Directors Coodie & Chike on Kanye West, Serendipity, and Being Too Nice

In this bonus episode of Overshare Season 3, Working Not Working co-founder and CEO Justin Gignac hosts a roundtable conversation with two senior recruiters from highly-celebrated companies. Lauren Ranke is the Director of Creative Talent at Wieden+Kennedy and Chloe Harlig is the Senior Creative Recruiter at Squarespace. Both companies recently received some well-deserved acclaim from Ad Age, with Wieden+Kennedy winning Agency of the Year and Squarespace winning In-House Agency of the Year.This recording is from a live virtual event that took place on May 7th. Lauren and Chloe discuss how their hiring approaches have changed during quarantine, why self-initiated work is more important than ever, how they continue to keep their eyes trained on the future, and whether remote work will become the standard. Our digital audience of creatives, many of whom submitted thoughtful questions that Justin relayed to the recruiters, left the conversation feeling better educated on the thoughts and considerations of those who bring them work. They also left more hopeful. Because Lauren and Chloe were both so generous with insights, we're excited to share the full conversation with the creative community.Follow Overshare (@oversharetalks) and Working Not Working (@wnotw) on Instagram.SHOW NOTES:SquarespaceWieden+KennedyThe United 

In the season 3 finale of Overshare, host Justin Gignac sits down with Brooklyn-based photographer Jeremy Cohen, who has received A LOT of attention recently. Like most of us, Jeremy has had a lot of time on his hands these past couple of months. He’s used this time to think, to look out his window, to cook naked, and to cook up a quarantine record for the most romantic gesture.From his balcony, Jeremy could see his neighbors’ roofs. He started photographing and filming all of the activity: yoga, working out, kite flying, book reading, and dancing. But one neighbor stood out. He waved to her from his balcony. She waved back. He then taped his phone number to his drone and flew it across the street to her. That meet-cute has snowballed into "The Quarantine Cutie" romance, which has since taken over the internet. Millions of people have watched videos of him sending the drone, asking her out, and showing up to their date in a human-sized bubble to practice proper social distancing.Jeremy has offered not only a great distraction for all of us, but a reminder of our shared humanity. He has a great perspective on these times, as well as the personal and professional effects that come with suddenly having half a million Instagram followers.In this conversation, Jeremy discusses the whirlwind nature of these past couple months, which included landing his first magazine cover for New York Magazine. And well-timed with Mother’s Day, Jeremy also discusses the impact that his mother, a Stage IV cancer survivor, has had on his work as well as his positive outlook on life. This episode will help you keep your head up in these times, which makes it a great finale to this season.Follow Overshare (@oversharetalks) and Working Not Working (@wnotw) on Instagram. SHOW NOTES:Jeremy Cohen ( Working Not Working / Instagram / website )Jeremy's first drone flirtation to Tori across the streetBubble Boy date with ToriJeremy's cover of New York MagazineRoof Culture During Quarantine (Part 1  & Part 2)Enema of the State by Blink 182Deja and Entendu by Brand New"Take Me Home, Country Roads" by John Denver

Directing Duo Clarence "Coodie" Simmons & Chike Ozah, better known as Coodie & Chike, have so much infectiously positive energy and perspective from all their years in the business. We're thrilled to have them on this week's episode of Overshare. Coodie & Chike started collaborating in the early 2000s and got their big break directing Kanye West’s music video “Through the Wire,” followed by music videos for “Two Words” and “Jesus Walks." They had less than two days to put "Jesus Walks" together from scratch, making it nothing short of a creative miracle, not to mention a classic. Their recounting of that experience with host Justin Gignac is a celebration in the art of scrappiness.Coodie & Chike went on to work with big acts like Pitbull, Erykah Badu, Lupe Fiasco, and Mos Def. In 2007, they founded their own production company, Creative Control. They’ve since directed ESPN "30 for 30" documentary Benji, BET documentary Muhammed Ali: The People’s Champ, and just released A Kid from Coney Island about Stephon Marbury.In this episode, you will learn that not having the time or money or resources to make great work are just excuses. You’ll also learn that wherever your happiness is coming from right now, that’s what really matters. This conversation is packed with insights and endless positivity.  Follow Overshare (@oversharetalks) and Working Not Working (@wnotw) on Instagram. SHOW NOTES:Coodie & Chike ( @officialcoodieandchike / @coodierock / @cozah)Kanye West's debut album The College DropoutChike's favorite craft cocktail bars - Dutch Kills, Dullboy, Pegu Club, Death & Co, Car Wash filmErnie Barnes' painting "The Sugar Shack"Bill WithersArtist Nina Chanel ( website / Instagram )Coodie's favorite album as a teenager, LL Cool J's BADChike's favorite album as a teenager Big Daddy Kane's Taste of ChocolateCoodie & Chike's videos for Kanye: Through the Wire, Two Words, Jesus WalksChannel Zero TVPitbull "Culo" music videoErykah Badu "Window Seat" music videoMatt & Kim "Lessons Learned" music video that inspired Erykah BaduLupe Fiasco feat. Ed Sheeran "Old School Love" music videoBenji  ESPN 30 for 30 documentary about Chicago hoop legend, Ben WilsonA Kid from Coney Island documentary about Stephon Marbury

Dr. Vivienne Ming is a theoretical neuroscientist, entrepreneur, author, and self-described mad scientist. She's been named as one of the BBC 100 Women in 2017, and as one of the Financial Times' "LGBT leaders and allies today". Dr. Ming co-founded Socos, her fifth company, an independent institute exploring the future of human potential. In her free time, she has invented AI systems to help treat her diabetic son, predict manic episodes in bipolar sufferers weeks in advance, and reunited orphan refugees with extended family members. Dr. Ming also speaks frequently on issues of LGBT inclusion and gender in technology. In this conversation with host Justin Gignac., Dr. Ming talks about choosing a college major based on a coin toss, how her ultimate goal is to give the key note at Comic-Con, and why Dr. Ming sees creatives and the creative economy as an integral part of the future of work. Coming from someone who creates AI and Robotics, that’s pretty reassuring.In this episode, you will learn that the scientifically proven secret to a more successful and rich life is living with a sense of purpose, and in order to future-proof your career, one of the biggest skills you need is resiliency and a growth mindset. You'll also be armed with a whole lot of knowledge that you can drop in your next Zoom call with friends, family, or coworkers.Follow Overshare (@oversharetalks) and Working Not Working (@wnotw) on Instagram. SHOW NOTES:Socos LabsDr. Ming's 99U Talk "Share Your Vision With the World"NOVA on PBSDr. Ming's home town of Monterey, CA captured in The Pastures of Heaven by John SteinbeckRoy Batty's final monologue in Blade RunnerWestworld on HBOSome of Dr. Ming's favorite cartoons: Bojack Horseman, Venture Brothers, and Rick and MortyDr. Ming's new entrance music: You Haven’t Done Nothin' by Stevie Wonder"I Built a Superpower to Treat My Son's Diabetes" article by Dr. Ming"There is a Tax on Being Different" article by Dr. MingJames J. Heckman - University of ChicagoArticle on the "Lost Einsteins" research by Raj ChettyMeta learningSocos.org - Socos Academy

Charlie Engle is an addict who runs and a runner who writes. He’s authored a memoir titled Running Man and has given inspiring talks to CEOs, marathon runners, the United States Armed Forces, and at think tanks and conferences.Charlie's not just any kind of runner; he does ultra marathons that test his limits. Testing limits is kind of Charlie's thing. Sometimes it's intentional: he ran across the entire Sahara Desert edge to edge, which had never been done before. Sometimes it's accidental: he's been to prison, and also kidnapped at gunpoint in Kenya. Now, Charlie is about to attempt his greatest feat and become the first athlete to trek from the lowest point to the highest point on every continent. It's a fitting pursuit for someone who has experienced extreme lows and repeatedly bounced back with equal highs.Charlie’s life has been anything but dull, and the way he’s responded is similarly dynamic. Luckily for all of us, Charlie is an open book, and talks about all of his hardships and moments of perseverance with complete candor in this conversation with host Justin Gignac.In this episode, you will learn how you are capable of so much more than you even know, and that there’s never the perfect time for anything. You just need to make a decision to commit and then figure out how to do it, which Charlie has done time and time again.Follow Overshare (@oversharetalks) and Working Not Working (@wnotw) on Instagram. SHOW NOTES:Charlie Engle ( website / Instagram / Twitter / Facebook )Book Charlie just finished, The Night of the Gun by David CarrHeavyweight podcast episode with Rob CorddryRunning the Sahara documentary film starring CharlieCharlie's memoir, Running Man5.8, Dead Sea to Everest - Charlie's next endeavor to trek from the lowest point to highest point on every continentCharlie's blog post recounting getting kidnapped in Kenya, One Bullet...One Goatwater.orggreen.org – Charlie's new non-profit

Lauren Hom is a designer and letterer based in Detroit, schooled in New York, and raised in Los Angeles. Known for her bright color palettes, playful letterforms, and quirky copywriting, Lauren has worked with clients like Starbucks, Google, AT&T, YouTube and TIME Magazine. Her work has been recognized by Communication Arts, the Type Directors Club, and the Webby Awards.Lauren saw herself solely as an illustrator and letterer, but added “teacher” to her list of titles after connecting with a career coach in Vietnam. And who wouldn’t want to have her as a teacher? Lauren wants to put things out there that she wishes she had known when she was getting started. She's a hustler, she’s transparent, she’s humble, and her illustration and lettering business is on track to make half a million dollars this year. Host Justin Gignac was gobsmacked when she admitted this on her IG Stories. For those of you not in illustration and lettering…that’s a lot.In this episode, you will learn the importance of destigmatizing money in the creative industry, and how necessary it is to be around people who help you dream bigger and encourage you to think about yourself in a different way.Follow @OvershareTalks on Instagram. SHOW NOTES:Lauren Hom ( WNW / website / Instagram )Daily Dishonesty ( website / book )Lauren's "Passion to Paid" classLauren's new class "Mural Painting for Designers"The Striving Artist podcast with Lauren and Stefan Kunz#HOMwork Lauren's weekly IG lettering challengeLauren's pervy lettering and food orgy "Peen Cuisine""Passport Photos" project by Max SiedentopfAndy J. Pizza’s skillshare "Make Creativity Your Career"Ice Cream University

It’s funny how there are some things you don’t know about your friends until you interview them for a podcast. Overshare host Justin Gignac has known Jonathan Jackson since 2006 after they both won the ADC Young Guns, but Justin learned a lot about his friend during this conversation that he never knew. Hopefully you listeners will learn a lot from this interview as well, and then go get to know Jonathan’s work.Jonathan Jackson is the co-founder and partner at Bushwick design studio  WeShouldDoItAll, which he started with his wife Sarah Nelson Jackson. The name is born out of a simple intention, that designers should not be confined to a singular expertise. In the words of Robert A. Heinlein, “specialization is for insects.”WSDIA has dabbled in everything, including branding, spatial, environmental, interactive, and print projects. They’ve collaborated with Nike, The National Museum of African American History and Culture, Spotify, Samsung, and ESPN. "I think it's human nature that people want to put a title on you or put you in a box in a certain way. We are constantly trying to fight that. Constantly trying to hold a mirror to ourselves and see how the world sees us and try to combat that."In this episode, you will learn the power of not having a self-limiting mindset, and how important it is to have diverse voices in the room when creating design and culture.Follow @OvershareTalks on Instagram.SHOW NOTES:Jonathan Jackson  Instagram WeShouldDoItAll ( website / Instagram )Usher's "U Don’t Have to Call" music videoSol Lewitt “Structures”Michael Sorkin ( Wiki / Sorkin Studio )Archea Frank Lloyd WrightLe CorbusierLudwig Mies van der RoheAdrien Menard WSDIA's first hireFormer Virginia Governor Doug WilderKendrick’s Control verseMen of Change, The Smithsonian traveling exhibitionThe National Museum of African American History & CultureScope of Work ( website / Instagram )Ralph Appelbaum AssociatesStudio LinPLAYLAB, INC.OK-RM LondonOMAHerzog & De MeuronPeterson Rich OfficeSo-iL

Sophia Chang hails from the borough of Queens, New York and in less than a decade managed to champion a name for herself in the art, design, and streetwear community worldwide. With her BFA from Parsons School of Design coupled with a natural acumen for business, she has collaborated with A-list names across multiple fields such as Samsung, Nike, Refinery29, Adidas, Apple, Footlocker, HBO, and the NBA.During this conversation with host Justin Gignac, Sophia describes herself as a skill hoarder. As she explains, “Teach a man how to fish and they’ll eat for the rest of their lives.” It's an approach that has prepared Sophia for evolving in an ever-shifting creative industry, and she is already considering how to draw from that well in the current climate. There’s something really refreshing about how forthright Sophia is in her creative mindset. Not only does that help her frame her own practice; that decisiveness translates easily for potential business partners and clients.In this episode, you will learn to assess and repurpose your skills in new ways for people who may need them. And you’ll learn ways to be proactive when work starts getting slow.Follow @OvershareTalks on Instagram. SHOW NOTES:Sophia Chang (Instagram / website)Sophia’s Skillshare classesThe Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (There's free versions you can find online)The 5 Love LanguagesGallup StrengthsFinderUNDO-OrdinaryUNDO LabCommon AceJim Kwik (website / podcast)

Archie Lee Coates IV is a founder and partner at PLAYLAB, INC., an extremely multi-disciplinary creative practice. With no particular focus, Archie and company simply explore things that interest them by initiating and working with others on ideas. Like + POOL, an initiative to build a water-filtering floating pool in New York’s East River.During this conversation, recorded live at On Air Fest, Archie discusses the roles that exploration and adventure play in aptly named PLAYLAB, INC's creative approach. "We don't have any goals as an office that are that specific. There's no financial goal. There's no size goal. There's a happiness and quality of life goal." Archie also talks creative belief systems, the feelings he's chasing to measure how far he's come and what he still aims to accomplish, and how he visualizes his legacy as a coffee table book. If his son would leaf through the accomplishments of his parents and say, “Our family is tight,” that would seal it. In this episode you will learn how to dream bigger, how to seek out that feeling of "I can't believe I'm doing this," and the importance of knowing when to check yourself when you're going through the motions.Follow @OvershareTalks on Instagram and Twitter. SHOW NOTES:Archie Lee Coates IV (Instagram / website)+ POOL (Instagram / website)Grown Up Flowers public art exhibitionVirgil Abloh "ARTWORK" book

This episode is from a live recording on stage in Cannes, France during the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. Host Justin Gignac has a beachside chat with street art legend Tristan Eaton.Tristan started pursuing street art as a teenager, painting everything from billboards to dumpsters in the urban landscapes of the cities where he lived. He created his first toy with Fisher-Price at the age of 18 and was and was at the forefront of the designer toy craze in the early 2000s with his work at KidRobot, creating the Dunny and Munny art toys.He is regularly commissioned by a roster of clients that includes Nike, Versace, and even Barack Obama. These days, Eaton is one of the most prominent street artists working today. His large scale mural work features a meticulous, visual collage of pop imagery mixed with his unique personal style, all executed with freehand spray paint on a colossal scale.In this conversation, Tristan discusses how toy design was a natural evolution from the world of street art, but why he ultimately felt a calling back to his roots. "Being deeply in the middle of Hypebeast culture and being a slave to people's shopping habits and how you make your art--that was never why I wanted to make art. I didn't want to retroactively design my art for a seasonal release-or a shopping habit."Tristan sees his creative career in chapters, but no matter the reinvention, he is forever cast under the spell of spray paint's alchemy. His art is a permanent catalyst in his own life. "A lot of my girlfriends in the past have hated my art because it's a strange force. It gives me my sense of who I am and my work ethic. Sometimes the people in your life want to be the ones that give you that. But I'm very lucky because I find this power and strength and peace from my own art."In this episode, you will learn the importance of self-reinvention to escape formulaic mediocrity, how to know if your subconscious is driving your work, and why inviting people into your own invented universe is perhaps the only way to get clients to give you free rein.Follow @OvershareTalks on Instagram and Twitter. SHOW NOTES:Tristan Eaton (Instagram / website)Tristan's "Legacy" series