Brandon “OUT.OF.OFFICE” Dixon Speaks On His Former Role at Highsnobiety
Brandon “OUT.OF.OFFICE” Dixon Speaks On His Former Role at Highsnobiety, Being the First DJ Ever to Perform at Harry’s New York Bar for Paris Fashion Week, and Being Socially Responsible within the Culture
You ever just find yourself scrolling on Instagram and you stumble upon a page and you see something interesting, then click on that page and see something else you like? Don’t let it be tagged, then you eventually find yourself down a rabbit hole of random profile pages. Well, that’s absolutely how I stumbled upon this gem of a person, Brandon Dixon. From recently quitting his job at Highsnobiety, to taking the plunge of pursuing his dream, full time, as a DJ and dubbing himself with the name OUT.OF.OFFICE, this multi-faceted creative give us a deep dive on his life in and “out the office”.
Photo Credit – @tatsianatribunalova
1. How’d you come up with the name “OUT OF OFFICE” ?
OUT.OF.OFFICE actually started as an independent photography project that I began in 2014 during my 5-year tenure at Complex Media. The initial concept was to capture images of individuals in the “corporate world” outside of the 4 walls of their businesses, giving a voyeuristic approach to those who didn’t have access to that universe. I had a change of heart about the project but once I began DJ’ing, the name remained and it became my official moniker.
2. What was it like working at Highsnobiety and what was your role? Can you walk us through what a typical day was like for you in the office? (HA, no pun intended)
LOL, well “within the office” I’ve been a jack of all trades, touching various parts of the business from a project management standpoint- from editorial, to branded content, but mainly internal brand projects and event coordination. An example of this is I’ve had the pleasure of being the Managing Editor of Highsnobiety’s first ever published menswear style book; The (In)Complete Highsnobiety Guide to Street Fashion & Culture, which was in partnership with book publisher Gestalten. I worked with just about every fashion agency and house to help curate the book’s interviews, shoots, ideas on who should be included, and the look and feel of the book itself. It was an amazing journey to go through!
3. What keeps your creativity abundant? How do you come up with ideas for the creative projects you produce for Highsnobiety?
Knowing how the industry maneuvers from a creative standpoint and also having your finger on the pulse of the culture is what’s most important in cultivating successful ideas. I think with most publishers and media outlets the challenge becomes having those on their side that contain both of these skills. Thankfully I’ve been blessed with both, as I think I’ve maintained an equal balance of making sure I apply what I see in my day to day personal life, both as a creative and a professional and also how these can be monetized into something bigger. Being around creative people/environments garners creativity, you’ll never find great creative ideas coming from non-creative environments and experiences.
4. You’re also a DJ. Has that always been a passion of yours?
Music has always been woven into the fabric of my being since I was young. After spending 6+ years within the fashion/media industry, I’ve very recently taken the decision the take the leap into devoting 100% of my time to my craft at being a full-time DJ. I’ve been playing music since I was 11, playing jazz throughout my younger years and all of my tenure through college. I remember when I was in high school and a very close family friend who was a professional DJ at the time gave me a pair of his old Audio Technica direct drive turntables and an old run down mixer with a wonky crossfader; all because he heard I was interested in moving into DJ’ing. At the time (with this being 2003 if I recall) I had no clue whatsoever what I was doing. Haha, I just knew that I loved how music sounded when taking elements from two different songs and pairing them together.
5. Can you tell us some of your favorite venues to spin at and your most memorable event?
It’s kind of tough to pinpoint, but one of my all-time favorite venues in the states to spin are definitely Soho House NYC in Meatpacking, as I’ve had a residency at the Soho House’s for the past 3 years. They’ve always prided themselves in curating a crowd and even more, an experience and I love that. I’ve spun all over the world from Berlin, Japan, Paris, Milan, Toronto, LA, to Miami but NYC is always the Mecca for music venues. From events that I’ve spun, I actually have two that are tied for the most memorable- Last summer I DJ’ed Panorama Festival, at the HP Music Lounge which was a truly incredible experience. I’m not one for music festivals, and never had attended one before this, but to have a couple thousand people moving to music is an unmatched feeling. I recently also just returned back from Paris, as I was there DJ’ing for Paris Fashion Week. This particular event was for the ages, as I was able to be the first DJ ever to perform in Harry’s New York Bar, – a national monument in Paris that’s famous for housing clientele from Ernest Hemingway to Coco Chanel. The cool part about it was that it landed me a feature and callout in VOGUE which shifted the paradigm I think for DJ’s, especially as an American.
Photo Credit – James Pepper
6. How do you feel people can be socially responsible within the culture? You recently had the Future of Sports x Fab5 Day Party & Clothing Drive event. Was this one of your projects? How was the turn out?
Metaphorically speaking I see the culture kind of like a car, and the destination of it and its experiences on its journey is 100% dependent on how we take care of it. If we continue to just keep using the culture for our own devices and not giving back, the culture will dry up and malfunction sooner than we think. We need to recognize that we can push forward boundaries on what an event looks and feels like and that it can have a greater meaning for more than just networking or having an outcome that just benefits us in the moment. The FOS X Fab5 event was a project put together by myself along with my brothers and fellow DJ’s Mike Nasty, MoreSoupPlease, Brandon “Jinx” Jenkins, & Ant Blue. This really set a tone for philanthropy and event curation in NYC, as we all independently have a platform for influence but I think in this day in age a lot of industry events do not bring “awareness” to the table, as we have to be responsible for how and what we are doing for those around us as well. Being within the industry, I’ve lived by the saying “Always keep the ladder down”, being the conduit for success and support for those behind you.
Photo Credit – @yobreezye
7. You’ve got great style. Where do you draw your fashion influences from?
Thank you! I try to keep everyone guessing. When I was younger, I was a HUGE streetwear head and got those influences from my older brother (I’m talking ICEBERG, AKADEMIKS, AVIREX leather jackets etc..) but also my father, and this was around the “Marvin Gaye” era: beanies rolled up, denim on denim, YSL suits, and silk shirts, I love it all. Over the years my style began shifting from just strictly streetwear, as everything was looking the same and I began going a bit more into luxury but mixing those two, completely different, sides of fashion together.
8. When you’re not DJing or working, where can one find you? How do you unwind?
I love books, so in my downtime (usually in the colder seasons) I can be found with my head deep in a book. I’m also an avid wander so I’m always looking for something new here in NYC to find. When the weather breaks, I can always be found on my bike trying to find a new part of the city to explore. Like most people here in NYC, I’m a transplant (Proudly from Northeast Baltimore) and have been a NYC’er for 6 years now, so I still feel like there’s so much more for me to come across here.
Photo Credit – @tatsianatribunalova
9. What’s on the horizon for you in 2019?
I started the year off strong leaving the 9-5 world, so I’m building the stage right now. I have a few large projects I’m keeping pretty close to the chest at the moment for the new year that I’m excited to share once ready. But know that OUT.OF.OFFICE will be going beyond being behind the DJ booth this year!
10. When it’s all said and done, how do you want to leave your mark on the world?
By being known as “Never bringing the ladder up”
To stay connected with OUT.OF.OFFICE and see how he’s killing it, spinning at these venues you can find him @out.of.office.