Harley Flanagan was the frontman and bassist for NYC’s legendary punk band Cro-Mags. He is also a Black Belt under Master Renzo Gracie and a highly respected instructor. He talks about brawls, riots, NY’s old punk scene and how he got started in BJJ! Click “Read More” for show notes!

SHOW NOTES:

• His life before Jiu-Jitsu
• Growing up on the lower east side of NYC
• Being in a punk band at 10 years old
• Why struggles, pressure and suffering can be blessings in the end
• Why punk rock spoke to him so strongly as a kid
• NY in the 70’s and 80’s and the punk shows during that time
• Shows becoming riots
• Jiu-Jitsu attracts all walks of life
• Beginning Jiu-Jitsu in 1996
• How he found BJJ and Master Renzo
• Ryan Gracie
• Being at the Renzo vs Oleg Taktarov fight
• Street fights
• Avoiding fights
• Muscle memory and reflexes
• The incident that caused Ryan to stop working security
• How Jiu-Jitsu can improve your social circle
• The Webster Hall incident
• BJJ in the 90’s
• Stylistic popularity in martial arts over time
• His underground MMA experience
• The Pummel
• His style of BJJ
• Why he loves teaching
• His current music projects