Ricky Powell

Early life and education

Powell was born and raised in New York City.

Powell graduated with an AA in Liberal Arts from LaGuardia Community College and a B.S. in Physical Education from Hunter College.

Philosophy

Powell’s photographs focus on the organic New Yorker. His photographs simultaneously convey intimacy and detachment, as they provide a unique lens through which the viewer can analyze the mundane. Powell considers the relationship between the photographer and the photograph to be “a chemical connection of some sort”. The connection between Powell and his camera is only further stimulated by Greenwich Village, where he currently resides. As the intrinsic qualities of the photograph have changed since Powell began capturing his moments, so have the subjects; he is now more likely to “photograph strangers in his Greenwich Village neighborhood than multiplatinum hip-hop acts and Downtown art stars”.

Beastie Boys

Powell originally saw photography as a purple elephant; taking pictures of family and friends at random. But in 1985, when a girlfriend “played [Powell] like a soggy cannoli”, as he described in an interview with The New Yorker, he took the camera she had left at his place and vowed that “She would be mad sorry she dissed [him] like this”.

In 1986, Powell ditched his job selling Frozade lemon ices out of a street car—where, if you tipped him a dollar, he'd add a dash of rum to the refreshment—to tag along with the Beastie Boys on Run-DMC's Raising Hell tour. Some of the photographs that he took while on tour became significant, and Powell gained notoriety, becoming the unofficial “fourth Beastie Boy”. He toured with the group as Def Jam Records’ de facto in-house photographer on their Licensed to Ill tour in 1987 and Together Forever: Greatest Hits 1983–1991 tour with Run DMC and then again in 1992 on their Check Your Head tour and the 1994 Lollapalooza. Powell is famous for being featured in the song "Car Thief" on the Paul's Boutique album, with the lyrics: “Homeboy throw in the towel, Your girl got dicked by Ricky Powell".

Powell maintains a positive relationship with the Beastie Boys, most recently photographing them for Interview magazine.

Rappin With the Rickster

The original Rappin’ With the Rickster aired from 1990–1996, as Powell interviewed numerous stars on the show including: Russell Simmons, Doug E Fresh, Harold Hunter, Kool Keith, Rahzel, Laurence Fishburne, and Cypress Hill.

With his Public-access television show, Powell became the face of New York’s downtown party scene, connected to both musical and visual artists such as Sonic Youth, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Russell Simmons, Harold Hunter, Dondi White, and Sofia Coppola.

“Rappin’ With the Rickster” often has been called the world’s hippest-ever public access TV show, as Powell gave insight into the artistic phenomena of the day, with an excess of candid footage, impromptu interviews, and a vision of Powell’s New York. Powell considered the show “a time capsule of someone growing up in Manhattan during that era and being around the music scene”.

A DVD collaboration with long-time friend and respected graffiti artist Brian Nobili on “Rappin’ With the Rickster”, released in 2010, was declared a must-have by Juxtapoz.

Books

Released in 1998, Oh Snap!: The Rap Photography of Ricky Powell featured 88 photos, 53 of which were in full color. Powell’s first book, “Oh Snap!” was a ten-year retrospective of some of the best known rap and hip hop artists of all time, including old school rappers Public Enemy, Run DMC and LL Cool J to some of the biggest stars of the day.

The Rickford Files: Classic New York Photographs was Powell’s second work, featuring what he considered “the real New York”, beyond the tourist glaze of Times Square and the deteriorating Greenwich Village. Powell worked as a bike messenger and nightclub busboy during the eighties and it is evident throughout these photographs, which represent a lost New York, one that has been replaced by an amusement park city.

Frozade Moments: Classic Street Photography of Ricky Powell is a book of postcards consisting of candid snapshots of celebrities, local luminaries, and lowlifes that offer an amusing view of New York City. The celebrities include Madonna, Jam Master Jay, KRS-One, Frankie Crocker, Andy Warhol and Flavor Flav.

With Public Access: Ricky Powell Photographs 1985-2005, Powell celebrated two decades of capturing moments in his signature style, documenting much of the early era of hip-hop and presenting the actors, musicians, performers, and artists that inspired him, including Method Man, Doze Green, Bill Adler, Slick Rick, Run DMC, Eric B & Rakim, Keith Haring, Steven Tyler, Barbara Walters, Cindy Crawford, Eazy-E, and Fab Five Freddy. These photographs are distributed amongst graffiti splattered renderings by Lee Quinones, Ron Galella, Ron English, Phil Frost, Sam Flores, David Choe, Dalek, and others. Powell depicts a nostalgia for New York’s back-in-the-day with universal downtown cool with sentiments from Zephyr, Charlie Ahearn, Glenn O'Brien, and Zoe Cassavetes.

Exhibitions

Powell's "Frozade Moments, 1985-2003," ran at Bill Adler's Eyejammie Fine Arts Gallery in New York from July through September 2003.

Powell’s “Public Access: Ricky Powell Photographs 1985-2005” exhibition was featured at the colette in Paris, the powerHouse Gallery in New York, Milk Bar in San Francisco, and Lab 101 Gallery in Los Angeles.

Powell exhibited both his photographs and his signature street style at BRAVE Art, Whistler in 2006.

The Ricky Powell Art Funk Explosion! was Presented by Frank151 at Sacred Gallery NYC from December 9–28, 2010, and celebrated Powell’s guest curation of Frank Chapter 43: Bug Out!, which highlights his photographs and interviews with renowned street artists.

Powell's World Famous Slideshow at All Tomorrow's Parties was highlighted by Billboard.

Marketing Campaigns and Product Collaborations

Powell first worked with Puma SE to design Ricky Powell Street Photography Sneakers.

Powell also collaborated with Converse (shoe company) and Product Red to create Chuck Taylor All-Stars made out of hemp.

WESC released Ricky Powell-branded headphones in 2010.

X-Large has employed Powell to photograph celebrities, such as Sofia Coppola wearing their merchandise.

Powell was part of a new PepsiCo ad campaign, "Bronx Flavor", in 2011, making interactive street installations and photography by Powell.