Keep in mind I was trying to be objective as much as possible, but my cynicism started to grow as soon as I saw a video of him when he was in the Drag Convention I attended back in May. Though he has good intentions, he may just be doing it for the sake of self promotion. I say this because I give my Kendamas away whether it would be a couple of Spin instructors or Drag queens in hopes to diverse the community where he’s just doing it to support himself without anything in return.
Ok, let’s go off of that then. What do you (and anyone else here) would want to see him do rather than not doing anything in return? Keep in mind he has an advantage over other kendama companies as he already has business history and a large following as opposed to Sweets and KUSA in their early days where it was more of a struggle not just because kendama was still just getting a foothold in the US but because they were brand new businesses where something like 40-50% of new businesses fail each year (am most likely wrong on that statistic, if anyone can get something more concrete). True he doesnt sponsor as many events as other brands (afaik he’s only done NAKO 2019) but what else could be done besides that? Not every US based kendama company sponsors and vends at every single competition here in the US
Here you go: "The SBA states that only 30% of new businesses fail during the first two years of being open, 50% during the first five years and 66% during the first 10. The SBA goes on to state that only 25% make it to 15 years or more. "
Sponsor more events, provide damas for prizes at local meetups or smaller comps, sponsor pro players and get them pro mods to help generate some income, help with plane tickets to get their team out to KWC and NAKO, do a collab with an existing company, make an edit that showcases the NJK community or progresses the game, use Adam22's unique position in culture to do something creative or intentional to spread kendama (more than just celeb first spikes). Basically just do anything that literally every other kendama company does because they can't rely on people clout chasing the founder to generate the entirety of their business. NJK in its current iteration is a scourge on the kendama community. idgaf how into kendama Adam22 is or how much anyone saw him jamming at any point because he's clearly not passionate enough about it to consider his own place in the grander scheme of things.
To be honest I just want Adam22 to interact with a broader demographic. Ok he’s had a checkered past, that doesn’t bother me. I also just want him to know and acknowledge JKAs are the foundation of how Kendama is now (and any other dama company other than sweets for that matter). I wouldn’t mind going to a dama event he is hosting. If it’s for the greater good, then why not.
@KirStylez ok you keep coming around back to wanting him to acknowledge JKA and their impact on kendama today, but keep in mind even with how deep the JKA goes into kendama history, there is little to no presence of actual JKA members here in the US up until recently with NAKO bringing in JKA reps for the first time and Matt achieving his new Dan level. But even with as many players in the US who truly adore the Ozora and TK16 shapes which currently are the most well known JKA approved kendamas (not anymore with the TK16) the damas you see the players who are influencing the majority of this community are from those US based brands like Sweetd and KUSA, even smaller ones like Analog and Sol. I dont think he’s just outright ignoring the JKA as much as he’s just not interested, and tbh there’s nothing wrong with that in and of itself whether he’s looking to spread kendama or not. @Qonnor I agree, it would be a good move to support the company in those many different ways and like @KirStylez mentioned he could try to cater to a wider demographic as well. I have seen many players in the FKC group page give Adam22 credit for them having found kendama in the first place, so while he does introduce them in person to those he meets and interviews through NoJumper there are still more who find kendama because of the influence he has. I think a large part of sponsoring and offering prizes for events and competitions is also if the group throwing the event has reached out to them as well, not just him/his company doing so though that is a part of it too. Like I said before, he was seshing dama pretty much all weekend of NAKO but at the same time he i’m not sure if he did much marketing in order to make those connections with other brands. I remember while helping at the Sol table Chad talking with both the owner of Quill Kendamas and the owner of Maybe Sunday and that stuck out to me. Now the both of them are vending/sponsoring Battle at the Border this weekend. Tbh, even if he did vend at more competitions and events I still probably wouldnt buy.
Sorely aware of this point and working with the JKA to improve things. There was actually another in-house JKA teachers class, much longer version, at Sweets this past February. Unfortunately timing and approvals didn't make it for this upcoming BatB but I'm hopeful they'll figure out how to address the international side of things without messing up their NPO status back in Japan. Just another thought on the community participation aspect, and this applies to pretty much anyone in kendama, not everyone is a promoter, not everyone has the time or energy to go to all the events. Just because any given company or famous player doesn't promote and interact with the community the way we'd like doesn't mean that any other actions or benefits are suspect or considered null and void. For myself I'm not a fan of NJK or Adam22 but that doesn't invalidate that they seem to be effective at bringing in new people; that's why they were up for Johnny Appleseed. To quote the sage Rolling Stones: You can't always get what you want But if you try sometimes you just might find You just might find You get what you need The community needs more players to sustain itself; no players, no companies, no events, no new kendama, no nothing. Don't like the way they do something then figure out a way to bring them to the "light side" and work on it from that angle; it worked with Darth Vader.
@goenKendama well said. Not every kendama company does EVERYTHING that we would like to see. Some do, especially the big three and other larger companies. I’m sure if NoJumper became as prolific as Sweets and KUSA with sponsored players and a far more significant presence period that they could do the same as I’m sure they could get/find/have the funds to send players everywhere.
All this being said, if YOU want to see these moves from NoJumper then you need to communicate all of this to them instead of complaining about them on a thread they will 99% never see.
I just wanna go on record saying my tune would probably change had I have actually ran into Adam22 at the RuPaul’s LA Drag Convention and we actually seshed with some queens together. I don’t care to buy an NJK dama in the foreseeable future, but as long as he’s trying to promote more Kendama players and his brand at the same time then it’s all good to me. UPDATE: I rewatched his tutorial and I do give him credit for acknowledging the brands mentioned before, and recognizing there are other good brands, and suggesting not going to amazon to buy a Kendama. To be fair JKAs are not the mainstream choice of dama for the modern kendama player, fine. I may have jumped the gun with my comment stating he might be dismissive about playing a JKA dama. Then again I’m not him so I can’t assume anything. Maybe all together I’m just comparing his comments to @benlowe “which kendama to buy” video and also just wished he played a JKA, that’s all.
There is absolute validity to making these points in a thread Adam himself won't see. By talking about these things within a community I'm a part of, I can persuade my fellow DS members not to buy kendamas from NJK. As far as doing it publicly, I've talked plenty of shit about NJK on my instagram and tagged them. I don't keep my feeling about them secret, and would have no problem voicing this to Adam if he so happened to notice one of my posts and reach out to me. As I've said previously in this thread, I'm all for spreading kendama. I will join y'all in celebrating each new slayer NJK brings into the community. I will also, until changes are made, continue to bemoan each and every dollar spent on a No Jumper kendama that could otherwise go to one of the many passionate, skilled, and engaged community members that daily pour their heart and soul into this game. As for being an example and working to push the community in a positive direction, that's quite literally what I'm doing here. I want to make it clear that in my dreams, the kendama community will become more inclusive of everyone, but specifically women and LGTQ people. By speaking publicly against an abuser who is gaining influence in our community, I am trying to set that example.
@Qonnor i didnt mean in relation to affecting their business indirectly but by giving them direct feedback. But of course, i cant make anyone here do anything but the same can be said about others and trying to influence a kendama company’s decisions if they aren’t open to such feedback, which I feel like NoJumper would not be. Again, like you i’m basically 100% not going to purchase their product if only because I can get the same quality from Sweets Primes for less than half the price, and of course wanting to put my own money and support where I deem it fit (which at the moment has been Sol, KUSA, and GT personally). But I do know people who are heavy into really do love kendama and still put their own support behind NJK, which is fine. Just means less people to compete against for Sol’s collab drops
My first kendama was a BLACK tk16... not only was it slippery, it as impossible to track the bevel. I had to hardcore grind every trick for hours before it was perfect. And just like Emil Apostol said, every kendama after that was like magic.