Lust for Life, a Good Time at the Goodtime
To quote Saint JHN, The best part of life is when I'm with you for forever-ever even if it end.
I remember the day clearly as if it was just last summer. I‘ll start by saying how much of a moment 106 & park was for Hip Hop in the early 00s. If you wanted to know what was happening in Black culture at that time from an authentic lens, BET and 106 were the places to turn. Every evening at 6 pm, it was a must to turn on BET and see who would outseat who for the top video of the week, waiting in excitement for Friday to find out what new artist would premier a video. Looking back at it now, the concept feels ridiculous with music videos dropping at random via social media or Twitch streamers.
On this specific day, Pharrell was introducing a new song to the world. I was in middle school at this time, so my knowledge of Pharrell was extremely limited, I maybe noticed him from one or two videos in the past but never on his song. This time Pharrell was surrounded by beautiful women and singing a melodic, vibey-type song, and in comparison to the rap songs I’d heard from him before, this song would be his way of introducing who he is and what he cares about, to us. Pharrell, for me, became an example of how to do what you love and be confident in yourself through it all, a big inspiration for my path to creativity. An actual representation of ‘You Can Do It Too’.
I’m sure to this point, anyone reading this is wondering what the hell any of this has to do with our trip lol. I felt the backstory was important because it speaks to why it was so important to experience this hotel - Pharrell being one of the owners of the hotels, each room being described as a different collection. With my appreciation for P and his career as an artist, staying here was a priority on my next trip to Miami and we were both excited to stay after seeing all the views. You can always guarantee that we’re going to find good food and aesthetics, Goodtime provides both.
From the in-house restaurant, Strawberry Moon, to the pool that hosts some of the world’s best DJs and pool parties, to the courtyard and lobby, the vibes were exactly what we expected when booking our room.
Aesthetics
This weekend was one of my favorites that I have had in Miami but that doesn’t mean it was all peaches and gravy, it was pretty traumatic for both myself and Mintyce. We arrived at night, got a good night’s rest, and the very next morning I ended up in the hospital. Unfortunately, Mintyce had to witness me lose consciousness for a brief amount of time, but there’s no person I would have rather beside me for support than her. Coming out on the other side of that moment put things into perspective for me, it was a “canon event” that sparked a new approach to our love but also a new approach to my creativity. Weirdly, that moment seems to have solidified a lot for both of us and as a person who rarely even gets sick, that moment was beyond frightening for me.
