FuManSkeeto Inc. is a cutting edge creative arts and media company specializing in clothing design, the visual arts, and music production. FuMan Skeeto is about to launch a third clothing line at Bloomingdales (two lines are already being sold at FuManSkeeto.com and Nordstrom). *NSYNC's Chris Kirkpatrick, CEO and Founder of FuManSkeeto, and Danielle Raabe, President, stopped by amuZnet to chat on February 15th. Immediately following the chat was an online preview to the new FuMan Skeeto lines at FuManSkeeto.com. Here is the chat transcript:
amuznet_live: Chris is here!!!
amuznet_live: And we're ready to get started!!
amuznet_live: Keep your questions coming in though!!!
amuznet_live: Danielle is also on the line!
amuZnet_live: Hi, how are you?
amuznet_chris: I'm doing great! I'm on a cell phone right now, on my way from my office at FuMan to the recording studio
amuznet_chris: We're in the middle of the new album. We have about 6 songs finished recording
amuznet_chris: The new tour is going to be great, like 35 stadiums this summer
funottyornice asks: what can we expect from this upcoming line?
amuznet_chris: Danielle: We have a jean line coming out, Bloomingdales. Our new spring line comes out in March, in Bloomingdales and Nordstrom and Van Maur
amuznet_chris: Danielle: Online we will have the fashion show and still pictures
amuznet_chris: The fashion show will be right after the chat at www.fumanskeeto.com
amuznet_chris: Because it just seemed like the thing to do
amuznet_chris: All the other kids were doing it
nsyncgirlique0 asks: Hey Chris! Happy belated Valentine's Day! What did you and the guys do for it yesterday? Will you be my Valentine? Love ya, Corey
amuznet_chris: Ha! I was in the studio recording
amuznet_chris: Danielle: We saw Saving Silverman
amuznet_chris: That was two nights ago
amuznet_chris: Danielle: Technically Valentines Day because it was midnight when we got out
amuznet_chris: I'm single now... I just kind of hang around now
monicaming asks: Chris who is your date for the grammys?
amuznet_chris: Danielle: His mom is going
amuznet_chris: Danielle: How cute is that????
sweetypie_m asks: What are you going to do about making larger sized clothing?
amuznet_chris: Danielle: It depends on the retail outlet. Each store has their own sizes, we make them from size 2-14, but it's up to the stores. The store will say we only want three sizes
amuznet_chris: Back to the relationship... me and Dani are still really good friends, we're really close, she's one of my closest friends
amuznet_chris: But technically we're both single
amuznet_chris: Danielle: Anyways... back to the sizes... we can make a size 18 or whatever, but it's up to the stores on what sizes they buy
monicaming asks: Chris Where do you see FuMan in ten years? Do you still see you and Dani working together?
amuznet_chris: Above everyhting else, she's still my buddy
amuznet_chris: We are pals, we are like chums
amuznet_chris: Danielle: Chris and I hang out and watch football together, perfect relationship now
amuznet_chris: We are really good friends, so it helps out in working, the relationship works out now
amuznet_chris: We care about each other enough that our friendship will always be in tact and the company will always be in tact
fugrlsket asks: CHRIS Are you going to make any FuManSkeeto swimsuits?
amuznet_chris: We'd love to do a lot of stuff, we'd love to do a swimsuit line, I'd like to have guys speedos come back, hot pink
amuznet_chris: Danielle: Chris really digs those hot pink speedos
addicted2mtv asks: what is the biggest advantage to having your own clothing line? --sheila, tx
amuznet_chris: Free clothes
amuznet_chris: Yesterday I went to the office and I had sweatshirt on and I was really hot. So I asked if we had any shirts that I could wear, and my very very nice assistant Erin said "Yes, this is a clothing company you idiot"
toria925 asks: Is fumanskeeto's clothes going to be any cheaper in the future, because bloomingdale's is a pretty pricey store!
amuznet_chris: To us, it's quality not quantity, so we think the price is pretty reasonable
amuznet_chris: We could have made a whole bunch of really cheap t-shirts. But our t-shirts are made comfortable and are going to last. You are going to get what you pay for, it's not over priced, or under priced
amuznet_chris: It's worth the money you pay for, you don't pay for the name
amuznet_chris: Danielle: We believe in quality. We believe that when you wear it you will be proud to wear it because you like it that much!
joeysneck asks: Hey Chris! When's the next mens line coming out?
amuznet_chris: Men's line is coming out this spring at Bloomingdales. Starting out with some shirts, just to get the name out there. By summer and fall we'll have a lot of more advanced stuff out later on
amuznet_chris: We have a lot of custom stuff that me and theg roup wear, but later on we will havestuff like that
jeter_jet_12 asks: Dani does Chris drive you crazy sometimes with his craziness?
amuznet_chris: Danielle: One of the things I like most about Chris is his humor. It's great, he always makes me laugh. Sometimes he's a little over the top, but it's still one of the best parts of him. I think he drives the rest of the guys in the group crazy, hehe
buttercup29488 asks: do you have a girlfriend right now?
amuznet_chris: I'm too much of a free spirit, I'm not into dating right now. I have such a good friendship with Danielle, that's all I really care about
amuznet_chris: Last person I kissed? Danielle
amuznet_chris: But we're just really good friends now
ice_garden8 asks: So, what is your favorite EXTREME sport?
amuznet_chris: I like snowboarding
amuznet_chris: Last year was the last time, been a while. I like skating. In-line skating like my whole life
kaydie_2005_2000 asks: Where did you get the name "FuManSkeeto"?
amuznet_chris: I was with a friend of mine, and we were just writing songs just chilling out doing stuff with guitars. This mosquito came in and I just had my braids cut off and the mosquito landed next to the braids
djmusicfms asks: What's your favorite piece of clothing from the new line and why?
amuznet_chris: And I picked it up and I said, look it's a fumanskeeto, and it just stuck
amuznet_chris: There's this guys t-shirt that has the name written on it that I really like a lot, and there were some baseball shirts, and we had some hats
amuznet_chris: I don't know
toria925 asks: When you're on tour for so long, do you guys ever get sick of each other? and if you fight, what do you do afterwards, apologize? walk out? what?
amuznet_chris: Of course we get sick of each other, we've known each other for years, we've been hanging around. We fight. We don't fight a lot, it never gets serious. We've only had like 3 or 4 serious fights amongst the group. But you just kind of get over it
amuznet_chris: You realize you fight over stupid things, talk about it and move on
ice_garden8 asks: Where do you like to shop?
amuznet_chris: I like to shop at Pacific Sunwaer, and probably Nordstroms
amuznet_chris: Danielle: I've always been a fan at Nordstroms, great customer service
amuznet_chris: Bloomingdales is cool too
amuznet_chris: Danielle: In L.A. though I really like going to Melrose, they have great shops
amuznet_chris: It's all about Best Buy and Costco for me
amuznet_chris: Danielle: Chris LOVES Costco!
amuznet_chris: Danielle: He goes every weekend! Even if he doesn't buy anything, he just likes to go there
carla_enge_2002 asks: what kind of music do you like
amuznet_chris: Danielle: Tamia for me
amuznet_chris: I like that song by Crazy Town,"Butterfly"
amuznet_chris: Danielle: I love Tamia, she has the best song out right now
jeter_jet_12 asks: Chris- Is there any other things you wanna do besides Music and Clothes?
amuznet_chris: We're doing the whole production thing with FuMan. I was actually at the office today listening to tapes of people. It's just interesting to help things along. We have a lot of ideas with what we want to do from a cartoon to toys
amuznet_chris: Danielle: With the production company.. Chris listens to every tape that comes in, if you guys want to get your voice heard, he listens to everything. Chris has the most incredible ear, he knows what's going to be a hit, he has a really good ear for it
amuznet_chris: Danielle: So if any of you want to be in the music industry feel free to send your stuff to us, but they have to be cover songs, not original music
jrtlover77 asks: Chris, when you had those dreads at the billboard awards was it your hair or fake hair?
amuznet_chris: It was my hair
amuznet_chris: I just put some dreads in it
amuznet_chris: It kind of represents my freedom, and my own personal direction I'm taking myself. I don't do things to impress people, I just do it
amuznet_chris: Danielle: I love his hair, Chris has the best hair. It's so beautiful, that's why I love it short!
balloonatics_entertainment asks: Hey, why have the models on your site been decapitated?
amuznet_chris: Danielle: We're going to be doing a model search soon
iwantlanceinmypants asks: Is there any plans to extentd the line overseas..ie.Australia?
amuznet_chris: Danielle: All the girls that you are going to see in the fashion show are just friends of ours
amuznet_chris: Well we started already, it's at Eaton's in Canada, but we want to head over to Europe.
amuznet_chris: We are a very small company right now trying to go big scale, so going global is like large scale
amuznet_chris: Danielle: And actually Fu means style in Japan
addicted2mtv asks: how's ron irizarry been doing? does he wear fumanskeeto? --sheila, tx
amuznet_chris: He wears FuMan Skeeto, he's with the production company. This is so cool, because I feel like a company because we are in "contract negotiations" so that makes me feel like a company
amuznet_chris: He and I are just kind of working on music
amuznet_chris: We're just letting the music stuff work itself out. We're always going to be here with Ron
amuznet_chris: One of our things in our mission statement is we're not here to have our lawyers run all over people. We're honestly here all along to further people's careers. When we started with Ron he didn't have anything, and we took him in and told him tell us what you need and we'll give it to you
addicted2mtv asks: how did you two meet? --sheila, tx
amuznet_chris: Danielle: Well also what we do is give people the opportunity. Chris gave Ron the opportunity to open in front of thousands of people
amuznet_chris: Danielle: We met in San Jose almost 3 years ago
amuznet_chris: She was holding on to the limo when we were driving away, and we got into the highway and she was still holding on, so I was so impressed by her holding on to the limo for three miles, we pulled over and I asked her out, lol
sweetkisses_4me_2001 asks: What do you do in your free time?
amuznet_chris: Danielle: Well we just kind of went out as friends. I was in Orlando with my mom and my sister, and I had the opportunity to go out with Chris, and we did. Then Chris cooked breakfast for me and my mom and my mom loved him after that
amuznet_chris: Play video games
amuznet_chris: Danielle: That's why we broke up, lol
amuznet_chris: Right now it's Madden on Playstation 2
amuznet_chris: Danielle: My favorite game is NHL 2000. Chris has never beat me on that. Chris can't beat me in darts... He beat me once, and that's it
shygurl571986 asks: Would you date a fan?
amuznet_chris: Well, I dated Danielle
amuznet_chris: It all depends on the circumstances. Somebody can be a fan of yours and not even have your CD
hype_32s asks: what's your favorite place to eat?
amuznet_chris: The movie theatre
amuznet_chris: Dirty hotdogs and nachos
nauticagurl99 asks: Can you tell us a little bit about the next album?
amuznet_chris: Danielle: Let me tell you, we will go out to dinner, and he will wait to eat to have the movie theatre food
amuznet_chris: The sound is going to change and grow and be a little more than before. When we come out with an album the sound comes a little more stagnant. so with every album we try to change the sound up a little bit
amuznet_chris: and the style
catherineq24 asks: What is the one thing in the world you treasure the most?
amuznet_chris: My viper, my Bruce Lee autograph
amuznet_chris: Danielle: Mine is Chris' friendship
amuznet_chris: Whatever, liar
amuznet_chris: The fashion show? Girls are running around in clothes....
amuznet_chris: Go to www.fumanskeeto.com after the chat to see the new spring line
amuznet_chris: Danielle: If you don't see certain things in the stores that you see in our fashionshow, you can request it, they will let us know and we will get it to them
addicted2mtv asks: is it ever hard balancing the fumanskeeto clothing line with your active role in 'n sync? --sheila, tx
amuznet_chris: I take up most of my time with the group especially right now that we're back in thestudio recording. I'm always here for the ideas though. Danielle, Erin and Dave and Dan do most of the everyday work at FuMan Skeeto.
amuznet_chris: Danielle: Chris has great ideas and he's very creative. We look at him when we sit down at our meetings to come up with the ideas, he comes up with the best. He's a great motivator
shygurl571986 asks: Will there ever be a clothing line from ur dog, Busta?
amuznet_chris: Busta has been talking to me about that... he's actually back in school actually. Busta is a good dog, but he has been corrupted by the dog Korea. This little one has totally turned Busta to the dark side. He told Busta that it's cool to go to the bathroom on the carpet
amuznet_chris: Danielle: I just want to say that Korea has never peed in the house
nauticagurl99 asks: Has there ever been a nasty rumor about you that has actually bothered you?
amuznet_chris: Danielle: Everyone out there. Chris taught Busta that it was right to go to thebathroom in the bathtub
jacyb asks: is the rumor true that the band is breaking up?
amuznet_chris: No I don't care. There's tons of rumors going around. I don't care. I don't let them effect me
jcluvababee21 asks: Would you ever have the other guys from Nsync model clothes for you? -Mia PA
amuznet_chris: Well maybe.. I say that because I like rumors because we'll still be together ten years down the road and those people who started the rumor look like asses
amuznet_chris: Oh sure, we're going to give every member in the group custom pieces
super[nicegirl]69ca asks: who's your best friend from the group
amuznet_chris: I don't know, I'm friends with all of them, it depends on the situation on who you talk to. I live down the street from Justin.
tweetie_birdie_05 asks: What store can I buy FuMan in Canada?
amuznet_chris: Eatons
amuznet_chris: Danielle: We're looking foward to an exclusive thing with Eatons, and ad campaigns and stuff and all sorts of stuff.
addicted2mtv asks: what do you consider your best trait? --sheila, tx
amuznet_chris: Just have fun, I don't get caught up in the drama, i just like to have a good time. I like to try to have everyone around me have a good time
amuznet_chris: There are a lot of times I'm sad, there are so many times you can't just let it get to you. The only thing that could really depress me is if something happened to my family
amuznet_live: Hi everyone. Be sure and check out the first ever FuMan Skeeto Fashion video show after the chat on www.fumanskeeto.com or www.amuznet.comv amuznet_chris: But if it's just little things, then I'll just move on
amuznet_chris: Danielle: I think I can be really goofy and silly, and a lot of people don't appreciate my goofiness, I really don't care how silly I am, I just like joking around and cracking jokes
amuznet_chris: Danielle: Because when I grow up I want to be a comedian
amuznet_live: It will be the first of 4 segments showing you all the great new fashions coming soonfrom FuMan Skeeto
delicious_cutie_2000 asks: r u guys going to have a runway show on E!
amuznet_chris: Danielle: We would love to do a runway show on E
brady_bunch2004 asks: are you worried about this record not breaking the records like the last one did?
amuznet_chris: Chris: That rumor is true also
amuznet_live: check it out after the chat on www.amuZnet.com or www.FuManSkeeto.com. Look for the FuMan Fashion video
amuznet_chris: We haven't even thought about that. We're worried about people not liking where we go with the album. We're trying to figure out our niche musically and what we all enjoy and where music is going.
amuznet_chris: If we concern ourselves with records and all of that, it;'s going to take away from the album
hssinger00 asks: What is a typical day like?
amuznet_chris: There is no typical day. Sometimes you get a week where you get 7 typical days, but then the next week it's totally different
amuznet_chris: If we're on tour, wake up at like 10 or 11 go to the venue, sound check, promotions, 2-3 hour long meet and greet and meet as many fans as we can before the show
amuznet_chris: If it's recording, we go to the studio until your parts are done and leave anywhere from 5pm to 5am
addicted2mtv asks: have you had any disasters about the clothing line so far? --sheila, tx
amuznet_chris: With some people that we've hired....
amuznet_chris: Besides that, there hasn't really been any major hurdles
amuznet_chris: The funniest thing is that we started out thinking it was going to be soo easy
amuznet_chris: Danielle: Those were the days!
amuznet_chris: Danielle: Big ups to our Fu family
amuznet_live: Did I mention the get dressed with Chris contest?
amuznet_chris: And to all of our little Fus in Fuville!
amuznet_chris: Log on to www.fumanskeeto.com right now!
amuznet_live: sign up for free at www.amuZnet.com
amuznet_chris: To see the new spring line fashion show!
amuznet_chris: Bye!!! Thanks for coming!