AUSTIN, Texas — Ever been to a Secret Disco Event? Ever seen a guy filming with his iPhone in circular motions trying to get all the angles? Yeah – that’s me, and I’m happy to introduce this new series with Secret Disco Society which highlights fellow SD community members on a monthly basis. So, with that said – I’m ecstatic to introduce a new way to get to know your fellow disco’ers
Welcome to.. Society Stories.
What You Need To Know
- Justin was born in Massachusetts and has lived in Maine before moving to Austin in 2020
- Justin is an established author and has been featured in Forbes and CMSwire.
- Justin is a BIG car guy and enjoys soccer, shooting, fitness and live music with friends.
- Justin shoots professional reels under Captured_Collective and recently collaborated with Steve Howey
During each feature – we will showcase a bit about our featured friend – getting to know their story, how they ended up in Austin, and hear what they love about this city and this community.
With that, let’s start this show off right.
Let me take this opportunity to introduce myself. My name is Justin Racine, I’m an author and a consultant. I also run Captured_Collective here in Austin, which showcases reels of artists and musicians.
So – what’s my story? Well.
After a few years of feeling a bit un-satisfied in my career, life and relationship – I decided to upend basically my entire life. Ended a four-year relationship, quit a seven-year stable job, and decided I wanted to try living in a new part of the country. After what I call ‘career soul searching’ I found a job consulting for large brands which was great for a few reasons. First, it allowed me to pursue my passion of helping brands connect with consumers in a meaningful, thoughtful way. Secondly, it allowed me to live anywhere I wanted (imagine all the possibilities).
With that, I packed up my shit – grabbed my father and road tripped it down to Austin in April of 2020… smack in the middle of a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic. (you’d be surprised how many 5-star hotels you can stay in driving cross country at a fraction of the price during a pandemic)
Once I arrived in Texas – like the rest of the world, we were on lockdown. However, it wasn’t long before restrictions lifted, and I ended up meeting Tanner through Sphere (a soccer inspired fitness concept started by ex MLS superstar Mike Chabala). After a few sessions at Sphere Tanner invited me out to an event Secret Disco was having at a local venue and in true Tanner fashion he said “Justin, you’re coming tonight right? You got nothing else to do!” – That’s the thing about Tanner, the guy has a way with words that evokes the innermost FOMO in all of us.
At any rate, I attended the Secret Disco event that night – and had a blast with some of the guys from Sphere that I had seen around (Taki, Dirk, Damian, Tanner, Spence, Kevin and of course, Brooklyn) – the night was a whirlwind of whiskey shots and weird dance moves – but in our minds, we crushed that dance floor.
Little did I know that these people would become my best friends. But that’s just how this city and Secret Disco works and what makes it so unique and inspiring, you never really know who you will meet and connect with.
So – with all that said, think of me as your transcribing MC for the duration of this series. I’ll be speaking with fellow Secret Disco Community members and will be sharing their story here for all of us – with the goal of getting to know everyone we see at events just a little bit better than we do today.
Thanks for taking time out of your day – and thank you for being part of turning a crowd into a community.
-Cheers.