The “smash therapy” rooms in the Bronx give customers the opportunity to let out steam. Photo Adrian Childress
Batter up: ’Smash therapy’
offers Mott Haven rage rooms
Asado Scott and Rachel Aina pose with their chosen rage items, ready to
smash bottles, glasses and plates. Photo Jewel Webber
BRONX TIMES REPORTER, J BTR AN. 7-13, 2022 15
BY ALIYA SCHNEIDER
Do you ever want to just
smash something?
Laquawn Lynch, who goes
by Q Vessel, and his business
partner Matthew Newcolbe
opened Raze Up Smash
Therapy Rooms on Nov. 12 in
Mott Haven to give Bronxites
a chance to get their frustrations
out in a controlled environment.
“This is what it looks like inside
the Raze Room — or what
it used to look like,” Lynch
joked, pointing to a live video
in the lobby showing someone
dressed in a white protective
suit and orange helmet holding
a metal tool over their head
before smashing objects into
pieces atop a pile of tires.
Crowbars, golf clubs, mallets
and pipes are among weapons
available to smash glass
bottles, electronics, furniture
and other objects. “If you can
think about it, we can break it,”
Lynch said.
Before anyone enters
the two soundproof smashing
rooms, they must watch
a safety video and fi ll out a
waiver. The plywood walls are
covered in graffi ti-style art,
and clients control the music.
The rooms even have a “nice
uplifting smell,” Lynch said.
“Why break down when
you can break things?” he said.
“Come on man, you know what
I mean? Remember to let it out.
Don’t hold it in; let it out. Let it
fl ow.”
The company calls smash
therapy a new therapeutic
wave on its Instagram page,
and Lynch said it’s both a form
of therapy and recreational activity
that draws people “from
all walks of life.”
He has noticed, in particular,
many teachers utilizing the
smash rooms.
“It’s very therapeutic for
them to have an outlet to
let some aggression out in a
healthy controlled manner,” he
said.
The business partners experienced
a similar concept
in Brooklyn before deciding
to open their own in Mott Haven,
which Lynch called an upand
coming neighborhood. The
men thought the smash rooms
could make an impact in the
northernmost borough, which
typically gets resources last.
This business model isn’t
new and began in 2008 in
Texas. “Rage rooms” or “anger
rooms” can be found in other
states and countries, some offering
customizable offi ce settings
or mannequins of politicians.
However, psychologists
have questioned whether rage
rooms can be considered therapy,
not just a fun experience.
A Northeastern Applied
Psychology professor said
the rooms can be helpful for
healthy people to release stress,
but are not a form of therapy.
“Rage rooms are for people
who want to let loose while
doing something fun and different,
not for those who are
dealing with mental health
problems associated with anger
and violence,” Christie
Rizzo told Northeastern University’s
News@Northeastern
news site. “The last thing
people with anger issues need
is another outlet to express
their frustration.”
But Lynch and Newcolbe
want to embrace what they
see as a therapeutic aspect of
the concept.
While Lynch and Newcolbe
don’t have a background
in mental health, they want
to incorporate someone who
does, with plans to bring in
an on-site therapist and hold
focus groups for anger management
and victims of domestic
abuse. Lynch, who is
from the Bronx, runs a catering
company and helped start
a senior center. Newcolbe
works in the tech industry.
Both men live in Manhattan.
Raze Up would offer a “total
wellness package,” that includes
both time to smash and
speak with someone, Lynch
said. They are looking to see
whether insurance could
cover fees for both services.
“There’s studies on smash
therapy,” Lynch said. “We’re
not saying we’re therapists
and we’re not saying we’re going
to heal you, but this is an
alternative method just like
art therapy.”
The business is collecting
data on how people feel before
and after their smashing
sessions, but Lynch declined
to share patterns they’ve
gleaned so far.
Montefi ore could not provide
an expert to comment by
press time and Community
Healthcare Network did not
respond to a request for comment.
-Jewel Webber contributed
to this report
Check out footage from the smash rooms on
bximes.com or @bronxtimes on Instagram
/bximes.com