I got 99 problems...

and this b*tch is one:



Meet my sister's puppy, Sprinkles. I thought it'd be funny to cut into this little poop factory the Baybayin characters for dog, "Aso". I find it hilarious, but that's just me. I also figured it'd be easier to do in Photoshop rather than real life. In real life, poop would probably be flowing out of the holes, messing up her cute, short fur. But it's all good, me and Sprinks stay G.

Stay up,

Cyph

I got 99 problems...

City Smoke

The veil of smoke that looms over Northeast L.A. from the 110. It's been said that nobody really cares about the seasonal fires that we get, except for those that are affected by it. But with the fires so close to home, I can only begin to worry.

NORTH EAST LOS ANGELINOS - Stay alert of all evacuation notices, check the L.A. Times website constantly for updates and notices. Don't try to just wait it out if your area is a potential burn zone.

STAY STRONG, L.A.

and stay up.

~cyph

City Smoke

Lasting Love

I only have about 6 of these left, and they'll all be available for purchase at this coming FPAC (September 12-13).



Stop by the PAN pavillion and chop it up!

Stay up,

~cyph

Lasting Love

Apl.de.Ap - "Mama Filipina"

Not my favorite Pinoy Emcee, but def one that represents with a big mic. Check out the PnoyApparel Barong tee that Apl is rockin!



Some funny projects coming soon... I laugh just thinking about em!

Stay up,

Cyph

Apl.de.Ap - "Mama Filipina"

Ako lang

All around are them, him, her, "siya". But as society surrounds us and seemingly tries to define the bounds of which we are meant to be, it is up to the individual to stand out for their own self. "Ako" - I



I'll start making prints of this soon, available for purchase. The first place they'll be available at will be at my booth at FPAC, September 12-13, along with other prints and goods to check out..

Edit: 8/25/09
There will be three color-ways available. Here's a preview:


Stay up,

Cyph

Ako lang

Kasama Tayo

What a weekend it's been thus far! The homie Luv MC lured me out to attend this "hiphop" workshop aaaall the way out in Carson, hosted by the Sama-Sama crew. It's hard to explain in words what exactly the workshop is, since it's so much more than just a hiphop writing workshop... It's a discussion group, it's an educational forum, and to some it's relief and therapy.







Met alot of cool peoples, some young and aspiring MC's/poets, tough kids, everyone humble as pie and down to dirt (earth). The discussions and activities were quite profound and forward thinking. I also finally got put on game as to what the heck Anak Bayan does by the brotha in the glasses! All this time of hearing about them...











Saturday I went over to Salakot Grill in L.A. to attend the Tayo Literary Magazine launch, and to display a couple of my canvas pieces. PRINTS coming soon!







The lovely co-directors, Ms. Melissa and Ms. Christine





Dope artists







Troy Phi representing!



I'm always surprised that even today, with google at your fingertips, how many people still don't know what Baybayin/Alibata is... so of course I had to put a few heads on game!





Hip-hop don't stop



And ofcourse, the BakitWhy crew... they're everywhere. Like ninjas. With cameras.



Great magazine, great workshop, great weekend. I'm exhausted, but I'm left hungry for more...

btw, for those that liked the spoken word bit I performed, here it is in Youtube glory:


Stay up!

~cyph

Kasama Tayo

My bad... maybe.

The more I was looking at this, and trying to re-read what I wrote in Baybayin, the more I had this sinking feeling in my gut... skepticism.

The lovely lady's name is "Charmaine", which was pronounced as "Shar-main"... The "Sh-" sound is one of several English soudns that doesn't translate well in Tagalog/Baybayin. As it's written in the picture, it reads along the lines of "S-ya-l-me-n", which I guess COULD work phonetically, but the "Sh-" sound isn't completely there. It's like saying "siyampu" instead of "shampoo", it's a phonetic estimation. It's not exactly wrong, but it's not exactly RIGHT.

My goodness, I'll be thinking of her name all night.. ^_^"

Pics from the Tayo Magazine Launch and the Sama-Sama "hip-hop" workshop coming soon!

Stay up,

~cyph

My bad... maybe.

Confessions of a Shopaholic...

Comp for a PSA-poster on Compulsive Shopping (aka shopaholic-ism). There's two versions, same image but different text: this one shows statistics regarding MALE compulsive shoppers, the other set is for women... who make up 80% of the compulsive shoppers demographic. :-o

Click for full size:

Close-up on the text. Click for full size:

I worked more on the main image (shoutout to Libby for posing her lovely self and using her own credit card!) than the actual layout of the text... which can be sorely seen. The statistics are from 2006-ish... when people still bought CD's. heh... Ah well. Remember, all you shopaholics, the mantra: "Do I need this?!"

Stay up,

~cyph

Confessions of a Shopaholic...

Week-ending

Saturday afternoon, you might catch me here:

Saturday night you can DEF catch me here:

You can catch me kick some spoken word and auctioning off a couple of canvas pieces at the TAYO Literary Magazine launch party! Fall through and support the Asian-American youth and education!

Stay up,

~cyph

Week-ending

Got locked up...

...'cause the style's straight DOPE. lol... j/k...

...but no, seriously.

~cyph

Got locked up...

Over Seas

"But I go over seas and I get over siezed" ~Mos Def

Some freshness from outside of the mainland by brothers that are from/live in the mainland...

Blue Scholars:

Blue Scholars - HI-808 (Official Music Video) from Blue Scholars on Vimeo.

Bambu:

STK_Bambu from filmefilms on Vimeo.

Jin... who made his music vid non-embeddable... still a good look though. Brotha lost weight!

Don't stop, Hip Hop.

~cyph

Over Seas

Speaking Word

"Spoken Word", in the most literal sense of it. Click for full size.



A conceptual 2-page spread of a print-ad for ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Artists, Authors and Publishers). Mockin' up:



And the stock photo steez:



Gotham is the new Helvetica.

Stay up,

Cyph

Speaking Word

Tayo Ako...

You can catch me next week at the TAYO Literary Magazine launch party, rockin the open mic and selling a couple of select pieces from the canvas collection... New project to be revealed soon, though it's not necessarily Baybayin related, it's still a pretty neat project. Here's a hint: it's a tour guide to a place that's second on the right, straight on till morning...



Second, FREE SWAG THURSDAY IS BACK! Next week, be sure to follow either the Twitter or Facebook page for your chance to win some Free Swag! Just sent out 3 Mahal Posters to some late winners. So keep it locked.

Stay up,

Cyph

Tayo Ako...

Left Angels

Fresh text from PnoyApparel's twitter:



What is FPAC you might ask? This year will be the 18th Annual Festival of Philippine Arts and Culture... and guess who signed up for a display booth to showcase works and perform free translations???

Starts with "Bathala" and ends with "Project"... there's a "THE" somewhere too :-D

Stay UP,

~cyph

Left Angels

Confusion Solution

Quick update, http://bathalaproject.com no longer redirects to some other guy's website... I guess either the emails, the tweets, the website posts, or the video all culminated to something! Ah well...

In other news, check out Kuya Geologic's new Blue Scholars track, HI 808. Freshness ridiculous!

OOF! from Blue Scholars on Vimeo.

Stay up,

~cyph

Confusion Solution

THE Disambiguation Situation

I'm retiring from tattoo designs! I'm looking to utilize Baybayin in explorations as an element of design, rather than focal pieces, as seen in the Swerte Vodka Campaign and the Cali-Pinoy Skateboard. More on this later though...

REVOLT hoodie supplied by the good brothas and sistas at Pnoy Apparel! Shoutout to Zar and the crew!

It's been a while since I said this, but apparently I gotta remind yall: BITERS FALL BACK OR GET YOUR TEETH CRACKED!

Stay up,

Cyph

THE Disambiguation Situation

Crack

Frederick Victor Paredes Añana is a mad man.



I've been wanting to develop Baybayin typefaces to supplement the work of Nordenx, but Frederick has beat me to it, and has raised the bar high!

Looks like I gotta get my skills fit befo' I kills it.

Stay up,

~cyph

Crack

Bakit Up ++

Went to the BakitWhy.com's BakitUp++ event on saturday night to not only celebrate BakitWhy.com's 1 year anniversary, but also to check out the fully printed design of my California Pinoy Board made for the BakitWhy.com silent auction. To see a digital design I did applied to a physical medium was an awesome experience. Good looks!



The board design is a re-interpretation of the California flag with elements of Filipino imagery, including the Philippine eagle, three stars, sun, and maintaining other elements of the cali flag such as the red bar, red stars, bear, and even the titles, which read "Republica California" in Baybayin (Alibata). I wanted this design to represent the feel of the assimilated/integrated mix of american-filipino lifestyle that I see, live and breathe in So-Cal. I was a bit... "audacious" at the time, having sampled some of the open bar's supplies, sponsored by VuQo Vodka, the Philippine vodka produced from coconuts. It was FANTASTIC!









Overall, it was a great event, well organized by the hard working crew of BakitWhy.com. Head of BakitWhy.com, Jer, givin out the salutations:



And Jer pimpin:

Great performances and free VuQo vodka. What more could you ask for?! Ms. Ashley Robles:

Me and the brother stimey rolled through, shmoozin and network swervin:

Lastly, BIG shoutout to the Co-Directors of TAYO Literary Magazine! They're having their launch party SATURDAY, August 22 at the Salakot Sizzle and Grill in L.A. These lady's really made my night; Melissa on the right designed this crazy-dope informational booklet about Tayo Magazine; well aligned, well designed, type faces and pen traces... love. And Ms. Kristine on the left revealed herself to be the soulful sis that danced as the bird in the USC PCN! I had to stammer to refrain from speechlessness.



Big ups again to BakitWhy.com for a great 1 year celebration! Also, shoutout to Pnoy Apparel's Zar! Hearing about his and his crew's grind, work ethic and standings is always a big inspiration!

Stay up,

~cyph

Bakit Up ++