1000 Words

Troubled Youth
Oct 6, 2020
2 min read

Updated: Oct 15, 2020

I know you don't think I'm going to type 1000 words, right? Lol.. The 1000 Words article is in reference to that old saying "a picture is worth a thousand words". This article will explain the meaning, idea(s), or influences behind each photoshoot. I prefer to do things with purpose, significance.. Doing a random shoot, at a random location, holds no value.. Everything that I do.. will be done, with intent.

Since the development of Troubled Youth, it has been my idea to use my own life's experiences as the backdrop for the imagery in my shoots. Each shoot has an element or reference to my life, whether past or present, the association is relevant.

This particular shoot took place in Harlem, NY.. specifically, Foster Projects. Fosters, infamous for more reasons than one, runs from 115 St. - 112 St. between Lenox Avenue & 5th Ave. It's not the largest project in Harlem but has garnered a reputation that spills outside its black gates.

Fosters is significant to me for many reasons. I've played ball here. I've shot dice here and I've been to almost every Kingdome game there was.. Kingdome, aww man Kingdome!! Kingdome is/was the most famous street ball tournament in New York City.. right in the middle of the projects! I've seen Puff pull up in a silver Rolls Royce and throw money out the window as he pulled off.. I've seen Jim Jones handout $100 bills to kids, for every three point shot they made.. I've seen guys almost lose their life because they ass bet on a 4 or better (ass bet = default on payment in a dice game).. Shit, I've even seen Mark Cuban, the owner of the fucking Dallas Mavericks come to the middle of the projects.. just to watch a basketball game.

The projects lit up.. the dark, dreary, pissed stained brick buildings became a cathedral of culture. Kingdome brought out everybody and every hood.. east side, west side, uptown, downtown, old, young, babymuvas pushing the newborns in their strollers. This was one of the very few times that all hoods could come together and the possibility of someone getting shot was either cut in half or doubled. It was a lot going on..

You could tell when there was game going on. You could smell it. As soon as you stepped foot on Lenox, you could smell the purple haze being rolled and bottles being popped.. Nutcrackers were on sale for the young ones that couldn't go in the liquor store.. There were over poured cups of Hennessy because police was everywhere and you couldn't walk the streets with the bottle.. girls everywhere, young dudes trying to get a name were out, fly, with the Mauries, Prada sneakers under the cuffed Taverniti Jeans, or you had the Nauti swimming trunks with the white airs (lol, shit was different), the drug dealers that never left the block found their way, stick-up kids were lurking.. and you would catch dudes trynna be low, adjusting their gun in their waistband.. It was a dangerous time, but a fun time.

Lol. My fault.. I went down memory lane for a minute..

The photos below were taken in Foster Projects, September 13, 2020