INSIGHT Vol. I Issue 4

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success

November 2004

Volume 1 Issue 4

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success For ... By ... IN ...

The Student We Trust

- 1 - www.onefokus.com

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success

November 2004

"Everyone has talent. What is rare is the courage to follow that talent to the dark place where it leads.” ~Erica Jong

[ INGREDIENTS ] [ COVER ART] Jorone [ MIND THOUGHT] ..................................1 Prime [ FUNKY FRESH ] ......................................2 Simple and Plain [ POETICS ] .................................................2 God and Smoke Bring It Back Rush Flatfeet [ THE HUDDLE ]..........................................3 Daniel Horton

[ MIND THOUGHTS ] The name of the newsletter has changed to Insight because it is more suitable. Every article within provides readers insight into the author’s art world. I challenge you to share what your art is and bring people into that world.

This month we have a big show planned with John Legend as the headline. He is on his way to the top and you need to know who he is if you don’t already. There will also be several student acts opening the show. ~ Prime

Get Lifted with John Legend November 19 th , 2004 Tickets are on sale at the Michigan Union Ticket Office

[ UNDER THE NEEDLE ]...........................3 What is Reggae?

Street Talk The Rest is History Unfinished Business R.U.L.E [ VERBATIM ]..............................................6 Michael Skolnik Andre Thomas Jorone [ BLUE THUMB ].......................................11 NBA Live 2005 [ KICKZ ‘R’ US ]........................................12 JORONE [ FLICKS ]...................................................12 On The Outs Spongebob squarepants Saw

- 1 - www.onefokus.com

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success

[ FUNKY FRESH ]

November 2004 Bring It Back ~Lev Grossman-Spivack

Ladies and Gentlemen - let me introduce you to Simple and Plain, fashion based on style, design and creativeness. You will not see their name billboarded across shirts instead you will see taste done simply and plain. Below is just some of their clothing but if you want to get your hands on the latest and greatest, check out www.simpleandplain.com. We also managed to sit down with Andre Thomas from their team for an interview, which is available in the [ Break Bread ] section. ~Atiba

Moonlit memories, look up at me, as I reflect in the glistening pond water of impermanence.

I feel the ripple of new waves as they tickle my ears as they crawl to shore searching for a home only to be taken out to sea for another journey.

Mystify and despise, I stumble through a path of decisions-making themselves occur randomly but in perfect order, I stretch the border of elasticity, across continents and landscapes until birth begins again.

I'm impregnated with fictious and delicious, controversial and metamorphical, slithering through thought processes I invent the artistry that gives birth to this imagery, but how do we invent a new industry?

[ POETICS ] God and Smoke ~Alex Wand Leaves change from green, move from where they’ve been, fall between the cracks air allows.

It feels strange this thing that we have all seen, the seeds on the ground I am told to plow.

God and smoke clear away like a subtle joke.

Left alone, paths wonder where they’ll go.

Read words, meanings in disguize, With its space there a meaning lies.

Vague space, grace, one glance of harmony tatooed on a beautiful face, Lonley lanterns showing a way we’ll forget to trace.

Structure, forms I’ll follow my whole life, fuck it, I tell you one day I’ll stop it.

Structure, you give me freedom to travel through my uncertain mind, you’ve been so kind.

Where machines clank to the rhythms of the heart, beats are boxed up in rhyme scheme, words are slapped across eardrums with lyricism, communication transcends to expressionism.

Always. Soulplay.

Not this noise pollution, retribution, confusion, no solution to this apocalyptic conclusion!

Where's the fusion of membrane collected in the consciousness of all beings working together for the ripple effect that moves through the life force of all heartbeats?

I repeat, where is that heart-beatin' bassdrum thumpin', kick-boxin', pop-lockin', stock market crashin', radio wave inhancin', romancin' stanzas that keep dancin' legs prancin'?

Its time to reinvent this heaven-sent ability to recreate this industry and bring it back to the rapid-fire onslaught of thought and let us never depart.

- 2 - www.onefokus.com

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success Rush ~Atiba Edwards You’ve hurt me but it was my own fault I once rushed to experience you I have learned to savor you Enjoying all the sweetness All the pleasure You have to offer Your smell fills me with joy.

Suddenly, you are gone How could you leave me?

Its cold and I yearn for you Please come back Damn, I should have savored every sip.

Guess its time to put another cup to brew.

Flat Feet ~Lisa Wang My father isn’t one of us But his flat feet are.

The bowl- legged stance That he possesses is passed on to me It never really bothered me before Until the guy at the Armory Track and Field injury room Prepared me for the race Held my foot in his hands Wrapped the tender bones of my ankle said the inevitable And his words jumbled in my ears Youhaveflatfeet I denied it of course But that day I came in sixth.

November 2004

the U.S.? For all the people who said they feel like their vote didn’t matter, I see what you’re talking about.

The season has officially started, so that means I have no time for anything other than school and basketball. I love this time of the year because this is when teams start to find out a lot about themselves because they are starting to play against someone other than themselves.

Personally, I am tired of playing against the same color jersey everyday. Our first game is against Michigan Tech on Sunday and then against Wayne State on Wednesday. I am looking forward to these games because we didn’t play well against Tech last year or Wayne State our freshmen year.

It’s going to be an interesting weekend.

As far as school goes, I have to find a way to do well on two upcoming exams and write two papers this week. I’ll get it done though. It seems like as the season goes on, we have less time for school, but teachers are willing to work with you.

Anyways, that’s about all that going on. I also would like to say that I appreciate all the groups who tried to get people educated about this past election. I personally learned a lot of things that helped me make my decision. They also allowed me to register to vote and I greatly appreciate that. THANKS TO ALL OF YOU!!! :Danny Horton:

[ UNDER THE NEEDLE ]

[ THE HUDDLE ] Welcome to the new edition of Insight brought to you by our new writer, Daniel Horton. Each month, Danny will give you a piece of his diary about what’s going down in his life as a student at Michigan. Check it out! :ENTRY ONE: YES!! The election is over and all the political bullshit is behind us. The inevitable has happened, which means Bush has been re-elected. What affects will that have on

What is Reggae?

Reggae- [noun] popular music of Jamaican origin having elements of calypso and rhythm and blues, characterized by a strongly accentuated offbeat.

Reggae was created in 1963 by Coxsone Dodd and Jackie Mittoo at Studio One and was made widely popular by Robert Nester Marley. In 1961, Bob released Judge Not as his first single and it flopped. He didn’t let this discourage him and he kept it moving. In 1965, Bob formed the

- 3 - www.onefokus.com

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success Wailers with Peter Tosh and Bunny Livingston (later known as Bunny Wailer) and released countless singles in Jamaica, but never released an album. After the first label they formed, Wail ‘N Soul ‘M Records, came to a quick end, the group decided to form another label, Tuff Gong, and with previous hit singles, such as “Simmer Down” and “It Hurts To Be Alone,” they became famous, but only in the Caribbean.

In 1971, Island Records took a chance and advanced them money for a full album. This was a first: the first time a reggae band received this much money and had access to a top-notch studio to work. The Wailers released two albums, “Catch A Fire” and “Burnin” and began a tour of the United States and the United Kingdom. Their fame skyrocketed when Eric Clapton covered “I Shot the Sheriff.” In 1976, the United States embraced reggae with wide open arms and Rolling Stone magazine honored Bob Marley and the Wailers with ‘Band of the Year.’

Fast forward to the late 20th and the earlier 21st century and realize that reggae is no longer embraced as it once was. The area of my focus is Ann Arbor, but it can be applied to areas that are not populated by people from the Caribbean or their children.

Every year you have at least one “new” reggae song, but in reality this song has been old for at least 1 year and the only way you heard of it is due to seeing a music video or hearing about it from a friend who heard it yesterday. Prime example- Beenie Man’s “Who Am I,” better known as- “Sim Simma.” This song caught on and was viewed as new in 2000, but was released in 1998. This delay has some what been recently reduced with Elephant Man’s “Pon Di River” picking up great buzz and it even resulted in a performance on BET’s 106 & Park.

This is one of the few times when neither Beenie Man nor Sean Paul graced the limited limelight. These two names are the usual reggae artists who are widely accepted due to their crossover appeal.

Veteran DJ, Beenie Man, has been popular across the states due to looks, charisma, and tunes. Sean Paul has recently garnered fans due to similar reasons. This combined with label marketing has also hurt several other

November 2004

artists, such as Sizzla and Bounty Killer.

Recently, the two have worked with Guerilla Black, Baby Cham, Mr. Vegas and several others. Many of the previous artists have achieved at least one song or collaboration that resulted in strong recognition across the states.

They have worked with Beyoncé, Mya, Fabolous and many others outside of the reggae genre.

This is great because it exposes them to a greater audience, but the primary result is that reggae is never truly embraced, but instead it is adapted and reshaped to fit an accepted mode.

Reggaeton is one primary offspring off reggae.

It is known as the infusion of Caribbean and Latin cultures and this year it has the world up in arms, dancing and repeating more unknown words than the first time they started cursing.

This isn’t anything new in islands such as Puerto Rico, but recently it’s been embraced in the U.S. If you are looking for a good intro to Reggaeton, then some of the artists that you should check out are Tego Calderon, Don Omar, Ivy Queen and Daddy Yankee.

In the United States, reggae has never reached the success Marley and his brethren once brought, but it has always succeeded when blended with another genre.

Reggae is listened to more in other areas of the world, such as England, but runs into a continuous hurdle across the States. For every accepted hit by Sean Paul and Beenie Man, there is a double album worth of tracks from Garnett Silk, Sizzla, Bounty Killer, Baby Cham, Vegas, Buju Banton, Vybz Kartel, Jimmy Cliff, Warrior King, Luciano, Nicky B, Morgan Heritage… and I could really keep going, but I will stop here. Make an effort to at least listen to something different and I guarantee that you will gain an appreciation for at least one song.

If you want a play list let me know in the FOKUS Soapbox, www.onefokus.com, and I can make you an introduction album. ~Prime Understanding the Numbers 0 / 20 – Waste of space, time and whatever it is on 5 / 20 – Tolerate once but anything more may hurt 10 / 20 – Average. Squinting may help somewhat 15 / 20 – Good. Not a solid picture but close 20 / 20 – Solid. Not enough faults to knock its picture

- 4 - www.onefokus.com

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success

Fabolous Real Talk 15 / 20 Now Playing Fab is back. If you couldn’t tell from his single, “Breathe”, he has strayed away from the R&B flow and went back to rhyming. This album is well laid out and is heavy on the rhyming, but also has bouts of songs that go back to the Lil’ Mo days. Real Talk opens strongly with Phillybred poet, Black Ice, schooling the world on music industry games. While he does have some songs that go back to the singing rapper days, they are not and were not ever that bad.

He makes a step to show everybody that those days never changed the thoroughness that Fab once debuted. Real Talk is a great way to come back after a mediocre Street Dreams and a slightly better More Street Dreams mixtape. ~Prime

Jin The Rest is History 10 / 20 Now Playing “People might not buy this album because they don’t see Asians as having street cred“ said Senesi Blake. This one statement is just one of the issues that Jin suddenly faced when he announced his Ruff Ryder record deal on BET’s 106 & Park and he also had people saying he was just a gimmick. He addresses all the doubts on the second track of this album with “Here Now” and does pretty well. “Get Your Handz Off” with Twista, “I Got A Love” with Kanye West, “Karaoke Night” with Styles P Rest and “Here Now” are some of the stand out tracks on The Rest is History.

Rest assured Jin does have talent but this debut album didn’t display them correctly. Production is above par and overall content is strong, but I felt at times his lyrics could have been better. If

November 2004

you really want to hear his raw talents, then check for his freestyles and battles, such as the battle at the Puerto Rico Mix Show Power Summit.

The Rest is History is a good debut album because it displays his talents and versatility plus it shows that the interest was more than a “we have a Chinese act” gimmick and double-R really wants him to succeed. Jin takes the time out to address all possible assumptions and feeling people had and may still have. Give it a listen. ~Prime

Jay‐Z & R. Kelly Unfinished Business 5 / 20 Now Playing

They should have left well enough alone.

Nobody asked for them to finish the business started with “Best of Both Worlds”- an album that flopped mainly due to Kelly’s charges.

Jay-Z didn’t want to associate himself in any manner with the troubled star. For reasons unknown they decided to get back together and launch the “Best of Both Worlds” campaign with a new album with 11 tracks, and a tour.

This album contains more rapping from Kelly than S. Carter. I can enjoy few of the songs and would have preferred a re-release of “Best of Both Worlds” with the good tracks from “Unfinished Business” released as a bonus disc.

The tour was redone and is now known as the “Jay-Z and Friends Tour”. R. Kelly is suing JayZ and the promoter; just more evidence to prove that they should’ve left their joint past in the past.

Surprisingly, this album holds the top spot down on sales charts- mainly due to the names attached and less credit to the actually quality. ~Prime

- 5 - www.onefokus.com

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success

Ja Rule R.U.L.E 15 / 20 Now Playing He admitted that “Blood in my Eye” was just something to tie over the audience until he completes a solid album. On November 9th that album will be released and it definitely fulfills his statement. He already released two singles“Wonderful” and “”New York.” “Wonderful” features Ashanti and R. Kelly and is mass market hit while “New York” is his street track that features Fat Joe and Jadakiss. This ode to New York has been heating up mixtapes and radio across the world.

Ja lost a lot of fans thanks to the beef with GUnit and crew, but he stills comes strong on this album and should earn them back once people listen to the music instead of stop at his name and decide not to give the album a chance. ~Prime

[ VERBATIM ] : giving a voice to the voiceless : The following may seem a bit choppy because it is a recap of our evening spent with Michael Skolnik, founder of Kicked Down Productions www.kickeddown.com, when he came for the viewing of Hooked at the University of Michigan. There was a lot to say so we tried to summarize most of it.

FOKUS: Do you feel targeted because people may feel you shouldn’t do films, like Hooked?

Michael Skolnik: Because I am white right; I get that all the time. When we show a film like Hooked, a black ball player from Oakland, it is always a question I face. ‘How can you, as a white film maker, relate to a black ball player, or gang members, or three girls locked up in prison?’ It is a question I get a lot; it’s a good question that people should ask. I am a child of wealth and privilege.

November 2004

MS: I was raised upper middle class. My father was a construction worker and my mother was a chef. I defiantly wasn’t raised in wealth but I was around a lot of wealth. My best friend was given money when he was 18 years old and now is suicidal. Another one of my best friends is an outside linebacker of the Miami Dolphins.

Also, being a white male in America I have more privilege than anybody else- any other race, gender, sexual orientation. I can walk in the street and no one is going to look. In Midtown Manhattan, I can walk in the street and no one will grab their purse in fear, I can put my hand out and a taxicab is going to stop.

So what comes with that to me is responsibility.

F: To whom do you think or do you feel you have that responsibility?

MS: To those that don’t have the voice that I have. White people used to say ‘you want to rap’ or ‘you’re a wigger’ and now the same kids who were saying that are back. I got a call from one of those same kids saying ‘I didn’t know this was still the right cellphone until I heard your voice,’ mind you that I had the same cellphone number for 10 years, ‘now I know it’s you, can you call me?’ I called him and he said ‘I’m a struggling musician in New York, could you help me.’ This is my man; I have known him since I was in kindergarten. [That was just one instance]. I know who I am and I am happy to be who I am and at the same time I don’t want to be anyone else.

It’s a constant struggle. For example, at a film festival in Toronto, called the “Get Real Fllm Festival” which had primarily black artists, we showed Hooked and a black girl said to me‘how could you make a film like this, who do you think you are.’ So I said do you want to talk about it and we had a long conversation. I got an email from her about two weeks ago about coming back to Toronto to speak to a nationalist group and I said of course I will.

People need to communicate, that’s how the world in general can get better. We should know more Iraqis and then we can see Iraq in a human way and not in a militant authority and then we wouldn’t be at war. That’s where we failed as Americans, that’s what I believe, in terms of our arrogance and who we are.

F: How were you raised?

- 6 - www.onefokus.com

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success Ultimately, I want to become a better and more intelligent person and more involved. I don’t know where it’s going to lead or take me to F: If someone were to ask you, in short, have you defined yourself? Who are you? What would your response be?

MS: When I applied to UCLA the guy told me why are you applying to college when you already have a job? I told him I want to go to college; I want to watch a football game.

Now, ultimately I want to be a door openerF: But a lot of people can say you are already are, you already have.

MS: - I am a door opener but you know what a lot of people have not come in the door yet, a lot of people. I look at people around me and can say a 19 year old is better than me. I have a 17 year old in our intern group and I say to myself that kid is better than me; he is in high school and he has more potential than I doguaranteed.

My best friend, the one that plays for the Dolphins, came to my crib and slept on the pullout couch. We had a long conversation and he said to me ‘I really want to do more than play in the NFL. I don’t want to be just another football player.” I know he has more potential than me. He said he wants to get more NFL players registered to vote and he wants to be the NFL spokesperson to register people to vote.

F: Why did you decide to do Hooked?

MS: I always wanted to do a film with basketball and prison. In the streets of New York, basketball is the ultimate game and in prison it has got to be even further. We all know that Allen Iverson did 4 months in prison when he was in high school and he talked about it changing his life. We shot 20 minute stories of 5 different players, Hook, being one of them.

What we found with Hook is that he was speaking to a lot more than the basketball players. I wanted people to watch the film who didn’t like basketball and take something from the film. When I went to meet with Hook, I didn’t know what Hook looked like because I didn’t see pictures before I met him, this guy

November 2004

comes walking out with his head busted, he has no teeth and his clothes are the only ones that are not pressed out of all the other prisoners and they said ‘Would the visitor for Demetrius Mitchell please raise their hand’ and I raised my hand. I am looking at him and for all those preconceptions, stereotypes and assumptions of what a ball player was, he was the opposite. I looked at the guy and said there ain’t no way this 5’9” guy is Hook Mitchell. He comes and sits down and we spoke for 9 hours. He wouldn’t eat as this is the month of Ramadan and he was embarrassed to look at ingredients of food to see if there were any products in it that he couldn’t eat, so he didn’t eat for 9 hours. I am looking at him skeptically and saying this guy is bullshitting me, there ain’t no way this guy played with Gary Payton and Jason Kidd. Then he puts on this Nintendo game, this virtual reality game where they attach it to him so they could tape all his moves, and he starts moving his body; he did the no look behind the back pass and dribble through his legs. It was like watching Jordan jump from the foul line, or Gregory Hines or Savion Glover tap dance and I said this guy is for real. We spent a year and a half communicating through letters and phone calls before we went out and did the film.

FOKUS: Do you feel the And 1 and the big push of streetball is damaging?

MS: That’s a great question. I went to the And 1 mixtape tour in NY and I was blown away by how ridiculous it was. I saw this little white kid in the hallway in the Garden dribbling the ball and I kept thinking to myself how this is ruining the sport of basketball and how this is exploiting the young. It’s almost like the side freak show- you know ‘how high can you jump?’

And 1 offered Hook a one time deal [but it was turned it down]. I am a very anti-corporation type of guy I had a big struggle with this film when Reebok wanting to sponsor Hook and this film. Reebok, which some of you may now, was one of the largest supporters of apartheid in South Africa and I had this big struggle taking money from them for what they did in South Africa. Now they have a new CEO who is doing wonderful things. I had a chance to sit down with him and talk about what they are doing and it was positive. When Reebok approached Hook, I said listen take care of him if you really care about him. I wanted to give Hook longevity

- 7 - www.onefokus.com

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success and security and he is getting that with the Reebok deal.

F: What are some of the challenges you face as a director?

MS: Let’s talk race a little, if you don’t mind. The biggest challenge of my life is what I do with my powers as a white man in America. When I was 14 years old I used to rip tickets as an usher. I was the only white kid amongst 35 Black and Latino kids. I realized what it was like to be a minority for that short period of time and I thought to myself damn I have a lot of power.

When I walk out of the park and I go to catch a cab, my man who is next to me ripping tickets can’t get one. When I walk down the street, the lady with the purse ain’t grabbing it but when my man walks by she grabs it. Since that time I realized what am I going to do with this power. I grew up in a community where most people wanted to be a lawyer or doctor or go work for their parents on Wall Street but that didn’t really interest me. When you look at this film and all my other works- I just finished a film about 3 young girls in a New Jersey Juvenile detention center and their struggle to survive.

It’s about giving a voice to voices because I have a voice and I know that and I am not ashamed of that. When I see a story liked Hooked that comes across my desk, I have no choice but to take it. When I meet a young girl who is stunningly beautiful but has a scar from her earlobe to her cheek and has to sell rock to support her 4 year old child; I have to tell this story because no one else will. I always say I shouldn’t have made this film [Hooked], some body from Oakland who grew up with Hook should have made this film but he was 33 years old in prison writing letters to Master P, Gary Payton, Drew, Bryan, Antonio, Tim Hardaway and I could name 45 other NBA players. I was the first person to visit Hook, he had been forgotten about. I was talking to these guys earlier and I said if one person comes to this screening today, they have heard Hook’s story.

My struggle is amongst my peers who think ‘you should be working in Hollywood.’ The next film that I am working on is about two mentally disabled kids in Arkansas. Again, more people who don’t have a voice. Then to get it out to people is another struggle. You know I am a one man army, and I really believe in what I do.

I traveled with Russell Simmons across the

November 2004

country and I see kids yelling at 50 Cent, Eminem, Lloyd Banks, Remy Martin, Fat Joe and Jim Jones. I see the power these guys have telling them to get out and vote and I think if can reach two or three at a time and say ‘I can do it, we all can do it.’ Before everyone leaves- I want to thank these guys for bringing me out here. I want to encourage you all to get involved with FOKUS; they are doing some great things on this campus. It reminds me of back at UCLA, they didn’t have it so I created it myself.

: Keeping it alive : We touched base with one of the sickest designers out. He reps the Bay area and does everything from walls to kicks to jackets and shirts.

FOKUS: Introduce yourself to the readers.

Jorone: Whattup eerrrybody... I’m Jor also known as Jor One, Joroe, Jorok, and a bunch of other stuff like that. I’m representing the San Francisco Bay Area, which is where I came up in the graff game and still live today.

F: What is your art?

J: My art is graffiti, street art, urban art, vandalism... whatever you wanna categorize it as, that’s what I do. I started doing graff about 11 years ago when I was 12 or 13.

F: When did you get first started doing customized sneakers? Why did you get started?

J: I started airbrushing clothes and sneakers about 3 years ago. I guess it was sparked off when I saw this old school airbrushed jean jacket that Dug One had done for one of my homies. Dug and all those guys had stopped doing that kind of thing towards the early 90s, and nobody else who was a real graffiti artist was keeping it alive. So I went out and picked up a cheap airbrush and compressor and learned how to do it on my own. Shortly after that, the same homie who had the Dug One jacket asked me to do some airbrushed Adidas Shelltoes for him. He gave me a little dough, and I’ve been doing them ever since. The only thing is that recently, I stopped selling stuff. I just do sneakers and art for myself.

FOKUS: What makes a good custom sneaker?

- 8 - www.onefokus.com

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success Jorone: For me it’s originality, attention to detail, and quality craftsmanship. Also, I think Air Force Ones and Dunks are officially played, so I’m trying to stop doing those (although it’s not working very well). There are so many other brands and styles out there that haven’t been explored yet. I think simply trying to paint on other shoe styles will push the custom sneaker art form to new territory.

F: What keeps you doing what you do?

J: I’m an artist and the drive to create is in my veins. I do it cuz I’d like to leave something behind for when I’m not here. And the only way that my work will stand the test of time is if it’s good. And to be good, I know that I have to keep making more work and pushing myself.

This is just the beginning.

November 2004

J: I’ve never actually seen Jet Set Radio, but I know what it’s about. I think Ecko and Atari are also putting out another game soon based on graffiti. I can’t really say if they help or hurt the cause. Actually, I don’t know what “cause” we’re talking about. If the cause is getting more people familiar with graffiti art and culture, I guess it couldn’t hurt as long as it’s done right.

Big business seems to love using graffiti as a marketing tool to appear more edgy and “urban”. The problem is that unlike in rap music, sports, skateboarding, etc., there are very, very, very few graffiti artists who get properly compensated for their talents. Most of us get a bone thrown at us, and we leave happy.

If they are gonna keep using graffiti artists in their games, ads, products, etc., [then] we should be getting paid and treated as professionals. That’s my main concern.

F: Happiness- how would you define it?

J: Happiness for me is knowing that although I am powerless over many, many things like who the country chooses for president or who is rich and who is poor, I still have 100% control over my own life, actions, and decisions. Knowing that is a powerful thing that sometimes I forget.

And when I continually take advantage of that control, I know that I am moving forward.

F: I see you added several new sneakers, pieces, and gear to the site. Where do you draw your energy and inspirations for your works?

J: As an artist, the energy really fluctuates.

Sometimes I’m flooded with ideas and I just want to make stuff. Other times I am pressured into making work for various factors such as the need for money, or the need for work to be displayed in shows. When that happens, it really feels like work rather than creative freedom. I don’t really work well like that, and not much gets done. As far as inspiration goes, that’s a tough one too. Sometimes I want to be inspired, but it just doesn’t happen. I like looking at graffiti, but it doesn’t always inspire me or give me ideas for my sneakers. So I look at random stuff like the guy on the Cream of Wheat box, or a condom wrapper, or plaid shirt print, and I think to myself, “I want to incorporate that into one of my pieces.”

F: Do you feel games like Jet Set Radio help or hurt the cause of exposing graffiti?

F: If you could reach one single open minded person who has never attempted to do anything artistic because they feel they lack the ability to; what would be your words of encouragement to help them uncap their potential?

J: Well, that’s really ridiculous to think that a person could have absolutely NO artistic ability whatsoever. The arts are so broad; there is always something that you could do. For example, not everyone can be good at painting portraits (i.e. yours truly), but maybe something like photography, weaving, or making crunked out beats would be more appropriate. And furthermore, just cuz a person is wack at something doesn’t mean that he or she can’t do it. Just look at all the bad graffiti out there. I don’t think there’s anything stopping those people from tapping into their creative ability and doing the best they can.

FOKUS: Anything else you would like to say?

JORONE: Shout out to all my people in Frisco!!

And a big F.U. to all the people who voted for

- 9 - www.onefokus.com

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success Bush and got him back in office!! Y’all are seriously deranged...

: Move At Your Own Pace : The following is a story of a man on a mission. FOKUS caught up with Andre Thomas of Simple and Plain to find out what’s good.

FOKUS: Introduce yourself?

Andre Thomas: The name is Andre Thomas, 25 years old, graduate from the University of Michigan from Saginaw Michigan. I started Simple and Plain clothing at the end of 1999 and haven’t looked back since.

F: Who is Simple and Plain?

AT: This is the rundown: Andre Thomas- Cofounder Eric Hudson- Cofounder Joy Brown- Sales Rep / VP of Operations John Leufray- Designer Jason Hare- Designer / Web development Tisha Tyson - Marketing Jamal Dunn - Marketing F: Why did you start Simple and Plain?

AT: The concept came from this: I come from a small town, so everybody shops at the same places and I was kind of underprivileged growing up so I always wanted to look good.

Everybody took their money and would by whole outfits like big name logos and things like that.

They were basically buying status, so I decided to flip the scene and I was always like if I could just get a nice shirt, nice shoes, jeans didn’t matter, I could merge these two things together and that’s the concept behind simple and plain.

Its for the people who are not afraid to wear something that may not be in the mainstream… we have a slogan- “For those who live at their own pace” and basically because we don’t do jeans right now but what we decided to do was since people don’t buy whole outfits, we would make our clothing not overbearing of logos and goes well with other brands. Our clothing compliments other brands and that’s the difference that people like about Simple and Plain and as you can see in our legends t-shirt, the name is only on the inside of the tag

November 2004

otherwise you don’t know whose shirt that is and we are fine with that. We have a mission: clean, comfortable, and confident -- and we design it for those that live at their own pace.

F: What is your art?

AT: Truthfully my art is bringing things together.

I do draw and I do jewelry design, but with this it is more so of bringing people together. Bringing a team together and making things work. That is what I consider I do best. I used to design all the clothes, but I decided to get another team of people that I thought were better than me and from there taking my expertise, which is business ideas and aspects, and taking everybody’s talents and putting them out there so everybody talents can be showcased from marketing to design to web development and so on.

F: Where do you draw your influences and inspirations from?

AT: Really, the influences come from truthfully looking at other lines and looking at how other people dress and being disgusted because I always used to get compliments from the way I dressed, but there was nothing ever flashy about the way I dressed. It was more that it was simple. It was the way things were put together, I would have a designer make a shirt solely based off of a color or a design of a tennis shoe and make those go together. Color coordination is key to our clothing and that’s why our color collection is so versatile; you can wear them with blazers, button downs or you could be country and match from head to toe. It’s not about having red this and red that, it’s making the clothing versatile. Basically the inspiration comes from everybody’s buying status. I mean, I don’t mind paying money for things, but also I don’t want to have my outfit become “out of style”, after I paid $200 for it. Why is it out of style because some rapper said it’s out of style?

Instead, I want the clothing to be timeless, that’s an over-used word, but I want you to go into your closet and pull this out a year from now and still be confident in what you are wearing. I would go to the party and everybody will be wearing this, that and whatever and I can go in something they never heard of and I feel just as confident as the man who paid $300 for his outfit while my outfit may have cost me $85.

- 10 - www.onefokus.com

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success FOKUS: Discuss your upcoming lines, such as Legends.

Andre Thomas: Right now, what we have in the making are coats and t-shirts. We will be doing polo shirts, rugby shirts, and the Lifestyle Collections. Lifestyle Collections focuses on things that you can relate to once you accomplish things in life. Then we have the Playground Collection which focuses on childhood games that we played while growing up, like kickball and dodge ball. The whole concept is to fulfill people’s artistic concepts and let our company name flow through the energy of our products. We are going to do jeans right now, but we are waiting for the right time to release them.

November 2004

have a lot of other locations coming soon, but we have to wait until we get all that confirmed.

People should take a look at the clothing for what it is and see what we are trying to present to fashion and what we feel where fashion needs a breath of fresh air; something a little different and done in a more creative way than how everybody else is doing it. If you are an independent thinker and live at your own pace then Simple and Plain clothing is for you.

FOKUS: See you at the top!

Simple and Plain’s Colors Collection

[ BLUE THUMB ] EA Sports NBA Live 2005 15 / 20 Now Playing Legends Line – Ray Charles Shirt FOKUS: Do you want to share any examples of the Lifestyle Collections?

AT: There is this one particular shirt, I don’t want to speak on it, but you have to see it.

There was a lot of controversy with us making the shirt and I vetoed it when It first came to the table, but my designer said “This is what you asked for ‘Dre, this is part of the Lifestyle Collection”...Lifestyle Collection is going to be a whole line of pieces that people can relate to.

FOKUS: Anything else you want to say?

Soooo, what did NBA Live do different this year? Let’s just say they added a GREAT feature that will get you addicted quick. This year NBA Live has an All – Star weekend mode where you can partake in the three point contest, rookie challenge, and of course the all so famous slam dunk contest. In the slam dunk contest, they bring it back from the 5’6” Spud Webb to the all so famous Dr. J, sorry no Jordan. The game play is quite similar to last year, but I will say this is by far a better game that it was last year. If you enjoyed NBA Live last year you will definitely like the game this year. ~S-P The Ghost

Andre Thomas: We are available online at www.simpleandplain.com and here in Michigan you can pick us up at Puffer Red’s here in Ypsilanti Michigan, Simply Casual in Detroit, OTD – which has several locations, Toledo Ohio, Adrian, Michigan and Jackson, Michigan. We

- 11 - www.onefokus.com

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success

November 2004

[ KICKZ ‘R’ US ] : Jorone Samples :

[ FLICKS ]

:On The Outs: Debuting at the Toronto International Film Festival, On the Outs (2004) is getting its props little by little in the film festival scene. This is FADER Films production and the first feature film of director Michael Skolnik who recently visited the University of Michigan for the “Hooked” film screening this past October.

There are over 90,000 women in prisons in America and On the Outs brings you the lives of three New Jersey girls from the same hood whose paths intersect briefly in prison, giving us a powerful yet unique slice of some of the things people fail to see or realize in America.

Oz (Judy Marte who played Juicy Judy in “Raising Victor Vargas”) is a tough seventeenyear-old tomboy who commands respect on the streets, even though she is conflicted about her chosen profession – dealing drugs.

Suzette (Anny Mariano) is a fifteen-year-old who gets knocked up by a smooth-talking hustler, a fact she must keep hidden from her mother, a domestic worker desperate to help her daughter escape the cycle of poverty. And Marisol (Paola Mendoza) is a free spirit who got into crack and fights to keep her young daughter out of foster care. The film explores the different routes each took to survive and the viewer is hit with a powerful ending

- 12 - www.onefokus.com

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success

November 2004

showing who overcame it all and achieved redemption.

screening, as well as massive SpongeBob giveaways throughout the month.

Authenticity definitely plays an important role during the filming process, which makes this film even more powerful than it is. The actors in the film spent a lot of time speaking to women in jails, particularly in Tri-State area.

They learned about the harsh realities most of these women go through and they were able to brilliantly transform them onto the big screen with a lot of heart and respect, capturing the audience in ways you would never imagine. This is a definite must see independent film that should hopefully hit the State or Michigan Theater sometime this year.

Want to find out more information? Then visit www.nick.com/all_nick/movies/spongebob.

:SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS: THE MOVIE

Saw 15 / 20 Now Playing This movie is great. It is truly a breath of fresh air to the tired horror genre of films, evidence lies with the camera action, plot development.

It is about a psychopath teaches his victims the value of life by having them play a sick game for horrific games of survival.

This film had my heart pounding from the start through the end. Ironically, Saw stared as a film short. Halloween 2005, look for the sequel.

Your favorite Nickelodeon cartoon is moving from your television screen to the big screen this November 19, 2004. Now you’re probably wondering what can possibly make you pay to watch SpongeBob on a Friday night and here is why: “There’s trouble brewing in Bikini Bottom – someone has stolen King Neptune’s crown, and it looks like Mr. Krabs is the culprit. Though he’s just been passed over for the promotion of his dreams, SpongeBob stands by his boss and along with his best pal Patrick, and sets out on a treacherous mission to Shell City to reclaim the crown and save Mr. Krabs life.”

The soundtrack boasts artist like Avril Lavigne, The Flaming Lips, Prince Paul with Wordsworth, Motorhead, and your very own SpongeBob among many others. It’s definitely something you need to get a hold of on November 9, 2004.

Be on the look at for an album listening party at a local club on campus, possible pre-

In Living Color Season 1 20 / 20 Now Playing

This is where it all started. Created by Keenen Ivory Wayans and staring all the Wayans’ kids, James Carey (later known as Jim), Tommy Davidson, David Allen Grier, Kim Coles, Jamie Foxx, Chris Rock and the Fly Girls. This comedy show did everything in a daring and funny style. Virtually everyone involved in the show went on to do many other projects, even one time Fly Girl- Jennifer Lopez. Characters such as Men on Films, Fire Marshall Bill, Anton Jackson, Wanda, and Homey the Clown all did unforgettable skits.

Season 2 is out and I gotta get it.

- 13 - www.onefokus.com

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success

November 2004

Boondocks – Aaron McGruder

For anyone aspiring to be an artist, including writers, photographers, musicians, poets, actors/actresses, etc., submit your work and have it featured in an upcoming newsletter or on the website to contact@onefokus.com View the site at

www.onefokus.com

FOKUS strives to unite and build a community for students using the arts.

- 14 - www.onefokus.com

Fighting Obstacles Knowing Ultimate Success

November 2004

Creativity Is King

- 15 - www.onefokus.com