Author: Bradley Martinez
The Air Jordan VI silhouette was famously inspired by the MJ’s German sportswear. It’s very essence conveyed speed and class, laden with touches like a neoprene sleeve, a translucent outsole and etc. The Air Jordan VI was the model he wore en route to his first Championship title with the Chicago Bulls.
A part of 5 original colourways to release in 1991, the Air Jordan VI ‘Carmine’ colourway stood out from the other with its unusual red hue and colour-blocking, differentiating itself from the known Infrared that was used.
Since it’s release the AJVI Carmine has been a sought after iteration due to its lack of retros. Since its initial release, it has only been retrod twice. In 2008, it was part of a limited 2 pair duo dubbed ‘The Countdown Pack’ alongside the Air Jordan XVII and then again in 2014 as a standalone release.
For its 30th anniversary, Jordan Brand have delved into its roots by releasing the AJVI Carmine in its original form. Featuring a duo-tone combination of white leather and carmine unbuckle, black hits a used on the midsole, lining and tongue. Further white additions are displayed on the outsole combined with translucent details around air bubble and forefoot. The original form takes place through the addition of ‘Nike Air’ branding on the heel.
The Air Jordan VI ‘Carmine’ is coming soon to Footpatrol…!
Footpatrol: Mark thanks for spending some time with us! How have you been getting on with everything?
Mark: Thank you for having me. I’ve actually had a really busy January, I’ve been working on designs and launching the web store for Sneakers & Recreation, and I also celebrated the birth of my first child so it’s been pretty hectic but all good fun!
FP: We wanted to talk with you of course about your collection and where this passion all began. Could you start off by giving us an overview on how long you’ve been collecting and what was the catalyst behind your love for Jordans?
Mark: Yeah for sure, I actually got my first pair of Jordans when I was 16 and I started playing basketball at college. I was playing in some really busted cheap Nikes and a friend of mine said to me that he couldn’t bear to watch me playing in them any longer. He had a new pair of Jordan 16’s so he actually gave me his old pair which were the black/indiglo 14’s. I absolutely wore those into the ground as you can see by the state of them. I love them though and of course I got the retro when they came out a few years ago because they mean a lot to me. Then when I was 18 I bought my first pair with my own money which was the Jordan 18. At that time and for the next few years I was really buying Jordans just for hooping, and maybe I’d have one pair to wear casually too.
FP: Did you ever see yourself when you start owning as many pairs as you do now?
Mark: I definitely never envisaged having this many pairs. I remember in the early 2000’s looking in SLAM magazine at a pair of white cement 3’s and thinking that was the most beautiful pair of shoes I had ever seen. It was just unlike anything else. I absolutely loved MJ, and if I wasn’t playing basketball I was watching videos of him, as well as Penny and AI, but Mike was always the goat for me and that meant Jordan’s were always the shoe that I wanted. Plus not many people had them so they felt even more special.
I guess it just kind of built up slowly from there. I actually had more pairs at one point and it peaked in about 2014, (I blame eBay) there was just too many great shoes that came out in the mid 00’s and in around 2010 when I was earning some real money I was able to buy all the things that I’d missed out on!
So at that point I peaked somewhere between 150/200 pairs. Then in 2015 I went to live in New Zealand for a year and I only took five pairs with me and the rest were put into storage. Even though I bought quite a few pairs when I was there, I realised that I didn’t miss all of the pairs in storage and there were definitely some I could do without. So I cut my collection down to about 80 pairs and now I try and hover around the 80 to 100 mark at all times.
FP: Anyone that’s seen your social media will know you have got what almost looks like every colour under the sun. Including some customs! Is there one Jordan colourway that has always been your favourite?
Mark: I think most Jordan fans will say that there’s something special about Chicago red and white colourways on Jordans, and the Chicago Jordan 1 is my favourite shoe and colourway. I do absolutely love cement and elephant print too though on a white canvas, so the white cement 3 and 4 come in at second and third respectively.
FP: What about PE versions, is there any that you have or wish you had?
Mark: Actually when I was in New Zealand I did pick up a pair of PE’s, which is very random and the only pair I own. I went into a vintage store in Wellington and they had a few Jordans in there, nothing too exciting, and then I saw this pair with GW3 stitched on the back. I knew that Gerald Wallace was a team Jordan athlete but I thought there’s no way that there could be a PE in here. I check the tag inside and there it is: Promo, with his name, the style and the season on it. So I sent a photo of them over to friend in the US who collects PE’s and he hit me right back to say they were a legit pair.
I checked the price with the sales assistant, and they actually had a sale on that day. I picked them up for the equivalent of £22.50! So they’re really random PE but a PE nonetheless haha!
There is a lot I wish I did have though and number one would definitely be the Oregon duck 3’s. The Kobe 3 and 8 pack too, and any of the UNC team shoes that have come out in recent years.
FP: We brought you here to talk about the Air Jordan 6 for the return of the Carmine. As a model do you think the Air Jordan 6 has as much importance as other silhouettes within the Jordan range?
Mark: I think the 6 is so important particularly because its the silhouette the Mike won his first championship in so it’s going to be forever embedded in history because of that. However there might be some newer fans who aren’t as familiar with the model, and actually releases like the Travis Scott 6, and this Carmine release, are really important in order to bring this model to the forefront again and showcase to the younger fans of the line. Because it’s a beautiful Tinker designed shoe that has an important place in the history of the Jordan legacy.
FP: For a colourway to release only a couple times (including the Countdown Pack) since 91, how do you fair this latest iteration will do and do you believe that it will be appreciated as such?
Mark: I feel the same way about this coming back as I did the Fire Red 4 last year. It’s just so important that we’ve got it as close to that OG and with that in the Nike Air as well.
Looking at these I can see that the shape is much closer to the OG, in particular the tongue height, and there’s also some subtle differences like the colour of carmine red used, and the holes on the tongue. All of these go a long way to giving it that truly OG feel and the real heads definitely appreciate that, and I think that some of the newer heads will love them too!
FP: Do you own many 6s or even any of the previous Carmine releases?
Mark: Yeah I have about 10 pairs of 6’s, 4 of which are actually iterations of the Black/Infrared over different years. I love the 2000 release, so I have 2 of those, one which I turned into a Reverse infrared custom because I knew I’d never own that sample! I also have the Motorsport 6 which isn’t a pair you see very often but it has some really individual details and the elephant print lining is just too good. But the Carmine is my favourite 6, and compared to the 2014 version these are just perfect. So they’ll definitely be on foot a lot this year!
FP: Is there any memorable moment that you have surrounding the Air Jordan 6?
Mark: What stays embedded in my head with the 6 is that locker room footage of Mike crying, hugging the trophy after he wins that first championship. With his father next to him. Just the feeling of complete overwhelming elation getting to that point in his career. I also love the photo of the starting 5 with the championship trophy with Mike in the Carmines and Phil Jackson in Bred 4’s!
FP: I saw you have a custom AJ6 ‘Tour Yellow’ which looks amazing on that shoe, the 4s are one of my favourites! Besides that colour way, is there another that you wish you could transfer on to the Jordan 6?
Mark: Thank you so much, I actually made those six years ago because the 4’s are one of my favourite pairs too and I just thought that the colourway would translate really effortlessly onto a 6. I see that Jordan brand are actually rumoured to be bringing out a 6 low in the same colourway this year so I’ll be after a pair of those (and some royalties haha).
I would love to see the Mist blue colourway on the 6 as thats another one of my favourite 4’s and I think that would work really nicely. Aside from those, a real release of the Reverse Infrared 6 sample would be pretty awesome.
FP: Mark thanks for much again for talking to us about your passion!
Mark: Much appreciated, its been a pleasure to chop it up with you!
Founded in 1996, Tatsuhiko Akashi and his MEDICOM TOY empire have since become one of the most highly regarded and valued collectables within streetwear as well as the art world, producing some of the most sought after products, having collaborated with high end brands and artists across all fields including Chanel, Bape, Stash, Futura and many more…
Since its introduction, the BE@RBRICK figure has become one of MEDICOM TOYS iconic collector’s pieces, with some editions extremely popular on the secondary market.
As well as MEDICOM TOY, they also have FABRICK, which expands on desirable collectables, focusing mainly on textiles design, for home goods & accessories. Implementing exquisite Japanese craftsmanship on everything from wallets to sofas, FABRICK offers a more tactile experience, bringing the originality and uniqueness in a more wearable and usable form.
We’re excited to announce our latest collaboration with FABRICK, on a range of home goods and accessories.
We wanted to build on our love of graphic design, typography and the city where Footpatrol began, London. Often referred to as a concrete jungle, we played on this idea by building a maze, mirroring the intertwining streets and alleyways of Soho, taking inspiration from optical illusion artists such as MC Escher, we landed on a design that with closer inspection, reveals our name.
Made in Japan within the secret laboratories of MEDICOM TOY, the collection include two bags, a cushion and a pair of house slippers, the bags, a sacoche and a waist bag, are both lightweight with enough room for your everyday belongings, whilst the slippers and cushion add an extra sense of comfort within the home.
Shop here! Prices range from £35 – £50.
Before cementing its status as a streetwear icon and skateboarding staple, the Dunk began its journey on the hardwood as Nike’s first team basketball shoe. This high-top edition of the timeless silhouette features Velvet Brown with hits of Dark Curry.
The “Dark Russet” begins its appealing mix of hues with brown shades on the quarter panels, toe-boxes and collars.
Brown is also used on the throat, but the rest of the make-ups suede is swapped out for a classic nylon. Atop sits shaggy “Dark Curry” suede on the mudguard, heel, collar and eye-stays. The tongue swaps out suede for nylon while retaining the “Dark Russet” hue of its counterparts.
An essential edition of the high-top masterpiece, featuring wearable colours for the months ahead.
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AMBUSH®︎, the Tokyo based label co-founded by its creative director YOON, partners with NIKE and the NBA, to design a 90’s inspired, basketball capsule collection complemented by a new take on the iconic NIKE DUNK.
With this partnership, the first female designer to partner with Nike and NBA, delivers an energetic attitude, signature AMBUSH® detailing and fresh-styling to female basketball fans.YOON re-imagined the iconic NIKE DUNK with AMBUSH® approach; inspired by Japanese bike, car and truck culture, the shoe is given an elongated and heightened form with Swooshes extending beyond the heel like bike pipes.
Additionally, YOON reimagined Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets apparel. The collection includes playful, seasonally appropriate attire thats a true ode to the 90’s.
“The project began with a conversation about making women feel proud to represent their favourite teams. We were considering how to balance the culture of the sport without losing style. I thought of all these amazing and strong female characters from the ’90s who would come out in men’s clothes and I wanted to see how we could carry that attitude but bring in more feminine forms” – YOON
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Introduced in 1982, the Air Force 1 redefined basketball footwear from the hardwood to the blacktop. It was the first basketball sneaker to house Nike Air, but its innovative nature has since taken a backseat to its status as a street icon.
Arguably one of Nike’s most timeless silhouettes, the Nike Air Force 1 is a go-to staple for sneaker collectors and general consumers alike. The perfect canvas for multiple colourways and collaborations, since 1982, the Air Force 1 has gone through drastic changes with technology but will always be known for its originality and iconic aesthetics.
Before it became a streetwear legend, the Air Force 1 was a defining basketball silhouette—and this edition aims to revive the style with funky vibes inspired by retro basketball aesthetics. In tribute to Nike’s time-traveling all-star team, the Roswell Rayguns, it features a throwback colour palette, embroidered accents and other hip details that celebrate the ’70s. First seen in 2005 on the Nike SB Dunk Lows in both ‘Home’ & ‘Away’ colours, Nike retrod both releases with an updated twist. As far as classic models go, its only right to include the Air Force 1.
With a classic white leather base, this Raygun edition features orange on the heel counter along with a black Swoosh and yellow detailing to follow all in satin material. Black lining, laces and outsole add finishing touches and the Raygun insignias are placed atop the lateral heels, but this variation solely uses the alien-colored basketball head logo instead of the traditional full body silhouette to complete a throwback release.
Originally launched in 2008, the GEL-KAYANO 14 was the fourteenth model to release in ASICS’ long-running GEL-KAYANO series.
What makes this particular model unique is that it was the first in the series to be created by a designer other than its namesake Toshikazu Kayano. Kayano passed the baton to Hidenori Yamashita.
The inspiration for the sneaker was “flash”, Yamashita explains: “‘Flash’ for me references that burst of action where the runner lands at the heel and pushes away at the toes. Whether it’s the colour, the lines, the materials, the silhouette, or the texture all aspects of the GEL-KAYANO 14 are designed with that idea of ‘flash’ in mind.”
When it first released, the GEL-KAYANO 14 won the International Editor’s Choice prize in Runner’s World’s annual awards.
The model remains a favourite among runners.
With fewer shows to go to in these difficult times we bring you Frequent Players: Meets, keeping the community up to date with upcoming music and artists bringing you closer to the action in every way we can.
Still in the early stages of his career, House of Pharaohs alumni Mally has been making his mark on the UK music scene with his comical bars and powerful voice that keeps you wanting more!
For the release of his upcoming EP, Arkade. We reach out to Mally to talk all things music, positivity and the development process behind his wide range of creative outlets.
Footpatrol: Mally it’s great to have you here, we have been following you for a bit now, wanted to get you here and now we have you here! How have you been?
Mally: Comfortable bro, how are you?
FP: I’ve been good thank you man! Let’s start off with your back story, where did the journey start with your music career and how did you get to where you are now?
Mally: Bro in all honesty there’s not even a music career yet! I’m just a creative you know. In terms of dabbling into music I started from young just from being around my uncle who was a producer, having a musical ear of my own, obviously my mum on sundays cooking, cleaning, music running. I never had this strong affiliation towards thinking to myself ‘Ah I’m gonna do music.’ I don’t think anything that I do now, I thought I was gonna do it’s always been one thing leading into another.
To answer your question directly to when I started to take music seriously, would have been probably about a year ago.
FP: A year! Must have been a hard graft of a year then in that case?
Mally: It was just self doubt and stuff that was just holding me back, in the end I had enough friends supporting me and saying like ‘Yo you got this’.
FP: Tell us a bit about your music, how would you describe it to those who haven’t had the pleasure to listen to it already?
Mally: Pffft! Bro I don’t know!
FP: Okay, if you could describe it in 3 words in that case?
Mally: Well in that sense obviously the genre is Rap and the subgenre is Trap, however the way I come at it and approach it is different in the sense, not so much the content but the way I deliver the content, some people say how it’s how I sound. With punchlines and bars, I like to make people laugh with my music so I would say it’s Trap but not really though. Like on the new EP you’re gonna hear man sing!
I would say its – Light Hearted Trap.
FP: What about your inspirations, were there any artists that you grew up listening to that influenced you to want to get into music?
Mally: Never! If anything, cos I’m in House of Pharaohs I’ve been around my friends making music, so I have been more so inspired by my community and my peers but no one directly. I don’t even have an idol bro! I’m just my own entity. If anything I Idolise my mum because of what she’s done, there’s not anyone else for me to idolise that’s done anything for me.
FP: One of the main reasons we are here today is to talk about your upcoming EP, Arkade. How has it been piecing it all together, has it been a tough process?
Mally: Ah bro! Let me tell you something, I never go into anything preemptively I just kind of like go song after song. About the only thing I thought about was that I’m going to make an EP! I didn’t think about anything else, if I like it and how it sounds then boom thats it its going on. I don’t want to have too much of the same thing, I try not to put too much premeditated thought into it. With music – something so free flowing, you can’t quantify that bro. Don’t ever think that you’re gonna come here and tell yourself that this is what you’re going to do today, it’s not happening. Unless you started something and you come to finish it, then cool. I will never walk into a studio session being like I need something to sound like this because you’ve already caged yourself by that point. I just go in, hear the beat and be like yo bro what do you think of this!
FP: Well we are looking forward to hearing it! I also wanted to touch on your music videos, am I right in saying you direct and edit them yourself?
Mally: Yeah.
FP: Where do you get these ideas from? Because I know you edit and help direct other artists music videos to like Doktor’s – Boombastic.
Mally: Let me tell you how it is, no idea was set in stone it’s always been one thing leading to another. So when we created House of Pharaohs, I was at college at the time and knew we were gonna blow up something different and started to think we are gonna have to start performing live! I was like naaa I can’t do live performances G, I wear glasses, falling off stage all of that haha. Obviously when you start to see your boys do it you’re like ahhhhh okay it kind of feels good, by this point we already start making roles in the group. I thought let me do something that can benefit the team, I was doing Art in college and thought of a scrap that let me try digital media and the teacher thought sick do that learn digital media. It started benefitting the group, started to design merch and all that.
Then the problem – ‘We don’t have anyone to do videos for us!’ I said yo cool, so I learnt how to make videos. As I said I was in the music now so nothing was on purpose it was all accidental to help my friend, but it all came full circle and ended up helping me because now I don’t have to ask people. The only thing I would ask for is to record me or produce me and even then I’m telling you what sounds I’m making with my mouth.
But that’s it, I didn’t plan, it just happened.
FP: I wanted to talk about your drawing skills! You did the artwork for Platonic, and your Hatch EP am I right in saying it was the drawing and illustrating first then music?
Mally: Yeah exactly. I always used to rap on the block with the mandem though, but that’s rapping on the block bro ain’t nobody thinking that’s going anywhere.
FP: Do you do any album artworks for other artists as well as your own?
Mally: Everything I do for myself, I do for other people.
FP: How did the works of other people come about then, were they just people within your circle?
Mally: Na, so when I’m dropping my own music and you see in the description created by myself people are like ‘Raaah can you do me one?’
I don’t pick and choose who to help. I just like helping people.
FP: For those who follow you on Instagram will know about your positive talks and messages you share on your stories. How important is it for you to spread that message of positivity and learning to appreciate what you have in life?
Mally: It’s the most important thing! For example I recently got 250k streams on my EP, I didn’t listen to it a quarter of a million times. Who did? The people, so who else should I thank. I know numbers don’t quantify success but I want to show people what you are contributing to.
A lot of people have this thing about ‘artists’ that they are a certain type of way. I just want to let people know that the things you do and the things you say, I care about it. I may not know anyone individually, but I care about you because I care about people whether they are on the highest level or the lowest level. It doesn’t matter. We breathe the same, we die the same you know, so it’s important for me to let people know that they’re loved especially in a world where it’s very easy to get stuff thrown at your face by the people you love.
As someone whose head is down here (point towards ground), you don’t deep how you are perceived by a lot of others. To some I could be their bread and butter they need to hear me to go about their day and in my head I’m thinking it’s mad, then you have others who have hit me up and said that a certain bar changed their life. I’m like ‘I can’t change your life G!’ but i’m not here to argue that I’m just here to listen and be appreciative of that.
FP: Well Mally we really appreciate you coming down to spend some time with us, we are really looking forward to the release of the EP. Before we let you go, is there anything you would like to share to the Frequent Players and Footpatrol readers?
Mally: What I would say to everybody is be yourself fam, be happy, don’t conform at the same time compromise. You can’t always be wrong and strong in your way if it’s affecting other people.
I don’t bend for everybody but I will always compromise for you if it’s affecting you.
The Nike Dunk silhouette has been a timeless model since its release in 1985, with a host of new colourways and retros releasing throughout. The ‘Be True To Your School’ campaign by Nike has been forever associated with the Nike Dunk because it was the first basketball shoe to dedicate colours to respected colleges.
The Nike Dunk would discontinue from 1988 and forge a 10 year hiatus with its return in 1998, when it found a home in Nike’s burgeoning retro offerings. The Wu Tang Clan would create their own iteration of the Iowa colourway by including their iconic branding on the heel. Furthermore, the Nike Dunk would also become a huge model for the upcoming Nike SB brand in 2002.
In 2020, consumers saw a massive influx of Nike Dunk releases both in the low and high models. The attention to Nike Dunks would increase as well as the demand which made the resurgence of somewhat forgotten model more fruitful. Releases like the Plum, Ceramics and Veneers would retro worldwide for the first time as well as collegiate colourways like the Syracuse would be sought after.
For Spring 21, the Nike Dunk doesn’t seem to be slowing down any time soon with the addition of this latest Black and White colour block iteration.
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The Air Jordan I inevitably had a strong 2020 throughout and ended the year on a high note with the AJ1 ‘Mocha’. Now at the start of 2021, Jordan Brand are applying no stoppages with their latest release.
Kicking things off with a ‘Volt/University Gold’ combination, this upcoming release bares a similar colour-blocking to the classic ‘Black Toe’ silhouette. In addition, this iteration also includes an inside-out aesthetic to continue with a popular deconstructed feature.
The upper is constructed in a white tumbled leather combined with a black leather in a matte finish around the toe and Swoosh. The heel portion is done in University Gold and the detachable collar in Volt. The tongue features an exposed nylon along with a translucent inside-out tongue tab.
This latest Air Jordan 1 OG High retro serves as a start to what would potentially be another strong year with the popular model.
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With the end of 2020 insight, Frequent Players brings you a special New Years mix to welcome in 2021.
Music has played a massive part to people’s lives within 2020, whether you’ve found yourself working from home and taking the time to listen to more music throughout the day or you’ve been tuning into the mass amounts of live events happening online, considering we haven’t been able to get out to live events, it’s kept us all going. Another thing it’s done for us at Frequent Players is, it’s allowed us to discover a host of new artists one of which we’re excited to bring today.
Born and raised in Liverpool, we first came across Macca… aka Adam earlier in the year when he was covering for the Charlie Bones, Do!! You!! show. Now residing in London, after a few years of hard work, 2020 has finally gifted him with his very own, very much deserved NTS show ‘One Glove’. The show brings a perfect blend of, well, any genre so whether its George Michael, Moodyman, Prince or Thundercat… expect anything and everything from Macca.
Footpatrol: Macca! Thanks for joining us here at Frequent Players, how have you been?
Macca: Cheers FP crew, thanks for having me, I’m honoured to be here. Haha how have I been? A loaded question at the end of 2020. I’m surviving, my friends and family are well – I’ll take that for now.
FP: Before we discuss ‘One Glove’ and NTS, could you give our readers an insight into your background?
Macca: I was born and raised in Liverpool and moved to London four years ago. Back home people will know me for putting on gigs and club nights for 7 or 8 years with the guy that was my music equivalent of Mr Miyagi / Obi-Wan Kenobi / insert seminal teacher figure, Paddy Quinn. Over the years we booked everyone from Roy Ayers to Thundercat to Mr Scruff to Fatima to Yussef Kamaal to Peanut Butter Wolf – it was kinda mad, lost a load of money but got stories and memories for life.
Fast forward to today and across the country some people will know me for jumping on NTS Radio; selecting a wide array of sounds, speaking my mind on the mic, telling stories and just generally having a good time.
Everyone knows me as Macca, it’s not like a DJ name or something. Some lad on the back of the bus called me it in Year 7 and now I reckon 95% people know me only as Macca. Mundial Magazine referred to me as the 3rd most infamous Macca to come out of Liverpool (after McCartney and McManaman) – I’ll take that.
FP: We wanted to touch on what must be a highlight of your year and no we’re not referring to telling the world to live their lives and be free, to then kicking people out the parks for not exercising (Let’s not get into that! Haha), it’s of course ‘One Glove’… We’d love to know how getting your own slot on NTS came about?
Macca: Hahaha nah respect to you guys, you’ve been listening in properly this year I can tell (but yeah, let’s not get into my on air telephone outbursts during lockdown one).
Damn, getting my own slot was about 5 years in the making y’know. Basically, I owe A LOT to Charlie Bones for being able to do my thing today. Way back in 2015 my pal Bolts booked Charlie to play Liverpool and I was left to take care of him. The morning after the gig, I get a call from Bones and he’s like ‘where’s good for breakfast & digging?’ so we spent the day putting the world to rights and record shopping. In the end he said to get my arse down to London and jump on the Do!! You!!! Breakfast Show with him. We just clicked and he really fosters an environment to play and say what you feel – he’s created a beautiful thing – bit mad really, just getting some random scouse lad on the radio haha!
Anyway, yeah since then I jumped on as a guest with him sporadically over the years, then eventually NTS started asking me to cover for Charlie whenever he was off which was and is always a big honour as it’s by far the most listened to show. Eventually, I landed my own slot for 2020, One Glove was born and it’s been an absolute blast.
FP: One thing that drew us to ‘One Glove’ was the wide range of music that you play, it’s refreshing to have that sense of knowing what you’re about to tune into whilst also knowing that you’re probably about to hear something new… If that makes sense? What is it that you want ‘One Glove’ to be? We think you need a second show for story telling, the one about you meeting Paddy Doherty is amazing! Have you still got his number?
Macca: That actually means a lot you saying that, because that’s basically what I always wanted the show to be. I remember my first One Glove show and the producer asked me “so what is the general vibe of One Glove going to be?” and I just kinda said “I don’t really want to restrict myself to genres, it depends what mood I’m in that week or day”.
It absolutely is an outlet for me to play whatever I’m feeling in that moment but I also want it to be something that anyone and everyone can listen to. It’s not on some music snobbery tip y’know? I want to engage with the listeners, talk about good music in a casual way and also just chat about the mad trials and tribulations of life. In that sense, I think that’s the most obvious nod to me being from the school of Charlie Bones, right?
And yeah, I’d love an extra slot to allow for more time for telling stories! Everyone has got stories to tell, it’s just how you tell them and also being up for putting yourself in slight daft situations – oh and chatting to random strangers… who just might end up being Paddy Doherty on a train, going to London, showing you videos of horses kicking out people’s teeth. Yes, I still have his number. No, I’ve not yet called in the favour he promised me.
FP: This year has been a challenge for everyone and its proof that hard work pays off, so being asked to do that monthly slot, was that something you had always dreamt of having one day or something that came about that you couldn’t say no too?
Macca: I can’t lie, when I left Liverpool for London, landing my own slot on NTS Radio and setting up my own label was exactly the type of thing I was moving down for. I went to Tokyo in 2019 and brought a Daruma doll back with me – a symbol of perseverance and good luck in Japan. Essentially what you do is fill in one of the doll’s eyes and set yourself a goal or a task. Once you achieve that goal you can fill in the doll’s other eye. Anyway, let’s just say I got to fill in both the eyes of my Daruma doll by the end of 2019
FP: Does playing a regular feature as opposed to covering a Charlie Bones show for example alter the way you choose what you play?
Macca: Not really. The difference is the breakfast show is 3 whole hours so I’m able to throw more curve balls, engage with the chatroom more and have fun with it – just how I like it. One Glove is currently only one hour a month on a Sunday so is a little more considered. If i can get back to Japan and grab another Daruma doll I guess my next goal would be to get more One Glove air time.
FP: Back to NTS, it was here that we first came across you… One of the highlights for us this year has been discovering new artists and it was on one of Charlie Bone’s Do!! You!! Shows that we first came across yourself. I remember my ears perked up when I heard you mention your ‘De La Soul’ Nike Dunks, can you remember when/how it was you got into trainers?
Macca: I was always into having fresh clothes (tracksuits mostly) and kicks as a kid. I remember when we could roll up to school in our own clothes for non-uniform day and I was known as the Nike kid. Always Nike. Never adidas.
The love-affair really kicked off in 2007 when I started working for Size? on Bold Street, Liverpool. The manager (out to Big G) gave me the job off the back of me wearing an N.E.R.D. tee (ha!) and then I basically got schooled in trainees in a big way – I remember those days very fondly, buying a pair of trabs using my discount nearly every week (living the dream at 18).
Bold Street was like the go-to street for independent clothing stores back then. After Size? I ended up at Drome and then Paddy rescued me from there and got me a job in Ran which was a super dope independent boutique. We sold some bangers in there. Patta Air Max 1s, New Balance 1300JPs, the type of tackle that wasn’t readily available up north. It was a different time, no raffles or any of that nonsense.
I also have to shout out Lost Art which was also located on Bold Street at the time. Those guys looked after me from day one, which is kind of incredible considering I was probably the most annoying scally/non-scally kid showing up trying to buy pink box Nike SBs and that.
FP: Got anything stashed away that may grab our readers attention?
Macca: I actually had a massive clearout this past 12 months. Got rid of those 2005 ‘De La Soul’ Dunk Lo’s, 2007 Atmos ‘Elephant’ Air Max 1s, Ben Drury Air Max 1s and some Bodega Nike Air Footscape Woven Chukka Mids. By ‘got rid’ I mean sold them obviously.
FP: Someone told me you’ve even done the odd New York city trip for campouts, that’s quite the commitment, can you remember what that was for? Most importantly, did you manage to get a pair?
Macca: Hahaha we were total idiots. In fairness it was totally impromptu and I never did it again. Basically, it was 2008 and my boy Jack Morgan was working in NYC for adidas and a crew of us decided to go over there to see him and hit the stores. You could actually buy stuff that wasn’t available in the UK back then and I blew a ridiculous amount of money (student loan). One night we went to see Pineapple Express (seriously) in the cinema near Times Square and as we were walking back to our hotel there was three guys in camp chairs outside a store. Turns out it was a 1 month pop-up for Colette and this guy called ‘Silver’ (yep) convinced us to join them. Next thing you know we’ve gone from watching Pineapple Express to camping outside the Colette store which opened the next day. It was torture. But there was a fat queue once it opened and I grabbed some Colette x Oakley Frogskins (2008 hype lol) so it was worth it (sort of). Hahahah I’ve just checked and there’s still photos of us at the front of the queue looking like divvies on Freshness Mag. Like I said, never again.
FP: One of the reasons we started Frequent Players was because of the obvious connection between sneakers and music which is becoming even more prominent with the amount of brands working with musicians on collaborations. Can you remember what your first love was? Music or sneakers?
Macca: My first love was music. Then it was sneakers. Now it’s music again. Truth is, they’ve always ran parallel with one another in my life, just depends on which one I want to spend more of my hard-earned money on.
I remember working in Size?, those guys were the first to ever play me DJ Shadow’s ‘Endtroducing’ album – blew my head off! Then, working in Ran was basically equivalent to working in a record store, Paddy schooled me on so much music it’s kinda mad and I’m forever indebted.
FP: I think it’s fair we put you on the spot with a top three, you can listen to three tracks for the rest of your life and wear three sneakers for the rest of your life… what you picking?
1 – Nas – The World Is Yours (Tip Mix)
2 – Wham! – Blue
3 – Marvin Gaye – Is That Enough
1 – Nike SB Bruin x Lost Art
2 – Vans Era x DQM x Blue Note Records
3 – Asics Gel-Mai Knit x Patta
FP: I feel like we need to discuss The Gun pub. We hear you’re part of their Football Team? How did that come about? By the looks of things, their trophy cabinet is bigger than your beloved Evertons…
Macca: Hahaha shots fired! The Gun FC was something I was aware of before I moved down here. A fellow Evertonian, Alan Bond, was running the team and I hit him up to see if there was a game for a left footer. There’s a great bunch of lads there, all into good creative stuff and some tidy footballers too. In 2019 we won the Division 4 league going the whole season unbeaten, plus winning a couple of cup competitions as well. If we ever return to some form of normality I have high hopes of us winning something again this year.
Football has been a great outlet for me in London. There’s often a bad rep that comes with the game but in terms of helping with mental health, I can’t think of anything better than playing a sport or doing physical exercise. It’s a great chance to switch off, nothing else matters for 90 minutes and then you can all go back to the pub and catch up.
FP: We’ll have to set up a small match with you for a 5 aside game between The Gun vs TEAM FP if you’ll be up for it? We’re used to playing on a cold, wet windy night in Brixton.
Macca: Challenge accepted. I’m warning you, I’m horrible once it gets going but we’ll kiss and make up after the final whistle.
FP: What can we expect from the mix you’ve put together for us?
Macca: Well, since it’s New Year’s Eve I’ve tried to remember what it was like to play a warm-up slot on that build up to midnight… but with a touch of ‘you’re probably sat in your living room right now in Tier 4 making dinner or getting pissed’. Nothing too serious, here’s to 2021!
FP: Lastly, apart from having our fingers crossed for some normality in 2021, whats in the pipeline for Macca/One Glove over the next 365 days?
Macca: Other than cracking on with my radio shows and trying to get back on the football pitch, I’m buzzing to get the first release out on my newly launched One Glove label on the 5th February 2021. I’ve been working throughout 2020 with a guy called ‘moon’ who is a super raw, genuinely talented producer who has put together an incredible 5 track EP called Southside Park. It’s got elements of brokenbeat, house, hip-hop, garage and jungle, with a healthy dose of Liverpudlian adlibs and vocals. I’m expecting the test presses back any week now and super looking forward to getting ONEGLOVE001 out into the world. You can check it via the One Glove’s Bandcamp page – much love to those who’ve already copped a preorder of the vinyl.
