Angie Martinez

October 31, 2023

Iconic radio personality Angie Martinez is as New York as they come. Born to a Puerto Rican, Cuban, and Dominican family in the Bronx and raised in Brooklyn, Martinez began her career answering hotlines at urban radio station WQHT (Hot 97) at the age of 16. By the time she left the station two decades later, her skillful programming and impressive list of interview guests (which included NYC legends such as Jay Z and Mariah Carey) had earned her the nickname, "The Voice of New York."

In the late 90s and early 00s, Martinez began making music of her own, earning a Grammy nomination for a remix of Lil Kim's "Not Tonight" alongside Missy Elliot, Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, and Da Brat. She released two albums, 2001's Up Close and Personal and 2002's Animal House, before announcing her retirement from the music industry to focus on other ventures.

In 2014, Martinez left Hot 97 after a two-decade tenure for competitor station Power 105.1, where she launched The Angie Martinez Show, released her memoir My Voice in 2016, and was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2020. The media mogul shows no signs of slowing down; last year she launched her long-form podcast IRL, where she candidly discusses vulnerable and philosophical subjects with notable guests including Usher, Lauren London, and Mary J. Blige.

introduction SAMUEL GETACHEW
interview SAHIR AHMED
photography CLEMENT PASCAL

[Originally published in office magazine Issue 20, Fall-Winter 2023. Pre-order your copy here]

What is your ideal office?

Very large, good lighting, and big windows, with a stunning view of Manhattan. An office filled with a ton of creative people with good energy and working with purpose — helps me stay creative.

How often do you check your phone?

I check it entirely too often. It's one of those things that you are supposed to turn off, especially at night. I don't give myself enough of a break. I try my best to be mindful and check my phone less on the weekends and be more present.

What's the most creative excuse you've ever used to get out of something?

I'm pretty straightforward with people, so if I'm not interested I don't attend. If I need a break, I simply say, "I need a break."

What is the best DM you’ve ever received?

I love when people connect to my IRL podcast and reach out. JT from the City Girls DM'd me because she wanted to be a guest and that made me so happy to know I was connecting with someone without meeting them. I also love responding to DMs from younger people in radio or media who are just starting out and are seeking advice. When I was coming up, I didn't have social media outlets to reach out to people in the business. If I did, I would have definitely been doing my own DMing.

Who is the youngest person you trust?

The youngest people I trust are my kids.

What is your greatest achievement?

Personally, my greatest achievement is definitely my kids and my family. I am blessed to have such a wonderful support system. In my career, it's the women who have interned or worked with me. It gives me great joy to see them thriving and knowing I had a small part in their future.

Where is the most sacred place in New York?

The World Trade Center. The city has changed so much since 9/11. It represents a horrific moment, but also proves how resilient New Yorkers are and how we are at our best when we come together as a city. I always feel a certain connection with the city when I'm around that area.

What is your most powerful tool?

The will to persevere. I figure out ways to pivot forward when life doesn't go exactly how I may have envisioned. I push forward and believe, "What is for you will not miss you.”

Is there something that inspires you right now?

Expanding the IRL brand. The core of my inspiration has always been about truth. The IRL podcast is about discussing those hard truths within our own lives to be relatable to others; truths that create a sense of togetherness. We are all in search of life's tools and tricks to get through complicated moments. I'm looking forward to building on that type of content from the heart via TV, film, live events, and other immersive experiences.

Culture

Synchronicity: Maisie Williams

And who better to speak on personal revelation than an actor who’s grown up in the spotlight, a crucible of self-perception? Amidst the distractions of stardom, the Game of Thrones star’s enduring self-confidence has given her something we all should be envious of: she knows who she is, the path she’s on, and how to traverse the unpredictability of life.

With a range of diverse projects under her belt since the finale of Game of Thrones and a highly-anticipated Christian Dior biopic series freshly out on Apple TV, Williams finds herself increasingly grounded by her own private revelations. She takes the time to explain herself, responding directly and without hurry to my deeply personal questions about meditation, social pressure, and self-perception with honesty and an engaged sense of humble self-assuredness.

By the end of our conversation, I felt a sense of illumination from our time together: like my own philosophies around serendipity and the flow of the universe had been truly seen in a rare moment of human connection across screens.

For this feature, I wanted to present William’s thoughts unobstructed by anything more than this introduction. A snapshot of her current state of mind and own private revelations: perception and epiphany in a beautifully clear understanding of the world.

ON FINDING JOY IN THE SMALL MOMENTS

I love the simplicity of life, really. The things that bring me the most joy are just seeing my post lady, going to my local yoga place, and seeing some of the ladies that I practice with there — just real simple things.

I recently had my pipes freeze over, and so I went to my neighbor's house to take a shower, and I felt part of the community in a way that's just very simple and beautiful. I’ve just been nurturing my circle and my world to a point where I find these little synchronicities, which is really beautiful.

Find the rest of this cover story in Issue 21.

Culture

So Far So Good

April 26, 2024

Nolan Zangas’ first solo book So Far So Good, published by Blurring Books, unveils 160 pages of unreleased personal work spanning the last five years of living in New York City. Growing up running around the city's streets, capturing candid moments on disposable cameras during his youth, Nolan's desire to concretize his memories blossomed into the successful career he has today. This project stands apart his expansive body of work as a diaristic exploration of young adulthood, delving into the intersection of beauty and pain, and navigating "the fine line between success and failure" amidst the perpetual motion of a city like New York, shining a light on people and moments that shape its identity yet are often overlooked.

“In the spirit of La Haine as Vinz describes the man who falls from a skyscraper reassuring himself: ‘So far, so good...so far, so good’ on the way down,” the book serves as a tangible reminder that in life ‘It’s not how you fall that matters. It’s how you land.’”

Ahead of the launch at earshot.nyc tomorrow, we caught up with Nolan over email to talk about his selection process, how he got started taking photos, and why he doesn't post everything on Instagram.

Photography Nolan Zangas

How did you select what made it into the book?
My process is very physical. I hand print my images in a darkroom. I start by making a contact sheet. If I like the images on the contact sheet, I often cut them out and glue them into a notebook. Then I go back and print the images I like. Sometimes im in the darkroom like 30 hours in a week.
How many did you have to sort through?
It’s so hard to say. Easily over 100,000 frames. I made over 1,000 prints and most of them did not make the cut.
A book can act almost like an artifact, in that when you’re picking it up, it exists in that moment — whether that’s the day after it launches or five years from then. Did that come to mind and was there a specific thread you followed to ensure that timelessness?
I think that’s what makes books so important. I collect a lot of books. Images now feel so disposable, and I really like physical things. I think the selection of images are feel timeless, and the layout adds a bit of character to it all.
Not every upbringing is the same and as someone who also grew up in NYC, coming of age here is very different from any other place — at what point in your adolescence did you decide to start documenting your life and the people around you?
I started taking pictures of my friends on disposables around the age of 12. I lost or never picked up any of the negatives and the files are long gone. That really upsets me, and I think that made me want to take a lot more pictures as I got older. Around 18 is when I really started taking pictures of my life and things around me. I wanted to be able to look back at it all one day. I also think I’ve been surrounded with such diverse people. I think everyone deserves to have their picture taken.

How do you know when you’ve found a good picture?
There are a bunch of technical aspects that go into a good picture but I feel like for this project that stuff matters less. If it’s a good moment, and the picture makes me feel like I’m there, it’s a good picture.
The title is self-explanatory in context but I’m curious to know what led you to pick So Far So Good as the book's title.
Pretty early on in the process of making a layout actually. I think one of my friends said “so far so good” in conversation, and I instantly thought about the scene in La Haine where they talk about falling from a building. Then in my head I was like, holy shit thats the name right there”. It’s like, how far can you stretch a rubber band before it snaps. It felt really fitting to that point in my life and the book as a whole. A lot of good and a lot of bad around me.
Creating anything is an act of giving. How do you hope people, and those featured in its pages, receive the book?
I think it’s going to be cool for people who are in it because most of them don’t even know the pictures exist. I haven’t really been sending or showing anyone pictures because then they just end up on Instagram and in my head thats basically the trash can. I think some people won’t get it and others will. I don’t really mind. Everyone grew up doing different things.

It’s like, how far can you stretch a rubber band before it snaps. It felt really fitting to that point in my life and the book as a whole. A lot of good and a lot of bad around me.

Culture

Celebrating Earth Day w/ Nike Running

No Earth Day celebration is complete without action, so here are 10 local NYC-based initiatives you can get involved in to preserve the planet we all share.

Join a community garden: NYC has many community gardens (Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Queens Botanic Garden, The High Line) that offer volunteer opportunities and workshops on sustainable gardening practices.
Volunteer with NYC Parks: The NYC Parks Department offers various volunteer programs, including tree planting, cleanups, and habitat restoration.
Participate in beach cleanups: Organizations like the Surfrider Foundation and the NYC Parks Department organize regular beach cleanups in NYC's coastal areas.
Get involved with local environmental groups: Groups like the Sierra Club, the Nature Conservancy, and the NYC Environmental Justice Alliance offer various volunteer opportunities and campaigns.
Take part in citizen science projects: Organizations like the NYC Audubon Society and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden offer citizen science projects that allow individuals to contribute to environmental research.
Join a local recycling program: NYC's Department of Sanitation offers various recycling programs, including organics collection and textile recycling.
Support local sustainable businesses: Choose to shop at local businesses that prioritize sustainability and environmentally friendly practices. (Here's a great resource for finding them)
Advocate for environmental policy change: Contact local representatives and participate in advocacy campaigns with organizations like the NYC Environmental Justice Alliance.
Participate in park cleanups: Organizations like the Central Park Conservancy and the Prospect Park Alliance offer regular cleanup events.
Join a local environmental activism group: Groups like Extinction Rebellion NYC and the Sunrise Movement NYC offer opportunities for individuals to get involved in environmental activism and advocacy.

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