About Me
Click link below to watch news clip of my story and the why behind the company
My name is Tremaine Hill and I am the owner of The 21 Xperiment. Most importantly I am a young black man who has been designing and collecting hats for as long as I can remember. I currently own over 200 hats in total. Growing up I would customize the logos of my hats with different embroidery and paint to match my new shoes or outfits. I loved to use them as advertisements to show support to the city I was from or living in at the time.
Now 21 has always been my basketball number as well as my favorite number. However, 21 ended up being what some people consider an angel number for me as of late. When I would see 21 on the clock or on a license plate I would use it as a sign from God that I was on the right path. This would immediately give me a sense of confidence and motivation throughout my day.
A few years back, in 2019 I started to feel like life was throwing everything at me at once. Things like family deaths, heartbreak, career/financial stress and even depression/anxiety. To be completely honest, I had never felt like depression was something that could happen to me, almost as if being black was supposed to make me immune. I was suffering from multiple symptoms such as insomnia, low energy, loss of motivation, temper flares, the whole nine yards. I tried to battle it alone by working out, playing video games and even partying or drinking alcohol. Of course, that just made things worse. It wasn't until I needed to move back to Virginia Beach (from Kansas City) to aid my mom during a severe Covid-19 scare, where I finally was able to accept my condition and work on healing.
From that point on I made a promise to God that once I got through it, I would find a way to pay it forward to the next person who may be suffering. This is where the 21 Xperiment started to come to life. I basically took two of my passions and developed a way, to not only start a business doing something I love, but also help others dealing with similar issues. As a black man in America, we typically grow up learning that we have to do more than others just to keep up. When you add possible mental health conditions, it can start to feel like you are running a race with a weight vest on. So I aim to change the culture and hopefully change the world with the approach we are using to break the stigma and barriers surrounding mental health.
I know selling hats won’t change the world we live in, but the people who wear them can.