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" YD 43 a.k.a SAKE "- THIS IS MY STORY.
1 ) Where did you grow up in New York and why did you take an interest in writing? I was born and raised in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn, New York and my mother and grandmother raised me. Both of my parents divorced when I was very young, and I never really had a relationship with my father until much later in life. My father is a very talented artist. So, I guess I inherited his abilities and skills because I never received any instruction from a school that taught art & design. I recall when I was a kid, I would draw, sketch etc,.. If I would get my hands on lets say, a paperback book for example, or a magazine in my house, I would deface it by doodling on it. It is a natural ability that I am blessed with. Because I have the natural ability to draw, I can now see how easy it was for me to get influenced into graffiti art as I got older. During my JHS years, I familiarized myself with it even more. Back then, I was just a youngster who got easily influenced into it by my peers. To me, it was the thing to do. Especially when I meet several guys that I attended school with back in 1978. KP, HEAT, & DELK. They attended the same school as I did. We all became the best of friends afterwards

2 ) What was the first name you chose to tag up and what were the first names you recall seeing up on the trains and buses?

During my Junior High School years, I was still in that phase of trying to select a name that would appeal to me. However, I did have two that comes to mind. One was BP-ONE and SWIFT. I recall coming to school several times with this huge black book. The biggest one that was in the art stores at that time. I would experiment with these two names in my book... Later on, SAKE is the name that I ultimately kept.

During those years, I would take the bus to school. Every single time I would board a bus to school, SIKO and KIK's tags were there to greet me. These guys need no introduction. SIKO and KIK NSG were kings of the MTA buses, period! Also, AS 2, UN 1 -CW, OE 3 ( OLD ENGLISH 3 ) and P.13 ( PHANTOM 13 ) from TMD crew were most noticeable to me because I grew up by the BMT lines. These guys had whole cars, tunnels, top - to -bottoms, rooftops, highways, you name it. It was obvious to me that when these two guys bombed, they bombed! These guys of coarse were much older than I was at the time.

3 ) What writers inspired you when you first started out and why? Can you tell us about your first Experience hitting the trains, where was it and who were you with at the time?

Well, considering that the J and M lines are not too far from my Mother's house, the writers that jumped out at me on the lines were OE and P13. In my neighborhood of Bushwick, Brooklyn ( Williamsburg ) you had crews such as CW ( Crazy Writers ) and TDC ( The Deadly Crew ) and TD-4 ( THE DEADLY FOUR )

with members that included BOOGIE, UN-ONE, NIF (R.I.P.), EO, SOUL ( R.I.P.), TOR, NASTY NA, etc,.. I also would see writers such as HURST, DIKE, TO TOP, and CD from TOP ( The Odd Partners ) up as well. These writers influenced and inspired me. However, I recall opening up a newspaper one day at home and I noticed that SEEN's HAND OF DOOM whole car was being featured. When I laid eyes on this piece, I was simply amazed. That whole car looked " too perfect" to

me... This inspired me to pursue graffiti even further. As far as I recall, my first experience would have to be the DEWEY YARD in Coney Island. I remember going to that yard with a kid that wrote WEST, CLONE and one or two other writers that I don't remember. As we were about to go into the yard, SAGO and a fewother guys rolled up on us. We were out numbered! They were cool with me and my boy WEST. Unfortunately, I can't say the same for CLONE. They messed with him big time. That's because CLONE was mouthing off to them... They obviously didn't like that, so they screwed with him even more. BOE showed up a few minutes later... When it was all said and done, we managed to get out of there safe and sound. However, SAGO invited me and WEST back to chill at his crib and do some bombing. A few weeks later, we took a train ride back to Marlboro Projects and hooked up with SAGO. We chilled at SAGO's crib, smoked some weed and went bombing to Dewey Yard. SAGO showed us one or two entry points into the yard that we were not aware of. We all hooked up a few times afterwards and remained friends.

- Photo taken on the J -line Subway station 1982, Brooklyn New York.

4 ) Who were your first writing partner when you started out?

One of my first writing partners was a kid that wrote WEST. West lived on Bushwick Ave and was only a block or two away from my house. We both attended the same school together so, it was real easy for us to hook up, and plan ahead of time what yard or layup we would go to. He introduced me to another kid who use to write CLONE. He didn't live far from my house either. We went a few times bombing together and we ultimately lost contact with each other. These guys introduced me to the DEWEY YARD by the Marlboro Projects in Coney Island. This was SAGO WOW crew's turf. However, I would have to say one of my true bombing partners at that time was NEL 106 BMT crew prez. Me and NEL would hook up on a regular bases and bomb the hell out of either the "M" yard or Halsey St layup. We would usually meet at about 2:00 or 3:00 am to bomb. I remember times when we would be exiting the yard or the layup after bombing early in the morning while other writers would just arrive. They would look at us as if to say," dam, where're too late".

5 ) Would you have any Racking adventures you could share with us?

There were several stores we would hit regularly. Especially the Mom & Pop stores that were scattered throughout the city. The best spots were mostly located in Queens. That's because Queens had allot of nice neighborhoods with nice racking spots. In the hood such as the Bronx and Brooklyn, the spots were kind of

hard because all the writers were burn them. Especially the shady looking cats who would draw attention to themselves. The most popular one was of course; Martin paints because it's a chain of stores throughout the city. However, I would have to say one of my best racking partners had to be PG 3, R.I.P. I recall one instance where we went to this Mom & Pop convenience store out by Flushing, Queens. We paid a visit to that store as many as four times that same day! We would have our sweat shirts tucked into our jeans with a belt on along with our goose downs. Goose down coats were the best coats to rack in as far as I'm concerned because they were so puffy. We would keep the coat unzipped so that we can tuck each can through the top collar of the sweatshirt. Then we would push the cans to the small of our backs. You couldn't notice a thing! Man, we did some crazy stuff back then to get some paint. And if you didn't have the skills to rack, then go to the register and pay for it like most toys did. You know who you are.. We would walk in, take as many as 15 - 20 cans in one shot, walk several blocks and stash the paint, only to return and get 15 - 20 more. The funny part about this instance is

that the workers at this store didn't even notice there're paint was missing until weeks later. And when they did, they would just stock up and the store would remain a gem!

6 ) What were all the writing groups you were in, and what group did you push the most?

Too many to mention. But the crews that I represent first and foremost are " T.S.T" ( The Supreme Team ) and " W.R " ( Writers Revenge ) ... Other crews are: B.M.T ( Was NEL 106's crew ), C.W ( Crazy Writers ), TDC ( The Deadly Crew ), TPA ( The Public Animals ), T.F ( The Force ), CIA ( Crazy Inside Artists ), W.O.W ( Words Of Wisdom ), TVS ( The Vamp Squad ), SIS, DOG ( Devils Of Graffiti ) , TBC ( The Bamboo Crew ), NYC, TBK ( The Brooklyn Kings ), TOP ( The Odd Partners ), MOD ( Master Of Disasters ) ,K.O ( Kings Only ), X-MEN, TKC ( The Killer Crew ), BAD ( Boys Are Down ), MOG ( Masters Of Graffiti ), just to name a few. A lot of these brothers who represented these crews were down to the fullest! Not only I had the privilege to bomb with them, but we also hung out allot.

I was a big time club head who frequented all the hot spots back in the day. Night clubs such as the Fun House, Dance - Interior, Bonds, Gotham's, The Garage, Roseland, Ones, Bentleys, The Roxy's, The Cave, The Copa, Latin Quarters, The Underground, The Ritz, The Loft, etc...

I also can't forgot TWC (Together we Chill) boys from the South 2ND and Roebling in the South side of Williamsburg, Brooklyn. I ran with some of these brothers when I was in the drug game.

5) What were all the Subway lines you hit and what lines did you focus on the most? Did you ever hit the I.R.T's and what lines did you feel you were king of and why? The buses were also a main source of getting your name around. Did you bomb the buses and where did you find them, plus who were writers killing buses in your day?

The lines I bombed the most in my early years was the M, J, and LL lines. Me and one of my bombing partners PG 3 ( R.I.P.) would bomb the carnasie yard on a regular basis. We both kinged the LL lines for a brief period with our throw-ups. PG loved the outsides just as much as I did, so we navigated through that yard as if it was our house. We never got raided while we bombed that yard either. My boys from MOG crew, JAZZ and BIE were also regulars in that yard. But I must

say that one of my best bombing partners was my boy KP WR. Man, me and that cat did some serious bombing together. We would go to the M yard on weekdays right after the rush hour and just layup in one of the abandon trains on the outside track and just watch the trains pulling in the yard. The lights would be blinking off and on while they would be pulling in so we can see which trains had the clean insides. But besides the M yard, me and KP would go hit the IND's at the 75th, Union Turnpike layup. In that layup, you would mostly find GG's and ding dongs, ( F TRAINS ) We did a killing in that layup and we loved it. We kinged the GG's in that spot. I hit the IRT's maybe twice in New Lots, but I never really bombed that line as much as the BMT,IND lines. I also never really hit the buses either even though I had easy access to the bus depot that was adjacent to the M yard.

15) Your YD throwies are regarded by many as being one of the best throw up's in history. How did you develop them and who are other that you feel had nice throwies?

In the beginning, I really didn't put much thought into how the letters YD would look in a throwie. However, I then realized the letters YD are not the easiest letters to do throw-ups. It took me some serious time to get it to appear the way it does today. My approach was a simple one. To formulate the throw-up similar to how I write the letters in a simple tag. When I tried it the first time, the throw-up looked very hurt and toyish. But as time went on, with lots of repetitiveness the

YD throw-up started to take shape right before my eyes. And I am not talking about practicing on a piece of paper either. All this took place on a steel canvas. The train. When I think about it, the development of my throwie took a life of it's own. I didn't plan for my throw-up's to look the way it does today. But I am glad that it has become a unique style that only I can say is mine and no one else's. It was simply nothing more than trial and error. Aside from my unique style, I always admired the unique throw-up styles of OE, IZ, DUSTER, and SE 3 a.k.a. HAZE just to name a few.

16) Who were the biggest Graffiti cops in your day and were you ever nabbed by them?

To this very day I have always felt that a cop was a cop no matter what rank they may have. But the only infamous flat foots that I recall that were the talk of the town were Kevin Hickey and Conrad Lesnewski ( known to writers as simply, Hickey & Ski ) And who can forgot Curly and Ferrari. I never had the honor to have been either chased by them nor arrested by them.

8) Did you have any writing Wars with other writers and can you tell us a few stories on how they began?

I had a few, but I think one of my memorable wars I was part of was against some writers from RTW. When me and KP was destroying the GG layups at 75th on a regular, these guys were bombing there as well. Me and KP knew this, but we didn't think nothing of it. Why should we? Suddenly, we noticed some of our tags in the tunnels were crossed out for no apparent reason. KP and I would also notice our throwies would either have a tag over it, or a throwie over it. They obviously didn't like the fact that me and KP was bombing the layup and turning it inside out.. There were plenty of trains that were clean to hit in that tunnel on a regular basis, so we didn't understand their mindset... So, me and KP returned the favor, and started going over them on the outsides. We also crossed each other out on the perm spots in the tunnels. If you go into the tunnel today, you'll probably see what I'm talking about. There's a little war history in those tunnels. Back then, I wish I would have ran into them in the layup..

There was also another time when me and my boy NEL 106 was bombing the "M" yard along with some other cats. We were doing insides that day and we noticed there were a few unfamiliar faces from a distance lurking in the yard. We approached these guys and one of them said they wrote GHOST. At that time, I didn't know NEL 106 had beef with this guy. We took the little paint they had and then told them they have to come up with 20 + cans to make good with us. You should have seen the look on GHOST'S face. He looked as if he really saw a ghost! We escorted GHOST out of the "M" yard and kidnapped him. As I recall, we rode the train all the way to Queens Plaza. During the ride, he wouldn't move a muscle. He was obviously scared to death! As we all got off and approached the turnstile, there was a transit cop standing by the token booth. As soon as GHOST saw the cop, he immediately started pointing at us. Then GHOST yells, " HELP ME" in the cops direction. The cop walks towards us and asks us what going on. GHOST starts to tell the cop - all teary eyed - that we kidnapped him and we was going to mug him. As soon as he said that, me and NEL looked at each other and bolted out of the station and ran onto the street. We managed to have gotten away. It was so hilarious!

Over the years I have learned that wars in this game is almost impossible to avoid. It's enough to get anyone frustrated and angry. Especially when you never caused it. Unfortunately, there are a few out there that their claim to fame is to have had some sort of beef with me. It's funny and it makes me laugh when I think about it. Some of these so called writers were nobodys. I guess they wanted some notoriety and fame at my expense.

9) Who were all the writers you bombed with and what writers did you feel were your best writing partners and why?

I went bombing with alot of writers back in the day. Writers such as my bro DELK, NEL 106, PG-3 ( R.I.P.) KP WR, HEAT, CELL, JAZZ, BIE, KC ONE, JOE 61, SAGO WOW, BOE, KROOK, PLUS ONE, FLIN TOP, and many more... These guys were the best at what they did and we watched each others back in the yard, and coming out of the yard. I really enjoyed bombing with DELK, PG-3 ( R.I.P.) KP WR and NEL 106.

10) Could you tell us all the yards and lay up's you hit over the years and what were your favorite and why?

I bombed the M yard, LL yard, J yard, A yard, Dewey Yard, 36th st yard, The Ghost Yard, Livonia Yard, Halsey Layup, Atlantic Ave Layup, Grant Ave Layup, Canal - Bowery Layup, Ocean Parkway - Shepshed Bay Layup, 45th - 50th St Layups, (RR's), 86th St Layup, 75th Ave, Union Turnpike Layup...

In the early years, my favorite was the M yard. I consider the M yard as my training academy. This is where I grew up and learned what it took to be a Graffiti writer. I especially enjoyed the yard during the summer months. The smell of the trains as I roamed the yard gave me a hard on! The fresh smell of either Marsh or Flo-Master Ink flowing through our markers onto the freshly painted steal made us excited. The only thing that I kind of hated - but took some time getting use to - was the motor of the train suddenly revving up then shutting off. That sound almost always made me jump. But as I matured in the game, I got use to it. I always expected that sound wherever I went bombing. I always enjoyed bombing in that yard because it was so sweet back then. It was easily accessible from the train station. All you had to do was jump into the tracks and onto the rooftop of the bus depot that was adjacent to the station. Then run all the way to the end of the roof and climb onto a tree that lead you into the yard. Other writers such as RISCO, SCOR, JOKA, POET and of coarse SIKO and KIK NSG were regulars in the yard. They didn't live to far from there so, it was convenient for them.

This is also where our crew, The Supreme Team was born. Me and DELK were hanging out by the sand box on the Fresh Pond Road station one summer day. We were on the side that the train passes the M yard and heads to the last stop which is Metropolitan Ave. We were both brain storming as to what would be a good name for our crew. We ultimately both agreed that The Supreme Team was the best choice.

My other favorites were the LL yard, Halsey layup, Atlantic layup, Ocean Parkway - Shepshed Bay layup, and 75th - Union Turnpike tunnels. In a nutshell, these yards and layups were easily accessible from either the street or from the train station and there were several ways to escape if a raid came down.

11) The insides of the Subways are very over looked in history. There were writers who dominated with great hand style. Were you very effective in the insides and would you have any stories while you were bombing the insides? Who were other writers you feel were very effective in the insides?

I felt that I was effective weather it was inside or outside bombing... However, I can honestly say that I wasn't a real big fan of the insides because I felt trapped inside the train car. I always needed to know what was going around me in the yard. I just couldn't stay still. I felt my options were limited if a raid came down the pike. However, there were plenty of days that I had no other choice but go and do inside bombing instead. Not all the time I had enough spray to bomb the outsides. This was a good opportunity to cop tags on perm spots in the tunnels. Writers such as OE and P13 ( R.I.P.) were legendary in bombing the perm spots inside the tunnels. I hated going to a layup - or a yard - and the insides were either dogged, or it was so dark that you literally couldn't see anything unless you had a pen light. The 86th layup in Brooklyn is a prime example. That layup is dubbed, " The haunted layup" . That's because the same way you enter the layup is the same way you leave the layup. One way in, one way out. I didn't like the sound of that when I first went there. So, if a raid goes down, that's it, the jig is up! I went there several times with DELK and HEAT. It's real dark and creepy in there. I never really liked it. We were fortunate enough not to have been raided in there. The only time I truly enjoyed it is when the insides were sparkling clean. There were plenty of times that me and KP would catch clean insides pulling into the M yard while we chilled in the dummy trains that were parked in the first few lanes. We would be smoking some weed, drinking brew and just chilled while we watched all those trains being parked inside the yard. The lights inside the train cars would be blinking off and on while pulling in. So, we knew automatically which lanes we needed to go to where the clean insides were parked. Another guy that I bombed insides with was NEL 106, B.M.T. He was very effective in inside bombing as well.

12) Would you have any raid stories you could share with us?

This question I will enjoy answering. I experienced many raids and some were very humorous, and some were not. I recall one time when me and NEL 106 was bombing the M yard on a hot summer day. We were doing some insides. We were in the middle part of the yard when suddenly we heard the train making these loud jerking sounds. We knew there was a worker up in the front of the train. It sounded like a motorman was turning the train on and off causing the train to jerk violently. Me and NEL 106 immediately went between the cars, remove the steel chains and jumped down from the train landing on the gravel. We both went under the train and moved onto the otherside to see what was going on in the rear of the yard. The question was how many workers were there, where they were, and if a raid was about to go down. We noticed there were other workers ( work bums ) that were headed our way. As a result, we went back under the train, crossed onto another lane and ran all the way down to the front of the yard. Back in the day, there was a tree in the yard that we would climb up that was right next to the roof of the bus station that was adjacent to FRESH POND ROAD train station. All we would do is climb the tree, jump onto the roof and run to the train station. Well, NEL attempted to climb up the tree but couldn't. This is because NEL was a little on the heavy side you know. I then climbed the tree ahead of him so that I can attempt to extend my hand in order to pull him up onto the roof. The second time he managed to climb the tree all the way. But then he suddenly lost his balance and slide back down the tree like a fireman sliding down a pole! He scrapped his entire chest. That was the most hilarious thing I have ever saw. He ran up the catwalk instead and we got away. I couldn't stop laughing.

There was one time that we got raided, but raided by a bunch of older writers... Me, NEL 106, DELK, HEAT WR and others were in the M yard on day. Some of us were doing outsides. Suddenly, several guys popped out of nowhere and came after us. At first, I thought they were work bums because they were much older than we were. One of these guys managed to pin me against the train. This dude had long blond hair and was very tall. Eventually, these guys lead us all inside one of the train cars. Some of us were ordered to sit down once inside. Others were simply standing up wondering what to do. Come to find out that the tall dude that pinned me against the train wrote KIK. One of the other guys was SIKO. SIKO at the time wrote BT for BAD TEK 2 and COAL MINER 49ER. There was another guy from Bay Ridge that also wrote BT for BAD TAXI. These two guys were at war over this at the time. Now when SIKO found out who DELK was, SIKO's demeanor changed. He suddenly became friendly with us and his focus shifted towards DELK. SIKO gradually started interrogating DELK about BT. He was trying to get DELK to lure BT to the M yard in the near future... DELK responded by saying that he doesn't know BT all that well and that he doesn't see him much if ever. SIKO wasn't buying it, but he didn't press the issue any further as far as I can remember. Eventually, nothing came out of it because DELK didn't play into SIKO's purposed plan. But they eventually left the yard and we continued bombing afterwards.

I remember another time when me HEAT, DELK, KP, and FIST was joy riding on a LL train. We all were sitting right next to the conductors booth which was open. HEAT was trying to get a set of train keys. So, he and suddenly snatched the conductors leather bag that was right next to him thinking there were keys in there. We all looked at each other and ran out of the train towards the tunnel. The conductor followed us into the tunnel and was right behind us. As I looked behind me, the conductor looked like a big guerilla running after us. For some reason, I grabbed DELK as we were running. DELK yelled, " Yo, what you doing, get off me" I grabbed him by the neck. I guess I was scared and I was trying to jump on his back. Me and DELK ran to an exit which leads to the street but it was closed. We then continued running in the tunnel. DELK disappeared and I ended up with HEAT somehow. We managed to get onto the street and went to an empty junk yard. HEAT then opened the bag and all that was in there was and apple and a ham sandwich.

In Queens, 75th - Union turnpike layups me and KP went through a horrifying experience one day. We were deep inside the tunnel already and was just about to call it a day after doing some serious bombing. As we were walking, we came upon two open tracks with no trains parked in the tunnel. The tunnel had some pockets that were very dark, but we knew where we were going. This is common in most lay-ups. So, come to find out that periodically, a train would pull into the tunnel and onto one of the open tracks and sit for several minutes, then pull right back out. We were not aware that this was going on. So, we were both walking freely on the two open lanes while we were doing some throw-ups. Suddenly, a train came pulling in. It caught us off guard so we immediately ran under one of the parked trains to get out of sight. Keep in mind that we both had shopping bags full of paint. KP went ahead of me and I was right behind him... As I got under the parked train, I immediately turned around and was eye-balling the train that was pulling in. I was commenting to KP that everything looked OK... However, I didn't hear him say anything so I quickly turned around to take a glance at him and somehow KP's bag with paint hit the third rail and as a result, he was being shocked. It was a split second thing. I immediately kicked him off of the third rail and he tumbled over just a little bit... Thank GOD he was OK, but it sure as hell shocked the hell out of me!

13) In the 1970's and early 80's there were allot of gangs in the HOODS. Do you recall any of them and did they ever caused a problem for you while growing up in Brooklyn?

Back in the early 80's, I frequented in the South side of Brooklyn alot. South second and Roebling to be exact. This was due to my involvement with the drug trade. During that time, I use to hang out with several brothers from TWC crew - Together we Chill. They were cool brothers. They always had my back. I also knew several brothers from the Savage Skulls which had a chapter in Bushwick, Brooklyn. One guy that always comes to mind that was down with the skulls was Blue Eyes. Everytime I would run into him he would always tell me that if I had beef with anyone, just let him know. I was just a kid at the time. I remember that The Guardian Angels came on the scene later on. Blue Eyes was a member of the Angels for a brief period. He then started his own group called The Angel Guardians.

Otherwise, I never had problems while growing up in the neighborhood.

14) What writers do you feel are very over looked in history and why?

There were plenty of writers out there that displayed amazing talent with spray paint. Especially the IRT's. with all those colorful wildstyle whole cars. Alot of these writers - which I don't recall there names - are over looked because most of them simply were artists and didn't go all out bombing with throw-ups doing insides, etc,.. I also believe that SIKO is another writer that is overlooked. He is not mentioned much as far as I can see. I have always admired the way he tagged his name. He was mostly an inside bomber who also bombed the bus line.

16) What are other names you have written while you were hitting the Subways?

The only names I bombed with are YD 43 and SAKE. TST

18) Could you tell us your best pieces you have painted on the subways and why? What are some of your favorite pieces you have seen running done by others?

There are a few nice pieces that comes to mind. I did a Yard Destroyer whole car with characters on a GG line flat. Me and KP were together that day in the Union Turnpike layups. KP went on his own and bombed the lay-up while I stayed behind and worked on the whole car. That was a nice one that I did. I also had a nice semi wild style whole car I did on a M line flat with my boy Cell from Graham Ave. That car made it's way to the Graff Flix section of the Source magazine. I also did a SAKE top - to - bottom, silver filling with black outline, 3-D whole car on a JJ line flat at the Atlantic Ave lay-ups. Atlantic Ave lay-up was an outside elevated lay-up that was right next to the J yard in Eastern Parkway. It was about 6 - 7 stories high.. At one point while doing the top to bottom, I almost went through one of the wooden planks. My whole leg went through. Luckily for me, my boys from MOG crew grabbed me and helped me back up. That top-to-bottom almost cost me my life!

Back in the day, watching the IRT's was like watching an art show. There were so many different colorful whole cars that were done by so many different writers. Some of which I never even heard of. However, If I was to pick which pieces were my favorites, I would have to say SEEN'S HAND OF DOOM, one or two of LEE's cars and DONDI's top to bottom with the hand emerging from the side of the car.

19) When was the last time you bombed the Subways and why did you stop writing?

I believe the last time I went bombing was either 1984 or 86 at Grant lay-up which is the A & C lines. The station boarders from East New York to Ozone Park Queens. I remember it was me, Plus one, JS one, and Reps. If there was someone else with us that night, I simply don't remember. That night was really crazy. We walked up in there with beer, weed and dust. One of us even had a radio! I believe it was Plus...The plan was to do insides that night. However, we didn't do much bombing because we were all crazy high. We were all walking around in the lay-up slow motion like. As if we were in the Park! As the night progressed, we came across one car that the lights were on, but was very dim. As soon as we entered that car, we all sat down and just started to space out. At that point, bombing was not a priority. Now that I think about it, it wasn't to begin with. We were just chillin drinking, smoking and having a good time. My boy Plus was so fucked up, we ended up helping him climb down from the front of the car down onto the tracks. He was stumbling all over the place.

These were great times I will never forget. I had so much fun during my run in the late 70's and 80's. I developed some great friendships with alot of brothers over the years due to Graffiti. Some of those friendships has taken me to plenty of different places I have never been to throughout the five boroughs of the city. Even overseas! When I wasn't in a subway tunnel or a train yard somewhere bombing, I was either partying or hanging out with friends and meeting other writers. I once recall FLIN TOP introducing me to DONDI CIA. At that time, I was dealing some major blow... I'm not proud of it, but it was something I choose to do to make some quick money. We hanged out with DONDI ( R.I.P.) once or twice down in his basement apartment. We kicked back, hanged out, drank some brew, did some blow etc,.. We were all doing our thing back then. He had one or two canvas down in his basement that I liked. Even though I didn't know him too well, he was a cool guy for the short time I knew him.

Making money became that much more of a priority. Unfortunately, some of us took it to another level.. I know I did. We wanted to make fast money. The streets was getting the best of us and it slowly sucked us in. The buff was in full swing and graffiti was slowly becoming less of a priority. It was phasing out of our lives. Unfortunatly, alot of us got caught up in the whirlwind of drugs, alcohol, etc,.. I eventually got involved with a different crowd and my mindset slowly changed for the worst. To make a long story short, drugs played a huge part in detaching myself from the graffiti.

20) Would you have any closing words?

Sometimes I try to re-capture the good old days in my mind. Especially when I listen to some music that was a part of that memorable time. Each and everytime that I do, I realize that there will never be nothing better than to have been a part of an era that most admire today and would have loved to have been a part of.

It took me approximately 14 years or so to get my life together as a result of living dangerously, and embark on a whole new life for myself and my family. I feel very blessed and fortunate that I am alive and well and able to share with all of you my experiences during my youth. After everything that I have been through over the years, I can honestly say that it is now that I am experiencing the best years of my life.

Thanks for memories and thanks for the opportunity. Peace.