Kenneth “C.J.” Bazemore: Giving back with photography

By MAL’AKIY 17 ALLAH Special to the AmNews

East Harlem-native Kenneth “C.J.” Bazemore has been visually capturing Harlem and hip-hop history for several decades He has been instrumental in photographing the local New York hip-hop music scene, and documenting the genre more broadly.

“I always wanted to be a photographer,” he said. “God put the camera in my hand to get me off the streets. Photography saved my life.”

He bought his first camera, a Canon AE-1, out of a local pawn shop during the early 1990s, and hasn’t stopped since. He developed his craft as a means to avoid the many pitfalls which surrounded him, and just started taking photos of his neighbors in Wagner Houses and charging $2 per flick.“Not for the money, just to develop the pictures,” he explained. He became well known locally and soon was asked to cover events like weddings and Sweet 16s. His photographer friend, T.C., from the nearby Lincoln Houses, started bringing him to the Apollo Theater to take pictures of celebrities. “Bernard worked at the Apollo and gave us access,” Bazemore added. And when Spike Lee was filming “Malcolm X” on Third Ave. in the early 1990s, Bazemore started to capture some of the actors, and develop his craft.

Soon thereafter, he began heading to various video shoots with his camera to flex his lens, and make contacts. A video shoot for a song off Jay Z’s debut album, Reasonable Doubt , and Big Pun’s funeral were memorable moments for him.“I’d go and take pictures of the bodyguards with the celebrities and tell them it’s for their portfolios,” Bazemore explains.“Then I’d give them the pictures and they would grant me access to events.”Several of his photos from Pun's funeral were prominently featured in The Source Magazine the following issue, opening many doors for him. Bazemore’s photos have