At DAR Constitution Hall, I’m the house photographer, and periodically, depending on the act they hang my photos in the backstage hallway. The “Wall of Fame” currently displays a few of my concert photos. This particular weekend, the goal was to add a photo of comedian Steve Harvey to the wall. It was his last tour as a standup comedian, and considering the fact that he sold out 22 shows there in his career – it was only right.

Friday night, right as Steve Harvey hit the stage, I started shooting like a crazy man, then, once I saw that I had a solid set of shots, I raced to the back office. Once there, we printed out a large 30″ x 40″ photo and hung it up in the dressing room area so Steve Harvey could see it after the first night’s show ended. He saw it, and was impressed. Impressed enough that he said, “Look here, do you travel?”. He then expressed interest in me photographing the rest of the tour. At that point, I was shocked. That was far more than the response I expected.

After the Saturday show, I passed along to him a small photo album containing photos from the Friday night show, as well as about 15-20 photos from various shows that I’ve covered – Janet Jackson, Jill Scott, Ledisi, Al Jarreau, Mary J. Blige, Anthony Hamilton, Chrisette Michele, Erykah Badu, Common, and more. I wanted him to see my work without having to visit my website. It seems he liked the photos overall. My initial plan was to inquire about photography at his upcoming 10th Annual Hoodie Awards events.

Later, when I had a chance to speak with him, I shared the story about Anthony Hamilton invited me to hang out with his friends – Jill Scott, Common, Raekwon: The Chef, and Stevie Wonder (which still amazes me). Before I could even express the excitement and the shock of that experience, Steve Harvey politely interrupted me and quoted Proverbs 18:16 which says “A Mans gifts will make room for him, and bring him in the presence of great Men.”.

At a point, just he and I had a really inspiring conversation about me taking a leap of faith to pursue my photography 100%. Inside a completely empty auditorium, we stood on the stage chatting – no staff, no security. He spoke of taking a leap of faith being similar to jumping out of an airplane. No matter what, you are falling for the sky, but if you have a relationship with God, God is like a parachute. Your descent is very different.

The next morning in church, I kid you not, the message was about taking a leap of faith, and a Man’s gifts.

3 days later, on Wednesday, when Steve Harvey returned to the radio show, he started his show with his usual Morning Inspiration. I don’t wake up at 6:00am for work, so I never hear it. At a couple of minutes after 6:00, my phone rings, with my Mom on the other end saying “Van, Steve Harvey is on the radio talking about taking a leap of faith, etc, etc!”. I quickly tuned in, and I caught the tail end where he said again, the parachute thing. That was cool. I felt connected to that.

Little did I know that I’d check my Twitter, and my text messages to read messages from friends saying “Steve Harvey is talking about you right now on his morning show!”. I didn’t hear it, so I can’t quote it. Sorry. My friends said that he mentioned meeting a photographer in DC that took the most amazing photos of him – more amazing than he’d ever seen before, and that there was a conversation about taking a leap of faith. That’s what my friends said he said, I didn’t make that up. Lol.

God is good. __________ ( fill in the blank )

For his absolute last night of standup comedy in DC, Steve Harvey brought the house down with an arsenal of jokes that had me in tears laughing. I missed most of the previous night’s show, so I had to return for the 2nd night. I missed it because I was busy backstage printing a posterized photo I took at the start of that show, which he later signed “More Sold Out Shows at the DAR than Anybody! – Steve Harvey”.

It cracks me up when he says, “Before I do anything, I’d like to give a honor to God.”. He takes a long pause, and says, “Well…now that THAT’S out’ the way!”, and goes right into his routine. Haha! I’m terrible with remembering jokes, but there was one about President Barack Obama (not a negative joke either) that was hilarious. I cracked up when he talked about his “first commercial”.

He slid-in a public service message to the parents – telling them to always encourage their children.

One thing that I like about him is that he takes the time out to give God praise. That always makes for a genuine moment. At the end of the show, he thanked everyone for supporting him for so many years, and gave God praise, as tears ran down his face. A sold out DAR Constitution Hall was on its feet applauding Steve Harvey’s testimony.

God is everything. If you don’t know him – get to know him. <— That had nothing to do with anything, but it has something to do with EVERYTHING. It’s always relevant.

Comedian Steve Harvey hit DC for his very last tour as a standup comedian, with 2 nights. This was my first time shooting him, and maybe my 4th seeing him live. With this being the first night of the two, I had already planned to print out photos to give to him at the next night’s show. The back office at DAR Constitution Hall has a plotter that they use to print large photos for their “Wall of Fame”, and they wanted a photo of Steve Harvey to to join it, where a few of my photos are already hanging.

I spent a good while in the back office printing the 30″ x 40″ image, so I missed a portion of his show. I knew I’d be there the next night, so I wasn’t concerned. Once the poster printed, the building manager and I hung it down in the dressing room area for him to see once the show was over.

To make a long story short, when he finally saw the image, he liked it – a lot! We asked him to sign it for the “Wall of Fame” before the tour left the DC area.

Fast forward to the 2nd show. Well, look at THESE photos FIRST, and then FAST FORWARD TO THE 2ND SHOW.

Al Jarreau was the special guest for the United States Air Force Band’s “Guest Artists Series” show, which kicked off with the band playing a number of covers. I must say, they’re amazing!

I have to admit, I’m not familiar with the majority of Al Jarreau’s music, but I thoroughly enjoyed his entire performance. He’s a pretty funny guy. The band even presented him with a nice trophy.

I had a great time at this show, even though it was extremely difficult to shoot the show in a suit. What was I thinking? I was clean though! Lol.

Funny man Mike Epps returned to DC for two back to back shows, since his last show in February of 2011. He came back with a lot of new material, and had me rolling! I’m terrible with remembering the jokes that were told at a show, so I won’t even try to tell you what was said. His opening comics, Buck Wild and Kenny Howell were hilarious too, along with his host – Henry Welch.

Shoutout to Mike Epss for bringing out the Godfather of gogo – Chuck Brown.

I stuck around to shoot both shows, and I was actually the only photographer there.

It’s not my concert photo, but you can clearly see me logo projected on the screen behind him.

Be sure to check out the recap video on the homepage, and the event photos.

A couple of hours before showtime, I received a text message with the okay to cover this show. I would’ve purchased a ticket just to see it, because I had a feeling it would be a party – and I promise you it was. This was my first time seeing them in concert, and of course my first time shooting. The lighting was decent, but it sucked that there was no pit. I had to fight my way through the diverse crowd to find a good spot in the front.

Throughout the night, there was one surprise element after the next. There was a big-headed, dashiki-wearing skeleton smoking a massive Bob Marley joint. One of the horn players, dressed as some kind of soldier or drum major, kept coming into the crowd with his whistle. The woman in front of me kept sneaking sips from her flask. One of the guys in the band had on an odd costume that reminded me of THE WIZ for some reason. The guitarist had a rather interesting guitar with a double neck/headstock. A man in the audience had on a form-fitting rubber or latex hat, with a rounded reservoir tip – yes, like a condom. He basically had on a condom hat, if that even makes sense. Weird right?

Wait, ahhh…now I see why George Clinton started chanting “Hey d!ckhead!” to the man. I honestly didn’t get it at first. Maybe it’s a George Clinton & P-Funk thing that I’m not familiar with. If you know what that hat was all about, send me an email please.

Oh, how could I forget the community “special cigarette” that was passed all around the crowd and stage. Mom, if you’re reading this, I assure you, I said “No!” to drugs – I mean, “special cigarette”. My relative that was with me, whose name I won’t mention, was so excited to have puffed, puffed, and passed, that he sent out a group text message that read “I smoked a joint with P-funk!”. Smh.

They performed all of the fan favorites. I was particularly anxious to see/hear “Atomic Dog” in concert. It was just as live as I expected it to be. As soon as I heard “This is a story of famous dogs…” all types of barking noises were heard throughout the venue. There was even a little old man in front of me barking too. It was more of an Old Yeller type of bark, but still. One of the bruhs of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. got on stage and started hopping around and the whole nine.

I was having such a good time, I totally got out of photographer mode. I never left my spot, so I didn’t get a shot of the entire band on stage with the crowd. #epicfail. At least I had a good time. ***shrugs.

In my tone-deaf voice: Make my funk the P-Funk, I want my funk uncut! Make my Funk the P-Funk, I wants to get funked up! ***does old head shimmy. ***throws up the sign of the horns

Is there funk after death?

Triple Star Sound Stage put together a dope show with Emily King and local artist Terrence Cunningham during Inauguration weekend, 2009. I enjoyed it. Did you?

After waiting weeks for the okay to shoot, I was delighted to shoot Chrisette Michele for the 5th time. I’ve seen her in concert about 8 times, and I’m always very pleased. I love her voice, and her music in general.

A local act called Inkwell got the night started, followed by new artist Elle Varner. Elle Varner was pretty good to be so new to the scene, and I look forward to seeing her growth.

My favorite local band Black Alley took the stage third, and got two standing ovations. Black Alley really did a good job. They brought the house down, literally. Drywall bits fell from the ceiling and landed on one of the keyboard players.

Chrisette Michele looked really nice and sounded good, as usual. I love it when she performs “Blame it on Me” and “If I Had My Way”.

I had 2 issues with the show. The stage was a little too big and the band members were so far back, and there were just way too many photographers that weren’t managed, from the media aspect. We weren’t given any restrictions, and where were the proper credentials? Free-for-all shooting isn’t that appealing to me. I need the challenge of knowing I only have 2-3 songs to get the shot.

My day got started in the mid-afternoon at the Black Opulence Gifting Suite, hosted by Rocsi of BET’s 106 and Park and Minnesota Vikings player Visanthe Shiancoe. It was a dope event with lots of free liquor – Ciroc, Remy, and Qream. Great food. Plenty of women.

Next, I photographed the Chrisette Michele concert featuring local band Black Alley, and new artist Elle Varner. Chrisette, one of my favortie ladies in music, was wonderful as usual. Black Alley brought the house down. This time, literally. In the “newly renovated” Cramton Auditorium, some small bits of drywall fell from the ceiling. Luckily, nobody got hurt – just dusty.

My next stop was supposed to be Lotus Lounge for the Black Opulence after set. However, upon arrival, one of the bouncers at the door was too proud to announce to me, “Sorry sir, that’s not the look we’re going for tonight.”. ***in my nightclub bouncer who loves his job too much voice. Someone who had a little say that particular night denied entry to “some” people wearing sneakers. My friend Ian arrived thinking he would have a better shot. Denied too. So, we both walked around the corner to The Park at 14th where we were invited in by Management.

Hip-hop icon Common was hosting this particular party, and some of his celebrity friends decided to join him. In passing, I saw my absolute favorite [female] soul music artist – Jill Scott, Raekwon “The Chef” of Wu-Tang Clan, and India Irie. Anthony Hamilton who’s a big fan of my photography, was there as well. Like a few artists in the industry, over the years, Anthony and I have connected creatively. It’s greater than just being a fan.

Once the club let out, I was hungry, so I invited Anthony, and a couple of others to dine at a new spot coincidentally named “The Hamilton”, but he declined. He then said, “Just head over to the hotel, we’re all just gonna chill in the lobby.”. I arrived at the hotel and entered the bar area with him, and who do I see? Jilly from Philly – Miss Jill Scott, Common, and the legendary Stevie Wonder. We were then shifted to a smaller more intimate space, and the night progressed with some wine, good conversation, and some laughter. Shortly after, Stevie Wonder departed the room saying, “It was nice to see everyone, and I’ll see yall the next time I hear yall.”. Honestly, just being in the same room with a legend such as Stevie Wonder is a moment I’ll always remember. I was overjoyed. Later, Raekwon joined us at “The Roundtable” as someone labeled the atmosphere.

I had never met Jill Scott, so Anthony Hamilton introduced us, and he described me as “one of the best photographers around, and an all around good dude”. Of course I’m confident in my work and my character, but to know that it’s recognized means a lot. He’s my favorite [male] soul music artist, so for him to give that stamp of approval is major.

There was so much talent and creativity in that one small room.

I showed both Common and Jill Scott some photos that I had taken of them in concert. Before showing Jill, I said “Jill, I’m the shit, but I don’t really say that out loud.”, and she replied, “But you just did though. Lol.”. I should have said, “I am gifted. I am all of this. And INDEED the shit. Clearly, I am not JUST a photographer.”. You have to know Jill’s music to understand. I had a Jill Scott photo on standby to show her, on my iPhone. I whipped out the phone, displayed the photo, and she said, “Oh, that girl right there is bad!”. You gotta love Jill Scott! For the record, I say “I’m the shit.” for two reasons. One, I believe it. Two, it takes having that kind of attitude and expressing it in order to persuade a person to investigate it. It makes them want to know why you think you’re the shit. Once they see the proof, they believe it too. I’m nothing without God though. He gets all the credit.

Wait, can I use “shit” in the same paragraph as “God”? If not, forgive me.

If by chance, you’re not familiar with what it means to be “the shit”, in the street’s vernacular it’s equivalent to me saying “I’m the man.”.

I didn’t want to be intrusive, but I was able to get a photo with Common, and Raekwon for my memories. For me, it’s not about showcasing the fact that I’m “in the presence of” or “associated with” or even friends with “celebrities”. For me, it’s just a part of my story. I’m not just a photographer – I’m a person, first. As someone that’s not in the music industry, I do appreciate being welcomed into these different circles. Photographers often have a bad reputation for wanting to seize moments for their own personal [financial] benefit – through exploitation. I’m nothing like that. I barely see one brown penny from this. I do it for the love of good [live] music, and building relationships. I feel like I’m more of a storyteller. I capture the history of music, and document my personal experiences. I think it’s similar to the way Gordon Parks used images to tell stories of pressing social issues like poverty, segregation, crime, and race.

After a while, everyone started heading to their hotel rooms. Anthony and his long time friend, and I hopped in my Sable at about 4:45am and headed over to The Hamilton for food. I thank the Food Gods for bringing The Hamilton to DC because it’s open 24 hours. I’m not talking about an IHOP kind of restaurant. It’s a really nice restaurant, like the one Martin used to take Gina to – “Che’ Maurice”. Lol.

Anyway, as usual, I ordered the wings and mumbo sauce, a DC staple, and they sampled the wings and loved them enough to place in 2 more orders. We sat and ate, talked a little, dozed off a little, and I dropped them back at the hotel. That was the end of an awesome day in the life of Everyday LaVan.

Follow my journey. Also, feel free to follow me on Twitter at @EverydayLaVan, but please don’t judge me.