Giant Robot Store and GR2 News
We are featured in UCLA Magazine. Thanks to writer Scott Fields and photographer Mathieu Young. Yes, come and visit us. UCLA’s support has always been great. Actually, not just UCLA, but most of the Southern California Schools have been great to us. Thanks much. “Visit one of three Giant Robot locations on the Westside opened by a former UCLA East Asian Studies major and get a dose of Japanese pop culture. There’s a store, a restaurant and a gallery space that promotes local artists. All three are hip, urban, international and different.” (UCLA Magazine - Bruin Guide to L.A.)
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Giant Robot in the Daily Bruin, and it’s a video piece. Great job to staffer Chris Gere who appeared on camera and represented us well! If the video doesn’t show up, please use this link. The embed code seems to work some of the time, but not most of the time. Any tips, anyone?
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Another panel? Yes, I’m on one on Saturday. I wish Dengue Fever was playing, but they’re not. Hope this one turns out interesting. Two Dengue Fever members, a Hiroshima, and a few stiffs including myself. Here’s the link to the site. Crossovers and Hybrids: Asia, LA and Music Today Chhom Nimol, Lead singer, Dengue Fever Zac Holtzman, Guitarist, Dengue Fever Eric Nakamura. Publisher and Editor, Giant Robot Eric Lawrence, DJ and Music Librarian, KCRW and host of “Big in Japan” at the Hollywood Bowl Dan Kuramoto, Band Leader and Producer, Hiroshima Moderator: Steve Loza, Professor of Ethnomusicology, UCLA
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APAUCLA Student Career Networking Conference(SCNC). What’s this? I swear I’ve never been a great alumni. When I think of alumni connections, I usually think of Harvard or USC. But UCLA? It usually doesn’t enter the picture. Maybe I’m a bad Bruin. A year ago, I was asked to do a similar panel and I didn’t make it. This year, I made it a point as a make up. Tritia Toyota, the legendary newscaster turned professor at UCLA suggested me. I didn’t ever meet her, but I’ve seen her on TV for years. Where there was a Connie Chung who was world famous, TT was more of a regional celebrity in one of the biggest markets in the US. She also has a song about her via the Dickies. I wonder if she likes that song. Thanks to her, I was back on campus. I wrote about her a bit in 2008. The event began with Ted Chen, a newscaster in SoCal. He came in and freestyled a talk that was all over the place. From his experiences getting into the business to the current state of broadcasting which is getting tough thanks to the net. My panel seemed geared a bit more to careers, so I’m not quite sure if entrepreneur is the right word for it, but it was actually fun talking to the students who look genuinely worried about graduating during a tumultuous economic time. I wouldn’t want to be them. Some will go straight into a corporation, and some won’t. I gave some pieces of advice. a) The idea of Networking sounds hideous to me. What’s it mean? Knowing that there’s someone talking to you to try and gain something usually is bothersome. I detest the idea. I pushed the idea that the best way to “network” is be a fair and good person. Looking for some kind of advantage by meeting a person is a “no no”. Anyone can sniff desperation a mile away. Don’t do that. Imagine the prettiest girl or hot guy gets hit up every other minute by desperate dudes or females. Who does she pick? It’s not the desperate who usually falls off and becomes the butt of bad jokes. You won’t be getting any. b) Help others. I think Networking for me is about helping others. Maybe it comes back in great ways, but maybe not at all. I can’t see it as a karma thing, it’s not like that. GR, not just me, has helped tons of artists, designers, and people to get inspiration. We might have pushed them more directly, and we do things with some of them, and others just run to the hills – the Beverly Hills kind. c) Adapt. Changing times mean adapting, or being flexible to adapt. That’s what we’re doing now. It’s exciting actually and challenging. d) Work for free. I told people that working for free isn’t a bad thing at all. Get used to it, and just do it. Don’t be desperate...
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