Where are you from and what do you write?
I write KAMOE, Sometimes I don’t rock the “E” but yeah, I was born in NYC, Then lived in Long Island, NY. Or “Strong Island”! As it’s also known.
When did you first get into graff how was it introduced to you?
In NY graffiti is so prevalent that you get a tag name by like age 11, but to take it seriously and bomb..I got into that type of graffiti about 2002 I got into it big time after meeting some members of DFM crew. I saw the black books and then when we went out to parties it was like they didn’t give a shit. When the parties broke , it was on, watching them hit spots and tag shit was wild, I wanted to be that free. I never got obsessed with the “make my mark” kinda thinking I got into the rush...
How did you pick your name, does it have special meaning to you?
I picked KAMOE because I caught a case in NY and moving to Oakland California, I wanted to change my name. Five letter names and I also love names that are spelled incorrectly but sound right. The letter K always appealed to me. Seemed like a comic book name or something...
Who have been some of your biggest influences over the course of your graffiti career?
My biggest influences would be:
NSITE taught me structure, importance of history and how to push a cart.
MERES cbs let me develope my pieces at 5pointz in L.I.C. NY
BAER Btr taught me to go big
ENSUE osd crew, taught me about style
KAVA , tfn crew, taught me to not take it so seriously...
Have you dabbled in any other types of art or mainly graffiti?
I have always been into drawing and to me tattooing is an art form or craft, so doing that as well keeps me super fucken busy.
Have you had any especially crazy adventures doing graffiti?
One night I was out in West Oakland California, out with a bunch of heads, mobbin, drinking, druggin, smokin. Trying to kill time a bit until traffic died down a bit. We were rolling about 6-8 deep and was trying to get some tags in , and just getting no where. So bout 1am I’m like fuck it, I’m tipsy, and tell everybody I’m out, to catch some solo shit. I’m doin my thing up San Pablo Ave, and just decided it was time to do a big ass fill on a hot block. I get into complete “FTW” mode and just camp out on this hot spot. It s busy as fuck I’m getting honked at, hookers and hood fools all that shits goin on and I’m about to be done with this Big ass black fill white outline, putting the date on this mothefucker and I’m getting lit up blue and red lights, “drop the fucken can!” So now I’m getting the full Red Carpet treatment, knee to the back of the neck, cheekbone mashed into the sidewalk. I get put in handcuffs. Then I’m getting searched, dumping cans on the sidewalk out of my bag. ‘yelling at me
“look at this shit!” “What the fuck are you doing with your life 28 years old, and fucking up in the streets. Putting this garbage on hard working people’s property”
He’s going on and on, I just zone out and start thinking about going to Santa Rita County Jail, and all the fun I’m about to have (sarcasm, I fucken hate Rita).
I’m just head down with cuffs on bumming hard, when something happens that’s never happened before.
He takes the fucken cuffs off!
And then he’s saying “Your going to write an apology letter, Right now! Write to this honest mans business that you just fucked up!”
So I’m swaying a bit from the nights fun, writing this apology as they dictate it to me word for word.
Then he goes “Put your phone number down so he can call you down here to repaint the business.”
I can’t remember my new number, and write down a bunk number, he calls it, not a real number,
“What the fuck, giving me a fake number, you piece of shit!” He barks at me.
Partner grabs my phone off the hood and says, “we'll hear it ring” “Don’t fuck with us.”
He tries to open it but the battery is dead, he then says “put your real number down any way!”
The officers forcefully drag me to the mailbox attached to the door, “Put the letter in”, so I do.
Then they say, “Grab your shit and get over here!”
Then they pull me over to the dumpster and tell me to dump the paint cans. So I do.
Then they say "Run home now!, and stay the the fuck out of the west!”
I lived in East Oakland at the time so I just walked a few blocks to a dealers house I knew. Yelled up to him, and before I knew it I was smokin blunts and drinking 40oz to the sunrise. Next day got a piece of tape and fished the letter out of the mailbox and grabbed the cans out of the dumpster. I still have that letter to this date.
Have you seen the graffiti scene change a lot over the years?
Social media seems to be the biggest change in graffiti that I have noticed. Styles get posted and bitten within minutes. I loved when magazines would drop and you would spend hours Visually digesting each and every page. Mags are obsolete now, and kids want something new to look at every 20 min. Now kids want fame and to be “relevant’’ takes up all their time.
The pure essence of graffiti is the same, to me, it’s all about having a can in your hand, catch that tag and let the rest fade away...
Do you have any upcoming projects or anyone that you want to give a shout-out to?
I want to shout out.
NSITE
MERES. CBS
ENSUE. OSD
AWOKE. BTR
KAVA. TFN
SUENOS. TFN
UDON. LORDS CREW
ENERO. LORDS CREW
WIRE. LD 640
GRIEF. 640
ABOUT. 640
LOGO. 640
RENEK. LORDS CREW
VOICE. SWS
ROAR. CBS
ELET
SENSE 3
REKN. PI
TORSO. TFN
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