On a quiet July afternoon on Verona Street, near the corner of Van Brunt, Ken Marcelle sweeps hair from the floor before his next appointment. The incoming client is Keaton Tips, formally a resident of Red Hook. A 34-year-old animator and motion designer, Tips moved from Dikeman Street to an apartment in Ridgewood, Queens, in 2020. That year, many of the millennials and gen-xers that made up Marcelle’s base clientele departed New York City for much farther-away places. Some eventually came back, others did not.
Although it’s a bit of a commute, Tips treks to his old neighborhood every month for a haircut at Ken’s hybrid hair studio, floral design studio and art gallery, Mat Blak.
The studio-cum-gallery is as dynamic as Marcelle’s many specialties. When Tips walks in, there is music playing; a funky yet soothing and atmospheric blend of jazz, hip-hop, and house. The two old friends smile and hug each other, and Tips sits down after his hour-long commute to spend about the same amount of time in Marcelle’s chair.
An hour might seem like a long time to spend with a barber. But Marcelle isn’t just any barber–or stylist. “I tried a few ‘upscale’ boutique salons and such around Bushwick when I moved to the Ridgewood area,” Tips says. “It’s always a letdown. It’s worth it to travel an hour just to know I’ll get a great cut.”
Mat Blak has depended on loyal clients for their repeat business and referrals, especially in the aftermath of the pandemic. The shutdowns hit Marcelle’s business hard as many of his clients left the city for good, or sought out a cheaper cut to save money. But clients like Tips have stuck with him. “We need one another,” Marcelle says, of his clients. “I need people just as much as they need me. I try to offer myself as much as I can. We would like to offer you an experience. Through conversation, through music, through a great look.”
During the pandemic, Marcelle, who is 44 and originally from Pittsburgh, quarantined for 98 days in his Bed-Stuy apartment. During this time, he suffered from isolation, losing his customers, his income, and wrestling with anxiety and depression. But he also found in the isolation and distance from others a certain clarity of mind that has helped him not just recover from the pandemic, but reinvent himself in various ways.
In the new studio location, which he opened last year after successful fundraising on Kickstarter, Marcelle sets the ambiance with music, and just an all around cool, contemplative, fun vibe. This summer, he began DJing under the name “DJ Rashad X.” He is already a regular in at least one Red Hook spot. Marcelle is also a floral designer and curator, using his space to showcase the work of local artists, and create floral arrangements.
Below is more from our July conversation with Marcelle. We talked about his experience with the pandemic, its effect on his business, how it changed him, and how he has adapted and continued to reinvent himself in this ever-changing world.
Marcelle is now accepting new clients, so visit his website at matblak.com to schedule an appointment! And check him out on instagram @matblaknewyork. You can also check out his “Jazz Snob” playlists on Spotify.
Ken, we all had our own unique experiences with the pandemic, and I know that as a small business owner, you had a particularly difficult time. How are you doing now, and how have you adjusted to life and work in the aftermath of the pandemic?
Honestly? I’m still in recovery. It’s like, you go through something traumatic and you’re basically turned into an inmate of sorts, within your house, and you’re just about trying to keep sane and keep alive. I was in quarantine for 98 days, that’s how long I had to close my shop at the time. And then when you come back, you’re a new person, you’re a different person.
98 days in quarantine is a lot. Tell me more about what that experience was like.
It was really tough to put it mildly, but I also had a transformation during quarantine. Before the pandemic I was so hard on myself, always giving myself a hard time, like I was lacking some kind of discipline. I had a drill sergeant in my head yelling ‘Get up, do this, do that, go, go, go!’ But during quarantine, I was able to give myself a break and let it go.
The effects of the lockdown and the isolation were so overwhelming for many people, but there were also ways in which it seemed to give us a different perspective, in a way that made us more determined, or something like that. Was that the case for you?
It was like an unlocking for me, almost like cleaning out a closet and putting back the clothes that you want to keep, and discarding the things that didn’t work for me anymore. When I came back to work, I felt like someone more forward-thinking, and more like someone that could put thoughts into action without fear. So I did a fundraiser after observing a few other friends who had successful fundraisers. And in my head, the voice went from “What if I did this?” to “Let’s do this.”
In 2021, while many businesses were going under and struggling to survive, you decided to open a new location and use Kickstarter to get support. Can you tell us more about that experience, and what advice do you have for someone thinking of using a crowdfunding platform to support a venture?
One thing I learned is that if you want to do something, you need to not be afraid to ask for help. You’re going to need people to help you. You’re going to need a team. And most importantly, you have to start. If you have a vision, don’t hold it in. Write it down, talk about it. Then you can manifest it through action. I had so much support from people, and you need that. We need each other. That’s something that I haven’t forgotten.
You’ve been DJ-ing and you always have music playing in your studio. What does the music mean to you as far as creating an atmosphere at Mat Blak?
It’s about creating a place of dreams. I want my clients to relax, sometimes even nod off, then wake up with an idea or a different perspective on a problem they may have been dealing with when they came into the studio. It’s about creating a space for imagination, where a client is getting their haircut, talking about things, ideas, and inspirations. There is some type of transformation that takes place that comes along with being groomed, being pampered, being taken care of. It’s like cleaning your space, a cut, a massage, a facial. You feel better.
What have you learned about people from cutting hair?
That we have much more in common than our pursuit of money. I cry with people in the shop, I counsel people, I receive counsel, and it feels a little strange for them to then give me money, but I do it with confidence. I remind myself that this is worth it. I’m worth it, you’re worth it, it’s worth it.
Where did the name and concept come from for DJ Rashad X?
It’s an ode to yesteryear. When I was a kid my nickname was Rah-Rah and my grandparents used to watch me sing and perform for them. And that’s when I was honing my ear for music, my tastes. They listened to a lot of jazz.
You mentioned that recovery is still a theme for you as you navigate life and business after the pandemic. Has your business fully recovered in terms of volume of clients, or are you still working on rebuilding your client base?
It’s been really great to be able to keep many of my clients, but there are definitely still many people who have not come back and I would love to have more clients to help close that gap.
What are your hopes for this year, and next year with Mat Blak? What do you have going on that you’d like people to know about?
I would love to continue to offer my space for more community interaction, offer my space for artists, offer my space for other creatives who just need a wall, need a corner. To continue interaction and to grow interaction in the neighborhood. I want people to know that I haven’t given up, and that they shouldn’t either, and that I’m still here. Come see me!
