Today we’d like to introduce you to Aaron Norman.
Aaron, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
When I was about six years old, I saw Brittney Spears on MTV performing in front of a really large crowd and ever since then, I knew I wanted to end up playing a role in the music and fashion industry. In 2016, my best friend, stage name ‘G Pope” began to release music on Soundcloud, and while our school pointed fingers, his song had begun to receive over 300,000 views, and from that point on I knew we could do whatever we wanted in this short life, as long as we truly believed in what we were doing. This was the catalyst for my brand – ABNORMAL.
I quickly saw what made us stand out from the crowd, as did other people and we had to embrace our identities to achieve who we really wanted to become and I am so glad as kids we were able to understand that. From music, we ended up hosting major parties around Wellington, Loxahatchee, and Palm Beach – in which I would DJ and Pope would host, even ending up in the newspaper as “Party Gods”, but that’s a whole other side of my story. When parties began to become overwhelmed with police, we moved on to something more “legal,” hosting hip-hop events in which Pope would perform at. We worked with the underground scene at the time, including Smokepurpp, Lil Pump, Wifisfuneral, Yung Simmie, Ski Mask, the Slump God, Comethazine, Lil Wop, Jayo Sama, Poorstacy and even more popular artists like Chief Keef and Rich Homie Quan. A lot of this was in part with Suri Entertainment in Wellington, recently demolished sadly… Regardless, through that time, I was able to establish my footing within the fashion and music industry, even getting Comethazine and Rich Homie Quan to wear my clothing.
In 2018, I graduated high school and moved to Orlando in order to pursue the major of Entertainment Management at The University of Central Florida. I took a year hiatus from my clothing brand to focus on myself, my managerial side and establishing connections up there. Since then, I have become the manager of the up-and-coming artist Beach Boii – in which we recently went on tour to Europe and my other buzzing South Florida artist – Tommy Savo. I want to end up being an artist & repertoire, artist manager, and festival creator alongside my clothing brand in the near future at any major record label; but, we’ll see where my journey takes me. I know I have what it takes to succeed and innovate in this hectic industry – all I ever needed was an opportunity.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Of course not. I don’t think it’s ever a “smooth road” for any creative. I think that’s part of what makes a creative. In order to see change, one must know what’s wrong in the first place, and it’s hard to know what’s wrong when you’re an individual that has only seen right.
Putting aside cliche family issues such as drug addictions and poverty, what made this journey the absolute most hard for me was how quick close friends were to turn their backs on me until I was finally doing something with what I started. In 2016, I lost 95% of my close friends, that’s why it was Pope and I who stuck together to make something of ourselves.
What they didn’t know was that I had already been through REAL LIFE stuff, you know, the kind of stuff that makes or breaks a person… the kind of stuff that makes the strong, a more optimistic person, and the weak, a more pessimistic person. My mom showed me that the only way to live was through optimism. So, I kept my head up through the trenches of losing ones that I thought were close to me, I persevered and overcame, and that has proven to me that staying positive – even in the WORST times, no matter how hard it is – will provide a better outcome than staying negative.
Being a creative makes an individual self-conscious. You’re always wanting to prove yourself and trying to be one step ahead of the competition; but, until you realize there will ALWAYS be someone better than you, it is impossible to succeed. This was a whole other obstacle for me, one that I have only recently overcome.
Please tell us about Abnormal Styles.
I own the Palm Beach clothing brand ABNORMAL. I partake in making fashion and accessories, graphic design for clients from stock market pages to beat packs and song covers, DJing (although not was much as I would like), and I manage Hip-Hop artists around South Florida. I like to think of my being as my company, rather than just my clothing or just my management. I think what I am most proud of as a company is the same thing that sets me apart from others and that is the fact that I never stop – no matter what, I keep pushing myself and those around me to do better and be better. I am looking to incite massive change within this industry, not through a change in leadership (because that never works and power always corrupts) but through a change in individualism.
The real revolution happens right inside of you.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
If I had to choose one memory from my childhood to be claimed as my favorite, I would have to go with my mother taking my friends and I to the Nickelodeon Hotel when I was ten.
My mother is a realtor and after the year 2008 – the biggest economic depression since the Great Depression. My mother only made 9,000 dollars that next year and was still able to find a way to get us Hanukkah presents. Regardless, another year goes by and she scavenges the money to take my friends and I to this hotel for my birthday. This is my favorite childhood memory because I know how hard it was for her to afford what she did that year, and she specifically did it for me to have something even close to what my siblings experienced when they were growing up. My siblings and family at the time before they moved to Florida could afford things, but by the time I came along, life was getting much harder for my family.
Pricing:
- ABNORMAL Hoodie $45.00
- ABNORMAL OG Shirt $20
Contact Info:
- Website: abnormalstyles.us
- Phone: 561-283-5293
- Email: abnormbbe@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abnormalstyles/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/abnormalstyles/
Image Credit:
Photographer: @kentakemypic, @tommysavo, @beachboii, @richiecampbell
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