Skip to main content

The Manual may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site.

The Five Things I Can’t Live Without: Multi-Hyphenate Amani Olu

five things cant live without multi hyphenate amani olu
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Just call Amani Olu a modern-day Renaissance man. A Brooklynite who was born and raised in Philadelphia, Olu wears many hats. He’s an artist, who has done his lie-detector performance pieces a the Spring/Break art fair and Garis & Hahn; a publicist, an editor at M Daily and a curator. He does so many things, we can barely keep up with him (we’re sure we forgot to mention many of the other things he does.). With such a hectic schedule, Olu depends on a few things to keep him going. Here, he tells The Manual about the five things he can’t live without.

The Story of English
“I’ve been doing some research on African American Vernacular English for a series of paintings I plan to make. I thought it important to start from the beginning, so lately I’ve been reading “The Story of English.” It’s a fascinating book about how the world came to speak the English language, taking readers back to its Anglo-Saxon origins some two thousand years ago to its present day.”
The Story of English, $12.76 at amazon.com.

Moleskine Notebook
“I take probably 7 to 10 meetings a week, so it’s important to have my Moleskin notebook. I prefer the small, black one: it’s classic and chic. It makes a nice statement, says that I’m a minimalist: I only write down the things that are important, like resolutions, Robert’s Rules style.”
Moleskine Notebook, $12.95 at moleskine.com.

Mayfourteenth Sunglasses
“I have a pair of Mayfourteenth sunglasses that I wear everywhere, sometimes in doors, a move taken from the playbook of rappers and other cultural icons, like Sid Vicious. The frames are one-of-a-kind, handmade from recycled material and made in Buenos Aires. These shades are in a league of their own and take the lead when I’m having an uninspired style day.”
Visit mayfourteenth.com for more information.

G.H. Bass & Co. Larson Weeguns
“Everyone who knows me knows that I wear short, tailored pants with loafers, specifically the G.H. Bass & Co. Larson Weeguns. My feet are wider than most, so I can’t wear Italian shoes or any of the trendier stuff made today, so out of necessity, I keep it classic with these, only rockin’ the Burg Brush color.”
G.H. Bass & Co. Weeguns, $118 at ghbass.com.

Chanel Égoïste
I was vehemently against “scents” for men some years ago, but then I discovered Chanel Egoiste. I do three sprays in the morning just to hear my wife say, “you smell nice.” I wear it daily, even on those short trips to pick up laundry.
Chanel Égoïste, $87 at chanel.com.

The Manual Contributor
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Everything points to Apple TV+ making a change you’re not going to like
Is an ad-supported tier coming to Apple TV+?
The Apple TV Plus Logo

It turns out that TV worked pretty well under its old model. According to a new report from Business Insider, Apple TV+ may be the latest streaming service that's set to introduce an ad-supported tier and charge those who don't stream with ads a premium fee to access their great shows and movies.

At this point, the report is still speculation, but Apple has made several recent hires in the advertising space that seem to suggest the direction they're planning to take. The company recently hired former NBCUniversal ad executive Joseph Cady to serve as executive vice president of advanced advertising and partnerships, a move that comes following the company's hiring of another former NBCUniversal executive, Jason Frum, who joined Apple's video ad sales team.

Read more
From Gilda Radner to Ali Wong, these are the best female comedians of all time
These women from all generations will make you laugh out loud
Ai Wong comedian 2017 Moontower comedy festival

Hot take: I don’t care for straight male comedians. It’s not that they’re not funny, they’re just … I don’t know, boring? Maybe that’s reductive of me, but I never seem to leave a straight male comedian’s set feeling particularly inspired. And though some may argue that it’s not important for a set to "inspire" its audience, I’d actually argue that the opposite is true. For me, I want to see a comedian use humor to address real issues and say real things about the world, even if they do it in a completely goofy way.

Therefore, I tend to prefer female and female-identified comedians. They’re sharp, tough, and have often seen shit that makes their comedy feel raw and true. Undoubtedly there are male comedians who do this, too, but to a much lesser degree, in my very humble and very personal opinion.

Read more
12 classic sci-fi books everyone should read
If you love science fiction and reading, these classic sci-fi novels are a must
Man reading a book and drinking coffee

It may feel like we were recently living in a science-fiction dystopia life -- and in some ways, we were -- but that doesn't mean that we should simply avoid an entire genre of writing. Hardly. In fact, this is probably the perfect time to explore classic sci-fi books, to see what the masters have written, and maybe even see if someone predicted anything like this. Many, though, simply ignore sci-fi wholly and completely because of an association with robots, aliens, and the like.

Long story short, if you think you don't like sci-fi, you have never read great books from the genre. But indeed, many such books abound, including a number that has delighted generations of readers going back well over 150 years. In fact, one of the best things about so many sci-fi books is their very timelessness. As by definition, this type of fiction breaks away from the norms of the everyday world -- whether slightly twisting things or taking place on entire other worlds -- the stories often feel as fresh and relevant today as when they were published decades ago.

Read more