Life Forever - Updates

It's official:

STREET PEDAL BLACK - EPISODE III IS COMING THIS SUMMER

Now... for the dozens who have kept up so far... I know...

But it's for real this time! The Next Action Epic continues with Episode III: Doppelgangin, and it'll be released in e-book and CD format.

Taking place about 2 years after Street's Warfare, the Fire of Metal Stereo is celebrating the city's liberation in the 2nd annual Freedom Tournament along the rest of his gang. However, it was foolish to believe that all of the Government Forces were completely annihilated. Furthermore, the Ringblads have bought one helluva trump card this time…

Enter Streak Pedal Dark, a supersoldier clone of Street, powered with the energy of the newly modified Lightning Conductor. With abilities including, but not limited to, teleportation, superhuman strength, and matter manipulation, not even the combined might of Steeler, Hoodo, Street, and LaTonya is enough to challenge head-on.

Street has fought armies… but never himself. Can he respond to his greatest challenge, and what is the Government’s true motive in creating Streak?

Here's a small sample of the conceptual artwork. Click for larger size.

This is a story nearly 10 years in the making, and I'm proud of the progress it's made so far. I wanted to release this last year (Hell, I wanted to release it today!), but too many exciting things and changes were happening at the end of year, and I didn't want to put out a mediocre product. I rushed with a few things when releasing Street's Warfare 3 years ago, and I feel like I missed some plot points and had lesser character development (especially with LaTonya).

NOT THIS TIME!

I'm currently doing my research and I'm putting together a package complete with vivid artwork and a heavily structured storyline. Hell, the New SPB logo is actually legible!

Check back for more art and developments in the coming weeks and pick up your copy of Street Pedal Black - Episode III: Doppelgangin this summer!

And you want to catch in advance, pick up the first release, Street Pedal Black - Episode II: Street's Warfare, available in the shop now!

Speaking of the shop, a new t-shirt will be released later this week.

Thoughts Blog is up! Plus other stuff...

The Thoughts Blog, the replacement for the Philosophy Section, was quietly launched last night. See it @ movethemedia.livejournal.com. I plan on updating it 3 times a month minimum, and there should be updates every late night Sunday or early Monday. This is your chance to get some behind-the-scenes info about Life Forever along with random happenings and sometimes some art and literary lessons. You can also interact with me personally: I actually plan on replying to half of the nonsense you guys will post!

Some delays on the art side with me (Me and a few of my friends have a huge project in the works; I'll post more info in late 2009); however, there is an update in the Original Artwork section of a failed contest submission I did two months ago. You can catch it there or at the deviantART gallery.

Oh yeah... it's been a little over a month since I got my tat.

The King is Dead... Long Live the King...

I am saddened that this is the second update since the relaunch, but I believe that this is my best platform since hearing the tragic news.

I hoped that this day wouldn't come for much longer, but... we're currently in a world without the King of Pop Michael Jackson. On the afternoon of June 25, 2009, he passed away from cardiac arrest after being taken to the UCLA Medical Center. He was 50.

In the field of entertainment, if there was anyone I aspired to be like, it was the Man in the Mirror. I refuse to believe that there is one soul on Earth who was not influenced by his music and achievements, and his legacy, though laced with controversy, will be that of one of the greatest entertainers in human history.

I just have to speak from my heart on this: When I was young, he had me at the Black or White short film (since he never referred to them as "music videos"), and since then, I've always been amazed at the energy, diversity, and empowerment behind his works, and I've tried to emulate that in my medium of artwork and literature. I remember as a little kid whenever my mother told me he was on TV; I always rushed to the nearest one I could find, and it never mattered to me how long he was actually on. That same attitude followed me to high school when "You Rock my World" came out.

One thing I've noticed in retrospect is that he always kept himself busy, I mean, there's no way you can tie so many elements (zombies, Egyptian imagery, noir, just to name very few) without doing your research and coordinating so many people to your vision; that is true hard work. Michael Jackson learned well from the Hardest Working Man in Show Business James Brown. (Could you imagine the reunion they're having right now?!)

As of this message, the news of his death still hasn't completely struck me yet. It's very difficult to accept that Michael Jackson--MICHAEL JACKSON--is no longer with us. You wouldn't believe how many times I refreshed CNN.com at work to get more updates into his condition. It's all very strange to me: We hear that he collapsed, he's rushed to the hospital, and then the worst, all within a three to four-hour span. It's the absolute last thing I think anyone expected out of this day.

But this isn't about us. This is about the King of Pop. I want to send my deepest prayers and condolences to his family, especially his three precious children who lost their father so soon after Father's Day.

Life is a very precious thing, and I believe that this further teaches how fragile it truly is. My friends and I talked about that this past weekend when we stopped by a cemetary on the way home (I know it sounds weird, but bare with me). We saw a dual tombstone of a man and a young boy and noticed that they shared a death date. One of my boys looked up the names from his phone, and we found out what happened: long story short, they were killed by a drunk driver.

Michael Jackson's death reminds of how unfair life can be when the people we love so much have to leave us--but it is a selfish way to look at things. I'm saddened that I will never have the chance to personally thank him for all he's done, but he is with God, now. Instead of mourning his death, I'm celebrating his life:

Listening to his music, admiring his dances, and reliving his message.

While typing this, I'm watching the Live in Bucharest: The Dangerous Tour DVD, and it's on "Heal the World"; how appropriate of a message, for it's the main one that Mike wanted to leave in his music. He showed just how powerful the medium of music truly is.

I consider him the ultimate "Media Mover."

Rest in Peace, Mr. Jackson. We love and miss you...

070809 - UPDATE AFTER VIEWING THE PUBLIC MEMORIAL

I can't put his message in words; I don't have that knowledge. But I will say my words inspired from him:

"Tragically, everyday, we all do our best to separate ourselves. Either by race, religion, social standing, the 'cool factor,' etc. But, we need to remember that Christians weren't born of a Christian God while Muslims were born of an Islamic God or atheists out of nowhere:

We all come from the same source. While each of us are unique, we together are all children of the same universal force. We need to respect that fact hundreds of times over than we do today."

I think MJJ would agree.

ThreeOfSpadesCodeLaunchSequence

I would like to welcome you to the newest phase of Life Forever, my company and online focal point for customized graphic design and self-published works and now featuring more updates than before with a personal blog.

This is Life Forever 2.75.

For the last few months, I've been reading to become a better businessman and artist, and I gotta say that self-education works wonders. I'm no where near finished, but you'll get to see the results as I progress. It'll be a steady process, but I promise that it'll be worth the patience. I'm in a good place in life and more motivated than I've ever been.

The first major change you'll notice is the revised front page. It was difficult pumping out updates last year due to my job situation and slow progress, and even I hated seeing the same update for months on end. So with that respect, I've regulated all news to the Update page with headlines appearing on the main page, and I've made space for Life Forever and paid advertisements. If you got something to sell or promote, email Advertisements@Life-Forever.com. Ads start at $25/month & $100/six months. Sizes and technical limitations will be discussed. The default ads will appear later on in the month.

Another critical change is the replacement of the Philosophy section with the brand new Thoughts Blog. Let's face it: I barely updated that thing, and who am I to pass that off as philosophy?! So I've decided to create a blog showcasing various developments happening at Life Forever, drawing tips, whatever pops into my messed imagination, and anything else. I haven't set a consistant schedule for updates, but I'll let you know as soon as it launches, which should be within the next two weeks.

Another big announcement the merging of the Mt. Vernon Art Institute with Mt. Vernon Baptist Church's Children's church! This class meets every 2nd and 4th Sunday during regular church service and has been revised into a general eight-week cycle focusing on drawing techniques with religious themes. This transition took place earlier this year, and I'm proud of the interest and progress the students are making so far. More information is featured on the Art Class page.

The site will sadly be lacking in artwork compared to previous times. I've decided to remove most of the older (and what I now consider subpar) works from the site to keep up with my current skills. I will say that new artwork will begin to pump in in the near-future, and I've already finished the sketch to a brand new promo pic of Street Pedal Black which should be finished by late-June.

A few other changes include the removal of the Donate page, and updated Commissions and FAQs pages. But I've gotta take time to point out the greatest change of all: the NEW 2009 version of the Life Forever logo!

Though I still love the prior version, I believe that the next step of this company needs a stronger presence, and this is the major catalyst and first step. It's thicker design and erratc flow is sure to turn heads, and I personally will have an easier time from a graphic standpoint with it considering that a "round" design was taken into consideration (the previous logo was just drawn in a moment of boredom on a sheet of notebook paper in my high school english class, so nothing was thought of back then). I'm looking forward to spearheading new marketing campaigns with the new logo at the forefront.

This is a continuing work-in-progress, and you may see other changes bit-by-bit each day. This is only the beginning of the transformation of Life Forever...

PREPARE FOR THE NEW SHINE OF ZERO-NINE! MOVE THE MEDIA!!