Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Malik Norris. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Hi Malik, thanks for joining us today. If you could go back in time do you wish you had started your creative career sooner or later?
A question I’ve thought about this from time to time and I honestly wish I did. Originally, I started designing clothes and graphics in 2016. I was just your ordinary broke college kid studying to become a Computer Engineer. I had recently quit playing college sports and really just trying to find out what I could do to fill my free time. Which sounds easy enough still being in college, but when you think about going from having no time to all to having all the time in world was kind of scary. Especially for a person like myself who has to do something. I just naturally gravitated to doing what I felt was natural which at the time was making little graphics on my phone. Which turned into me wanting to learn more about art and how to make better graphics. Then that love of learning about art transitioned into wanting to learn more about the nuances of creating clothes and collections. But to double back to the first question in the grand scheme of things I honestly don’t think I’d change my journey nor my experiences. I feel as if everything happens for a reason. If I was to have started earlier I could argue maybe I wouldn’t be as dedicated to my craft. Or maybe I wouldn’t have fallen back in love with art at all. If I would have started later maybe I would have never loved what I do now to the extent that I do. Maybe I would just let it sit and let my dream float by the wayside. Either way it’s something I always think about.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
Well my name is Malik Jaleel but everyone just calls me Juice. I’m from Port Arthur, Texas. I attended the illustrious Prairie View A&M University. And some would say all of this happened by chance. To start while I was asked to go to a photoshoot for my friend’s business called Exclusively HBCU. Somehow I managed to talk my way into being the social media manager. At the same time I presented them with a couple of “designs” and they loved them just being a start up company. Time went on and I meant the entire team, but the Lead Designer at the time wasn’t too fond of my designs. You could say I had a Micheal Jordan moment in that I took that personally. It gave me something to think about. From there on I dedicated myself to becoming the best designer and creator I could possibly be. That day along with the words I spoke to myself essentially propelled me to who I’ve become today. The individual with an everlasting itch to become great, push boundaries, and shake up some rooms. So, I took a break from Exclusively HBCU for a while. Eventually I created my own clothing brand and graphic design company with my brother while I was at Prairie View as well. We created official graphics and artwork for the Office of Student Engagement, Marketing, and Athletic Department. For two years we literally took over our campus. We had people say if Brolic Studios didn’t make it then it wasn’t up to standard. As we made the standard. In my mind if I could do that on a small scale. What makes me believe I can’t do that on a larger scale? Then upon graduating in 2019, I received a call to become the Lead Designer for Exclusively HBCU. My only stipulation was they had to let me be Juice, and we’ve been rocking out ever since.
Currently, I’m still the Lead Designer and now part owner of Exclusively HBCU. At the present moment, we cater to producing apparel and customizable boxes for Historically Black Colleges and University students, alumni, alumni organizations, and outside entities. Although, in 2023 we will be changing some of those models and expanding our operations to a boarder audience. In either capacity we still are not your typical HBCU brand or clothing brand who just make apparel. We are here to make experiences and memories through fashion and a plethora of services we provide, ranging from marketing material, technology, and many more to come. Truth be told I honestly feel that’s what I’m really proud of the most. In regards, to our never-ending ability to evolve. We’ve set ourselves apart from your run of the mill t-shirt company back in 2019. But we have continued to evolve our business into a multi-faceted brand that services have the ability to be essential and become complete lifestyle changers in the future in both the physical and digital realms. With that said it’s truly exciting to see where we are headed.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
The most rewarding part of being a creative has to be when the collections, project, or showcase is done. That’s when you can truly look from an outward perspective of what you’ve accomplished, the process, the people you met or worked with along the way, and the joy of it all. You realize you’re a creator and you’re doing what God put you on this Earth to do.
Alright – so here’s a fun one. What do you think about NFTs?
The team and I have thought about NFTs for a while. Primarily the discussion was, how do we want to implement them into our business model? We actually have created a number of NFTs that are still ready to be released. Although, when the NFT market slightly tanked it slightly concerned us. I personally see the value of them and I also see their future real world application. It’s just going to take more people around the world to be exposed to them for a true NFT future to take place.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.exclusivelyhbcu.com
- Instagram: @onlycoldjuice @exclusivelyhbcu
- Twitter: @onlycoldjuice @exclusivelyhbcu
Image Credits
Exclusively HBCU