Welcome to Virtuoso, Finally, here we are! I'm so incredibly proud to present to you the first issue of Virtuoso Magazine. When I first started publishing, just over a year ago, I had no idea where it would take me. Now we are in our second year of publishing with a new name, direction and bigger team!
Belinda Vickerson, Editor In Chief
It's been an amazing journey and learning experience so far and I hope that we can continue to bring you the most extraordinary talent in the South. Virtuoso Magazine is for artists by artists. We are a unique group of dreamers and doers whose purpose is to support, educate, inspire and elevate other artists. This is a responsibility and mission we take seriously and we will continue to build this platform until we are the number one source of new and undiscovered talent in the South. I hope that you will join us on this incredible ride! Thank you to all that continue to support and encourage us. #wearevirtuoso Sincerely,
Belinda Vickerson
Päsh the Brand
CROWNED
Shot by: Belinda Vickerson Wardrobing: Ty of Päsh the Brand Hair: Karah Franklin Makeup Artist: Kimberly Webb Accessories: Amore Vanity Models: Mia Mindingall, Gyminii Safarii
LIFE ATL: FASHION THAT SPEAKS
Life Atl Founder, Terrance King Photo By: Belinda Vickerson
By Patrice Robinson
Today’s fashion designers are not just tasked with creating fashionable apparel; to be relevant they must create art that inspires. The longevity of a brand rests on its ability to be revolutionary. Friends and business partners Terrence King and Thomas Gridley (TJ) are blazing a trail to redefine the way we think of fashion and activism. I caught up with King at the Life ATL photoshoot in Atlanta, GA. Terrence King, founder of Life ATL, an Atlanta-based fashion house, provides the most influential emerging street wear and urban designers with a platform to connect with their audience and further advance their business development and exposure. “I want to create a marketplace to showcase the work of designers who may not have a physical location. I want developing brands to be visible on a larger scale and really be able to out-sell bigger companies. My dream is to assist these amazing designers in achieving their dreams,” says Terrence. "I have loved fashion since I was a kid. I have always been a part of the sneaker culture but I just couldn't afford the shoes I wanted when I was younger. I watched sports. Tons of sports. I'd watch everything from basketball, baseball, football, hockey, skateboarding, to BMX, you name it. The competition was exciting but what was more interesting for me was how the athletes were able to market themselves as their own brand. I've had people laugh at me because of my passion but as you grow as a person and realize who you truly are. You realize anything is possible if you simply put your mind to it and accomplish your goals. There were times I didn't believe but then I would just sit back and remind myself of the cost of not accomplishing and it would make me get back to
OBERON RESERVES CLOTHING CO. Design Team: Husani Spann & John Fullmore The name Oberon is a German variation of the Greek word aristocracy, meaning power. This innovating and creative brand has given us the power to express our own identities and control the narrative of our generation with fashion. In 2014, designers Husani Spann and John Fullmore founded and launched their first signature collections, Oberon ASSCHER and Oberon Black-label. Their latest line, “Royalty by nature,” not only reflects the growing need of liberation in urban communities but also the changing social climate for young entrepreneurs. SCED MOSS Designer: Sced Moss Sced Moss is a 28-year-old freelance creative from Santa Domingo, Dominican Republic who turns photography, sewing, and embroidery into fashion artwork. His unique line of hand-painted apparel is the epitome of a retail rebellion and boho lifestyle. Sced’s work speaks to the aspiring artist and modern street impressionists.
work. Over the years, I've been surrounded by talented friends with dope brands I believe in. I started a program called J.E.T.S. Just Entrepreneurs Trying to Succeed to give a platform to people with a voice for creativity. It's so many people in the world who love to express themselves through fashion. It's so many brands out here that are epic and dope. But we'd never know about it and unless you see a celebrity rocking it we don’t want to wear it. I want the people to set the trends. Be your own trend setter. Why not follow brands that really speak and say something. Why can't you be that voice? Fashion is about your own confidence. I want to be able to give local brands exposure around the world. Selling online and pop-up stores and fashion shows. I want this to be a movement.” This year, Life ATL will be using their fall runway show along with their huge social media presence as a way to urge the community to buy small and speak out. The brand will focus its launch activities in 2017 on raising the bar for local fashion merchandising on the pret-a-porter (casual) fashion scene in Atlanta, Georgia. Here’s a sneak peek at few of the collections that will parade down the runway for the Lifeology: Lit for Life Fall Fashion Show. WISDOM ATL Design Team: Latif Rashad & Rasheeda Slade WisdomAtl is not your typical fashion label; it was created in 2010 to influence and inspire customers to raise awareness through fashion. Latif Rashad’s latest collection speaks out to “End Rape Culture.” WisdomAtl partnered with the Georgia Network to End Sexual Assault, which is a collective voice for reducing the threat and mitigating the effects of sexual assault in the state of Georgia. A portion of the collection’s sales will go to the Georgia Network to End Sexual Assault.
Thomas (TJ) Gridley Photo by: Bloo Woods
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The journey continues... From Exposure to Virtuoso!
SHOP THE BRAND! It's #Winsday everyday with these 229 New Wave tees and sweatshirts! Check out the selection and contact Jeus@virtuosomagazine.com to place your order.
Photography: New Crieuxx Catalyst Set Design: New Crieuxx Catalyst Model: Karii Doll
Photography: New Crieuxx Catalyst Set Design: New Crieuxx Catalyst Model: JessLeigh Love
Photography: New Crieuxx Catalyst Set Design: New Crieuxx Catalyst Model: Tricia Hudson
Photography by: Belinda Vickerson
INTRODUCING THE FIRST ANNUAL
229 NEW WAVE CLASS!
Created by Adam "Jeus" Inyang, the 229 New Wave was born out of a need to build a platform that can support, elevate and launch the careers of South Georgia artists. “If people care about their community, they should support local artists. When young people spend time exploring the arts, they are able to expand their abstract thinking skills. They’re able to develop creative and efficient solutions to problems affecting their community. The artists are the leaders of innovation in almost every facet of modern society.” The mission of the New Wave is to restructure the regional music scene, making it competitive, exciting, and rewarding by providing a multi-faceted outreach platform that finds and catapults local talent to the forefront of the South Georgia Rap/Hip-Hop scene. The first step was partnering with "Straight Out Da 9", an open showcase for artists to perform and network with other artists and industry professionals.
With the showcase in place, Adam then created a panel of local music, marketing and business professionals to help choose the first seven artists we would name the 229 New Wave. Over the course of five months, artists from all over South Georgia hit the stage to showcase their talent and performance. Though the decision was difficult, the panel's votes were tallied and seven artists were chosen to represent the 229 New Wave in it's first year. Each performer is unique in their style, music and personality. Throughout the next year, these special seven will receive... • Professional photoshoot • Radio interview with DJ Tripp 96.3 • Performance opportunities • Feature 2 songs on the 229 New Wave mixtape • Feature in one of the 229 New Wave Cyphers Check out the following pages to learn more about each artist in Adam's own words.
Graphic Design by Adam "Jeus" Inyang/New Crieuxx Catalyst
K C O R M A L G
Shot by: Belinda Vickerson Hair: Jafel Jonquinn Makeup: Charlene Dunlap Stylist: Charlie Hill-Henderson Models: Alexus Gervin/Lashawnda Benefield
CHUCK B. MOORE
WWW.CHUCKBMOORE.COM
TOKRASEE INTERNATIONAL MUSIC FESTIVAL Local Entrepreneurs Bring A Global Experience To South Georgia Through Music
By: Dr. Alicia Ritchey
As the world gets smaller, global networks become more likely, and world-wide connections give us the opportunity to celebrate our commonalities as a human race. Still, even with the best intentions of relationship building, there’s that hurdle of language, the dividing wall that may impede our ability to talk to our foreign brothers and sister in a way that we understand each other. So tell me, what means do we have to remove the partitions so we can communicate across seas and landscapes, cultures, nationalities, socio-economic boundaries? Can music be the answer?
Since the 19th Century, music has been described as a universal language, a unifier that brings people together around common experiences expressed through sounds, rhythms, beats, and stories. If in fact music has this kind of inclusive community building prowess, then four entrepreneurs in Georgia may be on to something by bringing to Southwest Georgia the inaugural TOKRASEE International Music Festival, the first of its kind to come to Cordele, and perhaps the Southwest Georgia community at large. TIMFest is a collaborative project between Virtuoso Magazine Editor in Chief, Belinda Vickerson; musician, artist and producer, Adam Inyang; magazine publisher (indigoLife) and TOKRASEE Farm owner, Dr. Alicia Ritchey; and CEO of Albany Business League and owner of BAM Marketing, Sherrell Byrd. The team insisted that the festival should include an international dynamic to encourage multicultural appreciation, where relationship building is less about our differences and more about our shared vision of ensuring equality across racial, gender, and socio-economic lines toward improving the human condition becomes the major objective. The collective sees music as an effective strategy to move this process along, hence the TOKRASEE International Music Festival. The event will take place Labor Day weekend, September 2, 2017 from 12 noon until 12 midnight at TOKRASEE Farm, an open air venue that boasts of a sprawling 44-acre land space contained by pine trees, nature trails, and small ponds. Formerly a saw mill, TOKRASEE Farm is the perfect spot for transforming its large concrete slabs into distinct stages—main stage and side stages, where musical performers will have plenty of room to hype the crowd. Confirmed main stage performers include Atlanta’s neo-soul artist, Gwenn Bunn and the soulful Jai Rose of South Florida. Both ladies promise an electrifying show. Other hopefuls are international steel pan virtuoso, Leon Foster from the Islands of Trinidad and Tobago, as well as a surprise guest.
With the same level of ‘fyah’ as the main stage acts, six side stage performances will be in rare form to showcase diverse music and performance genres: a Gospel music hour, American music hour (Country; Soul; R &B), Afro-Cuban Jazz, and Poetry Slam, hosted by international spoken word artist, May Reign. Other features include Global Feet, a collective of global dance forms, including African, American (Hip Hop, Modern, Ballet), and Asian. Another performance fascination will be the blazing ‘cake off in the wind’ where aspiring bakers will go head-to-head in a cake decorating contest, accompanied by the smooth sounds of wind instrument players. And when music is not enough, guests can also enjoy the showcase of live art in the Art Alley and the international bazaar, including a food court with tables of food vendors and an array of mouth-watering dishes sold at food trucks. Tickets to the TOKRASEE International Music Festival will go on sale April 20th. Ticket prices with be $35 for general admission and $50 for VIP seating. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Operation BICOH, the program arm for The Unity House Community Foundation, a not-for-profit, 501c3 organization. To find out more information, visit our website at tokraseemusicfest.com.
BLACK
Photography by: Belinda Vickerson Makeup by: Charlene Dunlap
EXCELLENCE Introducing the beautiful ladies of the 2016-2017 Albany State University Royal Court & Student Government Association.
Pictured (left to right): Kayle Bolton - Miss Freshman, Maya Palmer - SGA President, Taylor Austin - Miss Royal Blue & Gold, Brianna Hampton - Miss Senior, Janese Bibbs - Miss Sophomore, Wanesia Patrice - Miss Junior, Geniquiya Merideth - Miss Albany State University
www.southgeorgiafashionweek.com
Winter Couture 2: Fire & Ice Photography by: Sylvanus Davies S5 Designs
www.avoirsalonandcolorbar.com
It takes a village! A very special thanks to those who continue to support and help make this publication happen each and every quarter. You are appreciated!
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We are always looking for great people , stories and content. If you would like to learn how you can contribute to Virtuoso Magazine, please feel free to contact us - info@virtuosomagazine.com.