IDKMYDE: Paul Revere Williams

On today’s episode of IDKMYDE we meet Paul Revere Williams. Paul Williams was out here designing Hollywood’s finest homes, flipping blueprints upside down, literally, just to stunt on racism. From the Beverly Hills Hotel to LAX, his legacy proves that even when they won’t give you a seat at the table, you can still build the whole damn house.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
On today's episode. If I didn't know, maybe you didn't either.
We're gonna talk about Paul Revere Williams. No, not Paul Revere,
the Britagure coming, the Brinager coming, Not that guy. I'm
talking about the black man who was out here designing
building so dope that folks is still flexing in them today.
I didn't know. Maybe you didn't. No, I didn't know. No,

(00:23):
I didn't know. Maybe I didn't know. I didn't know.
I didn't know. Now I picture this. It's the early
nineteen hundreds, and of course racism is off the charts,
like segregation is in full effect. Meanwhile Paul's out here
like I'm gonna be an architect. People probably look at
him like, bro, you sure black people can't even sit

(00:44):
and have these buildings and you want to design them?
And Paul was like, watch me. He was born in
la in eighteen ninety four, and this man was out
here grinding y'all. He went to USC, got his architecture
degree and became the first black architect certified west of
the mississ That was already boss. But let me tell
you something that even up that Paul figured out how

(01:05):
to draw upside down. Why because white people was two
racest to sit next to him and look at the
sketches like normal people do. So he flipped the script literally,
bo can you imagine how smooth you gotta be it
not just designed dope buildings, but to do it upside down.
And he wasn't designing regular stuff either. This dude had
range Mariah Carey in the nineties range you know the

(01:29):
Beverly Hills Hotel at Pink Palace with rich folks and
ig influences. Take all them bougie picks. Paul revamped that joint.
He gave it that drill. Then there's lax. You know
that funky spaceship looking thing in the middle of the airport. Yeah,
Paul did that too. Who else could take a barn
airport and make it look like the set of a
sci fi movie. And let's not forget the mansions. Paul
was out here designing cribs for Frank Sinatra, Lucille Ball,

(01:52):
a bunch of Hollywood big shots. But Paul didn't just
design for the rich folks. He was about the people too.
He built schools, churches, affordable housing. He made sure his
work touched everybody. My man was like I'm building legacies,
not just luxury. Now let's talk about why he's important today.
First of all, his buildings are still standing, still being used,

(02:12):
and still looking fresh. But more than that, Paul Williams
showed us what it means to hustle with style. He
didn't just survive racism, he out designed it. They wouldn't
let him sit at the table, so he flipped the table,
drew from the other side of the table, and made
that table his own. And here's the kicker. In twenty seventeen,
years after he passed, Paul became the first black person

(02:33):
to win the American Institute of Architects Gold Medal. That's
like the Oscars of architecture, y'all. Imagine them handing you
a trophy after you did like, hey man, you was dope.
I'm bad form not saying it a little sooner. Paul
Williams is proof that no matter what barriers they put
in front of you, you can still break through and
look good doing it. So next time you drive by

(02:54):
the Beverly Hills Hotel or you flying the lax, remember
a black man did that, and he did it up
side down. Just a stunt on them. And I didn't know.
Maybe you didn't either, MHM.