San Francisco, CA

One-on-one interview with Empire's Ghazi

Published

8 months ago

April 10, 2025

One-on-one interview with Empire's Ghazi

Of all the business moguls in the Bay Area, one you may not have heard of is building an “Empire” right in front of our eyes.

Ghazi, a Palestinian American, has created one of the most powerful independent companies in the global music business. His studio, in the city’s South of Market neighborhood, is a dream for the modern-day version of a music industry pioneer.

Ghazi founded Empire in 2010.

“I could never even afford to rent a room in a studio like this when I was getting started,” he said. “To be able to house and protect and provide for so many artists here locally is kind of like a dream come true. People fly here from all over the world. We’ve had artists here from India, Japan, Nigeria, South Africa, Morocco, Egypt, Palestine, Latin America.”

He is now a major player when it comes to San Francisco real estate. Two miles from the studio, he recently bought the historic One Montgomery building. Sold in 2019 before the pandemic for $82 million, Ghazi bought it for about $20 million. One Montgomery will be Empire’s new global headquarters.

In true Silicon Valley style, Empire disrupted the music industry, changing the way artists get paid by essentially giving them more of a cut and more of a say.

Empire artists include global superstars like Shaboozey, Nigerian artist Fireboy DLM, and Puerto Rican singer Jay Wheeler, along with the Bay Area’s P-Lo, LaRussell and Too $hort.

His father, a Palestinian refugee, brought the family to America for a better life. As a kid, Ghazi was curious, especially when it came to technology.

“I remember my parents they bought me a dual tape deck from the flea market,” he said. “I was fascinated by the fact that you could tape one tape to another, and I took it apart to see how it worked.”

At 18, the San Francisco State University graduate went to work in Silicon Valley, working at five or six different companies. He built computers and also worked at video and music streaming companies. A job at Sun Microsystems changed everything. Ghazi worked tech for then-CEO Scott McNeely.

“That job made me decide that I never wanted to work for anybody ever again because I worked in Scott’s department for two years and he never knew my name,” Ghazi said. “He was never rude or anything to me. He just never knew my name. I had an opportunity to take a position in another department or take a severance check and took the severance check and just never looked back.”

As a Palestinian American, Ghazi said his background has given him an undeniable drive to be excellent.

“You have a different thirst and admiration for life,” he said. “To some degree it also creates a sense of survivor’s guilt because you’re staring across the water and you’re looking at people that look like you, suffering in ways that are unimaginable and you look at children that look like your own children and you’re like, ‘These could be my kids, man.’”

“My way of looking at things is just to be excellent,” Ghazi continued. “Because when you’re excellent, people can’t deny your existence … your experiences can either jade you, make you into somebody sour, or you can say I’m never gonna be like that. I’m gonna provide, protect, and love the people that love and cherish me.”

Ghazi is reviving the music scene in San Francisco. Inside the SOMA studio, he’s rebuilt every room in what he calls Empire’s headquarters for creatives – five different studios, a podcast room, a gaming floor and a backyard “paradise” with a fountain.

When asked about his breakout moment, Ghazi said it was never one moment.

“I tell people it’s like a graph, right? More dots, clearer picture,” he said. “You asked me when we first were in the other room, you said, ‘How come you never interviewed me?’ I said, ‘You never asked.’ But I was never on your radar. You don’t get on people’s radar until you put enough dots on the graph. I’m not the kind of person that’s screaming at the top of my lungs, ‘Look at me.’ I’d rather my work speak for itself.”

Empire is hosting 415 Day on Tuesday, April 15, at Spark Social from 6 to 10 p.m. in San Francisco. It is a night to celebrate the city and its culture. All ages are welcome, and it’s free to attend. For more information, visit 415day.com.

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San Francisco, CA

San Francisco’s Santa Con expected to bring in large crowds, benefit local bars

Published

4 hours ago

December 13, 2025

Press Room

San Francisco’s Santa Con expected to bring in large crowds, benefit local bars

For some businesses, Saturday is the most wonderful day of the year as thousands of Santas visit San Francisco watering holes for Santa Con.

But for others, the festive event is more trouble than it’s worth.

Kevin Sully Sullivan and his wife, Deb, met at the Marina Lounge in the 1980s. Sully then went on to work at the bar for 30 years and just two years ago, took over the business from the prior owners.

“We’ve loved this bar for such a long time and it’s a dream come true to actually have our names in it,” Sully said.

While Sully loves celebrating the holidays and supports Santa Con, he has posted this sign on the door of the Sully’s Marina Lounge, officially making it a Santa-free zone. For him, the extra customers aren’t worth the hassle.

“Some of these bars that encourage it, that participate, they do months of business in one day,” he said. “But many of them have to replace sinks in their restrooms. They get it torn off the wall and toilets that have all kinds of things go wrong.”

On the other hand, Westwood has beefed up its staff and is looking forward to all the Santas coming to town.

“It’s really good,” Kwame Wright said.

“It pumps in a lot of money into the economy,” Westwood said. “Local businesses, we benefit from it as well. So, we’re really happy and we’re excited that we get to host. Santa’s are welcome here.”

Aside from Halloween, Santa Con is one of the biggest events of the year for Westwood. This place normally has long lines to get in on weekends and it’s expecting an even bigger crowd Saturday. Westwood is taking steps to make sure all the Santas behave.

“Security does really hard work, and we have extra security to make sure everybody is safe,” said Wright.

But for those willing to wait until Christmas for a Santa sighting, Sully says his place will be the place to be.

“It actually ends up being a really nice day here because they know it’s a sanctuary haven from the Santa Con,” Sully said.

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San Francisco, CA

3-alarm fire burns San Francisco Tenderloin residential building

Published

16 hours ago

December 12, 2025

Press Room

3-alarm fire burns San Francisco Tenderloin residential building

Updated on: December 12, 2025 / 11:53 AM PST
/ CBS San Francisco

A large fire burned at a six-story residential building in San Francisco’s Tenderloin District early Friday morning, leaving dozens displaced, officials said.

The fire started at around 3 a.m. at a building on Golden Gate Avenue near Taylor and Market streets, adjacent to the Golden Gate Theatre. The San Francisco Fire Department said the fire started on the top floor and reached three alarms, spreading to the attic and roof of the building. Over 100 firefighters at the scene were able to prevent it from spreading to lower floors and nearby buildings, the department said.

UPDATE- FIRE CONTAINED
Early this morning, shortly after 3:00 AM, San Francisco firefighters responded to a fire at 50 Golden Gate, a six-story multi-residential complex located in the Tenderloin District. The firefighters executed an impressive and aggressive attack on the… https://t.co/iNKRlOQLPP pic.twitter.com/JwrezVyfpy
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— SAN FRANCISCO FIRE DEPARTMENT MEDIA (@SFFDPIO) December 12, 2025

Multiple people were rescued and self-evacuated, and a total of 45 residents were displaced, but there were no injuries, the department said. Two cats were also rescued, one that was treated by medics at the scene and another cared for by Animal Control.

Evacuated residents were provided temporary shelter at the corner of Golden Gate and Jones Street aboard a Muni bus. The Red Cross and other city agencies were called in to assist the displaced residents, the department said.

The fire was contained by 5:30 a.m., and firefighters remained on the scene for several hours. The cause of the fire was not immediately known.

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San Francisco, CA

San Francisco firefighters to retire uniforms linked to cancer

Published

1 day ago

December 12, 2025

Press Room

San Francisco firefighters to retire uniforms linked to cancer

San Francisco firefighters are finally getting the protective gear they were promised after years’ long research revealed certain chemicals used in traditional firefighter uniforms can cause cancer.

“What none of us could have known is that some of the very gear designed to protect us was quietly harming us,” said San Francisco Fire Chief Dean Crispen, who spoke alongside dozens of first responders on Thursday as he announced the city’s $3.6 million plan to provide protective equipment to all frontline firefighters by the end of the year. “This is a joyous occasion for our city.”

San Francisco Fire Chief Dean Crispen was flanked by the mayor, state and local lawmakers, and dozens of first responders on Thursday when detailing the city’s plans to provide new, non-PFAS uniforms to frontline firefighters across San Francisco.

The San Francisco fire department, the tenth largest in the nation, has already distributed the redesigned gear to about 80 of its firefighters and hopes to have all 1,100 of its new uniforms in use within the next three weeks – that’s enough protective equipment to provide one uniform to each of the city’s frontline firefighters. While city leaders hope to eventually purchase a second set of gear, San Francisco firefighters will, for now, need to wash their new gear before returning to work or continue to rely on their old uniform as a backup.

“Public safety relies on the people who stand between danger and our residents,” Mayor Lurie told the crowd during Thursday’s announcement. “Firefighter health must always be at the center of our decisions.”

San Francisco’s efforts stem from a first-in-the-nation ban that local lawmakers passed last year, which requires the city to outfit firefighters with new uniforms by July 2026. Over the years, studies have shown the jackets and pants firefighters across America have long relied on to keep safe during emergencies are made with materials proven to cause cancer.

These so-called “PFAS” materials, often referred to as ‘forever chemicals’ because of their reluctance to breakdown, have long been used to bolster the reliability of firefighter clothing by helping to repel flammable liquids and reduce temperatures, even in extreme heat. Researchers, however, have found the compounds to be harmful when absorbed through skin. While the precise level of PFAS exposure for firefighters and the associated health risks are still being studied, the compounds have been linked to cancer and other negative health effects impacting cholesterol levels and the immune system, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

PFAS aside, the inherit health risks of firefighting, including prolonged exposure to smoke and ash, led the World Health Organization to deem the occupation a “carcinogen.” Yet, some fear the very safety uniforms firefighters have come to rely on for protection could also be making them sick.

Female firefighters in San Francisco are six times more likely to develop cancer compared to the national average, according to the San Francisco Firefighters Cancer Prevention Foundation.

In San Francisco, female firefighters have a six times higher rate of breast cancer than the national average, according to the San Francisco Firefighters Cancer Prevention Foundation. More than 400 firefighters in San Francisco have been lost to cancer over the past 20 years, according to the city’s fire department.

“The cost of inaction is measured in funerals,” said Stephen Gilman, who represents the local chapter of the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF). “The reward of action is measured in lives saved.”

The cost of inaction is measured in funerals.
Stephen Gilman, International Assoc. of Fire Fighters (IAFF)

While materials laced with PFAS have been shown to pose safety risks, so has fire gear that has been manufactured without it. Last year, the NBC Bay Area Investigative Unit reported on research from North Carolina State University that found non-PFAS fire equipment to be less breathable and more flammable than traditional uniforms made with PFAS.

“We don’t want to just trade one hazard for another,” Dr. Bryan Ormand told the Investigative Unit back in May 2024. “We’re introducing a potential hazard for flammability on the fire scene where firefighters didn’t have that before.”

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors is scheduled to vote Tuesday on a city-wide ban of what are known as ‘PFAS’ or ‘forever chemicals,’ but replacement options still aren’t widely available and those that are seem be raising new safety concerns. Senior Investigator Bigad Shaban reports.

Milliken & Company, the textile firm that made the material for San Francisco’s latest uniforms, said the new type of gear “meets or exceeds” all industry standards for “breathability and thermal protection.”

“We refused to trade one hazard for another,” Marcio Manique, senior vice president and managing director of Milliken’s apparel business, noted in a written statement.

“It meets the strictest performance standards without adding weight or compromising breathability – giving firefighters exactly what they asked for.”

We refused to trade one hazard for another
Marcio Manique, senior vice president and managing director of Milliken’s apparel business

In San Francisco, the new gear underwent a 90-day test trial with 50 of the city’s own firefighters.

“What we did was we actually went through a really comprehensive testing process,” Chief Crispen told the Investigative Unit. “It went to the lab and received testing and everything came back great, so we feel strongly about this product.”