Phillip Wolf - People in the Way

Phillip Wolf, a San Antonio native, creates People In The Way, and it’s worth the listen.

Wait, San Antonio? That’s over in Syn’s neck of the woods. ( I miss you so so much!)

Ok! Emotion fest over, People In The Way will DEFINITELY be added to the playlist. Initially, the song reminded me of Travis Scott, which is cool because I like Travis Scott (its like industry music without the industry disconnect). This wavy track is one that I will be cruising to for a while. Check it out here. 

ph.jpg

/The Intern

Introducing #CWEverydaySteez

Fashion is a constant and style never sleeps. It is a way to express yourself from the most lavish garments to simple threads of comfort with all the minute details in between. Here is Everyday looks from our Fashion Editor Vato.  We hope you become inspired by his everyday self-expression and send us your own looks to add to the "STEEZY" collection.

Be Bold. Be Confident. Be #Urban.

 

This Weeks style: Flip Mode

#WCW Rachel Vasquez

This year’s agenda for Rachel Vasquez: Continue to build her empire.

rachel2.png

Our #WCW Rachel Vasquez is the owner of Fame Clothing line, Sheek 911 boutique, and the owner of Vasquez printing.

If that’s not enough for you, let’s add her other full time positions: Mom, Wife, Friend and self-proclaimed Queen of recreating jeans.

21686821_514803902203985_2162781160306573777_o.jpg

A woman with a lot of hustle and “Your Local Fashion Dealer” to say the least; she's been working.

Now normally I would go into a rant about how this boss lady is not stopping until she gets what she wants for herself, her family and the people she loves but I’ll let Rachel give us her perspective.

“Having a dream is about working late nights, sacrificing, and believing in yourself when no one else believes in you. In life there are workers and dreamers. I choose to be both. Taking my passion and making it my reality. Dreaming is not good enough if that's all you're doing, you have to take that dream and work until that dream gives you tunnel vision, until you want it as bad as you want to breathe. Started my dream back in 2012 with little to nothing in my bank account. It is now 2017 and I can see my growth in my work, growth is my mindset, growth in my sacrificing. 2017 is all about the revamping of my self. The next level up💪🏽 People see you working but they don't get to see the sacrifices you have to make every single day to get the lifestyle your family deserves. The work never ✋🏽 Stops, you never get to sleep 😴, your time is always taken.”  

We hear you Rachel.

Check out some items from her collections below to see some of her work. Then follow her and her organizations on IG: @Sheek911llc IG: @vasquez.collection17 FB: @Rachel Luis

Let us know who you want to see as our next #WCW in the comments.


All images owned and provided by Rachel Vasquez and her social accounts.

The Cloud - Perspective

Last week Saturday’s event was inspired to bring our local soundcloud artist to life, and we can say it did just that. There was a crowd full of people, with a positive vibe, music was blasting, people were socializing. Not only was it just about local music but local vendors like Tastebuds Extravaganza, Missy’s Sweets and BiYu. You know what we say #SupportTheLocal.

Ashley Guyton, the boss lady responsible for the event, had a vision. From personal experience, she knows that Milwaukee has major talent that is underplayed. Her preference of listening to local music, good local music at that, sparked an idea. She told us she was a little nervous because she did not know how well it would be if she brought Soundcloud artist off the web and in your face. With faith in herself and a goal in mind, she went for it. These opportunities are stacked with exposure...and that's why CopyWrite was asked to attend. So who is really dropping gems on “The Cloud”?

The line up was pretty sweet. A few babies in the game, some underrated players, and even a local favorite.

JO, Nile, Marques Carson, Mo’City, Jackson Princess, Paper Stacks, J-Lamo, all blessed the mic.

So was the event a success?

From our eyes, we would have to say it was a great success. Bringing the community together for nothing but LOCAL fun from food, drinks, to music. JO started the crowd off right with smooth bars and lots of energy. Nile kept it going with his younger appeal, Marques Carson caught us off guard with his wordplay (we see you!). Next up we had Mo’City who kept us in that mellow zone to just keep vibin’. Jacksons Princess brought us that controversy (hop off her collar), confidence and control. Making a major impact on us was Paper Stacks, who said we ripped him apart last time, he hit us up for a review of his music. He went up there commanding the crowd with his catchy bars and stage persona. Keeping the crowd moving with his partner in crime Big Shakin’ on the mic. Following the performance, we took a moment to ask him how he felt about the event and he said: “it was a great vibe and performance because everyone came out just for the music, it wasn’t a club to get hype or anything like that it all about the music.” Giving us the insight of how the crowd can control the flow of an artist by letting us know that if the artist and the crowd are there for the same reason it can make it that much better. Last to bless the mic was, J-Lamo who was also celebrating the one year anniversary of his project Writer’s Block. As always he had the crowd going, they were singing along and jiggin’ with him. Excited with emotion of a year of success his presence was felt throughout the whole room.

Final thoughts!

Ashley feeling great about her turn out, with all the acts feeling inspired overall it was an event to remember. We can’t wait to see what Ashley has planned for us next.

(Picture by  Sherrod Avery)

/CopyWrite Connect Jojii

Introducing #WordplayWednesdays - "You can't swim and I can't teach you"

What is the purpose of #WordplayWednesdays?

The focal point of poetry is to tell a story, a fable of the heart and mind. A poem’s purpose is to manifest a painting of connection between life experiences and the emotional core of a person’s psyche. Creative writing gives a platform for self and soul expression to its audience. Natalia (The Freelancer) for CW, wants her words to bring people back to a place where they find memories filled with profound feeling. A place where they realize they are not alone.

Check out Natalia's #WordplayWednesday for your "new" poetry fix. If you would like to contribute to the narrative please email us your submissions, subject: Wordplay Wednesdays at Copywrite.mke@gmail.com

 

You can't swim and I can't teach you

How did I get so lost in you
Without even knowing who I am with you
How do I want to love you like no one has tried to love you before
when I can't even break down walls
When I can't even breathe vulnerability in your presence
Let the guard fall, let the curtain fall, give into the unknown and take a bow
How can I ask and crave from you love
When I'm still learning how
I made sure to not fill you within my void
A void I had once thought of as so insignificant
A void I had thought of as irrelevant
Filled properly with self-love and reciprocal relationships
But now I know this void still remains
And pieces of you somehow fell in
I let them fall thinking I was in control
Thinking I was present in every moment we shared
Thinking my past was just that and wouldn't show up to take its toll
When in reality
I was drowning in your attention
Melting under your touch
Forgetting to be present
Forgetting that you didn't know enough
Forgetting that I could be too much
I want to unlearn for you
And for me
I want to be better for me
For you
I want to be the best me
Because I know it's what I deserve
Because I know it's what you deserve
But how selfish of me to ask of you what I know I wouldn't give
How selfish of me to ask you to sit around and wait for me to grow
I mean I want us to grow together and be good together
Be great together
But how can I ask you to be next to me in a journey that could hurt you along the way
How can I ask you to commit to love
If I'm still learning how to give it away
I want you to stay
I damn near want to get on my knees and beg you to stay
Say hey
Look me in the eyes
Can’t you see good in me
Can't see all the good I could be
Can't you see all ways I could love you
Reciprocal and healthily
Beneficial and mutually
Always giving
And reminding myself to let you be free
Can't you see inside of me
How heavy and sweet my love would feel draped all around you
And inside you
But can I ask you to wait?
Can I ask you to stick around and watch me grow into someone you could never hate
I want you to see in me all the great I find in you
All the great I already have within
I want you to see the potential
Because I know it's inside
But can I ask you to wait
To stay awhile and join me on the ride
When I know how difficult it will be for you to swim against the tide
 

/Natalia

Tru West - Switch Up

Tru West, an artist from Milwaukee Wisconsin has always had a knack for the music scene and has a few released tracks under her belt. One that caught our ears here at CopyWrite was “Switch Up” a song that was released in July of last summer. A little soulful sauce, melodic flows, and a sweet beat.

“Switch Up” gives the listener a confidence boost, letting people know if you don’t get it right “Imma have to Switch Up on ya!”

“The Intern” knows it by heart already. Give it a listen and let us know what you think!

New joint! Sometimes you gotta show another side and let the haters know 😂 but remember, always stay Tru to yourself. Let me know what you think! 💜🙏🏽

Milwaukee Fashion Week 2017 - Perspective

Milwaukee Fashion Week is back at it again with the controversy.

MKE FW 2017 event, hosted at the Milwaukee Athletic Club had already retrieved “local” traction before the week had even arrived. From culturally disruptive media pre-coverage to the grassroots MKE fashion world feeling once again slighted by the “politics” of the event, there was already some pushback to even attend.

CW staff attended the last day of the event, hoping that just observing a sample of this year's show would be more beneficial to MKEFW and our readers since our presence last year seemed to create a little bite back behind the scenes. (Reading the press credential agreements this year was quite insightful). Nonetheless, we saw what we saw.

Our favorites of the night:

  • Sarah Lauren Fashion, with her satin bases, smooth transitions, and unexpected use of material.
  • Em.Ris, with the dark tones, concepting, and staged fashion experience (the headphones….genius!)
  • Ieri Designs by Allison Jarrett, For the tailored suits with vibrant color and pattern selection.

Things we could do without:

  • The unfinished and unhemmed worked that was allowed on the runway.
  • The very unproportional crowd demographic. (Analyze the culture).
  • The stage setup.

Instead of going on we rather give you a glimpse at ONE narrative participants and the community are having about MKE FW:

Richon for EmRis
R1.png
R2.png
R3.png

(From Facebook- Both Richon & Lupita were told their perspectives would be shared.)

 

We also received a perspective submission by another one of our readers and MKEFW models, Roshá Brister:

Rosha for EmRis
“It was my first time being a part of Milwaukee’s Fashion week and I have to say the experience wasn’t as hectic as my time at New York’s Fashion Week. I walked for designer Em’Ris, whom I have had the pleasure of working with on several different occasions. Hair and makeup prep was at 3 p.m., on the last day of the event. When I walked into the venue I was very surprised as to how un-athletic and elegant the club was, which I most certainly did not expect. I got to the hall and checked-in and took a seat. The halls setup was really nice and well put together; it definitely fits the mood of a fashion show. One thing that caught my attention was the stage, I was a little perplexed about its setup. It was about a 2ft. stage that models had to step onto when coming from behind stage. In my opinion, it would have just been best to leave it out altogether.  However, I did like the lighting; it brought out the light pink walls and white lining of the walls. This made the hall have an ambiance that was soft and inviting.
Behind the stage was organized in regards to understanding who was doing what and it was easy to locate your designer. I really enjoyed their model call system to ensure each model had their hair and makeup done on time and in an orderly fashion. Though this was well set up, I will say my hair and makeup experience was not the best by the slightest bit. The makeup/hair stylist that was assigned to my designer was not well versed in how to beautify and style darker complexions and hair types. I mean the lady did not brush my edges, honey! That’s important. I’m natural with locs, and still, I manage to have my edges looking together. Although that was simple for me to take care of, it was very disheartening that she was not prepared to do darker complexion women make up. She did makeup for another model and I, and honestly, it looked a hot mess. Good thing as a model, I brought my own foundation, mascara, and eyeliner; unfortunately “we” just have to be prepared for the unprepared.
The show started at 7 p.m. and Em’Ris line went on just before the first half. As a model, this was the least stressful setup that I had experienced. The staff was very organized in informing us when we needed to be dressed and where we’d go to enter the stage. The group of models and of course the designer Emily were amazing and we really killed our segment on stage! I would definitely participate in MKE Fashion Week again.”


So there you have it. Perspective is key to making the proper impact on the community in which you claim to serve, no matter what event it may be.

Like we say here at CopyWrite… #DoBetter

/CW

King Cezar - Elavate

The rise of the Milwaukee Hip-Hop culture is evident. www.broke.life and Milwaukee artist King Cezar raise the bar with this emotional cut, "Elevate."  The track produced by Taz Taylor emphasizes the importance of perception and dedication when overcoming obstacles.  King Cezar demonstrates with this hard-hitting release.  

Additional Vocals Provided by Fox 6 Milwaukee and Professional Baseball Player Jeremy Jeffress.

Check it out and let us know what you think!

(Milwaukee, WI) The rise of the Milwaukee Hip-Hop culture is evident. www.broke.life and Milwaukee artist King Cezar raise the bar with this emotional cut "Elevate". Produced By: Taz Taylor Mixed By: @KingzCircle414 Additional Vocals Provided by: Fox 6 Milwaukee and Professional Baseball Player Jeremy Jeffress. Follow Everywhere: @KingCezar414

Cleo Fox - Lil Romeo (Freestyle)

Back with some more waves for you all to catch with us! This week we’re listening to Cleo Fox’s Lil’ Romeo Freestyle produced by PVT Joker. Honestly, the name sent me (that one intern) off for a minute. Lil’ Romeo? What? Why? Come to find out its three minutes of me being salty because I actually really vibe to this track! Fox’s flow is definitely consistent, and this was considered a teaser for PressPlayVol.2 his next project.

“See Cleo Fox, we do listen to your music submissions!” - Words from our Editor-in Chief (Lexi)

Give it a listen and let us know what you think!

I Feel Like Lil Romeo...

The Intern /Garahbrie

"I SAID WHAT I SAID" w/ Garahbrie: Caer of Miras 9 (comic)

Ever heard of Caer of Miras 9?

Caer of Mira 9 is a comic line created by Ian Corrao. Ian is a dope illustrator I first met on one of my very first CopyWrite assignments. My eyes instantly shot over to the area he had set up displaying his work and the rest is history. Ian is currently in the process of getting his comic Caer of Miras 9 made into an animated series (created by him of course), all while maintaining the comic itself and managing another comic line he created called Zombiehood, which is also a pretty great read! One of the biggest things that Ian stressed in the interview is how badly he wants to connect with other creatives in the area, so feel free to reach out to him with any ideas you have!

(Here is a sneak peek of his work & process)

cara 1.JPG

 

Ian and I even took it to the next level and he made me into a comic! It allowed me to dig a little deeper and get into more of Ian’s creative practices. He asked me things like; my favorite color, things I value, superheros that I like, and super powers that I would want! Can You answer those questions based on the comic below? Send your answers to CopyWrite.MKE@gmail.com, the first person to answer those questions correctly will be receiving a little something sweet from us here at CopyWrite. See? The intern loves you!

gra comic.JPG

 

We need: ONE favorite color, TWO things that I may value, TWO Superheros that may be my favorite (can be male or female, or anywhere in between), and THREE superpowers that I would want!

In the meantime, feel to follow Caer of Miras 9 on Instagram and Twitter @caerofmiras9 THEN check out the comic itself at

www.caerofmiras9.com

 

The Intern /Garahbrie