Image via Complex Original
The first day of ComplexCon was a thrilling mix of art installations, concerts, and streetwear shopping. But the true highlight of the convention-festival hybrid were ComplexConversations, a series of talks and panels that saw stars and industry experts alike weighing in on everything from the current state of the education system to making money in the weed biz.
If you weren't in Long Beach this year, check out some of the sharpest insights panelists shared with the audience.
Ice Cube on watching his own back in the music business: "Where I come from, the worst thing you can do is go into a game you don't know how to play." —at the "Achieving Longevity in the Game" panel, also featuring Ice Cube, Tony Hawk, and Complex Editor-in-Chief Noah Callahan-Bever
Pusha T on how education failed him in his pursuit of music: "No one tried to nurture what we were doing,"—at "The Future of Our Schools: An Urgency for Change" panel featuring Marc Ecko, Russlynn Ali, Laurene Powell Jobs, Pusha T, Jesse Williams, and Hill Harper
Wale on Kanye's marketing prowess: "Kanye could sneeze on a sneaker and it would sell."—at the "Sneaker of the Year" panel, featuring DJ Clark Kent, Russ Bengtson, reseller Benjamin Kickz, designer Jon Buscemi, Wale, and Complex's VP of Content Strategy Joe La Puma
Bobby Hundreds, co-founder of The Hundreds, on the importance of evolving with the culture: "If you're against it, you're going to be left behind. If you can figure out how to make it work for your brand and your voice, then you'll win."—at the "Thread Trajectory: Where Streetwear Is Going" panel, featuring Bobby Hundreds, Chris Gibbs of Union LA, Rob Garcia of En Noir, designer, DJ, and director Vashtie Kola, and designer Jeff Staple
Jesse Williams on POCs use of language being adopted by the masses: "[White people in positions of power] mock the way black people and poor people talk, and six months later they use [that same language] because they laundered it through whiteness." —at "A Manner of Speaking: Language in a Digital Age" featuring radio personality Angie Martinez and Aryn Drake-Lee, Glenn Kaino, and Jesse Williams, founders of the Ebroji app
Wale on the WWE's future and why quality storytelling is key to its survival: "The sport who is going to be your favorite is going to tell the best story." —From "Has the WWE Finally Crossed Over?" panel, featuring Action Bronson, Peter Rosenberg, Wale, and Complex's Joe La Puma
LeBron James' business manager Maverick Carter on what's needed to change the sports media landscape: "You always have to let the content lead, that will tell you where the story should go." —"The Future of Sports Media" with Rachel Nichols, Gotham Chopra, and Paul Rodriguez
Action Bronson on the drawbacks of Prop 64: "I like buying weed illegally sometimes."—at the "The Business of Weed" panel with Wiz Khalifa, The Game, Los Arias, and Dr. Dina (who opened California's first weed dispensary), hosted by Noah Rubin, editor-of-chief of Merry Jane