Free....In Words, Images, and Sounds

ETA MU ALPHAS: TRIBUTE TO A BLACK WOMAN

2008-10-03T20:31:00.006-06:00

I had the pleasure of being one of the photographers for the annual
"Tribute to a Black Woman." Put on by the Eta Mu Alphas at the University
of Houston. This was my first time getting to play with my new lens so I
was definitely excited about it. Here are of few images from the night, look
out of the photo album on facebook, anywho........enjoy

DINNER @ SAMBUCA, GOOD PEOPLE, GOOD PLACE = GREAT PICTURES!

2008-07-12T05:33:00.009-06:00

WEDDING!!!

2008-07-07T01:06:00.014-06:00

I finally covered my first wedding as a second shooter
for my good friend Jamaal Ellis. I was really excited to
finally get an opportunity to do a full wedding, so enough talk
here's how it turned out

MY WEEKEND....RANDOM PHOTOS

2008-06-05T01:08:00.008-06:00

Ok...so I lied!

2008-05-06T22:14:00.010-06:00

Ok Ok, I said my next blog was gonna be a photography blog
but im really busy studying for finals so I dont really feel
like getting into photoshop and doing all that picture crap
at the moment....BUT...there are a few things online that I
just had to post, ok? ok!

Fujiwara....What will he think up next?

THIS!!!!!

Ok, for those that don't know about Mr. Hiroshi Fujiwara...
here is a quick biography, he pretty much is the Og
of the whole Japanese streetwear culture, which means
the dude has had a humongous impact on the worldwide
street culture scene. Brands like GoodEnough, Head Porter,
Levi's Fenom....he's behind all of em! I could go on and on
about the man, he's pretty much an icon and responsible
for alot of what you see in the fashion world these
days. Anywho, he designed these sweet P-Rod's for Nike SB,
as you can see the sneakers are simple but yet detailed in the
right places, peep the rainbow pattern....niiiiiiice.

RYAN LESLIE

This dude is a musical genius, he's fairly new in the game but I think he
definitely has a long succesful career ahead of him, all he needs to do now
is drop Cassie and focus on his solo projects. The guy is very talented,
he's an exceptional singer and emcee, and an amazing musician. I admit I was
sleeping on him for a long time but now im finally paying attention. Check out
his skills on the piano in this video.

Thats all the blogging I can do for now....back to studying!
Photos coming soon

PEACE

The week that was

2008-05-05T01:35:00.015-06:00

Ahhh! I can rest again!
The past week was a lot of fun; Sean, Yves, the rest of the guys and I
been planning it for a very long time, damn near 3-4 months...maybe
more. Anyway I'm glad that everything went according to plan(well for
the most part..lol) and there were even a few pleasant surprises...like
the Glow In The Dark Tour! It was definitely a great week, and if this is
a preview of what's to come in the summer, I'm looking forward to it. We
ended it with a bang at the Vault on Saturday, and it was only a matter of time
before The Niceguys threw a party, then look at what happened...we packed
the club out before midnight! Now back to reality, I have two finals to
knock out this week before I can even begin to make any summer plans.
I am actually studying as I type this blog, you can see how lazy of a
student I am.....but I'll be ok. It's been a good minute since I updated the blog,
due to the fact that my rebuilt pc just officially got back up and running.
Now that the comp is back up to speed, you can expect some new blogs from
my previous photo sessions from the past 3 or 4 weeks. Thanks for continuing
to read my boring blog, and since you been so nice folks....I shall leave
you with some ear and eye candy for you audio and visual pleasure! enjoy.

The Nike Air Yeezy's

Yes, Kanye West now has his own sneaker, and it's a good look.

It's combination of the Nike Air McFly's and Air Bapes. Nike has outdone
themselves once again with another brilliant sneaker, this is definitely 10 times
better than the "G-Units" and the "S.Dots" hah! Kanye himself said it best at the Glow In The Dark Concert, "I got somethin else to talk sh*t about!"....and indeed he does.

The Roots "Rising Up" Music Video

Anyone who knows me knows that I'm a huge fan of The Roots, so this
is definitely a big deal to me. This is the first single from their
new album entitled "Rising Down," its a great video if you're a fan
of simplicity and not a fan of all the cliches that we see in most
hip hop videos today. Take a look!

Anyway, thanks for checking out my blog, I shall return with more photo updates
soon. I leave you with the words of the brilliant Dr.Eric Michael Ward,
"have fun, be safe!"

peace

Mr. Pink & Green 08'

2008-03-13T21:05:00.004-06:00

Wednesday night I went out for a shoot with the men of the Mr. Pink
& Green Pageant. This was my first nighttime shoot, and it went fairly well.
We went to the Theatre District, which was definitely a nice location with a lot
of light, so I didnt have to use my flash which was great. Anywho, no need for
a long paragraph, I'll let the pictures do the talking!(hahaha, that was corny, I know)

Here are some of my favorites

enjoy

Has R&B Lost Its Soul? Ehh? Ehh? Ehh?

2008-03-10T19:12:00.039-06:00

(A few days ago, just browsing through my iTunes
I was listening to some of my R&B and it made me want to blog on this matter.
So here it goes.....and all you die hard R&B'ers dont take it personal,
this is coming from one of your own....me!)

For the last few years, R&B music has gotten progressively worse
and it doesn't take a genius to realize that. In this decade, we have
been in what I like to call the "Porn" era, where damn near 90
percent of the R&B music that you hear is filled with nothing but sex,
sex and more sex. I'm exhausted from it, and not to mention disgusted.
Long gone are the days of singers who actually stood for something.
Singers like Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Curtis Mayfield,
and Donny Hathaway offered social commentary, life experiences, and
so much more in their music. In this new era, artists(and I use that term
very loosely) offer almost the exact opposite.

Marvin Gaye
Curtis Mayfield

Stevie Wonder

R&B artists follow this repetitive cycle that I've grown tired of,
and it goes as follows: You go to the club, you spot the girl, you approach
the girl and get the girl, you have countless hours of passionate or sometimes
rough sex with the girl, you fall in love with the girl, you cheat on the girl
or vice versa, break up with the girl, become heartbroken, and then repeat.
This cycle is what has been dominating mainstream R&B music of this millenium.
I think that cycle is pathetic, because its not authentic, and its not life.

Music is an expression of life and if "love" and sex dominate your life,
you need to reevaluate it asap. Sometimes people wanna hear about that job you
got fired from,we wanna hear about your family, your everyday struggles,
the world as you see it, or things that make you happy. I just don't wanna hear
about your new late night hype or your girlfriend on every song, because you
know you get tired of them sometimes. I think it all boils down to the simple fact
that artists don't write songs anymore, co-writing is one thing but having
someone write your entire song for you, completely takes away from the
creativity and artistry that is required to make timeless music like the Marvin's
and Stevie's. So not writing your music = lack of originality, and if you suffer from
a lack of originality.....well that pretty much means you wont last very long in music.

Despite these non writing porn singers, there still is hope for this genre.
John Legend, Robin Thicke, Van Hunt, Alicia Keys, Darien Brockington,
Erykah Badu, Bilal, Dwele, Musiq, Raheem DeVaughn and several others are
bringing back the authenticity and substance to the R&B/Soul category. My
challenge to this listeners is to go out and search for something new, don't
settle for the "J.Holiday", or the "Dream". They may have great singles
but lets be honest, they probably will be out of commission in 2 years or less.
No one wants to hear an ALBUM full of SINGLES. Step outside of your radio/top 40
box for once. Try some "Neo Soul" (Jill Scott, Dwele, Miss Badu, Musiq, etc.)
Or, go back a few decades and listen to some old school soul music.
I'm pretty sure you're just going to go for the porn music anyway so I'll quit
wasting my time preaching to your music perverts!

This is what you R&B dummies need in your life

just a few dope R&B/soul albums, some new...some kinda old
but if you haven't heard them yet....buy or download them now!

Oh, and since you actually took the time to read through
my boring blog, here's a nice musical treat for you
http://rapidshare.com/files/82212012/1973SwInn.rar
"Innervisions" by Stevie Wonder...one of his greatest
albums to date, hear how good music sounds you jerks!
oh and shout outs to Niyi for puttin me on game.

(RE) INTRODUCTION

2008-03-08T15:10:00.003-06:00

Its been about a year since I really updated this thing,
but as you can see from the previous posts, I’m back on
it. Anyway, my name is Free, I attend the University of
Houston, I’m a full time student, part-time photographer,
music producer, 1/4th of a band called the Niceguys, and
1/4th of the Dobale Universe which is a clothing brand/
artistic project. I am also 1/12th of the indmix.com camp.

A lot has changed in a year, and I definitely
feel that, even though I've grown so much, I’m still young,
in age and in my mind. I've made progress, made mistakes,
learned from the mistakes, and made more. Despite
everything, I couldn't be happier with where I am right now.
I thank God everyday for putting me here in Houston, and
surrounding me with great people. I'm not gonna get to mushy,
but mentally I'm in a good place right now. You're gonna be
getting a ton of new blog updates, and I really mean it this time.
I have a lot to say, a lot to show, and a lot of music for y'all to
hear. Be on the lookout for new music from The Niceguys,
new shirts from Dobale, and also keep checking on
Dr. E. Mike's blog [www.boombocks.blogspot.com].
Well, that's about it for now, i'll be hittin with more updates soon.

JOHN LEGEND IN CONCERT!!!!!

2008-03-08T14:34:00.003-06:00

Yesterday I was sitting around, bored, thinking of something
to do on Friday night. Earlier I heard about this rodeo at Reliant
Stadium, and that John Legend would be performing that night.
So I made a few phone calls, and luckily, I received these

As you can see these are tickets...lol

I decided to roll out with my roommate/huge John Legend fan
Dr.Eric Michael, and he was pretty excited.

Getting those tickets was one of the best decisions I have ever
made, besides sitting through the boring bull riding and calf wrestling.
Anyway, John Legend killed it, his band killed it as well, a lot of singers are just
singers and not entertainers, John Legend is definitely an entertainer.
Its one thing to see someone perform live on television, but to attend
the concert and experience it, its a great feeling. Shoutouts to E.Mike for
rollin with me, and shoutout to Janae and Ose for settin it up. Another
shoutout to PJ and the Fab 5, the vault was a good look last night!

PEACE!!

Photo Shoot....and Goods

2008-03-06T17:55:00.006-06:00

Wednesday afternoon I had a photo shoot with my homegirl Sarita,
shoutouts to Sarita, its always fun and a lot easier doing photo shoots
with friends. The portraits came out great, here's a look at a few of
my favorites.

Congrats on finally gettin up outta school! lol...hope you liked the pics.

Since I was already in the Rice University area,I figured I'd hit up
Premium Goods and say hi to everyone. I wasn't there to make any
purchases...well...that was until i saw this

new king stampede fitteds!!!!!

so I had to get my hands on one of these bad boys...King Stampede
is definitely on point with their fitteds, this is beautiful.

I was really tempted to cop these, but, I made a vow to never
spend rent money on sneakers...lol...well...at least not until summer! hehehe
hopefully I'll catch these in a week or two when the price goes down
a bit, but i need them in my life.....nike is doin the damn thing with these
new air max 1 releases....goodness!

This is Ryan....lol

He clocks in and does this all day! slacker!!!! haha

He had on a mean pair of pumas though, this was after he
got tired of wearing his super exclusive Undefeated Dunks!
lol.....damn sneakerhead!

more sneakers

and etc.

Jen

Ikem? lol! jk....I notice a resemblence though.

Well, that was my Wednesday, not very eventful...but it was productive.
Until next time blog world.......PEACE!

Mr.Pink and Green Photo Shoot

2007-03-18T02:09:00.000-06:00

On Friday I had a photo shoot with the contestants for the Mr.Pink & Green Pageant. The shoot went really well, and its funny because I had all these plans laid out for how I wanted it. As soon as we got to the architecture building, I looked at one of the guys as he was sitting down and something hit me. I scrapped all of my previous ideas and decided to wing it for the rest of the shoot and let my creativity lead me, and I think it worked out for the better. The whole theme is the vintage look, I dont know the exact era the guys were trying to portray but It definitely gives off a early 1900s vibe. With the pictures I just wanted them to look as old, dark and filmlike as I possibly could, to match the look of the subjects. Thanks to the guys for making my job very easy, and also thanks to Tamra and Dami(your pics will be up soon). Anywho......have a look.
(note: I know my logo isnt all that great, it's under construction lol)

The Jump......Off!

2007-02-06T00:14:00.001-06:00

I gotta get this blogging experience started off right people!! So here goes:
My name is Winfrey.....but I simply go by Free, one syllable and very easy to say. I'm dibbling and dabbling into many things right now....I'm doing the school thing....12 hours this semester...tryna take it easy and get my gpa up. Of course I got the music going, I also have the photography going on, I'm about get really serious with that. I also do my filmmaking thing when I get a chance(havent been at it in awhile though, sadly) and I do other things too, lol. As of right now im just tryna get these things started....and once they get jumped off....you will hear about em.....trust me......you will hear! Anywhoo....I'll be updating this thing heavy, with thoughts, images, and also what I like to call the "finer things in life"(fashion, sneakers, art, new music and other things I like to spend money on!) So stay tuned, it's gonna get interesting....really interesting.

It's only the beginning!

oh and shouts out the Colts! SuperBowl XLI Champs!!!! yesssssir

peace,

FREE