11.1.13: WMMH – LSTN Headphones, A Social Good Business

This week’s What’s Making Me Happy (WMMH) is a dedicated post.

Most of us in the world have five senses – sight, hearing, taste, touch, and smell. If you’re Haley Joel Osmont, you can also see dead people. (No, thank you.) Music, especially live music, is very important to The Wife and me. You’ve seen my social posts on all the concerts we go to almost every month. I’m secretly saving my pennies to fly us to Europe to see Alphabeat. They never tour in the US – gahhhh. (Don’t tell The Wife.)

I once lost some hearing after a Reel Big Fish show. I stood way too close to a speaker. But I digress. There are some people who will never hear rap by NWA, or vocal amazeness of 90s Mariah, or any auto-tuned “singer” (Miley Cyrus, Britney Spears, Selena Gomez, et al.) in their lives.

Meet: LSTN

According to LSTN, there are over 275 MILLION people who are hearing-impaired. That’s where the founders of LSTN headphones come in. Founders Bridget Hilton and Joe Huff started a headphones company with a social good mission behind it. Learn more by watching this video:

The team at LSTN graciously sent me a pair of Bowery earbuds  for a test drive. The two things that caught my eye were the reclaimed beechwood the buds were made of and that the cord was nylon, not rubber.

All of LSTN’s headphones or earbuds are made from reclaimed wood. It gives a different sound to your music. I kept plugging them in and out, switching them off and on with my Apple earbuds. The LSTN earbuds (Bowerys) are just as clear as my Apple ones!

The Wife thinks the LSTN earbuds lack bass. I don’t know what he’s saying. I mean, literally, I don’t hear him… I’m currently bouncin’ to Ludacris. He keeps gesturing at me. I just wave my hands “Get back get back you don’t know me like that!” (I can hear bass just fine.) Can’t you hear that boom da boom boom super bass?

These are quite comfortable. I work long days. “Every day I’m shuffling!” Though, after a full day, my ears need a rest from Taylor Swift, Passion Pit, and… LMFAO (it’s my walk up song!). The rubber fits right in my ears; the Apple earbuds fall out sometimes. If your ear canals are super big, don’t worry. The Bowerys come with Dumbo-size rubber buds.

I’ve also taken phonecalls with the earbuds and mic. They are just like my and your Apple ones. The only thing that I see as a con is that there is no volume control on the little button. Perhaps that’s in the works for the next versions.

The one thing I haven’t done is take them to the gym or go running with them. I have shorted out many a pair of earbuds (including two pairs of Apple earbuds) because I’m an excessive sweater.

If you don’t like earbuds, and headphones are more your thing, LSTN sells two types of over-the-head headphones! Check out them sexy Troubadours or the foldy Fillmores. I’m drooling over both of these. Move over, Beats by Dre.

The Social Good Part

It’s funny how something like headphones could help bring some good to people around the world.

LSTN’s business model is similar to that of TOMS. For every pair of headphones you buy, proceeds goes to supporting the Starkey Foundation, whose mission is to help hearing-impaired by providing hearing aids all over the world. (You can always check a nonprofit’s financials via their tax returns on Guidestar.org.)

This is a social good business. It is a local business (West Hollywood!). It’s half woman-owned. My head’s going to explode. You know I get all crazy when I learn of woman-owned and local businesses.

If you are looking for a holiday gift for your audiophile, this may be it! This month (November), LSTN has partnered with Movember. They’ve got a limited edition pair of Troubadours on sale. Proceeds from the sale will still go to helping hearing impaired people AND $50 will go to Movember, supporting men’s penis and prostate health. Don’t you think wearing a pair of headphones looks better than growing a child molester mustache?

That said, consider putting a pair of LSTN headphones on your gift list. You can get great quality sound and support their mission to help hearing-impaired people everywhere!

 

 

 

Disclosure: LSTN sent a pair of Bowery earbuds for my review. I am not returning them because, ew, ear germs. My post is my own, honest review. Duh.