Headed by John Naderi of Super Street fame, his cohorts Ricky Chu and Justin Kaehler help provide the editorial content. Not much is known about this site and its content and what lies in the future, but Tunerzine.com had the chance to catch up with Naderi and his staff to see what they have up their sleeves. We started with an interview with Ricky Chu who many of you will recognize from Super Street and Project Car magazine.
Q: Let’s have a brief history on every one of you first off. Who are you, what is your background and how did you get involved with the sport compact industry?
Ricky: Ricky Chu. My friends and some readers call me Rikdaddy. I always loved cars from when I was a kid. I took auto shop in high school, which was a pain with all the muscle cars, and then I started learning more about working on them by reading magazines like Super Street, Turbo, Sport Compact Car and Import Tuner. My friend Nick and I used to wrench at his grandparents’ warehouse after hours lowering cars and whatnot. I met the guys from V-spec and Kyosho Racing(Andy Yu, Will Law, Hugh Le) and started hanging out there learning about SR swaps and more in depth installs. Jonny Wong was at Super Street for a while with Rich Chang and the old crew. I did a few freelance stories for them and then got hired full-time when I graduated. After a few years there, we launched a new magazine called Project Car that I was the Editor of.
Q: How did it feel working for Super Street magazine? How was your experiences there and what did you like most about it and dislike most about it?
Ricky: It was great. I had the opportunity that any car enthusiast would kill for. Working at Super Street? That’s like the kid playing pick up games at the park getting a chance at the NBA, but for way less money. Which leads us into the second part of your question. I’d say the money wasn’t the greatest, which nobody believes because I have six cars and one of them is an NSX. But scrimp and save left and right to stretch money out. I think we were faced with a lot of boundaries because of the corporate environment as well. I can’t count how many times the guys and I would get a bit of a tongue lashing when we wrote a bit on the extreme side. Of course, I do respect the fact that a lot of advertisers are more traditional and conservative. But the audience we write to isn’t. Other than that, I think we lost the focus of how we got to where we were. I would have loved to see more interaction with the readers by going to small events and doing giveaways. You know, give back to the loyal readers that support us. Even some community work would have been nice. To show that we’re never too big for our own britches.
Q: So let’s go into the real dirt. Why the sudden departure from the print industry and into the Internet?
Ricky: I’ve converted into a tree hugger and printing magazines takes up too much paper. Plus, I saw this movie called The Net and I think these computer things teamed up with this “Internet” are the next big wave of the future. OK. Not really.
I saw our print circulation numbers dropping, which is always a no-no. I talked to Nads and Craig (our CEO) regarding the site when I was still working on Project Car and it sounded interesting. I didn’t want to leave a magazine that Will Law and I put together in his garage, but when opportunity knocks you have to at least look through the peephole. I believed in what they were doing and really felt I could contribute if I jumped on board. I figure you only live once so take some chances, have no regrets and never look back. Plus they promised me a full shop to work on cars, a bar, pool table, skateboards, and steak. I’m so easy to please.
Q: What are your goals with this new venture? What do you guys hope to accomplish and what will you guys be doing differently to set yourselves apart?
Ricky: I’d like to give a shot of adrenaline into our industry. People say that the sport compact industry is dying, but I disagree. I think it’s just gotten a bit complacent because there hasn’t been anything new and revolutionary to spark things up again. I think if we keep our standards up and provide quality content people will keep coming back to the Rice Boy for more. When I first started at Super Street it was around when the first “movie” came out and everyone was ballin’. Our circ and page count was at an all-time high, all the advertisers were flourishing, and the events were packed. People were excited about fixing up their cars. That’s what I want to see again.
Q: Give us some inside information on the site’s content. What can your future readers expect to see from the site? Are you guys planning to focus on one certain market and demographic?
Ricky: Everything you’ve seen us do before but in a much crazier fashion. We have the beta that you saw, but that’s nowhere near what we’re going to have at our launch. Tons of content with daily updates. Car features, tech, behind the scenes, new car reviews, parties and that’s just a small percentage. You really can’t go wrong. Riceboytv.com is not your typical website.
Q: What are some of the struggles you guys have experienced so far in launching this start up? Where do you guys see yourselves a year from now?
Ricky: Getting all the office stuff done was a pain. In the past, Nads and I had people that took care of this stuff for us. Now we’re running around like a couple of idiots looking for furniture, choosing carpet color and putting together office chairs. It’s a great experience though, without a doubt. Also, just trying to solidify the content of the website. Obviously, we want it to be the best we can put out so we’re constantly throwing ideas back and forth. If it can be done, we want to do it.
Q: Everyone has this perceived notion that Primedia, now Source Interlink, is this evil empire. So… is it?
Ricky: Evil? I wouldn’t go as far as to say that. They are a big corporation that has investors and a ton of debt to deal with. I never talked much to the big wigs there except when they’d tell me I couldn’t have a raise. The employees on our level are great. I still keep in touch with all of them and they’re working through of ton of challenges. If it is evil, then it is a necessary evil because they do own a giant share of the automotive magazines out there not to mention the newsstands and candy racks. You gotta have candy.
Q: What are the biggest perks of being involved in the industry and being in the position that you guys are in?
Ricky: Just being able to have resources available to us whether it be parts, facilities, dyno or whatever. When I’m stumped on an install, I know I can call up certain dudes in the middle of the night to get some support. Also, I like that I can help out my friends when they need it. A lot of them are in the industry, so if I’m able to promote their products or services through some stories it makes me feel good.
Q: Let’s talk about the industry itself. Where do you guys see it heading for 2008? Drag racing, drifting, time attack…give us your feedback on all of it including trends and styles.
Ricky: Drag racing is going to have to do something really spectacular to get back to where they were six years ago. Drifting has been pulling much more spectators. I think if there were a way to make Time Attack races more accessible to the public, people would come see it. Also, if spectators were able to see more of the track, they’d be more . In regards to the cars, I like how everyone is going back to the clean and simple look.
Q: What’s the craziest thing a ‘fan’ has ever done to you guys?
Ricky: Most of them just write in to me, which is cool. It takes a lot of courage to write a fan letter to someone, especially if it’s a guy to a guy. I really appreciate the effort. I think one fan letter fades away a thousand hate mails. When someone tells me that one of my stories inspired them to build their car, finish school, or become a write it means so much to me. Other than that, someone drew me a birthday card and sent me a bunch of Omaha Steaks coupons because I love steak so much. Also, one of them is supposed to do a crazy painting for my office. I suggested one with my shirt off, all yoked out, and doing a 360 Tomahawk dunk with my NSX in the background. But, hey, that’s just a suggestion. We’ll see what they come up with.