In 2008, URB was a year away from collapse. Still, a relative newcomer named Scott Mescudi, aka Kid Cudi, approached me at a bar in NYC to ask how he could get on our cover. It would be his first and our last. Photo credit: Alice Han
Never meet your heroes. At least, that’s what they say. But in my long career, I couldn’t help but meet some of mine, either while working or by chance. Thankfully, the vast majority have been lovely humans (Posdnuos, Chuck D, Martha Cooper), or at least made me feel my admiration wasn’t wasted. In some cases, my experience was less about the individual and more about the moment (Method Man, Erykah Badu, Kid Cudi). And while I’m usually reticent to ask for a pic or subvert my trusted access, I’ve been fortunate to catch a quick snap at a few of these cherished intersections.
Trevor Noah spoke about how fans approach him, saying they feel as if they know him, having watched his public persona for years. But to him, they’re strangers. Still, when I’ve had the chance to show my appreciation for an artist and their art, I often take it. Here’s to making the first move.
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De La Soul is the first rap group I fell for, way back in ‘89. When I saw my humble acquaintance Posdnuos, aka Plug 1, before his Gorillaz set at Coachella 2023, my wife had to nudge me to get a photo with my daughters. I hope one day they’ll appreciate it. Photo credit: Korey Kobata
Stringer Bellis hip-hop. But Big Driis, aka Idris Elba, is a tech-house DJ of the highest order. In 2019, we flew to London to interview him for the Coachella livestream. He couldn’t have been warmer or more hospitable, welcoming us into his basement home studio. You don’t count on movie stars being this chill, but you hit the jackpot when they are.
One of the earliest pieces of vinyl in my crate is “I Need a Beat.” But I didn’t meet LL Cool J until 2022 at the PTTOW! Conference. What can I say about James Todd Smith? Rap royalty. Infinitely quotable. Business giant. Culture ambassador. Nice guy. Good guy. Photo credit: Andrew Klein
I first met the legend Chuck D at New York’s Bowery Ballroom in the nineties. As I passed him in a backstage stairwell, I took the chance to introduce myself. He enthusiastically replied, “I love URB.” I could have quit publishing right then, as my work was done. He easily ranks as one of the most genuine, positive, and thoughtful heroes on my Mount Rushmore of Hip-Hop. Photographed backstage at The Roots Picnic, 2008
Kool Keith, aka Black Elvis, of Ultramagnetic MCs should be a national treasure. Sampled by nineties rave vets The Prodigy into a (pre-Me Too) worldwide hit. Welcomed into the oddball beats realm via his Dr. Octagon project. He once showed up by himself in my backyard for a house party. This pic is from the iPhone 6 era, backstage at LA’s famed FYF Festival.
Martha Cooper isn’t a musician, but she’s an artist. Her photographic documentation of New York graffiti art in the 1970s and 1980s was a window into this ephemeral world for generations of fans. I was one of them who peered religiously at her and Henry Chalfant’s Subway Art book. Still out shooting today; she’s a gift to the culture.
In the mid-‘80s, a young Dee Jay Ralph M, “The Mixican,” was on 1580 KDAY, LA hip-hop radio’s life source. As part of the famed Mixmasters, on Saturday nights, he’d masterfully cut, juggle, and scratch real vinyl fresh off the dock from NY, LA, and Miami. As a listener who’d press record on the tape deck each weekend, I was hooked on DJing from then on.
LEGEND!!! WE NEED THE MEMOIR!!!
Your back stories of how you met these artists were great. You’ve met some phenomenal people and I can tell that you appreciated them.