Talking About:: Lolo (Sweat Records)

Lauren Reskin and her strawberry shortcake hair, magnetized looks, ingenuity and smile. While noticing her vintage dress and her vegan leather purse, and over an organic espresso at Sweat Records, you ask her, “how are you?” “I’m always good,” is what you get for an answer. Her smile pops brightly, her red hair glimmers and her self-taught make up techniques adorning her hazel eyes make you feel like you need a retouch on your eye shadow (She’s that good!).

Lolo, as her friends call her, is a precious diamond to Miami’s indie culture, she opened her Sweat Records musical castle of rare vinyls and rock and roll cult classics store in 2005 and since then her love for music and records evolved into an empire of underground happenings and cultural gatherings.

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What does one have to study to become Lolo? What’s the timeline of your successful music/entrepreneurship career?
From high school on I was working in college radio, doing street rep work for indie record labels, and when I was 16 I started working at Virgin and stayed there for six years.  My first DJ residency was at 17 (the golden era of Poplife at Picadilly), I co-promoted a major night at 19 (Revolver), had my own party by 21 (Vice at Soho).  Sweat opened when I was 22 and it’s all been multiplying exponentially from there.  I went to college for a few years studying Music Business but I was already doing it in the real world so I took a “semester off” and never looked back.

How did you picture yourself when you were a child, what was it that you wanted to grow up to be?
When I was a kid I wanted to be everything from a marine biologist to a lawyer, but I always loved music and was always entrepreneurial so what I’m doing now feels pretty right on.

What were some of the inconveniences and closed doors you encountered while pursuing your goals, and what where those goals you wanted to achieve no matter what?
Inconveniences and closed doors are just hurdles you have to figure out how to jump.  My biggest goal so far was opening the shop, and since we’re five years on now I can focus on the bigger goals we have for the future.

Are your achievements and recognition as an essential jewel of Miami a result of your perseverance and hard work? How much does luck have to do with your success?
Not sure if I believe in luck per se, but there is definitely something to be said for creating your own reality.   I have a fairly ridiculous work ethic and have put in the energy and hours to be where I am today.

Besides your DJing skills and indie rock savvy mind, Wasabi is very impressed by the beautiful rainbow and gradient eye shadows that decorate your eyes, how long ago did make up rub off on you and how did you manage to achieve your make up skills?
I always loved color and wanted to dye my hair unnatural shades all the way back to kindergarten.  In high school not a day went by where I didn’t have sparkly eye shadow and glitter on, but everything changed when my best friend Sara took me to a Mac Pro Store for the first time.  I got into brushes, pigments, blending… it’s a way I get to be creative in my daily life.

Sweat Records is also known to be an organic and vegan friendly café, and you are known to be a vegetarian by your current blog in Miami New Times, “Meatless Miami” is this just a diet or a life style? How is this connected to your beliefs?
I went vegetarian at age 12 and am currently vegan.  It’s based on beliefs first, but the diet and lifestyle benefits are undeniable.  More than anything I am angry at the meat/dairy industries for their complete lack of compassion in favor of the bottom line.  The tiniest changes would lower animal suffering immensely but they don’t do it because it would cost them a fraction of a fraction of a cent.  But I love being vegan – discovering and eating amazing foods, having tons of energy and basically never having to worry about weight or nutrients because I eat a colorful, balanced diet.  More and more people are telling me lately that they’re reducing the amount of meat they eat, which I am always happy to hear.

What is a typical Monday to Friday (Sunday?) work schedule on Lolo’s agenda?
I wake up earlier than most people would expect and work on emails and the Sweat blog and computer stuff from home.  During the week I take meetings and come in for several shifts at the shop.  Being physically active keeps me sane so I’ll do yoga, running, or CrossFit a few times a week.  Friday nights I’m at The Vagabond, which is always a great time.  We just started Sunday Vegan Brunch at Sweat so you can expect to see me there on the regular as well.   It sounds like a pretty full schedule but I still manage to relax here and there and spend time with my friends.

What is your current state of mind and what is something that makes you smile?
2010 has already felt more positive than last year for some reason.  What’s making me smile lately is all the comments I hear about how much of a community Miami feels like.  It lets me know that things are on the right track.

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Girl Power Quizz

-Miami tastes like what? Why? Mango season and avocado season, mmm…
-Romanticism is necessary for . . . Everything.  The world we live in is an amazing place with infinite possibilities and it’s important not to lose sight of that.
-I am proud of my . . . Level-headedness, it keeps me balanced.
-I can’t live with out . . . My friends.  They are some of the most incredibly kind, creative, warm, funny and smart people on this planet.
-What is Wasabi? The perfect compliment for veggie rolls.
-The best kiss is like . . . Heady, potent, pristine… the entire world ceasing to exist outside the two of you.
-Top 5 music-wise: Blur, Serge Gainsbourg, Prince, The Shins, Portishead. The Smiths, Belle & Sebastian, Outkast, Aphex Twin, Lush… I own a record store, you cannot expect me to have just five.
-Hidden qualities: I am incredibly loyal.  I do crossword puzzles in pen.
-Favorite cartoon . . . Dave Millionaire’s MAAKIES comics are hilariously antiquated and misanthropic.
-What do you wear to feel sexy? I’m particularly partial to black underwear and a very subtle amount of perfume dabbed onto the pulse points.
-Freedom in your own words… Not feeling bound by society’s shoulds and shouldn’ts.  I’m not purposefully contrary by any means but I feel liberated from giving a damn about other people’s expectations, and that lets me focus instead on the high standards I set for myself.

Catch Lolo at Sweat Rocords, or at The Vagabond every Friday
www.sweatrecordsmiami.com
5505 NE 2nd Avenue
Miami, FL 33137
Tel. (786) 693-9309
info@sweatrecordsmiami.com