Sir Julien
Sir Julien George is a budding entrepreneur whose eyes, like Superman, are laser focused on the prize. In February of 2018, Julien reached out to me with an intense interest of being a contributing writer for FRNDY LMRN. He instantly took a liking to my platform after reading the Original Story I wrote on style maven Danielle Anabi. Unlike many other business inquiries, the 19-year-old Atlanta native’s initial email, was quite frankly, a fully loaded automatic rifle spewing out his resume, expertly crafted media kit and letter of recommendation for my consideration. (Neo’s got nothing on me the way I was dodging those rapid fires.)
I opted to put George on board and we’ve had a smooth sailing partnership ever since. He has written some outstanding entertainment news articles, and even cooked up fresh interviews with his famous friends. I’m pretty sure you guys are interested in knowing more about the sophisticated youngster (peeped his poppin’ gram yet?) so I thought it would be a clutch move to put him in the hot seat.
Check out the transcript of my informative chat session with Julien below where we discuss his upbringing in The A, lavish lifestyle, boarding school woes and future endeavors.
FRENDY: What’s up, J? Let’s get straight to it—can you give me the scoop on your parents?
SIR JULIEN: My mother was born in New York and had about seven siblings. Her parents created a family band that they called, The Steel Bandits, in the ‘80s. They all played the steel drums, which is pretty dope. They lived and traveled all around the US and played for former President Ronald Reagan. I just couldn’t imagine my mom being in a band *Laughs*.
My dad was born in SoCal. He lived the ‘Carlton Banks’ lifestyle, but with Will Smith’s personality (if that makes sense). He has some funny teenage stories. When he moved to Atlanta, he built several strong relationships with prominent figures and created Elavon. Since then, the company has sold and he’s living his life.
FRENDY: What kind of services did your father’s company offer?
SIR JULIEN: My dad has always been an entrepreneur and investor. He has build several companies that still gain recognition today. Elavon built one of the first modernized credit card machines, which has gained billions in profit. His relationships with the mayor and other prominent figures is how he build Tech Labs. Tech Labs, Pindrop, and Purewire have raised over $100M from software companies in the United States including Amazon.
FRENDY: Wow, that’s incredible! They need their own #FrendyOriginals *Laughs*. Are you the only child?
SIR JULIEN: Facts. Their stories are insane! Yes, I am the only child. It was so great growing up as an only child, but not having those fundamental principles of “sharing is caring,” was a wake up call once I entered the real world.
FRENDY: Oh really? what was your first “wake up” call?
SIR JULIEN: Probably turning 18. I had always been so mature growing up due to the things I had been exposed to. Imagine an eight year old rocked out in Gucci not because his parents told him to, but because he wanted to…that was me. I thought I had it all together, but there was much more to maturity than a trill fit and speaking eloquently. When I first went into the real world as a legal adult, a new sense of maturity and responsibility switched on for me.
FRENDY: Did you ever have a sense of entitlement growing up since your parents were able to afford you all the finer things in life?
SIR JULIEN: No. Never because of that. I was only a bit entitled because I was the only child. I always came first in my household, so that’s all I knew. Don’t get me wrong, I was very grounded—I just felt deserving. I lived, I’ve learned, and I’ve grown though.
FRENDY: Your mom and dad obviously did a phenomenal job raising you. Any advice from them that still resonates with you today?
SIR JULIEN: Thank you, homie. My mom has given me so much great advice. She always tells me not to be too trusting in people and has told me ever since I was a kid, “there are no free lunches in this world.” Basically emphasized the importance of independence. I steer clear of people who do things expecting something in return. Even today, she is so cautious of my friendships. She only likes about five of my friends to be honest *Laughs*.
On the other hand, my dad gives me such terrible advice *Laughs*. He used to tell me shit when I was eight like: “Julien, you don’t drive a Rolls Royce—you should only get driven in them.” Obviously something an eight year old doesn’t need advice on.
FRENDY: *Laughs* How was life growing up in the ATL?
SIR JULIEN: I love Atlanta. I definitely get sick of the A when I’m there, but always miss it when I’m gone. I have still not found a place that I could picture myself living in full time. I traveled a lot growing up, but have always felt most at home in Hotlanta. It’s the perfect balance between the calm and the storm. You can turn up, but chill out with friends/family and have the same amount of fun here.
FRENDY: Sounds like the perfect balance for sure. Did you have a lot of friends growing up there? Also, when did you move to Miami? And why?
SIR JULIEN: I have always had a lot of friends. I still do, but I can still narrow that number down to my truest and most genuine friends. It’s like I have always had two groups of friends—the associates and the ride-or-dies. The majority of my friends also lived in Miami, so I was there so often. It was my social break from Atlanta. I even almost joined this reality show called ‘Summer Break’ in Miami…but then I went to boarding school *Laughs*.
FRENDY: Was that the one you were telling me about? *Laughs*.
SIR JULIEN: Nah. ‘Summer Break’ is a YouTube reality series that features a group of friends living their last Summer in LA before college. One year, they were casting to do a season in Miami, which I decided to audition for. Some friends and mine were almost on the show, but they decided to film again in LA. We were all so pissed, but I made some lifelong homies from that call back.
FRENDY: Got you. Which HS did you attend in the A? Or did you go to HS in Miami?
SIR JULIEN: I went to Woodward Academy from sixth grade to my sophomore year in high school. Woodward is the cliche prep school—button up shirts, khaki slacks, varsity jackets. I left and went to boarding school in Connecticut for my junior and senior year. Now that was lit!
FRENDY: What didn’t you like about Woodward? And what did you enjoy about the boarding school in CT?
SIR JULIEN: Well, at one point Woodward could no longer offer me what I wanted. I lowkey needed to grow up and evolve on my own away from the homies I was so close to. I applied to Suffield Academy for my Junior year and didn’t tell anyone. When I got accepted, I knew I was going. I was sad about leaving one of my closest friends, Ahmauri, but life goes on. We made it work and pick up where we last left off every time we see each other.
When I got to Suffield, I could tell the faculty’s lives revolved around their jobs. They lived on campus, too, so work never officially stops. It frustrated me when I was there, but after graduating I am so grateful for how well they prepared us for the real world. Overall, I made nothing but life lessons and lifelong friendships.
FRENDY: What is boarding school like? What makes it so different than regular schools?
SIR JULIEN: I mean, at boarding school, you’re with your friends and teachers all on one campus. Imagine sleepaway camp 24/7. It was beyond draining at times. In contrary, boarding school is the ideal preparation for college in high school. We were required to wake up, go to class on time, play a mandatory sport, manage homework, manage social life, and follow the rules, all without your parents. Obviously these tasks aren’t too much to ask me now, but as a junior in high school, I didn’t realize how dependent and entitled I was. Boarding school is the origin of the Upper East Side teenage scandals. I could tell you some insane boarding school stories! The access that we had was concerning looking back at it—there were for sure some Lindsay Lohans.
FRENDY: What is the craziest thing you witnessed or experienced in boarding school?
SIR JULIEN: Hmmm…that’s a tough one. There’s been some crazy shit that has gone down. There was a herpes situation that still shocks to me to this day.
FRENDY: *Laughs* Gotdamn! now this is getting good. So, boarding school doesn't necessarily mean that it’s in some deserted area?
SIR JULIEN: Ohhhh. Most times when I tell people that I went to boarding school they ask “What did you do wrong?” I didn’t go to military school, which is typically a result of a bad ass kid. Boarding School is honestly just an elite private school experience. Imagine a $60K education for a high school student—that’s boarding school. These schools are so competitive, too. I have seen some applicants gift some of the most elaborate things to faculty to bribe their kid in. It’s like a secret little society.
FRENDY: Were you majoring in anything specific? Or was it fundamentally like HS where there isn’t a need to study a particular subject?
SIR JULIEN: It was like high school in the sense of average class requirements, but there were some additional classes offered that could be geared to the majors we chose in college, which helped our transcripts stand out. The school did implement something called the ‘Harkness Table’, which is a circular table that allows for round table discussions. So instead of our teachers writing things on a whiteboard regurgitating facts to us, they were much more involved.
FRENDY: Which boarding school did you graduate from?
SIR JULIEN: Suffield Academy.
FRENDY: Are you still friends with some of your boarding school mates?
SIR JULIEN: Yes, for sure. I still talk to people from Suffield everyday.
FRENDY: That’s awesome. Which college are you currently attending? And why did you choose that particular school?
SIR JULIEN: I’m studying abroad in Florence, Italy at Lorenzo de’ Medici. I remember talking to my friend Danielle debating it and she was like, ‘You can go to college in Italy and you’re debating for what?’. She was right, so I basically said ‘Yolo’ and went for it. I appreciate the precedence I set for myself by leaving Woodward to go to Suffield. Looking back at it, my life has been a continuous elevation education-wise.
FRENDY: Amazing. Did you choose a major yet?
SIR JULIEN: I decided to major in Communications and Public Relations. I had already known that I was going to major in that since about Sophomore year in high school. I have my own public relations and branding firm, Viral PR Group. Sometimes I feel like I know everything, but education is still very essential. It doesn’t hurt to learn more and perfect your craft.
FRENDY: What was the inspiration behind your choice of major?
SIR JULIEN: I really just took my strong points and passion of public relations and made a business out of it. I have always been well spoken; never intimidated to hold a conversation. I have always spoken with a sense of confidence. It is something that has impressed people so much due to the fact that unfortunately, people don’t picture young African American men positively. I want to help change that and be a different type of example, so that’s how I chose my major.
FRENDY: Congratulations! I knew you were going to eventually embark on our own endeavors when you initially reached out to me. How did you find out about me and my site anyway?
SIR JULIEN: I remember being in science class fucking around on my laptop and coming across your Instagram profile. I liked how authentic it was. Just raw and genuine content. I was going to wait and follow you for a while before DMing you, but I read one of your Original Stories and knew that I wanted to be a contributing writer or collaborate with you in some capacity. So I reached out, we discussed, I wrote the Clermont Twins piece and we have been working together creating art ever since.
FRENDY: Totally appreciate your contributions—still waiting for some more articles though! *Laughs*.
SIR JULIEN: Yeah. When I got to Italy, I fell off a bit. Time difference fucked my schedule up, but I’m ready to grind some fresh articles out. I have a new interview that I am starting on today. I promise it will be worth the wait!
FRENDY: I’m really looking forward to reading it. What else are you interested in besides Communications?
SIR JULIEN: Artist management or maybe just music in general. Viral is a branding firm, so our services aren’t just limited to public relations. I’ve built dope relationships through my firm with some dope artists. There’s something motivational about witnessing or being apart of the creative process in a recording studio. Hearing the finalized song is gratifying.
FRENDY: I know exactly what you mean. Who have you had the pleasure of working with so far?
SIR JULIEN: I have had the pleasure of working with artists like Lil Yachty, Trippie Redd, and Kodie Shane, but Rick Ross’ home studio was by far the dopest studio moment.
FRENDY: He’s the “biggest boss that we’ve seen thus far,” so it’s only right! What made that experience so magical for you?
SIR JULIEN: Hearing his unreleased music was definitely the highlight. I grew up around celebs and public figures, so I’ve never really been impressed by them, but hearing the unfinished craft of a hip hop legend is what was magical.
FRENDY: How does it feel witnessing your childhood friends build their own respective buzz in the entertainment industry?
SIR JULIEN: I love it! I’ve always been the biggest supporter of my friends. If I see one of my friends trying to build their own platform in the entertainment industry, or try to gain success in any business venture, I’m helping them however I can. I want everyone to win.
FRENDY: Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
SIR JULIEN: 10 years. Damn. Definitely mogul tycoon status. I see myself having multiple firms internationally: Tokyo, Shanghai, Burbank, Manhattan. I don’t want the expansion to ever stop. I see myself having some talented ass kids. Possibly living in Amsterdam or in the Hidden Hills. Viral PR Group will be so innovative and inclusive of the future generations to come. There will be nothing like it.