Straight Out Of The Motherland

The Experience

It was this time last year that I first met this young fashion guru in the making, Moe Diaoune. SUNY Cortland’s Pan African Student Association was having their annual African themed fashion show and both Moe and I were invited. He was there to show off his clothing and I was there to capture images of the event. After killing it on the SUNY Cortland stage, Moe told me, “…I appreciate you my brother and trust me, we will work soon.” If I’m being honest, I didn’t think anything of it because everyone says that but, something was different about this kid. We exchanged Instagram handles and went our separate ways. Fast forward a year later, I received a DM saying, “What’s up, my brother?” I was immediately filled with joy because my intuition was true. This kid was serious about working and I knew a brand like his would push my creativity. We chatted about working with each other once again on his latest designs and we began to foster this new friendship. About a month later Moe finally wrote me asking for my availability. We decided on a date and a theme and it was go time! Moe was on his way back to the Motherland (Africa), so he really wanted to recreate a look that expressed the joy he would feel when he first touched that African soul. After location scouting, my girlfriend and I ran across this new temporary memorial park dedicated to political activist, Shirley Chisholm. The park used to be a dump yard and being that NY has started to abort it’s original waste evacuation plan, they are starting to create more “GREEN” parks for people to just enjoy. We took advantage of this while we could. We explored this park for an open area that had the same dirt roads with brown and dark green tones as Africa. Thus these images were born! I’m glad that I was able to make Moe’s vision come true and that he even chose me to capture these historic moments!

I had sometime to chat with Moe about his brand, it’s purpose and his ultimate vision for it. He let me know that although the brand has been primarily geared toward the continent of Africa, the inspiration was found in the people who’ve supported him at home. Growing up in the Bronx, built in him a drive to care for and give to the people he would live and die for. So growing up, he had no one else to dedicate all of his talent to but, the Motherland that they were straight out of. Moe also let me know that although he had grown up around such love, he could never anticipate the amount of support he had received from his family and community. Upon his first releases, he had already received support from people like Hami Diallo, NBA player for the Oklahoma City Thunder and more. Moe said, “it was all blessings starting to come in and I was just prepared for what was coming.” This support pushed him and since then, he has continued reaching small goals over time slowly climbing this mountain of success.

Moe said, “For the next 6 months, my goal is to get people to see what the brand actually represents. Most people think it’s just an African brand. I actually started off with the African continent to pay homage to the birthplace of the human race. So within the next 6 months, I hope to revise my plan so that I can get people to see that “Motherland” represents each person. In 5 years, I want this brand to be international.” I think Moe is well on his way to achieving that goal. He already hit his milestone for this year by visting his father’s area in Africa. It was there that he was able to see the impact his brand could have on the world. He hopes to go back and “do it big for his home town!” The last thing Moe told me was that, he wants people to know that he’s working on an international brand and that can’t be done tomorrow. It takes time to spread the message to the other Motherlands but, “one way or another he’ll get there, God willing!” That type of message, I have to support and I encourage others to as well!

GlobaL Impact: An international dream

“One of The Realest Experiences I’ve Experienced In My Life Was This Week. Im Just So Happy I Got A Chance To Come Back To The Motherland This Early Of My Movement and Give Back To The People Around My Fathers Way. Thank You To Everyone Who’s Been Supporting My Me & My Movement, Y’all Gave Me The Inspiration To Do It! This Means Completely Everything To Me 🤞🏾❤️ #THEMOTHERLANDDON !”

The Field

Most people are born 10's. Society doesn't like to promote that but, from a purity perspective, most people are indeed 10's. They've done no crimes and they're innocent. Just... innocent...babies! And, over time those people may trip, some may fall and all of that wear and tear has a toll on them. Their mental and physical health can be effected by those unique experiences so, the game becomes "how long can I sustain a significant level (1-10) so that I can appear of a more or equal value to other merchandise?" Some people seek intelligence, others wrap themselves in fancy garments and do all sorts of crazy things to add or sustain their status! But, growing up in the hood is a whole different game! You're born a 10 but, your status is voided and you then become a 0. So, what others take for granted: determination and persistence, you have to almost gain instantaniously to climb the latter for an equitable start! Oh! On top of that, you will also trip and fall and do all those crazy things others do to maintain what little staus you have. All of this, just to prevent yourself from being seen as negative. So when I see a "0" solidify their 10, I have to support them because when others were hoping to die an 8 or a 5, they were just hoping to be the 1.

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