Back in 2010, I launched my own t-shirt line.
Knowing that I was not the first genius to have this idea, I set about thinking of ways to differentiate myself from the countless others hawking their own snarky threads.
The fashion biz is a lot like the music biz in that it ALL ultimately boils down to promotion and getting your shit in front of people.
Despite my meager budget, most of which I had blown on EQUIPMENT, I came up with one of my typically hair-brained schemes for a photo shoot that would feature my shirts prominently.
The body of the e-mail explained my idea for a photo shoot featuring various shots of Urge Overkill's Nash Kato being kidnapped and stuffed into the trunk of some retro '70s land barge. The setting would be some dank, dark parking garage and the lighting would be straight out of a low-budget '50s noir flick.
One of the absolute best late night musical TV performances EVER!
I spent the better part of the afternoon trying to find just the right place to bury the line wherein I divulged the lowly sum of cash that I was able to pay Mr. Kato for his services. Even as I typed the amount, I shook my head in shame, for no sane person would offer such a pittance to someone they respected, much less admired.
Try as I might, there was no good way to say "Sorry, but it's all the money I have" so that's what I went with in the end.
After a few minutes of staring at the screen, I muttered an F-bomb, took the Lord's name in vain, and hit SEND.
It was out of my hands now, I thought, as my email thumbed a ride down the information super-highway on its way, I presumed, to the cyber circular file of Urge Overkill's manager.
Like most other wild ideas of mine that actually make it past the hyper-critical voices in my head, I'd become used to receiving no response at all. So it came as quite a surprise that my own in-box dinged less than an hour later.
Speaking of t-shirts... (UO start at 1:22)
Seeing that the email was from Urge Overkill management, I hesitated for a moment before clicking it open. The longer I stared at the email without opening it, I reasoned, the longer my ridiculous premise would remain among the living.
Minutes earlier, I had achieved that rare perfect ratio of coffee/creamer/temperature that I didn't want to ruin with rejection, so I paced around the room like a mental patient for half an hour taking baby sips.
Cup empty, I let out a nervous belch and clicked the email open.
My eyes landed on the words "under one condition".
Wait, what?
I then started at the TOP of the damned email like a normal person and slowly parsed every word as it fell from my lips and, try as I might, I did not see the word "NO!" anywhere.
Just to make sure, I read it again.
Holy shit, Nash was in.
As for the "under one condition" part, his one condition was that Eddie "King" Roeser, fellow bad-ass and Urge Overkill bandmate, had to be a part of the photo shoot as well.
AWESOME!
Wait, what's that gonna cast me?
I sent a reply asking for clarification on what Roeser's involvement would cost, not that he wouldn't be worth every damn penny,
The response came: "You said it was all you had. We'll make it work."
SAY WHAT?
Holy shit, I was getting two Chicago alterna-rock legends for the price of one, bitches!
Ultimately the photo shoot never happened because the tour merch/screen printing business I'd been running to support the t-shirt line took off like a rocket and became the focus of my attention.
Sure, making a livable wage for once in my life and having my ego stroked by the likes of Inc. Magazine and the New York Times for my entrepreneurial success was a refreshing change from the norm, but a part of me threatens to kick my own ass at least once a week for not going through with that damn Nash & Eddie photo shoot.
I tell this story any chance I get, not because I wish to toot my own horn, but because it means a lot to me that not only was Nash up for such an out-of-the-blue project from a complete stranger, he damn sure his partner in crime, "The King", was included.
I mean, that's the kind of thing that makes a man get misty when he thinks about it because, deep down, we all want there to be somebody who'd do the same for us.
Plus, bands are a weird thing in that a bunch of people who can barely stand to be in the room with each other can still go out there and take people for millions, so it was nice to see a situation where one cat wouldn't think of doing something without the other, even if doing so meant splitting the money two ways instead of one.
So, should you ever hear someone talking smack about Nash Kato, just give 'em this link.Or don't.
AWESOME!
Wait, what's that gonna cast me?
I sent a reply asking for clarification on what Roeser's involvement would cost, not that he wouldn't be worth every damn penny,
The response came: "You said it was all you had. We'll make it work."
SAY WHAT?
Holy shit, I was getting two Chicago alterna-rock legends for the price of one, bitches!
Ultimately the photo shoot never happened because the tour merch/screen printing business I'd been running to support the t-shirt line took off like a rocket and became the focus of my attention.
Sure, making a livable wage for once in my life and having my ego stroked by the likes of Inc. Magazine and the New York Times for my entrepreneurial success was a refreshing change from the norm, but a part of me threatens to kick my own ass at least once a week for not going through with that damn Nash & Eddie photo shoot.
I tell this story any chance I get, not because I wish to toot my own horn, but because it means a lot to me that not only was Nash up for such an out-of-the-blue project from a complete stranger, he damn sure his partner in crime, "The King", was included.
I mean, that's the kind of thing that makes a man get misty when he thinks about it because, deep down, we all want there to be somebody who'd do the same for us.
Plus, bands are a weird thing in that a bunch of people who can barely stand to be in the room with each other can still go out there and take people for millions, so it was nice to see a situation where one cat wouldn't think of doing something without the other, even if doing so meant splitting the money two ways instead of one.
So, should you ever hear someone talking smack about Nash Kato, just give 'em this link.Or don't.