Hip Hop Hooray! I'm a VIP!

When's the last time you were a VIP? I think the nearest I ever got to being a VIP was as part of the groom's family at my cousin's wedding. We got to sit near the front of the church during the service :D

Saturday night I had the chance to attend an exclusive VIP party at The Butter Factory (www.thebutterfactory.com). Isn't that a cool name? If you know me, that's my kind of place!! Damn the outside of the club is deco'd nicely, and there were railings and bouncers aplenty. Looks like they were prepping for a big night!

They had invited old skool hip hop heroes Naughty by Nature for a live showcase and it was VIP card holders and members only!

The 'fam crew are (and were) big partygoers, and so we had no trouble getting in via the VIP line; they even knew the bouncers and managers by name! Cover charge? pshh....

Hip Hop Hooray! I'm a VIP! Badass UV stamps - no unsightly marks on my pretty skin, a secret stamp for the bouncer to unveil!

One of the perks of being a VIP was the free flow drinks from 9-11pm. We didn't pay a cent to get in, PLUS unlimited drinks?! Don't doubt I'll be back..

The inside of the club was deco'd up hardcore - cute and funky artwork all over the walls, slogans and showcase of the local talent. It lent a really fun and fresh atmosphere to the place.

I'm sorry, but its the truth!!!

Naughty By Nature!!!

I am also trying to trim a video which I took of Naughty By Nature playing their hit single O.P.P. but can't figure out Windows Movie Maker yet and the audio hasn't attached to the video which makes it pointless. Will upload when I get this working! For now, here's the OG video for Hip Hop Hooray!

Here's a taster of the inside of the club! Sorry for the low qual photos.

The place went nuts when NBN came on stage! Everyone was chanting along with the rap - "Who down with OPP? Yeah you know me!!" "Hip Hop Hoorayyyyy hooooo heeyyyy hooooo heeyyyy hooooo"

The usual Singapore propaganda - safer communities together!

The bartenders' tees present a different attitude, however...

BUMP and FASH - the two rooms inside The Butter Factory - one for Hip Hop and one for Electro/Indie:

I stepped outside for a breather at one point and took these pics out by the river - One Fullerton is a popular bar/club area, and also Singapore's original MERLION is there!

There she is, spouting into the river all day all night. The Merlion was designed for the Singapore Tourism Board to reflect Singa (lion in Malay) from Singapura, Singapore's original name, as well as its island status.

When we headed off at about 2am, the lines seemed to just be forming outside!

Still people trying to get in at this time of night?!! Crazy! Singapore night life is ahelluva lot different to NZ.. time to party it up... :D

LaSalle College of the Arts

On Thursday night I had the good fortune to attend a graduates art exhibition at LaSalle College of the Arts. LaSalle is Singapore's premier art school, and covers wide-ranging disciplines such as fashion, design, fine art and film.

The campus is a beautiful architectural design:

It consists of 4 polygonal glass buildings connected by bridges and covered with a huge canvas so it's all semi-enclosed. The space between the buildings creates a wind tunnel which cools down the interior space.

The room where the exhibition was held.

One of the exhibitions - paper cut-outs of little jackets in different materials and colours strung out as if on a washing line.

Our friend Cindy's exhibition - perspex blocks with white writing - excerpts from her diaries. The capture of the light was fantastic.

After the exhibition we had the chance to meet the cool cats from Phunk Studio (www.phunkstudio.com) - good friends of Mark and Sue-Anne. These guys are described as the 'rock stars' of graphic design in Singapore - celebrities in the design world. Their work is varied and damn innovative - go check it out!

I've met heaps of interesting creatives here so far - I'm beginning to think that everyone in Singapore has art and design running through their blood! So far I've met sneaker designers, fashion designers, artists, graphic designers and even DJs! Crazy huh! I think though it's just the people I've been hanging out with - Mark is friends with most of the people worth knowing in Singapore in this industry. Can't wait to meet more!

The Office.

Today's post is a brief look around the ROYALEFAM Office.

We are situated in Commonwealth, a station just a few stops away from the centre of city, to the South-East.

The office is a converted room in an industrial estate; a big empty concrete room with NO aircon. In the afternoon, the heat is sweltering, and the lunch in my stomach makes me want to take siesta! Thank god for the fans everywhere!

The spray can shelf. You can see a peep of Jean behind the shelf.

The P.K. RIPPER. Our resident fixed-gear bike, and Jasone is the resident fixie.

The "Admin" side's desk! Laptops, paperwork, and a sewing machine. I sit at the desk to the right of this picture.

Sue-Anne my director - busy typing away some important documents... or is she...?

Melvin cutting custom labels for the shoe boxes about to be shipped.

Gangstar!!!

Mark SBTG Ong in action! Putting some personal touches on a pair. The shoes are all mocked up in Photoshop and then freestyle painted on.

Ivan - Production Intern #1 - cutting some fabrics  and animal prints out for sewing on to the shoes later.

Jasone - Production Intern #2 - hand detailing sharks teeth on the front lip of the Flying Tiger!

Jean - hand detail extraordinaire - adding leopard print detail to the upper (and watching YouTube at the same time! Jean has been with the company for 5 years - she's an old hand at this by now).

Jean's work - a custom corporate shoe for up-and-coming Singaporean company X-Mini, producers of portable capsule speakers.

The finished product. Clean!

Huge stocks of base shoes ready for customising!

The "Production" side of the office!

My current favourite - "Die die my darling" - a Valentine's day 2010 exclusive. Only 16 available!

Here's a close-up - look how damn beautiful that rose is!!!

The ROYALEFAM business card. I bring back a stash for all you ROYALEFANS back in NZ!

Big mirror that stands against the wall of the office.

That's all for now folks, look out for the upcoming feature: Meet the ROYALEFAMILY!

Journey pt. 2 and sweat city.

Hello all from SINGAPORE! And what a day it's been. Continuing on from where we left off at the Brisbane airport and the 8 hour wait of hell....

The 7.5 hr flight from Brisbane to Singapore was largely uneventful. I was so tired that I  slept most of the way, wasting my opportunity to relish in the comforts and amenities of the NEW Boeing 777!!!

Here's the view of my lovely TV:

... which sadly I didn't use. Next time la! Next time!

Upon entry to Singapore, this is the welcome I receive:

Scary scary death penalty... I'm so glad we don't have capital punishment in New Zealand. But then again, I don't do drug trafficking anyway, so I'd be fine! Death for drug traffickers!!!

Me in the processing hall at Changi airport. Lucky it wasn't too full, they took ages anyway, even though there was only one flight worth of ppl there. Efficient public service? psh!

Arrival Immigration sign under which I stood for half an hour while they processed the 5 people in front of me. After Immigration, though, things largely passed without a hitch. Even my 5 bottles of wine - 2.5L over the maximum duty free limit, failed to draw the attention of the numerous customs officers and police standing around. I guess good guy like me from an unassuming country like NZ wouldn't dare break the laws of Singapore!

Some of the views from the bus on the way from the airport at Changi to Winsie's place at Serangoon. I was really surprised by how wide the roads are, and the amount of greenery around. There were so many parks and trees and grassy verges, it felt so relaxing and peaceful. The traffic was mild (by Auckland standards) and the pace was confident but unhurried. This is, I guess, the aim of the Singaporean Government - to create a place where everything is in harmony. The garden city really did live up to its name for me on that first bus ride in.

When I got out of the airconditioned bus though, this was when I first received the hit of heat and humidity that I had been dreading. It was like walking into a wall and I couldn't breathe for a moment while my lungs adjusted to the thick air. Immediately started sweating and was soaked after walking for 5 minutes in the sun. Shower 3 times a day is looking highly plausible!!!

Central View - Winsie's apartment, where she has kindly offered to let me stay until I find a place to live! Thanks Winsie, wouldn't have been able to make it without you.

The MRT in Singapore. Station and trains all look exactly like HK MTR! Reminds me so much of there.. with all the people sitting there looking stoned in the morning. Someone talking loudly on their phone. Big clean stations with escalators everywhere and herds of people rushing through the gates as fast as they can. Swipe cards!!! This is where I belong!

Was walking around ION - one of the super malls on Orchard Rd - when I came across this sign at RUBI Shoes. It's so me. I love it. Happiness in life is so simple guys!!

The malls on Orchard Rd are like vast endless caverns. Icy caverns. The temperature difference between inside and out is so extreme, its really hard to find a balance. Have to bring extra clothes to wear inside, then immediately strip everything off when walking outside!

The afternoon was spent getting to know my new family and colleagues in the ROYALEFAM office. These guys are great - so welcoming and friendly. Can't wait to spend the next 4 months here! Looking forward to the work, the company, the outings, food, everything! It's gonna be a blast. Leave you with a few pics of my workspace.

And here's an elevator I got stuck in for 10 minutes when trying to go downstairs to buy a drink.. it doesn't like me! They said it's never happened before.. must have a fetish for foreigners said my workmate :P

Peace out!