A Story of Culture

Profile 008 of Where We Belong shines the spotlight on Aishamanne, an interdisciplinary artist, filmmaker, photographer, writer, cultural worker, and proud Brooklyn native. In this installment of Where We Belong, Aishamanne shares what inspires her work, her perspectives on home and belonging, and her hopes for the future of the hood, streetwear, and hood culture.

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Jalen:
What made you decide to do all the things you do? You’re an interdisciplinary artist, filmmaker, photographer, writer? You do a lot of things. What inspired you to do all that stuff?

Aishamanne:
I think I've always been inspired by storytelling. So of the three main things that I do, writing is the first, and so as I started writing, I used to do like short stories and novels and stuff. And that just led me to like having a passion for telling stories in all types of ways. So I went from stories in my head of my own creation to stories I was seeing around me, in my community.

So you could say how I grew up and the people I grew up around inspired me too. Because around high school, I transitioned to journalism and to that through college, and now have this kind of like interdisciplinary journalistic practice that I mix with art as well.

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Jalen:
What about your upbringing really inspired you the most? You mentioned being from Brooklyn, having Caribbean roots. How did that blend of, you know, different cultures – Brooklyn and the Caribbean – influence the work you do?

Aishamanne:
I think the word community gets overused a lot of course and has become a buzzword, but I feel like community has been the main thing that inspired me about that, because there were so many communities involved in getting these where I am today and like showing me my heritage, kind of because I grew up in Brooklyn, but so much of where I grew up was very collective because I was raised between Crown Heights and Flatbush, which are like very Caribbean parts of New York.

I mean, now they're acknowledged as Little Caribbean. But being in a place where everyone and most people are from the same set of islands as you and like have the same cultural heritage, even while all of you were not in the country that you're from, has a big impact, then both my parents are Rastafarian and so being raised Rasta, that's kind of a community in itself. Globally, but then in New York as well, that kind of made things smaller.

And then yeah, just always being involved in different groups around New York. And just I think that has been like a driving force for what makes you want to create. But even like, like for example, there's a dance cultural nonprofit called Ifetayo that's based in Brooklyn that I used to be part of. And I was like doing African dance through that. And so many people that I know now are a large part of, like Brooklyn's underground hip hop scene now, are I people that have passed through there. But I think that's just such an interesting thing, like this, a small group thing like that makes us even more connected than just being Black and being from Brooklyn and being from the Caribbean.

Jalen:
That's really cool. And I want to go back to something else you talked about and you mentioned, you know, how you you've simply said the words like not being in the country that you're from, but still feel that sense community. Yeah, I think that's something really, really interesting about diaspora. There's sometimes, you know, being a being part of a diaspora, you're not, you know, you're not in your country of origin, but different people have different experiences with the concept of belonging or not.

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Jalen:
So talk a little bit about what made you feel like you belong amidst the Caribbean community here in Brooklyn, despite not living or being born in the Caribbean?

Aishamanne:
Yeah, I think I've always had a very strong resolve when it comes to that. I'm not sure where it came from, but like from a young age, I was just like, I'm not American. It doesn't matter like what people say. I mean, obviously you'll get the jokes about like, you know, the older people in the family would make jokes about the first-gen kids being Yankees or whatever if we do certain things a different way or like the way we pronounce words. When I was little, we'd like, get laughed at and stuff, but it was still like, yeah, I'm not necessarily, you know, directly from there, but I'm being raised in a household that is.

So my family's from St. Lucia. So it's like even in America, my household is St. Lucian. Every teacher in my school has a Caribbean accent. All the kids are Caribbean. The food we eat, like, it's kind of just a microcosm that's so strong here that it felt much like – and also being in New York too – because even if you're not Caribbean, New Yorkers have a kind of like, “I'm not from America, I’m from New York.”

So it's like it was just like, I felt, didn’t feel isolated. So it was kind of a back and forth between here and back home. The most separate, I felt, is that I don't speak Creole, which a lot of the St. Lucians – Haitians too – will like, act like, yeah, that's a disqualifier for you. But then, I have a lot of Latino friends who don't speak Spanish and still, you know, very much identify.

Jalen:
And still very connected to the culture.

Aishamanne:
Yeah, yeah.

Jalen:
Yeah it makes sense. I think that's something that I definitely experience too, being Filipino. My family, you know, both my parents are from there. A lot of my family still lives there. But I don't really speak the language like that. So oftentimes, even if it's not explicitly stated, there’s like this feeling of disconnection from the culture because like, even though my grandmother speaks English very well, like she prefers to speak Tagalog because, you know, she lives in the Philippines.

There’s certain times, you know, I just can't connect with her as much because she's not speaking the language I understand or speak. So it's interesting, you know, you're talking about that with your, you know, Caribbean background and stuff like that. But I think one thing that, you know, is different between you and me that's interesting, is you grew up around like a lot of other Caribbeans and stuff like that.

So because of that, do you ever feel like maybe... was it really ever a question for you of like, oh, I belong here or I don't?

Aishamanne:
No, not really. It didn't become a question for me until around like college because that was my first time I went to a PWI – a predominantly white institution – and that was my first time feeling othered, especially because I went to a school in New York. So it was a really interesting transition to stay in the same place, but suddenly feel like you have a different position. Because like at school, you know, I come home from the city and I'm back in Brooklyn, same communities. But like I was spending most of my time at school. And so, you know, spending was my time being the minority, even, like I was part of a group, like how I got my scholarship into that school.

Like a lot of the other students on that scholarship were nonwhite. But I remember being the only, like, non-Hispanic Black person that was also that was like another separate thing. And around the time I started college is when gentrification really kicked up in New York as well, in Brooklyn especially. So it was like going, you know, to Manhattan to school and that feeling different and then coming home to a Brooklyn that is also starting to look and feel different, too. And, you know, other types of community starting to move into Little Caribbean and stuff.

Jalen:
That’s interesting. And it makes sense too. It’s really interesting, like being in the same city but having different experiences because of just, who you’re around.

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Jalen:
So when you're going through that, you know, “feeling othered” despite being in the same city, in what ways do you find a sense of belonging there? Or if you didn't, what was like the main like, you know, obstacles to that?

Aishamanne:
I think finding a sense of belonging. Definitely. So that thing that happens at PWI is where, like all the Black kids know each other. That was definitely a thing. And I think it made me... that and like, Latino kids was cool.

That was my first time being able to have close friendships with other people of color. That's another thing about like, at least where I come from in Brooklyn, it's like like I feel a sense of belonging, but it's really not that diverse. Like I didn't have as many friends, you know, just from other places. And so I got to learn about that and kind of like it impacted me a lot as far as my like, politics. Even like before getting into the art, which is like how different groups have a similar relationship to the struggle for liberation.

I think it did a lot to educate me on that. And then as far as ways that, like I would find belonging or had to, I think that was one of the things that motivated me to pick up a camera a lot, actually. So coming back to how I started in writing like that was a form of storytelling I enjoyed. 

And then one of the first things that made me want to, like, visually tell a story and like, do photography, was wanting to document how Brooklyn was changing, because I remember a lot of the time you would be walking past something and be like that used to be, and then you realize that you forget, like the longer that it's been, you're like, I don't even remember what that was anymore. But it wasn't, you know, that new luxury building. And so I wanted to, like, just document as much of Brooklyn as I could before you all for a change it.

Jalen:
Yeah, that's interesting too. I think, you know, we talked about this at Payton's event a little bit as well, but like the feeling of home. What that means and, you know, kind of going back to what you're talking about, it's like, you know, going to college in the same city and having really different experiences. Like what constitutes the home, what makes you feel like you belong a certain place makes you feel at home? And then when that home changes, like gentrification, you know, that can be pretty jarring.

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Jalen:
So for you, with all these different changes, you know, gentrification happening and then also, you know, going to college and being in a very different community, stuff like that. Amidst all those changes, what has kept you grounded and feeling at home?

Aishamanne:
I think getting older and realizing that you have a different relationship to what home means. Because I started college in 2018 and so like I said, around that time, gentrification was picking up in a new way. You know, Bushwick was just starting to become whatever it is right now. And so, a lot of that just kind of felt like, “damn, like...my favorite things are going. Or like, who are these white people moving on the block? Or like, what's happening? Like, you know, why are they not getting off the train before Franklin?”

Like, I just little things like that. And then I think those things aren’t little, but it feels like more surface level like that. And then I think the older I got, the more it was like, okay, what community board meetings do I need to be attending and what mutual aid groups exist in my community? And what, you know is less like watching it happen, gentrification and like pouting about it.

I think a lot more now about like the next generation to come and how, you know, we can we need to like, have as many boots on the ground as far as preserving culturally and, you know, physical space wise, what we can of what's here. Like, I would hate for the Caribbean community that came here or the Latino community, whoever. They have, you know, built so much culture and presence. And for that to all be washed away or become kind of like like a gallery for tourism, because that's not what we would want to happen either.

And so, yeah, it just feels more about personal responsibility and tending to the home that we call the city as a garden. More than just like a personal thing, and I’ll sit here in here as long as I can.

Jalen:
That's cool. That makes sense. That's really interesting way of putting it. I like the garden analogy. I think a lot of times we think of home as just like, this is just something that we live in and we come back to and that's it.

The concept of tending to it really makes a lot of sense, and not just in terms of like a physical space, but a neighborhood or a house or apartment, whatever. But like the more abstract stuff, like the sense of community and sense of belonging, like that stuff that needs to be fostered actively, rather than just like it's out there because, yeah, I imagine – correct me if I’m wrong –like for you when you went to school, you really had to be active about that, right? Like finding people you connect with and building your own little community when you were at school.

Aishamanne:
Yeah, I yes, in a way, like I did have to be active about it because it was less automatic because there's just like, you know, less volume of people to do that with. However, I think coming back to the PWI thing, a lot of the time it wouldn't take much. Like in high school, for example, everybody here has like, you know, like nationality and culture kind of in common. So we're not going to use that to make friends. Whereas in college, it's like, all you have to find out is someone even knows what Crown Heights is, and it’s okay, bestie, you know? So that kind of made things easier.

Jalen:
That's interesting. I never thought of it that way. I guess because, you know, for me, growing up, it was always like a situation where if you have like, one little thing in common, that's enough. Like not having a lot of Filipinos, or Asians or other people of color in general. I definitely had to, you know... I actually didn't have to... say – if I even could find one similarity, like, “oh, you're also a person of color. That's so cool. We’re friends now.” In some way, like it was easier. But, you know, obviously that also comes with, you know, its own challenges.

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Jalen:
One thing I do want to get to and talk about is your creative work and how that is inspired by and celebrates your culture and community. First things first, talk about Hoodwear Diaries – out right now go get that – what inspired you to start that and what motivates you to keep going with it?

Aishamanne:
So the literal story of how it happened is that I was studying journalism. My major was called Journalism and Design, and that culminates in a capstone program where you have to create like a capstone project, and it can kind of be about anything. I remember the professor telling us like, “choose something that you're passionate enough about to work on over a stretch of months because you’re gonna be working on it the whole year.”

And I obviously started thinking about like, hip hop. And at the time, I remember trying to decide because I thought I was going to go into journalism, like for work. And I was trying to decide if I wanted to go into fashion or music. And so I knew it was going to be in one of those things.

And then for me, fashion and music feel inextricably linked within hip hop, and so I wanted to do something about that. And I think at that time, which was 2021, there was a lot going on as far as like Louis Vuitton and Virgil Abloh and Kanye West and Fear of God and Denim Tears. And then even like Balenciaga and hoodies and sneakers being like a big thing, and also like just the visual culture of the hood kind of being trendy.

So that just felt like pertinent to talk about, like the relationship between streetwear and luxury fashion. That's that's how it came about. Specifically, the Supreme and True Religion collab that happened that year was like, the thing for me that was like, okay, we have something to talk about. So that's what inspired it. And as far as what what keeps me going with it, it was never intended to be something I continued, but you have to like present your final project or whatever. So at the capstone presentation, like everyone's feedback was like, I didn't know about this. Again, this is like I'm in a, you know, demographic of people that aren't as close to something like this. So I didn't realize how. Yeah. And I didn't realize how interesting it would be for people. And they were like, you should keep going. And so it was something I always intended to do. But then after college, I got like wrapped up in working until last year. So last year was like the first year that it, you know, was reborn.

Jalen:
Since when you were back in school?

Aishamanne:
Yeah, yeah.

Jalen:
That’s cool, that's cool. I think it's really cool. I think it's really interesting to think about, you know, reflect on what you mentioned, like where, you know, luxury fashion at the time was really going because I think now we're starting to see a shift kind of in the opposite direction, where, because streetwear has been such a fixture in luxury fashion, all these different brands and fashion houses are now turning away from it a little more. Now, going back to, you know, more like, I guess, like formal aesthetics and stuff like that. And that's a whole other discussion about, you know, basically streetwear kind of being like discarded or being viewed as a trend or a fad when it's been around for a long time. And it's such a big part of culture and will continue to be, even if it's not necessarily, you know, at the forefront of the luxury fashion world.

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Jalen:
So talk a little bit more about, you know, the direction in which fashion seems to be heading and what do you think about it?

Aishamanne:
Yeah, this is something that I've written about a lot through Hoodwear Diaries recently too. You’re definitely correct that, the fad is kind of dying down in a way, or rather, it's being redefined to now what streetwear is, you know, as they've decided that it looks like something different. But I think, even like we were just talking about before, like Black culture and street culture gets used and pimped out a lot by outsiders, often from fashion to music. So it isn't surprising, because the things that were trending when streetwear first started to blow up as far as luxury goes, like, again, people like Virgil, people like Kanye are to credit and to thank, depending on how you look at it for how that, you know, popularization happened.

And so those aesthetics kind of became luxurious in a way that they weren't. But those things were ghetto to begin with, and shunned as being ghetto like that wasn't, you know, a good thing. And so I think anything that started off as ghetto, the thing about trends from the ghetto or the hood or whatever it is, is that they eventually do crack mainstream culture and become like, desired and coveted until they're not like they never...you know? And so I think it's just reached the expiration date that things like that do. I think a lot of like, this is a modern fascist state that we live in is to blame for that as well. And how it's in the culture of like, the way we gender and socialize ourselves. And, you know, things are just much more conservative across the board culturally right now than they were before. I mean, you know, woke is derogatory right now in a way it has never been.

Jalen:
Yeah. It was trending a few years ago, that sustainability, all of this stuff was a big deal. And now there’s like, a whole big kind of like, turnaround from that

Aishamanne:
Exactly. And so I think even that can play into the fact that, you know, now we're back to loafers over sneakers. And now streetwear has, you know, toned down and aged up in a way.

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Jalen:
So, I also wanted to ask you about the work you do with film. You know, obviously you're a woman of many talents. Film is one of them. Talk about the work you do with that and what it means to you.

Aishamanne:
So I think film kind of came third, like how I talked about the order of like starting out as a writer and then wanting to visually tell stories and do photography. Film, I think I recognize kind of like synthesized everything. So like, I really was starting to like screenwriting. I really like, you know, visually telling a story with a camera. And then it introduced audio in a way that I think is such a powerful aspect of storytelling to use. So it kind of brought everything together. And then I think with what I'm working on with Hoodwear Diaries, a lot of that research just brought me to the fact that there's such a wealth of like, like Black visual culture that is so responsible for how we dress and stuff.

And I think, as you were mentioning earlier, now a lot of that is the archive, the economy of things, which I think, you know, in the future will literally be like studied, as you know, for its impact. But before that, I think using videos, you know, the TV shows, everything on TV. I think, you know, just, yeah, seeing visuals I think has a lot of impact. So for me, film feels like partially, again, imaginative storytelling, like narrative, I guess, but then also documentary is also contributing to that, that archive like for posterity and being able to document what this era of that culture looked like.

Jalen:
That's interesting. Yeah, it makes sense. Yeah, the mood board archive sort of trend, I don't know exactly what to call it, but that sort of situation, I think can be really interesting, and, you know, thinking about just how much of it is tied to Black culture, I think is really interesting.

You know, it's like the Hidden page, stuff like that, that sort of thing. And it's like, you know, now we look at some of these things for the 90s or whatever, and it's like, oh, I guess like moody and nostalgic, whatever. Like a lot of those elements are still relevant today. Like directly relevant, not just from an artistic standpoint or point of view or archival point of view.

And then back when they were first being created, that was like the culture. So yeah, I think it's really interesting, you know, documenting those sorts of things. When looking back at archive, also doing what you do – which is documenting what's happening right now – because one of these days, stuff you're doing, stuff we're all doing is going to be archived later on. Maybe it'll make some mood board pages. So who knows. We'll see what's going on with the internet in 25 years. 30 years. Who knows?

Aishamanne:
I hope it makes it off of Instagram, I hope. Or whatever exists at that time. Like honestly. And that's the thing about the Hoodwear aspect of it. Because I think it would definitely stand the test of time, which is kind of unfortunate, but like the hood, like whatever that looks like...as beautiful as they are going to make New York City, there will never not be that, even if they push us all to Brownsville or something.

But like, it will just always be that. And I hope it continues to live on in whatever iteration of that comes in the future.

Jalen:
That's interesting. I never thought of it that way, but that that's true. Like for as long as there is any sort of economic stratification, there's always going to be the hood, always going to be...always going to be a culture associated with like, you know, economic struggle, whatever that looks like, wherever it wherever it takes place. I think another thing is actually, now that I’m thinking about it, really interesting about that is how the culture of whatever group was struggling, whether that's racially or financially, whatever, that always ends up becoming cool.

Because I was talking about this, I think, with Payton actually, like it starts off as kind of like something that forms out of necessity. And then it's really like, out of necessity, and also in some ways was like a sign of strength, because like amidst all the struggle you're going through, you still managed to create, you know, beautiful art, beautiful culture, whatever the case may be.

And then eventually the, you know, more like, you know, the class of people, whether that's a race or, you know, social economic group looks that and like, oh, wow, that's so cool. And they adopt it. Kind of going back to what you're talking about with fashion, how like luxury fashion before, did not care about streetwear or whatever like that.

And all of a sudden you see some people that are, you know, from that sort of background that are cool, like the Kanyes the Virgil, the whoever of the world, and it’s like, “oh, now we want to co-opt that.” Now they want to like, you know, make that cool or fancy. So I think it's really, really interesting.

Aishamanne:
Yeah, for sure. Something else just quickly that I always talk about with Hoodwear Diaries is is in my research, I have found about the Lo Lifes. Like the Lo Life Crew, they were from Crown Heights and like in the 90s, and I actually got to interview one of them for the first zine but they were from Crown Heights and kind of just like, well, they were friends, like a group of friends who were known like for being fly, like specifically dressed in Polo.

And so they would be dressed head to toe all the time and like the rarest Polo Ralph Lauren pieces, and they were boosters. So that's how, you know, they would get them like, you know, they weren't going and paying for Polo. But I think the cool thing about that is obviously like as a Polo brand and like, you know...it just wasn't for us, like for Black people. Or even just a certain economic class. It was a lifestyle brand. And that lifestyle was not accessible to people, you know, living in the worst parts of Crown Heights. But they like built a name for themselves and also like a, you know, community, to the extent where Ralph Lauren himself has credited them for being largely responsible for the popularity of the brand in the US, because obviously those aren’t the people you wanted to have the clothes at first, but eventually you couldn't deny the cool factor that they were bringing to the clothing and just hip hop in general.

And so, yeah, what you were saying is you think about things like that...because that's usually how it travels. Like it's denied until the impact is too large to ignore.

Jalen:
It’s denied until it becomes an undeniably impactful thing.

Aishamanne:
Yeah, yeah. And I think it definitely has a shelf life because like what’s happening now with streetwear, like what we were talking about, will get boring eventually. I think everything that has become more conventional post-pandemic now will eventually become boring. And then at that point, whatever the kids in the hood are doing will then become the supply for the next reinvigoration of like, culture, you know? So it's just the rhythm of things.

Jalen:
I don’t want to say a cycle, but like kind of, I guess. Some of it's cyclical, like you're talking about nostalgia, stuff like that. Like it was baggy jeans, then it was skinny jeans, now it’s baggy again then, I don't know, it's like, gonna trend back to skinny jeans? I don't know, I don't want that to happen. We'll see. But yeah, I think the pattern in which those sorts of trends move is interesting.

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Jalen:
I think the last question I want to ask is, you know, you obviously document a lot of things, whether that be through photography, writing or film – which, you know, a lot of it is looking at the past or the present. You study a lot about the past and the present. What are your hopes for the future of hood culture, street culture and just culture in general?

Aishamanne:
Yeah, that's a good question. I think for one, I view what I do and was taught to view what I do as cultural work. I think there's a creativity to it, and I'm an artist. So, you know, all that is cool and fun. But as a cultural worker, like what I'm creating is in service of culture, is in service of the preservation of culture. And I think it comes with a certain level of responsibility for me. And so I hope that that continues, like I hope that people continue to take up the ranks of cultural workers and understand the political significance of making things, especially with limited resources.

And so as far as the hood, it’s that as well. Like, I hope that everyone who is unfortunate and also have to experience the fringes of, of urban society continues to be resilient and continues to be able to make beauty with the resources we have. But I just I don't hope for that limitation to continue.

Like I want to be clear about Hoodwear Diaries. That is like, absolutely not a fetishization of that of like, you know, the ghetto existing because that's the same thing that it's critiquing. But it is more yeah, I think part of cultural work is honoring. Honoring that. A lot of like, artist friends of mine that I'm close with and also inform my approach a lot, we talk about like mixtapes as like a value, like the mixtape approach, the mixtape culture, like doing things in that way.

And so I hope that kind of underground continues. That culture. And I hope that streetwear financially blesses the streets someday. That's really the thing with Hoodwear Diaries. It's like, it's fine for street culture to be celebrated all over the globe, because hip hop is celebrated all over the globe, so that I would never, like, gatekeep it in that way. I just think for it to be a hundreds of billions of dollars industry and for people to still be, you know, struggling to feed their families and move out of the hood, just isn't fair. So I hope that changes.

 

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To watch the full interview, visit us @dspraofficial on Instagram and TikTok.

To learn more about Aishamanne and her work, visit hoodweardiaries.com, check out @aishamoney and @hoodweardiaries on Instagram, and watch Hoodwear Diaries: The Movie at the BRICLab now through May 16.