We’re three-and-a-half weeks away from “spooky season”, so we’re proud to announce that the ‘Big Guy’ himself, D.J. Lewis, is making special occasional appearances on Youtube in an October special called “Nerdz of the Decade: Spooktober Edition”. Also during the month of October, we’ll be traveling to Pocono Mountains, PA for PuchiCon on October 21-22. If you live in PA and want to see us live, check out the convention and drop by to say ‘hi’. With that said, here are the days you’ll find both D&A founders on Youtube for the ‘Spooktober’ special:
October 4, 2023 – Nerdz of the Decade: Spooktober Edition Episode
October 13, 2023 – Nerdz of the Decade: PuchiCon 2023 Pre-Convention Special
October 18, 2023 – Nerdz of the Decade: Spooktober Edition Episode
October 25, 2023 – Nerdz of the Decade: PuchiCon 2023 Post-Convention Recap
It’ll be exciting to have both founders back on the road to anime conventions, as well as on Youtube! That will do it for this special announcement, so until next post, stay nerdy! 😉
Alright. So from last week’s post, you guys are aware that I made my return to our Youtube channel, as well as the blog itself. The only major change was that fact that I would only be posting occasionally, as well as making occasional appearances on Youtube. That’s great news, right? Well yes, and no. Since making my “seemingly” farewell post on March 31st; thanking all of our fans and followers for making D&A Anime Blog what it is, it left me with time to think about the future of this project. I don’t think I’ll ever grow bored or tired of anime, because if I did, this project would’ve ended a long time ago.
I think now in the seven (going on eight) years that we’ve been active in the anime community, as well as the convention circuit, there are functioning aspects about D&A that I fear will put us on the path to a slow death. I’m not trying to scare you guys into thinking that D&A won’t be able to function at 100% capacity, now that I’ve pulled back on consistency. However at this stage of the game I got to be honest; we really need help!
Yep…we need help.
Growing a business also comes with growing pains, and in our case, D&A is growing at a rate that we might not be able to keep up in the long term. So what exactly do we need help with? Well, I’m gonna tell you.
#1. Writers and Contributors
Since stepping away, the rate of content that we produce for the blog has declined over recent months. At the time, I was the only writer producing articles and reviews just to keep the consistent flow of content going. However it was only accelerating my burnout, which in turn led to making a post about needing more writers and contributors to help produce content for us. From first glance I get that we ‘look’ like a high profile article print/publishing company, but that’s only on the outside. We are nothing but a staff of two guys who really love anime, Japanese culture, Marvel, and DC comics, and want to talk about it whenever we want. Our only problem now is the fact that for many writers, you have to pay them. (They do a lot of work, so they should be paid.) Which leads us into our second biggest issue.
#2. Revenue
There are so many ways you can make money as a blogger despite it being only passive income. We tried generating enough content and promotion to help land us 1,000 subs and 4,000 watch hours. (The subs we got, but the watch hours…not so much.) So we looked into other ways to try and make some revenue for this project, in order to cover operational costs and upgrades to on-site equipment for press coverage of conventions. Recently we’ve finally opened up our own merch store and got a couple new affiliates to try and generate enough revenue to keep us operating, but that’s just it – it’s only enough to keep us operating.
We want to make more revenue to provide compensation for our writers and contributors as a way to thank them, plus there are some other projects that we want to work on to help expand our brand’s presence within the community, and to other conventions everywhere. We’re really limited in the things we want to do, so if you guys want to see more quality content (and even exclusive content), you can send us a donation on the D&A Donations page, or by so merch from our store. Every little bit helps.
#3. Convention Content
Cons are expensive, there’s no other way I can say it. Because of the pandemic, a lot of our local cons have either dissolved or moved to other states. The average con goer is probably looking at $750-$1000 at best to go to a 3-day convention in 2023; depending where that convention is located, the hotel that they’re staying in, badge cost, etc. Its gotten harder for us to try and provide convention content for you guys due to the rise of prices, and lack of revenue. So we’ve been working on trying to get guest bookings in hopes of elevating half, or all of the cost of getting to these conventions. This will not only help us produce more convention content, but also expand our brand as a whole.
To close this out; D&A has become something special to both me and Aaron, and although many people have stated that we have so much potential, we’re also in dire need of help to reach our full potential. So if you’re out there and you like blogging about nerdy stuff, or want to become a part of our project, subscribe to our blog and social media platforms, and even send us a donation or by some merch.
Hey guys, this is Donte’ J. Lewis representing 1/2 of D&A Anime Blog and D&A Studios Entertainment. You probably already know the story by now of how D&A came to be; Aaron Goldman and I worked on a concept for a website where we could post our con pictures that we took, and after tossing many ideas back and forth, we created an anime blog consisting of convention pictures, and anime reviews. In 2016 we made our debut at the first annual AniMore convention; then several appearances at Otakon, Zenkaikon, Saikucon, Anime USA, and Thy Geekdom. We’ve met so many awesome people along the way during our venture, as well as many of our favorite voice actors we’ve come to know throughout the years. Saying all of this makes the next part of what I have to say really hard…harder than you can ever imagine as a blogger, and content creator.
After this post is published…I’ll be signing off from D&A.
I don’t regret ever creating D&A, and everything its done in the lives of both Aaron and I. I am more than grateful for all of the people I’ve met and had the privilege of meeting. To me; D&A is a story about dreams, and no matter what life throws at you, you should never give up on them even though the road is tough. I’ve been a fan of anime since 1997, and throughout the years and decades I’ve noticed the change in the way we consume it. With mainstream companies getting their foot into the market (and even buying anime-centric companies like FUNimation and Crunchyroll), it seems like a lot of the aspects that made anime and its community special, seem to be fading away. Anime is no longer that shy kid in the corner that was picked on in school, now its an adult with a 401K and a six-figure income.
Now it seems like my attitude towards anime has changed. While I still have a genuine love for it, I just don’t have the same level of time for it as I used to. These days IRL commitments have really demanded a lot of my attention, as well as on-going personal trials and a shift in priorities. Don’t worry, its nothing serious.
So…what happens now?
So, where does D&A go from here if I’m stepping down? That’s a good question. After an extensive discussion, Aaron and I have decided that he will be the one to take over as administrator of D&A Anime Blog. This means that contributor posts will have to be accepted by him, and only he can invite other contributors.
“If you’re leaving, what will happen to your Youtube channel?”
Our channel will be fine. Aaron will be posting content on a weekly basis, so there will always be content for you to watch. There’s also a very, very, veeeery slight chance that I’ll make a cameo appearance on our channel every once in a while.
“If you’re leaving, what will happen to convention appearances?”
That’s also a very good question. In the off-chance that Aaron does get booked for an anime convention, I will be there too. As for me, if I’m pulled out to a con as a DJ for the Friday and Saturday Night Rave, then you’ll know me as Avidd Minddset.
Alright guys, I’m gonna leave you with this. D&A started off as a passion project between two longtime friends, who were bullied during their school years because of their love for anime. It grew into something amazing; where they got to meet their childhood heroes, awesome cosplayers, and be a part of the anime community overall. Who knows what will happen to the future of D&A, and if it will finally reach its peak in becoming one of the best blogs out there. The fact that D&A even exists at all, is an accomplishment in its self.
So from the bottom of my heart, I love each and everyone of you guys, and thank you for making D&A such a fun ride for me. Aaron will be the one taking over D&A and its affiliates, as I will be stepping down. This will not effect our friendship in any way; as many were wondering if my departure from this project would mean the end of our friendship. Now…with all of that said, this is Donte’ J. Lewis signing off from D&A.
D&A Anime Blog / D&A Studios Entertainment Weekly Newsletter (October 24, 2022)
A Founder’s Thoughts with D.J. Lewis: Old School vs. New School Anime Fans!
Since the 80’s anime has gone from being a ‘niche’ medium, to gaining mainstream attention in a matter of decades. Multiple generations have come across anime at some point of their lives, but lately there’s been a shift in what tastes these generations of anime fans have. Some studios have been accused of ‘fan-pandering’, while others are ‘rebooting the classics’. This week check out D.J. Lewis’ take and thoughts on the case of old school vs. new school anime fans.
Naruto Shippuden: The Akatsuki Tier List!
Naruto has become a worldwide phenomenon since the early 2000’s, and is one of the legendary BIG 3 of its time. The most popular villain stable on that show is the Akatsuki, and for the first time in D&A history, we rate each member on a Tier List based on their power. A 2-part post coming later this week!
Side Note: There were some articles we’ve listed in previous newsletters that we didn’t get to do, due to circumstances beyond our control. We hope to reintroduce them in later newsletter releases down the road.
D&A Anime Blog / D&A Studios Entertainment Weekly (October 10, 2022)
Flawless Victory: 30 Years of Kombat!
From Scorpion’s heavily meme’d yet iconic “Get Over Here!” line, to Shao Khan telling players how much they sucked after wasting them in battle, Mortal Kombat is turning 30 years old this year. We take a look back at what made this bloody fighter famous, and what Ed Boone plan on doing next! Happening later this week!
The Super Mario Bros. Movie: What We Know So Far…
Nintendo knew they had to wait until the ‘Sonic Hype’ of the second movie had died down, before announcing this movie. Just by the trailer alone it appears the Mario-Sonic rivalry is becoming renewed by both fandoms thanks to social media. Join us as we take a dive into what we know so far by the trailer, and what message does this send to SEGA about Sonic’s third movie.
D&A Anime Blog / D&A Studios Entertainment Weekly (October 3, 2022)
A Founder’s Thoughts with D.J. Lewis!
D&A Anime Blog Founder and CEO, Donte’ J. Lewis shares his thoughts about a variety of topics; such as diversity in anime, the current state of the world, music, DJing, and more! This week we get a brand new post sharing whatever thoughts are going on inside the mind of the founder; happening later this week!
Classic Game Review: Plok!
Somewhere during the 90’s the SNES was in the middle of a console war with the Sega Genesis, but while their respective mascots were going toe-to-toe with one another, we find ourselves reviewing an SNES game; where its OST was ahead of its time. Join us as we turn the clock back to the 90’s, for a classic video game review of “Plok!”. Happening later this week!
The Ecchi (Degenerate) Era of Anime!
There’s this weird lil’ genre of anime called “Ecchi”, and just like “Isekai”; it is both loved and hated by the anime community. We take a deep dive into how this genre became such a guilty pleasure for a subset of anime fans (mostly the male half), why ‘fanservice’ plays a key part in it, why it may (or may not) be banned in certain countries, and WHY anime studios KEEP making it! All this and more later this week!
Here’s What You Missed Last Time on D&A Studios Entertainment!
Hey there nerds n’ nerdettes! For most of you its the First Day of School, and for the rest of us its time to clock in and head into work on yet another crazy Monday. We of course are here to bring you another Monday recap of what you may have missed in the last couple of weeks! Starting September 5th we’ll be rolling out our D&A Entertainment Weekly Newsletter; that will also include our weekly recaps of unboxings, and podcast episodes that premiered on our Youtube channel last week. That’s all we’ve got for this post, so until our next one, stay nerdy! 😉
So we’ve reached the final week before kids go back to school, as the unofficial end of the Summer looms near. We of course are bringing you another recap of videos that you might have missed last week, and boy did we have fun doing these. Also don’t forget that starting September 5th we’ll be starting a new weekly newsletter called “D&A Entertainment Weekly”; which will include our Youtube video recaps, and posts for the week along with what’s happening around the anime industry. Yep, that’s pretty much it. Until next time and next post, stay nerdy my friends! 😉
What’s good, anime fam? Its another start to another week as September gets closer, and the Summer is winding down. It may be just another ‘terrific’ Monday for some, but for us it means another recap of videos that we’ve done this past weekend. Also a side note; starting September 5th, 2022 we’ll be implementing a newsletter-style format with a new name entitled “D&A Entertainment Weekly“. It will contain recap videos from our Youtube channel, new posts and articles for the week, and bi-weekly Premium videos for our VIP fans. We’re also working on a new monthly subscription tier system for our biggest supporters; $3 (Occasional Visitor), $5 (Frequent Flyer), $7 (VIP Member), $10 (D&A Super Fan). (More on that in the coming weeks.)
That’s all we’ve got for now, so until next post, stay nerdy! 😉
Hiya! We’re back with another Nerdz of the Decade recap to fill you in on some episodes that you might’ve missed at some point in the last week, or so. Although we can’t name names just yet, we are in the process of booking our third guest for the podcast, and yes – its someone you know. Down below is the last three episodes of Nerdz that you might’ve missed; as our 33rd episode will center around our new guest. That’s it for this update, and as always stay safe, and stay nerdy! 😉
D&A Anime Blog 