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[slow electronic music]

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[clattering, sliding]

[man] So, like,
what goes through your head
when you're painting?

[Mike]
Uh... a lot of the times, nothing.

So, a lot of
my best paintings I've done,

I'm so much in a zone
that I don't even
remember painting.

Like, some of the stuff...
it just--

you know, it's,
it's kind of like God,
God takes the wheel.

When I'm thinking about
the layout, stuff like that,

I'm thinking about how to better
the last thing that I've done.

That, that's my thing,
is, is try to...

...get, get the best
out of every project

and try to make this project
better than the last project.

And that's how you just
keep on advancing in what you do

and just fine-tuning yourself.

And that's my main thing.

Definitely an original
laundry room.

[upbeat music]

[sirens wailing in distance]

Hey, what's good, everybody?
Mike Norice here of
Break Your Neck Urban Customs.

You already know what it is.
As usual, I want to update
everybody on the latest

and greatest that
Break Your Neck has to offer.

No more delay. Here it is,
the latest... Sonic joints.

Pay attention
to the Swarovski crystals here.

It's the ultimate right here.

Uh, the Sonic.
And, and pretty much
starts from here.

It's like he, you know,
uh, Sonic rolls.

He rolling through the shoe,

and he--
Pay attention to the crystals.

And he's coming out,
and he pops out right there.

We have the customers outside,
waiting, waiting on these shoes.

Never seen 'em before,
so we gonna get to see firsthand

what they feel about 'em.

- All right, here they go.
- Oh, yeah!

- Wow, they are good.
- They're fantastic.

Oh, my God. They're amazing.

- [indistinct chatter]
- [laughs]

I've done custom artwork,
from Elton John to Mariah Carey.

[hip-hop music]

We've done 16 pairs of shoes
for Tom Cruise.

This is the Swarovski
crystalized Hollywood shoe.

Here it is, right here,
filled with Swarovski crystals.

And, by the way,
this is only available
at Fred Segal.

I've done hats for Madonna.

I've done, uh,
things for, um, The Game.

I've done a lot of,
a lot of different things.

I'm a designer,
a real-life designer, you know?

And I'd just like to really
just break down the stereotype

that society has
towards Black men like myself.

You know, it's--
We're not all just,

you know, drug dealers,
gangsters, and... bums.

Well, you know, I have fun.
People always say...

"Why do you work so hard?"

And I don't really
look at it as work.

Like, this is,
this is what I love.

I love designing. I love art.

I love all the intricate things
about the fashion game,
especially the art, art game.

You know, this is,
this is what I do.

This is the life I lead.

- [soft hip-hop music]
- [waves crashing]

Los Angeles is the mural capital
of the world, FYI.

Them gonna come from all over
and do a mural over there,
even though they're not from LA.

I'm doing a mural tour
called Artfully United,

where I do a mural
in, in different hoods
all across LA.

[spray paint hissing]

I grew up
in a Blood neighborhood,
in Watts,

and my whole thought process
behind the Artfully United tour

was to just get into, like,
a, a form of advertisement,

in a sense of positive messages.

I've seen so many people
have been a, a victim
to their environment.

And why not try to slowly turn
these circumstances
to give them a sense of hope...

...uh, a sense that
they can believe, you know,

in something better
than where their--
their current situation?

You know,
if they don't dribble a ball

or can put
a couple of rhymes together,

they, they, they feel
that they don't have, uh,

a way to even
get out of the hood.

Not even make it
out of the hood,

I, I really would love
to change the mentality

of the hood, you know?

It, it's one thing to move out,

but why not try
to change the, the area

that they live in, you know?

Change the circumstances
that the hood is, you know?

A-- anything can be changed,
I believe.

[hip-hop music]

Artistically, I have
my character, the BYM boy,

that is gonna be
on every single mural,

to recognize
and show everyone's inner youth

so they can relate to the boy
with positivity, direction,

and some type of hope
in the community.

And that's really
the main factor
of this mural tour.

[spray paint hissing]

This is the first wall
for Artfully United right here.

We're on Slauson and Hoover,
the heart of South Central
Los Angeles.

For everybody
that's been to Los Angeles,

lives in Los Angeles,
you know where this is at.

The theme just gonna be
like this.

- White wall, black letters...
- [man 1] Yeah.

- Yeah.
- ...character.

That's the theme
for every single wall.

Just a huge word.
Think about that.

"Forgiveness" right here,

and the boy
hanging off of the "S"
or something like that.

Or, or something,
you know, like...

- [man 1]
That's a big wall, Mike.
- [Mike] Yeah.

[man 1]
Over 90 feet long...
over 23 feet high.

- It's gonna be a task,
but we gonna make it happen.
- [man 1] That's it.

[traffic humming]

[upbeat music]

[man 2]
Think we'll use 500 gallons
in a year, or more.

[man 3]
Yo, this is the suspense.

How do you fit the world's
biggest paint sprayer?

[Mike]
I don't know, man.

[man 3 laughs]

[vehicles honking]

[Mike]
There were so many locations
that I went to,

and I explained the tour.

People didn't know
what we were doing.

We had to sign a contract,
that we were gonna paint it over
after three months.

Went back after three months,

and they got
so much more business
and positive "vibes"

that he didn't wanna
paint it over.

[hip-hop music]

"Forgiveness" for my first word
is just one that,

that first off,
uh, kind of stood out,

and very powerful,
'cause forgiveness

is more about you, the person
for doing the forgiving

versus the person
that's getting forgiven.

It's to make you think about
who you need to forgive,

who needs to forgive you,
or things that you've done

that may require forgiveness.

[siren wailing in distance]

A guy was walking
by the Forgiveness Wall,

and he was gonna commit suicide,
and, and made him, like,

kind of think again,
and touched his heart
and his spirit.

And he wrote me,
just thanking me for, uh,
the message that I put there

on Slauson and Hoover.
That's really what I do it for.

[hip-hop music]

[siren wailing in distance]

[horn honking]

It doesn't matter how high I am,
but it, it gets to you

when you start looking, and--
You know what I mean?

Looking down at stuff,
but when you just focus...

...that's how I created pretty--
90% of Forgiveness Wall,

- 'cause this-- Like I said,
this wall is double the size.
- [man 4] Yeah.

[Mike]
Like, I was going
on a ladder like this,

- no help at all sometimes.
- [man 4] Yeah.

[Mike]
You know what I'm saying?
Shaky.

You're using, like, balance,
and, you know,

I just think about just relaxing
and creating art,

and that's what
keeps me just cool.

If I think about
wind shaking, balancing,
stuff like that, I'd fall.

At that point,
I just put it in God's hands.

[Amaris]
A lot of people may not know
how to attain love,

or accept love,
or even give love,

and just having that as a mural,
just to even see that word,

it will strike a chord,
that love is out there,

and it is a real thing,
and they can get that.

- We met in high school
when I was...
- When she--

...a freshman
and he was a senior.

- Four years in a row,
best friends.
- He was a wild one.

- [Amaris laughs]
- [Mike] I mean, we were--

Well, at that time,
he was not my type. So...

[Mike]
I told her early on
that we would be married.

And we never
stopped talking since.

Not too many people know
that I was born

- maybe seven houses down
right here on 113th Street...
- [woman 1] Uh-huh. That's right!

- [woman 2] I could tell as well.
- [Mike] Yeah.

- [woman 2 laughs]
- [indistinct chatter]

[speaks indistinctly]

But, um... And this church
really hits my heart

because, um, during the '80s,
it was a real tough time
for me and my sister

and my mom, uh,
with poverty and homelessness.

And we would come here,
and they had

a government cheese program,
when you stand in line.

- I don't know if people remember
the block of cheese.
- [woman 2] Yeah, and, oh, yeah.

- [Mike] We would get
that block right here.
- [indistinct chatter]

So, it's not
just about the wall,

it's about my history
and where I grew up,

running around as a little kid,
around my son's age.
I was right here.

So, it was just a blessing
that, uh, that they opened up

our, our doors again
to allow me to do the mural.

This is my birth house
right here.
This is where I was born.

[man 1]
No way. This one here?

- [Mike] This house right here.
- [man 1] Whoa.

It is like the transition
between this house...
[chuckles]

...where I was born
versus where I stay now
is totally different.

- [man 1] Right.
- You know what I mean?

It was basically me,

my sister, Carmelle, and my mom.

Well, this is, this is where
I was born, right here,

113th Street, Watts.

And, uh,
out on the corner there,

we would, uh--
That's where we would get
the government cheese,

at the, at the church
on the corner, you know?

And gangbangers, they would,
they would hang out
in the alley.

My dad has been in prison
pretty much all of my life,
so we were on our own, um,

and Carmelle,
she was my best friend.

Growing up in Watts in the '80s,
uh, during the crack epidemic,

it was a tough time
in the neighborhood.

My mom was a single parent.

We grew up on welfare,

eating the best
grilled cheese sandwiches
you could imagine.

[gentle piano music]

So, I remember I had to collect
aluminum bottles

with my mom in the alleys.

[Mike]
Going to the recycling center
on Central and Imperial,

turning in cans
just to eat for that night.

I remember that just so much.

I was, um, gathering cans
and bottles to feed us,

and we were going
through the alleys.

[chuckles] And one man said,

"Are you a church group
collecting for--"

I said, "No, we trying
to eat tonight."

[Mike]
We hit really rock bottom
with homelessness

and, um, we ended up
going up north to Fresno,
you know?

And that, that really,
I think, saved my life

and, um, saved
just our family's livelihood,

you know, from not living
in my mom's Maverick.

As a mother,
one of the hardest things
to handle

is to see the scars
that you put there
on your children,

and you just have
to deal with it.

But they've dealt
with it as an adult, um...

...by becoming
who they are, you know.

Giving back to other people
and using that hurt to help.

[Mike]
If it wasn't for my mom,
I don't know where I would be.

The sacrifices that she made

just to shield
life's circumstances
as much as she could

from them hitting me
and Carmelle.

I don't even know
how we overcame

a lot of the obstacles
that we went through
during that time.

[Carmelle]
We witnessed a lot of struggle,

but, um, there was a lot
of love in the home.

And my mom really
instilled in us values that,

um, carried us,
um, out of the inner city

into the places
where we are today.

[Dorcas] Children need love,
and that is the perfect word
for a dark area,

which, sometimes,
on those streets,
I know that it is dark.

We went to get
government cheese,
and we went to get bread,

and we went to get powdered milk
'cause we didn't have a lot.

Uh, that's dark.

And so, to see "love,"
it makes you have hope.

And with hope, you can go on.

[Mike]
And this is gonna get better
from here.

We already have the green light
on two, three walls.

- [woman] Hallelujah!
- Four walls already, so...

- [applause]
- You know, and we'll get
some power next summer.

Our next wall is gonna be
not far from here,

uh, to the Imperial Courts,
uh, housing projects.

- And it's gonna be right across
the street from here.
- [woman] Sing it. That's right.

[hip-hop music playing on radio]

[Hubert]
These same streets we passin' by
is gonna be on the news tonight.

Somebody done got shot
on one of these blocks

last night, tonight, tomorrow,

up and on through,
through South Central.

It don't matter where from.
The 20, the 40, the 50,

the 60, the 80th block,
all through there.

You know what I'm saying?

Yeah, this Blood hood
right here.

All right here,
54th and Gramercy,
all these are Bloods.

I'll let you know
if you wanna really--

Like, we just left, we just
left 8th Ave and Slauson.

That was the rollie 60s.

Now we on 54th.

Ruthelen, right past Gramercy.

People basically coming out
of Blood territory.

And then, once you
cross over Webster,

you move into
5, 6th neighborhood Crips.

You go back into Crips.

It's just, you have-- Every,
every... four, five, six blocks,

I swear, it's a different hood.

It, it's serious.
It ain't nothing-- it ain't--

And all of them,
they run into each other,
they know each other.

Like, these dudes go,
go down the street

and they go right through
this neighborhood, jump out,

they gonna run
right into their enemies.

It's gonna be what it is,
vice versa.

While everybody
is selling Christmas trees,

getting haircuts,
going to the market,

washing their clothes,
picking up their kids at school,

it's, it's, it's always live
in LA. It's always a gang beef.

Okay, we politicking.
You know, just, just, uh,

getting all
the generals together
to give us the blessing

and point us
in the right direction
on the wall,

to get all the soldiers together
to, to get the wall together.

And we got
one of the head generals here,

the city general, Mark.

And, uh, he's gonna be
making the phone calls.

- [muted]
- [instrumental hip-hop music]

[Mike]
We've been working
on setting the foundation,

reuniting the gangs through art,

um, making some good connects.

We've already met
with the Black Panthers.

Uh, they're on board,
because anyone

who's done their research
knows that, uh,

gangs derived
from the Black Panthers,
so you have to start with them.

Activists, community activists,
um, non-profit organizations

that work with gangs, um,
the gang members themselves,
the politicians.

We're gonna need all the support
that we, we can use.

The goal is to allow
the gangs to recognize

that every single hood,
even their enemies,

has this same memorial
with the same character

to give some type
of thought that,

"Hey, we're united
through this character."

- [slow hip-hop music]
- [indistinct chatter]

This message right here
and future messages
for the people is to recognize

that we're all the same,
no matter what hood you're in,
no matter what street you from,

no matter what type
of person you are.

You're in this community,
you're in that community,

you're a human being,
we're the same.

So we need to recognize that
and get together

as a, as a people,
as a one unit, you know?

And this message
is bigger than me.

- Artfully United is bigger
than me, you know?
- [woman] Right.

[Mike]
This is not a game out here.

People have lost their lives.

Monday, and they said-- What,
what was the homicide? Three?

Three homicides,
believe it or not.

Three homicides in Watts,
and only one was gang-related.

We need to change
this stereotype,
because it's up to us.

It's not up to these people
trying to kick us out
and gentrify us.

And we're the ones that have,
that have shed blood

and, and cried on these corners,
and have created this community

to where they even
wanna come here

and build these buildings
and do all this stuff.

We're the ones,
so why not capitalize
off of what we created?

We need to really understand
the power that we have
as a community,

and the power of unity,
first and foremost.

[music continues]

"We Are One" and "Love,"
they work together very strongly

because you can't,
you can't even unite

with your, your neighbor
unless you love 'em,

you know,
or you have love for 'em.

A lot of people,
they don't even love themselves.

So, it can be negative
to certain people,

because sometimes people
that have been told

they love them
have been beaten on 'em,
have abandoned them,

so they don't want
no parts of love, you know?

So, they have
to teach themselves how to love,

or what the true definition
of love even is.

So, you need to
first love yourself, you know?

There, there's no way
that you can combine
the two without one--

I think the first step
is love, and then you can say
we are one as a, as a people.

So, it's, it's a,
it's a one, two step.

If, if you're,
if you're traveling east,

you'll get "Love" first
before "We Are One."

So, that's, uh... Most people
coming from LA,

that's what they're doing,
heading through Watts anyway.

So, that's
the, that's the point of that.

I'm going outside.

[Mike]
You know, I know people that,
that love their neighborhood

more than they love
their own family.

They adopt to their hood
and kinda sometimes

disregard their family,
and they feel that
that's their chosen family.

They love them
more than anything.

You know, the love
for the community,

the streets
and everything like that.

- [kid] I want a toy.
- No, no, no.
You don't have to get a toy.

I have three, three,
uh, children myself,

and, um, the void of my father
that I've had over the years

have made me love them more.

And then, just other children
that I see without a father,

it, it, it give, it gave me, um,

just a better understanding
of what they're going through,

so it, it kinda gives me
more compassion
towards their situation.

- [clerk speaking indistinctly]
- All right, cool.
Yeah, I got you. All right.

Just growing up during
that time, you know, um,

whenever situations
would come up,

where other associates
or friends would be talking
about their dad

and they would ask about my dad,

and, you know,
I would just tell 'em,
"You know, my dad's in prison."

I pooled and actually gravitated

to any male figure
that was an older male figure

that was positive or negative,
because of that void,

because I just needed
that leadership,
and still do, you know.

Look, look for that leadership
as a male,

a older male figure in my life.

I look for that till this day.

[gentle music]

[Carmelle]
My dad was actually

an honor roll student
in high school.

He was blessed
to get a full scholarship

to study computer science
at Pepperdine University,

which was unheard of
for, you know,

a young Black man
from the Deep South

during that era.
And there, met my mom.

[Dorcas]
There were only
two Muslim people there,

myself and Saleem.
It was like two magnets.

He was, uh,
my math tutor. [laughs]

My dad was drafted
to the military

for, um, service
during the Vietnam War

and was stationed in Germany.

Something happened
during that time.

And I don't know the details,
but I do know from talking

with friends and, um, family

that my dad came home different.

Eventually, it came out that
he had become addicted to drugs,

so we lost touch
for a few years.

My mom reached out
to try to reconnect

and she discovered that
my dad was actually in prison.

And so
I had to wrap my, you know,

11-year-old mind
around what this meant.

[music continues]

[Dorcas]
When, um...

...we first found out
that Saleem was, um, imprisoned,

I think I was numb.
I didn't know what to do or say.

Uh, my children were still
so small. I was just trying
to protect them.

I went through a lot
emotionally during that time,
personally, um,

and even though
we weren't together,
it still hurt us.

It didn't really hit me
until the first time
we flew out there,

where he was incarcerated,
and I remember hugging him.

[Carmelle]
We went to Texas
the summer of '92,

and it was just
an amazing, um, reunion.

He was, you know,
due to come home
not long after that,

so we knew that
it wasn't going to be for long.

When my dad came home,
he was doing his best

to just get back
to where he left off
with his career,

and all of that stress
and just, you know,
dealing with just the pressures

and the struggle of re-entry,
he relapsed.

And this time,
he went to the VA and said,
"Hey, I need help.

I need to get
into your detox program.

I need some sort
of rehab, something."

The VA told him that,
the VA hospital in Amarillo

told him that
they didn't have room
on their drug unit.

And so he was left
to figure things out on his own.

Uh, that didn't last for long,

and in March of '96,

he was charged,
uh, for aggravated robbery.

I was 17.

Michael was 15 at the time.

Uh, a few years later,
I saved up

enough money to visit him
for the, the first time
during that sentence.

Michael came along with me.
And I can't remember

if it was Michael or me
who asked my dad, uh,

"How long are you
gonna be in here?"

And he said,
"They gave me 99 years."

Our worlds just turned
upside down when we heard that.

[music continues]

I remember, before we left,
my dad said...

..."Don't worry about me.

I want you guys
to go on and live your lives.

I'll be all right.

Don't worry about me.

Just do your best.

Live your lives. Do your best."

I made a point after that
to visit him
at least once a year.

[video playing on phone]

[Mike]
I didn't understand it then,
but I understand it now,

like, all of the things
that my mom did for us,

for us to get to this position
that me and my sister are today.

She sacrificed a, a lot of stuff
to give us a better life.

And that was just
one of those things,

just kind of masking off
what was going on with my dad,

just for us not to worry
or, you know,
not to be confused.

People have, have
gone through a lot

just for me to stand right here
this day, you know,

to speak to you guys. You know?

So, I don't take
none of this for granted,

and I, I appreciate everything,
and I do know

that Artfully United
will be a force in the community

to, to help out the community,

'cause the main purpose
of what this is

is to change people's mentality.

[interviewer]
Do you wanna be a artist
like your dad someday?

- Yeah.
- [interviewer] Yeah?

- Like a painter?
Painting big walls or...
- Yeah.

- [interviewer]
Do you like to paint?
- Yeah.

- [interviewer]
Did he teach you how to paint?
- Yeah.

Not, not to spill
all the paint out.

[interviewer]
You like to spill
all the paint out?

Yeah. I spilled it.

We've been following Mike,
you know, around the city.

This is his third mural.

I think that this mural
and this message speaks

specifically
to the Watts community,

because with so much divide
in the Black and Brown
community,

every day, when you walk
past this mural,
you will see that we are one.

Somebody could be on the bus,
and they go by and they look.

They mad at they brother,
they mad at they mama,

they hurt, they upset,
and they look on the wall,

it just sparks something
in your mind.

We don't know
what these walls do.

These walls
are probably changing,

is changing people life.

[gentle music]

[Mike]
Okay, so, right here,
we're, we're on Broadway,

and then this is, like,
the start of, like, uh--

Well, you got several gangs.
You got East Coast,
Broadway, the Crips.

You got 87 Gangsters.
They, they run right here,
'cause it's 87th Street.

And enemy, 94 Hoovers
is, is right there.

So, that's how close they are.
And then, they, they have--

Their other enemies
is 97, 94, 97.

So, that's just how close
three gangs are

- right there.
- [man] Wow.

And two of 'em
are enemies against this other.

[man]
And so we're gonna get out
and get your haircut.

- Yeah. This is where--
- [man] Sounds good.

This is where I get my haircut.

[music continues]

- Yeah, what's up?
- Come on, bro. Yeah, I got you.

[Mike]
Man, looking down right now,
but, you know,

- still need to get a cut.
- Ah, man,

this dude fell off
the ladder tripping.

- If I kick your leg,
don't get mad at me, bro.
- Man, I'll try not to.

[barber] Don't, don't,
don't you trip. We working
around here, you know?

Don't get mad at me.

But, hey, hey, it's crazy,
'cause you went from, like,

painting on shoes
and, and painting on,
uh, clothes,

- to painting on canvases.
- [Mike] Yeah.

[barber] Painting murals.
I remember you did that one
mural in that dude apartment,

- the penthouse.
Up on the ceiling.
- [Mike] Yeah. Ceiling. Yeah.

- [man] Yeah, I saw that.
- [Mike] 16th ceiling.

- Ooh, that was funky.
- [man] I saw that.

Yeah. Been getting my hair cut
al-- all throughout the journey.

Through the whole journey,
it's like he's been
my partner every step.

- I'd say since we was about 16.
When I was about 16, 15.
- Yeah, yeah, yeah.

You know what I'm saying?
That's when Michael Norice
was wearing, uh,

- contacts in his eyes.
Just 'cause, hey--
- [laughs]

- You know, back then,
he was wearing hazel contacts.
- I still wear...

- [laughs]
- ...contacts.

[upbeat jazz music]

[Mike]
Today, I was talking
to my barber,

just looking out for,
for a new walls to do,

and, uh, we want
to do that parking lot

where the,
the barber shop is off of.

And I was thinking
about doing "Believe."

And, um, I think
that's a really good message

for that side of town,
that's the east side.

And, uh, anybody that's been
to LA and known LA,

just that 110 divider,
the 110 freeway divides

the east side
from the west side, which is--

The east side
is a lot rough, more rough.

Uh, more poverty, gang violence.

And that's what
those people of that area,
they need is to believe.

Believe in themselves,
um, and just believe

that you can get out
of the circumstances
that you're in, you know?

So, "Believe" will be
the next one.

[upbeat music]

- [man laughs]
- [Mad] Welcome to Watts,
California, man.

We right here
in the Nickerson Gardens.
You feelin' me?

In the middle of Watts,
you know, the heart of Watts
right here, man.

So, this is where
it all started for me.

You know, kids get taken
at an early age here.

I got little brothers,
and cousins, and nephews
and stuff

that's still, you know,
roaming these streets
and growing up around here,

and I want them
to be able to be safe, you know?

It's real, it's real, real hard
to make it out of Watts.

So, whatever you got,
whatever talent you got,

you know, stick with it,
and hold on to it,

and, you know,
just push it out there

and, you know,
hopefully, it can open doors

for something else
or something, you know?

That's, that's,
that's beautiful.

[Mike]
Five, six,
you believe in anything.

You can believe
in whatever, you know.

You can believe
you can be an astronaut.

But as reality sets in,
I would say,

as you're a teenager,
that belief kind of lowers

due to your circumstances
that you're living in,

your environment,
and by the time you're 18,

if you're
in those circumstances,

in the hood,
your belief is very low.

You know,
you're not believing that,

"Oh, I'm gonna go to college,

get out of school,
and then become something."

You-- No, you believe
that "If I wear blue,
I'ma get shot." You know?

"If, if I show
this money outside,

I'ma get robbed."
That's what you believe in.

And I think that kind of sinks
into everyone around 15, 16,

and definitely full-fledged,
probably around 18.

[music continues]

[Mad]
I was exposed to everything
at a young age.

I'm talking about, uh, partying,

the drinking, the smoking,
the, the fighting, the shooting.

You know, there wasn't
no way to hide from it.

It was every street you went,
every corner, every project.

You know,
it was kind of the same thing.

[Mike]
I've sat on my stoop
on 90th Street

and seen the craziest stuff.

Oh, my gosh.

Drive-by shootings,
shootouts, fights, you name it.

Like, threats, craziness,
all the time.

And like you said, it was, uh...
that was all I knew,

so I thought that
this is what life had to offer.

- [Mad] Yeah.
- Just imagine that.

That's the only life you know.

- Yeah.
- You know what I mean?
And that's, like,

sometimes you're subject
to just the product
of your environment.

It's good when
you're in Beverly Hills,

bad when you're in projects.
You know what I mean?

- Yeah. It seem like it's so big,
but it gets so little.
- Yeah.

[music continues]

[Mike] I know
when I was living out here,
I didn't go past Imperial.

I didn't go... [chuckles]
further west in Avalon.

Like, this was all I knew.

So, I know, for the most part,
a lot of the kids

that are kids, they don't
really travel too far.

They're not, you know, going--

I-- You know,
I might have went to the beach
maybe once a year,

something like that,
and that was like a treat.

You get cornered
in this box of tunnel vision.

You don't see
nothing around you,

and not realizing
that 20 miles west

of where you're at,
there's no gangbanging,

there's no violence.

You know, there's people
that, that live free.

You know, there's
a whole another side of life

that is not far
from where you're at,
your circumstance.

So, always, I think everyone

should come
to the beach, really.

And then, on the flip side,
I think people
that are in this community

need to go to the hood
and see how they're living

so you can appreciate
how much God has blessed you

and your circumstances,
and that you don't take
this life for granted,

'cause a lot of people,
they take it for granted.

[Carmelle]
In spite of the struggles,
uh, my mom really

instilled in us values
for education, hard work,

and, uh,
we knew that ultimately,

uh, we would make it
out of the inner city, uh,

by pursuing our goals,
education, and our careers.

And even though
he was incarcerated,

my dad did his best
to father us from prison.

[Mike]
Yeah, I, I would get at least
ten to 12 letters a year.

- [Dorcas] Mm-hm.
- And they never once
talked about prison talk.

- No.
- "Oh, it's crazy in here."

- "These guys,
they did this or this."
- Yeah.

You know,
"Last night, this happened."

- Mm.
- He never once.

The letters that he wrote

were always positive.

He never, um--
I think he was protecting us

from what he went through.

He didn't tell us
about the, um, harshness

of his reality.

He always, um,
just told us to keep

a positive mental outlook.
That was always the way he would

end the letters, you know,
and asking us to hold on

and, you know,
that he told us all
that he loved us.

And this is
after us being divorced
for all these years.

That is how he maintained
our relationship,

and I always respected
that about him.

- You know. I always did.
- Mm-hm.

[Dorcas]
Even my third child,

who is not his natural child,

he would write to her and give,

give things to her.
He was very generous.

Mr. Saleem,
he was actually sometimes
better than my own...

[chuckles] my own father
in terms of his approach
to parenting for me.

He would always send me gifts,

like making leather bags
by hand, which I still have,

and just beautiful messages
and letters that just

touched me so, so much.

I've been a model for,
I'd say, 11 to 12 years now.

I've been professionally
doing it.

Worked with brands
that I've grown up with knowing,

like, throughout
my wh-- entire life.

And that's always
really exciting,

and it's gratifying and just--
It's just fun.

[Carmelle]
I was blessed to get a spot
at Columbia University's

Medical Scientist
Training Program,

where I earned an MD

as well as a PhD
in Molecular Biology.

And throughout that period,
my dad was, um,

just as supportive,
if not more supportive,
than ever.

I remember he made
a doctor's bag

in the crafts shop
at the prison by hand,

um, which I, I still have
and cherish to this day.

I always tried my best
to meet their needs, you know.

His, for art,
and my daughter's, for science,

and my other daughter,
for entertainment. It was a lot.

- We had the three
different venues going on.
- Yeah. Different levels.

- Yeah.
- And that was
the priority. I mean,

if they don't make it,
what is it all about?

So, you have to provide.
I wanted better for my children
than I ever had.

[Joy]
With everything, and the tools
that she was given,

she did an amazing job.

She did the best job
that she could.

Um, she was always
encouraging me

to, to get out and, and learn
and, um, explore the world.

And I feel like
I've been well-rounded
in my education and experiences.

[Dorcas]
What would you want your family
to remember you for?

It's like all of the things
that I would want,

what would be
the most important?

And it came to me
that I would want my family

to understand and know
that I cared about them.

To show them that I cared,
that was, the things
that I did for them.

You know, taking them to places,

being there for them,
listening to them,

giving, constantly giving,
and always being there for them.

That showed that
I cared for them.

That was the most important.
So, family, showing them
that I cared.

[hip-hop music]

We're painting murals
with positive messages
in high-risk areas.

They aim to lower gang violence,
graffitiing, drug abuse,
and crime.

- [music playing indistinctly]
- Three, two, one. Let's go.

This one
was really special to me,
because this was the first wall

that I started to incorporate
a little bit more animation.

As you see,
he's pulling the zipper,
unzipping the wall.

And as he's unzipping the wall,
it unveils the word, "Believe."

Also, this is
on the back end wall
of my personal church,

Bible Enrichment
Fellowship International Church.

So, this one
is dear to my heart.

That will always be here.

This one is the biggest
unveiling to date.

We've had the city councilman
give us awards.

We had the senator
give us awards for this one.

Maxine Waters' office
came through.

It was a really good experience.

[upbeat music]

[muted]

Get your Hansel T-shirt.

It's your boy, Hansel Moore.

Welcome to LA.
Get it how you live.

[Mike]
A lot of artists,
they just, you know,

create this great piece
of artwork.

And you're off to a gallery,
and you never hear from 'em.

So I don't want that for me.

I always want to be,
um, part of the community.

[music continues]

When you go to the hood,
like where we're from,

there's not too much art up.

It looks desolate.
It looks run-down.

There's not much that
you can literally look up to

and, and feel inspired
and, and energized.

And art does that for people.

It's deeper than
just looking pretty,

like a, a wall that says "love"
or "forgiveness."

Like, maybe, just maybe,
if there's a person

that's considering harming
someone on that street

and they see,
like, these big letters

that say positive messages,
they might just think, like,
"Should I forgive?"

Like, even if they just,
for a moment,

just see it and just keep going
about their life,

somehow it's in their psyche,
and it might change their way
of thinking eventually.

Just planting, like,
little seeds in people.

[Mike]
It's kinda like just driving by
and seeing a cross.

The symbolism behind the cross

and how that just makes you
reflect on your life.

And that is a powerful thing
on our conscience.

[airplane whining]

[music continues]

[music fades]

[slow hip-hop music]

[Carmelle]
Once I finished my training
at Columbia,

I was blessed to get a position

as a medical resident
at Johns Hopkins Hospital.

And it was at that point
I said, "Okay, finally.

I'm ready to do something
to try to get my dad
out of prison."

When I was 30,
that's when the process started
of her trying to get him out.

She has been diligently--
Like, she just on it.

Like, really, step by step,
getting the case together.

I started to pursue
a compassionate release.

I, I, I heard,

"We can't do this,
but we'll try."

Um, you know, the case
was more than ten years old.

I said, "Okay, I've gotta look
for a lawyer who is,

is confident
and who is gonna fight for us."

And so I kept looking...

...and I kept looking.
[chuckles]

Years went by
and I kept looking.

I wrote, um, every non-profit...
[chuckles] under the sun.

Um, I wrote the governor
of Texas multiple times.

I tried. For years and years,
I tried.

I, in my heart,
just could not give up.

There's murderers
that have gotten released

in half the time
that my dad's been in prison.

He, um, committed robbery,

um, at a convenience store
in rural Texas

with a paint scraper
and, um, threatened the clerk.

Uh, he didn't harm the clerk,
he threatened the clerk.

The clerk gave him the money,
and he was charged,
uh, for aggravated robbery.

My dad's crime was classified
as a "3G offense."

If you commit a "3G offense,"

you can't get out
on compassionate release.

I still pushed for it
and, uh, they denied it.

- Carmelle was the one
who never gave up hope...
- Yeah, definitely.

- ...that he would be free.
- Definitely.

And so that
kept us all hopeful...

- Yeah.
- ...you know,
in spite of what we saw.

[upbeat hip-hop music]

[Mike]
This is one of my favorites,

just simply because of
how I painted the boy,

you know,
taking the sledgehammer,

knocking the hole in the wall,
and you see paradise.

This is just showing
that there's hope
within our own community.

And you follow the boy,
he's leading the way
through the white way.

A lot of people don't know,
but that, that's prayer.

Whenever you see the boy,
you always see a green shirt

or green ray
or some type of green beam
that's coming out of his shirt.

This is prayer.
And that's why you see him

doing a lot of stuff
that he doesn't even know
he can do.

That's through prayer.
That sym-- symbolizes prayer.

Kobe Bryant passed
while I was painting the wall.

I ended up dedicating
that wall to Kobe Bryant
and Nipsey Hussle by default,

because Nipsey Hussle
got killed right down the street
from that word.

"Hope" and "prolific,"
all those words

that he has tattooed on his face
and on his body
were inspirational words anyway.

So, that was what
he really was about

as a person, and Kobe as well.

It's a way to speak
to the people.

You know, they can be
a Kobe or a Nipsey
and just carry their legacy on.

That word "hope"
is really powerful,

because you just wanna hope
for positive things.

You wanna hope
for a better future.

You know,
hope that things will go right.

This is a, um,
portrait that we did
for, uh, one of my clients.

Her daughters got,
uh, murdered,

and, uh, she wanted me
to paint two, two paintings,

for, for herself and her sister,
being the, the girl's aunt.

And this is something that
I just did to remember her,
and her legacy, and her life.

It's so easy to, to war,

- and it's a little bit harder
to, to bring peace.
- [kid laughing]

[upbeat music]

[Mike]
We're on Vernon and 5th Ave,

right here in South Central
Los Angeles.

And the owner, she contacted me.

She just took over
this business,

and she wanted
to give her business

a different vibe
than what was here
for decades on end.

A lot of people
don't know that this is, uh,

the beginning
of a new stroll right here,
a prostitution stroll.

So, hopefully, this will just be
that light of inspiration

to try to change people
and inspire people for peace.

Um, this area has a really high
crime rate right here,

with the, uh,
the gangs, and violence,
and drugs, and stuff like that.

And, you know,
and that's what Artfully United
really is all about,

is just to be
that candle in the darkness

and just be that light.

This has been up
for several months now.

It hasn't been written
on one time prior.

This wall used to get
hit up all the time,

so this is already doing
what it needs to do
in the community.

This is it.
This is the peace wall.

It's simple.
Very simple and plain.

Peace, that's all
we're looking for.

[music continues]

When we went by and talked
by the peace wall,

we had a guy that said,
"Man, I'm glad you guys
put this up,

because I got shot
here and here."

Like, literally in front
of the peace wall.

And he said, um,
after the peace wall,

it has been a lot more peace
in this area, you know?

And he thanked me for that.
And that, that's,
that really touched me,

because that means that

we're seeing change
with these walls, you know,

and they're resonating
with the people's spirits.

And, you know,
it's not gonna eliminate crime,
of course,

but it's kinda tough,
you know, to shoot somebody

in front of a wall
that says "peace," you know?

And that's, that's what
it's all about.

To speak to you
at that time of need.

Either you're going or coming
from something,

some type of danger, you know,
and it's, it's, uh,

It's been really helpful,
you know,

from the testimonials
that I've been getting.

It's been, it's been helping.

I get the testimonies
all the time

by people saying, you know,
"I don't even believe in God,

but every time I walk past
your forgiveness wall,

it makes me feel better."

And, you know,

"I forgave my mom
for beating me up as a kid."

Or, "I forgive, forgave
this person for raping me."

"I forgive myself for about
to kill myself yesterday."

You know, I get, I get them all.

I get all types of testimonials
all the time.

In the beginning,
I didn't think

that it, it would be
such a big thing

that it's turning into,
and now I'm being recognized.

And the first wall
that said "forgiveness,"

that's become
a, a hood shrine, I would say,

because people are,
are protecting that wall.

You know, that wall
rarely gets graffitied on.

Um, and almost daily,
I get posts of someone praying
in front of that wall, or--

Just this morning,
I got a video of a guy

walking by, and he was, like,
blessing the wall.

He had sage,
and he was burning sage

in front of the wall at,
like, six o'clock this morning.

And we've gotten awards
from the senator, the mayor, councilmen.

The last unveiling we did,
Senator was there,

Senator Bradford, uh,
Mayor Butts from Inglewood,
Maxine Waters' office.

The councilman gave a--
gave me all awards
for what I'm doing,

and, you know,
we're, we're being acknowledged

from the state and city level
and from the community itself.

So, what I'm working on today
is, uh...

...someone who has been
following Artfully United

for some years now,
and she, she wanted

a little bit of the wall.

"The walls," I should say,
uh, in her driveway,

so I'm doing "Sky's the Limit."

And that is, uh, something
that means a lot to me too,

is that someone wants something

that I created...
um, at their home.

It's just a fact of me
doing these around the city,

people want to be associated
with the movement

by any means necessary.

That I'm proud of,
of what it's growing to be,

and I'm proud of
what God is gonna make it
to be in the future.

I've just been blessed
with the artistic skill

and blessed with the time
to be able to even do this,

so no better way to do it
than to just give back.

You know, we're on...
This is noted to be

a horrible neighborhood,
believe it or not.

- [man] Really?
- Yeah. This is Hoover.

You know,
the, the, the game, Hoover.

So, we're on 126 and Hoover.

But that just shows LA

is very... deceptive.

Like, you, you get--
Your, your perception's, like,

"Oh, these are
nice neighborhoods."
And these are nice.

There's nice houses here
and there, but, you know,

you, you don't get it twisted.

At the end of the day,
it's still South Central.

[hip-hop music]

- [siren wailing]
- Every spot we go to,
there's ambulances.

- Ambulance. Yeah.
- Every single one.

Yeah, every, every single one.

Uh, this wall right here is a...

I call it a "slam dunk."
[chuckles]

'Cause it was,
it was real easy.

The, the owner came to me,
gave us this wall.

It was really easy,
no negotiations.

And we're at the point now
to where it's, uh,

it's easier to get walls.

No matter what you go through,
keep smiling,

because we're all going through
different things,
especially in these areas.

There's a lot of,
uh, unforgiveness,
and pain, and suffering,

but through it all,
you gotta keep smiling,
keep pushing through.

So, that's
an indirect message too,
is just keep pushing,

- so...
- Yeah, these walls,
I feel like are reminders

what, uh, we need,
you know, day to day.

You know, you're late on rent,
or you just don't have

- the rent.
- [Mike] Yeah.

[Stacee]
You know, you gonna make it out.

Yeah, so, you know, it's,
it's really for the community.

- It's really for, for--
- Keep smiling.

- Keep smiling.
- Keep smiling.

- You can't help but to smile...
- Right.

...you know,
in these situations.

- All right.
- Hey, what's up?

[music continues]

So, here it is
on the left, right here.

Looking pretty good.

So, right here,
we have on this corner,

it says, "dream big."

I saw a lot of poverty,
homelessness again,

drug use and trash.
And, you know,

when you're dealing
with that type of activity
in these communities,

your, your dreams
are not that big.

Your aspiration
is not that huge.

We grew up not too--
Maybe 15 blocks

- south of here, so...
- Mm-hm. Yeah. Yeah.

...this is our area as well.

- And it kinda, you know,
resonates with us.
- Hm.

Here's to keeping
that dream as a kid.

We got Powerful Paul,
really big, with his hands
on his hip,

head high,
lookin' up, cheesing.

You know, standing on top
of the world.

It was really important
that I put the world there,

because the world is yours
if you dream big

- and don't let anyone,
uh, limit and box you in.
- Mm.

[Mike] I think this is
the biggest Powerful Paul
out of the, the tour so far.

[Stacee]
We're celebrating
the 15th year of Powerful Paul.

He was originally called
The BYN Boy.

These areas that we're visiting

- are like forgotten areas.
- Yeah.

So, with "dream big" being here,
it gives the people

to, like, you just said,
to touch back on it
a little bit, to dream big.

And, and, and you can
rise above all of this.

And this is,
this is where it start.
It starts with a dream.

[jazzy hip-hop music]

[Mike]
I'm working on
just changing the narrative

of what kids
in that area go through.

You know,
it was a point in time
where, where I was homeless.

We were homeless as a family,
you know. And look at us today.

You know, so God can turn
any situation around
and make it for the better good.

You just gotta believe in Him.

And that's ultimately
what Artfully United is about.

[music continues]

Art was my outlet.

It, it didn't cost much money
to have a piece of paper

and then a pen and pencil,
so my mom started to get me

into as many art programs
at that point that I could,
uh, get into.

[Gwendolyn]
Michael was only interested
in drawing.

When someone was ill,
Michael designed the card.

Michael kept
the principal's office

full of beautiful paintings.

Uh, he did
the bulletin boards in the hall.

If a teacher were out, Michael--
we had Michael to make cards,

and the kids would sign them.

When the superintendent
would come back, he would say,

"Oh, what a beautiful room.
And how did you think
of all of this?"

And I said,
"Michael thought of it."

He's let me know his progress,
and I'm real, really proud...

[clears throat] to--
That my little first-grader,
little Michael,

- is such a... [chuckles]
is such a great person now.
- [crowd laughs]

[music continues]

[Marvin]
Michael Norice is my nephew,

and I'm proud to say
I, I love him a whole lot.

My antennas kind of went up,
'cause I have a passion
for art and fashion myself.

Here comes this, this young kid
from Fresno that want to do
the same thing,

so we kind of hit it off
right off the top.

Few years later, he came to LA,
and uh, that's when I got
the opportunity

to really, um, see the master,
I like to call him.

The artist doing his thing,
and, and, uh,

just this, this, this talent
that was just bubbling up
out of this kid.

I was just amazed to see it.

I'd just come to find out
that I was,

I was just a part
of a artistic legacy,

that I had a mea-- minor,
but meager part of it

that I was really, really,
uh, really grateful to God

to be a part of it,
to see it unwinding
right in front of me, um...

That's the window, Daddy.

[Mike]
Okay, I see the window.

So...

[Marvin]
Mike is one of those kids
that, though,

kind of, like,
beat the odds, though,
you know, um, uh, like myself.

No father in the picture.
He kind of found out
what being a man was

by looking and asking each other
how to do that.

- And over the years,
I've seen this young kid...
- [indistinct chatter]

...uh, become a father
and a business owner.

We, we've mentored each other
through, through the years.

It's, it's, it's been,
uh, it's been real good

to see it, um,
and to see his work,

and to see his artistic,
uh, achievements

just evolve, you know?

[music continues]

[Mike]
All right. Good job.

I'm proud of Mike
because he has risen above

unimaginable, um, circumstances.

Um, he wasn't
the, the statistic.

Yeah, and it's,
it's interesting.
It's like it's easy to fall

- into that, that pocket as well.
Growing up in the hood...
- Yeah.

...it's so easy to be
another statistic.

And, and I've actually
never asked you, like,

being surrounded by,
like, gang activity in the '90s,

like, how did you
never get involved

or, like, get affiliated
in that way? Like--
You know what I mean?

- Well, um... [exhales] I re--
- 'Cause I know there's pressure.

Oh, yeah, it's pressure.
And a lot of the gangbangers
are my friends. Still are.

It, it just-- I, I, I see
the end, you know?

I, I see what you--
Two options. You're dead--

Three. You're, you're,
you're, you're broke,

you know,
with nothing, literally.

You're dead or you're in prison.

And I don't want to
really be any one of those.

[gentle music]

[Carmelle]
Midst of an environment...

...full of crime, full of drugs,
full of negative peer pressure.

I mean, I remember at one point
we literally lived

right across the street
from a crack house.

And, um, there was, you know,
a lot of guys his age

who were getting into drugs,
getting into the wrong things.

What really amazed me
about Michael
was his ability to show respect

and friendship to the members
of our, um, community around us,

but not get pulled in.

[Mike] We kind of made a pact,
you know,
when we were really young,

not to raise
our own family like this,

and to get an education,
to get out of the, the hood.

And, you know,
the puck stops here.

- [indistinct chatter]
- We going back.

[muffled chatter]

[Carmelle]
During the pandemic, there were
a few weeks that went by

during which
I did not hear from my dad,

and I was so frightened.

I thought,
"Oh, my gosh, COVID." [scoffs]

"Please don't tell me
that my dad is dead."

But a few weeks went by,
and my dad emerged, called me.

And, um, it was the most
heartbreaking phone call...

...because when he called...

...all that he did
for 20 minutes was to repeat

the six... names
and phone numbers

on his calling list,
going down the list

and then coming back,
"Is this Carmelle's number?"

And, oh, my gosh, I lost it.
I lost it.

I was, like, "There is no way
they can be keeping someone

in this state incarcerated.

There is just no way.

I don't care what the law says.

This is just wrong."

And I just continued
to fight, you know,
for his release.

Uh, nothing was moving.

It was just so frustrating.
I would have nightmares.

Um, and I'm, you know,
a grown woman,

and just would wake up crying,

"God, please.
Something has to give."

I can't get a lawyer
to get, get him out.

The law won't allow
for him to come home.

It was, it was
a traumatizing time.

And again...

...this time, you know,
a week and a half or so
went by, no call from Daddy.

He would call me
at least once a week.

No call from Daddy.

I said, "Okay, what's going on?"

I called up to the prison.

Lo and behold, my dad is
in the prison infirmary,

because he could no longer
take care of himself.

I dropped everything
and went to Texas
that next weekend,

and I sat and waited for them
to bring my dad from the unit

into the visiting area
behind the glass.

And I looked,
and there was this old man

just kind of curled over...

...shuffling towards the seat.

[voice breaking] And um,
it was just so heartbreaking.

Like, how could they keep
my dad like this, you know?

Um, he sat down
and his face just lit up.

Like, he was so happy to see me.

And it took every bit
of strength in me
to just not lose it.

[sighs] I didn't cry,
I just wailed. [chuckles dryly]

I, I got the, the pillows
from the hotel room

so that I wouldn't
disturb my neighbors.

I let it out. It was just...

Oh, my gosh.
It was a, it was a cry

of just sadness,
anger, frustration.

Like, how, you know...
[hesitating]

How can we go on like this?
Like, we cannot--

This is just not... [scoffs]

...how it should be, right?

Meanwhile, I was working again
to get him
on a compassionate release,

because of his--
Apparently, because he was stuck
in the infirmary

and they couldn't get him out,
'cause there was nothing
that they could do

to reverse what was happening
to get him back to a place

where he could
find his cell, right? [scoffs]

And so I was in the process
of trying to get him out,
and, um...

...uh... [exhales]

...couple weeks later...

...I get a call,
and they tell me,

"Your dad is coming home."

[indistinct chatter]

- The, the gate.
- [laughter]

[indistinct chatter]

[Carmelle]
My dad called me

a day or so after we found out

that he was be,
gonna be able to come home
on a, on a medical release.

I said, "Daddy! Daddy!
You're coming home!"

He laughed.

"I'm coming home?"
And he laughed.

I said,
"You're coming home, Daddy."

I had grown up, you know,
with my dad in prison,

and the idea
of holding him in my arms

without being interrupted
by a correctional officer

telling me, telling us it's time
to go, was just blissful.

[indistinct chatter]

[Carmelle]
Those are the, the, the things

- that most people
take for granted.
- Yeah.

- [Mike] Mm-hm.
- You know, to be able
to hug your parent.

It's a little surreal.
It's like--

- Because we, you know,
didn't grow up...
- Yeah, we've...

- ...together.
- ...we've never been together,
so it's not like

we're go-- going back
to the way things were.

- This is a new chapter
of our life.
- Yeah.

You know, I spoke
to, um, one of Daddy's

- former high school classmates.
- Yeah.

- She told me the same thing
about Daddy.
- Yeah. Yeah.

- She said that-- Yes.
- [Mike] Styling his clothes
and stuff.

That he was so well-dressed.

- Oh, I--
- And she said he could dance.

- [laughter]
- Yeah.

You guys get
a lot of traits like--

- Yeah. It's amazing.
- Yes, yes, we do.

[Mike] It's so funny how
DNA works, and just, just
different things that he does

that I, I see myself--
Uh, I have done in the past.

And it, it's just--
We were always connected.

Even though we weren't
physically connected,

- we were connected spiritually.
- Mm-hm.

- It's like a part of you
had been gone.
- [Mike] Yeah.

You know? And now
he's, he's able to be free.

I told him I wanted to dance
on Valentine's Day

- and he laughed just like that.
- [laughter]

That's when the hard work
of re-entry began.

You know, it was just
a time of celebration
and reunion.

Again, this moment that
we had all waited for and...

...looked around,
and he didn't recognize a soul.

He did not know
that he was home.

I sat him down one evening
for dinner

and placed his plate
at the table for him to eat.

And he looked up, and he says,
"Ain't no correctional officers
around here?

Where the,
where the officers at?"

[scoffs]

I said, "Daddy, you are home.
You're home now.

There's no officers here.
You don't ever have to worry
about a officer again.

I'm here with you."

And then I remember
taking him to go for a walk.

We got to the door,
the front door,

and I turn around and my dad
is just standing at the doorway.
[chuckles]

"We can go out there?"

He had been locked up
for so long.

Just the, you know,
the freedom to be able

to walk out of a door...
[voice breaks]

...you know, uninhibited,
was just completely foreign
to him.

The man did not know
he was home.

[Mike]
I believe that
he'll, he'll come out

and, and-- of the dementia,
you know?

- [Dorcas] I am not limiting God.
- [Mike] He can.

[Dorcas]
We, we have had
so many miracles

- along the way
of, of what has happened...
- [Mike] Yeah.

...as far as his health,
his memory,

that I'm-- I say it's possible.

- Yeah.
- You know?

- [Mike] Mm-hm.
- It's definitely possible.

[Mike]
Mm-hm.

Okay, so we are here
at 94th and Budlong,

and we have
a good friend, Dominique,

and she runs the program
that's right here,

where she commissioned
Artfully United
to do the message here.

We're over here,
I'm representing
Sunnyside Baptist Church,

uh, which is right on the corner
of 94th and Budlong,
like he mentioned.

And this is
our community center.

And we really are here
for the community.

So, for this project,
it was very special for us,

- 'cause Mike let the kids
help him, uh...
- [Mike] Yeah. Yeah.

...outline and paint all this,
and they had a really good time.

And I think the message
has been so important

on this corner that, like,
when he was done,

- we got calls
all the time, like...
- Oh, wow. Wow, wow, wow.

..."We needed that.
We needed those reminders
of just upliftment."

And then, no one
has graffitied over it.

No one has came
and, like, tried to mess it up.

So, I think that's a statement
in itself about how powerful
his work is

and how meaningful the words are
to our community.

[slow hip-hop music]

Who else think that there's
a difference between a career
and a job? What do you think?

[student 1] Uh, a job is like
when you do something,
like a cashier.

- [Mike] Yeah.
- [man] Oh, yeah,
that's a good one.

A career is something
that you want to do.

A job is something
that you have to do.

I used to speak
at the, the, the kids' classes,

and um, you know, I see myself
in pretty much all of 'em.

- What are your,
what are your goals?
- [student 2] I know.

[teacher]
We have a lot of doctors
in here.

I wanna be, I wanna be
a police officer.

All right.

[student 3]
I want to be a firefighter.

- Firefighter. What about you?
- [student 4]
I want to be a dancer.

[Mike]
A dancer?

You know,
single-parent household,

poverty.

You're kind of mentally
just in that box of two miles.

[indistinct chatter]

[Mike]
I don't know how many
of those kids today,

that's their life,
but I'm sure there's a few,

you know, that, that have
gone through that,

and is going through that,
and you know,

I want to touch those kids
with showing them

that there is a different path
that they can go down.

[student 4]
My mom has one.

- Your mom has an Afro?
- [student 4] Yeah.

[student 5]
Oh, I like it. I like it.

- [overlapping chatter]
- [students cheering]

- [Mike] All right.
- [indistinct chatter]

This helps me, you know,
and this is my therapy

of how I give back
to my own community.

[music continues]

And Watts is
a, is a great place,

but, you know,
it can also be a death trap

- for some people
who can't escape that bubble.
- Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

You know what I'm sayin'?
And just for us to be here now,
and you know,

the art, the art
bringing us together,

- me musically and you through--
you know, artistically...
- Artistically. Yeah.

...through your paintings
and, and, and through

your creativity in clothing,
that's, that's dope.

You feel me?
And that's how we help
shaping the future.

And that, that's really
like the two ways

to kind of tie people
into different things.

Like, you, sonically,
me, visually, you know?

And that's a way
that people inspire.

'Cause you gotta
either hear something
or see something.

Me-- You inspired me
to see a Black man

- in the middle of Hollywood
on Melrose...
- [Mike] Mm-hm.

- [Mad] ...with his own shop.
That was like-- that's heavy.
- Yeah.

[Mad] And I haven't seen that,
so that's, like,
what's real inspiring.

I was amazed, the backyard,

the paintings and the murals
that you had on the wall.

Then I seen that you do
clothes and shoes.

- I'm, like, "Man."
That was dope.
- [Mike] Yeah.

[Mad]
It's something
that's, like, powerful.

That's like the biggest thing,
to keep that fire burning,

'cause you got
a generation coming up

behind you that you want
to affect and change.

I don't want them
to grow up like me.
I don't wanna have

- nothing to do-- The things...
- [Mike] Yeah.

- ...I had to do to,
you know, to survive.
- Mm-hm.

So, if I can use my, my gift
and, and paint a story for them

and use that to--
use my platform

to get other youth out of Watts
and, or to chase their dreams
and do what they want to do,

you know, I'm definitely gonna
keep doing, pursuing this.

My, my goal, like, really
some people say, "Oh, to get
people out of Watts."

- I ultimately want
to keep people in Watts...
- [Mad] Yeah.

- ...but make Watts
not how we grew up.
- Yeah, man.

- You know, make Watts
a peaceful place.
- Yeah.

A place that, you know,
people wanna just walk around,

- build businesses
and stuff like that...
- Yeah. Exactly.

- ...and stay in Watts.
I'm proud of it.
- Yeah.

And let's just keep it,
you know, Watts,

but I want to change
the dynamic behind Watts.

[music continues]

- [Mike] We were livin'
in the hood of all hoods...
- [Dorcas snickers]

- ...but we weren't ghetto
at all.
- [Dorcas] Mm.

And I-- You know, lookin' back,

I, I-- how is that
even possible?

'Cause a lot of people
assume that,

"Oh, you stay right here,
you're ghetto."

You know?
But we were not ghetto.

It, it was like
we were living in, in it,

- but we weren't of it.
- [Dorcas] That was

- the craziest time.
- [Mike] That was, that was the--

- [Dorcas] Oh, my God.
- It's different levels
of crazy times.

I know. I had this crazy car.

When I say "crazy car,"
to start it,
it didn't have a key.

[laughing] You had to take
the wires and choo-choo,

and you would see sparks fly,
and then the car would turn on.

And one day, we went out
and it wouldn't turn on.

And we got-- Me and my children
grabbed hands and we prayed,

and we said, "Lord, we don't
have any money, you know.
We need this car to go."

And, you know,
the car started up.

We started out
in the nation of Islam.

We were about three
and five years old.

We converted
to, uh, Christianity,

and we have, you know,
respect for people

of all religious backgrounds.

Uh, but for us, uh,
our faith in Jesus Christ

has really, um, sustained us

through very, very tough times
and inspired us, uh,

to look up to God the Father,

um, when we didn't have
our own father present

or able to provide for us

and give us, um,
the guidance that we needed.

We used the hard times
to make us stronger.

- Yeah.
- We couldn't break.
This was our life.

I mean, what we gonna do?
Give up?

It takes pressure to make

- a, a diamond out of charcoal.
- Yeah.

- A lot of pressure.
- You gotta keep pushing.

And we got
a lot of pressure on us.

- We had.
- Yeah, it was a lot.

- Whoo. My goodness.
- It was a lot, uh,

- growing up, but I wouldn't
change it for the world.
- No.

- It made me into the strong
person that I am today.
- What did Maya Angelou say?

- "I wouldn't give anything
for the journey."
- Yeah.

The journey is
just as important,

- as important
as the destination.
- As the, as the destination.

It's amazing sometimes
when you're going through things

and you don't know
where you are.

You just keep on going,

because I think if I had of
fully realized the situation

I found myself in,
I might have been traumatized

and afraid to even
go home at night.

You know, nothing came
near our dwelling,

as it says in, uh, Psalm 91,
my favorite.

"You shall see the reward
of the wicked,

but it shall not come
nigh thy dwelling."

[chuckling]
I remember, on 90th Street--

That's a really wild one.
I actually wrote that scripture

or that part in gold
by the door...

...'cause I truly realized
where we were then.

Maybe on the 113th Street,
I didn't really fully understand

the trouble and, and the danger
that we were living in.

But on 90th Street, oh, yes.

And I wanted it on our doorpost.
I wrote it in gold.

So we saw that going out
and while we were in the house.

The idea to have a mural tour,

painting a simple word
like "forgiveness," and "love,"
and "hope,"

and "believe," and "we are one,"

and, and, uh,
all the other words

and phrases that we're gonna do.

Um, and it started
with that seed

that she planted in me.

["Award Tour"
by A Tribe Called Quest]

♪ We on award tour
With Muhammad my man... ♪

[Mike]
We were supposed
to be doing a new mural

in Compton,
off of Alameda and Cedar,

but, uh, right now
there's just a little bit

of politics that
we have to abide by.

Uh, the different politics
between the two gangs,

Hispanic and Black gang
that's going on over there.

So, due to just our safety
as a Black artist

and Black organization,
we decided just to let
that situation cool down.

So, this is the location
of the wall that we have,

uh, for the tenth wall
of the Artfully United tour.

But as you can see, it's, uh,

has a gang infestation
of graffiti.

What we're planning on
for this wall,
actually was "harmony."

- [man] Mm.
- Um, and I was gonna have
Powerful Paul, like, fly--

Having a dove
fly out of his hands.

That was gonna be
the design for this wall.

Working on it, um,
just to give us a pass,

give us a pass
for being Black artists,

and, um, because they're,
they're going back and forth

with another Black gang,
and this became racial.

So, when you deal
with Compton, you got...

You have the element
of Black and Brown.

Um, so LA is different.
So, how we've done
all of our murals so far

have been in LA,
Inglewood, Watts.

And you do--
you're pretty much dealing
with the Black population.

When you're dealing
with Black gangs,
it's, it's easier to get to 'em.

It's just easier to--
When you're dealing
with Hispanic gangs,

- they have, they really have
more of an infrastructure.
- A structure.

- Yeah.
- They, they're really
more structured

than, than the Black gangs.

And so, when you have
that structure,

it's harder to get to the person
that you want to talk to.

It just pose a extra challenge,
but it also makes it

more rewarding,
because once we're able

to reach that person,
it also bridges that gap

- between Black and Brown.
- [Mike] Mm.

And so, for them
to allow us to come over there

and do a piece, that also speaks

to maybe the relationship
bet-- between
the two communities.

You know what I'm saying?
And that's big.

That's, that makes,
that's, that makes this wall

- that much more epic. You know?
- Yeah.

Because if we can start it
with art, and that's what

Artfully United is about,
it's uniting communities

- through art.
- Through art, yeah.

And so, if we can do that,
this'll probably be,

- in terms of the united part...
- The biggest, yeah.

- ...the biggest,
the biggest wall.
- Mm. Biggest wall.

[upbeat music]

So, uh, we're in Compton,
on the corner
of Tamarind and Cedar,

uh, at the spot
of our tenth mural unveiling.

Uh, the mural is "Harmony."
And so, uh,
this is the unveiling ceremony.

- [indistinct chatter]
- [laughter]

[Mike] So, I would like
to thank everyone
for coming out.

I really appreciate it.

This wall right here
has, has touched my heart

because of all
the, the new family and friends

that I've acquired since doing
our first mural in Compton.
It's meant a lot to me.

Uh, we've been doing
Artfully United for,
wow, six years.

And everyone asks,
"Oh, you have one in Compton?"
I'm, like, "No, no, no, no."

So, this one
is a, is a landmark.

We didn't wanna just have murals
just, just up.

We wanted to work
with the community
and give a good message

to hopefully change
our mentality that's
in our neighborhoods.

That's, that's the point
of Artfully United,

is just give some level
of inspiration for the people.

[music continues]

[all]
Ten, nine, eight, seven, six,

five, four, three, two, one.

- [Mike] Here we go.
- [cheering]

[applauding]

[Mike]
Right. So, this right here
obviously says "harmony,"

but I needed to have
this message right here,

- because we need to live
in harmony.
- [all] Yeah.

You know, this right here
represents the harmony
in Compton.

- Thank you very much.
- [cheering, applauding]

Let me get out of the way...
[speaks indistinctly]
photo op and stuff.

[woman]
Yeah, look at my camera. One...

[indistinct chatter]

Mike, I wanted to be here today
just to present you
with this certificate

to let you know that
we most certainly appreciate

all that you're doing
throughout our community.

So, on that note,
I would like to say this,

is that the city of Compton
Certificate of Recognition

is presented to Michael Norice.

Let's give Michael a round
of applause, you guys. Yes.

[applauding, cheering]

[music continues]

[Mike]
I love just
this chapter of life.

Uh, I love the fact
that, in this last year,

I've probably spent
more time with him
than I have in a decade or so.

They had basically
just given up on Saleem

and were just letting him
waste away in there.

- And that's how
we received him last year.
- Yeah.

And so, with Carmelle's
medical training,

it was basically literally
saving his life
after he got out.

Yeah, that's a good point.

That he came home
to a daughter that's a doctor.

[Dorcas]
Yes.

[gentle music]

[Dorcas]
The trauma of imprisonment,

I really didn't have
much experience with that,

and I didn't have
much experience
with dementia at all.

We're learning it along the way.

[Carmelle]
Dad has been making
slow but sure progress

since he's come home.

We don't hear
any questions about officers
or going to commissary.

So, we're so grateful for that.

We've kind of broken out
of the, you know,

um... the prison walls.
[chuckles dryly]

And we have him in daycare.

We're starting to see
some things coming back.

And this past Father's Day,
he and I were sitting

at, you know, a restaurant,
having Father's Day dinner,

and I called Michael
on FaceTime

so that he could wish
my dad a Happy Father's Day.

And when Michael's face
came on the screen,

tears came to my dad's eyes.

I believe, in his heart,
my dad knew,

and he knows
who we are in his heart.

[faint chatter]

- I think his spirit knows
who we are.
- Yeah.

- It's just his mind
may not be there.
- Yeah.

[indistinct chatter]

- Yeah, I was catching up to you.
- I know.

You doing good here.
I'm the one who's lacking.

God has been
watching throughout,

and he has been

kind of filling in the gaps
whenever needed.

[music continues]

[Mike]
Everything works
by just God's grace,

because my mom has been blessed

with retiring from her
31 years of teaching.

She is, uh--
So, she's entered as well
a new chapter of her life

and moved to the East Coast
with my sister.

My dad has developed dementia.

He needed someone,
and she was able to move in

with my sister to assist
with helping out with him,

sacrificing her own retirement
to give back to our family still

with, with, uh,
being a caregiver for my father.

- Play again.
- [music continues]

- Now it's all right.
- [Carmelle] Mm-hm.

Yeah.

- You feel...
- Feel what?

You feel at home?

Yeah, I feel good.

- [chuckles]
- I'm back too.

- [Carmelle and Mike] Mm-hm.
- [Dorcas] Aw.

[Mike]
Uh-huh.

[music continues]

[camera shutter clicks]

[Mike]
Family is very important to me,

and the legacy of a family
is very important to me.

And these two people,
my mom and my dad,

has mold me
into the person that I am,

so I love just being with them
and spending time with them

at any moment that I can.

I think, if my family
wasn't there

and if I didn't have
the family structure,

I could have still done
the Artfully United tour,

however it wouldn't be
in the same, um, context.

Just even from Powerful Paul,
and the, the green glow
around him

is the power of prayer,
and that surrounds him
and, and enables him

to do whatever
he does constantly.

And, and everything
is just based around the family.

So, it has so much to do
with family.

[hip-hop music]

The art tour's never gonna stop.

Even when we're done
with the 20 walls
in Los Angeles,

we're gonna go to Oakland,
San Diego.

I've already gotten two
or three locations in Fresno,

um, I've got a couple offers
in Atlanta.

And, um, I wanna start
strategically placing
Powerful Paul

in different areas,
start, uh, marketing him

a lot more
to build him as a brand.

You know, just think of Disney
and Mickey Mouse.

[cheering]

[Mike]
My main goal is to be
as successful as I can

and then eventually
open up a, a art center
right here in Watts.

I want centers
where the kids can come
and learn about art.

Just be a place
that, um, artists can come
in the community,

and people that
even isn't artists.

Just anyone that can come
in the community,

and come and just
kind of just have

therapeutic sessions
of painting and a safe haven.

[spray paint hissing]

I'm working
on just changing the narrative

of what kids in that area
go through.

You know, there is
a constant cycle
because of limited options,

and I'm working on
placing different career paths
in front of them

and just being
that person of saying,

"Hey, I was once you,
you guys." You know?

And, if I had this, I would be--

would've been better off
at this point in my life.

Sometimes these kids,
they need a little bit
more guidance and instruction,

and that's where the academy
is gonna come in at,
keeping them off the streets.

'Cause we're not all hoodlums,
gangbangers or drug dealers.

You know, some of us
could be doctors.

Some of us can be
uh, mural store owners.

I've been recently selected
to be the main muralist

for the Jordan Downs
redevelopment project.

They're redoing
the Jordan Downs Project
building,

which is one of the most
notorious project buildings

in the world, and, uh,
they're tearing it down

and they're building,
um, high-quality
apartment complexes.

This is the-- this is Watts,
believe it or not.

This is what's coming.
It's being built right now.

And, um, this is where
the mural is gonna be.

Give you a ratio of how it is
compared to a person.

So it's pretty big, big mural.

And this is gonna be
at a huge shopping center

right there
in the heart of Watts.

[music continues]

We're here
in Jordan Downs Projects.

We're at the new,
uh, Jordan Downs Plaza

on Century and Alameda,
and this is my latest mural.

And this is basically
a timeline of Watts

starting from the beginning
stages to current,

and, uh, in my artistic form.

All right here. This is
kind of like the end
where it's showing the, uh...

Like, this paint
that's all dwindling down,
you know, right here,

and I tell-- I show,
like, a letter to Watts saying,

"Dear Watts, thank you
for all the good times
as well as the bad,

for the bad times
are just learning lessons.

Keep inspiring, creating,
and never stop believing."

You know,
I'm, I'm really humbled

to just be here now,
you know, right now.

It's a humbling experience.
I thank God for it,

and I thank God
that He has blessed me
with the gift of art,

to be able to do
what I've already accomplished.

And I'm definitely prepared
for what He has

for the future, for me
and my career, for my family,

the legacy
that I'm gonna leave behind.

And it all starts
with the mindset.

The mindset
is very, very important,

and Artfully United
is gonna change that mindset

for just positive messages.

And I'm just willing
to take on the task of,

you know, just good versus evil,

and, you know,
love will definitely conquer
the evil every time.

[man]
Mm-hm.

[upbeat music]

[Mike]
So, we're here
at the first Starbucks in Watts,

arguably probably
the only Starbucks
ever gonna be in Watts,

and this is one of two murals
that I did for this Starbucks.

And everything on here
is just symbolic.

See the protester?

Now, the protester
is holding up a sign

that's really important.

You got 65, 92 and 20,

'cause those are the three years
that they had protests

or some type of riot
in the LA or Watts area.

One of my latest walls
says "Joy."

Channel 5 News
asked me to do this one.

This was a collaborative effort
between us and the school,

'cause they were celebrating
their 75th anniversary,
so they--

hence 75th Street
Elementary School. [chuckles]

And they found me,
and they saw all the work

that I was doing
in the community.

So, this was, um,
really a joy to do this,

uh, this piece here.

We're here at the Chuco's
on 76th and Central,

- and has Powerful Paul here.
- [applause and cheering]

It's pulling back, you know,
and it's showing

the people of the community
that has since passed away

during the process,
and I have her portrait there.

And as people pass away,
we're gonna add more faces

to that pullback as time passes.

I'm really workin' on...

It's one right around
the corner here, actually.

Uh... it's a building
that you can,

you can see it from the freeway.

And that right there,
once I get to freeway signs
and freeway walls,

that's when it's really gonna
be like, "Oh, my God."

[music continues]

[music fades]

- ["Tree" by Jay Green]
- ♪ There's a tree by my house ♪

♪ That blooms ♪

♪ And it smells of you ♪

♪ There's a tree by my house ♪

♪ And it reminds me of you ♪

♪ Missing you, missing you ♪

♪ Can't believe I'm a fool ♪

♪ For you ♪

♪ I'm missing you
Missing you ♪

♪ Can't believe ♪

♪ I'm a fool ♪

♪ See, you were gentle
And kind ♪

♪ Now I wish you were mine ♪

♪ Made a choice
Of letting you free ♪

♪ Now my mind won't let me be ♪

♪ I'm missing you
Missing you ♪

♪ Can't believe I'm a fool ♪

♪ For you ♪

♪ I'm missing you
Missing you ♪

♪ Can't believe ♪

♪ I'm a fool ♪

♪ Years later
Still cling to tree blooms ♪

♪ Bring me back to... ♪