Muse Couple of the Week: Ocean Pleasant and John Meyer
Meet the Girl in this story Ocean Pleasant…
Ocean, 18, is a Singer-Songwriter and founder of Real Teen Mag, a national youth culture publication. She is CEO of Real Magazine Media, Inc, where she's currently building Real app, a "platonic tinder for social activism" to help millennials meet new friends and make an impact; making volunteer opportunities easily accessible, based on social good interests. Ocean was awarded the prestigious 2015 Thiel Fellowship, a $100,000 grant by Peter Thiel (Cofounder, PayPal). Ocean engages in humanitarian pursuits from New Delhi to Nairobi, and is a Singer-Songwriter; she recently released of her first single and music video, "Love Letter to Myself (I Will Love)" and was one of Forbes 30 under 30 of 2016. She is releasing her debut EP this summer.
Meet the Boy in this story John Meyer…
John, 21, has been immersed in the tech space since high school, developing over forty iOS apps under his first company, TapMedia, which accumulated over six million users. After turning down a paid internship at Apple last year, he founded Fresco News: connecting citizen journalists with national media organizations to make reporting more inclusive and transparent. In just over a year, he's grown Fresco to 25+ employees, 2.5MM of funding with a series A around the corner. He's also a 2015 Thiel Fellow (which is how he and Ocean met)!
I met Ocean and John after they both spoke on a panel at Fashion Digital New York, where I serve on the advisory board. I was not scheduled to be at their panel that day, but had a canceled meeting. Their panel on the dawning of Generation Z blew my mind. I distinctly remember turning to one of my employees and saying, “Now these two - they’re the future. I need to meet them!” Ocean and John have done more in their short lifetimes then many people do their entire lives. I am routinely inspired by those who think outside the box, but these guys crush the box. Again, this is not my first rodeo but these two literally caused me to jump out of my seat and say “YES” in a crowded room like I was at some southern baptist sermon or something. Get to know more about Ocean and her incredible tech savvy man John below in my BTS Q&A interview! Thank you both for being a part of our muse couple feature. You both inspire us and we are excited for everyone to learn more about you both below. xx, Stacy
1. Are you a Subway, Car or Bike Girl/Boy
Ocean: It's hard for me to justify taking a car when I can zip around the city quite efficiently on a train or bicycle. I get to see much more of the city I love when I'm commuting outdoors. (I highly recommend Citibike; a yearly membership gives you access to hundreds of bikes around the city; about the same cost as two months of subway rides.)
John: I need to remain engaged with Fresco during business hours, so I usually take Uber in the morning; those twenty minutes of silence helps me knock out emails on my laptop and gear up for the day ahead. I'll take a subway home at night because there's less demand to be plugged in after work.
2. Favorite spot to be creative?
Ocean: I find creative essence in the relentless hustling of New York, sitting in a park while people rush in every direction, voice dictating lyrics to a new song as I walk down a crowded street. Moments of controlled chaos
John: Whether it's back to back meetings for hours at a time, to working on legal work for new deals, to going on national television to announce new markets for Fresco, my days are often inundated with stimuli. Because of that, I often find myself more creative in extremely serene and quiet environments. One spot that comes to mind is the set of benches at the Brooklyn Bridge Promenade, which overlooks the entire manhattan skyline. Another is my "go-to” AirBnb apartment on the Malibu coastline, where I stay for my L.A. work trips. It sits right on top of the Pacific Ocean and is by far one of my luckiest finds…after Ocean Pleasant of course.
3. Causes you advocate for?
Ocean: The issues that speak most to my heart happen to be some of the largest issues we're facing as a planet. Climate change, protecting the environment, human rights, and equality. More specifically: shark finning, illegal ocean waste, undocumented and unregulated oil spills (man-made natural catastrophes), elephant poaching, sex trafficking and HIV/AIDS. After founding a magazine to highlight these issues, I'm currently building an app that connects young people through causes, enabling millennials to meet new friends and make an impact.
John: I'm passionate about environmental advocacy; eliminating fossil fuels and renewable + sustainable energy. I'm also really interested in what role technology will play in our evolution, as we become more adept at handling crises -- more specifically, how we can utilize cutting edge technologies to drastically impact current solutions regarding global issues (like climate change).
4. Favorite quote?
Ocean: "Stay in your lane. Don't change for the mainstream. If you're talented and resilience enough, the mainstream will come to you." Russell Simmons said that. My takeaway is, don't succumb to the societally fueled desire to fit in; that's not where the magic happens.
John: "The ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do." -Steve Jobs. There comes a point in a founder's journey when the hundredth "no" can make you feel "crazy"; I have been innovating in an industry that has remained relatively unchanged for decades. It has demanded a huge amount of perseverance, which is why this quote resonates.
5. Tell us about your last significant moment you shared with someone, and what it meant to you?
Ocean: John and I recently moved into a new apartment. It's hard to explain the satisfaction of being one half of a strong and supportive team; where even things we don't want to do (like packing) become enjoyable and serve as reminder of what a gift partnership is.
John: As Ocean touched on, there aren’t many better tests to a couple’s relationship than moving apartments in Manhattan during the middle of a work week. From packing every item we own into boxes, to handling logistics of a moving company, to working with the owners of our new place, it’s quite a stressful experience! I’m grateful to say that the smoothness of it all has proven to be a great representation of our incredibly fun and strong dynamic.
All photos by Spencer Kohn
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