Congratulations to Iggy Pop, Public Enemy, and Isaac Hayes on their 2020 Lifetime Achievement Awards from the @recordingacademy #GRAMMYs I had the good fortune of working with these talented performers in the early days when we were all just starting out.
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David Byrne for Blender Magazine circa 1999
David Byrne of Talking Heads for Blender Magazine circa 1999 in my studio.
Photography by Michael Benabib
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Being interviewed about my photoshoot with Miles Davis
"Michael Benabib: I was hired by Def Jam Records. I love Miles. I grew up listening to jazz and my father is a real big jazz fan. So when I got the job, the first thing I did was call him and he said, 'Miles has a reputation of being difficult; I don’t want you to be disappointed.' Then I went to the shoot."
Read MoreBBC Radio 5 Live Interview with Rhod Sharp and Mark Riley
Recent BBC Radio interview with Rhod Sharp and Mark Riley sharing my stories photographing hip hop icons🎙Listen to the full 23 min interview (starts at 1:36:26) to hear how I got my big break and behind-the-scene industry insights working in the celebrity biz.
Read MorePhife Dawg, A.K.A. Malik Taylor, passes away at 45 of Diabetes
Photo by MICHAEL BENABIB C. 1989 Phife Dawg, aka Malik Taylor initially formed A Tribe Called Quest, then simply named Quest, with his high school classmate Q-Tip in 1985; the group was later expanded with the addition of Jarobi White and Ali Shaheed Muhammad. A Tribe Called Quest were closely associated with fellow hip-hop acts De La Soul and Jungle Brothers, with the groups being collectively known as the Native Tongues.[3] A Tribe Called Quest were initially offered a demo deal by Geffen Records in 1989, but signed to Jive Records to release their 1990 début People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm.[3]
Phife Dawg passed away March 22, 2016, aged 45, of diabetes. Rest in peace.