So here we are at the end of another New York City summer. Fortunately it wasn’t as sweltering as last year. Maybe it was the ’Sup beach house at the Jersey shore that made the hot, sticky, humid summer days more bearable. Like all good summers this one just flew by, and as it draws to a close I’m already getting nostalgic and longing to be back in the sand jumping the waves and going late-night swimming. I’ve been living the high life for the past year and it’s been pretty damn good.


Maybe it was the fact that I made it through two summers and over a year without an office job. It could also be because my best friend from high school moved right across the street and was instantaneously assembled into my posse of lady friends (N.Vainglorious!). Maybe it’s the bike gang we formed and those Sunday evening rides topped off with a group BBQ. The nights that never ended until the sun came up. Sleeping until noon in a room with A/C. Whatever the case, as another summer goes by and my favorite season draws to a close, I’m reminded that I myself am getting a year older and so is the magazine. But, it’s okay. It’s great actually.


In the moving-the-office-home process I ran across my big file of all of the old issues of ’Sup. I laughed at the first photocopied version with my funny Milemarker and Hieroglyphics interviews. From the get go, ’Sup was all over the place – very much a reflection of my life and the music that surrounds me – spastic and all over the place but in a good eclectic way. I was shocked when I looked at the date on the cover of ’Sup 001 – October 12, 1998. Had ’Sup really been around for five years? Damn that’s a long time. At first I was bummed that we hadn’t made it much farther (i.e. nicer paper, wider distribution, fancier website, etc.), but I soon realized that keeping it going is a feat in and of itself. And don’t worry, ‘cause we’re not going to stop anytime soon.


While my freelance life is officially over tomorrow and I’m going back to the working world, ’Sup is gonna continue to rock it as we take things forward one baby step at a time. We’re finally launching a full content website (which will always be a work in progress) and starting a monthly email newsletter (so sign up!) and are going to step up the regularity of our parties (since I seem to have gotten so good at partying the past year).


Looking back on the first issue, I also chuckled at the mission statement I wrote when I was 20 years old and a sophomore in college. (Note: I got burned by my college newspaper and started the magazine in a fit of rage.) Take a gander yourself, it’s pretty right on:

’Sup, short for what’s up, is dedicated to covering the happenings of the independent music scene. There are so many artists who deserve to be seen, heard and appreciated. Due to the shortage of quality publications, many of these worthy individuals fail to get recognized. Community involvement and support for these artists is necessary to sustain a fruitful scene.
One of ’Sup’s main goals is to keep the community informed about emerging talent and give voices to the artists who tend to get overlooked by mainstream media. The magazine is created for and by members of the community to serve as a forum of creative expression.

Honest news can be hard to find, but is definitely available if you are willing to seek it out. The writers at ’Sup are writing about topics that interest them. ’Sup’s style is casual and informal, designed to entertain and provide insight to our readers. Every ’Sup writer has a chance to share their un-edited views and opinions. We strive to provide you with personalized writing that shows you honest insight into the lives and minds of our favorite artists and happenings of the indie scene.


We’ve surprisingly stuck to our laurels and we promise to take it up a notch a little at a time. But most of all, we promise not to ever go away.

Here’s to Fall and 5 years of ’Sup!


Lots of love - Marisa