ABOVE YOUR EXPECTATIONS NO.3
AYE
WHY PHOTOGRAPHY? "I love photography, because it's an avenue for me to channel my talents into."
ALEX BURKE "... a photographer with the eye for portraits"
INTERVIEW Read as Alex explains his passion and love for this field | p. 01
Contents
06 DEPARTMENTS 01
Alex Interview
04
Alex's Pics
010
Jordan Interview
014
Jordan's Pics
021
TOP 5
08
TOP 5 OF 2019. P.21 Does yours differ, if so, how different is it. With the start of a new year. These are my top 5 of 2019.
15 ON THE COVER Alex Burke, the photographer who captures essence and beauty.
18
thisiscapp@gmail.com
AYE MAG. Letter From Cap
Entering the New Year on a blast. Praying for all my friends. I pray they find happiness, success and have a great year. 2019 came and went, my year was filled with challenges, ups and downs. I will be looking to follow suit in 2020 whilst doubling up on the ups and learning from the downs. This Issue is important to me because it gave me a new challenge, it gave me the ability to sit back and watch a close friend get even more involved. She picked the people featured in this issue she is excited for everyone to see her very talented friends. I am excited to showcase these talented young men. Thank you Kara. The excitement still stands due to TOP 5 being handled again by another close friend. Having good people around, who you trust to handle a task is amazing. She has great taste and I'm excited to share it with you guys and I'm sure she is too. Thank you Latonya
Cap Adam Issue 3, January 2020
AYE | JANUARY 2020
18
My name is Alex Burke, a 3rd Year Film Student at Sheridan College specializing in Editing and Sound. To me, I am a multitude of things, one of those being a Photographer with an eye for Portraits. I love photography because it’s an avenue for me to channel my talents into. It’s fun from going out to take the photos to the editing of the photos, which is actually the best part. I started taking photos when I wanted to create a collage of photos of me with all my high school friends for graduation, to thank them for all the great memories. Doing that made me realize that I really loved it and looking on Instagram opened my eyes to a world of portrait photographers who are doing it too. I have a passion for editing, which is what I’m going to school for. The main driving force behind me is a commitment to improving my craft. I have committed to myself that I need to post a portrait once a week, and I have kept that promise for close to a year now. It’s tough especially when school gets really busy but I’m driven. It’s certainly not a phase, and I care about it too much to be a hobby. Photography is a passion that I hope to lead to a job in the future. So far, my biggest challenge has been with gear. In terms of a camera body I have my Canon t5i (for those who aren’t familiar, the t5i is a cheap camera), and two lenses. I used exclusively a 50mm f1.8 for my first year of taking portraits, then finally a year ago bought a 100mm f2.8 lens. The problem being, no matter how much I love these lenses they aren’t wide at all and as a result I sometimes miss out on being more creative in spaces because the space is too small for my narrow lens. However, some of my photography has been used for brochures, specifically some of the photography that I do in the summer up-north at a Summer Camp. My main goal is to diversify the subjects that I shoot with. I hope to work with more models in the future (not that I don’t love taking pictures of my friends), because when I have worked with professionals, I find that I learn a lot more and leave the shoot a better photographer.
AYE
Alex captures the essence, emotions and ambiance with each shot.
HERE'S TO
ALEX BURKE! THESE ARE A FEW SHOTS HE HAS DONE. ENJOY.
JORDAN JENKINS
"Chiefsees"
JORDAN "CHIEFSEES" JENKINS PHOTOGRAPHER
INTRODUCTION- WHO ARE YOU? I am a Canadian born to Jamaican mom and American dad. I grew up in St. Elizabeth, Jamaica since the age of three then moved to Las Vegas at 14. I’ve been racking up air miles before I knew how to speak, so the need to travel has always been natural to me. Growing up, I remember always wanting to just do. do whatever it is that blew my mind at any particular point in time. As I got older I reminded myself if these ideas and continued to keep them in mind and now that I possess the power I’ve been trying to tackle them all.
I hated when teachers would ask this is at school. I would have a mini existential crisis because I felt like I never really knew. My answer was essentially a summary of information you’d find on my birth certificate, as it was all I could think of before I even had a chance to know who I was. Based on that, I would say I’m someone who has seen life’s dynamics and possibilities from a young age and always wanted to live in a way that would allow me to achieve and push these limits.
Not once have I envisioned myself
settling for less, regardless of the length or difficulty of a task I assure myself that it is an accomplishment worth achieving.
WHY PHOTOGRAPHY? I’m of the view that my passion for photography stems from my love of drawing. I recall it being of a very young age and seeing my cousin creating a sketch and though the actual memory is vague, it is as if I clearly felt the neuron firing off from within my brain. Ever since then, something as simple as the lines that made up my environment I viewed totally different, and everything I was used to seeing, suddenly became a form of art. My camera is simply my tool that handpicks unframed art that I’ve always been able to recognize.
AYE
WHAT DRIVES YOU? My will to create is driven by my need for expression as I believe it’s what drives my artistic passion. I feel It is something that has always been innate. What started as a spark caught on and grew into a flame. I believe I can find passion in any outlet that allows me to freely express myself in the way I feel is fit. A side of me would gladly create without the need for a financial gain as long as I’m able to freely express myself and my vision.
PHASE OR HOBBY? never be just a phase. I’ve been trying to capture important moments in my life for as long as I have had my first camera phone. I’ve grown in my ability
ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND CHALLENGES? Now that I have started building my foundation in photography and displaying my work, I have been gaining fulfillment from the people who take the time to admire. Now as it relates to photography, my biggest challenge would be having to approach and/or taking pictures of strangers. I cannot seem to get better at it in my photography, I experience a feeling of anxiety when I’m faced with situations where I’m out shooting my environment or even with acquaintances. I find it difficult to freely shoot pictures of anyone at any time which limits my possibility to capture more great and meaningful images.
REHPARGOTOHP
to capture but my drive has always been the same.
SNIKNEJ "SEESFEIHC" NADROJ
Photography to me is a hobby and a passion but will
AYE
WHAT'S YOUR OTHER PASSION/TALENTS? There is a lengthy list of things I’m passionate about, a lot of which are artistic. My first recognizable talent was drawing and it is something I still practice today. Although I don’t intend to take it any further than my sketch pad, I am equally passionate about pursuing film. Being behind the camera has made me adept in visual language. It has drawn me towards filmmaking and has allowed me to understand and recognize film as an artistic language. No matter how simple or complex, I have always admired movies and the power they possess when telling story and I’ve always wanted to create my own. Photography is a gateway and it has given me the ability to further advance my interpretation of film and though I lack the adequate experience, I am eager to create my own.
JORDAN "CHIEFSEES" JENKINS PHOTOGRAPHER
GOALS IN PHOTOGRAPHY? Particularly in photography, my goal is to create my first zine. I want to accrue a meaningful collection of pictures that can be displayed en masse expressing a mood, title or even to help bring awareness to a neglected cause. There is always a deeper narrative and emotions to be conveyed when there is associating media to help tell the story, I use my pictures as my foundation to help guide my viewers’ imagination.
HERE'S TO:
JORDAN JENKINS THESE ARE A FEW SHOTS HE HAS DONE. ENJOY.
EY A
EY A
AYE AND LATONYA PRESENTS:
TOP 5 AYE
"I felt like I couldn't stop saying (Honestly) in each summary I wrote for the albums. It was an amazing experience being able to sit down and really think about the albums I listened in 2019. Please remember, I do not like change so all of this is pretty similar to one another but y'all better enjoy it. ," LATONYA BANTON
AYE
LATONYA'S
AYE
TOP 5 R&B ALBUMS OF 2019
1. CASE STUDY 01 – Daniel Caesar To me, CASE STUDY 01 is completely underrated. Although Daniel Caesar has been deemed problematic and cancelled, his voice is a whole different story, it’s amazing. When I first listened to this album, it was different from his debut album, Freudian, where he had more of a Gospel influence and vibe to it, but after time, I fell in love with this album as it’s just as soulful. Some of my favourite songs from this album would be TOO DEEP TO TURN BACK, LOVE AGAIN (feat. Brandy) because who doesn’t love them some Brandy, and COMPLEXITIES. CYANIDE shows roots back to Jamaica, and as a fellow Jamaican myself, how could I not acknowledge a song that properly represents this? Hearing this album is beautiful in your ears, but I also had the opportunity to listen to him sing this album in person while he was on tour in September! He knows where to put his passion into his songs and for these reasons, he’s my number 1 RnB album of 2019. 2. Over It – Summer Walker If we’re being completely honest, I didn’t know when this album was dropping, so when it dropped, and I saw everyone displaying the songs that they liked that same day, I decided that I was going to give this album a try. THE. BEST. THING. I. HAVE. EVER. DONE. I didn’t really know any songs from her previously to this album except for Girls Need Love, so this has helped me to dive into other RnB albums if we’re being honest. My favourite songs from this album have to be “Drunk Dialing… LODT”, “Like It”, which features 6lack, “I’ll Kill You (feat. Jhené Aiko)” which sounds very vulgar, but is very beautiful. The first song I listened to on this album was “Just Might (feat. PartyNextDoor)” which was a must for me that only continued to fuel my hunger to hear new music from PND, but at least he managed to drop 2 new tracks and the album is coming just now, thank God, but I’m getting sidetracked here. Although the songs on this album are short, they’re effective and get the job done very well.
LATONYA'S
AYE
TOP 5 R&B ALBUMS OF 2019
3. Chixtape 5 – Tory Lanez Any album, mixtape, single that Tory Lanez create, I am there to support, and this is nothing less of that. I have a habit of supporting artists in the Greater Toronto Area and Tory has been one of the first ones followed by Drake. This album has been highly anticipated and from the previous versions of Chixtape, I had expectations that were reached. Songs that I enjoyed from this album include “The Take (feat. Chris Brown)”, “A Fools Tale (feat. Ashanti)”, “Still Waiting (feat. Trey Songz)” and “Beauty in the Benz (feat. Snoop Dogg)”. FULL. OF. NOSTALGIA. I grew up with all the songs that he samples and it really 4. Care Package – Drake Although technically this album doesn’t count because they are just a bunch of rereleased songs that were previously leaked on YouTube when I was younger, it still made it on my list. Anyone who knows me, knows that I’m big on throwbacks and this is it. These songs bring back some real nostalgia and whenever I think about this album, I think about when I was about 12-13 sitting down on YouTube listening to half of these songs acting as if I was going through some real heartbreak. This album truly brought back flashbacks as if I was 8 watching BET Now listening to songs I had no business listening to. The real bangers of this album included “Trust Issues”, “Days in the East”, “Girls Love Beyoncé”, and “5AM in Toronto”. No matter where I am, all someone needs to do is say one word from any song on this album, and I will be singing the rest of the song as if I’m Jodeci singing in the rain. 5. King of RnB – Jacquees First things first, we need to discuss the name of this album before I discuss the album itself. Jacquees is not the King of RnB, and we all know that everyone can easily come to an agreement with this. On to this album now, if I’m being completely honest with you guys, I did not expect to find myself liking Jacquees just because he has a different vibe than what I’m used to, which is that sad, slow, depressing RnB, but hey, it made it on my list. The songs off that album that I enjoy include “Risk It All (feat. Tory Lanez)”, “Verify (feat. Young Thug & Gunna)”, “Superstar (feat. Summer Walker)”, and “Your Peace (feat. Lil Baby)”. As the songs that I have on my roster are all features, this album consists of a bunch of features and just happen to be with artists that I frequently listen to.
LATONYA'S
AYE
TOP 5 RAP ALBUMS OF 2019
1. So Much Fun (Deluxe) – Young Thug This album is amazing that I felt like I had the pleasure to listen to this album. I specifically chose the deluxe album because I really enjoyed the additional songs placed on there, compared to the original albums. Some songs that I enjoyed were, “Hop Off a Jet (feat. Travis Scott)”, both the original “Hot” and the remix version as well, “Bad Bad Bad (feat. Lil Baby)”. Yeah these songs are the most popular and common off of the album, but I enjoy these songs way too much for my own good. The beat, the instrumental, the flow. I just find all of it amazing. 2. Please Excuse Me For Being Antisocial – Roddy Rich Roddy Rich has had an amazing 2019. As I’m a fellow Apple Music user, I can see what albums my friends listen to, and I can promise you that every single one of my friends are listening to Please Excuse Me For Being Antisocial. They’re my friends because they got good taste like me. I’m pretty sure at this point everyone knows “The Box” as it beat out Justin Bieber’s new single, “Yummy” for the Number 1 spot, with the window/mirror cleaning intro to the song. Still a banger regardless. On to my favourite songs on the album which includes, “Peta (feat. Meek Mill)”, “Bacc Seat (feat. Ty Dolla $ign)” because I always love me some Ty Dolla $ign, and “High Fashion”. This album is worth the listen, and if you haven’t listened to it yet, this is your moment to do so. 3. Drip or Drown 2 – Gunna Of course if I have Young Thug on my Top 5, I must also have Gunna. The Slime masters. They work so well just like how Gunna and Lil Baby work well. In my opinion, these three are at the top of the game along with other artists, but you hear them on almost every song at this point. But one thing we do need to talk about for this album that I am not that happy about is the artwork of him in the water holding an umbrella. This artwork looks like I could’ve either made this on the PhotoBooth on my MacBook or I can make this using the scissors on Snapchat, no offence. But the songs on this album makes me give it a chef’s kiss. Songs on my roster include “One Call”, “Baby Birkin”, and “Speed It Up”. As you can see, my top picks for this album does not have any features because this album only has 3 features, which is phenomenal.
LATONYA'S
AYE
TOP 5 RAP ALBUMS OF 2019
4. Baby on Baby – DaBaby DaBaby had an amazing 2019. After changing his stage name from Baby Jesus to DaBaby, his come-up was impeccable. Two of his albums were dropped this year, which was Baby on Baby and Kirk. Originally I was going to put Kirk in my Top 5, but this was the album that opened my eyes to him. There is no possible way that I could not love DaBaby as he is the only rapper in a long time that has shown personality in his songs since Ludacris which was a long time ago. From the energy in the songs to the creativeness in his music videos. The songs that I’m vouching for on this album are “Suge”, “Goin Baby”, “Baby Sitter (feat. Offset)” and “Walker Texas Ranger”. I know you guys have probably heard the joke about how he doesn’t let the beat start properly before he starts rapping and that is always true, but I can’t help but to love him for that. 5. Quality Control: Control the Streets, Vol. 2 – Quality Control This album is honestly way too long to type, but it’s a compilation of the various artists from the label, Quality Control, which includes Lil Baby, Migos, Saweetie and City Girls. If we’re being honest, this label has become the modern YMCMB. Songs off of this album have become popular and now play on radios in both Canada and US, to my knowledge. Songs that I approve of on this album include, “Come On” which includes City Girls and Saweetie, “Leave Em Alone” which features Layton Greene, Lil Baby, City Girls and PnB Rock, “Baby feat. Lil Baby and DaBaby” which is a well thought song to have both together on a track, and “Pastor” which has Megan Thee Stallion, City Girls and Quavo. This compilation had gotten all the hot artists that are in the game right now, and gave us a 36 song album. Great listen.
Thanks for reading
JANUARY 20, 2020
ISSUE 3 PRESENTED BY AYE AND CAP ADAM FOR MORE INFO CONTACT CAP ADAM: THISISCAPP@GMAIL.COM
JANUARY ISSUE
NO. 3
AYE publisher & editor AYE (ABOVE YOUR EXPECTATIONS) CHEVAUGHN "CAP ADAM" ADAMSON (PUBLISHER AND EDITOR) LATONYA BANTON (EDITOR) KARA REDWOOD (EDITOR)
FEATURED
ALEX BURKE - THE PHOTOGRAPHER & JORDAN "CHIEFSEES' JENKINSTHE PHOTOHRAPHER
SUBMISSIONS
EMAIL : THISISCAPP@GMAIL.COM
SPECIAL THANKS TO EVERYONE INVOLVED AND FEATURED.
