Deeper Dives - The history of Coachella. How Coachella became what it is today. Past performers. Controversy, plus what's next for Coachella. Interview with famed restauranteur and business icon, Brad Johnson.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
You're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
Kf I AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeart
Radio as Saturdays with Tiffany. And now it's time for
our deeper dive. That's water deeper dies, that's water segments.
That sounds like a number two, a little tip the
loop loop sounds a little slahlash. There's a lot of
(00:28):
there's a lot of that going on with what I'm
where I'm going to talk about, let's just say, and
there have been some porta potty issues where I'm going
to talk about as well. Lot of that. So this
weekend marks the second weekend of Coachella. First weekend last
weekend did not go off without a hitch, like the
(00:49):
aforementioned toilet issues. The first day, people were complaining about
a lack of resources, a lack of toilets, shower and
the like. And you can imagine out there in the desert,
out there in the Coachella Valley in Indio, hot temperatures,
lots and lots of people drinking other things don't mix
(01:12):
well for your gastro intestinal issues. But that's not what
this segment is fully about. We're going to talk about
how it actually has gotten to this point where Coachella
is this amazing juggernaut of culture, a compound, if you will,
of all things musical, converging upon the desert for two
(01:36):
consecutive weekends. Where it came from, why it started, and
how it's now gotten to this place where it is
so big that it sells out as soon as the lineups,
not even actually as soon as the dates are announced
one year in advance. And you'll see in a couple
of weeks when they announced the Coachella organization, when they
(02:00):
announced what the next date will be, you'll hear all
about how the event has sold out. So let me
get into it for our deeper dives segment. What exactly
is Coachella? You might be asking, why do people care?
Why do people do this every single year in the
desert with these high prices and throngs of people. Well,
(02:21):
originally Coachella was launched as a kind of f you
so to speak to Ticketmaster, and the very first concert
in nineteen ninety three, which was not called Coachella at
the time, was headlined by band Pearl Jam. You've probably
heard of them. Amazingly historic band Pearl Jam, who only
(02:45):
performed at the Empire Polo Club while boycotting venues controlled
by Ticketmaster. They had a feud with Ticketmaster. Pearl Jam did,
and they said, you know what, We're not going to
perform at U venues where you say we should. We're
not going. We're gonna take ourselves all the way out
to Indio to the Coachella Valley and this Empire Polo
(03:10):
Club and throw a big party and have a concert.
And a lot of people came. The festival was started
back then in ninety three with the aim of booking
underground artists who weren't necessarily chart successes. You had a
lot of artists who were relatively unknown. Pearl Jam was not,
(03:32):
but these others didn't necessarily have a major, major, massive audience.
But since then in nineteen ninety three, the Empire Polo
Club has become a place where emerging musicians and global
artists can come together across these two weekends.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
Some of the most.
Speaker 2 (03:52):
Legendary Coachella performances include Kanye West in twenty eleven. You
had a really really impactful set. This is kind of
pre what we know Kanye to be now, back when
the music really mattered and he was booked at Coachella
Beyonce in twenty and eighteen. They actually renamed Coachella to
(04:15):
the what was it Beachella Bchella. The band Black Pink
in twenty and twenty three drew a humongous crowd, and
there was the moment in twenty twelve when a hologram
walked on to the stage and who was that hologram
of Tupac Shakur, the rapper Tupac Shakur. You've also had
(04:40):
Harry Styles in twenty twenty two, yet ac DC in
twenty fifteen, Radiohead in twenty seventeen, and even Prince in
two thousand and eight. The list of performers at Coachella
goes on and on and on. It's vast, and it does.
It does include those bands artists who are not necessarily
(05:02):
as global, but you do have the massive stars like
your Bad Bunny or your Childish Gambino or You're no doubt,
Calvin Harris said, ACDC, eminem radio Head. And it goes
on and on and on. The choice of location and
putting this festival in the middle of the desert was
(05:24):
crucial to the identity of what this festival wanted to portray.
They chose the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, just
two and a half hours away, because of its vast
open spaces and stunning desert backdrop. Now you see that
backdrop all over social media and attendees TikTok feeds or
(05:46):
Instagram pictures. It makes for a very picture esque scenery
and it provided the perfect canvas for what was then
a very ambitious project. The valley offered ample space and
also a sense of escapism that would become integral to
(06:07):
the Coachella experience. When we come back, I'll tell you
a little bit more about that very first festival, and
then we'll also get into some of the growing pains
that the Coachella Festival has been experiencing, especially when it
comes to expansion and the effect on the outer lying
(06:27):
areas in the Indio Valley or city of Indio, because
not everyone is happy with Coachella being there, And I'll
tell you more about that. On the other side of
Deeper Dives, it's KFI AM six forty live everywhere on
the iHeartRadio app. Tiffany Hobbs here with you until seven.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
You're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (06:50):
I am six forty Live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
It's Saturdays with Tiffany and we're in the middle of
our Deeper Dives segment talking about Coachella. What is it,
why is it such a big deal, what has it influenced,
and what's the future for Coachella. We're in Weekend two.
This is the finale, the Grand Finale. You have these
(07:14):
major headliners and people have flocked to Indio and the
Empire Polo Club to see some of these artists. And
it has not been without controversy. And we'll get to
what some of that controversy includes in just a moment. So,
despite the star studded lineup year after year and it's
(07:36):
been going on now since nineteen ninety three. Nineteen ninety
three was the inaugural show with Pearl Jam, Coachella deals
with something very unique to the desert and what is
that heat? Heat heat heat. It is hot in the
desert and it always happens to be extremely hot around
(07:58):
this middle part of April when the festival takes place,
just this week, and we're looking at triple digit temperatures
and that can cause a lot of issues. But attendees, performers,
they have to maintain a sort of resilience. Not resilience
is tested as the temperatures sore. But that's not the
(08:18):
only thing that's kind of given Coachella a sawer taste
in some people's mouths. There have been major financial hurdles.
Those financial hurdles with the inaugural event resulted in losing
about eight hundred and fifty thousand dollars. That very very
first Coachella lost eight hundred and fifty thousand dollars despite
(08:42):
selling around twenty five thousand tickets. Even though you have
all of these attendees. A struggle back then was breaking even,
breaking even, and compared to today's standards, it was a
starting point back then for what would become a cultural
(09:04):
juggernaut and an economic juggernaut. The two thousand festival was
canceled due to financial concerns, so twenty five years ago,
they didn't actually have Coachella that day, or that weekend
or those two weekends because they could not get the
large scale music event to sell enough tickets. But the
(09:26):
organizer's persistence saw the festival return the next year in
two thousand and one as a single day event. They
were trying something different and that single day event not
only was chaotic, but it barely broke even That was
the last time they tried to do a one day
festival in Coachella. Now, the Coachella experience has evolved. As
(09:51):
the festival has grown, so has its offerings. Coachella has
been transformed into a multifaceted cultural experience. There's large scale
art installations, and it actually turns the Empire Polo Club
into a temporary outdoor museum. They have added all of
these visual spectacles to complement the musical performances. Fashion also
(10:16):
is really big at Coachella, and it plays an increasingly
significant role in the festival's identity. People wait to see
what others will wear, and people plant out their outfits
a year, probably in advance, because what they're wearing is
practically as important, if not more important, than who they're seeing.
(10:37):
There's been a huge economic impact on the region of Indio.
The Coachella's festival growth has had a profound impact on
that area, transforming the local economy in major ways. The
visitors during the festival period over those two weeks, and
even some days before and some days after, provide a
(10:59):
substantial boosts to those local businesses from hotels and restaurants
to transportation services, and that economic injection over those two
weeks has become a vital part of the area's annual
financial cycle. People depend on it, and when it's not there,
(11:19):
it's a problem. But as iconic as it is, Coachella
has come under fire for being extremely problematic. And here's why.
Some cite the festival as shallow and exclusive, saying that
the insanely high ticket prices and equally high prices of
(11:39):
food and drinks once you're inside the venue really only
play to the reputation that the festival is for the
one percent. Aside from the economic division, even more uncomfortable
is the fact that Coachella has been faced with a
lot of sexual harassment allegations. In twenty eighteen, teen, Vogue
(12:04):
described the festival as being rampant with sexual harassment and assault,
and people cited that they were groped numerous times in
a period of just ten hours. And after that, Golden Voice,
who puts on Coachella, said that they would introduce services
(12:25):
to put a halt to all of this sexual harassment,
with safety ambassadors available on site. And we've seen those
kinds of ambassadors are on the metro. Well, Coachella has
the same thing, and it's hard to say if they've
made an impact yet on whether or not people feel
more safe. But regardless of all of these aspects, Coachella
(12:47):
remains an extremely popular thing to visit. People again flock
year after year. Kayla, have you ever been? I have
not ever been to Coachella either. I hear horror stories.
Well maybe I'm being dramatic, but people having to go
to the bathroom and can't get away, so they just
squat right there and go in the middle of the crowd.
That's fun. Yeah, people losing toenails. I just camping out overheating.
(13:13):
It's just not my vibe. I don't love any artists
that much. I don't know whose vibe it is to
sit and stand amongst people while they're defecating and urinating
apparently thousands, because that's how many go to Coachella. Harry
Styles is not that important for me, No, not even
a little bit. It's why I stay home and watch
YouTube and I get all the performances and I get
the energy safely from my bed and a bathroom and
a bathroom not too far away. There you go. It's
(13:35):
been fun. Everyone, Thanks very much for listening to our
deeper dive segment. Next, we're gonna talk to Brad Johnson,
restaurant tour business icon. You have to listen to this interview.
You know him, you know The Roxbury, he started it.
You know Post and Beam, the restaurant, he started it,
and so many more businesses. Get ready for this spectacular interview.
(13:58):
On the other side of the break. KFI AM six
forty Live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 1 (14:04):
You're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand KFI.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
AM six forty Live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app. It's
Saturdays with Tiffany and I am absolutely delighted to talk
to this next guest, Brad Johnson caught the design bug
from his father when Howard Johnson, his father, became the
owner of popular night spot The Seller on Manhattan's Upper
West Side in nineteen seventy three. The elder Johnson turned
(14:31):
it into a celebration of black culture. Brad Johnson's first project,
the nightclub and blues lounge called The Roxbury, opened in
nineteen eighty nine. It was a hit and became the
setting of the nineteen ninety eight Chris Catan, Will Ferrell
comedy A Night at the Roxbury, profiled by cultural icons
(14:52):
such as Food and Wine Magazine, The LA Times, The
New York Times and Vanity Fair and many others. Brad
has himself self become a celebrity in a land of
celebrities who patronize his businesses. Basketball legend Norm Nixon and
actor Denzel Washington are both friends and business partners, after all.
(15:13):
In twenty eleven, Brad and his wife Linda opened the
mid century modern restaurant Post and Beam, one of my
favorites in LA's Baldwin Hills neighborhood. The restaurant became a
cornerstone of the La culinary scene. I'll let Vanity Fair
tell this last part. Quote. A man of many pursuits,
(15:33):
Brad Johnson has opened foody hotspots and clubs on both coasts.
You might credit the fact that he's dinner club royalty,
the son of New York restaurant tour Howard Johnson, who
owned the stars studded Upper West Side restaurant The Cellar
in the seventies. But Brad has made has made a
name of his own end quote, and I am so
(15:57):
very grateful, so very honored to have mister Brat Johnson
himself here on Saturdays with Tiffany Brat. Thank you so
much for being with us.
Speaker 3 (16:08):
Hey, Tiffany, thank you. It's such an honor and a
pleasure to be Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (16:12):
You are most welcome. Let's jump right into it, because
I have quite a few questions for you. I've been
told Brat that a day, a day is twenty four hours.
That's the common knowledge. A day is twenty four hours.
But you seem to have thirty four or thirty six
or thirty eight in yours. How have you found the
time to launch and manage so many businesses.
Speaker 3 (16:38):
You know, Tiffany, I mean, yeah, there is a certain
amount of time management involved. I think that, you know,
restaurants require presence, at least the way that I approach them,
and what I've enjoyed, I think most about the business.
And actually you stated in the opening that my first
place was Roxbury. That was my first place in Los Angeles.
(17:02):
I actually opened three restaurants in New York. And I
also teamed up with Nick Ashfan and Valerie Simpson to
help them reconceptualize a restaurant that they had opened in
the eighties that we converted into a cabaret and had
folks like the Ohio Players and ROBERTA.
Speaker 4 (17:22):
Flack and wow what have you.
Speaker 3 (17:23):
So, you know, yeah, there's a lot to squeeze into
a day, but I manage and with a lot of
help my wife and great people that we've had working
with us.
Speaker 4 (17:33):
I've been very fortunate.
Speaker 2 (17:34):
You do a wonderful job. And I know that you're
welcome that you grew up in New York. I am
a New York native. I was raised in southern California. However,
so my claim to New York is a bit limited.
Yours is not. So let me ask you this. For you,
what evokes the strongest memories of New York? Taste, sound, smell,
(17:59):
what's for you really stands out for your memories?
Speaker 4 (18:03):
Oh, that's interesting. It's a good question. You know. I
would say sounds, because.
Speaker 3 (18:08):
New York never sleeps, and that the saying goes and
almost no matter where you live, if you open your window,
you're going to hear the street below, whether it's taxi
cabs and horns blaring, or you know, whatever the sounds are.
I certainly know the sounds of the city. But you know,
(18:29):
great smells great. You know, places to walk past bakeries.
There's a great bakery on the East Side, Dumas where
my father and I used to go for response and
just walking up to the front door and smelling those
buttery almonds, pistanse.
Speaker 4 (18:43):
The front door man. That that brings back the memories.
Speaker 3 (18:46):
So you have sights down, smells all of that, Tiffany,
it's all. It's all in there in the New York
in the New.
Speaker 2 (18:53):
York minute, and the New York minute definitely better than
the subway smell. I thought you might cite that as
a core memory.
Speaker 4 (19:00):
Yeah, the subway. You know, I loved the subway.
Speaker 3 (19:02):
I mean it was the mode of transportation that certain
times today made the most sense.
Speaker 4 (19:08):
When the above ground.
Speaker 3 (19:10):
Traffic was at a halt, you'd get anywhere in the
city relatively quickly.
Speaker 4 (19:14):
And I love the subway.
Speaker 2 (19:16):
New York awesome. Let me ask you a question, speaking
of taste, a sense of taste. You've been at the
forefront of culinary culture for a long time. Although you
look like you're forty, you've been at it for quite
a while. Was the restaurant business always your goal or
did you have other interests outside of food?
Speaker 4 (19:35):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (19:35):
You know, I had a basketball scholarship going to college
and went to UMass and Amherst, and you know, like
many athletes at that level, you know, I had dreams
of playing professional basketball that did not happen, And fortunately
my dad had a restaurant that I started working from
the time I was seventeen and after school, rather than
(19:55):
going to Europe and playing basketball, which a lot of
my friends and and teammates were doing, I decided it
was time to go into business with my father. And
I had already had a taste of it, as I mentioned,
and it just really became something that felt very natural
to me. And my father was a fantastic mentor and
(20:17):
a great dad, a great friend. I'm so grateful that
I had a dad like him, and and I hope
that my son Bryce looks at me and thinks some
of the same things that I think about my dad,
who's no longer with us.
Speaker 2 (20:32):
Well, i've certainly seen your social media and if pictures
are any indication your son looks at you with the
utmost of admiration and respect, you're doing something right.
Speaker 4 (20:44):
Thank you. I'd like to think so thank you. He's
a good guy. He's definitely a good guy, not a problem. Rad.
Speaker 2 (20:49):
We're actually going to take a break. But on the
other side of the break, I'd love to get into
The Roxbury. I want you to take us through a
memorable night at the Roxbury, and then I'm gonna ask
you a question about what you would curate as a
casual dinner for a small group of friends. But we'll
do that on the other side of the break, can
you hang out with us? I'm here wonderful. We're talking
(21:13):
with Brad Johnson, restaurant tour and business icon from coast
to coast right here on Saturdays with Tiffany. It's KFI
AM six forty Live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 1 (21:25):
You're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand KFI.
Speaker 2 (21:30):
AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app. It's
Saturdays with Tiffany and we've been talking to Brad Johnson.
He's a restaurant tour, a business icon. He started The Roxbury.
He started Post and Beam restaurant, which is unfortunately no
longer with us, one of my favorites. I missed the
Roxbury era. But in speaking about the Roxbury, can you
(21:53):
take us back to a memorable night at the club.
Something that really stands out for you.
Speaker 3 (22:01):
Yeah, sure, you know it was we took over the
old Imperial Gardens on Sunset, which was kind of run
down Japanese restaurant right on the border of West Hollywood
just below the Sunset, the Chateau Marmont, and you know,
as you mentioned, it became quite popular. The first party
(22:24):
that we had was actually Elton John through for Bernie
Talp and his songwriting partner, and you know, all of
Hollywood came out for that. We had a gentleman in
the music business, Michael Littman, who was one of our
investors that Norm Nixon helped me to bring in and
Michael through that party.
Speaker 4 (22:39):
But I'll tell you one of the memories that stands.
Speaker 3 (22:42):
Out for me, Tiffany, was, you know, we used to
get a crowd out in front. I mean, you were,
you know, probably eight or nine at this point.
Speaker 4 (22:49):
You were not in that lineup.
Speaker 3 (22:54):
On the other side of the velvet rope. But I
used to go down there and peek into the crowd
just to see if I recognized anyone and make sure
that the folks that I wanted to get in that
looked like us, especially we're getting in, and there was
a young man that looked a little nerdy and had
on some glasses and looked like he didn't quite belong.
Speaker 4 (23:13):
There and didn't know what to do.
Speaker 3 (23:14):
And I singled him out and called him forward and
dropped the rope for him and brought him upstairs. That
guy was John Singleton, and we became friends from that
point until unfortunately he died too soon, and we were
in the midst of meetings with Netflix and talking about
a documentary about the US A restaurant. So it was
(23:35):
quite sad. See John goo. That was certainly a memorable meeting.
Speaker 2 (23:39):
I definitely definitely grew up admiring John Singleton's work. I
am a graduate of USC and Higher Learning.
Speaker 3 (23:47):
He was a student at USC at the time.
Speaker 2 (23:50):
Yeah, a lot of the work, a lot of his
early work used the backdrop backdrop of USC or similar
to inform what it was that he was trying to
pour tray. So I definitely definitely wish that documentary could
have come out. But it speaks a lot to your
influence and your place in Hollywood, beyond just being a
(24:12):
business owner or a restaurant tour People trusted you, people
went to you, for that cultural commentary. Let me yeah,
go ahead, I'm sorry, no, no, no, you okay?
Speaker 3 (24:26):
Cool?
Speaker 2 (24:26):
Well, you know what, let's let's we could fawn over
a lot of your accomplishments and the list is extremely long.
Let me ask you this, speaking of lists, if you
were to curate a casual dinner menu for a group
of friends, whatever those friends are, whatever their backgrounds may be,
what are you, Brad Johnson, putting on your menu?
Speaker 3 (24:51):
You know, Tiffany, I'm a pretty casual guy. Interestingly enough,
you know, I got in the restaurant business before the
term foodie was a thing, and I watched food culture,
you know, really evolve over the decades. But I really
am kind of rooted in simplicity.
Speaker 4 (25:08):
You know.
Speaker 3 (25:09):
My mom was Italian, my dad was Black, so I
grew up with a mix of Southern and Italian food.
But we spent a lot of summers in New England,
and so I would say an answer to your question,
my ideal dinner would probably be a lobster bake and
a great fire, a great group of friends around the
summer evening and corn on the cob, great main lobster
(25:34):
and stories until the until the night gets very late
and I don't think I could do it any better
than that.
Speaker 2 (25:43):
So the next time you have a lobster bake, I'll
make sure that I go ahead and four that address
for the invitation.
Speaker 4 (25:50):
Can you get the invite?
Speaker 2 (25:51):
I love a lobster bake and a seafood boil. Sticking
with the seafood theme, you launched the restaurant Post and Beam.
I'm a huge fan of Posts Beam. Again, I'm sorry
to see it go. I was really happy to see
it grow. The shrimp and grits were beyond beyond.
Speaker 4 (26:09):
Oh.
Speaker 2 (26:09):
I don't know how you guys did that, where that
came from, but the base and I could just get
into that and turn it into a food show. But
I really enjoyed the environment of Post and Beam, and
it wasn't an area of South LA that didn't really
have higher end restaurants, especially those that were black owned.
What were the difficulties and rewards of being in the
(26:29):
community of Baldwin Hills, Yeah, thank you for asking that.
Speaker 4 (26:33):
Well.
Speaker 3 (26:33):
I have to give a lot of credit to Ken
Lombard who directed me to the opportunity.
Speaker 4 (26:39):
He was a partner with the.
Speaker 3 (26:41):
Quintin Primo at the time, who owned the mall and
wanted to do it what they called the signature restaurant.
Debbie Allen and our dance Academy were directly across the
parking lot. As you know in Norman, Debbie had been
kind of a north star for me, So that was
an easy one.
Speaker 4 (26:57):
And then Govin.
Speaker 3 (26:58):
Armstrong came on board, who I just I always wanted
to be in business with Goban. I loved his food,
I loved his approach.
Speaker 2 (27:04):
Oh yeah, and.
Speaker 3 (27:06):
The shrimp and grits were originally that was originally a
Govin's recipe. Of course, John Cleveland, who we sold the
restaurant to in twenty nineteen, kept the tradition. Going shrimp
and grits was one of the last thing that I
ate before Posted Being shut down. And you know that
the development at the mall was planned for a long time.
(27:26):
Posting Being had a fifteen year life, which in restaurants
in LA is like fifty years somewhere.
Speaker 4 (27:33):
So, well, we're all sad to see you go. John's
going to be back.
Speaker 3 (27:37):
We're going to help him come to be reborn somewhere
else through our company post and Being Hospitality. So just
keep an eye out for that.
Speaker 2 (27:45):
Oh that's fantastic. News. What's next for you, Brad Johnson?
Hopefully a book that's my own selfish interest, But what's
next for you? And how can people keep up with
what you're doing?
Speaker 4 (28:00):
Thank you to me?
Speaker 3 (28:00):
Yeah, you know, I do like to write. I have
been writing out more on that maybe another time, but
I'm actually I have a couple of projects going on.
I am the cultural and hospitality ambassador to both the
Chinese Theater which is now the TCL in Hollywood, and
the Dolby Theater, so I'll be bringing shows and strategic
(28:21):
relationships there. I am a advisor and board member on
an immersive technology company called Hyperreal, so we'll be doing
some We're going to kind of be in the immersive
space and theatrical entertainment, so that's pretty exciting. My company,
Posting Beam Hospitality, is consulting on a new film and
(28:43):
TV studio just directly across from what Posting Beam was
called Stocker Creative, So there's a rooftop restaurant there and
the ground for a quick service restaurant we are consulting
on as a five acre very exciting, big deal for
that part of town. And then of course, my podcast
Corner Table Talk still doing that and got great guests
(29:04):
coming up.
Speaker 4 (29:04):
So yeah, I'm busy enough.
Speaker 2 (29:10):
And yet still somehow you find ways to add to
the list. Brat Johnson, thank you so very much for
coming on Saturdays with Tiffany, cultural ambassador, advisor restaurants or
business owner, lobster baker. I would say, seafood, broiler and
all around cool guy. Mister Brad Johnson, thank you so
(29:31):
much for coming on with.
Speaker 4 (29:32):
Us, Tiffany. Thank you for having me.
Speaker 2 (29:35):
You're most welcome. It's Saturdays with Tiffany right here on
KFI AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeartRadio
Speaker 1 (29:42):
App KFI AM six forty on demand
You're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
Kf I AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeart
Radio as Saturdays with Tiffany. And now it's time for
our deeper dive. That's water deeper dies, that's water segments.
That sounds like a number two, a little tip the
loop loop sounds a little slahlash. There's a lot of
(00:28):
there's a lot of that going on with what I'm
where I'm going to talk about, let's just say, and
there have been some porta potty issues where I'm going
to talk about as well. Lot of that. So this
weekend marks the second weekend of Coachella. First weekend last
weekend did not go off without a hitch, like the
(00:49):
aforementioned toilet issues. The first day, people were complaining about
a lack of resources, a lack of toilets, shower and
the like. And you can imagine out there in the desert,
out there in the Coachella Valley in Indio, hot temperatures,
lots and lots of people drinking other things don't mix
(01:12):
well for your gastro intestinal issues. But that's not what
this segment is fully about. We're going to talk about
how it actually has gotten to this point where Coachella
is this amazing juggernaut of culture, a compound, if you will,
of all things musical, converging upon the desert for two
(01:36):
consecutive weekends. Where it came from, why it started, and
how it's now gotten to this place where it is
so big that it sells out as soon as the lineups,
not even actually as soon as the dates are announced
one year in advance. And you'll see in a couple
of weeks when they announced the Coachella organization, when they
(02:00):
announced what the next date will be, you'll hear all
about how the event has sold out. So let me
get into it for our deeper dives segment. What exactly
is Coachella? You might be asking, why do people care?
Why do people do this every single year in the
desert with these high prices and throngs of people. Well,
(02:21):
originally Coachella was launched as a kind of f you
so to speak to Ticketmaster, and the very first concert
in nineteen ninety three, which was not called Coachella at
the time, was headlined by band Pearl Jam. You've probably
heard of them. Amazingly historic band Pearl Jam, who only
(02:45):
performed at the Empire Polo Club while boycotting venues controlled
by Ticketmaster. They had a feud with Ticketmaster. Pearl Jam did,
and they said, you know what, We're not going to
perform at U venues where you say we should. We're
not going. We're gonna take ourselves all the way out
to Indio to the Coachella Valley and this Empire Polo
(03:10):
Club and throw a big party and have a concert.
And a lot of people came. The festival was started
back then in ninety three with the aim of booking
underground artists who weren't necessarily chart successes. You had a
lot of artists who were relatively unknown. Pearl Jam was not,
(03:32):
but these others didn't necessarily have a major, major, massive audience.
But since then in nineteen ninety three, the Empire Polo
Club has become a place where emerging musicians and global
artists can come together across these two weekends.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
Some of the most.
Speaker 2 (03:52):
Legendary Coachella performances include Kanye West in twenty eleven. You
had a really really impactful set. This is kind of
pre what we know Kanye to be now, back when
the music really mattered and he was booked at Coachella
Beyonce in twenty and eighteen. They actually renamed Coachella to
(04:15):
the what was it Beachella Bchella. The band Black Pink
in twenty and twenty three drew a humongous crowd, and
there was the moment in twenty twelve when a hologram
walked on to the stage and who was that hologram
of Tupac Shakur, the rapper Tupac Shakur. You've also had
(04:40):
Harry Styles in twenty twenty two, yet ac DC in
twenty fifteen, Radiohead in twenty seventeen, and even Prince in
two thousand and eight. The list of performers at Coachella
goes on and on and on. It's vast, and it does.
It does include those bands artists who are not necessarily
(05:02):
as global, but you do have the massive stars like
your Bad Bunny or your Childish Gambino or You're no doubt,
Calvin Harris said, ACDC, eminem radio Head. And it goes
on and on and on. The choice of location and
putting this festival in the middle of the desert was
(05:24):
crucial to the identity of what this festival wanted to portray.
They chose the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, just
two and a half hours away, because of its vast
open spaces and stunning desert backdrop. Now you see that
backdrop all over social media and attendees TikTok feeds or
(05:46):
Instagram pictures. It makes for a very picture esque scenery
and it provided the perfect canvas for what was then
a very ambitious project. The valley offered ample space and
also a sense of escapism that would become integral to
(06:07):
the Coachella experience. When we come back, I'll tell you
a little bit more about that very first festival, and
then we'll also get into some of the growing pains
that the Coachella Festival has been experiencing, especially when it
comes to expansion and the effect on the outer lying
(06:27):
areas in the Indio Valley or city of Indio, because
not everyone is happy with Coachella being there, And I'll
tell you more about that. On the other side of
Deeper Dives, it's KFI AM six forty live everywhere on
the iHeartRadio app. Tiffany Hobbs here with you until seven.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
You're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (06:50):
I am six forty Live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
It's Saturdays with Tiffany and we're in the middle of
our Deeper Dives segment talking about Coachella. What is it,
why is it such a big deal, what has it influenced,
and what's the future for Coachella. We're in Weekend two.
This is the finale, the Grand Finale. You have these
(07:14):
major headliners and people have flocked to Indio and the
Empire Polo Club to see some of these artists. And
it has not been without controversy. And we'll get to
what some of that controversy includes in just a moment. So,
despite the star studded lineup year after year and it's
(07:36):
been going on now since nineteen ninety three. Nineteen ninety
three was the inaugural show with Pearl Jam, Coachella deals
with something very unique to the desert and what is
that heat? Heat heat heat. It is hot in the
desert and it always happens to be extremely hot around
(07:58):
this middle part of April when the festival takes place,
just this week, and we're looking at triple digit temperatures
and that can cause a lot of issues. But attendees, performers,
they have to maintain a sort of resilience. Not resilience
is tested as the temperatures sore. But that's not the
(08:18):
only thing that's kind of given Coachella a sawer taste
in some people's mouths. There have been major financial hurdles.
Those financial hurdles with the inaugural event resulted in losing
about eight hundred and fifty thousand dollars. That very very
first Coachella lost eight hundred and fifty thousand dollars despite
(08:42):
selling around twenty five thousand tickets. Even though you have
all of these attendees. A struggle back then was breaking even,
breaking even, and compared to today's standards, it was a
starting point back then for what would become a cultural
(09:04):
juggernaut and an economic juggernaut. The two thousand festival was
canceled due to financial concerns, so twenty five years ago,
they didn't actually have Coachella that day, or that weekend
or those two weekends because they could not get the
large scale music event to sell enough tickets. But the
(09:26):
organizer's persistence saw the festival return the next year in
two thousand and one as a single day event. They
were trying something different and that single day event not
only was chaotic, but it barely broke even That was
the last time they tried to do a one day
festival in Coachella. Now, the Coachella experience has evolved. As
(09:51):
the festival has grown, so has its offerings. Coachella has
been transformed into a multifaceted cultural experience. There's large scale
art installations, and it actually turns the Empire Polo Club
into a temporary outdoor museum. They have added all of
these visual spectacles to complement the musical performances. Fashion also
(10:16):
is really big at Coachella, and it plays an increasingly
significant role in the festival's identity. People wait to see
what others will wear, and people plant out their outfits
a year, probably in advance, because what they're wearing is
practically as important, if not more important, than who they're seeing.
(10:37):
There's been a huge economic impact on the region of Indio.
The Coachella's festival growth has had a profound impact on
that area, transforming the local economy in major ways. The
visitors during the festival period over those two weeks, and
even some days before and some days after, provide a
(10:59):
substantial boosts to those local businesses from hotels and restaurants
to transportation services, and that economic injection over those two
weeks has become a vital part of the area's annual
financial cycle. People depend on it, and when it's not there,
(11:19):
it's a problem. But as iconic as it is, Coachella
has come under fire for being extremely problematic. And here's why.
Some cite the festival as shallow and exclusive, saying that
the insanely high ticket prices and equally high prices of
(11:39):
food and drinks once you're inside the venue really only
play to the reputation that the festival is for the
one percent. Aside from the economic division, even more uncomfortable
is the fact that Coachella has been faced with a
lot of sexual harassment allegations. In twenty eighteen, teen, Vogue
(12:04):
described the festival as being rampant with sexual harassment and assault,
and people cited that they were groped numerous times in
a period of just ten hours. And after that, Golden Voice,
who puts on Coachella, said that they would introduce services
(12:25):
to put a halt to all of this sexual harassment,
with safety ambassadors available on site. And we've seen those
kinds of ambassadors are on the metro. Well, Coachella has
the same thing, and it's hard to say if they've
made an impact yet on whether or not people feel
more safe. But regardless of all of these aspects, Coachella
(12:47):
remains an extremely popular thing to visit. People again flock
year after year. Kayla, have you ever been? I have
not ever been to Coachella either. I hear horror stories.
Well maybe I'm being dramatic, but people having to go
to the bathroom and can't get away, so they just
squat right there and go in the middle of the crowd.
That's fun. Yeah, people losing toenails. I just camping out overheating.
(13:13):
It's just not my vibe. I don't love any artists
that much. I don't know whose vibe it is to
sit and stand amongst people while they're defecating and urinating
apparently thousands, because that's how many go to Coachella. Harry
Styles is not that important for me, No, not even
a little bit. It's why I stay home and watch
YouTube and I get all the performances and I get
the energy safely from my bed and a bathroom and
a bathroom not too far away. There you go. It's
(13:35):
been fun. Everyone, Thanks very much for listening to our
deeper dive segment. Next, we're gonna talk to Brad Johnson,
restaurant tour business icon. You have to listen to this interview.
You know him, you know The Roxbury, he started it.
You know Post and Beam, the restaurant, he started it,
and so many more businesses. Get ready for this spectacular interview.
(13:58):
On the other side of the break. KFI AM six
forty Live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 1 (14:04):
You're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand KFI.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
AM six forty Live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app. It's
Saturdays with Tiffany and I am absolutely delighted to talk
to this next guest, Brad Johnson caught the design bug
from his father when Howard Johnson, his father, became the
owner of popular night spot The Seller on Manhattan's Upper
West Side in nineteen seventy three. The elder Johnson turned
(14:31):
it into a celebration of black culture. Brad Johnson's first project,
the nightclub and blues lounge called The Roxbury, opened in
nineteen eighty nine. It was a hit and became the
setting of the nineteen ninety eight Chris Catan, Will Ferrell
comedy A Night at the Roxbury, profiled by cultural icons
(14:52):
such as Food and Wine Magazine, The LA Times, The
New York Times and Vanity Fair and many others. Brad
has himself self become a celebrity in a land of
celebrities who patronize his businesses. Basketball legend Norm Nixon and
actor Denzel Washington are both friends and business partners, after all.
(15:13):
In twenty eleven, Brad and his wife Linda opened the
mid century modern restaurant Post and Beam, one of my
favorites in LA's Baldwin Hills neighborhood. The restaurant became a
cornerstone of the La culinary scene. I'll let Vanity Fair
tell this last part. Quote. A man of many pursuits,
(15:33):
Brad Johnson has opened foody hotspots and clubs on both coasts.
You might credit the fact that he's dinner club royalty,
the son of New York restaurant tour Howard Johnson, who
owned the stars studded Upper West Side restaurant The Cellar
in the seventies. But Brad has made has made a
name of his own end quote, and I am so
(15:57):
very grateful, so very honored to have mister Brat Johnson
himself here on Saturdays with Tiffany Brat. Thank you so
much for being with us.
Speaker 3 (16:08):
Hey, Tiffany, thank you. It's such an honor and a
pleasure to be Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (16:12):
You are most welcome. Let's jump right into it, because
I have quite a few questions for you. I've been
told Brat that a day, a day is twenty four hours.
That's the common knowledge. A day is twenty four hours.
But you seem to have thirty four or thirty six
or thirty eight in yours. How have you found the
time to launch and manage so many businesses.
Speaker 3 (16:38):
You know, Tiffany, I mean, yeah, there is a certain
amount of time management involved. I think that, you know,
restaurants require presence, at least the way that I approach them,
and what I've enjoyed, I think most about the business.
And actually you stated in the opening that my first
place was Roxbury. That was my first place in Los Angeles.
(17:02):
I actually opened three restaurants in New York. And I
also teamed up with Nick Ashfan and Valerie Simpson to
help them reconceptualize a restaurant that they had opened in
the eighties that we converted into a cabaret and had
folks like the Ohio Players and ROBERTA.
Speaker 4 (17:22):
Flack and wow what have you.
Speaker 3 (17:23):
So, you know, yeah, there's a lot to squeeze into
a day, but I manage and with a lot of
help my wife and great people that we've had working
with us.
Speaker 4 (17:33):
I've been very fortunate.
Speaker 2 (17:34):
You do a wonderful job. And I know that you're
welcome that you grew up in New York. I am
a New York native. I was raised in southern California. However,
so my claim to New York is a bit limited.
Yours is not. So let me ask you this. For you,
what evokes the strongest memories of New York? Taste, sound, smell,
(17:59):
what's for you really stands out for your memories?
Speaker 4 (18:03):
Oh, that's interesting. It's a good question. You know. I
would say sounds, because.
Speaker 3 (18:08):
New York never sleeps, and that the saying goes and
almost no matter where you live, if you open your window,
you're going to hear the street below, whether it's taxi
cabs and horns blaring, or you know, whatever the sounds are.
I certainly know the sounds of the city. But you know,
(18:29):
great smells great. You know, places to walk past bakeries.
There's a great bakery on the East Side, Dumas where
my father and I used to go for response and
just walking up to the front door and smelling those
buttery almonds, pistanse.
Speaker 4 (18:43):
The front door man. That that brings back the memories.
Speaker 3 (18:46):
So you have sights down, smells all of that, Tiffany,
it's all. It's all in there in the New York
in the New.
Speaker 2 (18:53):
York minute, and the New York minute definitely better than
the subway smell. I thought you might cite that as
a core memory.
Speaker 4 (19:00):
Yeah, the subway. You know, I loved the subway.
Speaker 3 (19:02):
I mean it was the mode of transportation that certain
times today made the most sense.
Speaker 4 (19:08):
When the above ground.
Speaker 3 (19:10):
Traffic was at a halt, you'd get anywhere in the
city relatively quickly.
Speaker 4 (19:14):
And I love the subway.
Speaker 2 (19:16):
New York awesome. Let me ask you a question, speaking
of taste, a sense of taste. You've been at the
forefront of culinary culture for a long time. Although you
look like you're forty, you've been at it for quite
a while. Was the restaurant business always your goal or
did you have other interests outside of food?
Speaker 4 (19:35):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (19:35):
You know, I had a basketball scholarship going to college
and went to UMass and Amherst, and you know, like
many athletes at that level, you know, I had dreams
of playing professional basketball that did not happen, And fortunately
my dad had a restaurant that I started working from
the time I was seventeen and after school, rather than
(19:55):
going to Europe and playing basketball, which a lot of
my friends and and teammates were doing, I decided it
was time to go into business with my father. And
I had already had a taste of it, as I mentioned,
and it just really became something that felt very natural
to me. And my father was a fantastic mentor and
(20:17):
a great dad, a great friend. I'm so grateful that
I had a dad like him, and and I hope
that my son Bryce looks at me and thinks some
of the same things that I think about my dad,
who's no longer with us.
Speaker 2 (20:32):
Well, i've certainly seen your social media and if pictures
are any indication your son looks at you with the
utmost of admiration and respect, you're doing something right.
Speaker 4 (20:44):
Thank you. I'd like to think so thank you. He's
a good guy. He's definitely a good guy, not a problem. Rad.
Speaker 2 (20:49):
We're actually going to take a break. But on the
other side of the break, I'd love to get into
The Roxbury. I want you to take us through a
memorable night at the Roxbury, and then I'm gonna ask
you a question about what you would curate as a
casual dinner for a small group of friends. But we'll
do that on the other side of the break, can
you hang out with us? I'm here wonderful. We're talking
(21:13):
with Brad Johnson, restaurant tour and business icon from coast
to coast right here on Saturdays with Tiffany. It's KFI
AM six forty Live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 1 (21:25):
You're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand KFI.
Speaker 2 (21:30):
AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app. It's
Saturdays with Tiffany and we've been talking to Brad Johnson.
He's a restaurant tour, a business icon. He started The Roxbury.
He started Post and Beam restaurant, which is unfortunately no
longer with us, one of my favorites. I missed the
Roxbury era. But in speaking about the Roxbury, can you
(21:53):
take us back to a memorable night at the club.
Something that really stands out for you.
Speaker 3 (22:01):
Yeah, sure, you know it was we took over the
old Imperial Gardens on Sunset, which was kind of run
down Japanese restaurant right on the border of West Hollywood
just below the Sunset, the Chateau Marmont, and you know,
as you mentioned, it became quite popular. The first party
(22:24):
that we had was actually Elton John through for Bernie
Talp and his songwriting partner, and you know, all of
Hollywood came out for that. We had a gentleman in
the music business, Michael Littman, who was one of our
investors that Norm Nixon helped me to bring in and
Michael through that party.
Speaker 4 (22:39):
But I'll tell you one of the memories that stands.
Speaker 3 (22:42):
Out for me, Tiffany, was, you know, we used to
get a crowd out in front. I mean, you were,
you know, probably eight or nine at this point.
Speaker 4 (22:49):
You were not in that lineup.
Speaker 3 (22:54):
On the other side of the velvet rope. But I
used to go down there and peek into the crowd
just to see if I recognized anyone and make sure
that the folks that I wanted to get in that
looked like us, especially we're getting in, and there was
a young man that looked a little nerdy and had
on some glasses and looked like he didn't quite belong.
Speaker 4 (23:13):
There and didn't know what to do.
Speaker 3 (23:14):
And I singled him out and called him forward and
dropped the rope for him and brought him upstairs. That
guy was John Singleton, and we became friends from that
point until unfortunately he died too soon, and we were
in the midst of meetings with Netflix and talking about
a documentary about the US A restaurant. So it was
(23:35):
quite sad. See John goo. That was certainly a memorable meeting.
Speaker 2 (23:39):
I definitely definitely grew up admiring John Singleton's work. I
am a graduate of USC and Higher Learning.
Speaker 3 (23:47):
He was a student at USC at the time.
Speaker 2 (23:50):
Yeah, a lot of the work, a lot of his
early work used the backdrop backdrop of USC or similar
to inform what it was that he was trying to
pour tray. So I definitely definitely wish that documentary could
have come out. But it speaks a lot to your
influence and your place in Hollywood, beyond just being a
(24:12):
business owner or a restaurant tour People trusted you, people
went to you, for that cultural commentary. Let me yeah,
go ahead, I'm sorry, no, no, no, you okay?
Speaker 3 (24:26):
Cool?
Speaker 2 (24:26):
Well, you know what, let's let's we could fawn over
a lot of your accomplishments and the list is extremely long.
Let me ask you this, speaking of lists, if you
were to curate a casual dinner menu for a group
of friends, whatever those friends are, whatever their backgrounds may be,
what are you, Brad Johnson, putting on your menu?
Speaker 3 (24:51):
You know, Tiffany, I'm a pretty casual guy. Interestingly enough,
you know, I got in the restaurant business before the
term foodie was a thing, and I watched food culture,
you know, really evolve over the decades. But I really
am kind of rooted in simplicity.
Speaker 4 (25:08):
You know.
Speaker 3 (25:09):
My mom was Italian, my dad was Black, so I
grew up with a mix of Southern and Italian food.
But we spent a lot of summers in New England,
and so I would say an answer to your question,
my ideal dinner would probably be a lobster bake and
a great fire, a great group of friends around the
summer evening and corn on the cob, great main lobster
(25:34):
and stories until the until the night gets very late
and I don't think I could do it any better
than that.
Speaker 2 (25:43):
So the next time you have a lobster bake, I'll
make sure that I go ahead and four that address
for the invitation.
Speaker 4 (25:50):
Can you get the invite?
Speaker 2 (25:51):
I love a lobster bake and a seafood boil. Sticking
with the seafood theme, you launched the restaurant Post and Beam.
I'm a huge fan of Posts Beam. Again, I'm sorry
to see it go. I was really happy to see
it grow. The shrimp and grits were beyond beyond.
Speaker 4 (26:09):
Oh.
Speaker 2 (26:09):
I don't know how you guys did that, where that
came from, but the base and I could just get
into that and turn it into a food show. But
I really enjoyed the environment of Post and Beam, and
it wasn't an area of South LA that didn't really
have higher end restaurants, especially those that were black owned.
What were the difficulties and rewards of being in the
(26:29):
community of Baldwin Hills, Yeah, thank you for asking that.
Speaker 4 (26:33):
Well.
Speaker 3 (26:33):
I have to give a lot of credit to Ken
Lombard who directed me to the opportunity.
Speaker 4 (26:39):
He was a partner with the.
Speaker 3 (26:41):
Quintin Primo at the time, who owned the mall and
wanted to do it what they called the signature restaurant.
Debbie Allen and our dance Academy were directly across the
parking lot. As you know in Norman, Debbie had been
kind of a north star for me, So that was
an easy one.
Speaker 4 (26:57):
And then Govin.
Speaker 3 (26:58):
Armstrong came on board, who I just I always wanted
to be in business with Goban. I loved his food,
I loved his approach.
Speaker 2 (27:04):
Oh yeah, and.
Speaker 3 (27:06):
The shrimp and grits were originally that was originally a
Govin's recipe. Of course, John Cleveland, who we sold the
restaurant to in twenty nineteen, kept the tradition. Going shrimp
and grits was one of the last thing that I
ate before Posted Being shut down. And you know that
the development at the mall was planned for a long time.
(27:26):
Posting Being had a fifteen year life, which in restaurants
in LA is like fifty years somewhere.
Speaker 4 (27:33):
So, well, we're all sad to see you go. John's
going to be back.
Speaker 3 (27:37):
We're going to help him come to be reborn somewhere
else through our company post and Being Hospitality. So just
keep an eye out for that.
Speaker 2 (27:45):
Oh that's fantastic. News. What's next for you, Brad Johnson?
Hopefully a book that's my own selfish interest, But what's
next for you? And how can people keep up with
what you're doing?
Speaker 4 (28:00):
Thank you to me?
Speaker 3 (28:00):
Yeah, you know, I do like to write. I have
been writing out more on that maybe another time, but
I'm actually I have a couple of projects going on.
I am the cultural and hospitality ambassador to both the
Chinese Theater which is now the TCL in Hollywood, and
the Dolby Theater, so I'll be bringing shows and strategic
(28:21):
relationships there. I am a advisor and board member on
an immersive technology company called Hyperreal, so we'll be doing
some We're going to kind of be in the immersive
space and theatrical entertainment, so that's pretty exciting. My company,
Posting Beam Hospitality, is consulting on a new film and
(28:43):
TV studio just directly across from what Posting Beam was
called Stocker Creative, So there's a rooftop restaurant there and
the ground for a quick service restaurant we are consulting
on as a five acre very exciting, big deal for
that part of town. And then of course, my podcast
Corner Table Talk still doing that and got great guests
(29:04):
coming up.
Speaker 4 (29:04):
So yeah, I'm busy enough.
Speaker 2 (29:10):
And yet still somehow you find ways to add to
the list. Brat Johnson, thank you so very much for
coming on Saturdays with Tiffany, cultural ambassador, advisor restaurants or
business owner, lobster baker. I would say, seafood, broiler and
all around cool guy. Mister Brad Johnson, thank you so
(29:31):
much for coming on with.
Speaker 4 (29:32):
Us, Tiffany. Thank you for having me.
Speaker 2 (29:35):
You're most welcome. It's Saturdays with Tiffany right here on
KFI AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeartRadio
Speaker 1 (29:42):
App KFI AM six forty on demand
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