Welcome back everyone.

I’m excited to share that we will begin featuring interviews and guest appearances from people with unique experience, expertise, and insights from the worlds of hospitality, tech, entertainment/media, and sports.

We’ll be discussing their approach to curating premium experiences in a time where everything seems to be automated and algorithm-driven.

Now, when I say “premium” - that doesn’t mean expensive. It means authentic, tasteful, intentional, bespoke, human.

Our first guest will be Michael Albanese: hospitality legend and founder of Element Lifestyle, the world’s leading luxury travel and lifestyle service. I’ll give his full bio when we publish, but he’s basically a HOF Travel Agent and a mentor of mine.

Got someone we should talk to? Reply directly to this email.

The Work of Pablo

I was scrolling through ESPN's app last week when I - just kidding. I don’t do that.

Sports media has become the poster child for what happens when algorithms replace editorial judgment. The national incumbents like ESPN and Fox have devolved into soundbites, click-bait, and gimmicks. They’ve mostly outsourced their talent to individual creators (McAfee, Portnoy) and have lost a ton of credibility.

(For the record, I think both of those guys are authentic in their own way - as I expressed last week - and were the only moves those networks could make to stay relevant).

Bill Simmons broke out and built his empire, which you have to respect. He’s a leading independent voice, is entertaining, and often features insightful commentary and analysis.

But on the whole, national sports media seems like a race to the bottom, an ugly knife fight for screen time in the world of infinite scrolling and 5 second attention spans.

There’s no substance, let alone journalistic integrity.

Real Reporting

Which leads me to Pablo Torre: another ESPN alum who broke off and went independent. I would argue there wasn’t anything special about his time there, but in the past 6 months he has differentiated himself from the slop as one of, if not the only, national guys that cares to do any investigative journalism.

Torre's newsletter and podcast aren't just content; they're a curated experience of what sports reporting used to be: substantive, risky, and worth your undivided attention.

First, he seemed to be the only guy interested in finding out what the hell was actually going on with Bill Belichick and his 24 yr old girlfriend. Simmons ironically slammed the investigative reporting as clickbait.

Then, he drops this 60+ page bombshell on secret collusion within the NFLPA which revealed:

• They conspired with the NFL to lower fully guaranteed contract offers

• Advised players to fake injuries during negotiations

• And led to the firing of the NFLPA Executive Director (he paid for lap dances with union money).

What Can’t Be Automated

Here's what Torre understands that the algorithm-driven sports media complex forgot: authentic curiosity can't be scaled. Real reporting requires human judgment, patience, and the willingness to go where the story leads - even if it pisses off powerful people.

In a world where sports "journalism" is increasingly just repackaging Sham bombs and social media posts, Torre is creating something that at least feels handcrafted.

Nobody is really showing the courage to go out and put their rep on the line. Not many people want to go after the NFL, with it’s tentacles across the media landscape. Not many people want to attack a revered figure like Belichick and get slandered openly by a big shot like Simmons.

Final Word

This is what authentic sports media looks like in 2025. While everyone else is optimizing their basic ass podcast for TikTok views, Torre is proving that there's still an audience hungry for substance.

It's refreshing to see someone actually report something interesting and important rather than feeding the content machine. In an industry drowning in algorithmic sameness, Torre has created something irreplaceable: journalism that actually matters.

Art vs. Tech

Tyler, The Creator just dropped a surprise album (which is fire, btw) and invited fans to listening parties with one rule: no phones allowed. His reasoning? Friends can't relax, be themselves, or actually enjoy the moment when everyone's performing for their camera roll.

Meanwhile, our tech overlords are doubling down on the opposite vision. They want to replace your phone with glasses, turning every moment into potential content. Check out this launch video from Waves - slick production, impressive tech, but clearly made by people who've never tried to have an actual conversation at a party.

If you show up to my function wearing those things, I'm throwing them in the lake.

Collision Course

This isn't just a generational divide or aesthetic preference. We're watching a fundamental battle over how human experiences should work. On one side: Tyler recognizing that presence requires absence (of devices). On the other: Meta and Ray-Ban betting that our future involves filming everything through AI-powered glasses.

The tech trajectory is clear. Live streaming is exploding. Content creation has become the default mode of existing. The new media pipeline runs on raw, long-form livestreams that get chopped into digestible clips for social consumption.

But for every action, there's an equal and opposite reaction.

Analog Awakening

As recording technology becomes more pervasive and invisible, we're already seeing the emergence of aggressively analog experiences. Tyler's phone-free parties aren't anomalies - they're early signals of a broader cultural correction.

The smartest venue operators, event producers, and experience curators are reading the room. They understand that in a world where everything is documented, the undocumented becomes precious. When every moment is potentially content, the un-filmed moment becomes the luxury product.

Think about the restaurants that don't allow photography. The comedy clubs that lock up phones. The concerts where artists are experimenting with Yondr pouches. These aren't just policies - they're positioning statements about what kind of experience they're selling.

The Real Opportunity

This creates a massive opening for anyone building premium experiences. While tech companies optimize for capture and sharing, there's an underserved market hungry for the opposite: experiences designed for presence, memory, and genuine human connection.

The venues that figure this out first will own the future. They'll offer something AI can't replicate and algorithms can't optimize: moments that exist only in the minds of people who were actually there.

Around Town

Tame Impala - one of my faves - has been teasing a new album expected to drop tonight (Thursday).

The Toronto Raptors paint art logo has not only remained their X pfp for over a week, but they even recognized the moment and created a merch line. The only problem? T-shirts are like $60 bucks. It might still sell out, but this is clearly a case of the social team getting just enough influence to capitalize on the attention, but the exec team setting the prices. This is supposed to be for the fans, not the bottom line…smh.

Court Date is a new tennis brand/club serving some serious anti-country club vibes. I love their Pro Shop.

This Week’s Tunes

Press play, my friends.

RP WEEKLY!!!!