11. Zusha Goldin: Cold DMing Every Celebrity He Wanted to Photograph

Celebrity photographer Zusha Goldin grew up in Crown Heights as one of 11 kids in a Chabad family, left the yeshiva system at 17 with no diploma, and built his career by writing a cold DM script and sending it to every celebrity he wanted to shoot. He has now photographed Selena Gomez, Sydney Sweeney, Ben Stiller, Bryan Cranston, Austin Butler, Samuel L. Jackson, and Sharon Osbourne at her own house.This is the full cold DM script he used at 18, the wave of online hate that hit after he was in Jerusalem on October 7, and how he launched his nonprofit Artists for Unity.Filmed in New York City at WTF Media. Hosted by Zach Miller, edited by Katie Sadler.Chapters0:00 Strangers in Washington Square0:56 Brooklyn, Crown Heights, Barclays3:27 Rejection vs reaction7:28 When this stopped being a hobby9:46 What yeshiva and Chabad actually mean12:24 Leaving the system at 1713:27 LA with nothing in his pocket. Then October 717:23 Pants on backwards, running to the shelter19:08 Coming home to the comments20:38 Artists Against Antisemitism21:57 Launching his own nonprofit23:20 The first yes. Sharon Osbourne's house. Meeting Ozzy25:54 What that much rejection does to you26:11 The DM script27:50 Before we cheers28:18 The Lana Del Rey CVS story31:01 Selena, Sydney, Cranston32:08 What he can't wait to make nextFollow Zusha on Instagram: instagram.com/zushagoldinFollow the show: instagram.com/beforewecheersWatch on YouTube: youtube.com/@beforewecheerspodTopics: celebrity photography, cold DM script, portrait photographer, New York photography, Crown Heights, leaving orthodox Judaism, Chabad, October 7 Jerusalem, Artists for Unity, NYC creative career