ComplexCon 2023

Location: Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach, California, The United States of America, Year: 2023, Photographer: Ajani Charles

Last week, beginning on Saturday, November 18, 2023, I attended ComplexCon for the first time in Long Beach, California, specifically at the Long Beach Convention Centre.

The multifaceted, annual, two-day-long, large-scale event is a cultural festival celebrating the convergence of music, fashion, and pop culture.

ComplexCon also included experiences like the First We Feast Lagoon, offering dining options from notable restaurants.

Cactus Plant Flea Market directed the artistic vision of the conference, setting the tone for the fashion and music lineup.

I arrived in the Greater Los Angeles Area about 48 hours before ComplexCon to shoot some images I look forward to sharing soon. I also learned a lot from my colleagues and visited museums and galleries. And I was lucky to stay in an awesome Airbnb in Long Beach.

Long Beach is beautiful; the weather, food, and the vast majority of the people I met were excellent.

Entrepreneur, Designer: Jeff Hamilton: Location: Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach, California, The United States of America, Year: 2023, Photographer: Ajani Charles

It never ceases to amaze me how nearly everyone I encounter during my mornings in Los Angeles County says, “Good morning,” it is something I have observed for years. It is rare in East Coast cities like New York and Toronto.

However, I would not be much of a mental health advocate if I did not address the homelessness epidemic in Long Beach and the rest of the Greater Los Angeles Area.

Whether they are walking, sitting or sleeping directly on the sidewalk or ground, or sitting or sleeping in a tent, homeless people are everywhere in Long Beach, on nearly every block. They were undoubtedly within a minute of my Airbnb.

The 2023 Homeless Point In Time Count indicates 3,447 individuals experiencing homelessness in Long Beach, a 4.6% increase from 2022’s count of 3,296 people.

This number reflects the smallest year-over-year increase since 2019. However, since 2020, the number of homeless individuals in Long Beach has increased by 62%, with 2,287 being unsheltered, which is absurd.

For Los Angeles County, the 2023 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count results show an estimated 75,518 people experiencing homelessness, a 9% rise from the previous year. That is over seven times the homeless population of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), even though the Greater Los Angeles Area’s population is only 34.9% greater than that of the GTA.

Sneaker Community Manager, Photographer: J.R. Wideman, Creator, Journalist: Janelle C. Shuttlesworth, Location: Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach, California, The United States of America, Year: 2023, Photographer: Ajani Charles

Given the rising costs of living in major cities around the world, rapid improvements in artificial intelligence disrupting or phasing out certain professions, and the emphasis that the market places on marketable technological skills, creativity, and other skills that a large percentage of people in L.A. do not possess, I do not know what the long-term solution to the homelessness epidemic in Los Angeles is, and neither do most of my friends and colleagues in L.A.

It is a part of the global mental health epidemic and the by-product of many systemic and longstanding variables that have come to a head. And Toronto seems to be going down that same path, unfortunately.

Nonetheless, a viable, long-term solution is desperately needed in what is paradoxically one of the world’s most prosperous economies, the state of California, the sixth-largest economy in the world. Otherwise, many will continue to suffer, especially the homeless population and, to a lesser degree, other L.A. citizens, most of whom live within seconds or minutes of the homeless population.

Besides my shock at the sheer volume of homelessness throughout the Greater Los Angeles area, which included a Lyft drive through Skid Row, the area with the highest concentration of homelessness and poverty in L.A., I had a great time in L.A. and at ComplexCon.

On day one of ComplexCon, I was surprised by the vastness of the lines leading to the conference’s entrance, which consisted of thousands of people throughout each morning. I felt grateful and fortunate that I had media access to the conference.

After waiting in a line for five minutes or so, going through a security checkpoint that reassured me that I and most of the ComplexCon patrons would be safe from different forms of violence, I almost immediately ran into Jeff Hamilton, a Moroccan-born fashion designer celebrated for his unique and graphic embroidered leather jackets, which have become iconic in the realms of sports and popular culture.

Athlete: Russell Westbrook, Location: Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach, California, The United States of America, Year: 2023, Photographer: Ajani Charles

He has a fantastic career collaborating with pivotal figures from Michael Jordan to Kobe Bryant and Nelson Mandela, cementing his jackets as a rare staple within the fashion industry and hip-hop world.

He had a booth at ComplexCon for his brand. Still, I ran into him close to eBay’s activation in collaboration with Edelman, and he set the tone for my ComplexCon experience, as he initially pretended to be pretentious when I asked to shoot some portraits of him.

Once I realized he was joking, and once he realized that I realized he was joking, we both started laughing. He is very cool, and meeting one of my favourite fashion designers was an honour.

And so, in an environment that could have easily fostered a lot of pretentiousness and superficiality, I mostly encountered down-to-earth people who were interested in expressing themselves through fashion, buying products that they valued, listening to music that they love, eating delicious food, and immersing themselves in pop culture and streetwear culture.

The only pretentiousness I experienced during my recent trip was at the nightclubs I went to in downtown Los Angeles after ComplexCon, which were not directly associated with ComplexCon and were not fun (at all).

After photographing Jeff, I met J.R. Wideman, a fellow Torontonian, Sneaker Community Manager at eBay, and owner of J.R. Wideman Creative Services, alongside his co-host for Ebay’s activation, Janelle C. Shuttlesworth, who is a creator and one-third of the Sneaky Leak podcast (about sneaker culture).

Entertainer, Educator: Barney, Location: Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach, California, The United States of America, Year: 2023, Photographer: Ajani Charles

After J.R. congratulated me on the success of my solo Project T-Dot photography exhibit at Toronto’s City Hall and Nathan Phillips Square, which took place for four and a half months in 2022, I told him that I had another major exhibit on the way soon; I congratulated him on his successes and shot some portraits of him and Janelle.

The eBay activation involved interviews with notable public figures, like Jeff Hamilton, and auctions and giveaways that required the audience to answer interesting questions about sneaker culture that I viewed as challenging. I, and many others, had a lot of fun there.

After shooting some portraits of NBA All-Star Russell Westbrook after he made some t-shirts at the Honor The Gift booth alongside his son, the rest of my first day of ComplexCon included walking very long distances.

In addition to briefly meeting Russell, who is a Long Beach native and shorter than I thought he would be, some of my many ComplexCon 2023 highlights (from the conference’s first day) include but are not limited to documenting the awesome skaters at the skatepark in the only outdoor area associated with the conference (besides the lineups to the entrance), meeting some of the super-talented dancers I first learned about through TikTok during the COVID-19 pandemic like Yool and Rhina Go, hanging out with the Street Souk team, meeting the Bailey Twins, acquiring three copies of Hype Williams’ Complex Magazine issue (as he is one of my greatest inspirations as a visual artist and storyteller), hanging out with and documenting the Comf team, which included Complex Network’s Speedy Morman and Christina Severin, a designer and vintage clothing brand owner who is not only from Toronto but attended my high school, Earl Haig Secondary School. I also documented the likes of Keenon Dequan Ray Jackson, professionally known as the rapper YG, and Chauncey Alexander Hollis Junior, professionally known as Hit-Boy, who happens to be one of my favourite music producers and one of the most prominent creative minds behind Nasir Jones professionally known as Nas’ most recent musical successes.

I ran into Jibrial Muhammad, professionally known as 19Keys, a motivational speaker, entrepreneur, and social media personality known for his focus on empowerment, wealth-building, and self-improvement within the African-American community. I worked with him about a month ago through Operation Prefrontal Cortex in Toronto, wherein our co-founder Julien Christian Lutz, professionally known as Director X, spoke and led a guided meditation at his Higher Level Tour event. So, seeing him was serendipitous.

Lil Yachty’s DJ set was also a highlight, as was the Slow Jamz booth, since it featured a DJ playing amazing R&B and soul records on behalf of the lifestyle brand found in Long Beach by Elwood Espiritu in 2017.

Producer, Journalist: Speedy Morman, Location: Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach, California, The United States of America, Year: 2023, Photographer: Ajani Charles

I also enjoyed meeting and documenting the King Ice team, including one of the company’s designers, MiniMin, as I appreciated the jewelry brand’s collaboration with Sonic The Hedgehog (via Sega). Sonic is one of my favourite childhood characters.

Furthermore, I met and photographed a fantastic Japanese and New York City-based calligraphy artist and model, Masumi Yamada, who somehow knew my former high school classmate, client, and Magic! Band member Alex Tanas. Her work is impressive.

Moreover, I met, took pictures with, and briefly did a photo shoot with Barney, which led many of my Torontonian friends and colleagues to grow jealous of me. Yes, I did a photoshoot with Barney.

Some of the Toronto people I was with at ComplexCon included Kelsey Williams, professionally known as DJ Killa Kels, her friend and fellow DJ Jenneh, Alex Narvarez, who is, for all intents and purposes, the face of Complex Canada, luwatobi Feyisara Ajibolade, who is one of my favourite rappers and commonly goes by TOBi. I also had a relatively long conversation with Yonis Hassan, who is the co-founder of Justice Fund, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting communities in conflict with the law, and whom I want to collaborate with through Operation Prefrontal Cortex (assuming our organization’s co-founders, Danell Adams and Julien Christian Lutz professionally known as Director X want to do the same).

I met and documented so many interesting people at ComplexCon that summarizing all my interactions is impossible.

One of the only downsides of ComplexCon to me was people who made how they dressed the entirety of their personality, hypebeasts that avidly followed and collected the latest trends in fashion, particularly streetwear, often for status and recognition rather than practicality or personal style. I could not connect with them, and their outfits were usually chaotic. Also, a huge fight broke out in front of me as I stood at the entrance to the outdoor area in front of the skate park, which sucked.

Recording Artist: LaRon Louis James Professionally Known As Juelz Santana, Location: Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach, California, The United States of America, Year: 2023, Photographer: Ajani Charles

The fight was entirely out of place, given the good vibes and positive interactions I had experienced up until then. It was likely over something nonsensical and fleeting. As the conflict escalated, I quickly ran towards the skatepark, lower in elevation than the fight, in case someone somehow brought a gun into the venue.

Thankfully, no shots were fired, although it took security about five minutes to reach and break up the incident.

It is also worth mentioning that those who can be easily overwhelmed by a lot of visual stimuli should be mindful before attending ComplexCon, as it was one of the most visually stimulating events I attended recently and included thousands of patrons.

Even though public speaking and teaching are essential components to my career, and even though I will gladly stand up and speak in front of 20,000 people or more right now about any topic that I am familiar with, I am someone who is more introverted than extroverted and who tends to be drained by high volumes of social interactions; I am still recovering from ComplexCon a week later.

Day 2 of ComplexCon was less overwhelming to me but involved a lot of activity nonetheless.

After meeting a cool UX designer and dancer named Quierra Wells, she reminded me that some of my favourite rappers were in attendance. So, with Quierra alongside me, I documented some of my favourite rappers as they went shopping, namely Joseph Guillermo Jones II, professionally known as Jim Jones and LaRon Louis James, professionally known as Juelz Santana, both from the Diplomats.

Recording Artist: Keenon Dequan Ray Jackson Professionally Known As YG, Location: Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach, California, The United States of America, Year: 2023, Photographer: Ajani Charles

As a fan of their music since high school, I was pleased to see that they are still relevant to hip-hop culture, music, and fashion, especially after their recent hardships (of various kinds).

Jim Jones was also one of the panellists during Sneaker of the Year, alongside moderator Joe La Puma, senior vice president of content strategy at Complex Networks, recording artist and entrepreneur Lil Yachty, entrepreneur and beauty influencer Kristen Noel Crawley, and legendary DJ Clark Kent.

I enjoyed Sneaker of The Year; the banter between the panellists was entertaining. I appreciated many of the sneakers listed, especially the Air Jordan Retro 3 White Cement Reimagined, which was (rightfully) awarded Sneaker of The Year, the J Balvin's Air Jordan 3, and the Nike Nocta Glide popularized by Drake and October’s Very Own.

Still, considering that taste is entirely subjective, some of the shoes discussed were ugly to me, like the Action Bronson and New Balance 990v6, also known as the Baklava. Action Bronson is a great rapper and chef, but his shoes are not for me. I wore white and red Jordan Retro 13 sneakers throughout ComplexCon. They are my style, and I love them.

I also met a fantastic, colourful Haitian-American stylist, Franceleslia, soon after encountering Torontonian, professional wrestler and creator TakeItEasyyJoey.

I ended ComplexCon 2023 by watching Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi, professionally known as Kid Cudi, perform alongside part of the ComplexCon team, specifically Vanessa Chiu, who is coincidentally Canadian, and Bradford Bridgers, who went out of his way to ensure that I was in a position to get some incredible shots of Kid Cudi’s performance.

Recording Artist, Producer, Entrepreneur, Actor: Miles Parks McCollum Professionally Known As Lil Yachty Senior Vice President of Content Strategy: Joe La Puma, DJ, Producer, Entrepreneur, Designer: Rodolfo Franklin Senior, Professionally Known As Clark Kent, Recording Artist, Entrepreneur: Joseph Guillermo Jones II Professionally Known As Jim Jones, Location: Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach, California, The United States of America, Year: 2023, Photographer: Ajani Charles

Although he experienced some technical difficulties that led to his mic malfunctioning, and although I did not enjoy some of his newest records, I had a blast; his early music reminded me of the excitement, novelty, angst and aimlessness of my early twenties, and I reflected on the fact that Cudi’s career is about the same age as mine.

Also, I was one of the first Torontonians to meet him after documenting his first concert (at a small venue on King Street West) in my home city in 2009.

That was a wild night that my longtime friend and colleague Amol Gupta and I spent with Cudi after his performance of his first hit record, Day And Night.

I highly recommend ComplexCon to anyone interested in art, design, fashion, sneaker culture, streetwear, hip-hop culture (and music), and pop culture, especially those who work in nightlife, entertainment, sports, fashion, marketing or communications.

The event was well-organized, and much about various cultures, human creativity, and human nature can be learned through the conference. Thank you to the ComplexCon team for having me. I am also grateful to all the kind, talented people I met in Long Beach this year.

I look forward to attending ComplexCon again.