It’s highly probable that week’s guest, Jonathan Mannion, has photographed your favorite album cover.
His work includes Outkast, Kendrick Lamar, Aaliyah, Rick Ross, Eminem and DJ Khaled.
Most amazingly, he had an unprecedented run of eight Jay-Z albums, including Reasonable Doubt And The Black Album.
Now he’s on Episode 019 of The MICK Show to explain his blueprint.
“Make the vision clear, and make it your own,” says Mannion.
We also discuss his Cleveland beginnings, how he makes impactful relationships, and his musical inspirations.
You can follow Mick (@mick) and Jonathan (@jonathanmannion) on Instagram.
New episodes of “The MICK Show” (presented in partnership with @maximmag) are released every Wednesday!
MICK: Welcome back to The MICK Show. This week, we have a guy I’ve known forever. Actually, very instrumental in, whether he knows it or not, in my success, and we’re excited to have him here on The MICK Show. Jonathan Mannion, what’s up, man?
Jonathan Mannion: Thank you for having me. It’s an honor to be here and an honor to contribute to your success.
MICK: What we try to do for this is like I really think it’s interesting to talk to people that do creative things in a lot of different attributes, and for me, for what you do, man, you are just a visual genius to me in how you are able to take what everybody thinks of… I mean, for those of you who aren’t reading the show notes and didn’t read the little bio on Spotify or Apple before you clicked play, if you’ve listened to a classic hip hop or R&B album in the last 20 years, 30 years even, what is it, 25 years?
Mannion: Yeah. I’ll give it 25.
MICK: You’ve seen this man’s work. And what’s so cool, and we’ll get into some of your favorite things that you’ve done, but like people identify classic albums from an audio perspective of course, but they don’t realize how much creativity, and genius, and hard work goes into that one picture that’s supposed to… An album has 10, 15, 20, nowadays 50 fucking songs. It’s like and all of these samples, and all these instruments, and millions of words from these rappers, but you have to, in your job, distill all that into one image. Let’s talk about that. How do you do that?
Mannion: Yeah. I mean, I don’t think that I walk into a session knowing what the album cover is gonna be. For me, I love to hear the music. That’s the most ideal way to work with an artist, is to hear the tunes, hear the vibe, feel the vibes, pick out little words, you know what I mean, that might guide me down a creative path, to get the title of the songs, the title of the album. All of that is their creative work that’s done before I arrive. But I’ve found in speaking to artists somehow making the photo and doing the photo shoot with these artists is sort of like the exclamation point. It somehow makes it real when there’s an icon to give to it, and that is the album cover.
And that’s always been my goal, is to attach myself to the music that is forever, because therefore I’m forever. And the icon and the avatar for it is always associated with the music.
MICK: Do you remember as a kid, before we touch how you started with the album covers, like album covers that influenced you as a youth? That made you really… That drew your eye to them?
Mannion: Yeah. You know, my parents were painters, so I grew up looking at light, and composition, and so it all was infusing into my soul that when I finally started taking pictures, which is my senior year in college, I was ready to go. But throughout my life, it was looking at albums, like the 33s and 45s and stuff, like I remember that feeling, but I never was really looking at the photos that deeply, but I remember like the KISS Alive record, and opening that thing up, and it was just such energy, and like I Want to Rock and Roll All Night and Party Every Day. The lyrics start to infuse and there was this balance of music and visuals that somehow fit, you know?
I remember more graphic kind of stuff, like The Police, Synchronicity, and like the three colorways and some of those images. Depeche Mode albums, you know, if we go back to-
MICK: Oh, wow.
Mannion: Some of my early roots. I mean, that’s… Anton Corbijn I think was responsible for those, but they felt like something. I think without knowing it, I was absorbing it, you know what I mean? I was studying I think more art and art history, more painting, until I realized that photography was a great blend of working with people, having a conversation, marking a moment that would never be the same, and then realizing I was good at it. And good at the exchange, the human exchange that it takes to bring performances out of people. Once I realized that that’s how I could sync up, and being a psychology major, knowing the buttons to push to open somebody and set them free to give me more, I was out of here. I was like, “Okay, this is what I’m doing.” And then working with some of the masters, like Richard Avedon, and Marc Hom, Steven Klein, Ben Watts, Michael Halsband, you know, and then being in New York and realizing I had access to Puff, and Heavy D, and Jay, and Nas, and Foxy Brown, and AZ, and all the people that were on in that moment-
MICK: Yeah.
Mannion: It was just like such a perfect storm, perfect timing, and a great point of departure for me to explore what I loved, which was each of those things. Photography and hip hop.
MICK: Do you ever think about like… I mean, I guess I never thought about it. A photographer almost is what an executive… I think about like Quincy Jones conducting all these rooms and studios in the ‘80s for like Michael Jackson, or in the ‘70s, or I think like from you mentioned basketball, like there’s probably so many coaches that were better strategy-driven coaches, or technical coaches than a Phil Jackson, but you know, he was… The mental aspect and the motivation aspect and getting all the people to be on the same page is equally if not more valuable than the technical skill. At what point did you realize that you A, excelled with both the technical skill and the mental-emotional components, and that you were able to put… When were you able to put those together and synthesize where you’re like, “Holy shit, I got this now.”
Mannion: Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I do think there is something to be said… I’ll say two things. I think mastering your craft, allowing the technical side to be unconscious, like you don’t really think about when you’re DJing for a massive party with a lot of pressure, like the technical aspects of DJing. You’re in the creative flow-
MICK: No, I just count on the… Yeah, I count on the 10,000, 20,000, 100,000 hours to get me through that. You’re right. I’m totally on the other side of that.
Mannion: So, one thing I learned when I was embarking on my career was that the people that always got the better performances had a full technical understanding. So, like in my mind, I needed to make my technical understanding and ability an unconscious trait of me as a photographer, because then I could engage with the talent and respond to little things that I kind of saw that maybe weren’t part of the plan. If I saw a piece of light just moving across a wall, it’s like, “Yo, let’s run over here real quick.” And having the technical ability to respond and being so confident in the ability to translate what I saw in my head to film. You gotta remember, when I was shooting, we weren’t able to have the cheat sheet of looking at the back of the camera. We always had to know that we had it.
So, you had to know and to be so confident with the talent, and the art directors, and the artists, and everybody, the full team, like, “Yo, we got it. Moving on. Let’s go get this next one.”
MICK: That’s crazy. That’s like shooting a game-winning three and just turning around and walking down the court without even watching it go in. You just know it’s gonna go in.
Mannion: Yeah.
MICK: What was your first moment of photography that was publicly published or however you’d want to say it that made you feel like either, “I made it,” or, “I’m on the path to making it.”
Mannion: I think there were stepping stones, you know? Like if I look at the first picture that I ever had published, it was a picture of… It was small, like on the town, kind of like Ed Lover and Lelee from SWV.
MICK: Wow.
Mannion: In a club. And it was like postage stamp size, but you couldn’t tell me that I just didn’t shoot the greatest campaign ever of all time, because I was published in New York City in 1993 or ‘4, whenever. I arrived to New York in ’93, so I was really in the clubs, and I was building relationships, and I was the hand-to-hand combat of shaking hands, and waving, and kissing babies and stuff. You know, it was like I was on campaign. I wanted everybody to know that I was coming for the spot. And that I had the ability to tell a different story. I just felt like there was always a chance because of my passion for the music, and I think that being able to have the dialogue around the music, which moved everybody’s soul, got me in and brought my talent to the table.
I remember shooting some behind the scenes stuff for Heavy D, who was like, “You’re gonna be my eyes.” And I was like, “Great. Let’s do that.” You know?
MICK: That’s awesome.
Mannion: Which is an incredible break. And then it was Jay-Z, Reasonable Doubt. It was my first album cover.
MICK: How did that… When that happened, did you know that you would be shooting a top five classic hip hop album of all time? Potentially a top 25 album of any genre of all time?
Mannion: I mean, to say that exact statement would be probably a stretch.
MICK: Right.
Mannion: But to know that I was working with somebody that instantly I considered the best I’d ever heard, just off of hearing Dead Presidents, the single, like, “Yo, take this single home. Just vibe out to it. This is what we’re coming with.” It’s like, “Presidents to represent me.” I was like, “Oh my God. This guy’s gone.” Just out of here. And I just love clever people, people that can articulate lyrics in a way that I could never even dream about coming up with. But I do that photographically.
MICK: Yeah.
Mannion: And I think that that’s the appreciation that I have for masters of their craft, of which I would consider you one, as well. You know, like you don’t last in this game without really knowing your shit. You know?
MICK: Yeah. I mean, I know my shit, and I love the shit that I know, and I think that’s a very hidden combination of like not just knowing it, but like loving it, and when you can put those two together, and you could put your brain and your heart together, whatever your creative output is, you’re gonna give the world your best version of that. And I’ve also done a million things that were… It was more for the heart than for the brain, and sometimes things more for the brain, for the heart, and we’ve all done things for the wallet and disregarded the brain and the heart. But like the ones that mean the most are the ones where there’s that synthesis of both of those.
Do you think… How many Jay covers did you do?
Mannion: Just eight.
MICK: Just eight? So, what was your next big thing, like post the Jay run, what was the thing that set you apart independently, where you felt like, “I could rock out 100% Jonathan Mannion, on my own. This is just what I do. I’m not gonna be known as just that guy. I’m gonna be the guy that does everyone’s shit.”
Mannion: Look. I think that Jay-Z was certainly an anchor of my career, like, “Oh, you’re the guy that did all that Jay stuff.” And that one? Oh, and that one? And that one? At the same time, I was still shooting Eminem, Marshall Mathers LP, Eminem Show. I was shooting all Ja Rule’s stuff. I was like… There was a moment that I’m like, “Oh, I can cover everybody, like I can tell the fullness of the story of hip hop from when I jumped in, Reasonable Doubt,” which I would mark as a bit of a what was before, a different era, into this new era, the Jay-Z, Nas, Biggie kind of moment. It was like ’93 was the start of Bad Boy, so that was a marked moment, and then it grew.
So, like that was sort of a beautiful point of departure to take this journey with the people that are the powerhouses of this industry now, if you look at Puff, and Jay, and Nas, and what they’re doing. They’re still here. We realize that this could be a career. We could really do this thoroughly and consistently and build out an entire culture and infrastructure of business that is the dominant force of music today. Without question.
MICK: Who is the artist you’ve never gotten to work with that you’d always… could be dead or alive, that you’ve always wanted to work with?
Mannion: Well, an artist who’s left us, Bob Marley, for sure. I mean, it’s just… If anybody says, “Bob,” like, “Oh yeah, Bob Marley.” You know what I mean? He’s the most famous human being of all time, ever, certainly within music, but likely just as a human, because of how many worlds he touched and how grounded his vision was and his understanding of himself, so I just feel I would get along well. I’m a big reggae fan, big Soca fan, big Caribbean music sort of lover, and so he’s the number one who’s passed, and I would say Sade is the person that… I mean, because of just the mystery that surrounds her, and like you know about her, you know her music, you think you know her, but I think there’s a whole other set of layers that barely gets revealed, and I want one of those, or a couple of those, just to be able to like… For the history books, for forever, I want a moment. And not for now, because I want to make merch, or do something with. I just want that time. You know? Just to feel the vibes, you know?
So, that’s my tie for number one.
MICK: That’s so interesting. I never thought about this, but you know, nowadays, where everybody reveals everything about themselves online all the time, especially now visually. If you’re an artist, you have to share yourself visually. Fuck, 25/8, right? You really… To stay relevant, you have to have, whether… On every platform ever. There’s more pictures of you taken in one week than a lot of the artists did in the ‘80s or ‘90s in a decade, probably. And that might even be an understatement. And so, I just talked about the missed… Does it make your job harder when you need to photograph somebody who’s used to taking their own photos all the time? Versus somebody who is never used to being photographed at all? Or does it make it easier because they’re used to being somewhat visual?
Mannion: I think the people that want to sort of control how they’re put out there in the world, like it has to be a certain way, and it has to be this, and okay, get the shot, get the shot, like the directors almost of their own identity, because they have to guide this… Typically, a younger crew that’s following them around, that just has that time to dedicate to one person. You know, I think that that’s when it becomes a challenge, like cool, I’ll do that, or tell me when you’re done and then I’ll tell you what we’re gonna do for the day. Because like you want a surface constant IG-friendly kind of thing, and I want art, man. I’m trying to take you to a whole other place.
We can do whatever you want to do, but yo, here’s a reference, here’s a shot that I took that I wanted to feel like… The lighting I think that I bring to the table, and the real talent that I work with, and I’m privileged to work with so many brilliant other voices that support my great lighting technicians, and great assistants, like the common goal of elevation of an artist, I think that is at the core of every session that I do now. And showing them the difference between good and great, and great an excellent, and excellent and superior, and superior and beyond, like how do you just constantly say, “This is dope, but let me just show you one thing.” Click, click, click, click. Like, “Oh my God, I look incredible. This is cra… Did you guys see this?”
To get them involved and engaged and then for them to allow me to do my thing for them, entirely for them, like I’m along for the ride, sure. It can go in my portfolio. I love talking about the work that I’ve done, but I want the next shot. I want the next dance. I want to just do it again. You know, very, very present in the moment, but then you release it and you let it go. You know? It’s like it belongs to the collective memory of the world, and I think that’s the exciting thing about what I do, is like making the memory, being present for it in the moment, making it authentic, and then setting it free.
MICK: I love that. That resonates in so many different arenas when I hear you say that, because it just applies to so many different creative outputs. What would you say to a young creative listening to this today in any genre, it doesn’t matter what it is that they do, what would be the number one or number two things that a young creative could be doing in any way. It could be a technical skill, it could be a mental skill, an emotional skill. Just to give them a heads up, to further their craft.
Mannion: You know, I think the biggest question that I hear from people, and young shooters, or just people wanting to break into the industry, is like, “How do I get there?” And I think that that’s the fall seven times, get up eight is like a real thing, man. You’re gonna hit the bottom in every category as an artist, I feel. And I think you should. It means you’re not… You’re being too safe if you don’t go for it all and you push all-in, and you believe in yourself, and you bet on yourself entirely. So, nobody has those answers but you. You know, everybody can give guidance, and accept all of the guidance, and all the things, and all the pointers, because you’re meant to translate all these perspectives, but you have to make the vision clear and you have to make it your own, and I think that’s what yields and delivers leaders, and real critical thinkers who are making work that doesn’t feel like anybody else’s. And I think that’s the… like be your own person, visionary, shooter, photographer, painter, fashion designer, like within the arts, you know?
And just go for it. Full go. Fail big. Fail hard. And then come back and figure out how to improve upon that, you know?
MICK: I love that. That’s such a great time to tie into what I referenced earlier, which was you gave me that exact motivation many years ago when I moved to New York in 2008. For those of you who don’t know, Jonathan’s from Ohio. I’m from Ohio originally, as well. We did not know each other in Ohio. Our journeys, while similar, never overlapped through a chronological standpoint, but when I found out you were from Ohio and then one day when you came home to Cleveland and I got to meet you, my mind was blown when I discovered what you had done. And I remember coming to New York one time, and this was a year before I moved here, and you were kind enough to… We went to lunch. And you were kind enough to find the time, and you said… I don’t remember exactly the words that you said, but you were like, “You can do it. You should do it. You should do this. You should move here. You’ve done everything you could do there. Come here. You can do it.”
And to hear that from somebody who was from where I’m from, loved what I loved, and came here and did it, was mind blowing to me, and I was able to take that energy back to home and say, “You know what? I gave it my all here for 30 years. It’s time for me to move on to the next journey.” And it was people like you who did it that said that exact thing that you just said for our audience to me, and it… I might still be there, you know? If it wasn’t for people like you saying stuff like that. So, sincerely, listen to this man. His mojo works.
Mannion: I’m super glad, man. I mean, it’s heartwarming to know that some words stick, and it has for a lot of people that I offer this to. I know what it takes and the bravery it takes to just jump and grow wings on the way down. You know, like, “Yo, I’m going for it. I’m all in. Let’s go! Jump!” It’s crazy. You feel crazy. You feel like you might not deserve it, or you’re not as skilled as the next person, and I think that that’s the appreciation that we have for people that are already on, and are executing their own plan, but I’m sure everybody has the same fear, you know? And I think that those moments I think are really important to just push in and go for it. And encourage others to do so.
MICK: Yeah. I love that. Well, let’s talk about as we get ready to wrap up here something that you’re giving to people… I don’t know when it’s gonna happen, but I know you had mentioned to me there’s gonna be a book forthcoming eventually, where we’re gonna be able to give people the entire Jonathan Mannion experience as a tangible thing where we could… people could… All the little things we just referenced in the last half hour, they’re gonna be able to see it all in one environment.
Mannion: Yeah. Yeah.
MICK: Can we talk about that?
Mannion: Yeah. You know, going through 25, 28 almost years of images, with the depth of each session being thousands of photos, it’s a daunting task and I just wanted… I always wanted it to be one vision, one clear thought, and really more how I think. You know, like how I process and how I get into like process information, how I get into doing an album cover, or a photo shoot. I want to bring that same sensibility-
MICK: Oh, I love that.
Mannion: To laying this out. And then the stories behind it. I mean, that’s the richest kind of aspect of what I have. When there weren’t 100 cameras around documenting every moment, every millisecond of everybody’s lives on IG for the world to see and Twitter for the world to read, and Clubhouse for the world to talk about, like there was just a few shooters putting in the work. So, that’s now become a bit of oral history, and some beautiful storytelling, to really tell people what it felt like to be on 19th Street with Puff when Biggie rolled up in the Land Cruiser. You know, like what the feeling, man, and those sensibilities I think people will be really excited to hear about.
I mean, the fashions that were happening, it’s all gonna kind of come to life through the photos, and one thing I guess I’m most excited about is like the memories that people have around these photos are uniquely their own. So, like I’m gonna leave the stories out to begin with, but I’m gonna figure out a way to infuse them afterwards, so you can have your own moment with each of these powerhouse artists, from Kendrick to J. Cole, and Khaled to Drake, Aaliyah to Left Eye, and then like allow that to be your own moment with your own stories and your own experience with the music. And then if you want to know what happened on set, I’m gonna have that for you, too.
So-
MICK: I love that.
Mannion: That’s exciting.
MICK: Love it. I can’t wait to see it. And on that note, I think we’ll wrap it. Jonathan, man, I appreciate first of all-
Mannion: My pleasure.
MICK: All the years of friendship, all the motivation, your hair. You guys can’t see his hair, but I don’t… and I’m sure the pictures-
Mannion: It’s epic.
MICK: Won’t contain these amazing locks, but as a bald man-
Mannion: Imagine George Clooney’s coloring, salt and pepper, you know, sort of silver fox, meets the Flock of Seagulls and Robert Smith, but a little more… Yeah, a little healthier. I think that thing’s been teased out so long that it’s… But that’s the kind of zone that I’m in right now, you know?
MICK: I love it, man. Well, I appreciate you. Congrats on all the amazing years in this culture, just being the documentarian that you are, and-
Mannion: Thank you, man.
MICK: … the upcoming book, and on the health, and wellness, and everything else you got going on, and we appreciate it so much.
Mannion: Oh, man. My pleasure, man. Great sitting with you and being with you tonight.
MICK: That was it for another episode of The MICK Show. Thank you so much for tuning in. Please rate and subscribe to The MICK Show wherever you like to listen and make sure to follow on Instagram @Mick and on Twitter @iamMICK. Let me know who you want to hear on a future episode, and we will see you back here next week.
The MICK Show is presented in partnership with Maxim. The show is produced by Lantigua Williams & Co. Cedric Wilson is our producer and mixed this episode. Manuela Bedoya is our social media editor.