The AKOO Clothing brand founded by rapper T.I. has quickly become the hottest streetwear collection. On Friday Septemeber 9th it solidified itself in fashion history with its first MBFW show. Held at EZ studios on the lower West side of Manhattan. The AKOO clothing line debuted its 2012 Spring Collection in front of hundreds of invite only notables. The small studio was filled past capacity and hundreds left outside as this proved to be one of the hottest shows to kick of New York Fashion Week. See our original photography as we were pleased to be one of the selected magazines to cover, special thanks to Mel Testamark for the invite.

Photography by: Andrew Thomas Clifton

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Line: AKOO Clothing

PR: Tamara York PR

Larry English is one cool ass dude.

I’m standing before this mountain of a man… and this quiet funny and really cool dude just looked and smiled and acted like there wasnt a care in the world (and this was BEFORE the NFL Lockout). In the following hours of talking and laughing and working with him I realize that he is not only an avid golfer with an awesome Foundation and a tendency to smile (and make every woman in the room swoon a bit)… but he is a very good man with a big heart.

With superstar stylist Khaliah Clark and Coordinated by Carmella Bella we turned out in Chicago to present an entirely new effort and share the NEW SCHOOL COOL

Player: Larry English of the San Diego Chargers

Photographer: Andrew Thomas Clifton

Styling: Khaliah Clark

PR representation: Carmella Bella

It wasnt supposed to happen this way, but I’m glad it did.

Pandora, at its inception, was designed to be a simple makeup editorial to show off the talents of makeup artist Felicia Sorrells. She brought on board the incredibly talented and diverse model Jewel Thompson and we started getting the shoot in motion. While on set (at the magic loft in Atlanta), my long time genius level fashion designer Lingkoya Washington brought out some super nice pieces and then… it started to evolve. Jewel started moving and the night sky started beaming and the dress started talking to us… and so became what you will experience below. A beautiful mesh of slender and subtle and streets.

Welcome to Pandora.

Model: Jewel Thompson

Photographer: Andrew Thomas Clifton

Clothing and Styling: Lingkoya Washington

Make Up: Felicia Sorrells

I have a special place in my heart for Vicki Valencourt, she remains the inspiration for the current phase in my work where I push against everything I consider safe and simply shoot women in their raw glory. her natural energy is something of the dreams, fairly soft spoken and rarely caught in an awkward moment. She reminds me of the female version of Mr. Dos Equis… too cool for words. Her ovular facial structure and dreamy eyes remind me of an ear long since past, reminiscent of the Miles Davis and Perry Como tunes that sauntered throughout the airways of my childhood.

On a chilly spring day, I caught a flight to Chicago with the idea fresh in my mind. For this Session we teamed up with Tinaya Weems, who is one of the most dynamic makeup + hair combinations that I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with. Her speed and complexity make her a serious talent to be looked out for in the days to come. She was even kind enough to take us through a behind the scenes blog on how to get the GLAM look for this spring (which you can view HERE)

Enjoy the moments we’re sharing with you. moments with THE GLAMOROUS REBEL

Photography: Andrew Thomas Clifton

Makeup Artist: Tinaya Weems

Model: Vicki Valencourt

Accessories: LLF Jewelry