Segments - Introducing: 'History of Heat'

Episode Date: January 13, 2022

Have a listen to History of Heat, one of our newest Headgum Originals! Yassir and Isaiah Lester are joined by comedians, artists, athletes, and experts to discuss the history, impact, and fut...ure of culture's favorite topics ranging from sneakers to video games.  In this episode, The Hype Portfolio (w/ Michelle Buteau and Amir Blumenfeld), comedian and actress extraordinaire Michelle Buteau joins the pod to flex her collecting prowess. Later, Yassir and Isaiah chat with Headgum co-founder Amir Blumenfeld about his trading card portfolio and the new economy of hype. Subscribe to History of Heat on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Transcript
Discussion (0)
Starting point is 00:00:00 Oh, hey, everybody. We wanted to drop a different podcast episode into this feed today. One, because we think you'll like it. And two, because, well, I'm on it. The podcast is History of Heat. And it's two very funny comedians, Yasser and Isaiah Lester. And they discuss the history, impact and future of culture's favorite topics ranging from sneakers to video games. In this specific episode, they're talking about collectibles, and I'm on it talking about my burgeoning basketball card collection. But the podcast is about so much more than that, and it's got very funny guests. So if you like this episode, subscribe to The History of Heat wherever you listen to your podcasts. Enjoy. This is a HeadGum original.
Starting point is 00:00:53 Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, and every kind of person in between. God loves you. This is History of Heat presented by HeadGum and Stalker. Zay, you like that? I would stick to your day job and not try to be the black dude from Police Academy. Okay. Well, Isaiah, I thought we were going to be on a more positive vibe this morning.
Starting point is 00:01:15 There's a couple black dudes in there. I mean the dude who did the sound effect. Yes, clearly. I didn't think you thought I was the big dude. Yeah. The dude who looks like OJ. Zay, you know, we've covered a lot of ground on this podcast, right? We've talked a lot about culture, sports, fashion, favorite brands, favorite designers.
Starting point is 00:01:37 Why grown men shouldn't wear Billie Eilish sneakers. That was specifically a you thing. I personally don't believe in policing older men who want to wear teenage girl shoes. I personally think that it's okay if a 40-year-old man wants to stand in line to get teen girl shoes. I would never tell a man to not do that. That's something that you need to do, and you need to stop policing men's bodies. How about that? Man, I tell you what.
Starting point is 00:02:04 I would, from that defense, I would wipe your hard drive. Like, I don't know what you got going on. I would go home and I would wipe it out. Oh, one thing we haven't talked about, Isaiah, explicitly, the one thing that everyone cares about, except for me, because I'm a good Christian boy, money. Right. cares about, except for me, because I'm a good Christian boy, money, right? It's how the things we collect, our dead stock sneaker collections, our trading card collections, our comic book collections have a real financial value. Yeah. And you said it yourself, man, in the first episode, all kids are rich now. The kids that are shopping in Soho and these kids that are bidding against
Starting point is 00:02:44 me on StockX, they're all rich now. It's very annoying. And the main question of this episode is how do all these kids get so rich? Yeah, I mean, like, OK, sure. Some of them were born rich, right? But a lot of them were also born very rich. And then also more of them are getting rich, doing the same stuff that we've been talking, right? Like flipping sneakers, investing in Supreme, selling basketball cards. This is a whole new economy of hype, right? Yeah, there's always been a money side of it to all this stuff like all along. But the way it is now, it just really feels new.
Starting point is 00:03:23 Right. I would say specifically for, you know, trying to like dig into it, we want to talk about like the collecting and investing side of things, right? Like sneakers and streetwear and cards and comic books. These aren't just things that you buy and wear to show off your friends anymore. Like now they're assets and investments. It's like a stock portfolio or dare I say, a StockX portfolio, Isaiah. Ooh, ooh, you didn't know I was going to do that to you.
Starting point is 00:03:52 So that's what we'll be talking about today. We'll be talking about collectibles. We're going to be talking about trading cards. We're going to be talking about sneakers as investments. We're going to be talking about all the different ways people turn their collections into money. So this episode, we've got Michelle Boutteau, the host of Netflix's The Circle. I'm a huge fan of The Circle. She's going to be talking about her collecting habits, what she's into. We have Amir Blumenfeld, the co-founder of HeadGum, and the co-host of the podcast, If I Were You, to talk about his trading card portfolio.
Starting point is 00:04:26 And maybe where our checks are. Maybe where our paychecks are as well. Oh, God. And we've got a sworn enemy, number one hater, dude that we cannot stand, senior stock ex-economist Jesse Einhorn to tell us how to get rich. Now, this is History of Heat. Zay, it's been a long winding road, you know, for us becoming adults. There's been a lot of hustles. There's been a lot of money making schemes. There's been lots.
Starting point is 00:05:20 Yeah. Do you kind of remember the first thing that you, like, you quote unquote flipped? I would have to say, like, I think in my earliest flipping days, there were probably, like, basketball jerseys. So, like, old basketball jerseys I'd have. And I would take them to, like, you know, play it against sports or somewhere like that and see what i could get for them or like you know a vintage thrift store or something like that there's two there's two parts of my jersey journey yeah first part was like i liked if i liked a player uh-huh i would get their jersey right like one of my first jerseys was a grant Hill Pistons jersey, though I'm a Lakers fan and the Pistons are hated rivals of ours.
Starting point is 00:06:07 I had a Pistons jersey. And then I migrated out of that, you know, and I became a Jersey loyalist. And now I really buy jerseys of teams that I support. But in terms of trading and stuff like that, I think my earliest memories are of jerseys. And then it went into shoes. Yeah. And, um, being, I didn't know, I didn't understand the power of it either. And like in back in the day, I would literally just sell them on, I would just sell them
Starting point is 00:06:38 on Craigslist. I would just post them. I make a, I make a big post and then i would get five responses about people who actually want to buy the shoes and then five more of people who just wanted to have sex with me um so uh well to be fair that's on you for also posting a picture of yourself next to the shoes it's just it was just like it was just like a pair of jordan 8s and then my nipple like yeah see again that's that's yeah you were doing anthony wiener style photos where it's just like you laying in bed with a shoe next to you but yeah that's that's how i that's that's how i used to sell them um yeah and that's really
Starting point is 00:07:19 before like stock x and ebay uh became like a really big player in that game yeah and i would it was so awkward because like i would rule i would meet these people we meet in the in the ralph's parking lot on um vineland and near magnolia uh and i meet them there and uh i would show them the shoes they will buy them and i go straight to the bank to make sure they didn't give me counterfeit money. Yeah. That's how I would do it. But what about you? What are your earliest sex trading memories?
Starting point is 00:07:56 Sex and gear trading memories. I mean, I can go as far back as yesterday. I didn't even realize people were selling shoes like that. Like, I moved out to L.A. Isaiah moved out, like, right after me, like, right out of film school. And he was already, like, on it, right? I remember, like, one of the things he, like, flipped for and got and got dough was like a pair of Jordan two infrareds and he flipped them for something else and then like also got some money for him. And I was like, what? Like, because I was like 20.
Starting point is 00:08:37 I must have been 23 at the time. And like all I knew truly from being in L.A. was like flight club. Like, I don't even remember there being like reselling stores in Atlanta like that. But we also were kind of out in Marietta. So it's like that kind of culture hadn't really made it out there. So it's just like all I remembered was like going to Fight Club on Fairfax because I wanted. And now I can't even remember, which it's such a bummer but they're the sb donk lows that have like the they're like i the name isn't desert marauder but that's who's on the tongue of the sneaker i can
Starting point is 00:09:13 never remember but and it's got like the two uh swords and i just like those were like a grail of mine as i'm saying this i couldn't remember and. And I was like, whoa, these are pretty ill. And I grabbed them and it was like $500. And I was just like, this is what? So then Zaya came out and started doing it. So I just like got more into like the sneaker part of it. But again, like the thing that like kind of no one tells you, and this is, though it's the great equalizer being online, it's also like one of the terrible things if you like don't have the bots or this or that.
Starting point is 00:09:45 But like to really get in the sneaker game, like you have to have sneakers like no one tells you that you kind of just you can't just come in willy nilly. Like unless you're, again, one of these rich teens, it's like I have seven hundred dollars to blow, which is like that's like an impossible amount of money to me. Right. So like it was like and again, like unless you have something to put up to also get the cash and then flip those for another thing, like you're kind of just like S.O. Right. So like, it was like, and again, like, unless you have something to put up to also get the cash and then flip those for another thing, like you're kind of just like SOL. Right. So like, so I was always kind of watching from the sidelines, but again, Isaiah has always had like an ill collection. Like I've always been like, and I've kind of talked about this before, but like, I was like a much more casual dude. Like, you know, I had, you know, I had Nikes and, you know, I still had things I was proud of. I had SBs, but like, I never had like rarities, right? I was like, I was wearing like
Starting point is 00:10:31 New Balance and Sockanese. And like, again, like I wore like a lot of Nike Vandal Lows, which were like my, like to this day, still just one of the illest shoes of all time to me. So my, my first like real trading experience thing came from comic books like i understood it with comics and comic cards i knew that it's like i can give like this holofoil apocalypse card and also give you know like uh a spider-man uh number one todd mcfarland with the silver webbing versus the gold and then get, you know, 10 bucks for those two things and get an issue of Wolverine 100. So, like, I didn't even realize that it could go with, like, you know, what I considered more adult things like shoes, you know. So, I was just always in that vibe of it. Like I was always constantly doing it in terms of like things that I consider like, you know, children's entertainment, if you will, because I was a child at the time.
Starting point is 00:11:32 But like, you know, like you go into a comic book store and be like, what can I get for these? Or like walk into like, you know, a CD place and be like, what can I get for these CDs? Right. But it's like I didn't even realize there was reseller markets for all these other things, you know? I think, yeah. I mean, I remember going into comic book stores
Starting point is 00:11:49 with you and you literally having boxes of comic books and putting them there and being like, what can I get for these? And you essentially, like, almost never getting
Starting point is 00:11:57 actual money for it, but usually trading for something that you wanted. I would also, like, we would be remiss not to talk about your time working. Like, you were at working at what essentially was stock x stock x was stock x yeah it was a it was a used book cd and dvd not even dvds like half dvds have yeah and half
Starting point is 00:12:19 called the book nook by the big chicken in marietta georgia right next to the big chicken if you don't know what the big chicken is it is what it sounds like it's a giant mechanical chicken uh that has been attached to a normal size kentucky fried chicken but downtown marietta but that kfc also has a gift shop it does there's a big chicken gift shop on the inside so i would say that's kind of your kind of your trading real origin story right having like you were the man behind the you're like you know the sean wotherspoon of round two sitting behind a desk and being like now we'll take this we won't take this? Lord of the Rings? Pass if it's not the special edition.
Starting point is 00:13:08 Doing that kind of stuff. It's not the edition that looks like the Bible so I don't want it. Yeah, that's literally what I was about to say. I was like, people will come in there with that regular clamshell DVD version and I was like, buddy, this ain't even the Lord of the Rings one that looks like a book.
Starting point is 00:13:24 Hey, you know what? Get out of town what get out of town get get out of here get out of town all right people of earth we got isaiah i want to say one of the most majorist guests in history for sure and i said majorist because i had to i had to make up a word because nothing nothing quite encapsulates the superstardom of this person we're about to bring on truly i've i've known her since i was a doorman at the improv a doorman a doorman and you and isaiah used to come with me because he could eat and drink for free. I didn't have, that would be my only meal of the day. The improv dinner. And I used to watch this person destroy on stage. She's truly one of my favorite comics.
Starting point is 00:14:16 I can't say enough about her. I mean, she's truly one of the funniest people on this planet. She has a special on Netflix called Welcome to Putopia, a star of the first wives on this planet. She has a special on Netflix called Welcome to Butopia. Star of the first Wives Club television series. Host of one of the most
Starting point is 00:14:32 majorest TV shows in history also. Truly. The Circles. That's where we call it. We call it The Circles. Y'all. Michelle Buteau. Hey Michelle. Y'all. Michelle Buteau. Hey, Michelle.
Starting point is 00:14:48 Oh, my God. What in the BET award is going on? That was so nice. That felt like a wedding speech when no one's getting married. Oh, my God. You know what? Because you part of the streets and we married to the streets. Look, I remember the first time I met you.
Starting point is 00:15:08 It was awkward. Oh, yeah, for sure. Because I don't know if it was your first or second date with one of my friends. I don't even think it was a date. No, I met, this is, here's a more embarrassing story. It was, I guess technically was, but we all went to a bar called like The, The Village Idiot in L.A.
Starting point is 00:15:28 Oh, God. Yes. Hangout Rose. Yep. And we all got, like, drinks and food and stuff. And, like, I think y'all had already started. But I was like, I'll put it on my card. And I put the remainder of it on my card.
Starting point is 00:15:44 But you guys had already closed up, but I was like, let's get more food and drinks, so we ordered all the stuff, and then I went up to the bar to close out, and I was like, I'm ready to go, and the bartender was like, your card's declined, and I was like, okay, hold on one second, and y'all were like, let's all leave,
Starting point is 00:15:57 and I was like, all right, I'll catch up with y'all, and then I just left, and I left my card there. This is not an exaggeration. I went back three months later being like they'll never remember me i walked in and the dude was like get the hell out of here okay valid valid i i mean yeah but i did not know the black story on that michelle i was trying to ball out in front of you and your home girl over nachos and a beer oh no nachos and a few beers
Starting point is 00:16:27 okay which by the way looking back i was like it was probably 27 dollars yeah that's the saddest part i could not have had less money yeah oh but look at you now bud look at look and it all it took was 15 years to come back on a podcast but to be fair he is still my doorman so that's what yasser is up to he still works the front door of my building yeah but you know i'm your brother and no one's gonna watch you more carefully and i love you i love you too i was gonna say there's always an awkward moment when I see you, though, because we went to I saw you at like an HBO premiere thing. And we asked there was hors d'oeuvres being passed around. And you asked the lady, is this vegetarian?
Starting point is 00:17:15 Because I'm vegetarian. And she said, yes, no meat. And you took a bite and it was meat. It was like, by the way, not just meat. It was like full on sausage. I was like, you could have gotten further it was like full-on sausage i was like you could have gotten further away from what vegetarian means i know i was like let me just walk away from this moment i'm so sorry yeah thank you for that though next time i'll hold your hair girl
Starting point is 00:17:35 michelle you get sick first of all you know in the hood i will do that in the hood they call me girl so you're making yourself real familiar all right michelle this is we're we're talking about collectibles and i isaiah has a question for you because you know i i as your friend and number one fan have already spoken too much but he was like you know i'll know her as well and i'm taller and darker and more handsome and i feel like i should interject myself and i was like all right you didn't have to say all that but go ahead and ask your question um we did meet once briefly outside of the hollywood improv but neither one of you remember that so i guess it wasn't that big was it one of those moments where like a show just let out?
Starting point is 00:18:25 Yes, it was. Okay. Yes, it was. Yes, it was. That feels like the end of like the night at the club where everyone's coming out. And it's like, that's what you look like. You know what I mean? Or like when the wedding just got done and we're just like, why is there rice in my eye? So I'm sorry.
Starting point is 00:18:39 No, it's okay. I didn't have the inner power and strength that I have now back then. So if you didn't read it, it was, it was me. I had a lot of growing to do. Speaking of growing, girl,
Starting point is 00:18:50 I'm so proud of you. What a journey. You better take your space. Speaking of growing, growing up, did you collect anything? Is there anything? we got a segue.
Starting point is 00:19:03 Yeah. I told you my inner power. I can't, I i cannot be contained what in the steve harvey is going on honey so i love anything that is like slightly caribbean or african that has um my zodiac sign on it oh cool so this is what I've collected. I used to do stamps, but then we moved and there was a flood. And postcards, because my dad traveled to over 50 countries for his job, so I used to collect postcards. But really what I've held on to over the years is stuff with my Zodiac sign on it. Ken, did you mention to your dad to be like,
Starting point is 00:19:43 oh, Yasmin and Isaiah don't talk to their dads was that like a thing was that a yeah i'm so glad you i'm so glad you picked up on it okay i just want to make sure because it feels like you didn't need to say that part you could have just said i collect postcards but you were like my dad it was like okay michelle thanks so much wait the thing that you were holding up that had your zododiac sign on it, what was it? Just for the listeners at home. No, let's get back to your dad. I mean, did someone like cut their finger?
Starting point is 00:20:19 Because we hit a nerve. So, yeah, I mean, this is from Jamaica. This is is supposed to be a lion let's just say it is we don't know it kind of looks like someone's single auntie at a family reunion yeah yeah and this is like the national flower okay and and that's the other things but what's the is it a paddle what do we look i'm just trying to figure out what the actual item is it's up or is it just like a beautiful adorned wooden plank? Yeah. You just.
Starting point is 00:20:47 Yeah. Like there's a lot of wood stuff in the Caribbean. You just hang it up. Now, Michelle, besides talking about your dad all the time, you're also known for having kids. People aren't really talking about the career. They're like, she has a dad and she has kids. And that, you know, that's what, what you know i would say the two biggest things but the question i was going to ask is uh you know and we're going to get into it for you in a second but like
Starting point is 00:21:14 for for the babies is there something like you know for you it was postcards and like zodiac signs stuff for your your sweet little kids is there anything that you're starting to collect for them that you you might pass pass down is there is there something they're into like uh you know anything they've shown interest in in that regard it's funny because there's a lot of gifts from people and there's like because my uncle's the archbishop of jamaica there's like a lot of catholic gifts happening it's a lot of Noah's Ark type shit being thrown at me. But husband and
Starting point is 00:21:50 I like to get the kids a new pair of Adidas's, or is it Adidas? Adidi? Every year for their birthday. So I think the one thing we will end up collecting, or what is it? Bronzing?
Starting point is 00:22:04 Yeah, you can bronze them. you yeah we're gonna yeah we're gonna taxidermy their first pair of vans okay that you don't have to say it like that that is that implies uh something else dear michelle well that is something else so they're so you're they're already sneaker heads without even trying really yeah i can't think of anything else that they would collect because they destroy everything they love huh oh okay okay well that's kind of how i've been with personal relationships in the past but again i've grown a lot i'm stronger than i once was and uh i don't do that well you're just a walking Kelly Clarkson song, aren't you? I think so. I think so. Please, somebody tell her that.
Starting point is 00:22:49 All right. For you, Michelle, as an adult now, is there a broad swath of things? Like I like, you know, clothing or bags or shoes or whatever. And if so, is there something that gets more specific? Like, you know, people are, especially StockX customers, are going ham on like Telfer bags, you know? Like is that something that gets more specific like you know people are especially stock x customers are going going ham on like telfer bags you know like is that something that that no i don't really subscribe to any of that bullshit i do what i like and what serves me in the moment um and i've always been like that like you know i'm a plus size bitch i've been a size 12 since i've been 12 actually um that's why i wrote my book survival the thickest plus size
Starting point is 00:23:25 essays in a small-minded world bitch because because I've always had to like style myself and find my own way you know it wasn't until like what 10 years ago that the fashion industry deemed us worthy of spending our money on their bullshit so yeah I don't have any of that i don't have like my mom's louboutins or whatever right um yeah so nah what i do like is i like to support black owned businesses especially haitian people just coming out here trying to make jewelry and shit yeah like that's my jam okay um not to be all like a brown titty rachel madd, but here the fuck we are. Okay. By the way, who's to say that? Oh, that's just Joy and Reed? Who's to say hers aren't also brown?
Starting point is 00:24:11 Let's step back. Let's ask her. Let me do the research. You know what? Get Maddow on the phone. Like, hey, we got a question for you. All right, Michelle. She's probably listening.
Starting point is 00:24:25 Oh, God. I hope not. It really terrifies me. Okay, real talk. We've spoken about your dad. We've spoken about your book. We've spoken about your wood collectibles. We've spoken
Starting point is 00:24:41 about your kids. We've spoken about how you don't subscribe to any of that stuff. Uh-uh. Is there anything else that you want to plug? Is there anything else that we should be on the lookout for you?
Starting point is 00:24:58 Should we be on Batow Watch 2021 slash 2022 slash 2023 slash 2024 and beyond? I have some things in the works. We're going to go ahead and film season three of First Wise Club, available on the PET Plus app. So if you like quality black content, go ahead. And reruns of Martin.
Starting point is 00:25:17 All the reruns of Martin. You can have a mother fucking want. Yeah, there's also a season four and five of The Circle coming out, which is really fun. It's such a fun show. I mean, VO is dope because I could just be braless and work from – look how you guys look. You know what I mean? Just comfortable. Just really comfortable.
Starting point is 00:25:41 Okay, my outfit was $10,000, but go ahead. But I also think it's a very important show, too, because you can't get away from social media. And it's just like, how does that even look if we make that a competition game? And it's so interesting to me, too, the people that go on there and catfish, because the reasons why they catfish is, sure, it's gameplay, but it says a lot more about society.
Starting point is 00:26:07 I'm a pretty girl, and's gonna fuck with me and not take me seriously or I'm a butch lesbian and nobody wants to be friends with her so I'm gonna be like it's always interesting or like I'm a bigger person and I can't flirt with anyone cause no one finds me attractive so I'll be cause my strategy is flirting it's like
Starting point is 00:26:23 fascinating and also important so anyway season four and five of the circle I feel like there's some other stuff going on but I don't know we'll see okay on the podcast are you willing oh no give your home address
Starting point is 00:26:40 so me and Isaiah can come by no okay do you have any general advice for us? Just anything? I have general advice for you and for people, anyone that's listening.
Starting point is 00:26:58 And I always say this to people too when they're just like, how do I get started in comedy? Which is such a dumb question. It's like, just start. Don't talk yourself out of what you believe in. The most talented people I know are always in a corner, like second guessing themselves. And it's just like, there are basic people out here making lots of money.
Starting point is 00:27:15 You can go out there and just show your shit and do your thing. It'll only get better. Don't be afraid of success or failure. The end. Wow. Okay. That was actually really great.
Starting point is 00:27:25 Here's the thing. I want to give you credit for saying something really smart, but I already have that all tattooed on my back. So you can stop. You can stop quoting Tuesdays with Maury because I read that passage also. P.S. Little known fact. I used to do warm up for the Maury Povich show
Starting point is 00:27:45 when I first started seeing her comedy I really couldn't do warm up it just ended up being like dance contests between like a white person and a black person
Starting point is 00:27:52 so I was like what the fuck am I gonna do and they didn't even pay me they paid me in pizza slices see that's cause they knew
Starting point is 00:28:00 you knew who your father was and they were like she doesn't need any more confidence that show is specifically for people like me and Zaya I feel like y'all should be doing a podcast for 23andMe
Starting point is 00:28:13 yeah but they don't on 23andMe they don't be fresh though they be all sad cause they're like who's this person in relation to me you know they spend all their money on genetic testing they don't really step out the house fresh They're like, who's this person in relation to me? You know, they spend all their money on genetic testing. They don't really step out the house fresh. I guess, but it's really great. They tell you what you're predisposed to, why you might not like cilantro, why you have a freckle on your butt.
Starting point is 00:28:34 It's very interesting if you let it. Okay. This has been Michelle Bateau for 23andMe. We just want to thank everyone so much for tuning in. But now, Michelle, thank you so much for stopping by and giving Isaiah the confidence that he's needed. I've been fine. Okay. Yes.
Starting point is 00:28:51 Thank you. That's cool. I didn't even know I was doing this podcast. I thought it was Joe Rogan. Oh, no. He's next. We're the warm-up for Joe Rogan. So have your horse pace ready, girl.
Starting point is 00:29:01 Yeah. Oh, boy. He's sick right now. So he's coming a little late. He said he had a pretty bad cough. I'm going to go watch episodes of Fear Factor, BRB. Welcome to StockX, the only live marketplace for what's now and next. From the most historic heat to the latest instant classics,
Starting point is 00:29:24 StockX specializes in giving everyone access to what they want and love. With StockX, you have the power to shop millions of hard-to-find or sold-out products at their true market value. And thanks to StockX's live marketplace, you have the ability to instantly shop the latest and greatest. Download the app or sign up online to start buying and selling in a few easy clicks. That's right. You can use the code HISTORYHEAT for free shipping on your first purchase of any order of $240 or more. Start shopping at StockX.com. Access the now. Oh my God, people of earth, it is going down in a major way. Isaiah, we got a guest in the building.
Starting point is 00:30:09 We got a major. We got a leader of sorts, a president of sorts, a Joe Biden, a Kamala, if you will, of sorts, a GWB. That's George W. Bush. I would say this next guest is the George W. Bush. The George W. Bush of HeadGum. That's right. Yep. And I don't want to hear another credit out of this guy's
Starting point is 00:30:34 mouth. He's for sure the George W. Bush of HeadGum. He's the co-founder of HeadGum, co-host of the podcast, If I Were You. People, make some noise at home. I want you to stomp your feet clap those hands for amir blumenfeld ladies and gentlemen thank you thank you i do get that a lot so it's cool that it trickled all the way down to you all right amir look you thought you were
Starting point is 00:30:58 gonna come on here and just teehee and kiki with your boys, Isaiah, Big J, and Yas. But we got some Katie Couric-style questions for you, all right? Okay. Some morning show style. Yeah. You know? We're coming at you like Reese Witherspoon in the morning show. No mercy.
Starting point is 00:31:21 All right? You ready for this? Okay. I'm scared now, but yeah, I think I know. You should be. You should be. Where were you the night of December 12th, 1998? Jesus, this is gotcha journalism.
Starting point is 00:31:34 Yeah, it is. All right. We're going to ask you some Katie Couric style questions. First one, Amir, is the collectibles episode. Did you have trading cards as a kid? If so, do you have a favorite one? And, ooh, here we go, here we go, with the journalistic integrity, do you still have that trading card?
Starting point is 00:31:56 I did buy some as a kid. Like, you know, you go to a birthday party in third grade, and it's 1991, and somebody gives you a pack of whatever, Skybox basketball cards, and you open them at home. I remember keeping one Chris Webber card when he was in the Michigan jersey. I don't know where it is. I remember having a Thurman Thomas Bills running back card. I don't know where that is.
Starting point is 00:32:21 And then during the pandemic when everyone was stuck at home talking about how these cards are now worth a lot of money again, I got sucked back into the hobby because it combined my two passions of making a quick and easy dollar and also Nick Van Exel. So together, those things came together. Love it. That's right. Yeah. Okay, good. Hey, and by the way, big shout out to Sick Van Exel.el if you at home listening right now nick the quick yeah we wish you boy we always wish you nick the cool thing about that chris weber card when he was in college is that he definitely got paid to make it oh definitely yeah so that's that's my favorite part about that and the shorts were so baggy they came out of the cart kenyan martin style was filled with the shorts. The shorts were sagging because they were filled with money.
Starting point is 00:33:05 Yeah, cash. Sweet booster cash. So what kind of cards do you collect now? Are you still in the basketball world? Yeah, mostly basketball. I sort of tried to dabble in football a little bit, but that didn't really appeal to me. I'm more of a basketball fan. I do have one random hockey card
Starting point is 00:33:25 in my collection, which is I couldn't afford the Wayne Gretzky card. So I went for the one other player I can name from my childhood, which was a Patrick Waugh, goalie for the Montreal Canadiens rookie card. I noticed that there were only 90 of these PSA 10 graded Patrick Waugh rookie cards. I'm like, you know what? If I can't afford a Gretzky, give me the best goaltender. Again, I don't watch hockey, so I can only assume he's the best goaltender of all time because I actually remember what his name is. I bought one of those too. The rest of them are basketball.
Starting point is 00:33:53 I think so. He's the only goalie I've ever heard of. I remember him playing in my Sega Genesis game growing up. I remember Gretzky, I remember Patrick Waugh, and a few other players. I went for the one that I remembered. I remember Gretzky, I remember Patrick Waugh and like a few other players. So I went for the one that I remembered, yeah. That Wayne Gretzky card sold for $3.75 million recently.
Starting point is 00:34:12 Yeah, so if I can get half of that for the Waugh. So I'm kind of surprised you can't afford that. That's good, yeah. Honestly, I'm not greedy. I will take that $2,000 card and I will sell it for 1.8 million. That's enough too. I don't need the full Gretzky for it.
Starting point is 00:34:26 And if anybody's listening, you can make me an offer at 1.5. I will gladly take it. Dude, that's really kind of you. This Wah card is just burning a hole in my pocket. Okay. Just real quick. I know you think that's the second most expensive hockey card, but I did look and it is actually
Starting point is 00:34:44 Adam Banks from the mighty ducks really um damn yeah the character adam banks from the mighty ducks who left the nice team to play for the mighty ducks i was gonna say was he the one without the dad but that was charlie that was conway right that was yeah that's charlie conway he had no dad. Adam Banks was preppy slash cake eater. Remember? Oh, yes. Cake eater, of course. Yes.
Starting point is 00:35:09 Very famously. So, Amir, you're not doing nearly as well as you think you were. Questioned for you, Amir, a.k.a. Kamala, a.k.a. George W. Bush. Yes. What is the most expensive car you own or that you've paid for? I went Dutch or whatever the three-way equivalent of Dutch is on a LeBron James PSA 9 rookie card. Those were like $10,000 at the time.
Starting point is 00:35:41 I'm like, I don't want to spend the price of a car on a piece of cardboard. Let me grab two friends that are Laker fans like me. Let's buy a LeBron James rookie card. If it's worth half as much as a Michael Jordan rookie card one day, that'll be a fun investment. So we went three-way on this 2003 Topps Chrome LeBron James rookie card. Where does it live? It rotates. So it was in my house a little bit. Now it's in my friend's house, maybe the third friend's house. It's like that Simpsons episode where they split the comic book three ways. So yeah, he gets it on Sundays and Thursdays.
Starting point is 00:36:10 I get it on Tuesdays and Fridays. And then there's one day a week where, you know, that's God's day. We give it to the man upstairs. You give it to the Lord. You just put it in the sun. We put it in a hot air balloon. And if it loves us, it comes back. That is so, so funny.
Starting point is 00:36:28 The goat deserves the goat. Yeah, yeah. No. The glory, you know? The god of all time. Yeah. Yeah. Ultra light beam.
Starting point is 00:36:38 Yeah. So what's your grail card? The best card that I own or the one that I'm aspiring to get one day? I think a Grail is something that you kind of aspire to get, in my opinion. Well, since getting into this hobby nine months ago, it seems like the biggest, most expensive, fanciest card is this Michael Jordan 1986 Fleer rookie card. There's only a certain handful amount of this PSA 10,
Starting point is 00:37:04 which is like a mint condition card that's 40 years old at this point. That one was almost selling for a million dollars. So I guess I'll say that's my grill card. Hopefully the market collapses to the point where me and my friends can now invest in that card. We already have the LeBron rookie. And then there's just favorite players of mine growing up. A Van Exel rookie card an Anthony Pila rookie card let me give Eldon Campbell a shout out uh so there's like personal grails yeah personal grails and then like you know famous ones just a follow-up do you have any cards of a player that you absolutely hate yes oh I invested in a Chris Paul rookie card oh I also hate Chris hate Chris Paul. This is fantastic. Yeah, I don't know why I did it.
Starting point is 00:37:47 It seemed undervalued at the time, and it was like a black refractor. So I'm like, oh, this is cool. It's a numbered card. It's a Chris Paul rookie card. It looks kind of cool because he's in a Hornets jersey. Dislike Chris Paul as a player. Think he's kind of annoying. Super annoying.
Starting point is 00:38:00 Like, you know, not fun to root for, but it just seemed like a good business investment so yes so were you like rooting for the suns in the finals because it would have probably doubled in value if he'd won that one that shit i was kind of conflicted because like i had this chris paul rookie card and then i also bet on the bucks to win the finals before the playoff started so i'm like okay you know it either way i'm happy it's a short-term long-term situation exactly yeah chris paul has that uncle energy that I just don't like he's got that he's just got an uncle you know
Starting point is 00:38:27 where them kids at it's the gif of him laughing and then not laughing anymore and that's like his essence yeah it is like he's just he's a
Starting point is 00:38:35 I don't know he's a troll he's a twerp he's a he's annoying but he like he's so good at it he's really good
Starting point is 00:38:42 and then he also cheats so like you don't have to do both, Chris Paul. You're great. You don't have to run into people also and yell at the refs. Yeah, he's so annoying. Great basketball player, though. Amazing.
Starting point is 00:38:54 Yes. One of the best point guards of all time. Let me not take his value. The card is worth thousands of dollars, I assure you guys. And I love him personally. Well, as someone who's known as the Chris thousands of dollars, I assure you guys. And I love him personally. Well, as someone who's known as the Chris Paul of podcasts, I got to say that this is pretty conflicting for me. Well, you know what they mean is it's just that like,
Starting point is 00:39:16 I should be taller and I'm not, and I have really nice eyes. Oh, wow. Thank you. Okay. I'm probably Chris Paul's height. I'm like a little under six feet which i assume chris paul is yeah yeah in his whack jordan's he's probably a little bit over six feet oh my god um i i mean i take shots on every chris paul on every podcast i'm on yes or
Starting point is 00:39:35 you know yeah yeah this is really it's not you're gonna get cast in a state farm commercial with it one day and be like yeah i'm such a big fan. Wait, I feel like our own, you know, our best friend, our own Robin Quivers, Jesse. Oh. Jesse had a question. I'm raising my hand. Let's do this. You guys can't see it because you're listening to this,
Starting point is 00:39:57 but I'm raising my hand. No, I'm curious. So, okay, you think about these as investments. How much are you really taking this into account? I'm sure you're a smart man. You're a financial planner. You've read all the books about how to retire at a young age. How big does this actually play into your long-term retirement plans?
Starting point is 00:40:16 Is this just funny money? Or are you like, you know what? This is going to pay for a lake house someday. I think it's mostly funny money. It's money where it's like, if all these cards got devalued, it wouldn't ruin me. I'm not like putting my actual life savings into these things. But like at the same time, if they like, you know, five to 10x, I'm like, oh, that's kind of fun. I was so smart in 2020 that now it's 2036 and this Patrick Waugh card is worth $800,000 because I don't know he was in a famous murder-suicide and there's only
Starting point is 00:40:45 92 of these. What? I mean, you know these hockey players. The goalies get enough hits. Their heads aren't good. Their heads aren't good. Yeah, yeah.
Starting point is 00:40:52 Take enough hits. Yeah. I mean, obviously I don't want it to happen but I'm just saying I'm financially incentivized for Patrick Waugh to maybe go crazy one day
Starting point is 00:41:01 kill a few people himself. Hey, Amir, you're saying that now but the value of my Chris Benoit trading card tanked. Tanked after that whole thing. Yeah, man. So be careful.
Starting point is 00:41:13 I don't know what to root for. I'm really conflicted. Hey, you know what? I'll say don't root for a murder-suicide. Okay, that's fair. But you know what? You call me the George Bush of podcasting. And I love it very much.
Starting point is 00:41:24 He's doing it. He's doing the George Bush of podcasting. So now I'm very... Yeah, he's doing it. He's doing the George Bush thing. I'm going to throw my shoe at you. Now watch this drive. Remember that from 9-11? Oh, yeah, buddy. That was the... Was that the closing thing?
Starting point is 00:41:37 Or was the closing thing him stumbling over the shame on you quote? Oh, no, I think it was that. Now watch this drive. Yeah. Yeah, it's so funny. Great drive. Man, one of the best comedies, Fahrenheit 9-11. Yes, people don't talk about it that much.
Starting point is 00:41:52 Oh my God, I know. Do you guys remember that shoe that they threw at George W. Bush? Yeah, he ducked it really well. Yeah, we have that on StockX. Wow, you have that shoe. What is it? It's an Air Max 1. Oh, man, that's a decent sneaker you're chucking your
Starting point is 00:42:06 good shit at yeah george w bush right left no that's why it was such a powerful political point i would have worn a pair of rebox he just thrown like a beater at it it wouldn't wouldn't have nearly as much as this is the day i'm chucking a shoe at bush i'm wearing some one of one yeah yeah yeah shape ups i have the shoes i bought them off stock. I have the shoes. I bought them off StockX. I have the shoes that Terry Crews was wearing when he tweeted, BLM is becoming black supremacists. Wow. Yeah, yeah.
Starting point is 00:42:36 They're worth four bucks. Damn it. Yeah, they're worth four bucks. I sold them to someone who works at news max um amir it feels like amir it feels like you are like i love what these guys are talking about but i gotta go no no not at all look man it's so clear you gotta go okay so you know what you should just get out of here okay thank you and thank you for having me um oh man thanks for being on first of all first of all don't play us like that you begged us you were literally begging us every email every text every tweet well you know
Starting point is 00:43:15 isaiah pull up the tweets where amir was begging us to be on the podcast those were dms we don't have to yeah yeah i don't want to encourage people to go to my Twitter. Amir, you've already, you know, we've plugged the podcast. We've plugged how you are our boss. Hell yeah. You did it all. And we got it out of the way. Well, do you want to give everyone your home address real quick?
Starting point is 00:43:37 Yeah. I mean, I guess it's 318 South Broadway Avenue, New York. New York. 104. That's it. That's the zip code. Okay. No, there York. New York. 104. That's it. That's the zip code. Okay, and there's for sure, come on, where's the apartment number? Don't be stingy. No, it's a full townhouse.
Starting point is 00:43:55 I sold the walk car and I bought a three. A split level. Two family in Park Slope. Oh, God. Amir, for real, thank you so much for joining us. Hang out a little bit longer so you can give me and Zaya a ride.
Starting point is 00:44:09 Oh, my gosh. All right, fine. Can I leave now and call you guys an Uber? Do I have to wait? No, no, you have to wait. All right, fine. I don't want to wear a mask, so.
Starting point is 00:44:18 No. No. We are back with, I would say, probably one of the least liked segments on the show, according to Twitter, Instagram, and his family. We're here for The Price is Hype with Senior StockX Economist. Again, not very beloved, Jesse Einhorn.
Starting point is 00:44:49 We keep having him back, even though people are like, definitely not. That's the big thing. I would say, people slap me on the street. They don't really know me like that, but they're like, you're Yasser Al-Assad? I'm like, yeah. They're like, the Jesse guy, big no, and they do a thumbs down.
Starting point is 00:45:09 No, it's like my dad actually sent yasser an email being like can you can you just like not have the segment i love the podcast right i'm tired of hearing this guy talk right that's my dad yeah i was bcc'd on that email yeah he was bcc he actually he he were a bunch of people were actually cc'd he doesn't know the difference between bcc and cc okay so like he actually put like like my teachers growing up yeah like a couple cousins you were on that and like he couldn't even figure out how to bcc it so it's like i saw them all and uh it was really uh a blow to my soul i was gonna say yeah this is weird but your girlfriend called isaiah on facetime and said can you stop like i don't like the way jesse sounds on the podcast do you remember that yeah i've never there's never been such a consensus around around a single issue than like me not doing the same
Starting point is 00:45:52 but you know what contracts we gotta keep doing it wow so let's do it yeah let's do it yeah so how are the kids on the streets um in homes, houses that I'll never be able to afford to buy, making money off collectibles? Yeah. I mean, it's crazy. Stepping back for a moment, it's like we talk about this a lot at StockX, which is like this new – there's this new paradigm emerging of alternative asset class investing. And it's like, no one just wants to invest in like Walmart stock anymore, or like, you know, whatever, Oklahoma real estate. Like everyone wants something that's both like culturally meaningful, but also kind of like financially savvy. And there are a number of
Starting point is 00:46:40 these products that have emerged, sneakers, but also collectibles, trading cards, comic books that serve this kind of dual function, right? They are both, you know, cool to consume, right? They're cool to own and collect, but they also are like, you know, kind of a savvy investment. I think we've kind of talked about this before, but like, especially with like a collectibles market, you as senior economists, are there like tangible cultural moments or things that you can look to and say like, this has affected the price of, for the sake of argument, not even just like sneakers, but like things all around, like now collectibles have gone up or like trading cards have gone up because LeBron talked about it or, you know, whatever. Yeah. Trading cards are probably the best example because there's like a really predictable kind of movement,
Starting point is 00:47:28 both in like the overall market and then specific cards. So it's like, yeah, like when a player gets injured, value goes down, right? When a player gets like inducted in the Hall of Fame, value goes up. But then there's like crazy seasonal stuff, like pretty much every time the NBA draft rolls around, like the market heats up and like prices start going up.
Starting point is 00:47:44 And so there's like, you know, I think trading cards are maybe the best example of that. But then like outside of that space, there's obviously, I don't know if we've talked about before, but like, you know, with sneakers, for instance, the last dance had this like huge effect on, on sneaker prices, particularly Jordan prices. And also like Pippin, Pippin stuff on StockX, Robin stuff, it all went up in value. And so those kind of cultural moments can also be huge for sneaker collecting as well. Okay, I have two questions.
Starting point is 00:48:10 One, do you guys think Scottie Pippen is okay? And number two, if you had a trading card, a trading card of yourself, and someone put it on StockX, what do you think the highest it would go for? I think right now, like I'm going to give myself 50 bucks. I'm going for 50.
Starting point is 00:48:36 Okay. Would it be like one of the, it's like they make, you know, they make kind of insert chase cards. There's like refractors and like autos. Would it be an auto card or would it just be like a face card? We'll say base, but it's a rookie. Okay. It's a Jesse say base but it's a rookie okay it's a jesse einhorn it's an isaiah lester
Starting point is 00:48:49 rookie yeah i think like i i i would say like a hundred a hundred bucks i got some people in my life willing to pay oh wow okay no okay but that's no but that's a thing yeah it has to be like it's just it oh it can't be friends and family no no no no then like just like uh i don't 10 10 bucks five bucks maybe what about you yes i was gonna say 50 bucks yeah i was gonna say that not that there's anything special i think so seeing one person bid on it would drive it just enough till at once it got to 50 someone would be like wait who is this guy right there'd be like some hype yeah like it would just kind of be like oh i gotta get it right right there'd be like some hype yeah like it would just kind of be like oh i gotta get it right right there'd be like some yasser rookie fomo right in the marketplace um but yes i and then pippin being okay i mean i hope so it was like you know we got there was a lot of interest
Starting point is 00:49:35 in the last dance when when that came out and and it was like 99 of questions about that team when it comes to stock x are like tell me about jordan's But that week, the week of the Pippin episode, people wanted to know what Pippin products were doing on StockX. And it was nice to give the guy flowers. I mean, he's so good. It's just like, I just like that now he's gone full Phil Jackson sucks, Michael
Starting point is 00:49:58 sucks. It's just very... He's better. He's a better guy. He's a better guy. He had a good life though. He had a good life, you know. But future will ruin... Once future is had a good life, you know? But future will ruin. Once future is involved in your life. Yeah, it is. It is a grease mark you cannot get out of a t-shirt. So if future is listening, please stay away from me and my family.
Starting point is 00:50:19 We all understand why certain products go up in value, like a classic Jordan 1 Chicago. That's an iconic sneaker. It makes sense that it would grow more valuable over time. But what are some reasons why values go down? Yeah, I mean, that's obviously a super important question. And it's one a lot of people ask, you know, what for sneakers, right? There's a really obvious one. The biggest risk if you're like a sneaker investor is restocks.
Starting point is 00:50:44 And it might be so obvious that you don't even think about it. Right. But it's like it really if you're an investor in these things and like your portfolio is built around, you know, say like Yeezy 350s, if Kanye goes on a run and starts restocking like, you know, 10 colorways of the original Yeezy 350 V2s, like you're going to lose significant value. We actually did a study of this and tried to quantify how much restocks affect Yeezy values. Because Kanye was doing this a lot. He still does it a lot, but there was a period where it was like every other week there was a new restock. And we found that values after those restocks went down between 30% and 50% on average. So if you had a Yeezy Beluga 2.0 and it was worth
Starting point is 00:51:26 $400, like it would be down to, you know, 250, maybe even, maybe even $200 after the restock. Prices would go back up eventually, but like, it's a pretty significant hit. And like, you know, with Kanye, especially that was an interesting time too, because you probably remember he was like on this tear where he was like, I'm going to democratize access to Yeezys. I'm going to make it so everyone, you know, there's a Yeezy in every household. And like, and like, you know, what that was basically signaling is that there's going to be a huge influx of supply and that there's like the runs on these things is going to be huge.
Starting point is 00:51:58 And so like that was a real risk. And there was, there was a, there was like a few months there where, where, where Yeezy price premiums and Yeezy prices like really bottomed out. And it was like, you know, again, it's like there's a there's a bright side to this. Right. It meant that more people could buy them at retail. But like as an investment, it was not good. And, you know, and also I would argue that it's not great for the brand either. Like there has to be a certain amount of hype and exclusivity around these things.
Starting point is 00:52:22 Right. out of hype and exclusivity around these things right but with something as uh i don't know as iconic as the yeezy brand does that matter as much because like he does restock them and he does do all this stuff but he still sells out whatever shoe he puts out every single week so is it is it more important for other brands to be more aware of that than it is to say like a yeezy who's gonna sell a shoe no matter what or if it's like a Yeezy who's going to sell a shoe no matter what or if it's like let's say if it's like they're going to redo the cross the air cross trainer bow nose one the medicine ball shoe you know like that I see or like the Kobe Grinch even when the Grinch came out because that was like my grail and I got the restock which ended
Starting point is 00:53:01 up being essentially a quarter of the price of what the og was worth on the market um is it is it the brand though because i do think that in a weird way kai is kind of won by doing that because like again the same thing happened where there was a pair of shoes that only released in asia that he released here that i got that he re-released here and i was just like oh these are significantly cheaper but i don't know is that one specific pair though like i i don't know like and i know like there's rumors of like the beluga reflectives coming out soon that are he's supposed to the rule the word on the street is that he's releasing a million pairs of them so clearly the beluga OG will be more valuable than the reflective,
Starting point is 00:53:47 but I was just wondering, like, does it matter more for certain brands than it does for others? I do think, I mean, I do think Kanye has a certain degree of like invulnerability to this just because he is such a strong brand, but,
Starting point is 00:54:01 but, you know, two points I'll make one is that like, you know, there was that time, I think it was like 2000, I want to say like late 2019, 2020, where there were so many Yeezy releases and the releases were, there were so many of them
Starting point is 00:54:14 that prices really were like kind of bottoming out and they weren't selling out. There were a couple instances where they would sit on shelves and like you could get them for days. And like, you know, alarm bells were going off, you know, I'm sure in Calabasas and to some degree, you know, also and, you know, among among the day traders and resellers and investors in these products because it was like, oh, this could be the end of the brand. Wait, can I ask, can I interject with a question? Yeah, because here's here's here's the if we're talking about like the stock market of it all and the investment of it all, like, again, so much of it is speculation.
Starting point is 00:54:48 Right. And I think that also we're talking about that I think can't be separated from that is the idea that like Kanye became like publicly became like this hated figure for a second. Right. Not amongst me and Zaya, but like, but he was on a, you know, it was the Trump stuff. There was like a lot, there's the red hat stuff,
Starting point is 00:55:10 like him and Jay-Z. Like there was all these things happening, like an announcement for running for president. So it's like, do the hard part for me to reconcile is how much of that was actual public disdain that was happening along with a huge
Starting point is 00:55:29 surplus of shoes. Because I wonder if Hattie just, for the sake of, and again, this is a speculation, but if Kanye stays quiet and releases the same amount of shoes, does he still sell out? And I think December actually will be kind of, this will be the kind of marker litmus test for that. Right. He's releasing 14 Yeezys this month. And like this is politically the quietest he's been in a long time. So I guess maybe we'll see. But anyway, sorry, I was just wondering if they look at that. That's a great that's a that's a great point.
Starting point is 00:56:01 I mean, there was like this is I think a this is not a debate that most people know about because most people aren't this deep in the weeds, but there was kind of, and there is this like kind of debate, right? It's, it's, it's basically a demand side versus supply side debate about why Yeezys being released. And the demand side was like the MAGA hat. And like your point is that, yeah, if he takes the MAGA hat off and it's just the supply side this December and we get 14 Yeezys, like, you know, will we see the same kind of effect on prices or will these still be like real investable, like high quality investments? And that's a great,
Starting point is 00:56:38 it's a great like sort of natural experiment. It's like, you know, ideally he would like change his party registration and like, you know, endorse, you know, he would like change his party registration and like you know endorse you know people who chose for uh for for president so we could get like a pure a b test of like you know how kanye's politics affect i honestly think saying he's for pete butaj would actually hurt him more he puts out he does like a panic at the disco. Oh my God. I, yeah, I truly be like, Oh, I would be like, I'm out. Yeah. That might kill it.
Starting point is 00:57:09 I mean, it is like a very, it, you know, it's a super interesting and kind of open question. I will say that like, you know what we saw to, to give us another data point,
Starting point is 00:57:18 like what happened with Pharrell NMDs where they released just a ton of Pharrell NMDs in like 2017. Yeah. And the, and the, they went used to be one of the most like high quality investment sneakers you could find, like prices would stay up and they released, we did a study of this, like the number of releases during that, like 2017 era, it was insane.
Starting point is 00:57:35 Like it was like one every other week. They went from being very limited to being ubiquitous and prices just collapsed. Like these sneakers used to go for three times, four times retail. And they, then they would not sell out. They would go for like under retail. And it took, it's taken years. I don't know if they've ever, they really haven't come back in any meaningful way.
Starting point is 00:57:52 It hasn't fully recovered. It hasn't fully recovered at all. No. Yeah. Not for the MD. Yeah. Not for the NMDs. And so going back to your,
Starting point is 00:57:59 obviously we've gone on a tangent here, but going back to your like original question, like what causes prices to go down? Like what are the risks? Like this is one of the main risks, which is like brands, you've got to be like, you've got to, you've got to have a certain amount of faith that the brands will be smart about their supply strategy and that there'll be, you know, somewhat like restrained in terms of how, how, how far they push it. Cause there's always going to be the incentive on the
Starting point is 00:58:21 brand part to like make more money and sell more sneakers and sell more toys and comic books, whatever. But like, they also have to be smart and you've got to have to trust them to be smart that they're not going to flood the market and just kill everything. Cause that can really happen. An analogy, another analogy,
Starting point is 00:58:35 right. Is what happened in the nineties with trading cards, right? Like, you know, at the, at the peak of the junk wax era, the card companies were making 81 billion cards a year,
Starting point is 00:58:46 81 billion. They were making. And like you and I, you got, you were from this era, uh, the card companies were making 81 billion cards a year, 81 billion they were making. And like you and I, you got, you were from this era, right? Like if you bought cards between like 88 and like 94, right? Like those cards aren't going to be worth anything now. Cause there was just so many of them, they were just pumping them out. And it was like, it just killed the hobby. Um, and I think this is something that like the lessons have been learned. Like the brands have learned this, like you can't get too greedy. You can't put too much product out because like you're going to kill like any kind of investment market there is. Yeah. Well, Jesse, first of all, you talked way too much. So I will say it feels like it's time for you to ask some questions. We'll do a quick lightning round. I want to test some knowledge here, what we've learned. And we're going to be, there's a quick Q&A about investments and collectibles. So let's start out with this. So I'm going to give you four kind of types of assets, and I want you to rank which are the most profitable from best to least. And so we're going to start out with Jordan 4s is one, Cause Collectibles, two, Air Max 1s, three, and then the Dow Jones Industrial is four.
Starting point is 00:59:55 So those are your four categories. And we're going to be looking at, just to give you a timeframe, let's say from the beginning of 2020 to the present, you know, which of those four from, from best to least was the, was the best investment versus the worst investment? Air Max lowest Dow Jones cause figures, Jordan fours, Jordan fours being most valuable. I'm going to go Jordan four cause figure, Air Max, Dow Jones. Okay, so the answers are, and I got to say this was taken a couple months ago that we did this analysis. Dow Jones is actually last and the S&P 500 is last. It's like 30 or 40%.
Starting point is 01:00:40 Air Max won second to last with a 50% price appreciation since 2020. Cause figures are number two. They've appreciated by about 60 or 70% on average since 2020. Jordan 4's are up there at 100% price appreciation since 2020. Yeah, I was going to say Isaiah nailed that. Isaiah nailed the list. Damn. He nailed the list.
Starting point is 01:01:03 That was good. All right. nailed that. That's a list. You know, again, I may have like zero effect on people and maybe just generally like a strong emotion. But Yasser, you consistently come in second in these guessing games and I almost think that's like
Starting point is 01:01:17 maybe a more humbling fact. Jesse got the blade. First of all, a little bit of spicy mustard on the Jesse got the blade out. A more humbling fact. Jesse got the blade. Okay. First of all, a little bit of spicy mustard on the sausage there. Yikes. All right, everyone.
Starting point is 01:01:37 That was resident nerd Jesse Einhorn, StockX senior economist, probably just tip-tapping away on one of those calculators that prints out the numbers. Like you have to crank it as you go? He wears the little visor. Yeah. It's like, do you have to be union? Do you have to be in a union?
Starting point is 01:02:01 Yeah, Jesse. Jesse, do you have to be union? Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah, we're with Unite here. Okay. Here's the thing. Again, people can't see you.
Starting point is 01:02:10 So they can't see that you're wearing a little visor and a tiny little bow tie and a vest as you crank away at your little dumb little calculator. But we want to thank you for stopping by and giving us your nerd knowledge. Again, you didn't have to. And it feels like we actively disinvite you every time and you still show up. So that's pretty cool. Yeah, and I just want to say solidarity. Appreciate you supporting our union.
Starting point is 01:02:31 And, you know, it's like, we'll see you on the senior economist picket line. Oh my God. All right. Zay, you know what we got to do now, right? A storm front is coming through. You know what I'm saying? A heat wave.
Starting point is 01:02:50 Or maybe, maybe a cold pressure thing. Yeah. There's never any love for the cold fronts. I know. We never talk about the heat wave. We never talk about the cold fronts. Oh, we don't talk about the chilly chill. We never get it
Starting point is 01:03:07 into it as some icy boys so icy man so icy okay but this is you know the you know we're gonna try and forecast some heat right families you know they used to take pride in having like huge movie collections at home right me still being one of those guys um i'm families by myself me my wife and my dog um but but now it's weird right we all we also moved from like records to cds to to mp3s and streaming and now records are cool again right here's my question to you do you think think like a DVD, a Blu-ray, does that become cool again? Or in general, what do you think is coming back? Like even like a card you'd want to buy? I know you have some that we need to talk about, but any dope merch or collectibles from the pandemic, anything like that? I think what's going to be like in terms of a really good, strong collectible for one.
Starting point is 01:04:03 Yeah, I do. I do think DVDs will be cool do i do think dvds will be cool again i think any old technology will be cool again yeah i think that like uh any or wired air buds that aren't apple you know just like old headphones and like cd players you see places like that i'll have like the first you know first generation iphone it's like 10 grand i think you'll definitely see a lot more of that especially as we move into like a metaverse and people will be wearing headsets for stuff and they won't be looking at a computer screen as often as they are now or like a laptop screen so i do think i think like old technology will be something and just like you know or like it's like as scary as this is but like a robot that was just a toy and not also your best friend.
Starting point is 01:04:47 Like they will be in 20 years. That will also be very popular. But like, yeah, I do. I do think that kind of stuff will always be popular from here on out. It's like finding old stuff from like you know like kitschy stuff from the 50s and 60s like an old easy bake oven it's like now it'll just be stuff that we kind of grew up with but in terms of what i think the future is gonna have in terms of collectible i think it's gonna be like newspapers and magazines like even more so as it even more so as it is
Starting point is 01:05:23 than it is now but to like have a time magazine cover with like whoever on it or like the person of the year from 1994. That'll be like a big get because papers are dying. So I think to have that like an old like an old newspaper or something. I think that that will be a collectible thing The sports section from When Tampa Bay won the Super Bowl Last year, just stuff like that I think will be valuable The sports section from the Ray Lewis Being in Atlanta
Starting point is 01:05:54 Yeah, yeah, yeah The snitcher bowl The snitcher bowl Ray Lewis When he's dancing It's like he's not screaming, he's snitching he's screaming somebody's name after he does that little dance his name was Mike
Starting point is 01:06:10 man bad guy that's what I think I think it'll be stuff like the stuff that we're no longer about to start making like I think people naturally be stuff like, yeah, the stuff that we're no longer about to start making. Like, yeah, people naturally will want to collect those things. It's really interesting.
Starting point is 01:06:30 What about you? Mine's goofy just because they haven't happened yet. But I do think they're going to come back. I don't know how long they'll last. And I mean that sincerely. But I genuinely think like collectible like cups and mugs. Like remember when it was like you would get like the plastic cup that's like Disney presents or like, you know what I'm saying? Like a big cup that was like it would be like a big scape of like art all around it. I would start to wear off.
Starting point is 01:06:59 Yeah, I weirdly think it's going to be stuff like that because like those things, they still make those things. Right. Like if you go to a Super Bowl or a World Series, a sporting event, whatever, like all those things still exist, but they don't hold any value. Whereas when we were kids, like you would like run to a Burger King to get one of them. Right. Yeah. They're doing a set of five out of five. Yeah. I got one through.
Starting point is 01:07:24 I got one, four and five. I need of five out of five. Yeah. I got one through, I got one, four, and five. I need the other ones. Right. Yeah, you would definitely get that. Yeah. But like, yeah, I actually just, because the Braves, you know, Braves just won the World Series. Shout out to the Braves. I bought a bunch of that stuff.
Starting point is 01:07:39 Yeah. I got the cup and I got the pen. I got like, you know, the novelty towel. Yeah. Things of that nature. But yeah, you're right. It wasn't, and they were, you know, they were very cheap. It wasn't like an expensive thing.
Starting point is 01:07:52 Right. But that's an interesting choice. I think that because like what you're saying is the smarter answer because that holds a tangible, it holds a tangible value over time. But cups are those things that do go up and down and i think right now they just haven't had their moment again yet and i think they're about to because we've kind of touched on all the other like collectible touchstones like other than like you know for the sake of like beanie babies which might have a resurgence but like other than that i think the thing that we will be saying is like a a um is a like cup thing a cup thing a cup resurgence that is that is so weird to me maybe maybe a
Starting point is 01:08:35 little wayne will od with the double cup like a disney princess double cup oh man that is a bad way to end this episode he'll survive he'll survive that is just not a great way to do this one I gotta say but that way what if he's just like it was princess and the frog
Starting point is 01:08:58 oh no y'all but personally i've collected i started doing cards a little bit you know i'm just like dabbling in cards again i actually ended up buying a pack of cards on a whim and it had a jalen green rookie in it with a piece of his jersey and i was like oh this is i'm off to a flying start that's so i get why i get the hook the hook now because like i want to buy five more boxes after that but that's not going to be in there again i just got super lucky right yeah you know and now like and now i want jalen green to
Starting point is 01:09:35 just shine with his locks and his his long pretty hair you know he's got he's like he got like the pom-pom yeah you know like for the girl the little girl from the prowl family yeah he's got the pom-pom. The little girl from the Proud family. He's got that going on. Yeah. Okay. Well, look. I feel like you ending it on a Lil Wayne, Jalen Green thing is way worse than me calling it a cup thing. But I digress.
Starting point is 01:09:58 It's Ariel. The little mermaid drinking off something blue. It's like, you mean the ocean you mean the ocean alright y'all thank you so much for listening to history of heat presented by stock x and head gum the first nerd everyone knows his name
Starting point is 01:10:17 my name is jesse einhorn thank you very much my god and my co-host my co-host and my best friend his name is isaiah lester and i'm yasser lester thank y'all so much for listening and we will be right back with y'all soon peace Thank you. That was a Hiddem Original. Hey, I'm Jake Johnson, host of the podcast. We're here to help. But this episode right now that you are listening to is sponsored by Brooklinen.
Starting point is 01:11:30 Brooklinen provides luxury bed sheets, pillows, comforters, and blankets delivered straight to your door. How do I know this? Because Brooklinen delivered me a quilt, sheets, pillowcases, and I love them. Plus, Brooklinen has been tested and awarded by experts, including Good Housekeeping, GQ, Wirecutter, and the hosts of We're Here to Help. So listeners can save a ton by purchasing a hardcore bundle, which includes a core sheet set, which is the thing I got, extra pillowcases, and a duvet cover. You can also mix and match. They do this stripe thing that's cool, but that's a dealer's choice.
Starting point is 01:12:08 So are you ready to build your dream fall bed? Visit in-store or online at brooklinen.com. That's brooklinen.com, B-R-O-O-K-L-I-N-E-N.com. Get 15% off your first Brooklinen order and save extra when you bundle.

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.