Interview (#3)

This is the 3rd interview of the interview series that I've been doing. Interview #1 and #2 were both people that I have known for over 10 years. I happen to be interviewing someone that I've known longer than 10 years this time...longer than 20 years...maybe even longer than the 22 years that I've been on this earth. Today (March 14th. Sorry this interview was posted late), on my birthday, and his birthday, I'm interviewing my twin brother Bilal Curtis. Me and Bilal always spend our birthdays together, trying not to get into trouble. Last year it was Miami, the year before that, he came up here to New York, and this time I took the dreaded Chinatown Bus down to Washington D.C. just for a day (because I have to get back to NY and finish up "stuff" so I can end my college career off with a bang, and so I can get my portfolio together). Anyhow, this interview was different. I didn't do it on AIM/ichat this time. I interviewed him in a car, while we were on the way to one of our boy's house, before we went out for our birthday. So this interview was definitely interrupted a bunch of times with, "Happy birthday my dude. You lookin' fly B..." or "Oh it's both of yall birthdays...c'mon, yall not twins, yall don't even look alike.". Hopefully there's still order to this interview, considering I was writing it down while we were walking around the house.

JC: So B, how does it feel to be a twin?

BC: The first thing that comes to my mind is "inseparable". Because no matter what happens, we’ll always be connected…man, we were born together.

JC: Knowing that we’re 13 minutes apart, do you feel or see yourself as being older?

BC: No. I just feel like we have different aspects of our personality that makes one of us older than the other at times.

JC: Our differences are very apparent: you are light-skinned with hazel eyes, and I’m darker-skinned with brown eyes; you are 6’3”/210 pounds and I’m 6’1” or 6’2”/175 pounds; you like North Carolina basketball and the Red Sox, and I like Duke and the Yankees; and finally (even though I’m sure there are more), I go to art school in New York, and you are a business major at Howard University in D.C. With all of those differences, what are the similarities and how do we get along?

BC: The biggest similarity is that we communicate openly with each other. And even though we both make mistakes, we both hold ourselves to a high level. We also are men of God, which holds us together, and shrinks our differences.

JC: Besides sports, because we would argue about that for days, name something that you’re definitely better than me at?

BC: Uhh…self-expression. I’m very open, and you are very reserved.

JC: Yeah I agree. High School was probably the first time we weren’t in the same environment for an extended period of time. What do you think the advantages were?

BC: We became our own people, and we we're able to write our own story. Instead of it always being Jelani and Bilal, it became Bilal Curtis who goes to Renaissance High School, and Jelani Curtis who goes to Cass Tech High School. I think we’re as much individuals as we are twins. And we’re different from a lot of twins...we don’t have to depend or be around each other like that.

JC: What do you want to do with the marketing (his major) once you’re out of school?

BC: Change people’s lives…I just want to impact people on a different level.

JC: In 5 words, what’s life in college been like?

BC: Exciting. Fun. Confusing. Enlightening. Eye Opening.

JC: In 5 words, what do you think life after college is going to be like?

BC: Scary. Enjoyable. Take some of the words from the last answer, but for the most part, “blessed”. And I’m going to be learning a whole lot.

JC: Describe yourself in one word?

BC: Blessed.

JC: Alright, last couple of questions. Sidekick, blackberry, or iphone?

BC: Blackberry.

JC: McDonald’s, Wendy’s or Burger King?

BC: Burger King.

JC: Corvette, Lamborghini, or Masseratti?

BC: Lambo.

JC: If you could give advice to someone who’s going into marketing, besides “work hard” or “grind”, what would it be?

BC: Pray with a purpose.

JC: Alright B, the interview is over.

BC: Cool. (I think he was actually thinking “finally”)

(Next week Interview #4)