorded in Mike's home in Boulder, Colorado on March 15, 2019.

Topics discussed include: Growing up in the North Valley of Albuquerque, drawing, attention to detail, skateboarding, browsing at magazine racks, Scribble mag, graffiti writing at 12 years old, purpose, outdated printer paper, graffiti spots, Officer J.D. Knight, Burque writers, L.A. Underground, Jukes, road trip to San Francisco in 2002, cities after midnight, the Dubose tunnel, the Hip-Hip vibe, Baked Potatoes, DIY attitude, graffiti media, city college, Java Joe’s, first fine art show/studio, hospice, Manny at Custom Tattoo, confidence, the non-art side of tattooing, “real jobs”, character, Stay Gold Tattoo, criminal versus public introductions, apprenticeship phase, zia symbol tattoo, Henry Lewis, Mr. Went, guest spot at Everlasting Tattoo with Shawn Barber, Anubis/Haight-Ashbury Tattoo, making good money, tiers of the tattoo business, Picture Machine, Seventh Son, Everlasting, Idle Hand.

idlehandsf.com
@derickmontez

Available now!! "Breakfast Club Book of Tattoo Flash” by Derick Montez, Mike Giant, Matt Howse, Mary Joy Scott and Paul Dobleman. Get yours today from www.tattooflashcollective.com.

Episode 10: Damon Soule - Part 1 Feb 17, 2019

Show notes

Mike interviews Damon Soule, a fine artist based in Grass Valley, California. Recorded in Mike's home in Bouler, Colorado on February 15, 2019.

Topics discussed include: Live painting at Mirus Gallery in Denver, collaborating with Oliver Vernon and Mars1, the Denver art scene, growing up in Atlanta in the 1970s, H.R. Puffnstuff, childhood influences, combat play/drawings, moving to New Orleans, Varanasi, public school, mathematics, fractals, skateboarding, Thrasher, Florida, Colorado Springs, being a teenage felon, New York City, Ron English, graffiti secrecy/beef, LSD epiphanies, moving to San Francisco, communal skater living, BC Surf’N’Sport, freelance jobs, Astro, racking, Maximum Rock’N’Roll, Twist, New Deal, realizing dreams, printing skateboards, Fit Skateboards, Sam Flores, Oak Street house, Burning Man, Food Not Bombs, the first Dot Com boom, Internet Yellow Pages, buying domain names, Fabric8, 214 Clara Street, Pete the Tweak, breakdancing, Q-Bert, Club Deco, subcultural variety.

Episode 11: Damon Soule - Part 2 Feb 17, 2019

Show notes

Part two of Mike's interview with Damon Soule, a fine artist based in Grass Valley, California. Recorded in Mike's home in Bouler, Colorado on February 15, 2019.

Topics discussed include: The dead junkie, The Pork Store, hiding from cops, pot brownies, climbing out of closets, cafe/salon shows, drawing on discarded blueprints, Art World tiers, Juxtapoz, Acme Gallery, 111 Minna, cluster headaches, psylocibin mushrooms, micro-dosing, tripping in Tokyo, race safety, trippy visuals, artistic evolution, Dalek, abstraction from fundamentals, biting, mutual inspiration, “Same Same But Different”, Nepal and India, Eastern philosophy, Terence McKenna, Timothy Leary, prohibition, optimistic future, accountability, Millennial thinking, novelty, swarm mechanics, moving to NYC, Joshua Liner Gallery, Salvia, the egoless state, DMT, belief, art business ethics, value, reproductions, rural living in Grass Valley, overhead, living in the same apartment building on Bush Street in San Francisco, Section 8.

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected