» HADOUKEN « long time; how've you been?
I recently got into a Twitter Fight with Chris Hardwick.
Remember him? Outlasting both Jenny McCarthy and Carmen Electra on MTV's then-revolutionary dating show, Singled Out, he later found success in show biz as the mind and voice behind The Nerdist, a weekly podcast that explores "what it really means to be a nerd."
From its humble beginnings, The Nerdist grew into a network of podcasts, complete with a premium YouTube channel and a robust news division. Over time, Chris "King of the Nerds" Hardwick sold off his ownership in the company to Legendary Entertainment but remained CEO. With an expiring contract and a desire to seek new revenue opportunities in the form of hosting live events and selling branded merchandise (shout out fashion), Hardwick decided to sever ties with the company and rebrand the pod as Id10T (pronounced "I-D-TEN-T").
Of course, I knew none of this--I missed the episode where Hardwick made the announcement and gave his reason for the rebrand because I wasn't so interested in that week's guest--and promptly did what any sentient 21st century biped would do: I took to Twitter. In short, I didn't like the name, and I wanted Hardwick to know.
So I said something snarky. He replied in a not-so-nice way. So, I was mean. And then he hit me with his reason for the rebrand. "What an idiot," I said to myself, while effusively apologizing as quickly as my thumbs would allow. Hardwick was gracious in accepting my apology. We shared a laugh. And then he signed off by recommending I pick up one of his last reads, Ego Is the Enemy by media savant and modern stoic, Ryan Holiday.
Exploring how one's ego is often at the center of life's biggest problems and as a result often a hindrance to one's own personal and/or professional success, Holiday teases out the difference between ego and confidence. Using historical allegories, he makes his case that one must overcome unhealthy beliefs in one's own importance in order to achieve the sort of self-awareness and purpose needed to truly succeed in life.
This is the part where I bring it all back to fashion, remember?
Just over a week after being named men’s artistic director for storied French fashion house Louis Vuitton, Virgil Abloh has been the subject of an unconscionable amount of scrutiny. Haters and fanboys alike out in full force, the situation highlights what makes the Internet so beautiful and ugly simultaneously: everyone has an opinion. And while these opinions are vast--just read the Reddit and Hypebeast comments--there is a single common thread that holds it all together: those in the hater camp are driven ego.
"He's not even a real designer."
"He has a team of 50 people who make these collections come to life."
"He's a glorified executive producer."
"I bet he doesn't even know how to open Photoshop."
These are the words of a discontented generation of would-be creative directors, designers, producers and CEOs--a generation of ego maniacs blinded by their own irrational arrogance and misguided notions of self-worth. In the amount of time it takes these haters and naysers to lament the "injustices" that led Virgil to become the cream of the LVMH creative crop, Virgil inked another deal. In the hours they spent going back and forth on Twitter, he put quotes around another 500 items. And in their sleep, while dreaming of how they're next up to "get chose," he was DJing another major party or closing $1 million dollar contracts from the comfort of a private jet.
And you know what? I've never seen Virgil's name hit the papers for any shameful reason. I've never heard a single rumor that he conducts himself in an entitled way. Simply put, he seems to be a pretty humble man even though he's waded through a morass of self-centered megalomaniacs to get to where he's going.
Think of the irony there. How many of you would have put Virgil ahead of Kanye West, his long time affiliate and proverbial shadow caster, in becoming a creative director at one of fashion's most storied houses? Kanye and countless others told us he would do it. Virgil did it.
As they say on Twitter: really makes you think.