Capturing Icons: Tee Max on Music Photography

Brent Rollins: Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star

This week, I'm excited to host the design titan Brent Rollins. He’s an artist, art director, designer, author, and TV producer. Brent is known for creating the logos for films like John Singleton's Boyz N the Hood  and Spike Lee’s Mo’ Better Blues. His design prowess extends to album covers for legendary artists such as Gang Starr, Blackalicious, and Dilated Peoples.  Our conversation centers on his work for the cover of the Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Blackstar album. Brent discusses the mission of the Ego Trip Collective and explains how his role as the collective’s art director led to the opportunity to design the Blackstar album cover. We explore how he masterfully integrated Eddie Otchere’s photographs into the cover design and the references that catalyzed his creative vision. Host: Siima Itabaaza [https://siimaitabaaza.com/] Guest: Brent Rollins [https://brentrollins.com/] Kutimba With Siima Newsletter: https://kutimbawithsiima.substack.com/ [https://kutimbawithsiima.substack.com/] Email: kutimbawithsiima@gmail.com IG: @kutimbawithsiima [https://www.instagram.com/kutimbawithsiima/]

Eddie Otchere: Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star

I sit down with legendary photographer Eddie Otchere. He’s known for photographing icons like The Notorious B.I.G., The Fugees, and So Solid Crew. Our conversation explores the creation of the album artwork for Black Star’s 1998 debut album, Mos Def and Talib Kweli Are Black Star. Eddie shares behind-the-scenes stories from his photoshoot with Mos Def (now Yasiin Bey) and Talib Kweli. We also discuss Eddie’s views on contemporary rappers and his vision for the visuals of Black Star’s follow-up album. Host: Siima Itabaaza [https://siimaitabaaza.com/] Guest: Eddie Otchere [https://otchere.shop/pages/video] Story editing and advising: Allison Behringer [https://www.roughcutcollective.com/team] of Rough Cut Collective Order the Spirit Behind The Lens here [https://otchere.shop/pages/spirit-behind-the-lens]. Kutimba With Siima Newsletter: https://kutimbawithsiima.substack.com/ [https://kutimbawithsiima.substack.com/] Email: kutimbawithsiima@gmail.com IG: @kutimbawithsiima [https://www.instagram.com/kutimbawithsiima/]

Tee Max: Madonna, Ray of Light

In the final part of my conversation with British photographer and documentarian Tee Max, we explore the album cover of Madonna's Ray of Light. We dive into the backstory behind the cover art, discuss why Tee considers it a remarkable image, and reflect on Madonna's extraordinary ability to reinvent herself. Host: ⁠Siima Itabaaza⁠ [https://siimaitabaaza.com/] Guest: ⁠Tee Max⁠ [https://www.teemaxphotography.com/] Kutimba With Siima Newsletter: ⁠https://kutimbawithsiima.substack.com/⁠ [https://kutimbawithsiima.substack.com/] Email: kutimbawithsiima@gmail.com IG: ⁠@kutimbawithsiima⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/kutimbawithsiima/]

Capturing Icons: Tee Max on Music Photography

This week photographer and documentarian Tee Max joins me for a conversation about music photography. Tee's striking black-and-white portraits depict several Hip Hop and R&B icons, including Beyoncé, Da Brat, Notorious B.I.G, and OutKast during their early years. Tee shares his journey into music photography—what shooting Nas taught him about performers, the time he almost botched a shoot with Mary J. Blige, his MTV Base show with music journalist Fusion, and more. Host: Siima Itabaaza [https://siimaitabaaza.com/] Guest: Tee Max [https://www.teemaxphotography.com/] Kutimba With Siima Newsletter: https://kutimbawithsiima.substack.com/ [https://kutimbawithsiima.substack.com/] Email: kutimbawithsiima@gmail.com IG: @kutimbawithsiima [https://www.instagram.com/kutimbawithsiima/] https://siimaitabaaza.com/ https://www.teemaxphotography.com/ https://kutimbawithsiima.substack.com/ https://www.instagram.com/kutimbawithsiima/

Sydney Urbanek: Beyoncé (self-titled)

Friday, December 13, 2013 - everyone remembers exactly where they were. Beyoncé shocked the world with the surprise release of her self-titled album, flipping the industry on its head. Writer Sydney Urbanek [https://sydurbanek.ghost.io/about/] joins me to unpack the Beyoncé album cover and how it defies societal expectations surrounding Black women performers. We explore the evolution of typography across Beyoncé’s album covers and the lasting influence of the self-titled cover on her visual identity. Host: Siima Itabaaza [https://siimaitabaaza.com/] Guest: Sydney Urbanek [https://sydurbanek.ghost.io/about/] Read A Moving-Image History of Parkwood Entertainmenthere [https://sydurbanek.ghost.io/]. Kutimba With Siima Newsletter: https://kutimbawithsiima.substack.com/ [https://kutimbawithsiima.substack.com/] IG: @kutimbawithsiima [https://www.instagram.com/kutimbawithsiima/] Email:kutimbawithsiima@gmail.com