Freezing Hip-Hip History Through the Lens

WEBVTT

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From underground events to celebrity moments,

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Rachel Chris reveals how his camera became a

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time capsule for hip hop culture. Rachel Chris

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didn't wait for permission or connections. He

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started cold calling his way into event photography

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with nothing but confidence and curiosity. That

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relentless grind led him from small events to

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capturing iconic moments with major celebrities

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in hip hop. Those moments eventually became a

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powerful hip hop photo book, turning his lens

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into a time capsule of culture. But the journey

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wasn't just about creativity. It was about learning

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the business of photography and knowing its worth.

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Tune in as we break down Retro Chris's rise,

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his creative evolution, and how he continues

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to sharpen his craft. Hey y 'all, we're tuning

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in for another episode of Bakedoutt Radio Show.

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This is Music and Business Talk, and today I

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have a special guest. So everybody out there,

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if you've ever thought about, you know, merging

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photography and hip hop, well, look no further.

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We have Rachel Chris on with us right now. Chris,

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appreciate you, you know what I'm saying, taking

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the day out of your time to come onto the platform.

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Definitely. I appreciate you guys having me.

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You're welcome. So I met a racial Chris at a

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was it Georgia Spartans game in Atlanta Yep,

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and he was out there one has an eye for a photography,

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but then also capturing in documenting Hip -hop

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actually like the fact that you put on your Instagram

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handle. Let me make sure you put Digital RS storyteller

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photographer time traveler which I thought that

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is actually I would see someone use that like

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moniker, but it actually fits. And he's like,

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you know, the page is a time capsule preserving

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past memories and events. So, Chris, what actually

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got you into wanting to be a photographer? Actually,

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me and the passion of photography started when

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I was a kid. I got my first Kodak camera when

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I was like two or three years old. That basically

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was like one of those cameras where you would

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shoot and then we just print out the photos right

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then and there. So after that, I just always

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wanted to either do photos or I wanted to do

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video. By the age of five, I had a video camera

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where I could actually record live videos and

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everything, which was great for me. And it kind

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of just continued as I got older. Even the whole

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digital art thing, I started small at like Kind

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of manipulation editing software when I was a

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kid. Yeah, so yeah, everything started from when

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I was a kid and Just wanting to capture those

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memories and kind of preserve that time for the

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future basically So then where did you or when

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did you blend your skills as a photographer?

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to capture hip hop moments and documenting it,

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making sure that as they kept growing as a genre,

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that there would be something there that people

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can go back to. When did that start for you?

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That actually started in 2014. And 2014, see,

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I had been shooting pictures, but I was shooting

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with my cell phone. So I got my first credit

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card. I was like, OK, this is what you're going

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to do. You're going to go. You're going to use

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your credit card limit. and going to use that

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to get a professional camera. So I took my credit

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card limit, I got my professional camera, and

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the first thing I covered when I started was

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like a little scrappy show. And I kind of did

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like BTS and videos for it. Like get behind there

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because at this point, are you a known photographer

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in Atlanta area or like, how did you even do

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that? At this point, I was So far from now, I

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didn't even know who I was at the time. I was

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still like, okay, you got the camera. So do something

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with the camera. So I was that phase, but I saw

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like a posting that they needed like production

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for the show. So I reached out to the production

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manager who at the time was Faith. And I just

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told her I really wanted to do like photography

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or videos for the production. So I would be there

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whenever she needed. And that's how I started.

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Was this a, I guess, like an internship type

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of service where is it you paid or was it non

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-paid? It was like paid, but it wasn't paid like

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a lot. So it was pretty much. pay internship

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type service. So learning as you go? Yeah. I

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actually kind of put myself into by like just

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reaching out. So then what happens after that

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moment then? So as you're doing that, like, was

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that a one off thing for you? Was it a multitude

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of, you know, following, you know, multiple dates?

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So after I did that, I ended up working with

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that production for about three, four months

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and During that time, I'm also scouting other

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opportunities. I get the chance to do my first

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fashion photo shoot. I get a chance to cover

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some concerts, which is really great. And it

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was just a multitude of different opportunities

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coming in, in addition to that. So it was like,

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I'm only a few months in. but I'm finding my

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footing. Like my next big event after that was

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like T .I. It was a T .I. and a Young Thug video

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release party, which was really, really cool.

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And it was funny because I was taking pictures

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of T .I. and Young Thug. I had no clue who Young

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Thug was. I just knew I was there taking pictures.

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But the funniest part about the event, and it

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was also embarrassing. I had been around TI many

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times, but I never actually verbally spoke to

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TI. So my introduction to TI was him coming up

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to me and saying, hey, big dog. He tapped me

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on the shoulder. He's like, you know, you're

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blocking the crowd. They can't see you because

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you're in the way. It was so embarrassing to

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me. I'm going to take photos, but. I had no clue

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what I was doing because I was like so new to

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that industry. So he's basically saying get out

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the way. You're blocking everybody. Nobody can

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see because of you. So what did you learn from

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that as far as like you know angles and lenses

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and stuff and still being able to capture the

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image that you want at the angle that you want

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but also sort of like being an incognito type

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of situation? I learned for one to always pay

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attention to your surroundings. and make sure

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that you're not in anyone's way because that

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can create either aggravation or it can create

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a malfunction on the whole set. So now a lot

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of times when I'm at like an event like that,

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I'll kind of like position myself to where I'm

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stooping on the ground. That way no one's being

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blocked. Nobody is like, I'm not in anyone's

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way basically. that's very important, especially

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as a photographer. You don't want someone saying,

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oh, I paid like $300 for these tickets and I

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can't see because you're in my way. That's the

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worst thing ever. Are you, with events like that,

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are you able to get the actual angle that you

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want due to everything going on? Most of the

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time I am, but there have been like different,

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So for instance, there are different outlets

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to which I have acquired some of the shots through.

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So since if you're doing media, when you're doing

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media, sometimes you have a more limited space

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and spectrum to which you can do things. So let's

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just say I had a Drake show. That was my first.

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One of the first events, big, big events that

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I was approved for when it comes to media. So

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the Drake show, we were positioned a long way

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away from the stage. We had to sit in the bleachers

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and we only had five songs, three songs that

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we could cover before we had to leave. So this

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being my first time doing that, it was really

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difficult because for the first two songs, Drake

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was in complete darkness. Then on top of that,

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we were far away. So I'm like relying on a zoom

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lens to actually capture the shot. So that was

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one of my most challenging big events. And the

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first time I was doing like an arena where I

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had to get approved through press. But I managed

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to get like maybe three or four good shots out

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of that. Go ahead. But they still weren't the

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shots that I would necessarily want to have.

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So ideally, what lens did you want to use at

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the time? And what did you actually have at your

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disposal? At the time, I had a 75 to 200. If

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I were doing that in this day and age, I would

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use a 200 to 600. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I'm sorry.

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No, no, no, go ahead. I still managed to get

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some really good shots, but if I could do it

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all over again, I would do it completely different.

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Do you think, so as you're doing, we'll go here

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then I'll ask that question in a moment. So as

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you're doing these events and you're learning,

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are people like referring you to new jobs? And

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that's how your work is coming in or you're able

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to post that work that you do as well. Because,

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you know, sometimes they want, you know, I'm

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saying photographers to give up the, you know,

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pictures, you know, rights to them and not to

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post them anywhere. They do. Thankfully, I haven't

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really had that issue per se. Like I'm really

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able to still post like the pictures I have.

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It's been a few clients where I do have to give

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up the pictures. But for the most part, like

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my big stuff. haven't had to yet of course it

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will come to a point where that happens but a

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lot of the gigs I get are usually from word word

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of mouth also a lot of people seeing like my

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photography book they're like oh wow okay so

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you do this and it kind of people by surprise

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because a lot of people aren't used to seeing

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books in this day and age No, they're not and

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then the fact that you've been able to put a

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collection together like that, which is very

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impressive When people hire you or the public

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do they understand like, you know as a photographer

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and videographers We have to be in certain positions

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And if they don't give you like all the details

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and you got to break out a new lens and then

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the fact that you know I'm saying you have to

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buy these expensive lenses. Are they understanding

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that or is there like, you know, I'm saying some

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like a communication in that area? It can be

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a like communication like um a lot of times with

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events um everything is go go go go go like um

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a lot of times you're just expected to know what

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to do like literally um if i could describe my

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whole career i would say i always had to make

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something out of nothing and usually anytime

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i get comfortable things change. So for instance,

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I might do one event and the first, I want to

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say the first hour, the first 30 minutes is the

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most stressful because you're trying to figure

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out what to do, how to do it, what works. It's

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like that every time, unfortunately. Like you

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conquer one beast and then the next time you

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come back, there's usually another beast. unless

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it's um especially if it's a live event yeah

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like what um well you're a bit where you're like

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capturing like behind the scenes like if it's

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like a set that's already prepared like a music

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video it's not bad because you're just capturing

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what's in front of you yeah but for other things

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even like um red carpets or anything like that.

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Everything is like go, go, go. And if you don't

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move or go fast enough, you can drown really

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quickly. Yeah. So what are your favorite type

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of events to cover then? Do you like the music

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videos or the live events or the red carpets

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better or the photo shoots behind the scenes

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or whatever the case may be or performances?

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What do you like to shoot? If I had to choose,

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it would be concerts and behind the scenes, like

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music videos and stuff like that. I like those

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the most. I also like photo shoots too, like

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one -on -one photo shoots, depending on if it's

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like a lot of people though. If it's a lot of

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people at once, it can get a little chaotic,

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but it's nothing. You can't necessarily handle,

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but if I had to choose, I would always probably

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do like set photography or concert photography

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just because you're there. But a lot of times

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that artist isn't really thinking about you being

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there. You're almost invisible for everything

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that you need to capture. And that's it. You

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just come back with some great content. And a

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lot of times the artists will be like, wow, I

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didn't even know this was happening. Just because

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they're in their world. They're trying to undo

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their performance. They're trying to get everything

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right. But I'm in my world. I'm in the world

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of capturing everything to make sure it looks

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good. So I would definitely say that's my favorite.

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Those two are my favorites. So as far as your

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services, which seems to be your bread and butter

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right now? Are you always constantly booked for

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like events or do you have people hitting you

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up wanting to do like, you know, regular photo

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shoots and things of that nature? Right now,

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my bread and butter is mostly photo shoots. Like

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I do like headshots and I do some events as well.

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That's literally like my bread and butter. shoes,

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headshots, clothing line shoots. That's what

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I get the most responses or inquiries about doing.

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Have you done like the themed photo shoots where

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like, you know, let's say someone's graduating

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or people are doing like holiday pictures and

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stuff like that, but they also have like a certain

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theme with them? Oh, yeah, I definitely have.

00:16:12.580 --> 00:16:16.960
Like, I've done that also. ones where they're

00:16:16.960 --> 00:16:20.379
styled and everything. I've done a lot of those.

00:16:21.139 --> 00:16:23.440
Are you responsible for coming up with the concept

00:16:23.440 --> 00:16:26.299
or do they bring those to you? It's a bit of

00:16:26.299 --> 00:16:29.340
both. Lately they've been bringing me the concepts.

00:16:30.600 --> 00:16:33.419
But in the past, another thing I did with a lot

00:16:33.419 --> 00:16:37.759
of photo shoots is I used to do some styling.

00:16:38.820 --> 00:16:44.240
It's mostly for males. Like I would style, bring

00:16:44.240 --> 00:16:47.519
the clothes. Kind of everything kind of figure

00:16:47.519 --> 00:16:50.419
out the concept for them if they requested that.

00:16:50.799 --> 00:16:52.480
Okay. That makes it easier. You know what I'm

00:16:52.480 --> 00:16:54.159
saying? Your photography is also style and stuff.

00:16:54.419 --> 00:16:56.340
So, you know, I definitely understand that. That's

00:16:56.340 --> 00:16:58.120
a skill set that I don't think a lot of photographers

00:16:58.120 --> 00:17:01.200
have. So what made you want to put together the

00:17:01.200 --> 00:17:04.000
photo book and to like, you know, really highlight

00:17:04.000 --> 00:17:07.680
hip hop in its growth? I actually, as crazy as

00:17:07.680 --> 00:17:09.859
it sounds, I've been doing photo books since

00:17:09.859 --> 00:17:13.680
2015 and I've had so many different ones. Like

00:17:13.680 --> 00:17:16.119
at one point I just put everything together.

00:17:16.339 --> 00:17:19.890
I put fashion and hip hop. and lifestyle altogether

00:17:19.890 --> 00:17:24.029
one. I really started doing like the hip hop

00:17:24.029 --> 00:17:30.150
though. I did that initially in 2021. And initially

00:17:30.150 --> 00:17:34.049
I did it because I was, as crazy as it is, I

00:17:34.049 --> 00:17:36.829
was kind of like thinking about letting go of

00:17:36.829 --> 00:17:40.349
hip hop photography. So I wanted it to be like,

00:17:40.450 --> 00:17:46.109
kind of a obituary for every, horrible way of

00:17:46.109 --> 00:17:49.859
saying it, for every hip hop. photography event

00:17:49.859 --> 00:17:54.180
because a lot of times I was having it to a point

00:17:54.180 --> 00:17:57.319
where I would go to events. Sometimes people

00:17:57.319 --> 00:18:00.279
would talk about shooting or it was violence

00:18:00.279 --> 00:18:02.940
going on. So I was like, oh, I'm not sure if

00:18:02.940 --> 00:18:04.819
I want to continue to do hip hop photography

00:18:04.819 --> 00:18:08.140
just because. No, I definitely understand that.

00:18:08.579 --> 00:18:12.779
Yeah, it's like I don't want to die. Exactly.

00:18:13.059 --> 00:18:15.259
You just want to do what you love to do without

00:18:15.259 --> 00:18:18.190
all the other chaos. So when you put the book

00:18:18.190 --> 00:18:19.910
together, what was the response from the book

00:18:19.910 --> 00:18:22.150
then? Because it sounds like you did something.

00:18:22.210 --> 00:18:25.630
You was trying to do this Bon Voyage type of

00:18:25.630 --> 00:18:28.470
thing. But I feel like it pulled you back into

00:18:28.470 --> 00:18:31.710
the world. It did. People loved it. Like, people

00:18:31.710 --> 00:18:35.210
literally were like, wow. Some of the shots are

00:18:35.210 --> 00:18:38.490
like, for instance, like artists like Trouble,

00:18:38.890 --> 00:18:45.410
Take Off. Most people have died now. So it's

00:18:45.410 --> 00:18:47.839
like... I feel honored to actually have been

00:18:47.839 --> 00:18:52.579
able to capture a lot of them before that happened.

00:18:53.299 --> 00:18:56.519
So now when people see it, they're like, wow,

00:18:56.539 --> 00:19:01.000
you were there and you were there. Even my Diddy

00:19:01.000 --> 00:19:03.920
shots, I'm so happy to have all the Diddy shots

00:19:03.920 --> 00:19:07.000
I have, even though what happened with Diddy

00:19:07.000 --> 00:19:10.599
and whatever not, because no matter what, it's

00:19:10.599 --> 00:19:14.500
still history. Diddy helped make the music industry.

00:19:15.289 --> 00:19:18.970
Yeah. Just being able to have certain shots.

00:19:20.569 --> 00:19:24.150
I'm just really thankful for because it's moments

00:19:24.150 --> 00:19:27.349
that never happen again. Yeah. Like I said, you

00:19:27.349 --> 00:19:30.190
captured in, you know, in history in the making.

00:19:31.029 --> 00:19:34.339
So it was dope. I did see a video where you're

00:19:34.339 --> 00:19:36.680
promoting the book and a big figure wasn't in

00:19:36.680 --> 00:19:41.319
it. Have you have you rectified that situation?

00:19:41.380 --> 00:19:44.480
Are you working on a second book or any supplemental

00:19:44.480 --> 00:19:46.640
pictures to be added to the first one to like

00:19:46.640 --> 00:19:50.240
extended version or something? Yeah, I've actually

00:19:50.240 --> 00:19:53.480
I've done two different versions of the book.

00:19:53.740 --> 00:19:57.500
OK, so now I'm working on a third version and.

00:19:57.559 --> 00:20:00.119
I'm going to try to reach out a big ticket and

00:20:00.119 --> 00:20:03.299
ask him to get in that version of the book because

00:20:03.299 --> 00:20:10.859
he's like, this is the book that's about hip

00:20:10.859 --> 00:20:14.339
hop that I'm absolutely not in. I thought that

00:20:14.339 --> 00:20:17.220
was hilarious. But you know, it's an open invitation.

00:20:18.180 --> 00:20:21.500
Yeah, yeah, which I need to follow through with

00:20:21.500 --> 00:20:25.339
that because that was so hilarious. I always

00:20:25.339 --> 00:20:29.210
remember that. that one meeting, he's like, I'm

00:20:29.210 --> 00:20:34.009
absolutely not in this. I love the fact that

00:20:34.009 --> 00:20:37.230
he said it. Yeah, it's Big Tigger was one of

00:20:37.230 --> 00:20:41.650
my biggest influences growing up. Yeah, I get

00:20:41.650 --> 00:20:45.390
off school just like a wide park every time I

00:20:45.390 --> 00:20:48.250
came home. Oh, wow. So how was it like meeting

00:20:48.250 --> 00:20:50.029
him in person? And was it like a surreal moment

00:20:50.029 --> 00:20:54.549
for you? Yeah, it was like, it was really cool.

00:20:57.390 --> 00:21:02.710
Honestly, I've been blessed to meet a whole bunch

00:21:02.710 --> 00:21:10.349
of people in person over the years. For instance,

00:21:10.549 --> 00:21:13.430
Cisco. Growing up, me and my cousin, we loved

00:21:13.430 --> 00:21:19.589
Cisco. I met him one day. This was early on in

00:21:19.589 --> 00:21:22.950
my career when I was just starting, just got

00:21:22.950 --> 00:21:27.009
my camera and all that. I do production assistant

00:21:27.009 --> 00:21:32.789
work. And basically I got this set maybe an hour

00:21:32.789 --> 00:21:36.930
before everybody. And when I got there, the makeup

00:21:36.930 --> 00:21:40.750
artist was there and Cisco was there. So Cisco

00:21:40.750 --> 00:21:43.130
came up to me, he's like, hey, what's up on Cisco?

00:21:43.789 --> 00:21:48.150
In my head I'm like, I know who you are. But

00:21:48.150 --> 00:21:50.009
I wasn't gonna tell him that because I don't

00:21:50.009 --> 00:21:51.890
want to come off as like a groupie or anything.

00:21:53.220 --> 00:21:57.579
I just just played it calm and cool. It was like,

00:21:57.640 --> 00:21:59.599
dang. And I called my cousin. I was like, I just

00:21:59.599 --> 00:22:05.619
miss Cisco because Cisco was like fresh. So it's

00:22:05.619 --> 00:22:09.700
like different moments like that. Yeah. Yeah,

00:22:09.700 --> 00:22:12.799
I definitely understand it. So like you've had

00:22:12.799 --> 00:22:16.799
this long career and you have more to go. But

00:22:16.799 --> 00:22:18.720
what would you say would be like, you know, too

00:22:18.720 --> 00:22:23.759
big? Takeaway moments that really resonated with

00:22:23.759 --> 00:22:29.539
you. Oh That's that's yeah, that's tough cuz

00:22:29.539 --> 00:22:33.880
you've had a lot of Really think about that like

00:22:33.880 --> 00:22:40.700
oh well, one of my favorites was um, I was So

00:22:40.700 --> 00:22:44.359
I started doing boxing and when I did boxing

00:22:44.359 --> 00:22:46.859
one of the first boxers I interviewed cuz I have

00:22:46.859 --> 00:22:51.130
a boxing magazine as well with Nico Ali Wash.

00:22:51.769 --> 00:22:56.670
And that experience for me was really cool. One

00:22:56.670 --> 00:23:01.910
of the things that happened was Flavor Flav is

00:23:01.910 --> 00:23:09.130
his godfather. So we're just chilling after the

00:23:09.130 --> 00:23:12.210
weigh -in. I'm showing Nico the pictures that

00:23:12.210 --> 00:23:16.630
I've taken of him that day. And then he says,

00:23:16.920 --> 00:23:19.579
Oh, your pictures are better than top ranked

00:23:19.579 --> 00:23:25.900
pictures. Flavor Flav looks at me and he says,

00:23:25.900 --> 00:23:32.339
Chris, I'm gonna need you not to let that slide.

00:23:33.099 --> 00:23:36.819
What you tell him is he hired you because you're

00:23:36.819 --> 00:23:41.039
the best. Your pictures are just better than

00:23:41.039 --> 00:23:43.099
somebody else's. He hired you because you're

00:23:43.099 --> 00:23:47.529
the best. Don't ever let that slide. That was

00:23:47.529 --> 00:23:51.309
one of the funniest like one of the best Moments

00:23:51.309 --> 00:23:53.250
cuz flavor flavor is really really down to earth.

00:23:53.250 --> 00:24:00.150
It's really cool. Yeah another Moment when Nico

00:24:00.150 --> 00:24:10.289
I You have to take away if you have to be ready

00:24:10.289 --> 00:24:18.509
at all times At that time I was Basically, my

00:24:18.509 --> 00:24:22.809
friends, I had got them tickets. So I was trying

00:24:22.809 --> 00:24:27.150
to find them. So I had to do, I have to plan

00:24:27.150 --> 00:24:30.789
better for like times like that. But because

00:24:30.789 --> 00:24:32.930
I went to get them the tickets, I missed out

00:24:32.930 --> 00:24:36.869
on taking pictures of Kanye West and Michael

00:24:36.869 --> 00:24:42.690
B. Jordan. Oh, wow. Yeah. So that was like, oh,

00:24:42.789 --> 00:24:50.670
damn. Okay. So basically, two takeaways, don't

00:24:50.670 --> 00:24:55.470
undervalue yourself. The second takeaway is just

00:24:55.470 --> 00:25:01.150
be ready and don't have too many. Just, just

00:25:01.150 --> 00:25:04.329
be ready at all times because anything can happen

00:25:04.329 --> 00:25:07.769
and make sure you have a backup plan. Oh, yeah,

00:25:07.809 --> 00:25:10.609
I've learned that with videography and, you know,

00:25:10.750 --> 00:25:12.930
production and putting stuff together. I always

00:25:12.930 --> 00:25:14.910
have a backup plan. I mean, when I was doing

00:25:14.910 --> 00:25:18.410
skits and I had wrote everything, had everything

00:25:18.410 --> 00:25:21.730
all planned out, location, all that for the actors,

00:25:21.730 --> 00:25:23.509
they're supposed to be in it canceled on that

00:25:23.509 --> 00:25:27.230
same morning. I had to replace them. Yeah. And

00:25:27.230 --> 00:25:29.569
luckily, because of networking, I was able to

00:25:29.569 --> 00:25:32.329
get other people to show up, still do the skit,

00:25:32.390 --> 00:25:34.690
put it out and get the results that it needed

00:25:34.690 --> 00:25:37.869
to get when I put it out on social media. As

00:25:37.869 --> 00:25:41.130
far as the business side of photography, how

00:25:41.130 --> 00:25:43.009
is that like, what's something that people don't

00:25:43.009 --> 00:25:45.369
realize that, you know, y 'all go through or

00:25:45.369 --> 00:25:47.609
you have to experience as photographers that,

00:25:47.670 --> 00:25:50.730
you know, they necessarily wouldn't know? Well,

00:25:50.950 --> 00:25:53.750
as photographers, a lot of people want you to

00:25:53.750 --> 00:25:58.619
do free work. Especially if you're trying to

00:25:58.619 --> 00:26:05.220
enter the industry. A lot of people, even though

00:26:05.220 --> 00:26:08.220
you're the one capturing the images and everything,

00:26:08.720 --> 00:26:12.900
they feel like you're replaceable. Like you become

00:26:12.900 --> 00:26:17.880
replaceable. You have to do a lot of work. You

00:26:17.880 --> 00:26:22.539
will get a lot of people that will just use you

00:26:22.539 --> 00:26:27.299
for what you can do in the moment. And yeah,

00:26:27.339 --> 00:26:30.480
you just have to be aware of that. And you also

00:26:30.480 --> 00:26:33.579
have to make sure that at the end of the day,

00:26:33.740 --> 00:26:37.460
you're getting what you can get from the deal.

00:26:37.960 --> 00:26:43.059
Because a lot of people, a lot of snakes, a lot

00:26:43.059 --> 00:26:52.980
of just, I guess, unaligned energies. And that

00:26:52.980 --> 00:26:56.759
comes with, any industry you're trying to get

00:26:56.759 --> 00:27:02.339
in. Mm hmm. Like it's just a lot of opportunities,

00:27:02.480 --> 00:27:06.759
a lot of. Yeah, yeah, it's just like a lot of

00:27:06.759 --> 00:27:10.720
opportunities and that's a lot of stuff you have

00:27:10.720 --> 00:27:13.500
to do to kind of climb to the next level in the

00:27:13.500 --> 00:27:17.019
industry. So what would be typical stuff of like

00:27:17.019 --> 00:27:19.599
industry standard stuff that, you know, new photographers

00:27:19.599 --> 00:27:22.059
or someone who's wanting to transfer their skills

00:27:22.059 --> 00:27:25.859
into like, let's say the entertainment aspect

00:27:25.859 --> 00:27:29.440
of the industry with photography. Do you have

00:27:29.440 --> 00:27:32.259
to take on like a lot of jobs or that are like,

00:27:32.259 --> 00:27:36.220
you know, low pay or, you know, free or like.

00:27:37.539 --> 00:27:41.299
If I would tell anyone something, I would tell

00:27:41.299 --> 00:27:45.880
them. Only take on a few jobs like and you're

00:27:45.880 --> 00:27:50.880
going to take on a few jobs, take on maybe two

00:27:50.880 --> 00:27:55.329
or three. Just to get your portfolio going and

00:27:55.329 --> 00:28:00.930
set yourself cheap, like into this industry with

00:28:00.930 --> 00:28:05.930
your prices. Don't undersell yourself because

00:28:05.930 --> 00:28:12.829
it's like that one saying, um, what's that saying?

00:28:13.650 --> 00:28:24.910
Um, talents. Like no talent makes money when

00:28:24.910 --> 00:28:29.109
talent doesn't work or something like that. So

00:28:29.109 --> 00:28:33.609
basically it doesn't matter your skillset. Somebody

00:28:33.609 --> 00:28:35.890
needs your services and they will pay for it.

00:28:35.890 --> 00:28:37.829
You don't have to be perfect at what you do.

00:28:38.250 --> 00:28:41.329
You just have to work because if you never do

00:28:41.329 --> 00:28:45.789
it, you never have a chance. So it's many photographers

00:28:45.789 --> 00:28:50.269
who have never had certain experiences and aren't

00:28:50.269 --> 00:28:52.650
at certain levels, but it doesn't matter. What

00:28:52.650 --> 00:28:55.470
matters is that they actually are doing the work.

00:28:55.829 --> 00:29:00.869
So I would say do the work, do your portfolio,

00:29:01.150 --> 00:29:03.549
but don't even worry about getting a portfolio.

00:29:03.750 --> 00:29:06.369
Just more so worry about putting your pricing

00:29:06.369 --> 00:29:12.549
out there and to do the gigs and don't put people

00:29:12.549 --> 00:29:18.039
in your pricing. Like use pricing that will help

00:29:18.039 --> 00:29:22.400
you pay what you need to pay and the right customers

00:29:22.400 --> 00:29:28.240
will come along. Would you say, would you mentor

00:29:28.240 --> 00:29:31.220
someone or have you mentored anyone coming into

00:29:31.220 --> 00:29:36.160
the industry or would you have it? Yeah, I have

00:29:36.160 --> 00:29:40.700
actually done mentoring and then I would definitely.

00:29:43.640 --> 00:29:49.559
I would. Would definitely advise that like it's

00:29:49.559 --> 00:29:56.579
okay to get a few pictures done, but just Do

00:29:56.579 --> 00:30:01.400
Have your prices set having fun. Yeah Yeah, cuz

00:30:01.400 --> 00:30:04.319
I definitely understand where people try to undervalue

00:30:04.319 --> 00:30:07.460
your skill sets and things of that nature Like

00:30:07.460 --> 00:30:09.019
how does that typically work as far as like,

00:30:09.099 --> 00:30:11.990
you know pay me to do? Are you? pay upfront with

00:30:11.990 --> 00:30:14.690
a deposit, um, to make sure you show up on location

00:30:14.690 --> 00:30:17.430
or do a lot of people try to be like, Hey, we'll

00:30:17.430 --> 00:30:20.670
pay you when you show up or after the job is

00:30:20.670 --> 00:30:24.109
done. A lot of people try to say they'll pay

00:30:24.109 --> 00:30:26.670
you after a job is done. But the correct way

00:30:26.670 --> 00:30:31.509
is to actually say, okay, well I take 50 % deposit

00:30:31.509 --> 00:30:36.809
lake. And this is like just standard because

00:30:36.809 --> 00:30:42.250
I can't show up and it's not refundable. to the

00:30:42.250 --> 00:30:46.670
deposit because even if I show up or even if

00:30:46.670 --> 00:30:49.849
you cancel, I still have some money. Because

00:30:49.849 --> 00:30:53.589
a lot of times if you don't do that, it brings

00:30:53.589 --> 00:30:58.829
a thing where people won't respect you. Oh, well,

00:30:58.829 --> 00:31:02.250
I can cancel at the last minute. It doesn't matter.

00:31:02.410 --> 00:31:07.670
I don't have to pay them anything. And yours

00:31:07.670 --> 00:31:12.819
is not paid. probably put off other things that

00:31:12.819 --> 00:31:18.579
you could do just to get this job and not get

00:31:18.579 --> 00:31:22.500
anything. It just had a last minute cancellation.

00:31:23.259 --> 00:31:25.759
Yeah, no, definitely respect that. You know,

00:31:25.759 --> 00:31:28.220
I've always paid people a front for their price

00:31:28.220 --> 00:31:31.500
or something to deposit. And I was never a person

00:31:31.500 --> 00:31:33.599
where when I hired videographers and photographers

00:31:33.599 --> 00:31:35.900
to do stuff for me, I was never one of those

00:31:35.900 --> 00:31:39.299
people. but also uh you know my background is

00:31:39.299 --> 00:31:42.859
just business in general so I operate with a

00:31:42.859 --> 00:31:45.279
higher integrity of always wanting to be known

00:31:45.279 --> 00:31:47.779
as a person who does great business not good

00:31:47.779 --> 00:31:50.940
business but great business um I've never got

00:31:50.940 --> 00:31:53.160
over on artists when I had them perform I paid

00:31:53.160 --> 00:31:56.400
them even if they're not as known as other people

00:31:56.400 --> 00:31:59.890
I'm saying think that you know because Sometimes,

00:31:59.890 --> 00:32:01.430
you know, you run into a situation where people

00:32:01.430 --> 00:32:02.710
are, well, you're not known enough to charge,

00:32:02.890 --> 00:32:05.089
blah, blah, blah. It's not about that. It's about

00:32:05.089 --> 00:32:06.769
someone doing a job for you that's convenient

00:32:06.769 --> 00:32:12.509
and you don't know how to do it. So. I definitely

00:32:12.509 --> 00:32:19.130
go ahead. That's such you above like that. You

00:32:19.130 --> 00:32:22.170
have a high standard and that's really gay. Mm

00:32:22.170 --> 00:32:25.309
hmm. Just like that's what I believe in. You

00:32:25.309 --> 00:32:27.390
know, I believe in paying people what they're

00:32:27.390 --> 00:32:30.339
worth. I believe in not taking advantage of folks

00:32:30.339 --> 00:32:32.940
either regardless of what their entry level to

00:32:32.940 --> 00:32:37.240
the industry is They could be the best been doing

00:32:37.240 --> 00:32:39.200
it for 20 years. I could be just starting off.

00:32:39.200 --> 00:32:42.279
I'm not gonna treat them as a type of way of

00:32:42.279 --> 00:32:45.160
where I want to take advantage because um, I

00:32:45.160 --> 00:32:47.660
just don't believe in this I think the industry

00:32:47.660 --> 00:32:52.140
can be changed all around to do more better business

00:32:52.140 --> 00:32:55.099
than what it's currently doing and what it's

00:32:55.099 --> 00:32:57.240
been doing for years it shouldn't be the status

00:32:57.240 --> 00:33:00.640
quo of people like you know wanting to get into

00:33:00.640 --> 00:33:02.799
something having a passion for it and then quitting

00:33:02.799 --> 00:33:05.759
two three years later because they keep running

00:33:05.759 --> 00:33:07.720
into like you say snakes and things of nature

00:33:07.720 --> 00:33:11.180
or people not really respecting what they do

00:33:11.180 --> 00:33:13.400
because at the end of the day someone's making

00:33:13.400 --> 00:33:16.160
it more convenient for you to be able to pull

00:33:16.160 --> 00:33:18.240
off what you're trying to do and without those

00:33:18.240 --> 00:33:20.970
people you have to do it yourself Well, if you

00:33:20.970 --> 00:33:22.910
haven't invested in the time, the equipment that

00:33:22.910 --> 00:33:24.630
it takes, knowing, you know what I'm saying,

00:33:24.650 --> 00:33:29.730
what to do with the edits, then it is what it

00:33:29.730 --> 00:33:35.250
is. What's your view take on like AI and how

00:33:35.250 --> 00:33:37.329
like a lot of people are using AI for like, you

00:33:37.329 --> 00:33:41.029
know, photos and stuff and not necessarily thinking

00:33:41.029 --> 00:33:44.009
that they should hire photographers? I'm gonna

00:33:44.009 --> 00:33:49.279
be honest. I think AI is... in a lot of ways,

00:33:49.500 --> 00:33:55.619
the heaven sent like, and I don't hold it against

00:33:55.619 --> 00:33:59.160
anyone who uses it, even for photos of themselves,

00:33:59.160 --> 00:34:03.920
because not everybody can afford to get a photographer.

00:34:04.019 --> 00:34:06.259
Not everybody has time to get a photographer.

00:34:07.160 --> 00:34:10.000
And then I'll talk about not everybody is exceptionally

00:34:10.000 --> 00:34:15.840
good at taking pictures. Some people like the

00:34:15.840 --> 00:34:18.159
pictures that they would get from AI. would be

00:34:18.159 --> 00:34:21.059
like the best pictures of themselves. And it's

00:34:21.059 --> 00:34:23.519
not that picture doesn't look like them. It looks

00:34:23.519 --> 00:34:28.500
just like them, but they wouldn't, if they were

00:34:28.500 --> 00:34:31.519
to do like a photo shoot in real life, either

00:34:31.519 --> 00:34:36.199
they're more critical of their pictures or they

00:34:36.199 --> 00:34:39.719
prefer how they look when the pictures are AI.

00:34:40.420 --> 00:34:47.239
So I'm all for AI on several levels. Now, Of

00:34:47.239 --> 00:34:51.780
course, there are also ways that AI is like,

00:34:52.199 --> 00:34:58.440
oh, no, this is horrible. I would say some of

00:34:58.440 --> 00:35:02.579
those ways would be, for instance, when they

00:35:02.579 --> 00:35:08.420
have videos and the videos are depicting somebody

00:35:08.420 --> 00:35:14.840
in very not so good circumstances, where AI can

00:35:14.840 --> 00:35:18.030
be like, too much or it can destroy someone's

00:35:18.030 --> 00:35:22.969
life. So it's a double -edged sword to AI for

00:35:22.969 --> 00:35:27.789
me, but I for the most part find it to be an

00:35:27.789 --> 00:35:32.530
amazing tool that can be used to help you to

00:35:32.530 --> 00:35:36.550
be more effective, either in timing or in getting

00:35:36.550 --> 00:35:39.449
things done. Yeah, I definitely look at it as

00:35:39.449 --> 00:35:41.730
a tool and as long as we treat it like that and

00:35:41.730 --> 00:35:44.210
don't rely on it too heavily, then it just is

00:35:44.210 --> 00:35:48.070
what it is. Just like money is a tool. So what's

00:35:48.070 --> 00:35:52.090
next for Retro Chris and what you want to accomplish

00:35:52.090 --> 00:35:58.550
going into 2026? Next for me is I'm really going

00:35:58.550 --> 00:36:03.969
to be doing more books on advance and stuff just

00:36:03.969 --> 00:36:07.929
to capture the moments. So for instance, like,

00:36:07.949 --> 00:36:12.050
um, I'm doing a lot of sporting events right

00:36:12.050 --> 00:36:16.489
now. Um, I'll be like documenting a lot of those

00:36:16.489 --> 00:36:20.190
or better yet, I'll be saying I'll be doing like

00:36:20.190 --> 00:36:24.889
more magazines per se with interviews on certain

00:36:24.889 --> 00:36:29.110
moments and certain events. I also will probably

00:36:29.110 --> 00:36:32.949
be doing more like art display, maybe taking

00:36:32.949 --> 00:36:37.269
on some like mentor like people I could train

00:36:37.269 --> 00:36:40.110
to do certain things and kind of like building

00:36:40.110 --> 00:36:45.130
more of a leadership role for myself. Okay. Also,

00:36:45.170 --> 00:36:49.550
in addition to the books and everything, I'm

00:36:49.550 --> 00:36:52.530
really going to create like a retro type museum.

00:36:52.829 --> 00:36:55.789
That's for sure. One of my biggest projects right

00:36:55.789 --> 00:36:58.610
there. That's for sure. I think that'd be a cool

00:36:58.610 --> 00:37:01.170
project to undertake. And, you know, once you

00:37:01.170 --> 00:37:03.190
do that, definitely I'd like to come out and

00:37:03.190 --> 00:37:06.250
see that. So for everybody out there, they want

00:37:06.250 --> 00:37:08.710
to learn about you. They want to hire. They want

00:37:08.710 --> 00:37:10.550
to go look at your work and see what you've done,

00:37:10.610 --> 00:37:12.389
where they need to be directed to. You can find

00:37:12.389 --> 00:37:16.070
me at Retro Chris Media on Instagram. I also

00:37:16.070 --> 00:37:19.769
have a boxing platform. The platform is called

00:37:19.769 --> 00:37:23.090
Behind the Boxer magazine. And in this coming

00:37:23.090 --> 00:37:26.769
year, I'll be starting up a hip hop magazine

00:37:26.769 --> 00:37:30.869
and a basketball magazine as well under the retro.

00:37:31.210 --> 00:37:35.369
You're doing a lot of stuff, Chris. Yeah. I love

00:37:35.369 --> 00:37:39.289
it though. You know, you doing books and stuff.

00:37:39.429 --> 00:37:43.050
It seems like that has transpired and grown because

00:37:43.050 --> 00:37:45.250
you nurtured it. And now it's blossomed into

00:37:45.250 --> 00:37:46.710
something that you never probably thought you

00:37:46.710 --> 00:37:50.730
would be doing. I didn't like, um, I remember

00:37:50.730 --> 00:37:53.329
myself as a kid, I would be trying to go meet

00:37:53.329 --> 00:37:55.469
all these people. Like I got to meet Beyonce

00:37:55.469 --> 00:38:00.579
in 1998. Destiny child, I still have an autograph

00:38:00.579 --> 00:38:03.119
to this day. So certain stuff like that. I will

00:38:03.119 --> 00:38:06.780
put in my museum. Like, yeah. That's what's up.

00:38:06.840 --> 00:38:08.280
That's what's up. So everybody out there, you

00:38:08.280 --> 00:38:11.739
have me. I go follow Rachel Chris media on Instagram

00:38:11.739 --> 00:38:15.480
and also the box. So the boxing is there a social

00:38:15.480 --> 00:38:18.900
media for that? Yeah. Or a website behind the

00:38:18.900 --> 00:38:22.860
boxer magazine on Instagram and the website is

00:38:22.860 --> 00:38:26.159
behind the boxer .com. behindtheboxer .com I

00:38:26.159 --> 00:38:28.219
definitely gonna check that out and I want to

00:38:28.219 --> 00:38:32.219
see what this hip hop and uh you said uh basketballs

00:38:32.219 --> 00:38:36.699
um yeah like um the hip hop magazine is actually

00:38:36.699 --> 00:38:39.719
it's gonna be a whole kind of like a different

00:38:39.719 --> 00:38:42.820
take it's not gonna necessarily artists won't

00:38:42.820 --> 00:38:45.340
be the forefront but the people behind the scenes

00:38:45.340 --> 00:38:47.739
and i'll put it that way that's what's up i like

00:38:47.739 --> 00:38:50.159
that it's something different yeah That's what's

00:38:50.159 --> 00:38:51.460
up. That's what's up. So y 'all make sure y 'all

00:38:51.460 --> 00:38:53.699
go and follow and y 'all can continue to always

00:38:53.699 --> 00:38:56.880
support the platform bank that radio show underscore

00:38:56.880 --> 00:38:59.960
radio bank that underscore radio underscore show

00:38:59.960 --> 00:39:02.920
on Instagram and make that radio show on Facebook

00:39:02.920 --> 00:39:05.320
as well. Chris, I appreciate you taking time

00:39:05.320 --> 00:39:07.340
out your busy day. Thank you so much.