I’ve been in the culture game since before it was part of any "brand strategy."

Before blogging was a word (I was blogging).
Before Burning Man had a website (I had one about Burning Man).
Before brands cared about fandoms, identity, or belonging (I cared a lot).

​

When I moved to the San Francisco Bay Area in the '90s, I jumped headfirst into the early internet, built a Franken-computer from spare parts, and started publishing stories of my wild California adventures online. My scene was the countercultural world that birthed Burning Man and the San Francisco Cacophony Society, where participation was everything and weirdness had meaning. That’s when I changed my name to Rusty Blazenhoff, gave myself the title “Professional Free Spirit,” and started shaping culture from the inside.

​

I’ve shaped pop culture from the inside out.
And yes, I’ve got receipts.

Paul Reubens brought me in to help shape his Pee-wee Herman brand—work I did for over 13 years.
Seth Godin knows me from my days blogging at the OG webzine Boing Boing.
Archie McPhee put my face on finger puppets and wrapping paper.
Allee Willis took one look at me and said, “One of us! One of us!” Now I help steward her creative legacy through the Willis Wonderland Foundation.

For over a decade, my inbox zine Rusty’s Electric Dreams has been a hub for positive deviants and the people who love them.

​

Pop Cultish is the culmination of all of this.
It’s where I help brands stop chasing attention and start creating belonging.

Because culture isn’t something you buy. It’s something you build with people who care.

I don’t just know what’s cool.
I help brands become something people want to belong to.

Along the way, I’ve learned how culture spreads.
Not top-down. From the inside out.
Not sold. Shared.
It moves through the people who care enough to pass it along.

​

Pop Cultish is how I help brands do the same.
It’s where I bring all of this lived experience together to help you stop chasing trends and start building something people actually want to be part of.

Because culture isn’t a tactic.
It’s how to transcend the feed and become something worth belonging to.