BornxRaised's Spanto & 2Tone Talk Venice Roots, Travelling in Tokyo & More

The latest instalment to our disposable camera series comes courtesy of BornxRaised‘s Spanto and 2Tone. Hailing from Venice, California the duo recently made their way across the Pacific Ocean to take in the sites of Tokyo for a second time; their first trip was around the same time last year when the brand launched its capsule collaboration with YG. The timing of their visit couldn’t have been more impeccable with Cherry Blossom season in full swing and temperatures on the rise, giving them a chance to further explore the concrete jungle and all the localities it had to offer. Somewhere sandwiched in between an AKB48 concert, shopping sprees, sushi tastings and meetings, we had a chance to sit down with Spanto and 2Tone to get some more insight into future collaborations, the evolution of Venice and what their impressions of Japan are like. Make sure to check out the accompanying photo story of their trip in the gallery above.

Welcome back to Japan. How is it being back and what have you been up to?

Spanto: Being back for Cherry Blossom season, I feel very fortunate that I got to witness all this stuff. I was here last year for Cherry Blossom season and it was beautiful, but I think just being here this time I get to see more. There’s more color and it feels very festive.

2Tone: We’ve just been working, and when we can, we cruise around eating and do a little bit of shopping. What was that district we went to with all that cartoon stuff?

Spanto: Akihabara

2tone: We went to an AKB48 show, their graduation show.

Spanto: We got to walk into it and just braced ourselves. It’s not really the most normal thing but we got to go there yesterday and it was a very interesting scene. We got to see her show last night and visit with her after, and it was kinda tight. She’s a very nice girl.

What kind of foods have you been eating?

Spanto: Even back at home I eat sushi four or five days a week. I think the standard norm for sushi here is superb in comparison to what we have at home. Just everything, the stuff here that I’ve never had before. It just blows my wig back. We had sushi in Ueno which was fantastic, and we went to another place outside of the city which was quite a ways away. It was right next to a gas station and there was nobody there, but the food was just mind-blowing. We just had coffee with Cali (Thornhill DeWitt) at some really tiny cafe and some lemon tea, and just sat there and soaked it all in. I’ve never met Cali so it was my first time to sit down and talk with him. We went and had lunch at Ron Herman too.

How does fashion in Tokyo compare to the scene in Los Angeles? Are there any noticeable differences?

2tone: I don’t think we’ve seen much of the scene out here. I just like the normal people, how they dress. The construction workers. The street style here, the way they put their outfit together is really good.

Spanto: I think the sense of style in Japan is amazing. Even when I see older couples walking, I can see there’s a lot of time and effort put into each outfit. It’s just very well orchestrated. I haven’t seen anyone dress poorly in Japan since I’ve been here. You go to LA, it’s old people wearing boxy shit. The sense of style here is on a whole ‘nother level here. The attention to detail is superb.

Are there any Japanese brands that you guys like?

Spanto: How do you answer that question without leaving everybody else out? I like all of it. I mean Japanese streetwear is obviously well constructed and very well thought out and I have a very deep appreciation for it, and I always have. I love everybody for the most part.

Could you talk about your project with YG last summer? You shot it out here right?

Spanto: We did a pop-up with YG and directed a music video here.

2tone: Yeah we just did a music video for him. Shot it in Yokohama with some low-riders. In Trump Room as well. That was cool, it was just fun. We were running around until sunrise, shooting, and goofing off.

Spanto: It was one of those things too, like it was pouring rain and we were in Yokohama. I’ve never been there, and it was kind of industrial by the docks. We brought a bunch of friends from back home with whom I grew up with, like neighborhood fellas. So being in Yokohama with 8-10 people that I grew up with since I was a child. Then YG’s homies, all these LA characters and faces, they came out and shot this scene for a good four hours in the rain with like hopping lowriders. LA culture there at its finest, like down from the entry level. It wasn’t like we had a bunch of horty tortys that came out. It was like real LA people. Like real earthy people that came and experienced it together. I remember there was this one point when YG was just like ‘We in Yokohama filming a rap video.’ The car was behind him and the wheels were turning and it was just one of those experiences that I will never forget. It was cool. Then we shot that video and he finished it up. Then we did a pop-up with YG. We did it here first and then on Fairfax. We had a video premier and it was just like the most out of control, insane party ever. When did we do that? Beginning of last summer?

2tone: Yeah

Spanto: It was like the kick off for the summer. It was A1.

2tone: The whole party stopped to watch the video which was cool. They all loved it.

Spanto: It was great.

Do you guys have anything in the works collaboration-wise?

Spanto: Right now we’re going to do some shoes with Converse. We’re working closely with them. That’s the main thing we’re tinkering with right now.

2tone: Right now, nothing with a date. But Converse is the most important thing, and we have our usual drops. We’re starting to do online-only drops, so you can only buy them from us. Special capsules that won’t be available in stores. We’re going to be doing that monthly.

Spanto: We actually just did a pop-up. We’re both from Venice; my dad used to live on Brooks between Speedway and Pacific which is actually right where we did the pop-up. We’ve been working on BornxRaised for like four years and we hadn’t really done anything in our hometown and so we did a pop-up there. There was a line all the way from the store to the sand. We had it two days in a row. We had a line to the sand both mornings. It was very well-received. In Venice you have such a wide mix of people. You have skaters, you have punk rockers, you have gang members, a lot of artists. Venice boys are very specific and I feel like the whole neighborhood came out and showed out. There was grandmas there, there was kids there, there was uncles there, there was rappers there, celebrities there, our friend Lee from Trash Talk was also there. It was a neighborhood event. Although it was a pop-up it felt more like a big backyard barbecue. Lots of friendly faces old and new so it was dope.

How do you think Venice has changed over the years?

Spanto: My family has been in Venice for like 90 years so I’ve been through all of it, and he’s been through all of it. ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s I think were the golden era of Venice, it was before people really wanted to move there, when it was kind of just like desolate and our own Private Idaho. It was scummy and a bit dangerous but it belonged to us. When gentrification started it was kind of stripped from us. It was so frustrating and out of all that anger and pride, and all these weird emotions, came BornxRaised. That’s what it stands for. We were born here, raised here, and we’re going to die here. This is our land. When outsiders would come in before I was swinging and swinging metaphorically and it was just getting me nowhere, and now with BornxRaised I can express myself. Venice has changed a lot but it’s still home and I love it to death. I’ll always be in love with it.