Edit - EPISODE 1:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NYG7QoD ... e=youtu.be
EPISODE 2:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxCNASZ3NRU
EPISODE 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjLSE7HVZdQ
Burn Rubber co-owners Rick Williams and Roland (Ro) Coit say their unique partnership is behind the success of their Royal Oak sneaker boutique. Now the dynamic duo is hoping a new collaboration with Eminem’s Shady Films production company will make “Detroit Rubber” a must-see worldwide web series.
The show launches online at 10 a.m. Tuesday.
“It’s more like a reality documentary than a traditional reality show that’s got all that crazy stuff,” Williams said of the series’ six 10-minute episodes. They focus primarily on the day-to-day lives of Williams and Coit and depict them with their families and doing work on behalf of their community.
“We’re lucky that we didn’t have to do anything that put us in any compromising positions,” Williams added. “Our lives are colorful enough.”
Coit added that “Rubber” viewers also will see the spotlight shine on the Detroit hip-hop scene as he navigates his career in rap music and on his and Williams’ dealings with business partners. Tuesday’s debut episode finds the owners of metro Detroit’s premiere sneaker-head destination coming into contact with people like Detroit Tigers superstar slugger Prince Fielder and Eminem.
“This is the stuff that goes on in our real lives; there are a lot of wild and crazy things that happen in our store,” Coit said. “Hip-hop, sports, and shoes are connected and attract all types of people, all walks of life. These guys that are into these exclusive sneakers want them just as bad as everyone.”
Em’s manager, Paul Rosenberg, said that he has always been interested in sneaker culture and that Williams and Coit have been developing a unique scene at Burn Rubber since they took over the store in early 2007. After he was approached by Ben Silverman, whose multimedia studio Electus has been programming original series to its LOUD channel on YouTube, Rosenberg saw a unique opportunity for Shady Films.
“Producing original content is one of those ideas that we’ve had for a while and, to me, these guys represent a real Detroit entrepreneurial success story,” Rosenberg said. “They’ve worked really hard to gain success. There’s a positive community feeling that they bring, and their lives are really entertaining.”
“Rubber” director and producer Christos Moisides said that an eight-man production crew lived like a fly on the wall during a two-week span in October to record Coit and Williams for 12 hours of every day.
“There’s definitely a challenge to be flexible with a crew while also making sure that the cameras are rolling when the magic comes out,” said Moisodes, a veteran local filmmaker who worked on the TV show “Detroit 1-8-7” and on some of Em’s music videos.
He believes “Rubber” is something special.
“This is a really unique reality show that shows Detroit on a whole different level,” he said. “You’re going to see that these guys are crazy cool and their sneaker shop rivals anything in New York City or Los Angeles.”
“Detroit Rubber” debuts at 10 a.m. Tuesday. You can see it at http://www.youtube.com/user/LOUD or http://burnrubberdetroit.com. New episodes will debut every Tuesday at 10 a.m.