insight magazine | issue #18

VOLUME II | ISSUE 2WWW.ONEFOKUS.ORG/INSIGHT

Founded in the summer of 2003 by Alma Davila-Toro and Atiba T. Edwards,

F.O.K.U.S. was created to form diverse communities and support the arts in various ways, including concerts,

workshops, art shows, film screenings and our magazine, INSIGHT.

We believe the arts enable people to rise above barriers in society as evidenced in the diverse audiences that attend our events.

F.O.K.U.S. brings together art forms, both traditional and non-traditional, to expand the views

on what is considered art.

02 LETTER FROM THE EDITOR03 STREET STYLE 04 KWAK'S CORNER 08 BOMBING THEN BOMBING NOW...10 ...BOMBING AGAIN AND AGAIN16 ON THE 10TH ANNIVERSARY OF CELIA'S DEATH20 LUZ HECHA ESTÁ DE SOMBRA28 SUNSHINE30 100% AUTHENTIC FOOD FOR YOUR SOLES44 GHANAIANS IN THE BRONX54 THE ILLDEFINED56 ROCK & ROBOT APOCALYPSE LIVE70 BEEF AND BROCCOLI72 COVER ART

CONTENTS Volume II | Issue 2

PRESIDENT/PUBLISHER / ATIBA T. EDWARDSAtiba is a perpetual visionary that likes to do art in the dark since it is easier to see the true light.EDITOR-IN-CHIEF / MAYA POPE-CHAPPELLMaya is an Oakland, California native that moved to New York last year to pursue her Master of Arts degree in journalism. She's a story teller of things unseen and voices unheard.LAYOUT & DESIGN / JEFF ALBERTJeff is a creative type whose favorite questions are Why? and What if...? In that order.

CONTRIBUTORS / JEFF ALBERT / ANEICKA BOOKAL / ATIBA T. EDWARDS / MARTIN JACKSON / ELY KEY / SILVIA LASERNA / ALEX O'DELL / KWAKU OPOKU SARPONG-AGYEMAN / MAYA POPE-CHAPPELL / PRIZ TS5 / EMMA RAYNOR / MARZ RICHARDS / MIKE ROSEN / SEE ONE / SOLEFOOD NYC / STAN-ONE TSF / RUSSELL STEWART / REE-2 MTA / JOZI ZWERDLING

WWW.ONEFOKUS.ORG/INSIGHT Questions and comments can be directed to [email protected] inquiries can be sent to [email protected] All advertising inquiries can be directed to [email protected]

INSIGHT is published by F.O.K.U.S. Inc.All rights reserved on entire contents. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. Opinions expressed in articles are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of F.O.K.U.S. or its subsidaries.

02 | INSIGHT

Art is…what we love.

But it’s also hard work.

In the time that it took to bring together the content of Volume II Issue 2, Jeff created an entire website and did some other freelance design, Atiba helped to launch a new photo website and worked hard on F.O.K.U.S. related events like The Stoop, and I was busy with the demands of an intense grad program, an internship, and a job.

With all these demands, it was difficult for all of us to find the hours neces-sary to produce another great issue of INSIGHT. But we made the time. We would organize contributor submissions during a “working” lunch, edit articles in-between classes and lay it all out during the wee-hours of the night. From the INSIGHT team to the contributors, we all found the time because Art is…what we love.

In this issue, Martin F. Jackson interviews the crazed lead singer of Renfield, a theatrical band who performs more than just music; Silvia Laserna seeks, finds, and captures the Ghanaian community in the Bronx; members of F.O.K.U.S. satisfy their appetite for Solefood in an exclusive interview with the creators of the custom design sneaker boutique; and much more.

As always, we welcome your feedback, thoughts, and suggestions so drop a line at [email protected].

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR Volume II | Issue 2

Maya Pope-Chappell

STREET STYLE

SEASONAL CUSP "A combination between the winter and the spring" — Andrew Bell, 24

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04 | INSIGHT

Alaska Governor Sarah Palin used “Bararcuda” by Heart, while Obama pumped Stevie Wonder’s “Sign Seal Delivered.” Both songs served a musical purpose of giving the sup-porter a song to recognize their candidate with.

Do you politick with your music and flow with the lyrics? Do you allow music to sway your ideas? Does music open your mind to the thoughts of others? Does a message in a song provide you with the means to debate and formalize your political stance? Maybe even reinforce your own politi-cal ideology?

When you hear such songs as "Heal the World" by Michael Jackson or "Fight the Power" by Public Enemy, is there a stir in your heart to “Get Up Stand up” as Bob Marley foretold?

My first taste of political music were the sounds of Fela Kuti. The Nigerian musician would fuse African jazz and funk with West African highlife, incorpo-rated with lyrics that attacked the chaotic nature of African political institutions. His song

“Zombie” sparked riots and he was banished from my native country of Ghana in 1978. Music’s role in politics has always been important to its process. The use of anthems and marching/parade songs are seen throughout history: Hitler’s Germany and the bon-fire marches, the returning of a U.S. soldier from combat, and various rallies for world peace speak to its prominence. The music is usually implemented to increase the climatic feeling of the event and provide one voice for which the crowd adheres to.

KWAK'S CORNER: POLITICKING WITH MY MUSIQUE Kwaku Opoku Sarpong-Agyeman

INSIGHT | 05

Kwak's Corner

an emotional response.

Politics (in speech form) has a function of creating an ideal or position for the listener. It introduces possibilities for the future and enables a sense of shared duty.

When bridged together, the two can create a strong devo-tion to a candidate or leader. The ability of artists to fuse their views within a rhythmic

flow provides an added effect to their stance, serving as an excellent tool for spreading an ideal. When mixed with the lyrics, its appeal may enhance the listener’s capability to emotionally embrace and internalize the song. Of course one must ensure that those listening actually appreciate the music, but even without

The ability to politick means to promote oneself or one’s poli-cies. Music gives an individual possession of an activity that can be undertaken for political means. It is fascinating how well music and politics work in unison. Both use voice as the primary mode of commu-nication to reach the masses, whether it is manifested in writ-ten or speech form. It is clear that the two share a special connection.

This special relationship is something Kwak thinks is worth exploring.

MY VIEW:

Music involves a process of creating a joyful and pleas-ant sound for the listener with words and rhythms that enable

“ THE ABILITY OF ARTISTS TO FUSE THEIR VIEWS WITHIN A RHYTHMIC

FLOW PROVIDES AN ADDED EFFECT TO THEIR STANCE... ”

06 | INSIGHT

Kwak's Corner

evident in the rapid downfall of famed country group the Dixie Chicks.

In 2003, singer Natalie Maines expressed her feelings about the Iraq invasion during the group's Top of the World Tour. Before starting their song

"Travelin’ Solider," she vented

her frustrations to the London crowd proclaiming her opposi-tion to the war in Iraq and her shame of former President George W. Bush, a fellow Texan. Maines comments were deemed un-American and its impact on the group was devastating financially. The remarks caused backlash among their country music fan base, which prompted many to

likability, the message can still resonate and serve its purpose.

Combining the two together also changes the charac-teristics of these forms of voice. The free form of music becomes constructed, while rigid political speech becomes pliable. Both unite to create an

overall message while simulta-neously developing a special connection with the listener.

This bond is different from the artists approach to their respective followers. Because of the specificity of political music and its direct message, a musician does not have the luxury to remove themselves from their words. This was

“ THE DIXIE CHICK DOWNFALL IS AN EXAMPLE OF HOW THE RIGIDNESS

OF POLITICS DOES NOT ALWAYS ALLOW SAFE PASSAGE FOR THE MUSICIAN WHO

DECIDES TO EXPRESS AND PROMOTE THEIR THOUGHTS ON POLITICAL DOCTRINE ”

INSIGHT | 7

Kwak's Corner

boycott the group's music and publicly burn their albums.

The Dixie Chick downfall is an example of how the rigidness of politics does not always allow safe passage for the mu-sician who decides to express and promote their thoughts on political doctrine. As enter-tainers, their music was not political. They did not truly know or care about the ideals and thoughts of their fans. The backlash was harsh and nearly ruined them as a viable coun-try music group.

On the other hand, it also showed that the right of free speech and freedom as an artist can be used to one's benefit. This event sparked a debate on the right of an individual to politick. Ulti-mately, the Dixie Chicks were able to recover from this event with their dignity in tact. Fela Kuti was not as lucky, forever angering his government and some of his fan base. In the

end, it is an issue of the mes-sage and knowing your audi-ence. An individual can always do what they feel and be what they like, but when politicking with musique they should be mindful of its effects.

Kwaku is a graduate of the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor. Kwaku currently works in Market Research. Reach out and tell him your thoughts at [email protected].

(above) No. 2 subway line painted in 1976 by Chain3 (Ash) and REE-2 MTA (Opel)

BOMBING THEN BOMBING NOW... REE-2 MTA

(below) This wall was painted in 2008 with MTR crew from PR at 5Pointz

Fred “REE-2 MTA” Vilomar is a grocery store manager by day and an aerosol artist on weekends. The New York City native now resides in Jersey City, NJ.

REE-2 MTA

10 | INSIGHT

PRIZ TS5 started “solo-bombing” above ground in the late 70’s as a novice street writer. By the 1980’s, he was tagging subway train exterior panels and the IRT Broadway No. 1 line. Influenced by let-ter flow movement and arrow connections, PRIZ TS5 whose name is based on the Prima Font, describes his style as “old school.” He continues to paint legally commissioned murals throughout the five boroughs along side long-time friend and partner STAN-ONE TSF, the current and long time President of The Spanish Five graffiti crew.

STAN-ONE TSF tagged and painted walls, subway cars and sta-tions on the Broadway IRT No. 1 line in 1979. By the 80’s, he was President of The Spanish Five graffiti crew, also known as TSF/TS5. STAN-ONE TSF, whose name originates from former WWF wrestler “Stan The Man,” disappeared from the graffiti scene in the late 80’s until PRIZ TS5 brought him out of retirement in 2001.

...BOMBING AGAIN AND AGAIN PRIZ TS5 and STAN-ONE TSF

As told by PRIZ TS5: This wall was painted in the fall of 2008 in an undisclosed spot in Brooklyn adjacent to several freight tracks. On Saturday, STAN-ONE TSF and I met at the location. I carried two gallons of black rolling paint and rollers and we had a good amount of spray paint between us. We both came with outlines and two different sketched versions of the Green Goblin but we agreed to do STAN-ONE TSF's sketched version. STAN-ONE TSF and I began improvising as we painted the wall, which took six hours to complete. It took one hour just for the black paint to completely dry on the wall's concrete surface. It’s no longer visible there because it has been painted over on numerous occasions.

PRIZ TS5 and STAN-ONE TSF

12 | INSIGHT


As told by PRIZ TS5: STAN-ONE TSF and I painted this wall in the winter of 2008 at the "Rooftop Legends" in Manhattan. We had heard about this spot from other writers who had painted there in 2007. I asked around, got a name and then contacted Jesse, the cat who was running it. He said come down! It was a little chilly up there but we threw something together. The walls soaked up the paint nicely. We added the abbreviation for our crew TS5 (The Spanish Five ) as a final touch. We wanted to let people know that there wasn't a place that we couldn't or wouldn't paint at.

INSIGHT | 13


As told by PRIZ TS5: STAN-ONE TSF and I painted this wall in the winter of 2008 at the "Rooftop Legends" in Manhattan. We had heard about this spot from other writers who had painted there in 2007. I asked around, got a name and then contacted Jesse, the cat who was running it. He said come down! It was a little chilly up there but we threw something together. The walls soaked up the paint nicely. We added the abbreviation for our crew TS5 (The Spanish Five ) as a final touch. We wanted to let people know that there wasn't a place that we couldn't or wouldn't paint at.

14 | INSIGHT


As told by PRIZ TS5: This was a graffiti jam thrown together in May of 2009 by our writer friend CRANE TMT crew (The Magnificent Team) at 207th street across from the Ghost Yard. A lot of writers attended. STAN-ONE TSF and I rolled the wall with left over gallon paint that was pro-vided to us. We just got very colorfully creative. We improvised on the middle character at the very last minute. I thought the worried look on his face said it all."Oh no, it's the The Spanish Five again!" Yes, here we were again!

INSIGHT | 15


As told by PRIZ TS5: This was a graffiti jam thrown together in May of 2009 by our writer friend CRANE TMT crew (The Magnificent Team) at 207th street across from the Ghost Yard. A lot of writers attended. STAN-ONE TSF and I rolled the wall with left over gallon paint that was pro-vided to us. We just got very colorfully creative. We improvised on the middle character at the very last minute. I thought the worried look on his face said it all."Oh no, it's the The Spanish Five again!" Yes, here we were again!

16 | INSIGHT

ON THE 10TH ANNIVERSARY OF CELIA'S DEATH "Let's Be Honest About What Came Before" — Quote by Kevin CovalJozi Zwerdling

I. Blood hardens like tar be-neath this highway like cement.My eyes slanted peripheralI glance and see stretchers-

II. The visceral devouring of body by metalThe concavity of a stomach punch/ rib crack.The air bag’s sacrifice to its own heroism.My sister went unconscious on a road built for the ones who look like us.Road tripped from Ann Arbor, suburban, fortressed with ridged columnsuniversity endowmentsexpensive Amtrak trains-Because there are no public buses to Detroitor Bridges-no Ruby-in the rough-

III. In 1950 there was a house

where a black family lived- now there’s a highway.

IV. Dear Mr. Mayor, I got a letter from the housing secretary the other day.He say the city is fitting to pave a roadthrough my home? It may only be little-I know it leaksand there are rats-but what about my five children?The bed they share-what about them?

We got nowhere to go.

Sincerely,Irma Stallings

Dear Irma,

“That’s the price of progress.”

INSIGHT | 17

Jozi Zwerdling

with leather seats,on highways built for our con-venience.

Katrina survivors walk miles on expressways when FEMA forgets about them.Reach interstate bridges only to face the mouths of rifles, Jefferson Parish police order-ing them to go back where they came from.When New Orleans is awash in pollutants and blood.When the levees didn’t protect their homes.When they got nowhere to go.

VI. Don’t say Black Say blightSay slumSay urbanSay thugSay looterSay underprivilegedSay

Say “the price of progress”Say demolitionDon’t say black.

VII. We all called it a tragedy.And it was.

V. In 2005, I wear sweatpants.Watch cable from my sunroom sofa. Barbara Bush strolls through the Superdome, lined with Hurricane Katrina survivors and casualties,sweats underneath her pant-suit,chuckling underneath her breath,

“And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this--- this is working very well for them.”

By underprivileged she means the sweat underneath her pantsuit belongs to them.She means what works very well for the poor and black would never work for us, Barbara and I:We wear soft clothes and take breaks from the summer heat in our air conditioning, our homes, protected by security systems and private healthcare.We drive downtown in cars

18 | INSIGHT

Jozi Zwerdling

Celia was only 18. Her friend was driving under the speed limit.They wore seatbelts. Laden with ski gear and day passes, they were just trying to have fun, take a vacation,Get away from it all.

Spinning on the concrete, black ice,an SUV and a van, window colliding with temple,no side impact airbags -yet:A tragic accident.

But there’s nothing accidental about the highways that pave over homes,the police who won’t let the survivors get away from it all,the cars that Barbara and I use to pass through the rough partsthe urban partsthe black parts.

My sisterhad a tragic accident.But I am not an innocent

bystander.I might as well commit drive bysevery day.

I cannot call my sister’s blood a battlefieldwhen it is stains on a highwaypassing over what little they leftwith my moneyin my name.writing

Jozi Zwerdling is a senior at the Univer-sity of Michigan in Ann Arbor and a core member of F.O.K.U.S. She’s looking for more ways to engage as a community activist. Contact her at [email protected]

Photo by Emma Raynor

LUZ ESTÁ HECHA DE SOMBRA LIGHT IS MADE OF SHADOWS

Alex O'DellSpain 2009, when the flowers start blooming.

22 | INSIGHT

tion, threw bags of confetti. Young people coordinated elaborate outfits with friends (we dressed as pirates), and the old came to take it all in. We sat along the breaker wall and watched the sunset against the brightly colored apartment fronts behind us. As the streetlights turned on and the sun dipped into the ocean, the sounds of revelry inside the walls of the old city began to overpower the waves crash-ing into the rocks.

The port city of Cadiz, Spain is world famous for their annual Carnival, a weeklong celebra-tion leading up to Lent. My sister and her friend brought me along for the five-hour car ride to the city, arriving in time for Saturday’s festivities. The old part of the city was sec-tioned off, a fairytale place of grandiose cathedrals, cobbled streets, city squares, and warm ocean air. Kids showed off their costumes during the day and following with tradi-

Running boy along the beach. Morning of Carnival.

INSIGHT | 23

The San Nicholas courtyard was full of life. Teenagers drank bottled wine in brown paper bags, children ran with water balloons and an old man smoked a pipe. Another man played flamenco next to me as a boy slept on the cobbled stone with a jacket over his eyes. Tourists snapped photographs of the spectacular view of the city. I left San Nicholas courtyard late that afternoon and traveled further up the hill, until I was able to walk around the high terraced wall that ran along the city edge. Below was a small val-ley with homes built into the caves on the hillside.

Homes in the hillside outside Granada. A poem was written on the side of a wall: Granada: The City of Drunkards, Gypsies, Poets, and Fountains.

writing writing

24 | INSIGHT

Name of Author

clockwise from top left: Cadiz waterfront, a mustache child, The Plaza de la Catedral (Cadiz), and the untraditional nuns. In the late afternoon.

writing writing

INSIGHT | 25

Name of Author

clockwise from top left: Cadiz waterfront, a mustache child, The Plaza de la Catedral (Cadiz), and the untraditional nuns. In the late afternoon.

26 | INSIGHT

Alex O'Dell

As the night progressed and the chants echoing off the walls swelled, the laugh from a cross dressing Carmen Miranda turned sinister, and the streets packed tighter. But there is something charming about the drunken debauchery: the man in the chicken costume defacing a beautiful 18th century marble monument with his urine; the young men donning mock police uniforms handing out violations and directing traffic; women in devil costumes pos-ing for a picture behind nuns.

I tip toed around the broken glass and trash with a smile on my face, the same smile that everyone seemed to have. Daybreak was approaching when we made our way through the swarms of people pushing and shoving for taxis. As we left behind the glow of Cadiz, I was relived to have escaped from the city before it swal-lowed itself whole, but ready to someday return. When we drove into the town, I saw this statue and I knew I wanted a photograph of it. As we walked along the boardwalk looking for a place to eat, I saw the boy climbing up to the statue. I had my camera at my side and knew I only had a moment to take off my lens cap and snap a picture. I snapped the shot and forgot about it until the roll was processed. Alex O'Dell is from Frankenmuth, Michigan. He is currently a sophomore at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Find more of Alex's photos at www.flickr.com/suburbology or email him at [email protected].

Mother and child. A small beach town in Costal de Sol.

28 | INSIGHT

quench your thirstThe one you’ve experienced since birth

If I were sunshineCould you bear the heat of my gaze?Or would you run for the shade? Aneicka is a grad student at NYU and resides in Brooklyn, NY. Contact her at [email protected].

If I were sunshineWould you let me inside so I could light you up?Every crevice, every dark cor-ner of your mindExposed like rich soilRoots deep, twistedAnchoring your soul to this earthWould your secrets bloom for meAs my rays lovingly caress your face

Would you bask in my warmthstand naked before meUnashamed, no pretense of false masculinityNot threatened by my radianceFace lifted to the skyThanking God that I continued to shine

Would you drink my sunlightif you could cup it in your handsSip delicately or take great swallowsAs if you knew that I could

SUNSHINEAneicka Bookal

Photo collage by Jeff Albert

100% AUTHENTIC FOOD FOR YOUR SOLES

An Interview with Solefood NYC

32 | INSIGHT

Trenier from Tangible Thoughts, who are responsible for creat-ing the sneaker and apparel designs on display throughout the store.

“Often times you would go somewhere and feel like you are not being helped in a cer-tain way or being duped into buying a product,” Mike said.

“We want you to come in here and feel relaxed instead of the typical boutique feeling where you walk in and think ‘damn I gotta buy something’ because people are looking at you over their shoulders and out the corners of their eyes.”

The ever-evolving layout features restaurant booths and bakery display cases with sneakers and customized ap-parel in place of desserts and pastries. There are also plans to expand the release of Sole-food’s organic iced tea and introduce Candy Yam flavored

Lispenard Street once was a refuge spot for Fredrick Doug-las along the Underground Railroad. Now, hundreds of years later, it’s the home of Solefood NYC, a restaurant themed art gallery, apparel and custom design sneaker bou-tique. This history along with its discreet location tucked off of Broadway and Canal St., in the TriBeCa area of Manhattan, NY, is what drew owners Mike Cole and Matt Murphy to set up shop.

“As a New Yorker, one of the things you hate is going shop-ping and seeing your friends shopping in what you thought was your spot,” Mike said.

Steadily expanding their culinary skills of cooking up unique custom sneakers, partners Matt and Mike also work with a roster of over 40 talented artists, including the most recent addition, Andre

F.O.K.U.S. sat down with the creators of Solefood to talk about sneakers, customization culture and what Solefood NYC is all about. (Photos by Jeff Albert, Atiba T. Edwards, and Russell Stewart)

34 | INSIGHT

Solefood NYC

implementation, which these guys do to create a sneaker. I fell in love with the shoe game when I was about 12 years old. Back in the day when you seen Mike [Jordan] just bang it on somebody; you’d play in a pair of Jordans and thought you were going to the NBA. After I figured out I wasn’t go-ing to the NBA I realized ‘damn,

I guess I just like these things.’ Honestly I couldn’t even get some of the shoes I wanted. My mom and pop would say hell no, take the $60 jump-offs. I saved up my money and finally bought my first pair of Jordans, and then I was on to something. That’s how it started and when I fell in love.

Matt Murphy: I had no artistic talent what so ever. I couldn’t draw a straight line or circle. I

ice cream.

“We didn't want to step on anyone's toes or be a regular custom sneaker shop so we went with customs [shoes] that also give artists a voice,” Mike said. “All of that is part of the whole lifestyle incorporation that we provide. We provide memories.”

When did you both fall in love with art?

Mike Cole: I’ve liked art since I was a little kid but not art like this. I couldn’t do all this [pointing to Josh Peter’s can-vases of African American Su-perheroes on display around the store]. I fell in love with the art form of a shoe — because the sneaker is an art. Just look at the work, from design to

“ HONESTLY I COULDN'T EVEN GET SOME OF THE SHOES I WANTED. MY MOM

AND POP WOULD SAY HELL NO, TAKE THE $60 JUMP-OFFS ”

INSIGHT | 35

Solefood NYC

Where does your inspiration come from?Mike: We don’t look at another sneaker store to figure out what they are thinking of creat-ing. We sit with our artists to

figure something out. Things come from a brainstorm-ing session where the group would come up with a thought then draw it out. After look-ing at it on the screen, we would say ‘you know what I’m feeling that. Let’s call our printer.’ We would tweak it and then go with it. The possibili-ties are endless since we are contracted by you guys [the customers].

What would you say is the mis-sion of Solefood?

Mike: The mission is to touch people. We get mothers who call for past loved ones and

started to like art when I went to an art history course and it just evolved from there.

If you hadn’t started Solefood, what would do you think you would be doing?

Mike: I would probably be an attorney at a law firm. I was studying to be a paralegal at Lipseg Shapey. I thought I was going to be Matlock and ended up being Kojack. I was running all around for the firm and realized ‘this is whack.’ So if I wasn’t doing Solefood, I would be doing that but I’d go to work in a suit and a pair of Jordans with a leather hat; looking like Shyne [former Bad Boy artist] going to court.

Matt: I went to college for physical therapy so I’d prob-ably be a doing that — maybe a trainer somewhere.

“ I THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO BE MATLOCK AND ENDED UP BEING KOJACK ”

Mike Cole

INSIGHT | 37

Solefood NYC

out. We did a shirt and a pair of shoes for Nelson Mandela for his 90th birthday.

Mike: After they [the people overseeing the process of Mandela getting the gift] got over initial misconceptions that we were trying to capital-ize off of his name, the people

we worked with in Africa really understood what we were doing and started tying us into other charitable networks. Fortunately my uncle and pops run an organization that talks to virtually every diplomat and ambassador in Africa. Now we are working on bringing solar power to Africa. Different things as long as we can do it, it is not just about a sneaker sale at the end of the day. Sneaker sales are great, that is what we focus on, but our main thing is to also let you know that behind the scenes we are doing things that other

want an image done on a hat or other product and it gets done. We get call backs saying ‘Thank you, I couldn’t even imagine it like that.’ We create memories.

You come here and have a good time. When you leave here, even if you don’t buy

anything, you would tell some-one ‘I saw something there for you.’ We want to touch people directly. I could care less if the masses know what we do.

Right now we are working on donating 20,000 pairs of shoes to kids in Africa. Things like that are what we try to do on the side and once it can hap-pen then we are happy.

Matt: We are launching a charity. If you buy one pair of sneakers we would give one away for free. Once a year we will go to Africa and hand them

“ WE CREATE MEMORIES ”

40 | INSIGHT

stores are not on. That is the lifestyle we try to incorporate.

Describe the customization process and how you work with customers.

Mike: We generally do ‘one-of-ones’ or ‘two-of-twos’. People see these shoes [Catfish dunks] and want a certain size but need to understand when Revive [Solefood artist] went shopping he found a size 11.5 and that is why there is only one and it is an 11.5. We try to break it down to the customers that he only did one of these but if you want something similar he can do that for you. [Generally,] someone comes in here and gives direction for the custom sneakers they want and the artist creates off of that direction — we create exactly what you request.

Matt: What we don’t like doing is taking a regular sneaker and making it into an already exist-ing limited run custom. So for example we don’t like taking an Air Force One and making it

into the Tiffany Nike Dunks.

Jose Batilo (Solefood Staff): We are surrounded by bootleg-gers being located close to Canal St. but we let everyone know we only work with au-thentic products.

What was the craziest custom job you ever did?

Matt: One crazy job was the Ostrich customs. From the concept to the people we had to deal with to get the syn-thetic ostrich and the people we had to deal with to do the customs.

Mike: On this project, we worked with Eric and Aladdin from Remix Da Kicks — the first non-athletes to get shoes ran off of Nike’s presses and the creators/influences for Nike ID. We had to do some ostrich customs with them and that job got so complex due to miscommunication. Also, we turned a pair of Jordan 11s into heels for Mariah Carey when she sang at the 2003

Solefood NYC

INSIGHT | 41

All Star Game for the Michael Jordan Tribute.

Describe how you work with the artists.

Mike: Similar to how you can see the cooks at Benihana's restaurant working in front of you, we want people to see the art done first hand and what goes on behind the scenes. You come in and you see people working on a shoe and you may feel inclined to get a shoe.

What are you hoping to ac-complish with Solefood NYC?

Mike: Have customers sup-port our products. We have artists that are not just here locally, we have artists in London, Australia, Scotland,

Atlanta, etc. We hope to work with more artists and do more projects to increase everyone’s visibility. Any way that we can influence you on a whole

lifestyle perspective is what we are about. Also we are helping on the brand of our artists, such as Revive. He has put on a tremendous idea on a sneaker [Catfish Nike Dunks] and we have taken 585 orders to date on this sneaker — and no one really knows him.

We are also focused on work-ing with women. We have a shoe deal coming with Calvin Klein where we are doing a line of women’s customs. When you get women to come in here it is totally different — y’all fight over shoes! You can’t just have small t-shirts and size 6 sneakers. Women will

Solefood NYC

“ WE TURNED A PAIR OF JORDAN 11s INTO HEELS FOR MARIAH CAREY WHEN SHE SANG AT THE 2003 ALL STAR GAME FOR

THE MICHAEL JORDAN TRIBUTE ”

42 | INSIGHT

say what are you really trying to do? So we have smaller cuts and women’s shoes. So that is part of our way to cater to our female customers. We have a lady, Miss Angelina, who makes custom leggings. We also have ladies night the last Thursday of the month where everything is setup

to cater to the females from drinks, hairstylist and women’s shoes on display. We want females to come here, network and have a good time.

We are working on a couple of other things right now, includ-ing a TV show, to highlight what goes on behind the scenes. Also we are working on a calendar featuring 12 different cuisines of the world. The waitresses will be dressed in the traditional garment of that respective culture and will

be rocking a pair of customs.

The world is small and we keep meeting other people. This is the way in which we hope to keep building and growing with one another. Every time we put a stamp on something, we just want to come correct.

Solefood NYC

“ WHEN YOU GET WOMEN TO COME IN HERE IT IS TOTALLY DIFFERENT — Y'ALL

FIGHT OVER SHOES! ”

44 | INSIGHT

BERIMA (right)Uncle Berima Mensah is one of the members of the Asanteman Ghanaian Association. When I arrived at his home to take some photographs, another man peered out the window and said Uncle Berima was sleeping; he was not expecting anyone. I insisted. Uncle Berima finally came out in his slippers, eyes half shut, smil-ing and laughing because he forgot I was coming. Once he was ready to be photographed, we went outside to find a good loca-tion. Uncle Berima was not very happy to stand in the sun at the time but loved the outcome of the photograph.

After spending six months studying abroad in Ghana in 2006, I was haunted by the most wonderful memories of the country and the Ghanaian people. I set out to find the Ghanaian communities in New York and what I found were a host of organizations and a thriving community in the Bronx. I hung out in the area and talked with people about their experience migrating to the U.S., and their dreams and expectations. What emerged were a collec-tion of portraits and a set of insightful interviews of Ghanaian people living in the Bronx.

GHANAIANS IN THE BRONXSilvia Laserna

48 | INSIGHT

Silvia Laserna

FOOTBALL PLAYERS (pgs. 46-47)Tracy Towers are two very tall, surreal-looking towers in the Bronx where a large Ghanaian community lives. One day I was there looking to gain INSIGHT into the different immigration experiences of Ghanaian people. I ended up at Clinton High School where I met Kofi Isaac Adusei, a very handsome young man, wearing a Ghana t-shirt that his father gave him. His dream is to be a doctor and if he follows his father’s advice, “Eat and learn,” he will reach his goal. When the interview was over, Isaac joined the football team in their practice, but the team was more interested in joining Isaac’s photo shoot. Before I knew it, I had a team of Ghanaian football players posing for my photo.

BENJAMIN (right)Benjamin Owusu used to work at the Wet Seal clothing store on 14th Street and 5th Avenue in Manhattan. I met him on a random occasion and asked if I could interview him. We met at The New School library and had a long conversation about his experience immigrating to the US. When the moment to take the portrait came, I tried to photograph him in front of his job but he said, “The store is too nice. If my friends in Ghana see that it is a nice place, they will expect me to send them more money.” So I took his portrait on a rainy day on 5th Avenue.

INSIGHT | 49

INSIGHT | 51

Silvia Laserna

ADOPTIVE FAMILY (left) This is my adoptive Ghanaian Family: Bene-dicta, Michael and Angelina. When I met them, Angelina and Benedicta had just arrived from Ghana and were adapting to their new envi-ronment. In this photograph they are dressed in traditional Ghanaian clothes, waiting for a Taxi to go to church on a Sunday afternoon.

MOSQUE (pgs. 52-53) A Mosque is a hard place for a foreign, non-Muslim girl to get access. I had the fortune of finding a community of Muslims who did not mind my presence or the camera. This photo was taken outside of the Yankasa Mosque following Sunday service. Pictured in the foreground is Haji Mohamet Toure and in back is a Ghanaian family. Toure is concerned with increasing corruption in Ghana and is waiting for the right moment to get involved in politics and help his country.

54 | INSIGHT

THE ILLDEFINEDMike Rosen

I am the life that proceeds the lifetimes that supersede my ams and my futures againI am the life that still lives, lying like lions, smoke grey eyes set heavy upon horizons seeking zionSwindling the dying light that creeps before crying nightsThe aloe for the sunburn, the sun’s burns, the world turnsI am the world that still won-ders What wonders wait beyond my future’s blunders What whispers of swirling vistasmy mother’s sacred summers yeah I miss hersilent son rises

I am the man afraid for others to believe in meThe pressures of the infinite precautions The cool winds of history blown straight in off of BostonPushing against the door waiting beneath my building’s

awning The soul gives birth to satan’s dawning And I am the mute child in the corner with the crayon drawing In need of love to feel right But unable to crack the code of what love feels likeThey run and hide with Saul’s children of the nightI am the trampled doormat when they are called in at sup-per timeI am the wind that blows the hands of timeHonestly wound to be infinitely east-bound until I’m set downI am the school yard bullyI am the west windI am the child I am the kinAnd I am the mind with muscle to muster the dusted lusts of crusted dovesI am the olive branch stuck in the sandI am the last squeeze of a fall-ing handI am the child’s vision of him-

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Mike Rosen

A reflection of my forgotten selfBut damn if I ain’t beautifulI am…found.

Michael is a student at Wesleyan University where he works as a concert and event coordinator. You can check him out at areyouheretoconfuseme.blogspot.com.

self as an old manI am the man that will forget his wedding

I am he who cannot be defined, thus choosing to find my mind through spoken swollen and rhymes Turned golden in sunshine but molded by my own lies I am openfor business and for interpreta-tionand I am done fighting to define that which cannot be mine for in your mind’s eye you already know exactly how I dot my Iin real world games of I spy I cry

I am the weeping willow with-ering beneath the shadeless dorm room windowGrowing up but everywhere falling down

Looking in the mirror as if I wasn’t there,But then, I am I am there, In the mirror,

ROCK & ROBOT APOCALYPSE LIVE An Interview with Renfield's Marz Richards

58 | INSIGHT

ror of it all for both band and audience — it could all go so horribly wrong! EVERYTHING could suck! When it doesn’t, it’s glorious. I saw my friends who were in bands experi-encing this and it looked like too much fun to stay on the sidelines. It’s all theatre. If you have two bricks and you set a board across them, that’s a stage and the person standing on it is a performer. The bands that suck generally ignore the

Martin Jackson: What made you decide to become a singer/song writer?

Marz Richards: I really like mu-sic and I really like figuring out what makes people tick. I like music because I was exposed early to a lot of different kinds of music and had to learn how to speak about what I liked even though I couldn’t read or write music. I like bands, I like live performance, I like the ter-

Marz Richards says he’s Batman and his band, they’re the Rock Justice League. The Los Angeles based group known as Renfield is a live performance band that commands the stage with their colorful costumes and theatrical stage show. Their songs cover themes from sci-fi and horror, to comics and a drunk’s plan for a meal. Established in 1995, Renfield’s founding members include Brain “Buddha” Dolan (bassist), James Robinson, (Drums), and Marz Richards, the lead singer, songwriter and actor.

“Brian is the Martian Manhunter and I’m Batman,” Richards said. “Jim [James] would have to be Flash.” The other members include Kat Cahill (eclectic guitar), Ryan Johnson (keyboards, banjo, har-monium) and Travis Thomas (trombone).

The jazzcore, progressive-punk sextet recently recorded their first album, Why Aren’t You Laughing?

Martin Jackson caught up with Richards at Meltdown, a comic book store in L.A soon after he curated an art show called Physi-cal Nostalgia.

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Rock & Robot Apocalypse Live

fund art or we will die ugly.

Can you just give us the bare bones basic of Renfield. You know, a rundown of the mem-bers and when and why the band formed?

The band formed because I wanted to have a nutty band in which I could use Fishbone and Primus polyrhythms with Boingo horns and drums like Mr. Bungle and I could sing Matt Johnson/Tom Waits hug-germugger mixed with carny banter. Brian answered an ad I placed for Vocalist Available and he and Samantha Blake, Renfield’s former saxophonist and Mitch Lewis, our first vio-list taught me a couple songs that were very hard and asked me to sing them. I did OK and we began our work together. We were joined by Oliver May

idea that they have to deliver something resembling a show.

What effects do you think mu-sic and creative arts in general have had on your life?

Participating in the fine arts saved my life. As a kid in Bakersfield, CA there is little to do other than drink and fuck. I could have fallen down the well into the trap that is anti-life right away if not for a drama coach who was looking for kids who could act and making certain they ended up at her high school in her pro-gram. I met my best friend in that class and we both remain working actors to this day. The slashed budget for arts fund-ing in public education is a nightmare scenario that dumbs down all classrooms. We must

“ IF YOU HAVE TWO BRICKS AND SET A BOARD ACROSS THEM, THAT'S A STAGE

AND THE PERSON STANDING ON IT IS A PERFORMER ”

62 | INSIGHT

Aren’t You Laughing? is a great effort at bringing what we have to offer into your home, vehicle or reality-distorting device.

We refer to our current output as progressive punk rock or prog-punk, but Renfield does not remain in place for very long at any time. We are archly theatrical and we cover a lot of ground in each song. We tend to play longer songs than most bands but we are wising up and playing shorter sets with our newer material.

What will people see at a Renfield performance that they wouldn't get if they just listen to your songs via download/CD/MP3?

Our live act burns and mutates before your eyes. The prodi-gious effort required to play a Renfield song results in atmo-spheric changes and you have

on trombone and eventually Jim on drums. We had a fun set of early shows with differ-ent drummers including a great

first Halloween show our friend Rob behind the kit as Stu Vader, used Bantha salesman. Over the years my friends in Renfield have always taken my worst ideas and extracted best parts and made great music from very nerdy ideas. Our peculiar dedication to our art and the odd forms it takes has kept us inoculated from waste-ful spending and unproductive behavior. As the record busi-ness collapses and radio dies we exist as the Omega Band

— The Last Show on Earth.

For those who haven't heard Renfield, can you describe your sound?

Renfield is best experienced live, but our new album Why


“ WE MUST FUND ART OR WE WILL DIE UGLY ”

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than could be sourced through traditional marketing. I hoped that there would be an audi-ence within greater nerdom for what we set out to produce and that would cover our pro-duction costs for whatever we might do. At the same time, the musi-cians who comprise Renfield through each of our nine iterations are doing their best to write the most interesting music, often for our own enter-

tainment in the room. Some-times these songs mutate and coalesce into a tune that makes it to the stage. That is no promise that it will live long. We’ve killed many songs after playing them a few times and we usually strip the sucker for parts and work them into new songs.

an involuntary reaction, as an animal on Earth, to the smell of sweat and loud noise. We are funnier and more terrifying live. The subject matter of a Ren-field song is rather unique. It's much more nerd-centric then the subjects covered by most groups. Why did you decide to go that route rather than covering the same ground that countless other acts have found success (and failure) with?

I think the simple answer is myself and the bass player are two of the biggest nerds you might ever meet. I’m a comics, movie and TV geek and Brian is math, science and D&D [Dungeons & Dragons]. As a nerd, I was convinced that many more people liked comic books and heavy genre fiction


“ THE PRODIGIOUS EFFORT REQUIRED TO PLAY A RENFIELD SONG RESULTS IN ATMO-

SPHERIC CHANGES... ”

66 | INSIGHT

drunk’s plans for dinner called “Chicken & Peas," so it isn’t all monsters and explosions with us all the time. In March, Renfield released a limited edition single of their song “Rorschach” based on a character from the 80's comic book Maxiseries Watchmen, which was recently turned into a film. How did that come about?

The song “Rorschach” was written early in our career and became a staple set closer very quickly. At the time we were doing a much scarier show compared to today’s whackjob kung fu pirate antics and I would work myself into a frothing frenzy and take the audience on a six minute ride through Rorschach’s

I expressly avoid writing about mundane subjects. Lyrical Kryptonite is Jesus, crack and your ex-girlfriend. It is much more fun to write a song about a giant, people-eating robot attacking Los Angeles or how happy a zombie is to be a zombie. The idea of the comic book song was probably im-planted in my young mind by hearing my aunt’s Frank Zappa albums after listening to my

own records like Rock Reflec-tions of a Super-Hero and the amazing Power Records cata-log of book & record sets.

The nerd subjects such as su-per-villain world domination or time-lost spies work very well with our bombastic and oper-atic style. Although we have recently written a new song in record time that is about a


“ THE NERD SUBJECTS SUCH AS SUPER-VILLAIN WORLD DOMINATION OR TIME-LOST

SPIES WORK VERY WELL WITH OUR BOMBASTIC AND OPERATIC STYLE ”

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Renfield charged nothing for the few copies of “Rorschach” that were handed out to at-tendees at the free gallery show and the song won’t be on the new album, but if you want to see the art created for Physical Nostalgia, you can check it out in the Gallery sec-tion at MeltComics.com. Since you and the folks of Ren-field have been performing for a while do you have any advice for those who want to start bands of their own, especially those who want to blaze their own unique trail?

Never stop rehearsing. Set up a band agreement on how to make important changes in the band. Share all copyrights with everyone in the room. Don’t be cheap on recording. Play every single show you get asked to play if it works for your band’s schedule. Figure out who in your band is the booking agent, who is person who might be lucky enough to handle the

story arc. The first half of the song is journal entries and Rorschach’s purest and most terrifying moment, his prison cafeteria attack, is the apex of the song and carries a beautiful melody that is a sick counterpoint to how screwed up Walter Kovacs is. And the song ends with me screaming ‘Do it!’ The song is a belligerent cocktail that is meant to scare you as bad as Rorschach should. The song is also meant to be as deviously attractive as the monomaniacal psychopath in the interesting mask and trenchcoat. I was asked to curate a Watchmen-themed art show and I knew that this would be the perfect opportunity to provide a permanent record of the tune [since] it draws from the literary source material and plays on the themes detailed by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. That same idea was what allowed me to get so many amazing artists involved in the show.


person can play multiple roles, you need to get smart quick. Put together a trunk for stage essentials and take it with you

money if there is any, who is security and who is the sound person. If you don’t have these people in your act, and one

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box office.

I am in no way qualified to tell someone what to write other than I would hope that it was interesting to them first and that they did everything they could to show me why it was so interesting in their live per-formance or recording.

Is there any thing else you would like to add?

I encourage everyone to go to more live performances of all stripes or the shows you’ve been getting is all that you’ll get. If there isn’t enough hap-pening near you, that is now officially your fault and you need to get to work.

Check out Renfield’s music at www.renfield.com.

Martin F. Jackson is a freelance writer who lives in Pontiac, MI, a city that is located on a mud ball currently traveling the cosmos. Email him at

[email protected].

to every single show — in-cluded in this should be a first aid kit, a sewing kit, batteries of all types, power log, exten-sion cord, guitar strings, bass strings, drum sticks, glow sticks, a flashlight, tape, scis-sors, a good non-folding knife, a legal-in-your-state blunt instrument of protection and a towel. Don’t pay money to play a venue anywhere ever.

I repeat: Do not pay anyone money to get you a show. Do not pay anyone money to reserve a slot on a bill. Do not pay anyone money in advance of ticket sales that you must do yourself.

Now, this does not mean that as a showman you are absolved of promotional duties. You are the key component to the show’s success. You and your friends must come up with a plan as to how you will build your initial audience and then work your ass off to bring that audience to your show. But you are the artist, not the


70 | INSIGHT

and play under the moon,until your moon status hotel blocked the fuckin’ view.I hate to be rude,but this is what I do,I sit back with a crew, kick it on a stoop, and watch the people walk by who just haven’t got a clue.

“I heard it was dirty before.” (Voice of a rich lady)I think its dirtier now, but prostitutes never bothered me,until they became trendy and drew a crowd.

So I got more beef than broc-coli these days.My timbs is all muddy.And I’m slippin’ trying to study if this gentrificationis nutrition or a give in, but you wanna know some-thing that can really compli-cate?In order for me to stay, I gotta get paid.Check it,my sister and her husband

I got more beef than broccoli these days. My timbs is all muddy.They used to be bloody, but in my neighborhood there’s a lot less meat packing these days.More packaging of clothing, packed lines through the streets.Even the mafia’s movin’ out-ward,no one left to mix the human innards with the cow’s blood. But new blood seeps in,transitions like a funnel;It’s an island with little spaceNow everyone’s bridge and tunnel.

So I got more beef than broc-coli these days,and these Inn’s that comin’ in,Man, they ain’t no Holidays. Were talking five start hotel,fuck it, it’s a moon.I thought it was bright enough before,and summer’s coming soon,we would take it to the court

BEEF AND BROCCOLIEly Key

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Ely Key

moved to Bed Stuy,now they’re creatin’ change.To top it off, they got a baby on the way.This is my solution to date:when I see my little niece you know what ima say:

“You live in Bed Stuy. Keep ya head high and bump B.I.G. every day.”

Ely is a freelance sustainability consul-tant and Co-Founder of art project and company, Dialogue? Projects. He was born and raised in New York City but currently resides in Southern California. Contact him at [email protected] or

visit www.dialogueprojects.com.

Photo by Atiba T. Edwards

72 | INSIGHT

Medium: Markers

Size: 8.5 x 11

Within my blackbooks I always try to expand on thoughts and cre-ativity. Abandoned Thoughts was just that…New York is the city of dreams and sometimes we let those dreams and thoughts fade.

COVER ART: ABANDONED THOUGHTS IN THE CITY OF DREAMSSee One

AUGUST 8 / 1PMFT. GREENE PARKBROUGHT TO YOU BY:F.O.K.U.S.KEEP CHECKINGWWW.ONEFOKUS.ORG/THESTOOPFOR INFORMATION, ARTISTS,SPONSORS, AND MORE

insight magazine | issue #18

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