Mike Giant Podcast Michael LeSage

Mike Giant in conversation with Dalek at Mike's studio in San Diego, California on June 21, 2024.


Topics discussed include: Tyke, pickup basketball games, Hurley (2009-2015), Mark Parker, Roger Gastman, Black Dot, fashion world, Spacemonkey racing yacht, apartment mural, Cycle, dominatrix girlfriend, sex in SF in the 1990s, unintentional harm, painting freights at night in Chicago, closing out bars, interaction with Chicago PD, etiquette with cops, backing away from a sketchy girl, exhilaration of release, picking up Semz and Nekst from jail, referrals from fellow graffiti writers, writing to T-Dee, meeting Kaws (1995), car stolen in Queens, The Limelight club, Leeway, Sume, flow among creatives in NYC, Alphabet City, squatters, Sidewalk Cafe, Z Bar, East Side Inc, 111 Minna Gallery, Move shows by Rich Jacobs, Chouinard, location flexibility, disinterest in public school, DODDS, 16 years old in Japan (1984), 6’6” white hair, sexual standards, 1982 World Cup trip to Spain, teenage drinking and topless beaches in Europe, Iron Maiden “Number of the Beast” Tour, engaging with a new culture, Japanese cartoons, food mascots, Naval Academy in Maryland, family roots in Annapolis, new wave/punk, MTV, Oceans Two record store, confrontational attitude to punks, trip to Ocean City, meeting skaters, acting out, sleeping on floors, Espo arriving in a limo, lack of compassion/discussion from parents, parenting, honest conversation with children, self discovery through trials, processing childhood trauma as an adult, pressure of life clouding clarity of mind, Let It Go meditation to help sleep, medication, blood disorder, masking vs fixing, chaos bringers, Old Souls, difference in how sons first responded, Shannon’s past lives, realizations on road trips, people watching, investigating emotions, discovering new places, memory recollection, casing neighborhoods before writing graffiti, mind mapping, Web3, global anonymous community, Tunny and Joe, importance of meeting in-person, Art Basel, Buffmonster, Bobby Tribal, Nate Lyons and Kris Markovich, Jay Strickland, Duffs team manager, Shepard Fairey, mailing canvases to artist friends, making connections, pulling off life as an artist, the blessing of support and the impact of murals.

Mike recalls more memories from living in New York City and San Francisco in late 1999. Topics discussed include: Working at East Side Inc, staying with Nalla, Zoe, freelance writing, The Vault, Dom scene, Barmacy and Beauty Bar, Deb Parker, Saoirse, Henna patterns, subletting apt on Grand Street in Williamsburg, after hours club, artist John Copeland, Juice Design, Bob Kissinger, Jason Noto of Morning Breath, sleeve on older fellow, solidarity with granddaughter, martial arts instructor, evidence of personal exploits, hand/throat tattoos, Mormon hardcore kids, The Cock, dance contest winner, Stars girl, client love connection, Elio’s art night, huge Eddie Deutsche snake tattoo, fully suited, Chris Garver, Kaz, weekends in Poughkeepsie, reconnecting with an ex-gf, Pepe Rosso, Two Boots pizza, Benny’s Burritos, MaryAnne’s, Indian Row, Polish diners, Bliss Cafe, return to 214 Clara Street, Paco Excel, weekends at Newskool tattooing walk-ins, commuting to San Jose on CalTrain with a bicycle, Adrian Lee, Jason Kundell, Ron Earhart, Adam Barton, Eric Ross, Brent Patten, Frankenstein bong, buck-toothed panthers, finger waves, being the least skilled tattooer in a shop, Ron’s bagged dually, Uneekbilt box truck, South First Street, Cholas, fist fights, Iguana’s, Michelle, Eklectik, rock climber, tattooing Charles (Charles Atlas) and Xmas tattoo trip to NYC.

Mike recalls more memories from living in New York City and San Francisco in 1999. Topics discussed include: East Side Inc, Nalla Smith, Dash Snow (Sace), Agathe, Wall Street heist, John the Fencer, Kunle (Earshot), Tom of Finland cop tattoo, Titpig, Sarah Lawrence girl, Brendan Fowler, Ashley Macomber, Isaac Ramos, Wes Lang, Hoboken, layering tattoos, Body and Soul, European tourists, Joe Claussell, Danny Krivit & François K, seamless mixing, thunderstorm, Buter, Laura Ward, Sarah’s visit, lightning storm at Empire State Building, Rocksteady Crew party, Bobby Tribal, Martin Luther King and Hip Hop, “show and prove”, Kevin LeBlanc, cultural appropriation vs client satisfaction, Bill Canales, Jason McAfee, Regina, tattoos with sexual meanings, Flyrite Tattoos, Elio España, Kelly Krantz, Dan Higgs, Rule of Thirds, re-using needles, McAfee’s hand tattoo, The Heart Design, friends choosing flash for each other, Wane COD, bucket fill pieces, CoOp housing, 7A restaurant, out past dawn, Brett’s house party, drinking with Sace, cities at 4am, walking home drunk and shower of shame.

Mike recalls memories from living in New York City and San Francisco in early 1999. Topics discussed inlcude: living near Golden Gate Park, Imagination Plantation, 3D animation, office fashion, Wild Brain, Fern Gully, tattooing friends at home, Kodik Joe, Chris Woodcock, Sarah, Hotmail, student housing in the Presidio, Damon Soule, 214 Clara Street, Adrian Maseo, Valerie Hursyz, Tweaky Pete, BART tiles, The Simpsons on VHS, Outlaw Dancer, tramp stamp tribal on my sister, tattooing Sadie, Scott Sylvia, A-Team, early posters, James at WARP Records, British electronic music, loud music as a physical force, pot brownies, real house party, solo trip at Yerba Buena, tattooing in the living room, 23, Sope, Benotto track bike, first fixed gear ride, Chris Feasel, FUCK/KILL, the impermanence of tattoos, longevity of fine art works, preserved Japanese bodysuits, Avery and Kamian, NYC visit, staying in Williamsburg with Nalla and Maga, hairless cats, African Grey parrots, NY Tattoo Convention, legalization of tattooing, Tin Tin, The Limelight, Paul Booth, unemployment, East Side Inc, Hells Angels, Andrea Elston, UniMax, cycling over the Williamsburg Bridge/around Manhattan, Biohazard, Ozzy, Rod Stewart, Rhonda Hoelzer, Les Nubians, Scott Campbell, Mr Cartoon, Patrick Conlon, angel tattoo, Kimberly Hooper, street shop economics, yin yang tattoos, “polishing a turd” and NYC Lase.

Mike Giant interviews Rime MSK with special guest Persué at Mike's studio in San Diego, California on December 22, 2023.


Topics discussed include:  Honesty, fear of conflict, Thich Nhat Hanh, porn, intimacy, self-reflection, self-work, squirters, transmitting feelings, bullying, running from police, aging graffiti scene, energy of youth, Futura, staying active on the street, studio paintings on canvas, blackbooks, bombing vs piecing, meeting Nace, cutting back, Agree, All-Out King, various stylistic games, Poor Things, catching a fill-in solo, the courage to break away from the 9 to 5, childhood, relationship with imagination, The Starving Artist, forecasting down times, life as a book, harmony, retreat, diversions, keeping your heart in it, being in nature, excitement of new places, reconnecting with pace of nature, experiencing death, animal vs human energy, Trenton deer, feeding squirrels in Mexico City, graffiti characters, Vivid Playful Depictions of Energy, original content, praise for replication, ball games, gyms, trademark styles, Egs, The Pocket, Ghost, arrows, personality in letterforms, how mood affects style, marker and sticker tags, traveling in an RV, online store, fulfillment from the road, interacting with fan base.


@rime_msk
rimemsk.com


@persue1
@bunnykittyofficial
bunnykitty.com

Mike recalls memories from living in London and San Francisco in 1998. Topics discussed include: "Claire", Keri, Dek, Brighton, The Moon, throwups at Meanwhile, graffiti over graffiti, UFO, Abstract, Phunkateck, Ed Rush, Optical, Sage, Eklektic, GHB, Grove Park Yard with Egs, Network SouthEast trains, Trans Am show, Camdentown, Psycho, breaking car mirrors, removing fingerprints from spray cans, foiled mission at Uckfield Station, Brighton Yard, window-down on BritRail train, Kill All Cars, high speed car chase, falling through a roof, head wound, returning to San Francisco, brief stay with Claire, Jase, Laura, moving into a room near McAllister and Arguello, Kearny Book and Video, North Beach, cool manager, video arcades, cleaning crew, 4-hour videos for homeless people, The Thursday Guy, poppers (amyl nitrate), growing dislike of porn, Animal, Rosie the tweaker flower salesman, The Swiper, Bigfoot, Sam Flores, Kodik Joe, City Lights Bookstore, Jack Kerouac and Charles Bukowski, Avery, Skullz Press, Lisa, solo graffiti mission, Justo from Detroit, Dame, 3rd Street Yard, painting fast, getting tattoo from Nalla, Dase ATT, trackside with KR, Krink, failed mission in Safeway Tunnels, Noah Hurwitz, Imagination Plantation, Wild Brain, 2-week notice at porn shop, Twist, texture mapping, Hershey’s kisses commercials, stop-motion animation, Mac and Silicon Graphics computers, Maya, Fern Gully scenes, Toon Render, Golden Eye 007, painting walls with Dalek, getting tattoo equipment from Nalla, red foil National shader, tattooing left leg, tattooing friends for free, 22nd and Illinois wall, Chris Woodcock, Willy Wonka candy, KFC, Jets, replacing bus shelter posters with Apex, Kaws.