Some cool portraits for a biography series I am doing. The brief is too look at someone and their life. I chose to do the series on a fairly new friend of mine, Andy Cassidy. He is a great guy, positive, fun, father, and generally all round sound guy. He is also an awesome kick ass tattoo artist.

The series centers around a rap song that Andy wrote awhile ago, before a change around has happened in his life. The song really looks into what was going on in his life at the time. These portraits hopefully show the opposite of the Andy in the song. He has a future, he has more to offer than ever and his life has an awesome destiny. No longer is he searching for a sign…

The rap is printed in full at the end of this post.

SHOW ME A SIGN

DO I HAVE TO BELIEVE TO BE SAVED?
ALL THE LOVE THAT I HAVE, ALL THE LOVE I HAVE GAVE
I DO MY BEST TO DO MY BEST, DONT WANNA HURT NO-ONE
BUT SOMETIMES I DO NOTHING
JUST JOKE AND HAVE FUN.
ILL JOKE ABOUT ANYTHING, FROM THE GOOD TO THE BAD
BUT THEN AGAIN THATS ALL IVE REALLY EVER HAD, MOSTLY BAD.
BUT NOW IM A GROWN MAN, GOT KIDS OF MY OWN,
CAN I COME CLEAN WHILE SPEAKIN ON A MICROPHONE?
WILL THESE WORDS CONTAIN ME IN MY WORST FEAR?
IF I CONFESS, WILL ANYBODY REALLY HEAR?
IF I COME CLEAN WILL I BE FORGIVEN FOR MY SINS?
OR WILL I JUST HAVE TO START ALL OVER AGAIN?
CAN YOU PLEASE SHOW ME A SIGN?

SHOW ME A SIGN TO LET ME KNOW,
THAT MY HEART IS GOOD (AMEN)
BEEN TO HELL AND BACK TO OFTEN
NOT STRONG ENOUGH TO GO THERE AGAIN. (YOU WONT)
SHOW ME A SIGN TO LET ME KNOW,
YOU HEAR THE WORDS I CRY.
SHOW ME A SIGN TO LET ME KNOW
WHO U ARE, U GOT MY BACK THIS TIME.
SHOW ME A SIGN.

FROM A VERY YOUNG AGE I SAW NOTHING BUT HATE
WASNT MY DOING, WILL THIS HATE CONTROL MY FATE?
WILL I MAKE HISTORY REPEAT ITSELF? I DOUBT IT.
I PLAYED IT BACK IN MY MIND A THOUSAND TIMES AND GOT OUT OF IT.
BUT WHEN YOURE SO YOUNG YOU HAVE NO CONTROL
YOURE THE YOUNGEST IN THE HOUSE, TRYING TO PROTECT YOUR SOUL.
YOU WITNESS EVERYTHING YOU SEE AND HEAR AROUND YOU,
20 YEARS FROM NOW YOULL DO THE SAME, YOUR BOUND TOO.
BUT I KNEW BACK THEN ILL NEVER REPEAT
WHAT I SAW IN THE LIVING ROOM, THE KITCHEN IN THE STREET.
THE THINGS I HEARD, THINGS I WITNESSED WITH MY OWN EYES,
ILL NEVER LIVE THAT WAY, IM ONE OF A DIFFERENT KIND.

SHOW ME A SIGN.

IN MY TEENAGE YEARS ILL ADMIT I WASNT PERFECT
WANTED TO BE SAVED, DIDNT THINK THAT I WAS WORTH IT.
PLAYED FOOTBALL, I HAD THE WORLD AT MY FEET,
BUT CHOSE TO PICK UP A CAN AND WRITE GRAFFITI ON THE STREET.
I EVEN STOLE, NOT COZ I NEEDED IT JUST COZ I COULD
WE WERE BROKE! WOULDNT YOU IF U COULD? ( MAYBE NOT)
I STARTED DRINKIN ALCOHOL, NOT A CAN OR TWO BUT MANY
WHO KNEW ALCOHOLISM WAS HEREDITARY?
ID GET DRUNK, SIT BACK AND REMINISCE
THINKIN ABOUT ALL THE GOOD STUFF I MISSED
BACK IN ’79 I HEARD MY FIRST HIP HOP RHYME
THEY CAN MAKE IT OUT…WHY CANT I ?

SHOW ME A SIGN.

I PRAY QUITE OFTEN, BUT I DONT KNOW WHO I PRAY TOO
I JUST HOPE MY WORDS ARE HEARD, IM SURE THEY ARE TOO!
I PRAY FOR MY CHILDREN AND MY HOPES AND MY FANTASY
I PRAY TO THE SKY “MAKE ME STRONG ENUFF TO BE THE MAN IN ME”
I THINK YOU ALREADY HAVE,
COZ U SENT AN ANGEL TO BE MINE,
SHE WAS A LONG TIME COMIN,
I PROMISE YOU THIS, THIS MAN IS NO LONGER RUNNIN’
I CANT PLEASE EVERYONE, EVEN THO I TRY
ILL ADMIT SOMETIMES THE BAD IN ME COMES OUT SOMETIMES
BUT I CURB IT, I KNOW THE LIFE AHEAD IOS WORTH IT
IS IT TRUE, IM REALLY NO LONGER WORTHLESS?

SHOW ME A SIGN.

Lyrics ©Andy Cassidy, 2009