Chi Modu

For the British actor, see Chuku Modu

Christopher Chijioke[1] "Chi" Modu (c. 1967–2021)[2] was a Nigerian-born American photographer[3] known for his photos of various pioneering hip-hop music entertainers which "helped set the visual template for dozens of hip-hop stars."[2] Hypebeast, which interviewed him in 2017,[1] covered his 2021 death.[4]

His career as a documentarian[2] included producing photos for The Source magazine[5] in the 1990s, covering "the entirety of hip hop's golden age."[3] Those whose photo he took include Tupac Shakur, Mobb Deep, Eazy-E, The Notorious B.I.G. and many others.[2] Although much of his American life was based in New Jersey,[2] the majority of his photographs were taken in New York City.[5] Some of these images have been released for sale in the form of sweatshirts, hoodies and other garments.[6] One particularly troublesome of these arrangements was with a Swiss company that "along with" Modu was utilizing "an iconic photo" snapped by him years before.[7][8]

His 2019 response to how would he like to be remembered was "as someone that can look at something and bring the truth out without injecting their point of view into it."[9]

  1. ^ a b Elaine Y J Lee (February 17, 2017). "Hip-Hop Photographer Chi Modu on Working With Tupac and Getting out of the Picture". Hypebeast. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e Jon Caramanica (May 29, 2021). "Chi Modu, Photographer Who Defined 1990s Hip-Hop, Dies at 54". The New York Times. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  3. ^ a b Matt Grobar (May 24, 2021). "Chi Modu Dies: Photographer Of Tupac, Biggie & Other Hip Hop Legends Was 54". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on May 25, 2021. Retrieved November 17, 2021.
  4. ^ Dylan Kelly (May 24, 2021). "Chi Modu, Legendary Hip-Hop Photographer, Dies at 54". Hypebeast. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  5. ^ a b Kevin Wong (August 9, 2017). "Music". Hypebeast. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference FreelanceNYT1991ChiModu was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ "Notorious B.I.G.'s Mother and Faith Evans Sue Swiss Company for Selling Snowboards with the Late Rapper's Face on them". March 18, 2019. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference NYPostContro2020ChiModu was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Jodi Taylor (June 21, 2019). "Chi Modu Is the Man Behind Tupac & Biggie's Most Iconic Photos". Coveteur. Retrieved November 25, 2022.