Turnip the Beet: Knocked the dust off my cans for a lil graffiti battle, Colorado Crush 2013....and I'm so glad I did!

Some of you may not know this about me, but I've been a graffiti artist for well over a decade now. I took a little hiatus due to getting a demanding full-time job, getting married and well, just....living. I almost said,"growing up" but that's really not it at all. There's a general misconception that graffiti's just a childish expression or act of vandalism, and while that may be true for a portion of the scene, it really can't be said about a true writer.

Graffiti's a whole lot more than just tagging on somebody's mailbox or garage door, it's an artistic expression of the world that surrounds us. It's an outlet for everything in our lives which can't be explained thru words, it's about forming a bonding relationship between yourself and other writers who share the same passion....and about just gettin up! There may be a million different reasons that brought you to the place where u started writing, but for most, the thing that keeps you there is the absolute freedom of expression and unabridged trust that the unknowing city has bestowed upon you to brandish it with your form of beauty... it's like nothing else. The second I tried it, I knew that was my voice.

Yeah, there's beef, and bullshit, and egos, and drama...but there's also beauty...and respect. Even the hardest of crews, the ones bred on "gang" activity and old standards still show beacons of hope when they coexist with other artists who share a common vision. it's art. It's the love of the city you grew up in and trying to expand it's artistic barriers. I'm goin off a bit, but what I'm trying to say is...it goes a hell of a lot deeper than society's general view. It's not about defacing anyone's property, it's about trying to find a place to express yourself and get your little piece of it out there.

Whether it's a tag, cool lil character or a quick toss-up, it's all about being heard. After awhile, most eventually find their way into goin legit...legal walls, commissioning murals, clothing companies, with a good majority now earning a living as amazing tattoo artists, which is like the most natural transition ever! There's so many different aspects to what you can do and the possibilities are endless!

Which brings me to my good friend, Robin Munro. Who brought us Colorado Crush. He and I go way back and have painted together many times, but during my hiatus, he's done something amazing. Something that Denver has NEVER seen. He brought all of Denver's graffiti world (and beyond) together for one massive production for 4 amazing years in a row now and is raising the awareness of what graffiti is actually about. Letting the world know that the long outdated image of hiphop is a thing of the past, it's no longer about punk ass kids and gang bangers but a real community of individuals who've banded together with a common goal and it's literally bursting with all kinds of artistic talent!

Robin Munro even got our fine mayor, Michael Hancock to come out and support the event

I won't get into the entire history of graff right now or try to validate it as an art form but I think that if there's anyone out there who still has a close-minded view of what this movement is all about....umm, they need to check theyself before they wreck theyself. There's a whole slew of crazy talent birthed from the hiphop world and they were all represented at Colorado Crush 2013: Super talented graffiti writers and street artists, B-Boys, turntablists and awesome MCs all battling it out along a 3+ block radius. It was amazing!

He's doing something really special, while I have no idea if his intent is to bring this all mainstream or not, I think that's definitely what's happening. He's gettin the word out that this scene really cares about our community and the children being raised in it. With his aspirations of opening a youth center and the dozens of other projects on his plate, I have a feeling there's no stopping him. And I'm all about it!

Saying Hi to Michael Hancock, I ran into him all the time while working at Channel 8 in the City n County bldg, I always greeted him with a "HI, Mr Mayor!" in an inexplicable country accent and make him laugh every time. He's a good dude.

FX Cru's amazing collaboration....WHAT?!?!

My new BFF, Phetus FX Cru NYC

I gotta be honest, I was a little nervous to come out to such a huge event not having painted in well over 3 years, especially with all the talent that was there, but I'm more than happy I did! The vibe was insane. SO much love and brotherhood, that's what it's all about. It made me wonder why I waited so long!

The talent was endless and came from all over the country.

Nicer Tatscru...ridiculous!! And such a cool dude!

I have yet to find out who does these awesome noodle beard dudes, but I've seen em around a lot...and LOVE THEM!!!!!! update- GATS from Oakland is "Noodle Beard"... awesome

When I found out who he is and some of the other unnamed artists, I'll be sure to let you know! I'm also going to keep adding pix to this as I edit them so if you don't see yours on here yet...be patient, my friend. If you know who did some of these pieces, lemme know, I may have just forgotten to tag em.

We had record highs all weekend and it felt like 1000 degrees. It was hot in so many ways. Sweet artists rocked out these walls and and changed them forever...ok, til next year. Observe.......

Clown is one of the funniest dudes I've met in a while and if you don't already know East, you should. He owns Community Service and you need to check it out to fulfill all of your street art needs.

Michael Graves on the left and..

SICKNESS!!

Can't resist, more FX, HEF is incredible!

So Gnar knockin it out

The So Gnar dudes are rad and some of the coolest guys ever! And so is there lil mascot, I gave him a new name "Painty Woofs"

So Gnar and Painty Woofs meet Mr. Mayor

I love me some Painty Woofs! He's such a rad dog. He may have had a slight tinge of green to his fur by the end of the day, but no worse for the wear, a true graffiti mascot. And not to worry, animal lovers, he was well cared for and by some crazy random chance, my hubs ran into him on a run in the mountains a few days later n he was all fluffy and white again...in good hands.

I have so much love for him and his people, they made my day a lot of fun!

Yeah, Woofy

Chillin with a cool apple in the only bit of shade to be found that day, SO glad we brought that umbrella!

JHER kicking it after a reeeal long hot day

My contribution to Colorado Crush 2013

PAGER!!!

REKS!!

KOZE!!

The lovely Miss REDS!!!

So effin Gnar!!

Animal crackahs

PER FX CRU!! LOVE these guys!

I can't say enough about this clown... I LOVE HIM!!!
Oh, if he could talk!

The beginning of TASTE'S madness!!

Another old school homey, PATHS!!

EL SUAVE is exactly that!! Totally chill dude

The radness! REKS and ZEPOL doin it up!

Dude, What is this, ZEPOL?!? It's f**kin rad!

Sick KOZE piece!! Probably my favorite one of his

Lil Miss REDS!! She's awesome and so cool!

WENZ!!

ZEB causin a tsunami!!

Ooh, she's a beauty!!

Ma n Pa watchin me get down

My old homey, REPS!! Blowin up his spot!

TASTE is absolutely ridiculous!!

I made friends with LOTS of lil peeps that day, this lil sweetie dropped by to check on me all day

And this one was never very far away, she's completely adorable and I heard she had great can control! Maybe I'll let give her a shot next year

REPS' lil cutie b-boyin his butt off!

Sweet lil Ollie!! LOVE him!

It was pretty amazing being treated like a rockstar for the day, these kids were just amazing. I couldn't believe they were asking for my autograph... my heart melted many times that day!

This lil princess was so awesome and visited me 2 whole days in a row, she just killed me!

Seriously??
And then there were the bigger kids, and they wanted autographs too...pretty unbelievable.

Yep, this girl actually had me sign her skirt!

OK...Back to the art.

So Gnar

I TOLD u it was gonna be good!! TASTE with my favorite piece of the day! He killed it!!

BG 183 TATSCRU is such an awesome dude, wish I got to hang with him more

I should be made the "Official Graffiti Ambassador" because I made a point of visiting every writer throughout the weekend, I love making our out of town guests feel welcome and reconnecting with old faces. I know I missed a few but I'll catch em next time! Every single person I met was really cool, so happy to be here reppin their city. I like that shit.

Oh, and SINTEX??? SOOO dope! He did the big indian at the end of the alley with GAMMA above him. A RIDICULOUSLY chill brother!!

EWOK doin his famous"Cusack Crabs". Did u know that his homey, John Cusack was a writer?? I didn't. And I'm totally stoked, cuz I liked him already!! Check him out on instagram, he's hilarious.

Kickin it with my old crew was pretty rad, we were only missing one vital piece of the puzzle....MASOR!!

SUCH FX CRU.....LOVE HIM!!

TASTE-EEEEE!!!

Not sure if I got to meet JACK but this is SICK!!

NOIZER!!

Ahh yeah, REPS holdin it down!

SINTEX and GAMMA straight servin it on this wall!!

There's so much emotion in this piece, I love the mystical pain in their eyes...just beautiful. I love how graff has expanded into all forms of street art and that we can all share the same space. Beautify these damn walls!!

The unstoppable JOLT! He's always got so much goin on and is always giving back to the community... Stay up, brother!

LOVE this sick bird, by Cannon Dill and Brett Flanigan

NANOOK!!

EWOK has crabs!!

Oh no, EMIT does too!! Love me some, EMIT, he's been an influence of mine for a very long time!!

AHHH YEAH...WUSSUP JIVE?!?!

Sick JICK!!

OK, talk about comin to town n servin it up Denver style! Nice work dudes!

My homey JHER!! He's always awesome and coin a million different projects, another long-time influence of mine

Ummm...What?!?! GREED!! Seriously gorgeous!!
It's OK to have 2 favorites, right?

Old- school writer KITE in the house!

BEAST'S awesome Yosemite Sam dude!!

I love BEAST, I just do, such a sweet dude

OH, the uber lovely MISS DEITY! This girl rocks and is so sweet n humble...super cute! Thanks for comin out!!

OMG, ELBS!!!! So bummed I didn't get to meet this awesome girl, she's gorgeous and can paint...what?!?!?!

REDS!!

Umm...fresh!!

These dudes know how to do it!

EWOK painting "Cusack Crabs" above my homey EMIT!!

KITE!!

ASPHATE WOODHAVET thrown it down before headin to the stage, reppin both fronts...pretty fierce!

PHETUS FX CRU!! Love him!

DREAD getting ready to buff a LOT of walls!

Before it all began...and during

It was amazing to see the beauty unfold that now graces these gray walls

AHH, u can TRY to hide EWOK but I know it's u! With my homey REPS!

Unfortunately, I missed most of the B-Boy and MC battles even though they were going on right behind me so I don't have many pix, but what I heard was amazing. Wish I could've seen it cuz I heard some girl just killin it! Megan something, maybe? I dunno, but she was awesome.