Pac Div -- A Much Needed Mental Break

Recently, I spent about two weeks in Pittsburgh helping out with a family emergency. Anyone who knows me knows that, in crisis situations, I just go into what I call "Go Mode". "Go mode" means I'm fully available for anything anyone needs, and I put all my own personal needs and wants on the backburner. It's not something I have to try to do, it's just how I'm made. But, being in Go Mode for extended periods of time is draining! Thankfully, I was doing some research on music venues in Pittsburgh (because shooting live music--and being around crowds of people that love live music--is one of the best stress relievers I have in my arsenal) and discovered that Pac Div had a show at Shadow Lounge coming up. Not only was this live music, it was live music from an awesome group that I was already a fan of, and I had missed their show back home in North Carolina (along with many of my hometown favorites opening) because I was in Pittsburgh on this family emergency! Needless to say, I went, and it was exactly what I needed. Pac Div puts on an AMAZING live show, and they are just about the most down to earth people I've met.

Thanks guys! Bet you didn't know how much you helped ME out the other night!

On the left: Mibbs and on the right: BeYoung

On the left: Like and on the right: yup, that's BeYoung using TWO microphones!

Like, rocking an AWESOME hat.

Like, "chillin" (I can't say it enough...DOPE live performace!!)

Mibbs stuck close to me most of the night, so I got some pretty nice close ups! (I've been trying to read that forearm tattoo upside down since I started editing! Can't quite make it all out.)

And here's BeYoung. With another really fly hat.

He showed me lots of camera love! I appreciate it!

Personally, my favorite pics of the night are of the ladies just LOVING these men (can't say I blame them!!). Check THESE expressions out:

Ok, that's all for now! Go download their mixtape, it's definitely worth it. I had it on repeat during a long drive the other day for almost three hours! And, if you're in Pittsburgh, the Shadow Lounge is a pretty dope venue. There are paintings all over the place, they had candles on the stage, and at one point, a chick was set up with a canvas, an easel, and paint...painting right in the middle of the venue! Dope!

As always, I look forward to your comments.

Luv,

Angie

EPIC PHOTO!!!!

I can't even write much on this one right now. Just know that some hip hop legends, past present and future, are ALL in this shot...and I'm so grateful that I had the chance to take it!

Thanks guys.

Michael "Myk'l" Hanna and the Sound Syndicate

Meet Myk'l Hanna, and the Sound Syndicate. These guys (plus the occasional guest appearance from a super-talented lady saxophone player) could arguably be some of the most musically talented people I know. Plus they are just awesome people in general! In any given performance, you can see them cover songs from The Roots, Elton John, and Jamie Foxx, plus some traditional jazz, and a few Myk'l Hanna originals thrown in there as well (THOSE are my personal favorite). In the spring, they had been playing a regular gig at the Broad Street Cafe in Durham on the third Sunday of every month. These pics are from two of those performances. They took a break during the summer, but they will be back on starting August 22nd, 7:30 p.m. at the Broad Street Cafe. I HIGHLY recommend coming out to see them. Not only will there be amazing music, but the Broad Street Cafe has really yummy food and an awesome atmosphere. Plus, it's free! You really can't beat that.

Hope you enjoyed the pics, and more importantly, I hope you come enjoy the music!

Luv,

Angie

Portrait Session with Azon Blaze

I'm going to apologize in advance for the LARGE amount of photos I'm about to post of this awesome guy! If you haven't seen the previous blog posts yet, this is post number 3 on Azon Blaze. THIS is the real reason why he contacted me--for portraits to use for promos, etc. I had never met him before--never heard of him. Usually when I do portraits for someone, I at least know a little bit about them. It's super important for me to capture WHO the person really is, not just some amazing shot that I have posed them in. So, we talked a little bit ahead of time, and he kept telling me how shy he was! I've got to admit, I was a little bit scared. I'm camera shy (but trying to get over it--on the sheer premise that it is just SUPER ironic!) so I know how that can create some awkward shots! Plus I don't like putting people in situations where they feel uncomfortable. Anyway, all I have to say is, he may be "shy" in terms of how he deals with people (even though I still have yet to see anything of the sort! Humble, yes. Shy, no.), he most certainly is NOT camera shy! So, here we go...enjoy! (Ladies, you especially will enjoy this..he is a cutie!)

Told you he wasn't shy! LRG---need a new model? Anyway, let me know what you guys think!

Luv,

Angie

Group Promo Shots-- Azon Blaze, SkyBlew, and more!

When I took pics for Azon Blaze a while back, he had his boy SkyBlew with him (and their entire crew--who you'll see later!), so we took some group shots. I LOVE taking big group shots like this, and it's something you don't get to do very often! In fact, I LOVE that they have this huge crew--it's something you don't see a lot nowadays...it's more like the 90s crews! Anyway, here's a few group shots for you to enjoy:

Hope you like them! As always, feel free to leave your amazing constructive criticisms!

Luv,

Angie

Azon Blaze and SkyBlew at The Library!

So, somewhere, somehow, thanks to twitter, this GEM of awesomeness found ME! He needed some portraits to use for promos, etc., and wanted some performance pics too. Here are just a few of the performance pics. Oh, by the way, his name is Azon Blaze, and his buddy is SkyBlew. I HIGHLY recommend checking out their music! They did a mixtape project together called Blaze the Sky, and you can listen and/or download that right here. (I have to admit, since Azon Blaze hit me up out of nowhere, I didn't really know what to expect. I was VERY pleasantly surprised when I checked him out! The same for SkyBlew! They are seriously BURSTING with awesomeness!) Below, check out just a few more performance pics:

Hope you enjoy them! Feel free to leave me some feedback...

Luv,

Angie

Actual Proof

So, today's pics are of this awesome group, Actual Proof. These pics are also from the May 9th Wonder Artist's Showcase, but I just gave them their own post, because they are that awesome! (Yup, I used awesome twice in two sentences! That's how....awesome...they are!)

This is Sundown...

and this is Enigma.

These guys are not only amazingly talented artists, they are also GREAT performers! I highly recommend seeing them! They will be at the artists showcase at the Brewery this month also! (See the last post for more info).

Luv,

Angie