Welcome to the Sugary Scoop, my free weekly newsletter where I help you see and experience the magic of NYC that I love so much through curated events, experiences, artists, and community stories.

What’s new this week?

We are the Champions

As many of you know, I ran my first official contest giveaway on IG this past week in conjunction with my formal partnership with SummerStage regarding their epic blockbuster concert this Wednesday, September 2nd at Rumsey Playfield, celebrating Verve Records's 70th anniversary.

I recorded it in a rather straightforward way and posted it up to make sure that I got the information out exactly one week before the concert.

Now I had hoped for but did not expect the exuberant response that I received to this post.

Over 6,200 of you saw the post and I received over a hundred and thirty entries for the VIP ticket giveaway.

I don't know much about social media, but I think that's pretty amazing so I did what any self-respecting creator would do...

I asked ChatGPT to analyze the post’s performance.

After ingesting all my analytics, this is what I got back:

“Within approximately four days, the Reel generated more than 6,200 cross-platform views and achieved an estimated 7.3% Instagram engagement rate, approximately twice the nano-creator benchmark. Nearly half of its audience consisted of non-followers, and its strongest demographic was adults 35–54. The campaign significantly overperformed for audience interaction and direct activation, although retention and algorithmic discovery present opportunities for improvement.”

In plain English: this post proves that I can mobilize a real audience, not merely accumulate passive views. 

Well hell…I’ll take that. 😊

It's certainly very encouraging and I'd like to take a moment to thank all of you for engaging with the post, (liking, commenting, reposting, sending it to friends, etc…) and showing your support for this truly amazing opportunity.

Hopefully the SummerStage folks share this sentiment and may it lead to a deeper partnership down the line.

See y'all on Wednesday…

Sugary 🍬

The Epistemology of Friendship, Part 4

Earlier this month on August 12th , quietly and without much fanfare, I celebrated the one-year anniversary of surviving my health scare last year.  And I did it in what I believe to be the most fitting way...by simply living my life in a way that brought me happiness.  I hosted Dine and Dissert that day and went on to dance the night away, which, as I reflect back on that moment, is an odd bit of serendipity to cap off the anniversary in the most animated and lively of ways.

Later that week I had met up with Mona, who is one of my closest friends and we reflected on this moment. 

It was then that Mona had a very interesting idea that she offered, which I was not expecting…      

…she asked if I might be interested in having her guest write this edition of the newsletter.

Not a bad idea… 

After all she was my health proxy throughout that entire process and while I have a general sense of what she felt about the whole situation in both the practical and darkly humorous senses, this felt like a very appropriate moment for the perspective of someone that not only is well versed in health related matters, but has had a front row seat to all of my life choices for the last decade and a half or so.  

That, and she is actually a writer so whatever she was going to compose, it certainly wasn't going to suck.

So without further ado, the following are Mona's reflections one year after this unfortunate incident: 

Hi there, my name is Mona, and I’ve had the great pleasure of knowing (and loving) Gary Su for 15 years. And this week, I have the great privilege of guest-writing for The Sugary Scoop, which I have titled The Epistemology of Friendship, Part 4.

The title is a nod to Gary’s three-part series from last August, which he wrote after he almost died. That’s correct. This time last August, our Gary Su went to the ER with severe abdominal pain, or as he described it, “the worst pain of my life.” He was diagnosed with pancreatitis, a potentially life-threatening condition, and within an hour was admitted to the ICU. And while I won’t get into all the details, I will say that it was a very difficult week – for Gary and for those of us who sat by helplessly and watched.

Five of us – lovingly called his High Council (h/t Juliet) – banded together immediately to come up with a list of to-do’s, to-not-do’s, and a caregiving schedule so that Gary was never alone. We were feeling all sorts of things: fear, love, and, of course, helplessness. But in all honesty, we were also feeling deep frustration. We had repeatedly expressed concerns to Gary about his diet, his chronic lack of sleep, his overcommitted schedule and the enormous physical, emotional, and mental stress he was putting his body through on a daily basis. And while pancreatitis can have many causes, it was becoming clear to us that years of neglecting his own health had finally caught up with him.

Now, there is no doubt that building anything worthwhile in life requires a certain level of self-sacrifice. We knew that Gary was immensely proud of the Sugary community – 20,000+ strong – that he had built: proud of the events he had curated, the artists he had platformed, and the friendships he had formed along the way. But over the years, we had watched as Gary conflated self-sacrifice with complete self-neglect. Our concerns had all fallen on deaf ears, and suddenly, here we were.

Now, I won’t lie to you: as Gary lay in that hospital bed – unable to speak, with no phone in his hand (we hid it from him the whole week), and no events to rush off to – the five of us saw an opportunity. In between sitting with him, listening to music, and helping him make the hours pass, we essentially staged an intervention. Each of us expressed our deepest concerns – not just about what had brought him to that hospital bed, but about the dangerous path he was on.

The throughline was the same: Gary deserved to give his spirit and his body the very thing he works to give his community each and every day – his time, his attention, his kindness, and his care.

Perhaps it was the way that illness can make you feel incredibly vulnerable, or perhaps it was the medications that made him a little less defensive and stubborn, but for the first time ever, Gary Su was listening…like really listening. He didn’t say much, but for the first time there were no fake nods of acknowledgment or empty words of appeasement. It was clear that he had been shaken to his core by the experience, and that he understood that what he did after leaving the hospital would be a matter of life and death.

Well, I’m happy to say that over the past year, I have witnessed a transformation in Gary so remarkable that it has frankly been inspiring to watch. So much so that I asked Gary if I could write about it.

And with his permission to disclose, I’ll tell you about it.

Let's start with the medical changes.

Gary was discharged from the hospital with Type 2 diabetes, as well as some other metabolic issues that needed close monitoring by an endocrinologist. The very day he left the hospital, he signed up for a meal delivery service called Epicured, which delivers healthy, medically tailored meals for people managing chronic illnesses. Thanks to these meals, more mindful eating overall, and lots of intentional walks with friends, Gary lost more than 30 pounds within six months. His metabolic numbers are now all in the normal range.

Gary quit drinking alcohol cold turkey. He hasn’t had a drink in over a year, and he doesn’t miss it.

He now goes for consistent, intentional walks – not to transport himself from event to event, but simply for his physical and mental health.

The emotional and spiritual changes in Gary have also been beautiful to watch.

One month after his hospitalization, Gary started seeing a therapist to better understand himself and the habits that had brought him to such an extreme place. He goes consistently and, in his words, is “enjoying it.”

He has slowed wayyy down. I have watched Gary become much more selective about how he spends his time, who he spends it with, and which events he RSVPs to. Of course, he’s still very active and present at a lot of events, but he assures me he’s “cut his social calendar by more than 50%.”

Professionally, I’ve seen him make a commitment to try and work smarter and not harder, and finally ask for help in ways that he hasn’t felt comfortable doing before.

He’s also become a much more present friend over this past year – less distracted by his phone, less tied to a schedule, and more capable of simply being where he is.

I know he’s become a much more present son to his aging parents as well, calling them every day and visiting them consistently in Taiwan for extended periods of time.

And somehow, over this past year, Gary has become even more empathetic than he already was.

Like Gary, I too have aging parents whose needs are getting greater and greater. Caregiving can feel incredibly lonely, but over the past year, Gary has shown up for me and my family in ways that honestly bring me to tears. Every week, he checks in on us. He texts when he’s in the neighborhood to see if we need anything – a grocery run, a pharmacy pickup, a visit just because. He has sat with us in the hospital on several occasions, simply to offer emotional support. Sometimes, when I’m doing an overnight visit with my dad in the hospital, Gary will stay with my mom at her house to make sure she isn’t alone. If I have to leave the city for a couple of days, he asks me for a very specific list of things he can do to help my family in my absence. His own health scare only served to expand his heart and his empathy.

The changes Gary has made in his life over this past year are a lesson to all of us that it’s truly never too late to turn things around. And to me, watching Gary learn to treat himself with the same empathy and generosity he has always extended to his community is the real story of the past year…not that Gary lost 30 pounds or quit drinking or cut his social calendar in half. It’s that he finally began to understand that he is worthy of the same love that he gives to us all.

Gary has always known how to build community. He knows how to bring people together, how to make people feel seen, how to create spaces where strangers become friends. What he had to learn – and what I think this past year has started to teach him – is that he is part of that community, too. And as a leader, he needs to exemplify that taking care of himself isn’t a betrayal of his community, it’s what allows him to keep showing up for it.

So here’s to Gary – and another year of meaningful, inspiring growth 💗

Sugary 🍬

Paranormal Activity (on Broadway)

I suppose this writeup comes at the most fitting time as Halloween begins to loom on the horizon.

But Broadway’s newest haunting has taken root at the August Wilson Theater.

And whereas most horror stories make you afraid of what might be hiding in your house or under your bed, Paranormal Activity focuses on the unsettling notion that made it a blockbuster franchise in the first place…the haunting of YOU.

Inspired by the film series but a completely original story, the new play tells a story about James and Lou, a young couple who move from Chicago to London hoping for a fresh start.

When Lou becomes convinced, something is wrong inside their new home, unexplained events begin unfolding and escalating, eventually forcing the couple to hopefully survive the show’s wonderfully ominous trappings.

Written by Olivier-nominated playwright Levi Holloway and directed by Felix Barrett who you might know from Sleep No More fame, the production is especially intriguing because it attempts something that horror movies have spent decades perfecting, but without the safety net of editing.

The scares must succeed in a live setting and be convincing enough to a very present theater audience hoping to be scared but naturally skeptical from the get-go.

Having experienced this production, I have to say that the illusions, lighting, and sound all work in near perfect harmony to create some convincing jolts. This is some seriously expert mischief-craft here.

As it turns out, the experiment has already proven surprisingly successful.

After premiering in 2024, Paranormal Activity traveled through the U.S. and became a West End hit, extending its London engagement multiple times. Now the show has reached New York and will remain here until January 3^rd, 2027.

In a certain sense the stage version offers something a movie simply can't. At home, a horror film happens safely behind a screen. But when you think about it, in a theater, thousands of people are sitting together in the dark, collectively anticipating something they know is coming but can't quite predict the specifics.

Something moving in the dark that some audience members can see better than other folks in a different part of the theater and the spreading paranoia that ensues.  

The tension and buildup of sound before a delayed scare just a hair off its expected moment of landing leaves you flustered.

The David Blaine-esque illusions that mess with your mind in a sinisterly playful manner.

Darkness starts to feel different and more visceral, despite being in the company of over 1000 people each night.

That communal fear may ultimately be the cleverest thing about bringing Paranormal Activity to Broadway.

The original films became famous for making audiences afraid to go home and turn off the lights. The stage version reverses the equation and puts everyone in the same dark room first before daring you to stay.

Because something is definitely coming…

…as to when and where…

…I guess you’ll just have to risk it…

And maybe regret finding out.

 Sugary 🍬

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Thank you for taking the time to read to the end!

I hope you found something inspiring and meaningful in my content and until next time, explore the possibilities of NYC.

-Sugary

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PS. Don’t be shy and hit reply and tell me how you’re doing!