Jamel Shabazz - Striving to Capture Images that say something Profound and the Importance of Empathy

Today’s guest on the show is documentary photographer Jamel Shabazz.

Jamel’s contributions to documentary photography are applauded the all over the world and in my humble opinion Brother Shabazz the is the Gordon Parks of my generation. I marveled at his work way before I knew his name. You have no idea how happy it made me feel to sit at a chess table in the middle of Brooklyn and kick it with some who has and still inspires me to do my best with my skill set every single day.

We met up in Dr. Ronald McNair Park across from the Brooklyn Museum to talk about growing up in Brooklyn, self publishing vs traditional publishing, his experience in the military, the summer of 1980, striving to capture images that say something profound, the importance of empathy, the crack era, giving back to the community and much much more.

As you are listening to this conversation, I highly recommend you pull up Jamel’s Instagram, website or flip through one of his many photography books as you listen. It will be a great reference to what we are talking about. I’ve provided links to it all at NewYorkSaid.com 

Side note, we are in the middle of Brooklyn. So, there will be sirens, there will be interruptions and that’s what you get when you record outside in New York, it tends to want to be present right there with you.

That’s enough intro for one show, please enjoy.

More About Jamel Shabazz

Official Site - http://www.jamelshabazz.com

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/jamelshabazz/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/Jamel-Shabazz-16841597946/

Shop for Books by Jamel Shabazz

Back in the Days - http://amzn.to/2f2MxIc

The Last Sunday June - http://amzn.to/2gcrRJJ

A Time Before Crack - http://amzn.to/2fNVx2W

Seconds of my Life - http://amzn.to/2gy0i1I

Pieces of a Man: Photography of Jamel Shabazz: 1980-2015 - http://www.artvoicesartbooks.com/shop/51k7s88fwm6869fxpfenq2lmkhj9yd

Links to the Stuff they Talked About

West Indian Parade - http://wiadcacarnival.org

Eastern Parkway - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Parkway

Brooklyn Museum - https://www.brooklynmuseum.org

Brooklyn Botanical Gardens - http://www.bbg.org

Powerhouse Books - http://www.powerhousebooks.com

Black In White America, a book by photojournalist Leonard Freed - http://n.pr/2fBF0fK

Alex Haley: The Playboy Interviews - http://amzn.to/2fBzdXB

Platoon (1986) - Rotten Tomatoes - http://bit.ly/2flyJna

Marvin Gaye (Song) - What's Happening Brother - http://bit.ly/2gi63Oe

Luke Cage - http://bit.ly/2fZ2Jal

Puma - http://bit.ly/2fBArBT

Delancey Street - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delancey_Street

Riders Island - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delancey_Street

Soledad Brother: The Prison Letters of George Jackson - http://bit.ly/2gi5R1x

Short Eyes (Film) - http://bit.ly/2fnwIKR

Attica Correctional Facility - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attica_Correctional_Facility

Crack Cocaine - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crack_cocaine

Self Destruction (Song) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxyYP_bS_6s

The Central Park Five - http://www.pbs.org/kenburns/centralparkfive/

Sam Cooke - A Change Is Gonna Come (Official Lyric Video) - http://bit.ly/2fnInZN

Book of Eli - http://bit.ly/2ge0xyl

Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture - https://nmaahc.si.edu

This episode is sponsored by Gorilla Coffee.