On Halloween, we had the distinct privilege of stepping into the wild world of BACARDÍ to take a ride on their Untameable House Party when it made its epic debut stop in Philadelphia. I say “take a ride,” because, much like their new House Party commercial spot depicts, more than 400 costumed partygoers literally raged the night away in a one-of-a-kind, custom-built house situated on the back of a flatbed truck that will be touring the U.S. this Fall bringing the party to Washington, D.C., Atlanta, and Miami. Insane concept, I know. And BACARDÍ‘s execution for the raucous festivities was even more insane, including three surprise performances by MeLo-X, Chromeo and R. City.
While some partygoers caught a VIP bus down from New York City for the absurd event, the Untameable House Party was actually going down right in my backyard in Old City, Philly, so I had the luxury of walking over to the meet-up spot, costume clad and all. But don’t worry, I still got the VIP treatment soon as I arrived. Better yet, the good people at BACARDÍ told me to grab some Bros to bring along for the Halloween bash, so of course I did.
I mean, what’s an impeccably executed Ashley Schaeffer costume without an equally as awesome Kenny Powers sidekick? My buddy Big Matt, who looks like he could play offensive line for the Philadelphia Eagles, hilariously took on the role of “La Flama Blanca,” as you might’ve seen on our Instagram.
I was also joined by my homie DJ who went the classic vampire route, and my girlfriend, Carolyn, who opted for the sexy burglar look. We were ready to party, and party we did.
Way before that picture above was taken, as soon as we arrived, we were treated to an exclusive tour of the whole house party, followed by an impromptu cocktail making demonstration by world-renowned mixologist and BACARDÍ brand ambassador, Juan Coronado. When you hear people talk about a bartender showcasing “flair,” well, I’m pretty inclined to believe this is the guy that invented it. As on point as you could be, Juan served us up some delicious concoctions to sample, and luckily I snagged the recipes for ALL OF THEM, which you can find at the bottom of the article.
After throwing down a few of Juan’s exemplary BACARDÍ cocktails while the party was still in its infancy, we were then ushered into the VIP green room for yet another special surprise. There, we were treated to a one-of-a-kind roundtable discussion featuring some of the most creative minds in the entertainment biz. The topic was “Fueling the Hustle” and the discussion was facilitated by HOT97 radio personality, Nessa; we got to hear MeLo-X, DJ Clark Kent, celebrity Chef Roble Ali and Philadelphia-based photographer Conrad Benner engage in a uniquely introspective discussion about how they got to where they are today. Believe me, all four of these dudes are the utter embodiment of hustle.
MeLo-X discussed his new music/art and technology infused project, CURATE, for which he actually learned to build an iOS app himself (!!!), and Chef Roble Ali talked about how important his side hustles were to get him started in the business, and how the traffic to his restaurants comes from his large social media following. The bro cooks for Leo DiCaprio for Christ’s sake!
Instagram sensation Conrad Benner ruminated about how he went from working in a coffee shop to turning a hobby and passion for photography into a full-blown career, and perhaps the most famous person in the room, DJ Clark Kent (dude worked tirelessly with Biggie Smalls, Jay-Z, and produced Mariah Carey’s ’90s banger Loverboy) discussed the absolute need to be a passionate music lover to be a good DJ, not the other way around.
All four guys agreed that taking advantage of the changing technological landscape has certainly propelled them to success in their respective fields, and truthfully, I couldn’t believe I was standing in the same room with them sipping on what seemed like an endless amount of BACARDÍ cocktails. You can check out some awesome takes from the roundtable discussion here.
After the discussion concluded, we walked out of the green room to a party that was in full-force. Doing what he does best, MeLo-X hopped behind the turntables on a custom-made grill and proceeded to set the dance floor ablaze. Literally, there wasn’t a single person not dancing along to the dope beats he was firing up.
After MeLo-X was done cooking on the 1s and 2s, Chromeo took the Untameable House Party stage for a totally lights-out performance. Because it was Halloween, of course the duo decided to dress up as each other, which was utterly hilarious to see. I was also fortunate enough to scoop an exclusive interview with Dave-1 and P-Thugg, so be sure to be on the lookout for that in coming days. These Bros are chill as chill gets.
As if we thought we could party anymore after that, R. City took the stage to top the night off, offering some sick Carribean-rooted beats just as smooth as the BACARDÍ that was fueling the Untameable House Party around us.
Here’s an awesome recap of the party in its entirety, and OF COURSE your bro made a cameo towards the end.
Lastly, as promised, here’s some awesome BACARDÍ recipes for you Bros to try out at home. Trust me, they’re incredible.
I’d be totally remiss not to send a special thanks out to the two awesome Bros at BACARDÍ, Jack and Emanuele, who planned this entire rager and saw it through to perfection. I must say, the first stop of BACARDÍ‘s House Party was truly UNTAMEABLE, so if you have the chance to hop aboard when it makes its stops in Washington, D.C. (November 14); Atlanta (November 25); and Miami (December 5), well, you’d be a fool not to go have the time of your life.