We recently connected with Jorge Larrea and have shared our conversation below.
Jorge , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Are you happy as a creative professional? Do you sometimes wonder what it would be like to work for someone else?
Great question! I am at my best as a creative. I actually have a regular job, shoot… come to think about it… even when I was publishing a physical version of 305 Magazine, I had a regular job. Sometimes had two jobs while pushing out creative work and projects. The 9-5 never killed my motivation only fueled it. It’s easy to think that being a creative is like baking a pie, setting it out and once it’s sold, boom wealthy life. That’s not true, the hustle is real out here. There are ups and downs. Sometimes the ups are amazing and the downs are the things nightmares are made of. At the end of the day, you have to be motivated to see it through. Not only see that there is a light at the end of the tunnel but you have to see yourself in that light.
Everyone I’ve interviewed from Pitbull (Artist), Rick Ross (Artist), FLO-Rida (Artist), Udonis Haslem (Miami Heat), DJ Khaled (Music Producer), Billy Corben (Film Director), Ulysses “The Monster” Diaz (Pro Fighter), Abebe Lewis (Circle House Studios), Eddie Zamora (YumYumFoodie and Influencer), DJ EFN (Drink Champs Podcast and Crazy Hood), and all artists and business owners all have one thing in common. They had to put in a lot of work to get to where they wanted to be. It’s not an easy road to success. That is why I use my job(s) as motivation because I know my work today will bring me closer to where I want to be tomorrow.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
My Name is Jorge Larrea, friends know me as Struck and it all began with a passion for Hip-Hop. At the time I thought I was a fresh MC and recorded a few songs at home and pro studios. That venture was dope but didn’t last long. I wasn’t that fresh lol. Eventually myself and a friend, artist Seven Star, got together and created a series of Hip-Hop events that highlighted local artists and included MC battles called Hip-Hope. From there I kept creating shows and events building my rapport with the local scene. One of my favorite events was Def Jux Visits Miami. That was an amazing show and my last.
I took my talents online and began to build my blogging and online skills with The305.com which had the best community forum at the time, shoutout Dro. I did artist interviews for the site and it evolved into the development of 305 Magazine, a physical magazine publication that pushed us beyond our boundaries. We released 305 Magazine as a physical product for a couple years and eventually migrated to an online publication and website. As consumption of media changed with technology, I adapted to how 305 Magazine was presented and consumed.
My latest venture is hosting 305 Radio: A Miami Podcast with co-host Dre Mav. It’s a collection of great interviews available on all platforms you listen to music on.
Season 1 ended with 41 episodes & Season 2 continues 07 episodes in and still recording.
Being behind the scenes during many video shoots. I had the opportunity to work with local artist Apak Masters and Directed 2 music videos.
Now although I have listed and given you some of my background, I have to say that it wasn’t without learning from someone else. I’ve been motivated and have drawn inspiration from everyone around me like: Tony Muhammad (Educator and Publisher), Jorge “Jokes” Yanes (Director), Crazy Hood Productions, Michael Garcia (Artist and Director), Gil Green (Director), Danny Peña (Author and Gamertag Radio Podcaster), Gary Brown (Regulus Films), Antwan Smith (Director Vigorous Films), and many others.
In addition, every interview provides perspective for how someone approached a situation. There is a theme that you begin to see from interview to interview and that is, nothing is impossible. Unless you think it is.
In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?
If the ecosystem is thriving, keep that energy going and don’t stop. There is opportunity to join them and expand. In Miami, Wynwood was NOT the place to go nor was it the artist hub it is today. It was literally the last place you wanted to be at. What happened? Art galleries moved into the low rent spaces and once a month they had what was called “Art Walk” where the galleries would open their doors to the public. This event went for over a year below the radar but once word got out that this was better than the tourist filled local spots, it blew up.
So, in my view, show up. You never know if the thriving ecosystem is going to be a big part of the city, inspire you and others to do something different, or it might be something to become a part of. Today, a thriving ecosystem is not only a physical place, it’s online. For example, Aholsniffsglue, a Miami artist that went from walls to the digital space quick and incorporated both physical and digital crypto worlds. His ecosystem found a home on Discord, shoutout to my fellow Triple OG Trapperz on there. The group mints their physical art, it’s crazy dope.
The creative space is a vast one and I feel anyone can be a part of it somehow someway. The ecosystem will only grow if you support it. Make sure to get involved and support. The key here is to support, not ask for the hook-up. Support comes in many ways: Monetary, Promotion, and Both. Buy the shirt, art work, frame, hat, custom kicks, a couple meals from their food truck. Tell your friends, coworker, strangers about a local printer, food truck, clothing line, etc. The same energy you’d put into your social media for artists and celebrities you’ve never met. Do it for your people. A post, like, and share that’s it.
We’d love to hear your thoughts on NFTs. (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)
Local artist RocSol posted one day “who knows about crypto art?” I was like “Cryptic, crypto art? Encoded? What is this?” Like many others, I went down the rabbit hole and fell in love with the idea of a forever receipt, or NFT.
I love them, unfortunately I don’t own any Apes or big projects but the love is there for them. I got involved in NFTs early and educated myself on programming my own collection. Thank you, YouTube University, for the hours of trial-and-error research. After creating my first collection called: 305 State of Vibes on Opensea. After releasing the collection i was so happy to finally have learned to code something. Soon after I was able to work with local creatives on their collections. Esquina De Abuela – We did a 305 Day Drop which was to help raise awareness and possibly funds for the Esquina De Abuela Cultural Center at the heart of the city in Allapattah. Rudy Mage a local entrepreneur and artist release his collection also on opensea: The Bear Necessities
The application for NFTs is far ahead of its time and looking forward to utilizing them for events in the future.
The NFT projects on OpenSea.io I’m involved with are: 305 State of Vibes, 305 Day Drop, and The Bear Necessities
Contact Info:
- Website: 305magazine.com
- Instagram: struck305
- Twitter: struck305
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDM_0rUxztPkYAttmU3tssA
- Other: Youtube for 305Magzine: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChLTpQEKrLSELutmBmytFDA Instagram: @305Magazine @305Radio
Image Credits
Jenn – https://www.instagram.com/jennshotthat Will – https://www.instagram.com/lmg_willy Mass Cult Media – https://www.instagram.com/masscult_media Eduardo – https://www.instagram.com/otbmiamimedia/ Thank you to these photographers!