Angie Martinez IRL - Steve Madden: Overcoming Addiction & Building An Empire

Summary

Podcast Summary: Angie Martinez IRL — Steve Madden: Overcoming Addiction & Building An Empire

Date: March 5, 2026
Podcast: Joe and Jada (Episode with Angie Martinez, guest: Steve Madden)
Host: Angie Martinez
Guest: Steve Madden (Founder of Steve Madden, entrepreneur, designer)

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Episode Overview

This episode features a compelling, honest, and often humorous conversation between Angie Martinez and iconic shoe designer Steve Madden. Through the lens of his storied career and personal journey—from humble beginnings, addiction, and prison, to building a $3 billion shoe empire—Madden opens up about the realities of entrepreneurship and recovery. The episode is a mix of insightful commentary on business, candid reflections on addiction, and the perseverance required to redefine oneself and achieve lasting success.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Identity, Humility & Family Life

• Steve’s Sense of Self: Steve downplays his larger-than-life reputation. Despite the global reach of his brand, he says he mostly just feels like a regular guy: “Once in a while, that's cool. I'm Steve Madden. But mostly it's, you know, throw out the garbage, that's it.” (03:26)
• Family Dynamics: Steve talks lovingly about his kids—who sometimes refuse to wear his shoes! He finds humor and humility even in these small family rebellions: “My son doesn’t always wear Steve Madden, which really drives me crazy. He wears Margiela sneakers!” (05:13)

2. Origins: The Shoe Hustle & Entrepreneurial Beginnings

• Trunk Hustling: Steve likens his early days to hip-hop artists selling mixtapes—he literally sold shoes out of his car trunk: “I actually started with one shoe. It was a little clog. And I had a bankroll in my pocket.” (07:50)
• Bootstrap Startups: He emphasizes the importance of just starting, rather than waiting for perfection or capital: “For me, the startup was to take a hot shoe and get it into stores... You just start where you can.” (08:11)
• First Steps: Even with a driver (due to his DUIs) and daily-paid employees, Madden’s beginnings were small and gritty: “Here’s 60 bucks, here’s 80 bucks every single day.” (07:55)

3. The Challenge & Reality of Addiction

• Candid Discussions: Steve is open about his battles with addiction, underscoring that while it’s central to his story, it doesn’t define him: “Addiction is sometimes people’s whole story, you know. But it doesn’t have to be. It's definitely part of my story.” (11:11)
• Nature of Addiction: He uses memorable metaphors to describe its grip—“It’s considered a disease...sometimes, like diarrhea, you can’t will yourself to stop.” (12:03)
• Sustaining Sobriety: Surrounding himself with other sober people was key. “If I can get sober, anybody can get sober.” (12:23)
• Addiction & Success: Money and achievement don’t cure addiction or guarantee happiness: “Money cannot make you happy… it’s sort of an inside job.” (13:21)

4. Leadership, Company Culture & What Really Matters

• Scale vs. Connection: As the company has grown, Steve admits he no longer knows every employee, yet he credits his success to hiring great people: “I picked a lot of smart people.” (18:29)
• Secret Sauce: There’s no magic formula, just relentless focus: “We work hard, we move quick, speed product… Take care of the product first and the money will come.” (18:50)
• On Accessible Design: Steve has built his name in the “sweet spot”—shoes that are stylish, not cheap, not exorbitantly expensive: “I've always been in the same thing. I make shoes that are not too cheap, not too expensive.” (19:55)

5. Celebrity Culture & Prison

• Jay-Z Lyric/Pop Culture Impact: Steve recalls hearing Jay-Z mention him in a lyric while Steve was in prison—“I was in prison and he mentioned me...I wanted to talk to him! But he just giggled and laughed in my face.” (20:20–21:02)
• Life in Prison: The physical conditions weren’t as crushing as the sense of missing out on life: “It’s like being dead. This is what death is like, only I’m not dead.” (23:27)
• Reentry: Steve describes his post-prison resurgence as “exploding” with energy: “I came out and I had a lot of energy, and I was grateful… we just exploded, it was great.” (27:36)

6. Recovery, Motivation & Ongoing Challenges

• Staying the Course: Even decades later, there are still urges: “Now I feel like smoking a Marlboro Red right now… But I’m not doing it.” (29:10)
• On Addiction: It's a disease, like diabetes or cancer. “Addicts can’t stop, alcoholics can’t stop, but you can arrest it. You can’t cure it.” (32:23)
• Advocacy: He consciously hires formerly incarcerated people and supports organizations that help with reentry: “A few people I was in prison with work with me. We work with some organizations, the DOE Fund.” (33:52)

7. Business Insights & Advice

• Ring the Register: Artistic passion must be paired with business sense: “I think you’re failing as the entrepreneur if you’re not ringing the register.” (35:10)
• Mentorship & Learning: The most important advice he gives: learn your business from the ground up, and find a mentor: “For example, if you wanted to learn the restaurant business, it’d help to be a waiter… get a mentor, that is gold.” (48:24–49:50)
• The Boat Analogy: Entrepreneurship is a boat trip—lonely and hard, but possible if you keep moving and get help: “You’re on this journey and people are attacking you… but I got a lot of help. Even though my name is on the shoe, there are so many great people I’ve worked with.” (37:17–38:01)

8. Mindset, Emotional Growth & Legacy

• Growth: Learning to manage temper, detach from ego: “Less temper tantrums... A lot of things have nothing to do with you.” (14:53)
• Reflection: He respects overcoming things that aren’t comfortable, especially not getting high: “I respect the ability to do things that are not comfortable. Mostly not getting high. I respect that about myself.” (31:15)
• Legacy: He wants to keep making great shoes, serve his customers, and be a good father: “I want to make great shoes. I still do. I want to make shoes that you guys all buy… I like working... trying to raise kids, be a good dad.” (52:03–53:39)

9. Lifelong Passion for the Product

• Shoes as Destiny: Steve’s passion for shoes originated by chance as a teenager: “I walked into a shoe store and got a job… I wanted to be like the owner. That was it.” (50:32)
• Joy of Design: Testing new shoes and seeing what works still excites him: “That's my favorite part of the business—testing shoes and seeing what they mean. Love it.” (47:01)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Addiction is sometimes people’s whole story… but it doesn’t have to be. It's definitely part of my story.” — Steve Madden (11:11)
• “It doesn’t matter how much money you make. Money cannot make you happy, and it cannot cure addiction.” — Steve Madden (13:21)
• “If I can get sober, anybody can get sober.” — Steve Madden (12:23)
• “For me, the startup was to take a hot shoe and get it into stores.” — Steve Madden (08:51)
• “Take care of the product first and the money will come.” — Steve Madden (18:50)
• “You’re sick and tired of being sick and tired.” — Steve Madden on what compels recovery (28:26)
• “You have to learn the business… get a mentor, that is gold.” — Steve Madden (48:24–49:50)
• “I'm lucky I could be on a show like yours… these are things I never really talk about, since I don’t have a psychiatrist anymore.” — Steve Madden (09:51)
• “It's not about me. I gotta take care of these three kids, ex-wife, ex-girlfriends, and all that.” — Steve Madden (10:43)
• “It's kind of late, I'm getting up there... I'm still doing my thing.” (53:25)
• “You can have a great life. There’s a lot of people out there that are sober and doing great things. They don’t broadcast it.” — Steve Madden on recovery (32:42)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Personal Identity, Early Life: 03:16–06:15
• Start of Steve Madden Brand, Entrepreneurial Beginnings: 06:29–09:51
• Addiction, Recovery, and Motivation: 11:05–14:43, 28:14–29:50, 32:03–33:06
• Business Values, Leadership: 17:36–19:27
• Celebrity Mentions/Jay-Z & Prison: 20:14–23:42
• Post-Prison Resurgence: 27:29–28:12
• Advice to Entrepreneurs: 35:10–36:10, 48:24–50:04
• Testing Products & Customer Focus: 46:08–47:14
• Legacy, Future Goals: 52:03–54:21
• Favorite Shoe/Passion for Design: 55:32–57:28

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Final Thoughts

Steve Madden’s interview is equal parts inspiration, practical business advice, and sobering honesty about the realities of addiction, recovery, and leading a life—and business—worth living. His journey from hustling shoes out of a trunk, through personal struggles and prison, to building an enduring global brand, is marked by his humility and self-awareness. The episode delivers not just business or design insights, but a powerful message of resilience, second chances, and the ongoing process of self-improvement.

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Additional Highlights

• Testing at Aventura Mall: Steve actively visits stores, talks to employees, and remains hands-on in product testing.
• Mentors & Paying It Forward: From idolizing his first shoe store boss to hiring and mentoring formerly incarcerated people, Steve’s story underscores the value of mentorship.
• Legacy Perspective: When asked about the future, Steve is candid: he simply wants to “make great shoes” and be a good father.

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For aspiring entrepreneurs, creatives, or anyone facing hurdles, this episode is a rich reminder that you can turn things around, no matter where you start or what you’ve been through.

Transcript

[Angie Martinez]

This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.

[Ryder Strong]

This is Ryder Strong and I have a new podcast called the red weather. In 1995, my neighbor Anna Trainor disappeared from a commune.

[Steve Madden]

It was nature and trees and praying and drugs. So, no, I am not your guru.

[Ryder Strong]

Back then, I lied to everybody.

[Angie Martinez]

They have had this case for 30 years.

[Ryder Strong]

I'm going back to my hometown to uncover the truth. Listen to the Red Weather on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Angie Martinez]

This Woman's History Month. The podcast Keep It Positive, Sweetie celebrates the power of women, choosing healing, purpose and faith. Even when life gets messy, love. It's not a destination. You have to work on it every day. Keep It Positive Sweetie creates space for honest conversations on self worth, love, growth, and navigating life with grace and grit, led by women who uplift, inspire fire, and tell the truth out loud. I have several conversations with God and I know why it took 20 years to hear this and more. Listen to Keep It Positive sweetie on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. It's the new me and it's the old them. This woman's History Month. The podcast, if you Knew Better with Amber Grimes spotlights women who turn missteps into momentum and lessons into power. My, like, tunnel vision of, like, I gotta achieve this was off the strengths of, like, I wanna make a better life for us. If youf Knew Better brings real talk from women who've lived it, unpacking, career pivots, relationship lessons, and the mindset shifts that changed everything. Listen to if youf Knew Better with Amber grimes on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Babes, what are you doing?

[Steve Madden]

What? I'm just mowing the lawn.

[Narrator/Ad Council Voice]

No, it's blazing hot and dry out here. Don't you remember Smokey Bear?

[Steve Madden]

Avoid using power equipment when it's windy or dry. Where'd you learn this? Oh, it's on smokeybear.com with many other wildfire prevention tips.

[Angie Martinez]

Right. Thanks, honey bear.

[Steve Madden]

Because remember, only you can prevent wildfires brought to you by the USDA Forest Service, your state forester, and the Ad Council.

[Angie Martinez]

Your story is not always written for you at the beginning. It's like you could have went in a completely different direction.

[Steve Madden]

I could have. I could have died, too.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

You know, drugs and alcohol kill. I like to reach out to young people if I can, to not throw in the towel in their 20s if they get going out and getting fucked up and being Foolish. And you know, it's not too late to turn it around.

[Angie Martinez]

Thanks for watching, guys. Today's episode is brought to you by Boost Mobile.

[Steve Madden]

Are we rolling?

[Angie Martinez]

Okay, our entrepreneur is here. An entrepreneur and award winning Designer. A business TV titan with a company currently worth over $3 billion. He is a. Also a devoted family man, A provocative shoe designer. He is nothing but an inspiration. You are. You also happen to be Britney, my executive producer of the podcast she worked at. Steve Madden. Oh, no way. Happened to be her boss. You were her boss before I was here. Okay, Steve Madden is here.

[Steve Madden]

Okay. Yay. All right. Shoes. Okay. Yes.

[Angie Martinez]

Is that how you think of yourself?

[Steve Madden]

No.

[Angie Martinez]

How do you think of yourself when you see yourself?

[Steve Madden]

Oh God, that's such a deep question. How do I think of myself? No, no, it's okay. It's all good, you know. You know, because your name is beyond. Yes, I know. Bigger than you. Well, sometimes, I mean at the end, at the end of the day we're all the same. We're look in the mirror and we see pimples and. And you know, we think we're fat and you know, or whatever it is and so y. Once in a while. That's cool. I'm Steve Madden. But mostly it's, you know, throw. Throw out the garbage. You know, throw out the garbage. That's it. That's mostly that.

[Angie Martinez]

Funny. Whenever we book somebody, some, you know, we had this Barbara Corcoran was on recently and then I would see this, her buildings. All of a sudden I noticed every building that she had in New York City. So the same thing with you. I knew you were coming and it's like there's a Steve Madden store like I feel like on every corner. It's not. I know it's not every corner, but.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, but there's a lot of them.

[Angie Martinez]

There's a lot of them. I was just spending some time in Miami. They're all over Florida. They're all over New York. What does that feel like to you when you drive past? Do you even stay?

[Steve Madden]

I get a real big kick out of seeing people wear my shoes. That's fine.

[Angie Martinez]

More than. More than you.

[Steve Madden]

Well, the stores are good. But then I think about, you know, how are they running and all of that. So. Not that I don't enjoy all of this. I do. You know, I'm happy. I've been through a lot. But you know, you know, it's like it lasts four seconds, that little euphoria and then, then life is.

[Angie Martinez]

You're on to real life.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah. I think so kids, you know, our kid. My kid goes to school, she looks sloppy, she looks clean. Is she wearing Steve Madden most of the time? Sometimes not. Sometimes.

[Angie Martinez]

It piss you off? Yeah, I was gonna say, does it piss you off?

[Steve Madden]

It is. It is a sore point, yes. And my son doesn't always wear Steve Madden, which really drives me crazy.

[Angie Martinez]

What is he. What does he win?

[Steve Madden]

He wears Margiela sneakers. I know, it's unbelievable. And he fibs to me and we're being an elevator. I said, whose shoes are Those? And he's 18 and he says, they're yours, Steve Batten. But. And I find out they're Marella. Oh, no.

[Angie Martinez]

The disrespect in your own home.

[Steve Madden]

I know, it's unbelievable, but.

[Angie Martinez]

But it's fascinating, really. I can't imagine for you, when you make. You design these shoes and you walk around the city. Because you're still in the city, right? You live in New York.

[Steve Madden]

I live in New York, yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

So you're walking around New York and every, like, one out of how many people have a pair of sleeves?

[Steve Madden]

Oh, I don't know. I see the bags around a lot. Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

The bags are everywhere.

[Steve Madden]

Bags are everywhere.

[Angie Martinez]

The shoes are everywhere.

[Steve Madden]

Yes.

[Angie Martinez]

Like, you went to the Knicks game last night. Are you sitting at the Garden looking at people's feet?

[Steve Madden]

I do, yeah. I always look at people's feet. I've been in the shoe business since I'm 17 years old.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

And that's my life. And so I often, when I shake someone's hand, I always look down and if people. And, you know, I don't know if people notice it. I'm sure it's weird. Yeah. But I do. I can't help it.

[Angie Martinez]

That's really funny.

[Steve Madden]

That's what I do.

[Angie Martinez]

What is that like? Because, you know, I've interviewed a lot of. A lot of artists, music artists. And I always hear stories of people, like, when they first started rapping, they would sell their mixtapes out of the back seat of their trunk. Like, would sell mixtapes. They would sell. But I don't know anybody who's done the Shoe Hustle out of the trunk.

[Steve Madden]

I did that.

[Angie Martinez]

You did that. You know, what is the Shoe Hustle?

[Steve Madden]

And I. It's so funny because that's why I did have a few friends in the music business.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

And I sort of, you know, I sort of connected with that hustling kind of vibe, you know? Yeah. I was good friends with a couple of guys.

[Angie Martinez]

Irv, right?

[Steve Madden]

With Irv Gotti. Yes. Irv Gotti. I was thinking about him today. I miss him so much.

[Angie Martinez]

Me too.

[Steve Madden]

And I can't believe he's not here anymore. And. But he, you know, he has that. He had that. They would. You know, they come from that school.

[Angie Martinez]

The hustler spirit.

[Steve Madden]

The hustler spirit. Yeah. I used to go to games with Irv and Ja Rule, and they were great. We had so much fun. Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

Take me to your time, though. Take me. Who is that guy who's selling shoes out of the trunk of the car? Who are you? What age are you?

[Steve Madden]

So I worked for a company when I was in my 20s, and then I went on my own in my 30s.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

You know, and I just started with one shoe. There was a little factory in East New York in the middle of a, you know, a tough neighborhood. And, you know, I would just make. I started with what I could do, you know, uh, what I mean by that is I didn't have a lot of money, so I couldn't. It couldn't be like, a startup, you know, Like, I started with one shoe. I would go to the stores, I would sell.

[Angie Martinez]

You being, like, serious, like, one shoe.

[Steve Madden]

I actually started with one shoe. It was a little clog.

[Angie Martinez]

Yes.

[Steve Madden]

You know, and I had a bankroll.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

You know, and I carried it in my. In my pocket. And I had a couple of employees, and I used to pay them every day. At the end of the day is 60 bucks. Here's 80 bucks every single day.

[Angie Martinez]

What were they running around doing for you?

[Steve Madden]

No, I'm just saying, like, I had a driver. Was my first employee because I had, like, 22 DWIs, so I had no license, so I had a driver. A guy worked in my building where I lived in the Village. So I had a driver. And we'd go and we'd sell the shoes. And then, you know, and it just started like that. It really just. You just start, you know, where you can. And built up bankroll.

[Angie Martinez]

There's really something to that. I mean, Obviously there was 1,000 steps in between and the ups and downs and all that, but there's really something about. Yeah, that moment. For so many people who have an idea, have a dream, have a thing, it's like, yeah, do the one start.

[Steve Madden]

Get the one.

[Angie Martinez]

Get the one shoe.

[Steve Madden]

Yes, that is exactly right. Or do the one thing. A lot of people, you know, people have. I, you know, just hear, like, the word startup. So I get this idea of, like, an office with a lot of, like, desks, and it's a startup. I don't actually Know what it means? They get some money and they start up. But for me, it was. The startup was to take a hot shoe, a shoe and get it into stores. I had a connections with the stores from my previous job, you know, and they, they bought the shoe and they reordered the shoe and then I had

[Angie Martinez]

two shoes put a label on it.

[Steve Madden]

You put a label on Steve Madden?

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

And then, and then it just, it just multiplied and then, then from that

[Angie Martinez]

point to today, that's how many years

[Steve Madden]

now it's 35, 36. This will be the 36 years. Started in 1990.

[Angie Martinez]

Wow.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah. Started almost. It's almost. Yeah, about 36 years. And then.

[Angie Martinez]

Does that even feel like you still like. Or does it feel like. I don't know, it's like a story at this point.

[Steve Madden]

Right?

[Angie Martinez]

It's so long ago.

[Steve Madden]

Story. It is a story, but it's me. And I'm still a hustler and I'm older and wealthier and maybe less insecure. I'm lucky that I, I could be on a show like yours. And these are things that I never really talk about since I don't have a psychiatrist anymore. But you know, I feel like, for me, like I feel like, okay, I got kids and I'm feeding my kids like a hunter gatherer, you know, in my mind. And you know, I. That's it. I'm getting up, I'm gonna take care of my family, I'm gonna feed them and, And I know that sounds a little primitive and. But for me it helps me, it keeps me going during the day. It's not about me. It's. I gotta take care of these three kids and ex wife and ex girlfriends and all that, you know what I'm saying? You know, but you know, that's, that's what I do.

[Angie Martinez]

So that's the motivation. Yeah, because back then your motivation was what? To make money, to be successful, to beat your demons, to. Because I, you know, I know a lot of your story. I know that you've been through trauma and addictions and loss and.

[Steve Madden]

Addiction? Yes.

[Angie Martinez]

I mean, addiction itself.

[Steve Madden]

Yes.

[Angie Martinez]

It's not a small thing.

[Steve Madden]

It's not a small.

[Angie Martinez]

It's a blurb in your, like, you know, in your book and the COVID of your book and it talks about you. You're recovering, but addiction is sometimes people's whole story, you know.

[Steve Madden]

That's so smart, what you're saying. Doesn't have to be your whole story, but it's definitely part of my story. And, and, but it doesn't have to be the whole story. It's a. It's just so. It's. It's hard to. To explain it to people. It's. It's considered. Substance abuse is a disease by the textbooks now. And when you, you know, when you're in it, it's hard to get out of it, you know, and liken it to, you know, sometimes, like diarrhea. Let's just say you can't. I know this is awful, but you can't will yourself to stop. Like, I'm going to just not go to the bathroom. But that's the way it is. Getting high.

[Angie Martinez]

Wow.

[Steve Madden]

You know, you.

[Angie Martinez]

Oh, wow.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah. You know, it's kind of like that. And. And when you're in it, it's. It's really almost imp. Out of it. And it's. It's, you know.

[Angie Martinez]

But had you beaten addiction at the early stages of your, like, the trunk out. The trunk.

[Steve Madden]

The trunk days? That's when I started getting sober. The trunk days.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

You know. Yes, you can get sober. One can get sober. It can happen. And if I can get sober, anybody can get sober. Because what is the thing.

[Angie Martinez]

What do you attribute that to?

[Steve Madden]

How, you know, I. I go to a. I have places that I go where people like me and we. And we, you know, and that's what we do. You know, it's. Yeah. You have to surround yourself with healthy people and.

[Angie Martinez]

And it's still an ongoing.

[Steve Madden]

Absolutely. Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

Forever.

[Steve Madden]

Yes. Yes. It's ongoing. Yes.

[Angie Martinez]

Does that stick with you through, like, I don't know, You've had so many highs. Awards, success, Money. No, seriously, it's not a small thing. People work there, you know, it's a big thing.

[Steve Madden]

Money, money, money, money.

[Angie Martinez]

People listen.

[Steve Madden]

I know. Well, if it's, you know, money is a real thing. It's a real thing. And you. It. Money. Money cannot make you happy.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah. You know, can't cure addiction.

[Steve Madden]

It can't cure addiction and it cannot make you happy. You can buy reasons, buy things, and you can be comfortable with money, but money itself will not make you happier. It will not. But. But of course, because it's sort of an inside job. You know what I mean?

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

And the other thing is, it occurs to me that sometimes it can depress people in a way because you think, okay, well, once I get this, I'm going to be good, you know? And then you get it. And then it's like, wait, I still feel like shit, what's going on here? You know? And so then it can be a little bit depressing. In a way. Like, probably postpartum.

[Angie Martinez]

Probably could set people back to their addiction.

[Steve Madden]

Well, you know, you could say, like, I thought I was going to be so happy, you know?

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

But I'm thinking about, like, somebody that's a movie maker or whatever, you know, I mean, and they have, let's say, a lot of money, but I think at the. They want to make money, but they also want to make good movies, you know, so. And I feel that way. I want to make money, but I want to make good shoes and I want to have a great company because I have money now, you know, so.

[Angie Martinez]

So now the goal is good.

[Steve Madden]

I mean, the goal is to have a great business and live sort of a healthy life, you know? I mean, I don't mean eat kale. You know what I mean?

[Angie Martinez]

That would suck.

[Steve Madden]

I mean, like, you know, sort of live sort of a healthier. Make healthier choices.

[Angie Martinez]

What is that for you? What does that look like for you?

[Steve Madden]

Less. No temper tantrums. Do you know what I mean? I used to lose my temper a lot, and, you know, stuff like that. And. And also knowing that a lot of things have nothing to do with you. So, you know, when you're. When you're not really healthy, every kind of little thing, you. You get insulted easily. You know, somebody doesn't answer your phone or doesn't text you right back, you know, and a lot of things have nothing to do with you. So if you can live your life like that, that's for me. That's just me.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

You know, you learn that, you know, they're not even thinking about me. They're just. It's not an insult, you know, this has nothing to do with me. You know, that's the.

[Angie Martinez]

That's the. That's the message. That's like.

[Steve Madden]

That's very important.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

You know, but certain. You know, I've been in that place where everything's about me, you know, everything's about me all the time, you know, and so we talk about, you know, freedom from the bondage of self, you know, and so being healthy is kind of like that. It's kind of like not everything is about me. And don't get insulted over every little thing that goes on. I mean, you know, people like that. Oh, yeah, they get insulted about every little thing, and sometimes you look to me go, why are they upset? Did I say something? What did I do? And I hate that. But I could be that guy. You know what I mean?

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah, but you're trying to not be.

[Steve Madden]

I could be that Guy, you're trying to be better. I'm pissed off all day, but you're

[Angie Martinez]

trying to be better.

[Steve Madden]

Well, I'm trying to be happier. I'm trying to be. I don't know, better, but I'm trying to. I'm trying to be happier, and I'm trying to. You know, it's good to learn about stuff, too. Yeah, but not everybody needs.

[Angie Martinez]

Today's show is brought to you by our presenting sponsor, Hard Rock BET Florida Sportsbook. Listen, even if you're not the biggest football fan in the world, you are still tuning in. And maybe you want to get an in on the action, too. I know I do. If you haven't signed up with Hard Rock Bet yet, there's never been a better time. New signups can double their winnings on their first 10 bets. Maximum 50 bucks. Plus you won't want to miss hard Rock bets. $7 million big game bonus party. Place a $10 big game parlay, and you'll get a share of 7 million in bonus bets. Win or lose, every parlay counts. And the more you place, the bigger your share. So if you're in Florida or New Jersey, the Big Game energy doesn't have to just live on the app. You can head to Hard Rock Casino for drawings, giveaways, and all the excitement leading up to the kickoff, or you could just go on the app. That's Hard Rock Bet. Download the Hard Rock Bet app and make your first deposit today. You're like a lot of people's boss. Yes.

[Steve Madden]

Yes.

[Angie Martinez]

How many people?

[Steve Madden]

Thousands.

[Angie Martinez]

Thousands of people's thousands. Boss.

[Steve Madden]

Yes. Well, yes.

[Angie Martinez]

Yes.

[Steve Madden]

Yes.

[Angie Martinez]

People. So people expect you to have the answers to a lot of people.

[Steve Madden]

We have a big company today, and there's a lot of layers. So I don't know everybody like I used to know everybody in the company.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

But. Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

I just wonder what that feels like to have to be a leader of such a. So many people.

[Steve Madden]

You know, the funny thing is, it's. It's. In some ways, it's the opposite. Many of the guys and women and men that work for me don't always listen to me. So. And I go, aren't they listening to me? You know, and so if you had more, some people like me in business, you'd find that that's a very common thing.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

That they don't.

[Angie Martinez]

Well, that will require you to hire.

[Steve Madden]

Well, I've hired so well, that's really one of the. One of the keys to my success. I've been very lucky. I picked a lot of smart People,

[Angie Martinez]

what is the secret, what is the secret sauce? What is the thing? Because there's a lot of shoe companies, a lot of like, what is the Steve Madden secret sauce that lets you have this much success for so long?

[Steve Madden]

There is no secret sauce. We work hard, we move quick, speed product. You know, we, we, we have a North Star in our company. All the people that I work with have this, this we know. So I always say like, take care of the product first and the money will come. That's sort of the way I believe, you know, I don't really get too hung up on that. Course. Making money, profit is very important. But the first thing is make sure you have good shoes. That's what we do. Yeah, that's, that's what it is.

[Angie Martinez]

And when you go into design, even now.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, we're trying to make shoes that people want to buy.

[Angie Martinez]

Yes.

[Steve Madden]

What I want to make it. Yeah. I'm not interested in making shoes people don't want to buy.

[Angie Martinez]

But you, you serve as a very specific customer too. Right. It's like you ch. Accessibility. Right. You chose like to be able to be affordable and because you could have designed, I'm sure.

[Steve Madden]

I don't know.

[Angie Martinez]

You don't think you could have designed?

[Steve Madden]

I'm not sure.

[Angie Martinez]

A thousand dollar shoe.

[Steve Madden]

I've always been in the same thing. I make shoes that are not too cheap, not too expensive.

[Angie Martinez]

It's a sweet spot.

[Steve Madden]

It really is a nice spot, you know? Yeah, it's a nice spot. No, you know, I don't know if I could. I don't really know if I could. I'm just.

[Angie Martinez]

You've never thought about that?

[Steve Madden]

Come on. It's a different ball game. It's just a different thing.

[Angie Martinez]

Jay Z had a famous Steve Madden line. I wonder how you felt about that.

[Steve Madden]

You know, I was in prison when that happened.

[Angie Martinez]

Oh my goodness.

[Steve Madden]

I was.

[Angie Martinez]

How did you take that? Well, because you could take it good

[Steve Madden]

or bad, like, you know, couldn't care less. I'm happy, you know, I, you know, I was in prison and he mentioned me and you know, everybody was talking about it and, and I actually met him at a party and I told him about it and he, he laughed at my face.

[Angie Martinez]

No, he didn't.

[Steve Madden]

He did. I don't know if he was hurt me. We were at a party. He was with Beyonce. She was so nice. I mean, she's lovely. She really was. So lovely.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

So sweet.

[Angie Martinez]

Well, how did you handle it?

[Steve Madden]

And she was right next. And I said, I got to tell you a story. And you know, and I told him the story. He just giggled and laughed in my face.

[Angie Martinez]

That's all he had.

[Steve Madden]

Did you. That was it.

[Angie Martinez]

Did you offer any feeling about it?

[Steve Madden]

I was trying to, like, talk to him about it, but, like, he wasn't.

[Angie Martinez]

It wasn't the time.

[Steve Madden]

It wasn't the time.

[Angie Martinez]

It wasn't the time.

[Steve Madden]

But his wife was lovely.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah, but so what? So you're in prison.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah. And it came out. It was a.

[Angie Martinez]

A thing.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, it was a thing.

[Angie Martinez]

And then how did you feel about that?

[Steve Madden]

It was fine. It was good.

[Angie Martinez]

He mentioned.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, he mentioned your brand. Yeah, he mentioned the brand, and it was fine. And, you know, it was no big deal, but I wanted to, like, talk to him. Like, jc, let me.

[Angie Martinez]

What would you have said? What would you.

[Steve Madden]

Don't know. I just, like, I was in prison. You helped me out. Everybody treated me so great, thanks to you.

[Angie Martinez]

You wanted to have your moment.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah. He wasn't going for it. He wasn't going for it.

[Angie Martinez]

Maybe it wasn't the time. Maybe it wasn't the time.

[Steve Madden]

I'm sure he was busy doing what he does.

[Angie Martinez]

I feel like there was a whole bunch of other lyrics, too. I feel like that you've.

[Steve Madden]

There was some other ones been mentioned. Yeah, I met. I met all those guys. I, I. Yeah, I met Nas. That was fun.

[Angie Martinez]

How was that?

[Steve Madden]

He was cool. Yeah, I met Nas and. And met TI. I took a plane ride with TI.

[Angie Martinez]

The plane.

[Steve Madden]

I like TI's music, by the way. Okay, well, that was big also when I was away.

[Angie Martinez]

Oh, yes.

[Steve Madden]

That sound, you know, you don't know me. All those songs. Yeah, I really. Yeah, I really liked it. I tried to tell him that, too, but I was. I had him on a plane with me so he couldn't get away from me.

[Angie Martinez]

You had his full attention.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, I had his full attention.

[Angie Martinez]

What was that time like for you?

[Steve Madden]

It was heartbreaking. Heartbreaking moment. And you're already.

[Angie Martinez]

Your shoes are already.

[Steve Madden]

I'm already hot. Everybody knows who I am. Not like I am today, but, you know, it was 20 years ago, and it is. The doing of the time is not the. Is not terrible. I mean, it's not like going to St. Regis Hotel. It's terrible. And. But actually, you know, you get in a groove, you know, you be surviving, you're doing your thing, you're working out, you're reading, you know, having some laughs with the guys, and, you know, you're getting through the day, you know, but the heartbreaking thing is that all the stuff's going on outside, people are falling in love and having children and eating steak and moving on with their lives. Moving on. And you think it's like being dead. You know, it's kind of like being dead. Like, this is what death is like. Only I'm not dead. But, you know, like, everybody's out there doing their thing and you're, you know, and especially after visiting day, you know, people would come to see me and then they would go one way and I would go back to my little cube.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

You know, it's like. And my heart would break as I would walk back, you know, I would. I would have this sadness, you know, that everybody's going to something and I'm going back and.

[Angie Martinez]

To yourself.

[Steve Madden]

Reading People magazine or something. But, you know, I mean, this is

[Ryder Strong]

Ryder Strong with a podcast called the red weather. In 1995, my neighbor Anna Trainor disappeared from a commune.

[Steve Madden]

It was nature and trees and praying and drugs. So, no, I am not your guru.

[Ryder Strong]

Back then, I lied to everybody.

[Angie Martinez]

We have had this case for 30 years.

[Ryder Strong]

I'm going back to my hometown to uncover the truth. You can now binge all episodes of the Red Weather on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Steve Madden]

Segregation in the day, integration at night.

[Narrator/Ad Council Voice]

When segregation was the law, one mysterious black club owner had his own rules.

[Angie Martinez]

We didn't worry about what went on outside. It was like stepping on another one world.

[Narrator/Ad Council Voice]

Inside Charlie's Place, black and white people danced together. But not everyone was happy about it.

[Steve Madden]

You saw the kkk.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah, they was dressed up in their uniform. The KKK set out to raid Charlie, take him away from here.

[Steve Madden]

Charlie was an example of power. They had to crush him.

[Narrator/Ad Council Voice]

From Atlas Obscura, Rococo Punch and visit Myrtle beach comes Charlie's place, a story that was nearly lost to time until now. Listen to Charlie's place on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The more you listen to your kids, the closer you'll be. So we asked kids, what do you want your parents to hear?

[Steve Madden]

I feel sometimes that I'm not listened to. I would just want you to listen

[Angie Martinez]

to me more often and evaluate situations

[Steve Madden]

with me and lead me towards success.

[Narrator/Ad Council Voice]

Listening is a form of love. Find resources to help you support your kids and their emotional well [e-mail] that's sounditouttogether.org brought to you by the ad council and pivotal on the Adventures of Curiosity Cove podcast. What if the right fit isn't what everyone expects in the case of the right fit. Ella explores movement, confidence, and belonging and learns that not all strength looks the same. Tennis is powerful, fast, focused, and kind of fun. Strong swing, Ella. This Women's History Month story introduces kids to women who change sports by trusting themselves and moving differently. A thoughtful episode about identity, courage, and helping kids discover where they truly belong. So it's okay if I'm not quite sure what my thing is yet. It's absolutely okay. When and if you do find a sport you love, you may be the next Gertrude, Tony, or Venus at Curiosity Cove. Listen to adventures of Curiosity Cove every Monday from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

[Steve Madden]

So it's tough. It was tough.

[Angie Martinez]

It's even tough. As somebody who's visited people. I've visited people in jail, and that moment when you. When the person in their. In their jail clothes is turning around and going back.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, it's.

[Angie Martinez]

It's tough to even watch that from the outside.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

To think about that. So I can only imagine.

[Steve Madden]

You imagine.

[Angie Martinez]

No, I can't.

[Steve Madden]

What it's like to be the guy going back.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

So that was very hard.

[Angie Martinez]

So what is the thing that, like, drives you through all. You've been through so much, and then you get out of jail, by the way. Then you get out.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah. Oh, that was so good. That was so good. It was so good.

[Angie Martinez]

Now you're out.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

You probably, like, on a. It's like, right now. What are they calling this? February is the year of the horse.

[Steve Madden]

The year of the horse. Yeah. You were probably like, yes, I was.

[Angie Martinez]

Right.

[Steve Madden]

I came out and I had a lot of energy, and I was grateful, and it was. It was an exciting time to come out and. And thankfully, you know, the team was in place, and we went and we just exploded, you know, it was great.

[Angie Martinez]

Wow.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah. I was very lucky like that.

[Angie Martinez]

It's super inspiring and soup and it's so much of a testament to, like, I don't know, it's just like your story's not always written for you at the beginning. It's like you could have went in a completely different direction.

[Steve Madden]

I could have. I could have died, too.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

You know, drugs and alcohol kill.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah. I'm sure they don't wake up one day. That's it. Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

So what was the thing that woke you up?

[Steve Madden]

Well, I. You know, you're sick and tired of being sick and tired.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

You know, that's what it is. We have alcoholism in my family.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah. And my brothers, too. And so, you know, I don't know. Lucky star, you know, and. But you have to surround yourself with a lot of sober people, and is

[Angie Martinez]

there survivor's remorse in that?

[Steve Madden]

No, but there are times when you just, you know, you feel like. You know, you feel like I just need to get high or I need to get out, you know, and. And those are the times you need to reach out. I mean, now I feel like smoking a Marlboro Red right now. Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

Is it me?

[Steve Madden]

I don't know. Lately, I've been missing cigarettes. Smoking a cigarette so bad. It's so bad for you.

[Angie Martinez]

Don't do it.

[Steve Madden]

I'm not doing it, but I'm just saying it's so, like, that's what I. Oh, God. I just want to, like, light up a cigarette, you know, and just. Yeah, I know it's. But, you know, so bad. It's so bad, and it's so good, and it's so bad and so good, and it's so bad, and I have. I have shitty lungs to begin.

[Angie Martinez]

You have to have different vices now to kind of like, replace, you know.

[Steve Madden]

Well, yeah, you know, I'm. I. I work out a lot. You know, I work out and. I don't know. You know, it's not that special. You know, just. We just.

[Angie Martinez]

You are special.

[Steve Madden]

No, I don't know about all that.

[Angie Martinez]

Hey, guys. Support for this podcast is brought to you by Walden University. Have you ever thought to yourself, what if I could go after what I actually want and I could really make a difference? Well, you are not alone. And this is exactly why I want to tell you about Walden University. For over 50 years, Walden has helped working adults like you get the W with the knowledge, the skills, and everything you need to build the future that you want. And you can make a difference where it matters most. If you've been waiting for the right moment, this is it. Head to waldenu. Edu and take that first step. Walden University set a course for change. Certified to operate by Shiv. Okay, so these are just in real life questions. Pick one till you like. Pick one till you like one and then answer it.

[Steve Madden]

How happy are you from a scale of 1 to 10?

[Angie Martinez]

Today?

[Steve Madden]

Today I'm a 9. Today I'm a 9. But every day is different.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

You know, most of the time, I'm happy.

[Angie Martinez]

Okay, you're a happy guy.

[Steve Madden]

Most of the time. Most of the time. Okay. Then when I walk in a room, I want people to feel. I want people to Feel. What do I want them to feel?

[Angie Martinez]

What do you want people to think?

[Steve Madden]

Respect you, maybe.

[Angie Martinez]

Respect. What do you respect most about yourself?

[Steve Madden]

I respect the ability to do things that are not comfortable, you know? You know, mostly not getting high. I respect that about myself.

[Angie Martinez]

Good for you.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah. No, really, that's true.

[Angie Martinez]

It's a real thing.

[Steve Madden]

Yes, it sure is.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah. But one of the things.

[Steve Madden]

We're going to the bar, people are drinking tequila. You know, everybody drinks tequila now. Yeah, I miss the tequila thing. Like, people are like, fans. They buy these, like.

[Angie Martinez]

Is this pissing you off?

[Steve Madden]

100 or whatever, maybe even more bottles of tequila. They're experts. They are. They're. I know people that fancy themselves. Yeah. Tequila experts. And I'm sipping on a Coke.

[Angie Martinez]

Does it piss you off? A little bit? Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

What should people know? Because there's so many of us. I have. I have family. Gambling addicts, also.

[Steve Madden]

Yes.

[Angie Martinez]

Alcoholics.

[Steve Madden]

Sure. Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

So what should people know about addicts? Like, what should outside people, when dealing with family, or what should they understand because it's hard sometimes outside from family members. You know this.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, that's. That's a big question. What should they understand? That it's a disease.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

It's a disease. Like diabetes, like cancer. It's a disease they can't stop. Addicts can't stop, Alcoholics can't stop. But there are places where they can stop. It's. It's arrested. You can arrest it, but you can't cure it ever. Ever.

[Angie Martinez]

Wow.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, but that doesn't mean you can't have a great life and, you know, you arrested and you go on and you could have a great life. There's.

[Angie Martinez]

You're like the poster boy for that.

[Steve Madden]

Well, today I am. You know what I mean? It's. We have today at a time, and there's a lot of people out there that are sober and, you know, some doing great things. They don't. They don't broadcast it.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah, but. Because it's probably hard to revisit sometimes. Right.

[Steve Madden]

You know, they want to stay humble about it, too. But Anthony Hopkins just celebrated 50 years of sobriety. You know the old actor that was in Silence of the Lambs? Yeah, I saw. He went in and spoke about it online. I saw him on TikTok.

[Angie Martinez]

Had he never talked about it before?

[Steve Madden]

Well, yeah, people knew about it, but. Yeah, 50 years.

[Angie Martinez]

50 years, yeah. God bless.

[Steve Madden]

God bless is right.

[Angie Martinez]

That is amazing.

[Steve Madden]

That is amazing.

[Angie Martinez]

What do you like when we talk about business? It's like there's so many people I'M sure you do. You do a lot of mentorships. You have. Your organizations. You believe in rehabilitation and. And giving people a sec. I know even in your company, you hire.

[Steve Madden]

We do.

[Angie Martinez]

Formerly incarcerated.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah. We have a few. Few people that I was in prison with work with me.

[Angie Martinez]

Oh, that's the worker company.

[Steve Madden]

And then we work with some organizations, the DOE Fund. And. And I like to. I like to reach out to young people if I can, to not throw in the towel in their twenties, if they get. Going out and getting up and being foolish and, you know, it's not too late to turn it around. And it's hard to teach the entrepreneur thing. Yeah. So you're an entrepreneur and.

[Angie Martinez]

Yes.

[Steve Madden]

You know, it's. It comes. It could be anything. You know, it's just someone that makes their own way.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

And does things differently and is succeeding.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah. You know what's so funny, though? I just was saying this to Brittany. I was like, my whole career, I have never focused on money enough. I've always been like, I want to make a cool. I want to do this great thing. Which you probably have some of that, which is true. But you've also been very diligent about creating a successful. Financially, you know, successful company is different.

[Steve Madden]

I do think it's. I think that's a good point you're making. I think you have to make money as an entrepreneur.

[Angie Martinez]

Yes.

[Steve Madden]

I actually think if you're failing as the entrepreneur, if you're not ringing the register, I think you need to ring the register.

[Angie Martinez]

Gotta ring the register.

[Steve Madden]

But of course, you know, if you're. If you have passion, you're an artist, you're trying to design that dress or make that song or. Yeah, you know, or, you know, and so you say, well, I'm gonna do that. But usually if you take care of those things, the money will follow. And you have to make sure that.

[Angie Martinez]

That's what they've always said to us. And I feel like we've gotten a lot of shit wrong.

[Steve Madden]

Number one.

[Angie Martinez]

Number one, they. They. We have to be a hustle. You have to hustle. Work so hard all the time. I don't know if that was right at this big age. I'm starting to think maybe I need a little more balance. Right. And maybe I had to work hard for all those years to get the balance now.

[Steve Madden]

Well, working hard is good. Working smart is good.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah. And then the other thing is, you know, you. You create something you love and the money will come. I don't know if that's always right.

[Steve Madden]

Sometimes it doesn't. But if you're smart, that's part of the trip. You have to make that happen. Yeah, that's part of the entrepreneurial trip.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

You know, you're balancing, like, do I want to enrich myself? Do I want to build my business? Like, there's so many things that go into this ride that you're on. You know, I was just listening to. I just was audiobook. Because my eyes are.

[Angie Martinez]

I saw in the glass. Some of you try to go in the bowl.

[Steve Madden]

Oh, God. And I was listening to a book. There's Lorne Michaels. He's the Saturday Night Live guy.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah, of course.

[Steve Madden]

And, you know, was taken with. He's been there forever, and he's built this huge thing, and he's a great entrepreneur, and he had so many things, you know, on his plate that he was. And I was really taken with the book. Really enjoyed that.

[Angie Martinez]

That.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, I really enjoyed it.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

I met him once.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

And. But it was a long time ago, and he doesn't remember me, I'm sure. But it's okay.

[Angie Martinez]

Who cares?

[Steve Madden]

Who cares?

[Angie Martinez]

You got something out of his book.

[Steve Madden]

I got out of his book.

[Angie Martinez]

There's people watch this podcast that'll never meet you, but we'll get something out of this interview.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, that would be great.

[Angie Martinez]

What makes a great entrepreneur?

[Steve Madden]

You know, there's just. I feel like it's this big boat ride you're on, and you got to keep the boat moving, and it's a battle that it's not always so great. You know, the entrepreneur thing, you know, it's very lonely, too. You know, it can be because you're. You're on this journey and you're trying to survive and flourish, and people are attacking you, and. And, yeah. And there's swamps and. And you just kind of keep moving forward. And so the great thing for me is that I got a lot of help. You know, I got a lot of people helping me. So even though my name is on the shoe, you know, I got so many great people that I work with.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

It wasn't always like that.

[Steve Madden]

Well, you start. You don't have any.

[Angie Martinez]

You know, you're in the boat by yourself at some point.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

And you're not just in the. Steve, you're not just in the boat by yourself. You're, like, in the boat with, like, this history and trauma.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

And addiction.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

You're. And you're still in this boat.

[Steve Madden]

I'm in the boat. I mean, that's still in the boat.

[Angie Martinez]

You're still in the boat.

[Steve Madden]

Still in the boat.

[Angie Martinez]

But it was a time when you were in the boat by yourself.

[Steve Madden]

Still in the boat.

[Angie Martinez]

But, you know, the boat's bigger now.

[Steve Madden]

Boat is bigger. And. But still. And then, you know, there's different challenges as you go along, you know?

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

You know, and so what's been some

[Angie Martinez]

of your biggest ones, aside from addiction, obviously, so.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, well, you know, letting go and letting smarter people do stuff. And, you know, that. And not freaking out. You know, I'm the kind of guy that if we had a big market, a big show, and I didn't like, you know, the cookies, I would freak out. I called the person, what the is this? This tastes like medicine. You know, I was like that. I was crazy like that. I needed to control everything, you know? But then as you go along, you realize that you can't control everything. So you learn what you can sort of control.

[Angie Martinez]

And so now if you go in the place and the cookies are bad, what do you do?

[Steve Madden]

I don't say anything anymore, but maybe I will.

[Angie Martinez]

But inside the cookies.

[Steve Madden]

Cookies. You can't make a. You can't make a bad cookie because it's such a waste of, like, calories.

[Brittney (Former Steve Madden Employee)]

Right.

[Steve Madden]

Crazy. When I go to a mall. Malls, okay? And the elevators don't work. These guys charge so much money for these stores. They are so successful. And they can't fix the. The escalator.

[Angie Martinez]

How dare they?

[Steve Madden]

The escalator.

[Angie Martinez]

Escalator.

[Steve Madden]

And the escalator didn't work at Madison Square Garden last night. Yesterday there was an escalator going down to 7th Avenue, and the escalator didn't work. He can't afford to. He pays Brunson 50 million a year. He can't fix the escalator. What is that? Because they don't give a shit about the public because they got a product, you know, that people love.

[Angie Martinez]

They're going to walk up there. The people walk up the escalator, they don't care.

[Steve Madden]

But on the other hand, yeah, I used to stay at the Wynn hotels in Las Vegas because the room service coffee was so great. And I thought to myself, this guy, Steve Wynn, this nut, he was, you know, he's amazing hotel man. He took care of, like, he took care of that detail. His coffee. I'm telling a coffee person, yeah, his coffee was so fucking great. And I stayed there. I was loyal to him.

[Angie Martinez]

You could stay anywhere in the world you want.

[Steve Madden]

He. He and I. His room service coffee was the greatest thing because he cared about his. So you're that attention to detail. Really? I love that.

[Angie Martinez]

I was going to say you're. You're passionate.

[Steve Madden]

Shout out to Steve Wynton.

[Angie Martinez]

You're passion. Passion.

[Steve Madden]

I always wanted to say that.

[Angie Martinez]

I just played wi.

[Steve Madden]

Shout. I love when people do that.

[Angie Martinez]

Shout out to Steve Wynn.

[Steve Madden]

White people don't do that. Shout out to Steve wi. No, I'm serious. But I. It's really true, you know, But I do like that because it's like, yes. I don't know where he is. I see him on Tik Tok.

[Angie Martinez]

You always wanted to give a shout

[Steve Madden]

out, shout out to Steve W. Because he really cared, this billionaire dude. I know that he cares. I want my coffee to be great.

[Angie Martinez]

He cares about the detail.

[Steve Madden]

Yes, he did. That's why I was loyal to the Wynn Hotel, because of it.

[Angie Martinez]

They have a lovely golf course as

[Steve Madden]

well, by the way. They do. I've played it.

[Angie Martinez]

I'm a golfer.

[Steve Madden]

Yes, you are. I didn't know that. Yes, I played.

[Angie Martinez]

I just found the game about four years ago and I'm at full. I'm an. This is what. I'm an addict. I'm a golf addict. As a sport. Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

I will golf. Sport.

[Angie Martinez]

I will golf every day.

[Steve Madden]

If I. Yeah. You play in Miami.

[Angie Martinez]

I do.

[Steve Madden]

Anytime you want to go to Lagors, let me know.

[Angie Martinez]

I want to go.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, hit me up.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah, I'm gonna hit you up. And I want to go with Steve Madden. And you should make a. Steve. You should make a Steve Madden golf shoe.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, I could play in. You know what? I think we did make some golf shoes.

[Angie Martinez]

Really?

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, we did. It was fun, but it was, you know, it just, it was.

[Angie Martinez]

I'm gonna find it. I'm gonna find one. I'm gonna dig one up and I'm gonna show up a little gorse in my Steve Madden.

[Steve Madden]

Because people wear. They don't wear. When I started to play golf as a child, I really started when I was 14. Yeah. And golf shoes were really cool. They were like tassels and two tones and amazing. Mind blowing. Golf shoes were mind blowing.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

If you look in the 50s, you look at the 60s, the old players wore beautiful shoes. And then it kind of like Nike sort of took over the business and they're sort of like sneakers now.

[Angie Martinez]

I try to cuten it up. I do the little flaps on top of my sneakers.

[Steve Madden]

I like the flaps. I'm all about flats.

[Angie Martinez]

Those are good.

[Steve Madden]

Yes, flaps are good.

[Angie Martinez]

I'll put on a good golf.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah. Little golf. Golf shoe for it.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

Yes.

[Angie Martinez]

So you golf?

[Steve Madden]

I do I do play golf, so

[Angie Martinez]

that's a good meditative. That's like meditation to me.

[Steve Madden]

It's like so frustrating.

[Angie Martinez]

Everything's.

[Steve Madden]

I lose my mind on the golf course, but I love it.

[Angie Martinez]

Hey guys. Boost Mobile is proving that you do not have to overpay for great wireless. Unlock the savings with the 25amonth Forever Unlimited plan. It's a permanent price with no contracts and no price hikes. So you can keep your phone, your number and you can save up to 6, $600 a year compared to other major carriers. So stop overpaying and switch to a fair price@boost mobile.com and do it today. Based on average annual single line payment of AT&T Verizon and T Mobile customers compared to 12 months on the Boost Mobile Unlimited plan as of January 2026. For full offer details, visit boost mobile.com so we have a segment that we do on IRL podcast. It's the voice note sections presented by Boost Mobile.

[Steve Madden]

Thank you twice.

[Angie Martinez]

We love B Mobile and it's usually a, a fan, a friend or somebody has a question or whatever. She's our, she's going to do our voice note today.

[Steve Madden]

Okay.

[Angie Martinez]

She's a former employee of Steve Madden, right?

[Brittney (Former Steve Madden Employee)]

Yes.

[Angie Martinez]

She worked in the Aventura store.

[Brittney (Former Steve Madden Employee)]

Yes, I did.

[Steve Madden]

Wow. That was, that's one of my favorite stories.

[Brittney (Former Steve Madden Employee)]

In my last year of college. I had failed my senior semester class and I hated, I hated being in school. I was like in a bad place. And Steve Madden was my first retail job. I'm like, okay, I'm just going to go work at C. And it was one of the best times that I've ever had whoever was my manager at the.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, yeah.

[Brittney (Former Steve Madden Employee)]

Really life into me. And he also had the best employee perks because it was 50% off.

[Steve Madden]

Wow, that's a lot.

[Angie Martinez]

That's a lot.

[Steve Madden]

He said

[Brittney (Former Steve Madden Employee)]

now it worked during the busiest times. I worked through Christmas.

[Steve Madden]

Right. Black Friday. Yes.

[Brittney (Former Steve Madden Employee)]

And you visited and I was like, what the is Steve Madden?

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, I do that.

[Brittney (Former Steve Madden Employee)]

And I was working cashier and you said something to me. You were like, you got the best seat in the house.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, I did say that. I gotta upgrade my material. That was good. But I did. Yeah. I love going Aventura during the holidays. I love shopping around and seeing the action.

[Brittney (Former Steve Madden Employee)]

Yeah, yeah. You like one of the sales associates sell a shoe that you came really early, like before the big restaurant.

[Steve Madden]

Right. Wow.

[Brittney (Former Steve Madden Employee)]

But that like inspired me to like. And then I started reading up about your story and that inspired me to finish school. I went back I finished. I was at your store for like four or five months and it was just like one of the best experiences in retail that I ever had, minus some of the people. Because retail also teaches you a lot about dealing.

[Steve Madden]

Some of the customers, the public. Yes. They can be rude. Yeah, yeah, I know.

[Brittney (Former Steve Madden Employee)]

But, but I always respected that. Hey, you're giving us your hard earned money.

[Steve Madden]

Sure. Yes.

[Brittney (Former Steve Madden Employee)]

You want to make sure that you're getting close. Yeah, that, that never bothers me, but I really admire the, the ecosystem that you created.

[Steve Madden]

Thank you. Thank you. Wow.

[Angie Martinez]

So it wasn't even really a question.

[Steve Madden]

There was no question. Yes.

[Angie Martinez]

Was there a question? There's no question.

[Steve Madden]

Okay. Well, I used to enjoy. I loved going to the Aventura Mall and so many different. It's just great customers, all different walks of life. Very, very cross sectiony.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

And it was great.

[Angie Martinez]

You're like a. You like to. You probably study the customer to some extent.

[Steve Madden]

Well, I do, I do. There's all types and Aventura is great because we've so many different. We skill out of South Americans, Canadians.

[Brittney (Former Steve Madden Employee)]

And you test shoes there too.

[Steve Madden]

We do, we test a lot of shoes in, in Aventura.

[Angie Martinez]

How do you test a shoe?

[Steve Madden]

So what you do is, you know, you make a short run, little sample in a sample room and you. So for instance, an example of that would be you would make a sandal and you put it in Aventura because it's freezing in New York and no one's buying a sandal. So you go down there and you get a little feedback on it. So if you, if you know they start picking up the sandal, you know that you might have.

[Angie Martinez]

This is a good, this is a good one here.

[Steve Madden]

Yes. Test and react. We still do it.

[Angie Martinez]

I love that you love this still.

[Steve Madden]

I do. That's my favorite part of the business is what. Love that. Testing shoes and seeing what they mean. Love it.

[Angie Martinez]

All these years later.

[Steve Madden]

Love it. I still do. And it's such a, it's such a gas, you know, it's really.

[Angie Martinez]

I'm sure people come to you for advice all the time about starting businesses.

[Steve Madden]

Usually they come to me for money.

[Angie Martinez]

Really? What is the number one thing people ask for money for?

[Steve Madden]

I mean, you know, they come to

[Angie Martinez]

you, startups and things like that, a lot of stuff.

[Steve Madden]

You know, usually I get 15 or 20 before 1 o'. Clock.

[Angie Martinez]

But what about people who are really starting? Do you have like advice that you get.

[Steve Madden]

Give people about, you know what I'm. I. Chad yelled at me last time because I always say the same thing. Chad, my colleague over there, I believe that you have to learn the business. You know, a lot of people want to go into business, and I think it's helpful to know the business. For example, I think that if you were, you know, wanted to learn the restaurant business, it would be helpful to maybe work in a restaurant, maybe be a waitress or a waiter, you know, and if your goal, like, if you said, like, I want to open my own joint one day or be a bartender, like, I think those are just things that come to mind.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah. Learn your business.

[Steve Madden]

I think learning the business and then going into business.

[Angie Martinez]

Yes.

[Steve Madden]

Is now, for me, that happened sort of organically. I. I was just sweeping a basement when I was 16. By 17, I was up on the floor selling shoes. I mean, I learned all these things. It wasn't a plan, you know, it was just the way it went down. But by the time, you know, I was ready to go on my own, I knew a lot of stuff already. Had sort of good.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

Had sort of good. College was sort of the school of shoes. Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

People never want to do that. They want to go right to the.

[Steve Madden]

Yes, they do. They seem to right now, this. This generation. Because, you know, they say, see, they see the, you know, on social media, you see all the success, and you want to do it right away. And, yeah, I certainly don't blame them.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

But I am telling you my advice, and that's learn the ropes, man. And whatever, you know, or the other thing is to find a mentor. You know, like, if you got lucky to work in a company, let's say it was a bigger company and you had somebody that you looked up to, that you worked for, and you would be willing to do anything as an assistant or whatever the title was, you know, that is like just gold. Gold. That is gold.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

You get a mentor and you. And you learn and you. You know, and that's. Those are the things that I would suggest. I mean, there's. And then the other stuff. Whether you have talent or not, it's another story.

[Angie Martinez]

Story for another day.

[Steve Madden]

It is a story for another day.

[Angie Martinez]

Anyway, I know we're wrapping up, and I probably shouldn't ask. This is more of like a beginner. I should have asked at the beginning, but is there something about a shoe? Like, what is the love of a shoe?

[Steve Madden]

It is. It's a great question. It is. It's just what I do.

[Angie Martinez]

Where did that come from?

[Steve Madden]

You know, I worked in a shoe store as a teenager.

[Angie Martinez]

I know, but how did you Even wind up there.

[Steve Madden]

It was. God, I don't know what it was.

[Angie Martinez]

The universe.

[Steve Madden]

I walked into a shoe store and got a job.

[Angie Martinez]

Because you needed money.

[Steve Madden]

I needed a job. I was a kid and we went to work. That's what you did in those days, you know, you said you got a job.

[Angie Martinez]

What was the shoe store like?

[Steve Madden]

It was a shoe store.

[Angie Martinez]

It's a regular.

[Steve Madden]

My hometown neighborhood shoe store. Neighborhood shoe store called Toulouse to Lose. It was called Toulouse and. And the owner of the store was a sort of an ex hippie. He was a. I was, again, another lucky break. This guy was this, like, great artist character, and he owned the store and he was like this, like, ex hippie, you know, he looked like a rock star. And he had the store, and I wanted to be like this guy. And so that was it.

[Angie Martinez]

So you just. Shoes.

[Steve Madden]

Shoes. And so that was it. That's the thing. You get a mentor, you know.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

So what a break that is.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

If you can find somebody.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah. I'm sure you've done that for a lot of people.

[Steve Madden]

I don't know about all that, but.

[Angie Martinez]

No, it's true. Look at. Even Britney. Young Brittany. Young Brittany was one. I'm sure there are many. Many. All right. And then finally, what is the. What does the future look like? What is the next five, 10 years?

[Steve Madden]

So the future. What does the future look like?

[Angie Martinez]

What are your goals now? Like, what do you. Do you have any more goals? Are you just trying to, like, get a good night's bed, get a good

[Steve Madden]

night's sleep, get a good night's sleep, be a good dad, be good guy? No, I like to like your legacy. I like working.

[Angie Martinez]

Let's talk about your legacy, you know? Come on.

[Steve Madden]

I don't know. Here's what I want to do. I want to make great shoes. I still do. I want to make shoes that you guys all buy. That's what I. That's.

[Angie Martinez]

We buy them all the time. So you did that already, so.

[Steve Madden]

No, no, but the thing is that before this, you know, you have your thing. Well, maybe I should, like, make a movie, you know, or maybe I should make a, you know, like, going to music business. Right. Because I like music. Yeah, right. But just because you like music doesn't mean you can go to the fucking music business. That's dopey. I did that.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

So I think a lot of people that make a lot of money do that stuff. And so you learn that, you know, it's not about staying in your lane. I don't give a. About That. I mean, there are many people that do a lot of different things, but for me, you know, this is what I do.

[Angie Martinez]

Your thing.

[Steve Madden]

I do what I do, and, you know, I'm cool with it. And I'm happy to, like, you know, listen to music and not own it. Right.

[Angie Martinez]

I'm not gonna go be a professional golfer anytime soon.

[Steve Madden]

I wish I was better at golf. Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

But even then, I don't want to be a professional.

[Steve Madden]

No, no. But there's. You'll see them down there. Yeah, yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

But then you find that thing, your shoe.

[Steve Madden]

The shoe.

[Angie Martinez]

And then it becomes your thing.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, it's my. It is my thing.

[Angie Martinez]

What about in real life, though, as a human being? Like, do you have anything that you're chasing for yourself?

[Steve Madden]

It's getting late, honey. It's kind of late. I'm getting up there. Yeah. I mean, I'm getting up there, you know, I'm still in good shape. I'm still, you know, doing my thing

[Angie Martinez]

and it's getting late.

[Steve Madden]

It's getting late, you know, But I. I guess the big thing is, you know, being. Trying to raise kids, be good, dad. That's a good thing. That's a really good thing. The thing is, though, there is no secret to that. You know, everybody could say whatever, like my father. You know, the stuff that I get from my dad. My dad died a long time ago, and I. I learned it. I get it today, like, now, in my last 20 years. Oh, that's what my dad was talking about. So. As a kid, I was an idiot. I didn't know.

[Angie Martinez]

That's probably healing.

[Steve Madden]

What's he saying? I don't know what the. He's talking, but now.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

I said. Oh, that's what my dad meant. Yes. So that's the gift. Sometimes.

[Angie Martinez]

Did you. What do you think your parents would think if they saw what the world sees now? Those Steve Manning signs everywhere.

[Steve Madden]

I don't know. They'd be surprised, maybe, but.

[Angie Martinez]

Think so.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah. You know, but the things you get don't often happen at that moment. And no one listens to their parents when they're 17 or 22. You think you know everything and you just want to have fun and get high and whatever it is, you know, and.

[Angie Martinez]

But they'd probably be proud.

[Steve Madden]

They would be proud. And I am so grateful for my parents now. The things that I. Now that I'm able to use the stuff they gave me.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

You've done what you've done pretty well.

[Steve Madden]

I don't know about all that, but we did. We're trying.

[Angie Martinez]

You did, yeah, you did.

[Steve Madden]

Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

And you, I'm sure you have a lot of people have a testament to what they've learned from you. And, and I'm hoping hopefully today your

[Steve Madden]

story inspires good to be on the show.

[Angie Martinez]

Thank you, man. Thank you for today. Is there any segment things that we need to do before we go? Thank you so much for your time. You're a rock star. Do you have. Yeah, that's a great way to end.

[Steve Madden]

Do you have favorite.

[Angie Martinez]

Do you have an all time favorite shoe?

[Steve Madden]

I do have. Well, I have a lot of shoes. Yes, I do. I like.

[Angie Martinez]

Why do you hate those?

[Steve Madden]

Yeah, you know, but I like, I like a lot of boots that I'm making. I'm. I'm really into. Yeah, that was bad.

[Angie Martinez]

Yo. When you show up for work and Steve Madden says your shoes are trash,

[Steve Madden]

but they're cool, they're fine. You know what I like? I love the look. Let me tell you the look I really love. I've been excited about it for a while.

[Angie Martinez]

Okay.

[Steve Madden]

And just now it's bearing fruit is the look that girls are wearing dresses with boots or skirts with the, with the tall shaft boot and the leg, you know, so they're wearing a short skirt with the boot or with a western boot. You know, cowboy boot with a short skirt is so funky. I just love that look. Yeah, you know I do. It's such a great look.

[Angie Martinez]

You have a favorite shoe of all time.

[Steve Madden]

Well, I mean, you know, I had so many shoes, so many great.

[Angie Martinez]

That's like an annoying ass question.

[Steve Madden]

No, it's not.

[Angie Martinez]

People ask me all the time, what's your favorite interview of all time? I'm like, it's impossible to say that. It's probably the same thing when somebody says, what is your favorite?

[Steve Madden]

You know, I've had a lot of favorite shoes. I've had so many great shoes. The first time I made a sneaker was so exciting. A platform sneaker. First time I made a slipper, I made this big slipper. Changed the slipper business and everybody went on and made these shoes and I never made another slipper again. I just called it the fuzzy and it was great. And. But we made a lot of great boots and now we're making like these, you know, this look, which is very sort of, very sort of college kind of these short skirts with the boots.

[Angie Martinez]

That's what you're into, right?

[Steve Madden]

I love that look. Yeah, I think it's great. It's kind of like almost like they wear it in the spring.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

You know, most. It's very sort of festival y, I think.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah, yeah.

[Steve Madden]

They would call it.

[Angie Martinez]

I love how much you love it.

[Steve Madden]

I. I do. I. I do. I've never been to. What's the big festival?

[Angie Martinez]

Coachella.

[Steve Madden]

Coachella. Yeah.

[Angie Martinez]

My kids.

[Steve Madden]

My daughter goes through.

[Angie Martinez]

Yeah.

[Steve Madden]

I can't go to this.

[Angie Martinez]

But the fact that you still love designing that much is really.

[Steve Madden]

It's too hot. Those festivals are too hot. No, they really are. It gets so hot. I went to coach. I went to.

[Angie Martinez]

All right, here's what we learned from Steve Madden today. He's a stickler for detail. He will find what the is wrong with something, but he will also find the beauty of something. All right, Steve Madden, everybody.

[Steve Madden]

Yes.

[Angie Martinez]

You're so fun.

[Steve Madden]

Yes, this is Steve Madden in real life.

[Angie Martinez]

Hey, guys, thanks for watching. Make sure you subscribe, like, comment and check out all of the other episodes we have on Angie Martinez, IRL podcast. This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.