Art & Life with Stanley Ross

Today we’d like to introduce you to Stanley Ross.

Stanley, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
I wouldn’t necessarily say my story is unique, but it started in high school. I wanted to be a chef. I also talked about being a business owner, wanting to own my barbershop. I never limit my visions, I had plans to promote and throw huge events and parties. And then, there were the talks of owning my own brand. At the time, I was a huge fan (and still am) of P Diddy & Jay Z. I knew I wanted to be an entrepreneur, but never knew where to start, how to start and what to start because I had so many ideas. Shortly after, I started designing and playing around with different logos and putting them on different tees. I couldn’t think of a perfect name for the brand and I talked for years and years until one year it clicked! BU$YLIFE. It was 2013 and the crazy part is I had it tattooed all along since 2012. The reason behind the tattoo was because I always abbreviate and play with words, making them shorter or use as a phrase. So when life was going good and everything was smooth, if people would hit me with them, “What up Stan? How you been?” I would say, “BUSY.” Then, if it wasn’t doing so good and things were rough I would reply with, “Man LIFE.” Like life kicking my ass, so I got the word BU$YLIFE tattooed on me. I changed the S to a money sign because One I loved money. Two MONEY is one of the keys to happiness and success so that’s where the name BU$YLIFE came from.

Can you give our readers some background on your work?

“Everybody won’t understand what you’re doing, why you’re doing it, & where you’re trying to go. That’s okay, just focus on getting there.”

Well, I run and own a streetwear, casual wear, and athletic wear brand called Bu$yLifeClothing. I started the brand on April 1st, 2014. I’m the sole designer, marketing & visionary business consultant, event management, and influencer, for @BusyLifeClothing. The brand features: T-shirt’s, hoodies, jogging suits, swimwear, hats, etc. The message behind the brand is pretty simple. I’ve always been the big thinker and always thought outside the box. I wanted the best for myself and my surrounding peers, friends, and family. I was always motived others and I wanted to create a brand to show and motivate people to not be content in life. Go after your aspirations. And I believe we as people get so caught up in the drama and uncomfortable moments in life and a lot of people don’t live up to their potential. My brand is basically to remind and teach the people to live a BU$YLIFE, because if you’re not busy then, there’s something you’re doing wrong which results and getting content and comfortable in the situation that you’re in. What people should know about my designs… I would say to pay close attention to the design. A lot my designs have subliminal meanings to them.

Do you think conditions are generally improving for artists and creative professionals? What more can cities and communities do to improve conditions for artists?
The conditions are pretty fair I believe, there’s a lot more pop up shops, events and a lot more People are interested in arts and be becoming creatives. I believe it’s become easier it’s all about being consistent and believing in your craft. The city like ours is doing a really good job in encouraging artists, I believe Chicago is in a glo stage right now a lot of people out winning right now.

As a creative professional, how do you define success and what quality or characteristic do you feel is essential to success as an creative?
People will quit on you. You gotta get up every day and make sure you never quit on yourself. I define success by accomplishing the goals I set fourth for the brand. Trust me, it’s not easy at all and there’s a lot of hard work that goes on behind the scenes. I like being pretty open about the things my brand go through because I’m also inspiring others who might want to start a brand one day. With Social Media, a lot of people paint these fake lives and make it seem like it’s so easy…like they have it made. In reality they’re possibly going through it, you know. I’m not like that. If I take an L on a product release or anything, I let my followers see that. I’m really vocal in social media which could be good to some and also bad to some, but everyone isn’t going to agree with you and that’s fine. Just like everyone isn’t going to support you. You have to maintain a positive image at all times. Quality is another key factor I use, only the best products for my customers. Communication is also key.

What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
People can see my work on major social media platforms: Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, etc. People can also support in many ways like share post, purchase, likes, turning on post notifications. I also throw annual pop up shops events unveiling exclusive season releases for my different collections, which is always a good time. Also, you will catch a lot of my designs on vh1’s “Black Ink Crew” Season 2 and 3 so far. And a couple vh1’s “Love and Hip Hop” cast mates have been seen with some of my apparel as well.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.busylifeclothing.com
• Email: busylifeclothingbrand@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/busylifeclothing/
• Facebook: @busylifeclothing
• Twitter: @Busylifebrand
• Other: #busylifeclothing

Image Credit:
(Myself @thats_stan) (@ashton_mother lash tech), (tattoo artist/music @phoreverim), ( brand ambassador @princeb_)(college ball star @jordanlweistucker)(model/artist@mocity_jaybee)(fitness
trainer @iamthereadp)(model , @iamkeiththomas), (model @_gregym)(Radio host/@shaggynice),(@jay1gotit

Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.