Interview with Israel Ramirez on LA culture and fashion

People have powerful feelings about the traffic in Los Angeles. It says something that local officials warned motorists about a temporary roadwork closure on the 405 last year by calling it Carmageddon. Angelenos took the hint, and this weekend they're expected to steer clear of the latest 405 closure, named, of course, Carmageddon 2. That's how it is in L.A., a snarl of overstuffed freeways and commuters who keep their cool, except when they don't. KPCC's Stephen Cuevas has this profile of a punk rocker whose music expresses the insanity of L.A. traffic while extolling the virtues of public transit. Couple of things you need to know about Eddie Solis. He lives in L.A., loves the band Kiss, and does not own a car. Being someone who's from L.A., born and raised, and, you know, having a few cars in my past, I saw the city much differently through a different perspective through the eyes of a bus rider. Come on, just all the way to the back. Look at the shirt. Line 18, Wilshire, Western Station. Just steps from the front door of his home, across the street from a tortilla factory in L.A.'s Boyle Heights neighborhood, Solis catches a bus that connects him with the city's subway, and the commuter train he catches to his day job at an indie record label in Hollywood. It just opened me up to, like, little neighborhoods, galleries, clubs, bars, just everything. Just seeing what's out there, little pockets of the city. Solis' journeys aboard L.A. buses and subway cars informs a lot of the material on The New Los Angeles Part One, Through the Eyes of a Bus Rider, the latest release by the singer-guitarist band It's Casual. The New Los Angeles No one has learned much In Solis' vision of a new Los Angeles, people abandon their cars, climb aboard public transit, and rediscover their communities. One song extols the virtues of the L.A. County Metropolitan Transit Agency's easy pass, and the urban underbelly it introduces to the rider. And that's, like, a nod, an homage to, you know, the people who know, well, you can even go cheaper and really beat the system and really steer away from spending money on gas and oil profits and all that. This is all it is for me to get to work This is all it is for me to get to work This is all it is for me to get to work This is all it is for me to get to work This is all it is for me to get to work for me to witness racial tension, for me to witness illegal aliens. It's not to paint a negative picture. It's just my perspective of what is seen. Off the bus and back on the street, we make our way past a jazz saxophonist playing for pocket change and down a long escalator to catch a train. So, where are we now? We're at the Red Line station. The Pershing Square station in downtown L.A. And what's our destination? We're going to go downstairs another tier and in about five minutes, we're going to get on the Red Line going northbound. Okay, let's go. The Metro Red Line snakes from North Hollywood to downtown Los Angeles. It's the train that inspired its casuals' signature tune and spawned a viral internet video. It was partly filmed late at night on a moving train as it hurtles from station to station. Solis thrashes away on his guitar and barks the lyrics. Which celebrate the Red Line and call out the congested freeways that coil around Los Angeles. Este es un tren de Metro Red Line a North Hollywood. The 210, 605, the freeways are not so nice. The I-5, the 210, the freeways are not so nice. The thread that comes out of the record that ties everyone together is just like, be alive, don't be a victim of having a car. The 210, 605, the freeways are not so nice. The I-5, the 210, the freeways are not so nice. The Red Line. The Red Line. An MTA spokesman said he couldn't comment on Eddie Solis' furious pro-Metro message, but the Red Line video was a hit at the offices of Move LA. Eddie's done a good job. Thank you, Eddie. Thank you, Eddie. The public transportation advocacy group headed by former Santa Monica mayor Denny Zane, he liked the juxtaposition of Solis blissfully riding LA public transit in one scene, with scenes of the band raging against those notorious freeway jams. Eddie is all frantic when he talks about highways and so mellow when he's like grooving on a skateboard and on the bus and on the Red Line. There's a metaphor for the transformation, you know, from the, oh my God, I just got to get out of the traffic. To, hey, this is cool. I can mellow out. Or you can blast the tune like too many people as you claw your way across Los Angeles, a car, bus or skateboard. Too many people could also be a motto for its casual, over the years, the band whittled itself down to a power duo of Solis and a rotating cast of drummers. So you may think the burly bearded punk rocker just can't get along with freeways, with people or his native LA. Not true. I love it. I love everything about it. I've traveled throughout the US many times and I could never look forward enough to coming back. The weather, the different cultures, the landscape. I was just like, you know what? Now I know why everyone moves to LA. Solis will bring the love and the volume during a Redline mini tour next month. It's casual will play a different venue within walking distance of several Redline Metro stops from Union Station to West Hollywood. For the California Report, I'm Stephen Cuevas. I watched my driver last night. I'm going to go to the! help from Tina Lauerberg. We had editing support from Paul Rogers. Victoria Malione is our associate senior producer. Ingrid Becker is our senior producer. The news director is Bruce Kuhn. I'm Rachel Miro. Thanks for listening and have a great weekend. This is the California Report. Funds for the California Report are provided by the James Irvine Foundation, expanding opportunity for the people of California and supporting the California Report since its premiere in 1995. And the California Endowment. Health happens in schools at calendow.org. And Chevron, investing in renewables, strengthening communities, and creating jobs. More information at chevron.com. The 210, 605, the freeways are not so nice. The I-5, the 210, the freeways are not so nice. The 101, the 405, the freeways are not so nice. The I-5, the I-10, the freeways are not so nice. The 210, 605, the freeways are not so nice. The Red Line The Red Line The Red Line The Red Line The Red Line The Red Line The Red Line The Red Line From 2.10 to 6.05 The three ways Are not so nice The I-5 The I-10 The three ways Are not so nice The 101 The 405 The three ways Are not so nice The 605 The 101 The 101 The 101 The I-10 The 210 The 605 The 101 The 405 The I-10 The three ways Are not so nice The Red Line The Red Line The items, the freeways are not so nice The red light The red light The red light The red light The red light The red light The red light The red light Welcome to the 87th episode of Los Angeles Nista. I'm your creator, producer, and host, Edward Solis. And this is another Downtown Los Angeles episode with my in-studio guests from Siblings Clothing showroom, Israel Ramirez. How are you, man? Good, man. How are you, Eddie? I'm fantastic. I love the fact that we're getting together once again. Yeah, man. We're connecting after all these years. After all these years. You know, I want to articulate how much contrast is involved with being an Angeleno. There's a lot of great things happening here. Yeah. A lot of different people. A lot of different geography. A lot of different walks of life. A lot of different, you know, food. A lot of different industries. Cultures. Yeah, you're from El Sereno. El Sereno. Yeah. You know, let's talk about, you know, the 90s growing up. I mean, it was, you know, we had a pre-production meeting. Yeah. And it was an interesting time because that's when a lot of people in their teens were making path, you know, joining a path and making a decision where to go. Whether it's, you know, the dark side being gangs and tag-banging or, you know, staying on a straight path and getting into... Pioneering something. Pioneering something. You know, you get your education or you don't and then you actually go in there and create something. Yeah. You and I have both seen a lot. Yeah. You know, and we still chose the paths. Yeah. We chose. Yeah. But that leads me into, even though we're very creative and have artistic output within our lives, I think we take a lot of that harshness that we've seen. Yeah. Absolutely. And it goes out with finesse. Now, something that's very interesting is that you spearhead a company called Sibling Showroom and it has to do with fashion. Yes. Also, you take on lines. Yes. And you get them into stores. So, you're a distributor. Yes. Now, when you went to college, did you know you'd be doing this? No. Not at all, actually. What was your major? I was a psychology major. You know, kind of went to college to discover myself. I had no idea what I wanted to do. I was playing music for a long time and realized, you know, I need to find a way to make money, find, you know, income. And, you know, finished school, talked to my sister who had been in the industry for a good eight years before me. And she just sort of gave me, you know, a background, told me like, you know, it's a fun industry, bunch of creative people, awesome opportunity. It's perfect industry for someone like you who likes to be personable, likes to network, but also likes to be around creative people. And sure enough, you know, my first couple of months working with her, I just, I loved it. You know, it was this real satisfying job. Just the people I met, you know, from entrepreneurs. Yeah. Yeah. From entrepreneurs to designers, to artists, to tattoo artists who had clothing lines, to musicians. I mean, it was everything I wanted out of a career. And, you know, did it alongside with her for a good five, six years. And then she sold me the business and I am now the sole owner and hired my younger sister, brought her on board. So kind of, you know, continue the cycle of, you know, helping family and bringing family into the business. That's fantastic. Yeah, man. Because a lot of families don't do that. Yeah. A lot do, a lot don't. No, we hear that a lot. You know, people are like, I can't stand working with my, or I couldn't stand working with my brother or sister. And I'm like, we love it. We enjoy it. We, you know, we savor it. You guys love each other. Yeah. You guys really. We have each other's backs, you know. That's amazing. In a way that I can't, I wouldn't have with anybody else. So that's a tremendous thing to have. When I walked into the market restaurants and met your sister. My other sister, yeah. And was talking to you and went upstairs to the showroom. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And your sister also that works for you. Yeah. I just was immersed in this camaraderie through family. Yeah. And it was priceless. Yeah. And it was just so abundant and so healthy. Yeah. And it resonated with me. Yeah. And it made me happy. And it was just like so strong. Awesome. And so it's so, with that stigma and that vibe in your business, I mean, you must show up and you have that vibe looming over you. Yeah. And it's really probably a magical day every day to be in business for yourself with your sister working. Yeah. And especially in a competitive industry. Yeah. Where the competition is fierce. Where it's fierce and it could get a little cutthroat. Ugly. A little, you know. Ugly. Right. People in our industry sometimes can be, you know, it's the fashion industry. So you do come across a little bit of pretentiousness. Sure. So I think having her keeps me grounded and we like to portray her in a way that she's a little bit more of a, you know, a little bit more of a, you know, a little bit more of a, you know, a little bit more of a, you know, a little bit more of a, you know, a little bit more of a good, honest, hardworking people that sort of earned our way to where we are. We're here because we've earned it. We're a product of our parents. You know, our parents hard work and the values and principles they taught us. So, you know, we try to put that into practice in everything we do. And I think my clients, you know, they see that. they respond to it. So it's worked out for us. It's worked out for us pretty well. You know, we have a pretty good reputation out there. I have awesome associates, partners, and clothing designers that work with me. And they're great people, people that I support, people that I, you know, I'm happy to be partners with. Absolutely. You know, I think it's important that you articulate with the work that goes behind getting clothing in a store and getting paid on it. Yeah. How many steps, how many steps, like, you know, I want to paint a picture for all the designers out there that have a dream that says, I want to, you know, I have this line, I want to get it picked up by a distributor and into these stores. Talk about all the work you have to do. It's a long process, you know, and I've been part of, you know, small startups, you know, and I've been part of, you know, small startups, you know, and I've been part of, you know, worked alongside small startups to like big, you know, big companies that have like huge infrastructure, huge backing. So I kind of seen both sides of it, how things can be done. I think, you know, you always begin with being true to something, you know, anything you do, any product you put forth has to be true to who you are and true to, you know, who you've become the years. And then you start looking at the market, all right, what's missing in the market, you know, so you sort of evaluate. Yeah, okay. Fill the voids. Fill the voids. Then people come to me and my job is to help them make their product or their clothing a little more marketable, a little more accessible, sort of just hone it in a little bit, you know, sort of see, okay, there's an opportunity with a specific customer base. Let's tweak, you know, your line certain ways to make that, you know, to make it accessible to those people or to that customer. Yeah. And then we go through the whole process of design, you know, sourcing, sourcing fabrics. It's a lot of work. It's a lot of work. You know, I think my perception of it or my ideas of it before I started was like, oh yeah, like, clothing design, like how complex can it be? But it's a really complicated thing. You know, there's a lot of, you know, individual vendors you deal with. There's, and then there's the whole like construction and, you know, just coming up with ideas on a consistent basis. That just seems like the hardest thing to do. You know, you're done with one season, but you move on and it's start all over again. You got to make that, you know, past last season better than the current one. So a lot of work. You have to keep raising the standards and elevating. Right. Exactly. Yeah. And that takes work. It takes a lot of mental and spiritual, I think, communication within yourself, like to bring it out. Yeah, absolutely. Right. I mean, to always be thinking of new, new ideas and ideas that are going to be, you know, good for consumers. I mean, that's, that's a hard thing to do. You have to be, you have to be, have your finger on the pulse, you know, at all times. You can't, you can't just step back and sort of take something for granted. You just always have to know, you know what, it could all be gone in, you know, in no time. Yeah. As, as, as, you know, it always comes down faster. Yeah. So that's keeping that consistency. Yeah. That great attitude. Yeah. And a very strong grasp on your industry. Yep. Is what keeps everything above water. Yeah. And it, and it takes a, you have to do that with finesse. Yes. And not do that in an original way. So it's like, it becomes a burden. Yeah. If it's a burden, then it's like, what's the point? Yeah. I mean, if it's a burden, then what you're, you're going to, that's going to translate into, into your product, you know? Yeah. You have to enjoy it. You have to have a passion for it, have a pride for it too. So, yeah, it all, it all kind of works. It all works together. Since you're in the position you are in, in the fashion, fashion industry, distributing lines of clothes and to retailers. Yeah. What advice do you have for the kids at FIDM and other places, people that want to create their own line and get it in the stores and have a great career and of abundant life through their, the closer make? Yeah. I think the most important thing, and I think I've mentioned this to you in the past is, you know, reputation. Just start with a good reputation. Start with your reputation first and foremost, you know, connect with people. Always, don't ever take for granted the small situation to the big situation. Even small situations matter, you know, small connections with people, people that you don't think are that important, but they might be important later. One thing I learned working in the music business was treat everybody equally. Equally. Every situation equally. And it wasn't like, it's just, first of all, it's just part of being human. Yeah. Be good to everybody. Yeah. And I think that's, there's been people I've met because I couldn't do something for them in 1996. Yeah. They would ignore me. Yeah. That person's not even in the music business no more. Yeah. You know, that's when, you know, I was an intern climbing the ladder. Mm-hmm. And I've had run into situations where I've been in positions of power where I am a gatekeeper somewhere and I'm able to get people things, you know, and I'm able to, part of my job description is selling. Mm-hmm. And I'm able to get people into accounts. Mm-hmm. And some of these buyers in really small stores want the perks that the big guys get. Yeah. And so I would do my best to hook them up with promotional tools and get them on the guest list, all these shows from the bands connected to the label. And those people have gone on to leave those little stores and work at Apple and iTunes. Mm-hmm. And, you know, they remember those things. Yep. So it's really just a very, on an even keel, right? Yeah. With everybody. Yeah. I think with students at FITM, where people that are, you know, trying to break into the industry, you know, any break you'll ever get, it's not because of how, you know, how boastful you are or how, it's just, it's mostly someone referring you. Mostly it's a word of mouth thing, you know? And I think any break you'll ever get is through someone else, is through someone remembering you for just hard work or for just honest, honest work. Yeah. Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? there is a lot of room for new things? Always, but, you know, with the internet, it's made it a lot more difficult. You know, the competition is pretty fierce nowadays. You know, there's a lot of people trying to, you know, get that space in a store. You know, someone told me there's a statistic theory. There's over 30,000 clothing lines in my business right now. Wow. And, you know, these stores are boutiques, whether it's, you know, American Rag, Fred's Seagull. I mean, they can only take as many as 50 brands at once. I mean, it doesn't even matter how good you are. No. That you can get your stuff in. It's like, well, they take it because of the space. Yep, because of the space. And, you know, I think you have to have, you know, like we were talking about, a good story. You have to have, your product has to have, it just cannot be just about the product. It's a good backstory. It's a multidimensional thing now, you know, where you need a good backstory, you need press, you need buzz, you need, you know, you sort of have to pioneer something before even a retailer considers it. You know, it's not just like they're going to try something just because it looks good, you know. Absolutely. I have this theory that, you know, you have to, you know, first of all, things take time. Yeah. You know, I'm sure people have this perspective that you just kind of throw things in the pipeline and you get paid on it. It's like, well, you know, you got to pick up the phone and communicate what the item is. Yeah. You have to, you know, explain what these things are. You have to show them through, you know, digital content and maybe any kind of books that you may have. And then there's presentations. Presentations. I mean, you got to get there so they could see it if they're able to do it that way. I mean, there's a lot of work. Get that pre-order. And then all... You have to convey that with confidence, too. You have to convey... Conviction. Yeah. I mean, like you're saying, presentation, you know, language and communication is important. You know, knowing your product inside out, knowing your market inside out. Those are all things that matter to people, you know, when they're spending money on you, when they're going to drop, you know, whatever amount of money on your clothing line or on anything really, like you were saying. But no, yeah, you're absolutely right. Tell me, what are some of your favorite places in downtown Los Angeles to enjoy yourself, whether it's going to see music or you playing music? Yeah. Because you also play music. I'm in a band. Let's talk about the name of your band. My band is Regime Noir. Right. With a four-piece band. I've been playing with them for close to eight years now. So that's sort of been my creative outlet. I've been playing music since I was... I commend you for that because the... I just came up on 10 years with my band, a decade, you know, and it's a good feeling. And I just had 4 p.m. to 4.30 p.m. this evening, I had Gene Troutman. Cool. Plays drums in Queens of the Stone Age. Yeah, yeah, yeah, cool. And he was like, man, you know, 10 years or even five years. He's like, a lot of bands break up after one year or two years. Yeah. So that's a good milestone. It's a really good milestone. And I think you take the good and the bad. Good experiences. I always tell Chris, my bandmate, you know, like, I enjoy... I look back now and I think of, like, just the moments we thought, man, that was such a crappy gig or that... I can't believe that went wrong. And it's just like, that's just part of the adventure, you know, being in a band. And we're lucky to still be able to do that. You know, as kids, you just look... You look to have those moments at some point and just the fact that you got to do them, playing, like, some place, a random place in, like, you know, middle of nowhere America, you're like, no PA system or you just have to, like, wing it somehow. But somehow it becomes a story, a memorable story. Exactly. It's part of the makeup of the band and the band's story. So I think those moments matter just as much as the good ones, the great ones. Yeah. Yeah. What about music venues in Los Angeles? Let's focus on downtown. Is there anywhere that you like to go see bands? I go to The Smell a lot. I go to... You know, for a long time, there's been really cool... sort of independent, like, parties thrown in random warehouses here in downtown. I've been going to a bunch. I remember Hangar 18 for a long time was an awesome place, you know, to go to, to go see shows. Plastic Factory, which is a little more early in the 2000s. Fun place, you know, where it was just... just the community of anybody's. Fashion designers, writers, artists, painters, musicians. Just, hey, we need somewhere to all just come together and just exchange ideas. And I think that's one thing downtown has. I'm not sure if it's still as, you know, it's as relevant now as it was back, you know, in the early 2000s. Because I think it's developed a lot more here. A lot more, you know, true professionals are moving in and a lot of the artists are starting to move out. But I think it could still be a good hub, you know, a central hub for all of us, for all natives, for all artists just coming here to, like, absorb, take in the city, take in the way of life here. And, you know, bring it out in our artwork. And so I think we still need that. We're always going to need that. You know, every big city has that. And, you know, I think the more we all come together, we all share ideas, we all exchange ideas, no matter what art form it is, it's all important. You know, it's all so important, you know, to the community and to us, you know, banding together and making a statement, you know, of what we're doing. You know, about the city. Right, right. I think, you know, when the city was underdeveloped in the 80s and 90s and even early 2000s, for us, it wasn't like this. No. It's so exciting. So exciting. Because you and I thrive off creating, you know, and, you know, it's just very, I don't know, I think the platform is bigger than ever. Well, you know firsthand, and I think both of us know firsthand what we're capable of, you know, within our own little neighborhoods. Neighborhoods like El Sereno had a, you know, awesome, thriving punk, hardcore punk scene. Yeah. I like, I owe so much to that scene, you know, to the person I am today. Just meeting kids that just thought like me, that, you know, just wanted to do things for themselves. They didn't look to anywhere else. They didn't, you know, they didn't complain and just give up. They said, you know what? Things are done. We don't like the way things are being done, so we'll just do it ourselves. And, you know, we had fun and we made great music and, you know, I think that's just an example of what we're capable of as a people, as a city, you know. You see it in, you know, the Fado Do, you know, down in... Fado Do, I remember that. Dude, that place was just like amazing to me as a kid because I felt, you know, you go to that place and you'd see Latin bands, salsa bands, ska bands, punk. I mean, it was just such a diversity and it really represented the city to me, you know, and I love that place a lot. And I think, you know, that's, that's the kind of, you know, I think, you know, that's, that's the kind of, you know, I think, you know, that's, that's the kind of, you know, that's the kind of stuff we're capable of as people. I really believe that, you know. Very interesting insight. Let's talk about food. Yes. Okay, let's talk about an establishment that you like to go eat meals at. Is there anywhere in downtown that you want to share? God, I think LA to me, you know, I've been to New York, I've been to San Fran, Seattle, you know, I've, and, you know, everyone claims that these cities have the best food in the country, but I believe LA can hold its own. LA is the best. It's the best. You traveled a lot. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It's probably a bunch. Same here. And I believe that, you know, when it comes to consistency with food, LA is the best. The best. It is the best. I mean, when it comes to Mexican food, Asian food, Thai food, Vietnamese, like there's just, I've had nothing like the stuff that's here anywhere else. It's, yeah. I mean, some of my favorite places, like for Asian food, San Gabriel Valley, by far. Newport Seafood, Golden Deli, those places to me, it's just gourmet, but so hole in the wall. It's just so funny. It's like gourmet hole in the wall food, but it's so damn good and so damn consistent. Yeah. It's really, it's really good. That's exciting. What else is good around here? You know, a lot of new restaurants here that I'm super excited about, you know, with Baco Mercat, one of them, and Bar Ama, that's awesome. Bestia over in Santa, it was on Santa Fe, I believe. And there's some new places opening up in the next year that I'm excited about too. So I feel like we're finally getting our due. Very exciting, Israel. I want to thank you for being a part of the 87th episode of Los Angeles Nista. I really value your insight on all things Los Angeles. Thanks man, appreciate it. And I was happy you were able to make this happen. Thank you very much. Same here, thanks. Thank you. .