Drawn to Create: The Story Behind CityEvoke (City Evoke)
How anime, sharks, and a love for drawing turned into a streetwear brand built on bold art and storytelling.
My earliest memories of making art go back to when I was four or five years old. I would grab crayons and start doodling—mostly circles and random marks. It didn’t look like much back then, just messy colors on paper, but it was the beginning of everything.
Then I watched the movie Jaws and later discovered the game Jaws Unleashed. That’s when things got serious. I became obsessed with sharks—especially the megalodon. I started drawing shark attacks and ocean adventures in comic-style storyboards, building mini-narratives that stretched across pages. Eventually, I even turned one of those stories into a short live-action video titled Jaws 3.
Sharks weren’t just a phase. I had a whole series of drawings, and over time, I began improving my shading and details, especially in my megalodon sketches. It was one of my first experiences really trying to make something look “real.”
A huge part of what inspired me to pursue animation was my aunt. She worked in professional animation studios, including Walt Disney Studios’ direct-to-video productions like The Little Mermaid II, Lady and the Tramp II, and An Extremely Goofy Movie. Seeing her work on real animated films made the world of animation feel not just possible—but personal.
Around the age of six, I was inspired to start painting. My aunt was working on her canvas paintings, and I was drawn to it. She gave me some acrylic paint, brushes, and paper—and I went for it. I painted all sorts of things: stick figures playing basketball (including myself), a couple holding hands, and even my aunt, just as I saw her while she painted. That moment really sparked something deeper in me—it made painting feel personal.
We even printed some of my drawing designs on T-shirts using a basic heat transfer method and made postcards. We sold them to family and friends. I didn’t know it was called branding at the time, but that was my first taste of creating wearable art.
Later, I became obsessed with Sonic the Hedgehog. I watched endless gameplay of Sonic '06, Sonic Unleashed, and episodes of Sonic X. I sketched every Sonic transformation I could—Super Sonic, Dark Sonic, and more—complete with high-energy speed lines. That phase wasn’t just about copying my favorite characters; it was about capturing their energy, experimenting with color palettes, and unknowingly practicing the basics of storyboarding.
In 2016, I created my first animated drawing: Sonic vs Goku. I uploaded it to my YouTube channel, DrawIsMyMiddlename, where you can see how much my skills have grown since those early doodles, including The last Air Bender, Attack on Titans and Spy Family.
Every sketch, painting, and animation from my childhood taught me how to bring ideas to life—from messy crayon doodles to comic-style shark stories, from watching Sonic X to animating Sonic vs Goku, sketches from Attack on Titans to Spy Family on my YouTube channel DrawIsMyMiddleName.
Anime played a huge part in shaping my style. It inspired the way I drew, the way I told stories, and eventually, it pushed me to share my art publicly. That passion became the drive behind my YouTube channel—and now, it's fueling something even bigger.
I created CityEvoke (City Evoke) to turn my anime-inspired artwork into wearable streetwear. It’s a brand that celebrates imagination, emotion, and energy—the same energy I felt when I first started drawing characters with bold colors, speed lines, and story in every frame.
CityEvoke (City Evoke) is my way of bringing art to the streets. Not just to be worn, but to be felt—by people who connect with anime, creativity, and bold self-expression.
Want to see a glimpse of my early art journey in action?
🎬 Watch the Instagram Reel here.
It captures some of the moments that inspired me to launch CityEvoke.
👉 Follow the journey and upcoming launch at cityevoke.com
📺 Watch how it all started on YouTube: DrawIsMyMiddlename
🎨 And if you’re holding a pencil or stylus right now, chasing a wild idea—keep going. That’s exactly how this all started.
Thanks for reading my story.
— Jordan Miles Roman
Creator of CityEvoke (City Evoke) & DrawIsMyMiddlename
