Part 2: PHX Cigar Week - Smoke 'N the Desert

(Part II). The entire episode was recorded in one shot but we split the one into two parts. 

Story: In this episode, the group (Keake, Brian and myself -Tina) combine to learn more about each other's flavor palette and their top picks (see list below).  In Phoenix, there is a place for every situation: loner, social and the in between, it's here.  In addition we discuss how the industry is NOW influenced heavily by women smokers, buyers and makers.  The panel further discusses some "Smoke 'N the Desert "secret gems" for 2026 Phoenix Cigar week!!  Then more on... 

• Red Level Entertainment 
• Wrapped in Smoke
• Smoke in the Desert 
• Literature Mention: The 4-hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss
• Underwater basket Weaving (for funzies) 

This episode was recorded at Dragon's Lounge in Mesa, AZ - June 2026.  

Sticks (Top picks in no special order): 

    Keake: 

• Don Pepin Garcia (original) --> Most retailers
• Blackened, Drew Estate --> Most retailers 
• Empress of Sheba, El Septimo --->  El Septimo available at Ambassdor's  Cedar Room, Cigar King

Brian :

• La Lealtad, My Father -->Most retailers
• Empress of Sheba, El Septimo (see above) 
• H.Upmann - AJ Fernandez --> Cigars Daily. Other retailers such as Churchills and Ambassdor's also carry H.Upmann
• Definition Cigars, Puro Cigar Bar (Chandler)
• DBL Amarillo, Cigar King

Tina: 

• Purple Pledge, Casa Carrillo --> Ambassador PV, Trevors (limited), Churchills (limited)
• 601 Espinosa, 20th Anniversary --> Ambassador PV, Cigars Daily & Dragon Lounge
• Mexican Experiment by Tatauje (ca. 2017, 2019) --> Ambassadors PV
• Gorbusto Orang, Aladino --->only at Cigar King and Ambassdors PV (as of 7/2/26)
• Juneteenth The 1865 Project, Rocky Patel --> Online only (HERE) but please look for it. Great smoke and the only smoke I enjoy from RP

Transcript

Tina 0:00

Hi, welcome to Sticks and Stories. This is our next episode of Sticks and Stories. And, today I'm hosting a special guest, with Red Level Entertainment. If you guys can introduce yourselves.. Are you... okay. Mm.

Brian 0:14

So, greetings everybody, I'm Brian Thompson. I'm the owner and founder of Red Level Entertainment and one of the founders of Smoke in the Desert PHX Cigar Week. Red Level Entertainment is a entertainment and marketing company that's been around for the last 26 years where we help bring cultural events to the city that we're in and across the country, and we help businesses increase their branding and awareness and ticket sales through hosting events. Smoke in the Desert is, it's a weekend of- Four days, 10 events, and one hell of a weekend of-

Tina 0:54

And lots of fun I hear.

Brian 0:55

Yes.

Tina 0:56

Yes.

Brian 0:58

Lots of fun. Lots of fun. We bring people from all over the cul- the country and show them the Arizona cigar culture

Tina 1:04

That's what's up.

Keake 1:06

Amen, amen. My name is Keyake. And I am the founder of Wrapped in Smoke. Wrapped in Smoke, and Wrapped in Smoke Cigar Club. Let's believe into that, but anyway, what Wrapped in Smoke is, is we, encourage women to wear their hair wrapped when they smoke cigars or whatever it is that you smoke, marijuana or cigarettes or whatever you smoke, to keep the smoke out of your hair. I say put some smoke in the air, not in your hair. Teach women how to wrap, all the different fun styles and all that. But really people want to be in this community, but they don't like the way that it smells tomorrow. Mm-hmm. And so we just kind of, teach women about that, which-

Tina 1:43

Especially when you're locked.

Keake 1:44

Yeah.

Tina 1:44

Yeah.

Keake 1:45

It's locks and braids. Yeah. It stays in your hair so long.

Tina 1:48

Yeah.

Keake 1:48

Yeah. You know, I've... i am one of the co-founders of Smoke in the Desert. And just like Brian said, we have four days, 10 events, one hell of a weekend. We love, love, love to share the culture and community here in Phoenix. We have the third largest cigar community in the nation, and some people don't know that. And so we just wanna share that. We wanna let you guys know about all of the cigar-friendly restaurants and bars, all of the cigar lounges that we have here. Oh, we're gonna

Tina 2:13

talk about that towards the end-

Keake 2:14

Oh, yeah, for sure for

Tina 2:14

sure 'cause there's some stuff that I don't know about too.

Keake 2:16

Yeah. Yeah. There's lots going on out here in Phoenix. Phoenix is a destination city. People come here to vacation. People come here to retire. People come here for a good time. And, for cigar smokers, brothers and sisters of the leaf, we've got a really good time for you out here. So in October, when it's still really beautiful, still really warm, but in the rest of the country it's getting chilly, you can still come and enjoy some summer-esque- Vibes. And then we, we try to switch it up every year. We try to add some new things and, and, so that you're not bored with it, and we have so much out here that we can do a lot. Yeah. And so we just wanna show you what we have and, and people love it, and once they come to Smoke in the Desert, then they come back to Phoenix to visit. Mm-hmm. And hit us up when you're coming out here. We'll come meet you out and smoke with you. Put some smoke in the air. It's a good time.

Tina 3:01

That's what's up. Okay. So usually, just like I was saying before, we don't really have a format per se. We just, kind of talk about our cigars first and then talk about our businesses. Mm-hmm. So we've, gotten over the introductions. You guys know me, I'm Tina of Sticks Stories, of course. And, Lonnie, by the way, he does wrap his- Mm-hmm 'cause he has dreads- Yeah and stuff too. He absolutely hates getting the smoke in his hair.

Keake 3:24

And that is the thing too. I always say women but men too. Um, and it was so relaxing to me. And so, like, I'm very much a busy bee and here, there, and everywhere, and all the things I have to do, and it was an hour of me just sitting down and enjoying time to myself. Whether I'm communicating with people- Yeah, yeah or even imbibing with people. Yeah. But still, I don't have... I'm not checking my email. Yeah. I'm not running around doing all kinds of things. And it was so great to me that I went to a cigar lounge. It

Tina 3:53

puts you on pause.

Keake 3:54

Yes.

Tina 3:55

It, I love it. Definitely does. Yeah, yeah.

Keake 3:57

Yeah, yeah.

Tina 3:57

Yeah.

Keake 3:58

Mm-hmm. I want you to start a club for women who do this thing. And I was like, "Okay, well, if I do that, then you gotta help me because I don't have the capacity to do it all by myself."

Tina 4:07

Yeah.

Keake 4:07

And that's how Wrap and Smoke Cigar Club started. That's what's up. And it, and it's women. We, we are friendly, men and women, everybody can join, everybody can wrap. You know, if you got a head, you can wrap. So- But it is about like, "Hey, let's talk about how when you wrap it keeps the smoke out of your hair," and all that stuff, and just that culture of that- Yeah you know what I mean? Being a little more sophisticated. You don't have to... We are very, very casual here in Phoenix. You can wear anything.

Tina 4:32

Yeah, yeah.

Keake 4:33

You, I, we count all flip-flops. I've

Tina 4:34

seen a, I've seen a lot. Well, one thing that I did see and, and- You can come in cargo shorts it, well, look, look, let me tell you. So when I was at, Ambassador's recently, not to talk about people, but there was- But there were people, like towards the end of the night they came in, they were sitting down smoking. And I'm like, "Dude, are you wearing flip-flops and pajamas?" They were.

Keake 4:52

Mm-hmm.

Tina 4:53

Pajama bottoms. They

Keake 4:54

are. Yeah.

Tina 4:54

That's something I do not want to see in a cigar lounge. Yeah. But you know, they don't, they don't, they don't kick you out though.

Keake 4:59

There's no dress code.

Tina 5:00

They don't kick you out.

Keake 5:00

Because, you know why? Because their money spends too.

Tina 5:02

That's right.

Keake 5:03

Because their money spends too.

Tina 5:04

That is right. And

Keake 5:04

their palate matters

Tina 5:05

too. And that's the, that's the thing though. That person could be in flip-flops and pajamas and probably worth a million dollars. Yeah. Or more.

Keake 5:12

Or

Tina 5:12

more. Or more.

Keake 5:13

Right? And what I've come to find is that people who have a lot of money don't look like they have a lot of money.

Tina 5:20

Yeah. Well, that's- You know what I mean? That's how Chicago was. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Like so I, I would ride... So in, Chicago for example, riding a bus is like riding a bus. Mm-hmm. Anybody rides the bus. Any and everybody. And also parts of New York too.

Keake 5:31

Mm-hmm.

Tina 5:32

And so I could be sitting on a bus... at the time I was working at Northwestern Hospital, and I'm sitting next to a millionaire-

Keake 5:38

Mm-hmm

Tina 5:39

On a bus. And even though I'm in scrubs, they're dressed down.

Keake 5:42

Mm-hmm.

Tina 5:42

And they're not... unless we have a conversation and I learn about it- Mm then you know, you would never know. And then you would have the guys back in the day that was working on, in the financial district on La Salle. They're dressed to the nines or whatever. Mm-hmm. But they're not making as much money as the guy I'm sitting next to- Mm or the woman I'm sitting next to on the bus. Right.

Keake 6:00

Mm-hmm.

Tina 6:01

So, um, dress code does not really tell you- It's nothing how much people are worth.

Keake 6:06

Right. At all. And so I think the, the really cool thing that I really like about Phoenix is that nobody cares. Nobody cares. We don't care how much money you made. That's true. We don't care what you do or

Tina 6:15

whatever. Especially when I'm smoking. I'm coming here to relax.

Keake 6:18

Literally. Yeah. You can be an underwater basket weaver if you want to. Listen, what are you smoking? Right? That's, that's my favorite thing to say. So I found out, I used to work in, at, well, we just worked with this nonprofit and in like, working with the Department of

Tina 6:31

Education- I'm gonna search for

Keake 6:31

a cigar and, I took some of my clients to a job fair. Yeah like a college fair, job fair thing. Mm-hmm. And so I've got like 10 teenagers with me, and we're at this fair- Mm-hmm and they're talking to all these different schools and all this stuff. Do you know that underwater basket weaving is a real thing? It is a real thing. And they have a school- Yes, it is for that. You can get a degree in that if you want to. So I- Wait, I hold a degree? so there's a literally a degree in a, they have, you can get a degree-

Tina 6:53

Was that not, was that a degree that they did not... And that was not one of the ones that they discredited, by the way.

Keake 6:59

No,

Tina 7:00

this is a real thing. You remember when they were trying to discredit nursing and stuff? Yeah. But yeah. Anyway.

Keake 7:05

Underwater basket weaving. So whatever you want to do, whatever you wanna be, you can be that. But,

Tina 7:09

like, why are you doing it underwater?

Keake 7:12

Because it's fun apparently. I don't know. I can't swim. I'm not going under anybody's water. So-

Tina 7:17

I'm like, why are we doing this underwater?

Keake 7:19

Yeah, why, why another thing that you're doing, okay. They, there's a whole degree program for it. There's a school that specializes in this. This is crazy.

Brian 7:25

Who's gonna hire you?

Keake 7:26

Somebody because nobody cares what your degree is in.

Tina 7:30

I mean, maybe- Unless you're not maybe it's like a fun thing for people to, So okay, guys, can we talk about like our top three, or I'm sorry, our top five or whatever. Mm-hmm. Like right now I'm smoking, so I'm on a binge. I'm smoking, this is, Purple Pledge, which now... So y- Purple Pledge you can get at Ambassador's. Now they have it at some of the Trevor's. It's hard to get though because it sells out quick because- Mm-hmm I think the lounges don't know how to order it yet 'cause it only comes, it's a limited, release.

Keake 7:55

Yeah.

Tina 7:56

So it only comes like 10 to a box.

Keake 7:57

Okay.

Tina 7:58

And so they might eventually get it here if they do have a Casa Perreo account. They're not like limiting who they give it to, you just have to request it. Yeah. But, I love this one 'cause it's aged at least 10 years- Mm for the c- for that one. They have a 601, here. Okay. This is where I got this one.

Keake 8:12

Mm-hmm. Okay.

Tina 8:13

This is very good. This is the best, or one of the best Espinosa's that I've ever had. But I like Las Provencias by Espinosa anyways. Mm-hmm. So these are kind of some of my good go-tos now, my favorite now. But if you guys wanna expound on what your top

Keake 8:30

five- Yeah. What do y- what do you smoke? What do you smoke? I, I do have, a, a, a set that is like, "No matter what, I will smoke this." I'm gonna try whatever there is to try. Somebody's gonna say, "Hey, try this, try that." I'm gonna try all the things, right? Because I don't know what I don't know. So I wanna know what my next favorite is, right? But like in my current rotation, what, no matter what, wherever I go, if you are not recommending something specific to me, I'm gonna definitely get a Don Pepin Garcia.

Tina 8:57

Mm.

Keake 8:58

Original. Okay. The blue label.

Tina 8:59

Yeah.

Keake 8:59

I'm always gonna get, whenever I can, because you can't get it in many places here, I think there's three lounges in Phoenix that you can get an El Septimo Empress of Sheba. Okay. Love that love. Uh- Okay so in no particular order, but those two. I really love the, Drew Estate Blackened. I smoke that a lot. Okay it's, it's not very expensive. It's a everyday smoke. I feel really comfortable doing

Tina 9:24

that. I gotta, I gotta find that 'cause I, I haven't smoked Drew Estate in

Keake 9:28

a while. The Blackened you can get, you can get it at Castro's. Anywhere. You can get it at- Okay. Y- you can get it most places These bars here. Okay. Yeah, most places. That, if nothing else, there's somebody has that I can smoke that I know. Yeah. I smoke that a lot. I smoke, I like the, Oh, I can't even... Just lost my, um-

Tina 9:44

Well, how's that one smoking, by

Keake 9:46

the way? This one, I, I, so I just lit it, so but the fir- on the first two draws, like, it's really good. I, it's a box press and so I'm super happy about that. I am a weirdo and so I, I love a V cut, I love a punch. I don't particularly like a straight cut because I feel like I get more tobacco in my mouth and I feel like I'm spitting all night. Yeah. And so that's, like, it's not lady like to just- Yeah be spitting all night. You know what I do? I love a select draw. Have you seen that? The select draw, it has, like, the three prongs and it's like a punch- Oh, I haven't done that but, like, teeny tiny little pinholes.

Tina 10:14

I haven't done that. Oh my God, no.

Keake 10:15

Right, so they can, you can get, like, two or three. It's like,

Tina 10:18

it's like a poker almost, but-

Keake 10:19

Yeah, basically a punch. So sometimes I'll use my nubber- Mm and just poke holes in it if I'm being real ghetto, like I'm doing today. I didn't use my actual earring today, 'cause sometimes I do that, but I have a, like, a little pin, or, like, a lapel pin.

Tina 10:31

Yeah.

Keake 10:32

But just the small little pin, I just use that to poke a few holes, five or seven holes in it.

Tina 10:38

I've never.

Keake 10:38

I've never. Opens the draw so well. And so I, if I can help it, I don't cut my cigars. I just put some little pinholes in it.

Tina 10:46

Yeah.

Keake 10:46

And it opens the draw so well, and I just love, love, love it.

Tina 10:50

So what I like about doing now, so I do mostly V cuts now. And the reason why I do is probably similar to why you're saying what you're saying, is 'cause I don't like, first of all, I don't like to destroy the cap.

Keake 11:01

Yes.

Tina 11:02

And, I don't like to cut off too much or whatever. So for me, a V or a punch is a way to not do that.

Keake 11:08

Especially if it's sweet- Yeah because the sweet is in the cap. Yeah. So if you cut off all the cap, then you're cutting off most of the sweet.

Tina 11:13

Yeah.

Keake 11:13

There's still gonna be a little bit in there, but it's still- Yeah. Before we get too far on a tangent on that, V, what are some of your top-

Tina 11:19

Oh, yeah

Keake 11:20

favorite?

Brian 11:22

Mine right now, and mine rotate, but right now my current favorites are the My Father, the Red Leotard.

Tina 11:33

Oh, my gosh. I

Brian 11:34

can- That's a phenomenal cigar.

Tina 11:36

Mm-hmm.

Brian 11:36

Um-

Tina 11:37

Oh, wait. Okay, let's back up. Why do you like that? 'Cause I do not have a palate for that, by the way.

Brian 11:42

Oh.

Tina 11:42

I did try it, and I was like, "Mm, this is not for me."

Brian 11:45

It's, it's full-bodied but it's consistent all the way through. Mm-hmm. So, it's not... It doesn't transition. And I'm more of a straight-through, I'm not big on the transitions when I smoke. I,

Tina 11:55

I like transition, so.

Brian 11:57

And- Yeah.

Keake 11:57

And that was

Brian 11:58

probably

Keake 11:58

why you don't like it. It's...

Brian 11:59

Yeah, that's probably why. But it's, it's, it's just a phenomenal stick all the way through. It's full-bodied. It's smooth. You know, we talked about having to eat some food before you smoke.

Tina 12:08

Yeah.

Brian 12:09

I don't have to eat nothing with that.

Tina 12:10

Mm. Yeah.

Brian 12:11

That. I like the Queen of Sheba- Okay by El Timo. Okay. Empress. I like the, the Empress. I like the, there's a brand out of Texas called Definition.

Tina 12:22

Yes. Okay. Is that the one you showed

Brian 12:24

me too? Oh, Definition cigars are really good. I think I did was tell you about that. But-

Tina 12:27

Yeah. Is it, is the, the Black Owned one?

Brian 12:29

It's, yes, Black Owned. Yeah. They're out of Texas. Their bands are very unique and distinguished. They use the ribbon-

Tina 12:35

Mm-hmm

Brian 12:36

as a band, and it's colored. Yeah.

Tina 12:39

So, if that was the one, um, that was good. That was a good smoke.

Brian 12:41

Yeah. Very, very, very pheno- I've, I haven't had any one of their sticks that was not good.

Tina 12:46

Yeah.

Brian 12:46

Um, there's a brand BBL.

Tina 12:50

Okay.

Brian 12:51

The Amarillo, the barber pole.

Tina 12:53

Okay.

Brian 12:53

Phenomenal stick. Okay. Not too many places carry- I'd like a nice little barber pole. Yeah. I do too. Yeah. Well, they have some barber poles that I like in there

Keake 12:56

too.

Tina 13:00

Um, the, ugh, I, I'll think of the name, but continue, sorry.

Brian 13:04

And then you have, let me see. I have to clean these lenses.

Tina 13:10

Any Tatuajes or Padrons or-

Keake 13:13

I like Tatuaje. I don't, I, I can't say that there's one specific one that I'm like, "I need that," but I do enjoy it when I have it.

Tina 13:20

Well, Tatuaje has so many.

Keake 13:22

They, yeah, and I think that might be why. You know-

Brian 13:24

I-

Keake 13:24

It's just so much to

Brian 13:25

choose from I've had Tatuaje And, and it's very confusing they're, they're good but I don't have one, it's not like it's one of those sticks where I gotta go and I'ma get it. I know. Maybe if I'm trying something different, I would-

Tina 13:34

Well, that's me, me too. Same. Same.

Brian 13:37

And then my last is the H. Upmann by A.J. Fernandez.

Keake 13:41

Yeah, I feel like you smoke H. Upmann. I'm surprised that you said that last, like- Yeah 'cause I feel like you smoke that a lot.

Tina 13:46

So look, that one right there, the... Oh, so H. Upmann, The Banker? Is it-

Brian 13:50

No, no. The, I like The Banker but- Okay it's the one by A.J. Fernandez with the blue label. Oh,

Tina 13:55

okay. Mm-hmm. Okay.

Brian 13:56

It's a-

Tina 13:56

I feel like I've had that before.

Brian 13:57

It's funny, so a lot of the cigars I smoke I can't pronounce so- I just try- Well, look I just describe them by the name and the,

Tina 14:04

and the band No. No, no, no, no. Yeah. Yeah. I think we're all the same in that. Yeah. Like,, I just saw one of the guys I did a podcast with, he... So I was coming from Ambassador's 'cause I quickly stopped over there to get a couple of these for you guys. Yeah. Carlos. Thank you for that,

Keake 14:16

by the way.

Tina 14:16

Oh, no problem. Yeah. So but he's Spanish speaking-

Brian 14:19

Yeah

Tina 14:19

uh, by trade and so I, I kept saying San Andreas. Mm-hmm. San Andreas. San Andreas. Like the rapper or whatever. Yeah. He's like, "Tina, it's San Andrés. San Andrés." Yeah. He's like, "I know why Americans say that." He, yeah. Um, he's American, by the way. Born here, yeah. But he's like, "Uh, it's San Andrés."

Brian 14:35

Yeah.

Tina 14:36

And I was like, "Okay, I'll try to pronounce it better."

Brian 14:38

Yeah.

Tina 14:39

So when you- I'ma,

Brian 14:39

I'ma butcher something like

Tina 14:40

that. Well, but- Always when you get with a Spanish speaking person or around a Spanish speaking person, then they will correct you. For sure. Or, or you just ask- I usually do "Hey, how do you say this?"

Keake 14:49

Right. So, uh, listen, funny story about me and B. We are, we are very much super, well, I'm super social. He's not as social as me but he will be if he has to be. I feel

Tina 15:00

like you're social. You, you look quiet- He, he, yeah but you are social.

Keake 15:03

Like, he's like in the background. I, I always, I always think of B as like a- Thank y'all for coming out. Good night, type shit, right? So I'm the one like, "Hey, come on, let's dance." And you know, so I was... That's why I say I'm the hype man of the group, right? Mm. I'm always like, "Come on, let's dance. Let's drink. Let's do all the things." And he's just like, "Oh my God." You

Tina 15:23

need balance. He's like getting it in. You need balance. Right. But no, that's how me and Livvy are. Yeah. Me and Livvy are exactly the same. We don't have like a, like cigar social group or whatever. We just come out or whatever, and sometimes I'll be, um... Like, I had her do one podcast or whatever with me, but for the most part, she is the person that's always chatty, chatty, chatty. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. And I'm, I'm here like, you know, like I will speak up on the mic-

Keake 15:44

Yeah

Tina 15:45

or whatever, or if it's a subject that's nerdy- Mm-hmm I'll do that.

Keake 15:47

Mm-hmm.

Tina 15:48

Other than that, I'm like back here.

Keake 15:49

Yeah.

Tina 15:50

I'm like you. I'm exactly... I- I'm also an Aquarius, so maybe that's part of my thing. I don't know. But she's like always, da, da. She's like you.

Keake 15:57

Yeah.

Tina 15:57

Social butterfly. Just like, "Hey, hi." Social butterfly.

Keake 15:58

Hugs and kisses and loves and all things.

Tina 16:00

And there's nothing wrong with that, but you need balance. Yeah. And you guys have that balance.

Keake 16:04

Right. So I, um, he's a Gemini, I'm a Cancer.

Tina 16:06

Mm.

Keake 16:07

And so just that. Mm. Let's just start there.

Tina 16:09

Mm.

Keake 16:09

Right? And then, um, but so we are, and I'm, I'm gonna say this and he's gonna... We're gonna have a conversation about it afterwards. Uh-oh. But we are terrible with names. We're terrible. Between the two of us, we're awful with names. I am a person that's like, we have to really talk. I need, I need like seven minutes with you.

Tina 16:32

Mm.

Keake 16:33

And then I remember your name, I remember the conversation, I remember all the things.

Tina 16:36

Yeah.

Keake 16:36

So we're out, we had an event on Friday, right? Uh, Suits and Sundresses, we do that at, uh, Dave Buster's in Tempe. I know. I was there. Shout out to everybody that was there. I was there. And all that, it was a great time. Did

Tina 16:47

you guys forget I was there?

Keake 16:48

Yeah. No, I remember you were there. I'm just saying, for people who weren't there, right? I'm talking to this girl.

Tina 16:55

You're like, "What is your name?"

Keake 16:56

We're talking, we're having the best time. Like, she's my new bestie now. Yeah. Right? Like w- the best time ever, right? I wanna do all these things with you. I love you so much. I just wanna spend so much time with you because I just love you right now. You

Tina 17:08

have great energy.

Keake 17:09

Right? We go to exchange numbers. Why do I type my number in her phone and my name pops up? Not only does my name- Oh. So I'm Keyaki, right?

Tina 17:16

Yeah.

Keake 17:17

My name pops up, but also my nickname, which is Seven.

Tina 17:19

Yeah.

Keake 17:19

Pops up.

Tina 17:20

Yeah.

Keake 17:20

It's a picture of me and her together because we've been to events together. We've exchanged numbers together. We've taken pictures, we've done all this stuff.

Tina 17:27

Did she not remember?

Keake 17:28

She did not.

Tina 17:29

So everybody has this thing, like, you know, it is what it

Keake 17:34

is. So I was like, "Bet." No, I'll never forget her name now.

Tina 17:35

Yeah.

Keake 17:35

Right? Because we had this whole crazy experience, right?

Tina 17:38

Yeah,

Keake 17:38

yeah. But like that first time I'd be like- What's your name again?

Tina 17:42

I know your

Keake 17:43

face. Oh, I don't know. I know

Tina 17:44

your face.

Keake 17:45

Me and B, we go back and forth. It's so funny. It's like, "Oh yeah, I was talking to Joe and, and, and he's..." I'm like-

Tina 17:50

Who is that?

Keake 17:51

"Who the hell is Joe?"

Tina 17:52

Who is that? And

Keake 17:52

he's like, "Yeah, you know, the guy with the thing and the things and whatever." I'm like, "His name is David." "Oh. Oh, I thought his name was Joe." But the, the, so the funny thing about that is the girl that I'm talking to-

Tina 18:03

Yeah

Keake 18:04

she's, like, calling him Eddie all night long. And he's answering to Eddie. And I, she's like, "Hey, Eddie, come on.

Tina 18:10

We're doing shots, Eddie."

Keake 18:11

You could, you could be a, you could be a Eddie. And, and I'm looking around- I could be, I could see Eddie for Eddie.

Tina 18:13

You, I could see a Eddie a little bit.

Keake 18:15

She's like, "Come on, Eddie, we're doing shots." I'm like, "Who the f- Eddie?" And she's looking at B, looking him in the face, and I'm like, "Are you talking about Brian?" Your, your-

Tina 18:23

Brian is responding to Eddie.

Keake 18:25

And so it's so s- just hilarious. Silly. You're thinking- But because we're that way, we're both that way, it's like I, we really have to have, like, a really in-depth conversation with you. We love you all. We appreciate all of the support and, and two or three events and we gonna remember. But- Yeah because we meet so many people and we do so many things all the time, it's like, "Ooh, what's your name again?" But again, if you spend a few minutes with me, I'm gonna remember it and, and I will say things. I know,

Tina 18:49

like, when people come-

Keake 18:50

But it's so funny

Tina 18:51

when people come to your events, just put a name tag on them.

Keake 18:53

I've been wanting to do like a name tag event. "Hi, my name is..." See, if I see it, it's a whole different story. I got you if I see it. But baby, we, we just talking and I, I'm the drinker of the group. The drinker of the team, so I'm like, that's, I always tell people, "Was I drunk? Was I drunk?" Can't wait on it. Okay, so let's start over. Charge to my head, not my heart. Like, I love you and I appreciate you, but also, do you remember my name?

Tina 19:18

Right. Right.

Brian 19:19

Here's the thing about- That

Tina 19:20

part. That part

Brian 19:21

here's, I, like I say, I'm very bad with names. Mm-hmm. I'm good with faces, but I'm- Yeah. Mm-hmm bad with names.

Tina 19:25

I'm good with faces too.

Keake 19:26

That's a fact.

Brian 19:27

And so I can look at him, like, "Oh, I, I met you before."

Keake 19:30

Yeah, he knows everybody that's been to all of our stuff.

Brian 19:32

But remembering the name is- Who? the challenging part. And then I feel bad when people come up to me and we having a conversation-

Tina 19:41

Yeah

Brian 19:41

and I can't remember. Like, I know this face, but I don't remember their interaction. Yeah.

Tina 19:47

You gotta add a name to your contact list. When you put the contacts, just put-

Brian 19:51

Literally,

Keake 19:51

I take pictures with people-

Tina 19:52

Yeah now because of that. Yeah, yeah. Put, put the picture in there.

Keake 19:55

Text me your name and the picture.

Tina 19:57

Yeah. Because-

Brian 19:58

So here, here's, I, I kind of distinguish people by what they call me.

Tina 20:03

Mm.

Brian 20:04

Yes. So people-

Tina 20:05

What do you mean?

Brian 20:06

So- People that call me by my nickname or by my government name- What's

Tina 20:12

your, what's your nickname? Listen, we're not

Brian 20:16

talking about all that. Nah, I'm just gonna leave it be. Be. Be. My... So

Keake 20:18

people- Be Bryant.

Brian 20:23

But that's kinda how I can distinguish if somebody actually really knows me- Yeah or they know me from social media.

Keake 20:28

Yeah.

Brian 20:28

So on social media I go by my, my business name, which is Red Level.

Keake 20:33

Yeah.

Brian 20:33

So lot of people are like, "Hey, Red. Hey, Red Level." And so most people that call me Red Level-

Keake 20:38

You don't, I didn't know you

Brian 20:40

in

Keake 20:40

person

Brian 20:40

we don't, we have not really had- Yeah, I don't know you a really, they know me from social media.

Keake 20:44

Right.

Brian 20:44

And- I ha- I manage five Facebook pages.

Tina 20:49

Right. Mm.

Brian 20:49

And they all full. Okay. So-

Tina 20:51

Yeah

Brian 20:51

I feel, I feel bad, but people know your whole life from social media- Yes which I don't have a problem with 'cause I'm a brand and business, but I feel bad. I feel like, did I, did I, did I actually meet this person in real life? Yeah. Do I know

Keake 21:04

them?

Brian 21:04

Yeah. We really... Or, so I can kinda distinguish and then I, I'll have con- I'll have conversation with you- Mm and I'll be looking for these contact clues-

Keake 21:12

Yes

Brian 21:12

to

Keake 21:16

pick up like- Contact clues are everything, baby, I'm telling you. Yes.

Tina 21:17

Clues, clues.

Brian 21:18

Right.

Keake 21:19

I'm the same way. So when people... So my name is Keakea, but the way that it's spelled, a lot of people say Kiki. If you call me Kiki, I know that you don't know me for real. Mm. Because if you know me for real, you know I absolutely hate that. Please don't ever call me that. I hate it so much. Like, if you hear that- You guys hear that? No Kiki please don't do that. Please don't do that. And I will correct you, don't worry. Don't worry, I will. I'm gonna correct you, and then if you still do it, now I just, I, I'm done. I'm done. You're, you're gonna be ignored. I'm just, please don't do that.

Brian 21:45

I'm not, I'm not that way.

Keake 21:46

I

Brian 21:46

am. If you talking to me, I,

Keake 21:48

Because now I, now I feel like it's disrespectful because I've told you, we've had a conversation about it. We, I broke it down phonemically and all the things, My nickname is Seven. Yeah. My, my birthday is July 7th. Everything I do has a seven in my address- But why don't they just make up a

Tina 22:01

name?

Keake 22:02

Well, it- That's crazy the way that my name is spelled, it do- I could see how... I, I do understand, um, language and depending on where you're from and all that stuff. Hispanic people always say Keakea, no problems ever and never. Yeah. I never have to correct anybody. It's spelled K-E-A-K-E.

Tina 22:17

Mm.

Keake 22:18

People think the A is silent- Mm so they call me Kiki. Mm. And I'm like, "But yes, but not though."

Tina 22:22

Yeah.

Keake 22:23

But not.

Tina 22:23

Yeah.

Keake 22:24

So say the A. Yeah. Just say all the letters and you'll get it Keakea. Yeah. It's fine. Whatever, whatever. But then also my nickname is Seven, so I'm like, if you can't say Keakea, if you can't remember that, if that's a issue for you, it's challenging. No, you don't know another Keakea.

Tina 22:35

So why Seven?

Keake 22:37

Seven, everything is seven. My birthday is July 7th.

Tina 22:40

Oh. Uh,

Keake 22:41

everything is seven. My address- Your birthday

Tina 22:43

is coming up.

Keake 22:43

Yes. I'm so excited. I'm just over the top right now about my birthday coming up. My address, the numbers in my address is like seven, seven, right? So is every- Every, literally everything

Tina 22:55

it just happened?

Keake 22:56

It- Like- It, it, so like I am very much a, like a numbers person. Yeah. That I look for sevens everywhere, and if- Oh, okay the things align, like if, if the numbers are this combination or that combination and there's no sevens in here or some things to make a seven and there are sevens over here, I'm gonna go with this.

Tina 23:15

Okay.

Keake 23:15

Because that's, that's, that's, that's my vibe, that's my thing. That's- Okay. Yeah, I'm super obsessed, right? But that's how I know how people know me, right? If you call me Kiki, I know you don't know me for real, you just know me on social media. If you call me Keakea, we've had a conversation- If you call me Seven. We've had a conversation, but I didn't know you for real.

Tina 23:35

Yeah.

Keake 23:35

So I introduced myself as Seven 'cause I felt like it was gonna be easier for you.

Tina 23:38

Yeah.

Keake 23:39

And so that's why- Either one of those things, and I just didn't have time to go through all that. You're not

Tina 23:44

dumbing it down.

Keake 23:46

But, but, but that's not a nickname. So I, I used to be a part of a social club on the motorcycle set, and my, my club name was Seven Shots. If you tell people your name is Seven Shots, you gotta tell them why they call you Seven Shots and all that. Mm-hmm. And then like it's a whole thing. Yeah. And so it's just Seven is good. Yeah. Seven is good. Mm-hmm. Everything in my life is a seven. So that, and I will answer to either of those things. What I won't answer to is Kiki. Please don't call me that ever. But-

Tina 24:10

Got it

Keake 24:10

so but yeah, so we It, it's just, it's really interesting to see like all of the people that we meet and all the things that we do and all that, and you can tell who knows you from what- Yeah by what they call you.

Tina 24:22

Yeah.

Keake 24:22

Yeah, yeah.

Tina 24:24

So not Kevin?

Keake 24:26

Mm-mm. Or Eddie. Eddie.

Tina 24:27

Or

Keake 24:27

Eddie. Eddie. Eddie. That's what

Tina 24:28

I meant.

Keake 24:28

Eddie. Eddie, Eddie. But I kinda like Kevin for you. See- I kinda like Kevin for you a little bit Oh I don't know.

Tina 24:32

I just named you something. I

Keake 24:33

have two middle names.

Tina 24:35

Is it Eddie it is?

Keake 24:38

The phone is listening.

Tina 24:39

The phone always is listening. It's

Keake 24:40

always listening.

Tina 24:41

Absolutely. So guys, can we tell people out there, like, when the event is?

Keake 24:45

Yes. Oh, yeah.

Tina 24:45

I know it's in October.

Keake 24:46

Mm-hmm.

Tina 24:47

Um, tell us when it is. I know you can't tell us where- Mm-mm unless we purchase a ticket.

Keake 24:52

Mm-hmm.

Brian 24:52

We got some, we got some details for you this year.

Keake 24:54

We do actually have some details this year. Yes. We, we're, we're, we're being a little nice to y'all this year. We're not gonna make y'all wait till the last minute. Uh-

Brian 25:00

So this year... So Smoke in the Desert is always Columbus Day weekend- Or Indigenous People or, or Indigenous

Keake 25:07

People,

Brian 25:08

whichever you prefer.

Keake 25:09

Mm-hmm.

Brian 25:09

This year is October the 8th through the 11th. It's, the host city is Chandler. Okay. The host hotel is the Hilton Garden Inn. We have some new venues this year, So

Keake 25:21

excited

Brian 25:21

that we can announce. One of those venues is The Pemberton.

Keake 25:25

Yeah. Okay.- Yes. We love, love, love The Pemberton. If you've never been to The Pemberton, I promise you, you are gonna have such a good time. It's gonna be

Brian 25:32

a great time. It's a beautiful space. We're also adding a festival component to it. We're working with the city of Chandler, the DCCP, to bring a full festival to you guys this year. So that's a new component that we're adding this year. We, we're in works with, I won't drop this one yet. I'll wait till- Okay till it's official. But,

Keake 25:51

Some of the, some of the fan favorites, right? Yeah. Some of the fan favorites we always do from, from first year to this year, we always do coffee and cigars with Cigar and Coffee Meets, right? They do, networking events, right? Mm-hmm. So we've been partnering with them lately with Suits and Sundresses, but they've always, they've been rocking with us from the beginning. They do our networking event on Saturday mornings, and fan favorite. Everybody loves it. We go and party like rockstar. We do Thursday. Mm-hmm. We do Friday. We stay out till 2:00, 3:00 in the morning and- That sounds great possibly more. But then first thing Saturday

Tina 26:21

morning- That's why you guys need the

Keake 26:22

hotel right. First thing Saturday morning, 9:00 in the morning, we're out networking with other entrepreneurs.

Tina 26:30

Mm.

Keake 26:30

Right? Whatever your business is, whatever you do, come and meet some other people who do stuff. You don't know who you don't know.

Tina 26:37

Mm-hmm.

Keake 26:37

You need to connect with other people in the city who are on your same vibe. And that, um, from... We're going to year four. We've had people connect and create cigar lines. We've had people connect and create businesses together. We've had people do business with each other on all these things based on this. Mm. Right? Cigars and coffee, and people don't think about- The fact that cigars and coffee pair really well together. If you don't drink We drink. I drink a lot. If you don't drink, there are other things that you can drink- Yeah that pair well with cigars. Yeah. Yeah. When I go on vacation, the first thing I do in the morning, I let my kids sleep in. I get up at sunrise and I have my coffee, I have my cigar, and I sit and watch the sunrise and just have- It's a- some me time. Right? A

Tina 27:19

great combination.

Keake 27:20

So super looking forward to that this week. Birthday week, right? Yay. Got a whole plan. Mm-hmm. So excited. But that is just a dope way to start your day. Mm-hmm. It is. Yeah. Have your coffee, have your cigars, meet some really cool entrepreneurs. Get some numbers, get some Instagrams, get some whatever you need to get. Mm. Connect with these people and do some business with people. That's what we do in the cigar lounge, right?

Tina 27:44

Mm-hmm.

Keake 27:44

Yeah. We connect with people and we do business, right? It's not just about blowing some bread and smoking some stogs and, and whatever, drinking some drinks.

Tina 27:52

Yeah.

Keake 27:53

It's about connecting with people.

Tina 27:54

Yeah.

Keake 27:55

And so that's a fan favorite event. We always have that and that is amazing. One of the other events that we do, that we'll keep is, Smoking With Our Queens, right? Yes., Highlighting, women in the cigar community and the culture. Mm-hmm. Right? There are lots of women doing really amazing things out here, whether it's creating a brand, whether it's creating a fashion line, whether it's accessories or whatever it is.

Tina 28:18

Mm.

Keake 28:18

Yeah. Women are very prevalent in the cigar culture and community, and people don't realize that as much. Out here in Phoenix, women are doing big things, and we want you to know that. True. Yeah. And so we want you to come and smoke with these women and have a time. We're gonna have a time.

Tina 28:33

Yeah.

Keake 28:35

Always. Everything we do, we always gonna have a time, baby. A time is gonna be had. Come and smoke with women and, and I don't know. I can't think of the word. Fellowship. Just really- Yeah fellowship, really, support and acknowledge the fact that women have such a really integral role in the cigar culture and community. Mm. It's not But, you know, we say all the time that it's male-dominated, but I don't know- Well, the crazy- that that's what it is anymore the crazy Go

Tina 29:01

ahead.

Brian 29:01

So I feel like just within the last 10 years in the cigar community that women come into the cigar industry and they lead and dominate.

Keake 29:12

Mm-hmm.

Brian 29:13

They I know women that smoke much better than me. They spend much more money on cigars than I do. Mm-hmm. When they get into it, they get into it. Yes. And honestly- Women cigar smokers are one of the largest, revenue for the cigar industry right now I

Tina 29:34

agree. Yes. I, yeah, I- I agree with that too. Did you not see that when you were in North Carolina? 'Cause I feel like the women dominate out there.

Keake 29:41

Yes. Yes.

Brian 29:41

They dominate in Chicago

Keake 29:43

too. They-

Tina 29:43

Oh,

Keake 29:43

yeah. A lot of places. Yeah, that's true. I mean- However- And we, we say this and I think it's almost as a habit that the cigar industry is a male dominated industry, but I don't know that that's real. I think

Tina 29:53

people need to... I was gonna say,

Keake 29:54

people- I don't know that that's real

Tina 29:54

people need to stop saying that because- Traditionally, traditionally I don't think

Keake 29:57

that's that true anymore and that's a good way to say that. That's a really great way to say that. Traditionally it was a male dominated industry. Traditionally it was male dominated. I don't know that it's that way anymore. Women spend money.

Tina 30:05

Mm.

Keake 30:05

Women show up to events. Well, I know

Tina 30:07

I spend money.

Keake 30:08

Women- support brands- Yes that they like and they enjoy. That's true.

Brian 30:15

And just for Smoke in the Desert, majority of our people that fly in are women.

Keake 30:20

Yeah.

Brian 30:20

For the event. That's what's up.

Keake 30:21

For sure. Yeah.

Brian 30:22

Women.

Keake 30:22

Yeah. And so, and that's one of the reasons that we do, a women focused event, right? Yeah. We see that and we understand that. And then just me as a woman, I mean- Yeah. We, listen, A, we don't have time. So- I think that, I think that's a really good way to say that, B, and I, and I think that that's, that's a, that's how we should frame that is traditionally it is men dominated. It's not really that way anymore. Women... And women have been so much a part of the cigar industry for so many years, it's just that we're seen now.

Tina 30:54

Mm-hmm.

Keake 30:55

Mm-hmm. The rollers and the blenders and the all these different aspects of creating the cigar.

Tina 31:03

Yeah.

Keake 31:03

People didn't see them because they were, they weren't in the lounge.

Tina 31:06

Yeah.

Keake 31:06

Now we're in the lounge- Yeah and we're spending money in the lounge, and we're keeping these lounges afloat.

Tina 31:10

Yeah.

Keake 31:11

Yep.

Tina 31:11

I mean, a lot of them too were behind the scenes, like, Ta- Mm. Tatuaje, for example. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. So, a lot of people that I know love Tatuaje. Now I do like specific ones, but, just the other day when I was talking to Vartan over at Ambassadors, he was telling me that,, it wasn't until, Yani, got with that pr- particular, her husband now, that Tatuaje kind of blew up the way that it blew up. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. And so that's kind of, that's how a lot of brands, like you were saying behind the scenes, you have women that are strong behind the scenes- Yeah of cigars, and the public doesn't really know it.

Keake 31:45

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And now you can see it. You can see women coming in and making sure that this lounge doesn't fail.

Brian 31:52

Yep. They

Keake 31:52

come in and they support ladies night at Fox.

Tina 31:56

Yeah.

Keake 31:56

Right? Yeah. Ladies night at Castro's.

Tina 31:59

Well, I

Keake 31:59

think- Ladies night at anywhere. I think- Women are coming out and they're spending money and they're smoking cigars, and they know what they want.

Tina 32:05

I don't know, like, 'cause I don't see the revenue or whatever, but I will say based on the days that I've been there at Fox's, and I probably have been at Fox's like all the days of the week- Mm-hmm at this point. Wednesday nights to me seems to be the highest revenue night. Yeah. And again, I'm not behind the register. Yeah, yeah. I don't know the, the cash or whatever, but I just see the people coming through the door. Mm-hmm. I see the drinks flowing and I see the cigars flying off the shelf. So

Brian 32:29

the thing- I'm a numbers guy. I can look at a, I can look at a venue on a night and tell what they rang. Yeah.

Tina 32:33

Yeah. So w-

Brian 32:34

Cause that's just the promoter. Yeah, yeah.

Tina 32:35

But see, Wednesday nights to me looks like one of their highest gross, like-

Keake 32:39

Yeah.

Tina 32:39

Yeah.

Brian 32:39

Wednesday's is the new Friday and Saturday. Yeah.

Tina 32:41

Yeah.

Brian 32:42

There.

Keake 32:42

It's the midweek.

Brian 32:43

Yeah.

Keake 32:43

So here in Phoenix, I think that we don't work traditional schedules here.

Tina 32:47

Mm-hmm.

Keake 32:48

People are retired. They work part-time. They do... They're entrepreneurs. They do-

Tina 32:52

Yeah

Keake 32:52

yada, yada, yada, whatever. Yeah. Right? No, we're not working a Monday through Friday, 9:00 to 5:00 type thing. And

Tina 32:57

then you have people coming in from out of town all the

Keake 32:59

time. People come from out of town for work- For conventions for whatever.

Tina 33:02

Mm-hmm.

Keake 33:02

Because it was their vacation and they always wanted to come to Phoenix or whatever.

Tina 33:06

And, and guess what? People are going on Wednesday nights if they're from out of town, and I'm out here in North Phoenix, well, not right now, but in North Phoenix normally, and they're like, "Oh, this place shuts down." I'm like, "Go to Fox." Yeah. And other people, they already know already 'cause they've been here. Yeah. They're like, "Well, I'm gonna go to Fox." Yeah.

Keake 33:21

They stay open late. Mm. That, that is- Yep that in and of itself changes the game, right? Mm-hmm. They stay open till 2:00 every day of the week.

Tina 33:29

Yep.

Keake 33:29

You can go everywhere you wanna go. We have- On a Sunday so many lounges on every single day of the week. Seven days a week. Yeah. They're gonna stay open till 2:00. So you can go wherever you wanna go. Go see three other lounges.

Tina 33:41

Mm-hmm.

Keake 33:41

And then when they close, go to Pops. Go to Pops. 'Cause they're not

Tina 33:44

closing till 2:00. Yeah.

Keake 33:45

You know what I mean? Their humidor is nice. Their bar is nice. Like, the music is gonna be some of that what you want. Like, it's gonna be a good time, guaranteed. So- I like that in Phoenix. I like that. There are some really cool cigar lounges and cigar shops

Tina 34:03

that open early. Can we talk about, can we talk about this space for a little bit? Yes. Hype them up a little bit.

Keake 34:07

Yes. Oh, yeah. I am so- So- so impressed.

Tina 34:10

I, I like it. I love this. I l- well, wait. Go ahead. Before you get into that, 'cause I don't know as much as you guys know- Mm-hmm so let me put my little two cents in- from the outside coming in. So the room that we're in now, I don't know what it's called, but I love it. They have this lady on the... She... This is definitely Japanese right here. Yeah. Because I was in Japan, and, I absolute- This is the room that I like the most. Okay. It's this. Yeah. Okay. That's it.

Keake 34:32

It's really cute.

Brian 34:33

So I'ma, I'ma, I'ma, I'ma go back and I'ma segue. So-

Tina 34:35

Okay

Brian 34:36

the space that we're in now, Dragon's Lounge, is definitely one of the new venues that we're adding this year. We're adding Dave Buster's this year as a new venue this year. And- To

Tina 34:47

the Smoke in the Desert Smoke in the

Keake 34:48

Desert.

Brian 34:48

Okay.

Keake 34:48

Yeah, yeah,

Brian 34:49

yeah. Oh, he's

Tina 34:49

giving away the secret.

Keake 34:50

I know. Listen. So- He, he's feeling good over there. I don't know. He's telling all our business. Second drink for you, huh?

Brian 34:57

So here's my thing. So I purposely, and I, I stand on this, people like, "Well, let's... Where we going? What's the itinerary?" When you purchase your ticket, you'll get an itinerary. We don't, we purposely do not release that itinerary because things may change. We may change it up, so- Mm-hmm you get an itinerary four months before, and weather could occur. Crazy happens, right. So last year, right, prime example. Last year- Right we had three outdoors events planned for Smoke in the Desert, and it rained four days out of four days of Smoke in the Desert. And it

Tina 35:27

very rarely rains.

Keake 35:29

It never rains in October, right?

Tina 35:31

That's why nobody, like, nobody has umbrellas here. Right. Right. Nobody.

Keake 35:35

We get monsoons here, but it's, like, every seven years or some craziness. Right. Right? This was the year that we had the monsoon. It was a lot of rain last year. Yeah. And it was so much rain. We had three outdoor events planned, and it was like, "Oh, okay, so now what?"

Brian 35:49

So we had to literally pivot and change venues- Mm-hmm at the last minute. So we purposely do not release the itinerary except for to the ticket holders. Yeah. Those are the most important people that need to know- That's right where- Right the events are. Yeah,

Keake 36:03

100%. 'Cause if you ain't, you ain't buy no ticket, you ain't necessarily coming, right?

Brian 36:06

Right. So we have a system in place, so when you purchase a ticket, you get on our email list, you get on our text list, and we update you continuously throughout the weekend, let you know where you need to be. And inside of that, we give you the location, so all you gotta do is click on that link and it's gonna guide you from wherever it is you are to that.

Tina 36:26

Yeah.

Brian 36:26

That's one of the perks you get of purchasing a ticket.

Tina 36:28

Yeah. Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.

Brian 36:29

And so with last year, with the three events that we had outside and had to shift and pivot-

Tina 36:35

Mm

Brian 36:36

we were able to literally send out a text message to everybody that was confirmed-

Keake 36:41

Yeah

Brian 36:41

and give them the new update, and everything went over like a hitch.

Keake 36:45

Yeah, yeah, yeah, easy.

Brian 36:47

If we put the itinerary out there in, just on the website or social media, we can't necessarily update you like that anyway. That's

Keake 36:56

fact, right.

Tina 36:56

Yeah.

Brian 36:57

Right, so-

Keake 36:57

I got your information, I can text you right now. Yeah. And listen, hey, whatever life happened- Yeah we're doing something different. And we do have a, we have a backup plan, right? We, this is what we wanna do. We got a backup plan. We don't necessarily wanna do a backup plan, but if we have to, we do have something for you to do. Yeah. We, last year, literally three events we had to change at the last minute. But you still have a place to go to. We're not canceling no events. A- and for, and we coming up on four years, and the three years that we've done so far, we have not canceled one event.

Brian 37:26

No, not at all.

Keake 37:27

Right? So I can't speak for no other Cigar Week, I can't say what they do and all that- Yeah and whatever, but, we haven't had to cancel an event. We know a lot of the lounges, we, we have a relationship with most lounges in the Valley. We have a relationship with most of the cigar community here so that if things need to change, they can, and we can figure that out. But if you purchase a ticket, you're gonna get the most up-to-date information. Mm-hmm. We're gonna tell you immediately. As soon as we know, as soon as that's confirmed that we're changing,

Tina 37:56

That's what's up.

Brian 37:57

That part. So I don't mind releasing venues, but once you get your ticket, you'll know exactly when and where you need to be where you need to be.

Tina 38:05

Okay, so those are the final secrets, guys. So purchase a ticket- That's all and you will find out and keep, be updated. Up to

Keake 38:12

date,

Brian 38:12

yeah.

Tina 38:13

Yeah.

Brian 38:13

On

Keake 38:13

all

Brian 38:14

the things. Yeah. That part. A- and I get a lot of people, they be like, if you release the venues, and da, da, this and da, da that." Look, I've been doing this 26 years. I know my people. You already know.

Tina 38:23

You already know.

Keake 38:24

If you come, you come.

Tina 38:25

They, they go, they gonna try to pop- Whether you know the venue or not they, they gonna try to pop up, like, oh-

Keake 38:29

If you... Listen, if you wanna come, you're gonna come. Yeah. If you don't wanna come, you don't wanna come, and that's okay. Like, we, what we say? Well,

Tina 38:37

but

Keake 38:37

the- It's not for everybody.

Tina 38:38

I know, but the other thing too, like, okay, so I've spent, let me just say probably $150 this week, maybe more on cigars.

Keake 38:46

Mm-hmm.

Tina 38:46

Mm-hmm. So the tickets- That's what we spend are about a little bit more.

Keake 38:50

Yeah.

Tina 38:50

But in that range. In that range. In that range. So if, if you can afford one week of smoking cigars, you can afford Smoke in the Desert. For sure. It's like, it- And

Keake 38:58

it's not

Tina 38:58

like you're- It's in the same, it's in the same- It's in the

Keake 39:00

same realm. Yeah.

Tina 39:00

Yeah, it's in the same- It's

Keake 39:01

not like- Yeah you're not getting anything, right? Yeah. When you purchase tickets, you're getting stuff, right? You're, you're coming to the events that we have, right? And it's gonna be a dope ass event. That

Brian 39:10

you're gonna get-

Keake 39:10

You're going

Brian 39:10

to- that you wouldn't normally get if you was there-

Keake 39:13

Otherwise

Brian 39:14

otherwise.

Keake 39:14

Mm-hmm. Right? You're gonna get, the ticket holders are gonna get swag bags and all that kind of stuff. So you're gonna get some extra. You're gonna get more than what you spent The, the thing about the cigar community is we definitely love, love, love to be exclusive. We love to be in on some stuff that don't nobody else know about That's

Tina 39:33

right.

Keake 39:34

We love to have some things that can't nobody else come to. One of the things that we, we're in- Well,

Tina 39:38

I gotta tell, I gotta tell y'all some stuff after the podcast that- Okay because I'm in this community people know and so there's some things that I'm privy to that- Yeah, yeah I gotta tell y'all about after this

Keake 39:47

podcast. Yeah. Yeah, you can private message me. Let us know. But so the thing about that is I'll s- Phoe- I'll say this about Phoenix culture. Phoenix people in general, cigars or no, right, they, they like to wait till the last minute. They wanna... There's so many options here in Phoenix. Mm-hmm. There's so many things to do. People don't like to purchase tickets. People don't like to commit to things because there's so much to do. I might- I know change my mind. I know. I might-

Tina 40:14

I know, and that's- I, you know- That's, that's kind of the most... Well, okay, so I'm becoming like that a little bit. However, that's one of the most annoying things- Yeah about Phoenix to me-

Keake 40:25

Yeah

Tina 40:25

is that you're like, how many people are gonna be at this event? Yeah. Like, or how many people are gonna show? Like, people wait- Who's

Keake 40:31

the leader?

Tina 40:32

until the 11th hour to-

Keake 40:33

Literally.

Tina 40:33

Yeah.

Keake 40:34

And they don't wanna purchase the tickets and all that, and then when the tickets are sold out and we don't have the capacity to accommodate, now you're like, "Oh, oh, oh. Hey, do, I know you. Can I get... No.

Tina 40:43

No.

Keake 40:44

Because as a promoter, right, I need to know who's gonna be there. Capacity, yeah. I need to make sure that we have enough space. Yep. I need to know that we have enough staff. I need to know that we have enough everything, right? I want you to be comfortable. I, when we're putting on these events, we want these events to be like if we were going to these events, right? If I go to an event, I don't wanna wait in nobody's line.

Tina 41:05

I

Keake 41:05

don't even know- I don't wait in lines

Tina 41:06

anymore

Keake 41:06

I wanna be able to sit down. Yeah. I need to be able to smoke. I need to be able to drink. I need to be... All these things- Comfortable I-

Tina 41:11

Comfortable

Keake 41:12

like as a person who goes to events. If I spend money on a ticket, this is what I'm looking for.

Tina 41:17

Yeah.

Keake 41:17

Right? And so I help make these events as a, as a consumer.

Tina 41:23

Yeah.

Keake 41:24

Right? What is, what do the people want?

Tina 41:26

Yeah.

Keake 41:26

And that, so when I go to other people's events, that's the first thing out of... And I do, I will, I like to support my friends. I like to support what's going on in the city. I buy tickets to stuff, and I don't go. I, my husband will tell you right now. He's, on my bumper about, "You buying these tickets to the stuff, you don't go to the stuff."

Tina 41:43

Well, I mean-

Keake 41:44

But I wanna go to the stuff, but also life and- Yeah, I

Tina 41:47

know

Keake 41:48

things and feelings- But so- and, and yada, yada, whatever. I,

Tina 41:51

I get it so at the y- y- so, to piggyback on that, sometimes I'll purchase things, and I won't do it- Mm-hmm because, I'm just- Just for whatever reason. I

Keake 41:57

get it.

Tina 41:58

Well, that plus, I already said, okay, I'm just gonna support this event right here or this thing right here even though I have this other prior engagement.

Keake 42:05

Yeah.

Tina 42:06

It's, to me, another way of supporting.

Keake 42:08

Supporting, right. Yeah. Because I want you to be successful, right? So and, and with Smoking Desert, we- We do cigar events, right? We do cigar friendly events. We want to promote the culturing community here in Phoenix. That doesn't mean that we don't support other cigar events. Just 'cause you also do cigar events, that doesn't mean we don't support. We will support other things.

Tina 42:32

Yeah.

Keake 42:33

If you're doing a thing at the time that I'm doing a thing, I can't come to your thing.

Tina 42:36

Yeah.

Keake 42:36

I'm not necessarily gonna buy a ticket to your thing when I know for sure I have a thing.

Tina 42:40

Yeah.

Keake 42:40

Right? If you got a thing and I don't have a thing, I'll probably buy a ticket to your thing. Whether I come or not is a different story 'cause-

Tina 42:46

Yeah

Keake 42:47

life.

Tina 42:47

Yeah.

Keake 42:48

Right? I got three teenagers- Yeah and, and all this and all that and whatever, my life. But I still wanna support you. I wanna support the cigar culturing community. I want you to thrive. I want you to be successful. It's not a competition thing for me. Like, it's not, "Hey, you do this and I do the same thing, and I can't support you because I do the same." No, I want you to be successful. Successful,

Tina 43:10

yeah.

Keake 43:10

I want overall the Phoenix culturing community to be successful, right? I'm gonna come to your stuff if I can. I'll support your stuff even if I can't. I'll send somebody else or whatever.

Tina 43:21

Yeah.

Keake 43:24

I can't be at everything. I literally cannot Yeah,

Tina 43:26

yeah

Keake 43:27

My capacity, I've, I had four things on my calendar yesterday, I was able to do two of them because I'd already done a thing and all the things and all the things. Like- Yeah,

Tina 43:36

yeah right?

Keake 43:36

Sometimes I can and sometimes I can't, right? I'm one person. Uh, but I think that i- overall, in general, we do try very, very hard to support the cigar culture and community overall. We wanna come to your stuff, we wanna support your stuff, we wanna... This is not a competition thing. We do what we do What you do doesn't really affect what we do.

Tina 43:59

Yeah.

Keake 43:59

There's so much to go around. There's so many lounges. There's so many people. There's so much going on. We don't have to undercut you. We don't have to talk bad about you. We don't have to do any of that to be successful. We do what we do, and that's just that.

Tina 44:13

Yeah, that's what's up. Yeah.

Keake 44:15

And we can still support you and still do what we do and be successful in

Tina 44:18

that. Yeah, yeah. And that's something, that's quite interesting that I've seen since I've been here. I've only been here for two years, and I've seen cigar... people that make cigars try to talk about other cigar people- Yeah and other cigar owners try to talk about other cigar lounges. And I'm like, "It's enough money to go around."

Keake 44:34

So much.

Tina 44:35

You do not

Keake 44:35

have to do that. We're literally the third-largest in the, in the whole nation- You do in all of 50 states. Right, like,

Tina 44:40

yeah.

Keake 44:41

And however many territories. Yeah. Like, come on.

Tina 44:43

Yeah, so.

Keake 44:44

It's too much. Yeah. It's, it's so much money., People are gonna smoke where they like to smoke- That's right where they feel comfortable to smoke. Places that I like to go that other people don't like to go.

Tina 44:52

Yeah.

Keake 44:52

Right? I go and support them.

Tina 44:54

Yeah.

Keake 44:54

Places that, you know, my friends don't go, I pick that place as a place that I go and have my meetings and have my reading time and have- Yeah my whatever, 'cause my friends don't go there.

Tina 45:03

Yeah.

Keake 45:03

And I don't have to worry about socializing. Yeah. I can just be by myself.

Tina 45:06

Yeah.

Keake 45:07

There are places that I go to socialize because I wanna see my friends, and I wanna do all the things with my friends. There's enough to go around. Yeah. Whatever your vibe is in Phoenix, we got that.

Tina 45:18

Yeah. It's everywhere. Like- We got that you, there's a place for every-

Keake 45:22

Every single

Tina 45:22

thing thing. Yeah. Yeah,

Keake 45:23

all of the things.

Tina 45:24

So this space again, can we talk more about this space that we're in? It's a newer

Keake 45:28

lounge. So Dragon is super dope. Like, so it used to be... So this is the third iteration of a cigar lounge in this space. It was... What was it called in the beginning? It

Brian 45:38

was Big Stiks at first.

Keake 45:39

Big Stiks. Yeah. Then

Brian 45:40

Maduro's East. Maduro's East. And now it's Dragon. And now it's

Keake 45:42

Dragon. Yeah, yeah.

Brian 45:44

Three separate owners, three different vibes and concepts.

Keake 45:47

Yes.

Brian 45:48

And this latest vibe and concept is, is super, super dope. Um, but the-

Keake 45:53

Definitely different than most, right?

Brian 45:54

It's different than most. So it's a Asian-themed cigar lounge, and the reason it's Asian-themed is because it's in the largest Asian district in Phoenix. Mm.

Keake 46:04

Yeah.

Brian 46:05

So the owner-

Tina 46:06

With the H Mart right there.

Brian 46:07

Yeah.

Tina 46:07

Yeah.

Brian 46:08

The owner decided to complement the district that they're in and create a Asian-themed cigar lounge. So I always describe it as I feel like I'm smoking in the movie Rush Hour.

Tina 46:19

Mm-hmm.

Keake 46:20

You

Brian 46:20

say that

Keake 46:20

a

Tina 46:21

lot,

Keake 46:21

you

Tina 46:21

do.

Brian 46:22

And it is. I mean, it's super dope. It's unique. It's different. I haven't been... I, I, I've been to cigar lounges all over the country and have never been in one- Like this with this, like this with this theme. Yeah. Um, full bar- Massive cigar selection

Keake 46:38

Mm-hmm

Brian 46:39

Hospitality is phenomenal

Keake 46:41

I agree

Brian 46:41

And it's, it's just a super... I encourage everybody to definitely come in, stop You

Keake 46:45

gotta pull up one time. Yeah. You gotta come over here- Yeah and see what is, what they on. The parking is, plentiful at a certain hour. Yeah. Let me say that. In, in the middle of the day when all the other things is- It gets- Like a- Yeah shopping mall kinda scenario. So in the, in the early afternoon, maybe not so much. In the evening though, baby, you can park wherever you want. Wherever

Tina 47:03

you want.

Keake 47:03

You ain't gotta worry about nothing. Yeah. Yeah. It's food around here. It's right on the light rail if you wanna, if you are one of those people like me, like I don't necessarily wanna drive 'cause I wanna drink all the things. Get on the light rail. Park-n-ride. Get on the light rail. It'll drop you off literally right at the door. Um- All those things. So it's, it's really different in that it has some aspects that other cigar lounges don't, whereas some other- I really

Tina 47:26

like that room right there, too

Keake 47:27

that other, that room's really cute. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. They have, they've got the, plenty of bathrooms. They've got, like you said, the full bar and all that stuff. Everybody's really friendly. Uh, when I come here I feel comfortable. I feel at home. I don't feel like I gotta put on airs. I don't feel like I gotta tiptoe around anything. I feel very comfortable. This is what I'm on, this is what I want to smoke. They have the majority of the things that I want to smoke. Um-

Tina 47:50

Their humidor is very impressive, by the way. It is. So, so I came here originally to, their grand opening. And one of the first things that I saw and was very impressed by was their humidor selection. Mm-hmm. They have a lot of cigars in there, and a lot of different brands that I absolutely love. I lo- love Espinosa. I was able to find the Espinosa 601, which is a new one that came out of TAA. Uh, or I'm sorry, let me backtrack. PCA. It came out of PCA this year, and it's one of the best Espinosas that Espinosa has put out, I would say. Um, other than, like I love the Las Provencias, that line, which they don't really advertise. I feel like, Espinosa people in general, they advertise all the other ones that are like the 10 to $12 sticks. Mm. But anything that's like $18 or more, I think they sell themselves.

Brian 48:39

Yeah.

Tina 48:40

And so that's why I love the Las Provencias with the 601. It's a, about an $18 stick wherever you can get it. Um, so they sell it here. They sell it, I think, at Cigars Daily, and then at Ambassador. So it's very hard to get, but it's a very good stick if you guys can get it. Um, I saw some of the other brands that I like in there. They have, of course, Oliva. Pretty much, most of the main things you can get here. Yeah. And that's one of the reasons why, you don't really wanna If you are thinking about starting a cigar shop, don't sit it next to another cigar shop because you will not be able to sell those, those brands that everybody loves. So, there's plenty of space out here in Arizona, so if you are thinking of starting a cigar shop, do it far a- away enough where you can sell the popular brands that people like.

Brian 49:31

I definitely agree with that. Definitely, definitely agree with that.

Tina 49:37

Um, we're probably gonna wrap up in a little bit. Okay. But, I know that when I was talking to Kay, she was, speaking on, how Smoke in the Desert was, expanding, I guess, to other cities, and is that something that you guys are going to, or are you guys just networking, kinda advising other people that are looking to start stuff for their cities? Like, how is that, I guess, going to roll out?

Brian 50:04

So- It's definitely on our radar as regards to possibly popping up in some other cities. Uh, time-wise, we don't have that-

Tina 50:17

Mm

Brian 50:17

earmarked just yet.

Tina 50:18

Okay.

Brian 50:19

Um, as far as like advising other cigar weeks that are popping up, we talk to a lot of the newer cigar weeks that have popped up since we've done it, and we definitely kinda share, you know, some of the trials and things to look out for and things and what to do and what not to do with those. Just as, you know, when we got started with Smoke in the Desert, I've had some of the other cigar weeks that was, that came out before us, uh, to kind of drop some jewels and nuggets on me. You know, special shout-out to my big bro Cigar Mike out of Atlanta. Um, you know, very instrumental on, you know, giving some, some, some insight of, you know, how to pull these things off.

Tina 51:09

Okay.

Brian 51:09

Love a shout-out to, uh, Lefty from SOT Global Movement.

Tina 51:15

Mm-hmm.

Brian 51:15

Very instrumental in helping and, guiding and giving us some insight on, you know, some things too and what not to do and some ideas. So, that's another thing within this community. You know, we, we try to help and share different things to do, and some of those things may work strictly for this market. Some of those things may work for other markets. Right. Um, just to piggyback off of one... the last topic you guys were talking about, you know, Phoenix is a walk-up market, you know, when it comes to purchasing tickets. It's frustrating for the event holders but, you know, if you... it's, it's the gamble that you take when you enter into being a promoter.

Tina 51:59

Yeah. Yeah.

Brian 51:59

Yeah. You know? It's a gamble.

Tina 52:01

Yeah.

Brian 52:02

But, you know, if you enjoy doing it, you know, it, it, it definitely can be- It can work it definitely can work and definitely can be rewarding in the long haul.

Keake 52:10

Yeah. I do appreciate that in the, in the cigar community, is that people are willing to share information. Um, I think that, you know, just because we do the same thing doesn't mean I can't share information with you.

Tina 52:21

Yeah.

Keake 52:21

It doesn't mean that, you know, I'm, I'm gatekeeping-

Tina 52:24

Exclusive

Keake 52:24

all of this- Yeah and all that. Yeah. You know, hey, this is what I learned. This is what I did, you know? Um, you know, working with Charlotte Cigar Week and all that, and Damon is my really good friend, um, sharing some of his experiences-

Tina 52:37

Mm-hmm

Keake 52:37

saying, "Hey, this is what I went through in creating my cigar week." Yeah. And, you know, I don't want you to go through that.

Tina 52:42

Yeah.

Keake 52:43

Make sure you're doing this and that. Make sure you're doing this and that. These are some of the things. The behind-the-scene things- Yeah not even the event things, right? The behind-the-scene things, the, the being part of a team things, you know?

Tina 52:52

Yeah.

Keake 52:52

And that, and, and I appreciated that because, you know, I, I didn't know. When I, when I started this game- Yeah like I, I didn't know shit. I was just like, "I like cigars. I wanna do this," and now I, we're starting a whole cigar week.

Tina 53:05

Organizers.

Keake 53:06

This is crazy. Yeah. Like, I'm putting this on. Okay. Yeah. I don't, I don't know anything. I've never done this before. And so just sharing those, those tips and tricks, um, and not just being like, "Yeah, good luck with your life." Just figure it out. I don't know a g- you know, I don't want your week to be better than my week. Like, the people that we surround ourselves with aren't that way. Yeah. I'm sure there are people out there that are that way.

Tina 53:28

Yeah.

Keake 53:28

We don't surround ourselves with those type of people. We surround ourselves with people that, "Hey, look, I love you and you are my friend. You are my brother and sister of the leaf. I want you to be successful in what you do- Yeah and so let me give you-" Some jewels. Let me give you... So look, you don't have to go through all the crazy I went through.

Tina 53:43

Yeah.

Keake 53:44

Here, let me tell you- Yeah so you can make better choices and stuff like that. So I appreciate that. That's, and that's really dope about the cigar community. I don't know that, um, all business types are that way. Um-

Tina 53:55

Yeah

Keake 53:55

so I appreciate that.

Tina 53:56

Yeah. Me too. So, we're gonna wrap up this episode of Sticks and Stories. Thank you guys so much. Keyaki.

Keake 54:02

Mm-hmm.

Tina 54:03

And, um, I'm now gonna call you Kevin.

Keake 54:05

Eddie.

Tina 54:06

Eddie.

Keake 54:06

Bryant.

Tina 54:07

Bryant Thompson. Red level.

Keake 54:09

All the things.

Tina 54:09

All the things. Um-

Brian 54:11

I feel like everybody's gonna start calling me that one now.

Keake 54:13

Eddie. You

Tina 54:13

already Eddie. Hey, Eddie. You do- I'ma get you a shirt that say Eddie you do kinda look like an Eddie. I,

Keake 54:17

I wanna get you a shirt.

Tina 54:18

Do you guys w- have any closing remarks or anything you wanna say to the people?

Keake 54:23

Absolutely. Smoke in the Desert, October 8th through the 11th. Uh, pull up to us. Um, come and fellowship with us, smoke with us, put some smoke in the air with Smoke in the Desert PHX Cigar Week. Follow us on Instagram at phxcigarweek. Um, a time will be had by all. I promise you, you will have an experience that you will remember for a long time to come.

Brian 54:46

Thank y'all for coming out. God bless. Good night.

Keake 54:47

Amen. Thank

Brian 54:48

you.