Today we’d like to introduce you to Mikey Hayden.
Hi Mikey, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
To give a little context as to who I am, I’m a father of a three-year-old girl and probably one of the biggest computer and tech enthusiast you’ll meet.
Everything started in December of 2025 when I was a customer at a Japanese American fashion store in the heights called Tadaima. I would often have very meaningful conversations with the owner Ezla Lewis around community and creative empowerment. One day we ended up on the topic of my record collection that had been passed down to me when I was 18 and how my dad gifted some Japanese vinyls to me, in that conversation Ezla empowered me by inviting me to host their Japanese vinyl night. While I began to prep myself for my first listening session for Tadaima I was just becoming exposed to the creative scene on Providence Street home to The Reading Room, Sanman Studios, Buried seeds and more. Amari Gibson founder of The Reading Room had a program dedicated to my favorite artist of all time D’Angelo. I vividly remember my conversation with Amari after the program concluded, she shared with me how hard it was to collect all the interviews, performances and archived photos of D’Angelo. At the time I was building a server for my daughter to host all her favorite movies and Tv shows and in speaking to Amari I felt compelled to build a a digital space to preserve our identity and experience as black people in America. From that day it has been this continuous experience of connecting with the local artist community in Houston striving to uplift each other’s aspirations. December 17 2025 in the art residency of Johnathan Jamil and Charles Middleton III I made a gorilla style set up with my turntable and speakers next to one of Charles massive canvas he had been working on. I turned on “Traveling man” by Maze and Frankie Beverly and Johnathan jumped up and ran to introduce me to one of the pillars of the creative scene in Houston Seth Rogers. Seth allowed me to begin my first official residency in his coffee shop Kept Secret which I hosted every Thursday for 3 months. From that residency I’ve focused my sights on using music and the nostalgia of physical media as a connection point for cultivating meaning sound curation experiences. From that intention we’ve been able to curate moments for Hotel Saint Augustine, non profit organizations like BLK Spill, CoolxDad and Gold was made fa’ her, staple social hubs like Buried Seeds, The Flat and Ice house radio.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Not at all. I’ve definitely had some hard lessons navigating different spaces. I believe my biggest lesson thus far is sitting with myself and my own creativity. In early stages I wanted to scale with my momentum and that caused me to deal with a lot of unnecessary struggles. It’s always valuable to have the input from others along the way and eventually build a team, but no one is going to push your brand, product or service as much as you as the creator will. What I’ve become most comfortable with is knowing that the best projects are the ones that can take years or even a lifetime to come to pass and in all that time so much will occur. Your failures and accomplishments, your gains and your losses. To grow fond of this understanding is what can lead you to a lighter heart along the way.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
The Black Digital Archive (BDA) is an interactive multimedia platform dedicated to the study and preservation of music, film, and visual arts. Rooted in reverence, the mission of The BDA is to honor both known and unknown creatives across generations, celebrating their contributions and preserving their legacies.
The selections of The BDA are curated through Black thought and the Black experience in America, serving as a living archive shaped by culture, memory, and lived experience. At its core, The BDA envisions cultivating spaces of connection, community, and education through music and conversation.
Today, the archive resonates across Houston through listening sessions hosted in collaboration with a diverse network of community spaces.
What were you like growing up?
I was very shy growing up, I was the youngest of four and I was always a little different from my siblings and most of my peers. Growing up in greater Houston, Cypress to be specific, was the biggest impact to my personality. Being raised in a community that doesn’t look like you makes you look within for a sense of identity. I discovered my self through family and the internet which is what bread my love for technology. In middle school to early high school 2011 to 2016 my small group friends and I would surf the web watching Soulja Boy vlogs, Wiz Khalifia day today’s and Ryan Leslie’s studio session soaking up the culture through YouTube. That same platform turned into our outlet to the world, teaching us how to pirate professional grade music and graphic design software that would normally cost thousands of dollars. It’s funny to look back on now, although unethical it empowered a group of middle schoolers to create at the fullest capacity, we spent many hours in our rooms downloading cool sounds and graphics, not to be rich or famous but to simply bring our imagination to reality.
Pricing:
- Vinyl curation – $250/hr
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theblackdigitalarchive?igsh=MTF0bHFzaDg2bmVkdg%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.instagram.com/tumikey?igsh=d25uYzV6NXFxNDc%3D&utm_source=qr
