Jordan Coley is a writer and performer based in Brooklyn, NY. When not appearing in projects at Venice Film Festival and Sundance or writing bylines for GQ, The New Yorker and more, he's hosting The Jordan Show—a regular late night talk show that never fails to bring together a unique cross-section of creative industries. A mixed bag of standup and sketches with past guests like Martine Syms, Jaboukie, Gabriel Richardson, and Jalan and Jibril Durimel, Jordan's ability to turn any stage into a living room with friends is as evident as his investment in the cross-genre connections that make creative scenes last.

Do's and Don'ts is an ongoing series for Metalabel Studio where we ask interesting creative people to share their learnings about the artistic ecosystem. No fluff, just practical insights from those who've been in the trenches. These conversations aim to capture the unwritten rules and hard-won wisdom that doesn't make it into portfolios or press releases, but we often wish we had sooner.

From the mind of Jordan Coley: The do's and don'ts of world-building through creative projects

Do

Manufacture ways to collaborate with your cool and talented friends. Leverage your creative community! 

If you’re an artist who lives in a creative hub like New York or LA, chances are that you have artist friends. Work with them! We’re stronger together folks!

I think this might be the key strength of Jordan Show, the semi-monthly live late night talk show that I’ve been hosting since 2023. It brings together artists, comedians, writers, musicians, and other performers who might not otherwise be on the same bill. It’s exciting, expands the reach of the show, and makes people want to be there for it!

Establish some sort of visual language

Make a logo, wear a costume, use a recurring location or set. This helps anchor us in your world and establish the feel and tone for your project. It also gives us (Instagram-addled, increasingly visual creatures) some visual maker to be able to identify your thing by.

E.g. For Jordan Show, by the second show, I realized the character I was inhabiting on stage was a bit haughty and self-important, so I decided it felt appropriate to wear a tailored black suit. But then, I kept wearing it for the other shows because I liked the visual continuity it gave everything and how it added a bit of showman’s flair to the proceedings.

Also, for lack of a better way of putting it, adding a logo just makes it a thing for those looking in from the outside.  Even though we had already done a few shows, when my talented collaborator Emma Callahan made the Jordan Show logo for our third show, more people asked me about it and expressed interest in coming.

Promote yourself enthusiastically and creatively

This may seem obvious, but in the era of “Aura Farming” where appearing effortlessly cool, aloof, and nonchalant is the goal, it can be easy to forget this. 

Don’t block your own blessings. No one’s gonna care about the thing you’re doing as much as you do, so make some noise! Let people know what you’re up to.

Go to other people’s things

See what other people are doing. Go get inspired! Again, it seems obvious, but it’s also just a simple way to meet similarly interested people and let them know about your project. 

Celebrate your wins

Making anything creative is difficult, especially when it involves a team of other smart, talented, and opinionated people. Take time to really acknowledge and celebrate your accomplishments. It’ll give you a morale boost and provide you an emotional watermark to aim for when, inevitably, the time comes to sit down and do it all over again. 

Jordan Coley Do's

Don't

Kill an Idea Prematurely

Ideas, especially those that involve the creative contributions of other people, are never going to be how you imagined them in your head. Often, they’re different in unexpectedly exciting ways. Try things out, allow things to morph and change. Don’t abandon an idea early because it’s not exactly how you imagined it would be. 

Try to Replicate Someone Else’s Idea

I mean, duh. It is perhaps the lowest vibrational thing an artist could do. Moreover, it wouldn’t be true to your vision and your sensibility. This disconnection will bear out in the ultimately underwhelming work. 

Drop that Thun Thun Thun

This happened to a friend of mine; he hasn’t really been the same since. 

Be a Crowdpleaser

Closely related to Don’t #2. Tailoring your output to perceived tastes of a given audience is wasted labor and can be emotionally draining. People’s tastes are so varied and capricious. You’ll always be shooting at a moving target made of mist. Furthermore, when people come to engage with the things that you make, they’re usually coming because you made it. You’re the secret sauce - your intellect, your taste, your ~VIBE~. And you’d be foolish to forget that.

Be Afraid to Accept Help

As any creative project develops and your ambitions for it grow, there will inevitably come a time where what you’re trying to execute will exceed your individual capacities. This is when you’ll have to bring on collaborators. Depending on your project, the collaborator(s) can take many different forms. What’s important is that you know exactly what kind of support you’re looking for, communicate that effectively to them, and that you’re actually ready and willing to receive that support once it comes.

Jordan Coley Don'ts