Enter Dontay's Inferno!!!

Not many have as many accolades as Dontay TC5. He has deep roots in the NYC graff world and has come up in the ranks as a veteran in the graphics world. His hand styles could be found on Pepsi print ads all the way to garments of Akademiks (www.akademiks.com) and Rocawear (www.rocawear.com. He has fathered a style that has offspring in various genres. Enter the blazing trails that Dontay has set a fire!

How close are to you with your sisters?

Me and my sister's are kool.

Did they ever hook you up with any of their friends?

Nah, her friends didn't start stressing the kid until
I started bringing girls from other hoods!

How was it working in T5soul back in the day?

It was just freelance I didn't work in the office...
But the experience was a good thing.

You have always had your own style whether with graff or with your graphics. How do you think graff has influenced your graphic sensibility?

I went about it the same way as I did graffiti.
I just studied my art to the fullest always doing research buying books every week.
I never stop going in, never. can't be lax at this job or game, grind hard...

What highschool did you go to and who was some of the kids that were killing it with graffiti?

I went to Fashion High School. try to go to A&D, but they didn't let me in cause of all the fights i had!
The dudes that was killing shit at that time were from the crews I'm down with . FC, TC5, IBM, NTA, OTB, FBA CIA. (DONDI CIA R.I.P)

Who was your favorite character in the Thundercats?

My dude Lion-O, he was the illest of the crew...

Why is territory so important with graff crews?

'cause some crews owned some train lines and if u wasn't down and got caught up in their yard or their lay up it was a rap...
Crews are a brotherhood... know your place in this game. Some crews bomb shit crazy and other crews bomb shit and did train cars also, so to be down with the crews I'm down with you had to be the best... the fresh kid on the block...
and have that respect for your style.

Were you ever into comic books?

Comic books was and still is my shit. That is where I learn most of my cartoon style from
bode' joints, marvel, dc. But mostly bode's when I was doing graff.

I heard that you were one of the first ones to bust out using tiffs in the graphics is that true?

The bit maps I did for PNB nation when I was working there wasn't being done at the time I did them
and when we did that big ass booth in magic with the 3 color bitmaps dudes went crazy asking how I did it.
But me and my crew was already doing it.. me, George(gets) Scott(10Deep)

How did you come up with that technique?

I seen some old posters black market had did at the time. They had did a poster
with a lady at a sniper range...it wasn't bitmap it was photo shop layers
so it wasn't art work. So I practice until I got it right .......

How big is your sneaker collection?

It used to be real crazy like in 2003 I had a whole room just with sneakers.
This was way before the sneaker shit went crazy people would come to the crib and be like.. son
you are crazy.. so I stop being a fiend and pick up some joints here and there .
Back then I would go to Nort and buy 2 of what ever I would buy.....I was sick son
real crack head...now I think I got about 3-4 hundred.

When you were at AK their were many people that jumped on your style and layouts how have you (if so) expanded passed that?

yeah its cool we all fam... we build off each other but the outsiders went crazy when they used to see the old AK stuff fam,
but now I cut and sew and graphics.. I'm just a little bugged out with this stuff..... I love the graphics stuff but
I'm really loving the cut and sew shit ....

How did Gilyard come to be and where did you get the name?

Gilyard is one of my family's last name so I ran with it and it just sounded crazy. The brand caught the attention of some backers who initially wanted to do some production for the brand. The brand was popping for minute... the industry and the consumer was feeling the movement.. I learned a lot about the business and about people....that shit was like school.... shit got crazy and I walked away from it . Fuck it...back to the drawing board!

How do you balance the work and the love of the art that you push out?

Staying focus and just enjoying what I do...The creativity of both worlds keeps me going.

What are your favorite pair of kicks in your sneaker collection?

I like air force 1's, dunks jordan vandelz ,i like them all but my joints are
Air Force1's homie! Them joints will never go out of style..They look good with denim.

What were some of the most difficult times that you had being a designer?

The Gilyard movement was one of the most difficult times in my career as a designer....But if I could I wouldn't change the outcome..I learned a lot and the experience made me more hungry!

What was supposed to be the hallmark of Gilyard vs the other brands that were out at the time?

It would have held its own identity next to Roca Wear, Sean John and Ecko..a monster like the rest.
But the foundation wasn't formed right ... shit was crazy...money makes situations and ruins situations!
The partners didn't know the apparrel business and sales was fucked up...the only shit that was solid was design.
I had a crazy design team... me, Allen, Dennis that owns "Crooks", Omar that owns Cmon' wealth, Vern, Krista,
Carlos, Lamont, and my man Ben. That was a dream team that I had put together 'cause we was all cool..
so they help me out cause they believed in what I was trying to do....Respect to all them cats I broke bread with at that time..
much love!

Do you ever do any personal graphics?

Yes sir...I have a design company called Revokt Studio NYC.
GET AT ME!

What were some reasons that Gilyard had to come to an end?

There were a lot of reasons that Gilyard had to come to an end...but the main reason I rather not comment on because I don't want to hurt nobody's feelings.... It is was it is!

Do you do any legal walls every now and then to get the graff bug out?

Yeah I did like 6-7 joints last summer 07' ... much more to come.

What are some things that you learned through the conception to the closing of Gilyard?

Don't do major business deals with friends... don't hire your friends either... that shit don't work...don't trust nobody..
Stay on top of your business and watch everything if you can! I want to shout out my wife who held me down when shit got crazy...

Where did you develop your character style from?

THE BEST IN THE GAME SHOW ME LOVE...
DOZE TC5
NOC 167 OTB.
V' BODE. CHEECH WIZARD!
DC/COMICS
MARVEL COMICS.

Drop a jewel for the people about how to develop your own style?

BE THE BEST AT WHAT YOU DO, IN WHAT EVER GAME YOUR IN.
STUDY YOUR CRAFT!

Stall & Dean breaks out of Rikers!!!!

Kool G Rap once told us all that "You won't be smiling on Rikers Island, but then no man is an island onto himself. I guess working at for a time test sportswear company promotes the epitome of team work and gallant grins for the game.

Stall and Dean(http://www.stallanddean.com) has been around since 1898 and is still kicking alive and well. The handy work of the brand finding itself as an inner city staple is partially due to Rikers. He is a one man army moving through the gauntlet of marketing to smooth negotiations of private label. I had a chance to chat with Rikers, so check it out below.....

How long have you been down with Stall & Dean, what brought you to the company?

I been with Stall and Dean going on 7. I was over at PNB Nation (before Nick Canon purchased the brand) working w/ the kid Brue and after being there a few years and watching the company grow, it was like what's next.

Where did you grow up at?

Brooklyn during school months and Halifax county, NC for the summers. I was blessed by having the best of both worlds for instance in NC, I was going fishing and dirt bike riding, in NY it was gang infested Flatbush and the strong hustling carribbean kats.

What do you currently do for the company?

I'm the Marketing Director of both Stall and Dean; and Rucker clothing lines. Stall and Dean, I do most of the marketing, including product placement, insight on development and company direction, working on fit specs, trends and event planning. With Rucker that includes working with High School teams we sponsor as well as looking to community outreach with the Rucker Foundation. This includes park refurbishing and speaking at schools and youth centers.

When you were a kid did you want to be?

Hmmm, I still want to be the guy on the runways that signal the planes with the two flashlights. At 70 I'll go to JFK and apply for that job...haha, but once I reached High school I wanted to be a Corrections officer. I'm not sure what it is with these airplanes and jail bars.

What is one electronic device that you own that you can't live with out?

Blackberry, i receive about 300 emails a day, if it wasn't for the blackberry... Wow.

Where did you last go to the movies at?

New Jersey to see the Simpsons movie. I rarely get down time and I refuse to watch bootlegs.

Which one of your family members are you closest to?

I'm really a stay to myself person, but I'd have to say both parents equally. Its just a strange relation. Moms christian and Dad muslim so its like a war to convert at the dinner table...haha

Most companies rarely make it to 10 years, what was the secret to success for Stall & Dean making it to 110 yrs?

Strong commitment to customer service which entails quality, being dependable and refusing not to lose. That same energy Mr. C. Stall and W. Dean put into the company for its strong foundation...we do the same to make sure 110yrs later we don't let up. We do our best to keep a family setting, this creates a peaceful enviroment, quality... We use the best factories and have some of the hottest designers we could find, being different, we use stitch, piping, herringbone twills, 40% wool blend camps, lambs wool skullys... When you wear Stall and Dean, you know u wearing the best. An atitude like that, mixed in with backing up what we say is why next stop is 125year anniversary.

What is a hobby of yours that many don't know about?

I'm a serious history book collector. I have some classics mixed in with mainstream. I don't do novels. I just copped the King James Daemonolgy from 1597 and the three volume Moorish Empire in Europe. This was the first known King James Bible and the Moorish Empire in Europe.. I haven't even broken the binder so I don't know what's in it.

What was the most unexpected turning point of your life?

I was shot 5 times at point blank range. I was also under for a little while. That made me look at life entirely different. I had to evaluate my life and say, I can't waste one day because up to that point I was getting it in, but cool and collective, now its like... Everyday since I been on complete overdrive.

Are any of the Stalls or the Deans still affiliated with the company?

Up to the 1980s yes, then a sports collector named Russ Mckinnon out of Boston was offered an oppurtunity to take complete control of the company. Adding in two other partners Mr. Cuff and Chung, he was able to streamline and continue the rich legacy of Stall and Dean. It was due to his diligence as a sports fan that he was able to make the transition to owner.

If you weren't living in the United States where do you think you would be?

Bahamas, Morocco or Madagasgar. My next stop is definatly one of those places...haha.

Who was the first girl to break your heart in your youth?

Hmmm, this may sound weird but I wasn't into girls until High School. It was home, school and the streets for me. So any breakups I could just brush it off, but there weren't any for the most part.

What are some new and exciting things that you all are doing over at Stall & Dean?

We just did a ultra successful flap cap. Ours featured a 40% wool blend (stronger construction, little to no shrinkage) and lined with satin. We always want to offer more. We did duck filled reversable vest with piping. We also added duck down canvas jackets trimmed in premium leather with matching caps. Lambs wool skullys, scarfs and vest and our spring were opening the catalog for edgy, generation X pieces. Same teams, but were making a good reach.

Mac or PC?

Does that mean McDonalds and PfChangs?...haha, definetly PC.

What are some of the brand collaborations that you have done that have been the most memorable to you?

Besides Rucker, we basically stay in house. Dealing with a 110yr old company looking to adhere to todays market... I see it as we are First on the Field and last off, same as Rucker with there motto "Respect Tradition"... So even though we want to... Its very limited. Like for Rucker to do a callabo with let's say a 5 year old shoe company it doesn't speak to the Rucker enthusist as if they did a callabo with Pro Keds or Converse. So it will only work with a reputable basketball brand. Same as Stall and Dean, but in 2008 I will entertain offers to bring to the table, we have atleast 30 offers from serious and strong companies right now, but we'll have to see.

If you could have a super power what would it be?

I would want my super power to be birthed on the planet Krypton so I can have all of superman powers.

Drop a jewel for the people about how to keep a brand relevant for 110 yrs?

Consistent, honest, loyal and dependable. All of these are needed to stay mindful and respected. You must be one with the brand... In doing that, you should do a deep analysist on the brand and the ins and outs of its past so you understand where to take it in the future. Its almost like life, Knowledge of self is the basis a strong foundation. Once you know who you are, no one can fret you, same as your brand.


tell a friend to tell a friend so we can BUILD!!!

LAZY DAYS IN THE SUN

I trekked over to Vault (http://www.vaultnyc.blogspot.com) for "Lazy Sundays". For those that are not in the know of what "Lazy Sundays" are it is when the Vault does a spot light on a brand. This time it happened to be on a their new batch of tees that have been designed by REP (www.rep96st.com) and Benny Gold (www.bennygold.com) . They also had some hor dourves and mimosas for the patrons. Check the flicks!






tell a friend to tell a friend so we can BUILD!!!