All In.
— As a photography enthusiast and music lover, there's nothing quite like capturing the raw energy and passion of an artist early in their career. I’ve been fortunate enough to have worked with many musicians within my career both established and emerging. I’m always intrigued by those initial steps. Sometimes they’re often a prelude of an exciting career to come or not. I first met and photographed Kehlani right on the heels of her debut mixtape “Cloud 19”…..she was on the brink, having worked on a slew of collaborations with a few previously established artist such as, Dom Kennedy, G Easy, Boogie Wit The Hoodie…… our shoot was right before here first album "SweetSexySavage”. I remember she was in town working on a song with artist/producer Mr. Carmack. Another incredible artist This particular job was thru Adidas Originals for their “Songs from Scratch” series. Off the top of my head I can’t recall the studio, but we were shooting over in the Highland Park area of Los Angeles. I could tell Carmack and Kehlani had a familiar chemistry. I think they’d had met before and shared a few mutual friends. They both had a great vibe. Carmack was pretty chill…he didn’t say too much. Kehlani, she was lovely. This incredible combination of being both shy and exuding an effortless confidence. Someone willing to give you just enough to peak your intrigue but walking away at the exact peak of your interest. You could tell she that she had a lot of the makings of a star.….
Recalling the session…. I remember being really impressed by artists approach to the work….The seem to have a great repoire and we’re chill
But when it came to the music , at that point it was all about locking in. Kehlani just had such an astute professionalism about herself…I knew she’d been around music for sometime. I think prior to becoming a solo artist she had been apart of a group and had been a contestant on a few televised talent shows. — Again I’m always intrigued by artist or anyone striving for success for that matter. Seeing unclose the ins and outs of their processes and how they go about achieving their personal visions. I remember her working fairly quickly. She’d had a few ideas, her and Carmack thru them around. Once she settled on an intention she went right to work. Lead vocals, backing vocals, ad libs…. A short time later that was it! It was something really incredible to witness…..The song was “All In”.. To this day, still one of my favorite songs by her. Carmack really did his thing with the production. The song has this semi-chill wave vibe that just this cumulative feeling of being lush and elegant. To me it’s the perfect song to listen to while driving your car anytime past 10pm at night.
I often think to myself how alot of fans of music, sports or entertainment in general likely don’t realize how much work artist put into their process or the actual day to day that goes into these moments of creativity that we’re all enjoying, sharing. The subtitles of the why’s or how’s…..For me that’s one of the most exciting aspects of what I do. Being there in the room to witness the elements of those processes. For me that’s both the joy and the motivation.
I guess you could say it’s part of my why!