The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
KICKS WITH ‘A DIGITAL SENSE’
Vans taking branding ‘Off the Wall’ and streaming it
Watch the Wu-Tang Clan’s GZA play chess; take a deep dive into music out of L.A., Mexico and South America; or learn about athletes who are also talented artists. Just tune in to Channel 66.
The diverse programming is part of the new digital livestream network by Vans that celebrates music, art and sports culture with programs recorded at multiple studios, including its flagship downtown L.A. store.
“I describe it as Vans’ version of community radio meets public access TV. I think we were really inspired by the localization of public radio and the aspect of public TV, of turning over the airwaves to different talent who are curating their own shows,” said Brooke Burt, senior manager of lifestyle brand marketing at Vans and the self described “fearless leader” of Channel 66.
The channel from the Costa Mesa-based lifestyle brand went live online Feb. 8 and livestreams Monday through Friday from studios in New York City, Chicago, Mexico City and Los Angeles.
The programming is a mix of podcast-style talk shows, panels, DJ sets, fashion shows and live musical performances, with each studio highlighting the cultures of its city.
“Vans has traditionally been a real grassroots, events-based brand, so when the pandemic hit and that was obviously off the table we had to figure out how to continue our brand storytelling, how to program the way we always do in a digital sense,” Burt said.
The schedule is pretty loose, so it’s best to check the channel’s weekly show listing to find out what will be on the air that week.
“Some programs are every other week, some are once a month, and then we wanted to leave room in the schedule to just rotate everything in,” she said.
And of course since one of the studios is here in L.A. the city is well represented on Channel 66 with a variety of DJs, including the all-female DJ collective the Chulita Vinyl Club, dropping by the studio to spin tunes from its collection of hard-to-find vinyl records.
Some of the talk shows on the current roster that focus on aspects of L.A. include “Bounce Distro Radio,” which is about roller skating culture and playing the songs heard in Los Angeles roller rinks; the “All Ages Show,” which focuses on punk and rock music; and “L.A. Phone Home by Dublab,” which will talk about music and visual arts in the city.
“I like the idea of reaching out to and connecting with people and providing content that is interesting and diverse and comes straight to your house.” — Randy Randall
Among the other Los Angeles shows is “Hyphenate,” hosted by Randy Randall of the band No Age, who talks with athletes who are also artists.
“I like the idea of reaching out to and connecting with people and providing content that is interesting and diverse and comes straight to your house,” Randall said.
Randall broadcast his first show from the studio Feb. 9, when he had skateboarding legend Ray Barbee, who is also a talented guitar player and photographer.
Wearing masks for safety, the two talked about skateboarding and the music that has influenced them as they played songs.
Randall’s show will run on the second Tuesday of every month until July.
Another local music expert with a show on Channel 66 is Rene Contreras, organizer of the Viva! Pomona music festival and a Goldenvoice promoter responsible for the Sonora stage at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
His show, which will make its debut March 3 — “Viva! Todxs” — will consist of Contreras talking with up-and-coming artists from the L.A. area as well as playing music by bands from Mexico and South America.
“I’m really excited about this. I felt like we needed to build that platform to connect with fans and musicians again. Everything just has been, it feels like we’re in a ‘Twilight Zone’ kind of thing and we need more connection with people,” Contreras said.
Viewers can also connect with other cities through Channel 66 and check out sets from Mexico City DJs in a show called “Chilango Beats,” which is filmed in Mexico, or learn about Chicago’s hip-hop scene with the “The Chicago Mix,” or hear about New York’s old-school punk scene in the show “New Direction.”
And if you thought “The Queen’s Gambit” was entertaining, wait until you see GZA of the Wu-Tang Clan’s new show on the network. On “Chessboxing With GZA,” the rapper plays chess live versus a guest while hip-hop plays in the background at the New York studio.
It’s a show that exemplifies the public access TV spirit of Channel 66.
“Like all our partners we asked him to just present us ideas of how he would create his show. And GZA is very, very interested in chess,” Burt said.
“Hopefully our programming is varied enough where it has something that appeals to everyone,” she said.