Alain Levitt had two very young daughters, and spent a lot of time walking them in a pushchair in his neighbourhood in Manhattan’s Lower East Side. On one occasion, he noticed one of these boys and was struck by his “spot-on emulation of the early 80s hip-hop era”. However, the youngster was a couple of blocks ahead and Levitt couldn’t catch up with him. The photographer couldn’t believe his luck when, a week later, he saw the boy again – with a friend in tow.
“It dawned on me that he did this every day. I was just in awe of their dedication, their attention to detail. I wondered if they’d been studying old hip-hop photos, or a copy of Jamel Shabazz’s book Back in the Days.”
Levitt caught up with the pair outside a Chinese takeaway and asked to take their photo. “Those kids were ready! I’m not someone who directs my subjects – if the magic happens, it happens. They were great kids, and they did it all. Even their poses were faithful to that time. I remember their energy, enthusiasm and excitement so vividly.”
He needed to take only two shots using his iPhone 5, and made no edits. “I took a film camera with me everywhere for years, but once I had the girls I relied on my phone. It made me a better photographer as I could see what I was taking. I don’t really care about the technical aspects; it’s all about the moment.”
