30Fresh Aces: David Hoang

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Each week during 30Fresh, I'll introduce you to a couple of incredible people whose soul, energy, humor, talent, intellect and dreams light up my life. I think the world of them and hope you do too!

Next up in the Aces series - David Hoang!

David and I met how I meet most people nowadays - through Twitter. He'd gone to college with my then-colleague and forever 'work wife', Nikki and her husband Paul, but David and I didn't meet IRL (in real life) until he'd moved out to Brooklyn in New York. We met up for tacos and Mexican Cokes at Brooklyn Flea and the rest is history.

We're not at Brooklyn Flea, but we are at Outpost Coffee, down the street from the Flea's location in Ft. Greene. Outpost is owned by a Pacific NW native!

David is one of the nicest, most supportive people I've ever met. All of my Aces are, really, but David is an incredible friend who goes the extra mile to make sure his friends succeed. He lays it all out in his tweets, so you can follow him on Twitter or peep his website.

What's on your playlist right now?

I love any music that brings positive energy—might make you want to get up and dance or work on some designs. Two Indie artist I am loving right now are Man Without Country (from Wales) and Data Romance (from Vancouver, BC.)

This is my current mix I listen to at work:

  • 'Harder Better Faster Stronger' by Daft Punk: This is my theme song when I work.

  • 'Drive It Like You Stole It' by The Glitch Mob

  • 'No Sleep Till Brooklyn' by The Beastie Boys: I dreamed of living in Brooklyn as a kid because of this song, and I now live a few blocks from where Adam Yauch grew up in Downtown Brooklyn (#RIPMCA)

  • 'Act Too (The Love of My Life)' by The Roots

  • 'Jay's Game' by Run DMC: I could listen to this jam on repeat all day. My dream would be to hear Jam Master Jay (RIP) and Mix Master Mike battle it out on the turntables.

  • 'Bonafied Lovin' by Chromeo: This song makes any dude feel like a slab of man—so much swagger.

  • 'Hippie Priest Bum-Out' by LCD Soundsystem

  • 'Touch the Sky' by Kanye West: I can't tell you how much I love Kanye. This is my fight song when it comes to making dreams happen.

  • 'The Fragile' by Nine Inch Nails

Describe your style.

I think my style for life is high craftsmanship. I don't necessarily mean expensive. When I mean craftsmanship, I mean time, care, and passion put into something, whether it is a painting, blog post or material. This applies to life in general. With my friends, I like to surround myself of passionate practitioners of life, in whatever they do. I love intricate details and consideration.

My favorite clothing line is All Saints. The fact that you are surrounded by sewing machines as you walk in is really appealing to me. There is a lot of care and consideration for aesthetics, i their clothing and how they ship it.

Who inspires you?

My mom. She's my best friend. I am always reminded by her to do what I truly love, be there for your family, friends, be humble and to love everyone. She never complains about what she doesn't have or didn't get to do, but feels blessed to have what she has in her life.

In terms of professional role models, I really look up to Jonathan Ive (Senior VP of Industrial Design) and Jack Dorsey (Creator of Twitter and Co-Founder of Square). Both these men really love the work they do and really push design. Though people pay a lot of attention to them, their focus is on the work vs. receiving fame or notoriety.

And of course, my close friends. They work hard, care, but most importantly, call you out when you need to be called out—that's why I love them.

Wilson aka MegaKitty

Wilson aka MegaKitty

David forgot to mention his biggest inspiration - Wilson aka MegaKitty

What are you reading?

I like using Pocket to read articles my friends have posted on Twitter. Pocket all the things and read it later at a coffee shop after work. I've been really into reading interviews of entrepreneurs. Most of the people I am interested in don't blog but they often do interviews.

For books, I've been reading a lot of fiction related to the city of New York. Since I'm not from here I like to read narratives based on the mystic of it. I'm currently reading The Saint in New York by Leslie Charteris. Simon Templar is such a bad ass. Think James Bond meets The Scarlet Pimpernel. I always have time for reading the classics. I also read the Iliad at least once a year. It is literally epic.

What are you most excited about in the coming months?

Every day is a gift and I'm so excited to take advantage of each one I get. Our company Xhatch has started doing our own apps and I'm really thrilled about this direction. In addition we still get to work with some of the best clients anyone can ask for. One of them is a very cool iPhone app with someone in Seattle who I really admire. You'll see!

I'm also happy to announce that I will be living on the West Coast part time to establish our presence there. I love New York and will never leave it, but that doesn't mean I can't live anywhere else. My number is still 206. Always West Coast at heart.

Thank you!

30Fresh. 30 days of posts celebrating 30 years - and 5 of Fresh Jess!