Ep. 101 - Hood Empathy & The Chicago Creative Wave ft. Isiah "ThoughtPoet" Veney

20-12-2023 • 1 hr 27 mins

BrownTown shares space with frequent collaborator, Isiah “ThoughtPoet” Veney, photographer, A&R, organizer, and overall creative from Chicago's South Side. ThoughtPoet and BrownTown unpack the Afro-futuristic and "hood empathetic" themes of his photography work, his and SoapBox's collaboration in the "One Million Experiments" film, lessons from the 2020 uprisings, and more. What does community-building really look like in Chicago's growing multidisciplinary creative scene when coupled with abolitionist politics and possibilities? Here's their take. Originally recorded October 25, 2023.

GUEST
Isiah “ThoughtPoet” Veney is a photographer, writer, A&R, and creative director from the Chatham and Burnside area of Chicago. While recently being named a Black history maker by the Chicago Sun Times and ever since his highlighted works with Truestar Magazine showcasing Chicago’s musical talent, he has been on a mission to capture and express powerful opinions and perceptions through imagery and writing. His #HeartMelanin portrait series (since 2013), is a collection of emotions and snapshots of the Black Chicago renaissance. He is also founder of the creative agency Unsocial Aesthetics (site, IG) which helps artists with their creative pursuits while also explaining the Black Chicago origins connected to the scene. Follow him on Instagram and Twitter!

Mentioned Topics:

Ep. 95 - Home
Chicago Drill 'n' Activism
Black Chicago Renaissance (TRiiBE)
Love and Struggle Photos
#SadBoyEnergy (The Prelude) (Chicago Reader)
Testimonies from the Land: A photo essay (South Side Weekly)
Damon Williams’ "One Hundred Other Jobs" post
One Million Experiments (site, IG posts: 1, 2, 3, 4)
Ep. 13 - Chi DNA: Black History & Resistance in Chicago ft. Kofi Ademola

CREDITS: Intro song Chronic Chronicles by Water & Farmabeats and outro song Smoke Anthem by Stock Marley. Audio engineered by Kiera Battles. Episode photo by Jansen B.