We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Nam Ho a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Nam, thanks for joining us today. What do you think Corporate America gets wrong in your industry?

In regards to art, I think what Corporate America gets wrong is that creativity needs to be a 9-5 job that needs to be hustled at every… single… day… While I do believe in the importance of working towards your dreams, art is not always linear. Sometimes, life needs to be lived in order to inspire art. Sometimes, rest needs to be taken in order to rejuvenate creativity. I have had periods in my life where I drove myself into the ground with work in the pursuit of my dreams, but this had only led to burn out. I think it is important for artists to remember to keep a balance between creating and also enjoying other parts of life.

Nam, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My clothing brand’s name, Oh Man! Clothing, is my name backwards Nam Ho. Our mission is to spread peace and awaken one another through the medium of clothing. The brand is a reflection of my life, the things that I’ve been through, and putting that into art form. Also, it represents the duality of who I am. In my personal day to day life, I am an introverted home-body that enjoys the peace and stillness of life. On the other hand, Oh Man! is the other half of me that yearns to outwardly share my experiences in hopes to help heal and inspire people. I am most proud of how we use our brand to help change people’s lives through mental health and spiritual development.

Additionally, I am also a DJ under the alias of OMS also known as Oh Man! Sound. This is my outlet to share the music that has helped me get through the best of times and the most challenging of times. My goal is create a safe space for people to enjoy themselves and feel their emotions through music. I mainly focus on electronic music, but also love to play a hip hop and R&B set when given the opportunity.

We’d really appreciate if you could talk to us about how you figured out the manufacturing process.

I found our manufacturers through a lot of trial and error. In the clothing industry, there are a lot of factories that do similar functions. I think the most important thing is to not settle for the first one you meet, but instead, meet with a couple factories and see who you connect with the most. Don’t always go for the cheapest price, because you get what you pay for. Instead, find someone who has great customer service, is willing to openly listen to you as a client, and is willing to make up for mistakes when they happen.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

One huge lesson that I had to unlearn was that we have to commit to one field of work for our entire lives. 8 years into my clothing brand, I felt a burning desire to pursue music. At the time, I was torn between continuing my clothing brand or following this new found passion for DJing, but I didn’t want to give up on my original dream to pursue a new one. After talking to my sister about this, she asked me, “Why can’t you do both?” This simple question blew my mind and would change my entire life for the better. I think as artist, we tend to unconsciously confine ourselves to one craft, but I think it is important to be able to express ourselves through multiple mediums. At the end of the day, art is about self expression, and it is ok to do it in many different ways.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.ohmanclothing.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ohmanclothing
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ohmanclothing
• Soundcloud: https://www.soundcloud.com/ohmansound

Image Credits

Ray Genio