New Page 0

SIKE STARTED WRITING IN 1975. IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF OTHER KINGS FROM QUEENS, LIKE VINNY, IKE 327 a/k/a IZ THE WIZ, SO-ONE, SI ONE, UNCLE JOHN 178, TEAR 2 ,SHORTY 13,DIME 139 AND DUKE 9. SIKE INFLUENCED AN ENTIRE NEIGHBORHOOD TO BECOME WRITERS. SIKE AND I WERE FRIENDS FROM THE TIME I WAS 5 YEARS OLD. WE WERE FRIENDS FIRST, BLOOD BROTHERS, AND THEN WRITERS.

WRITERS THAT WERE INFLUENCED BY HIM WERE SACH,SAKE,SAR,SHARK,FIT,ST3,ROCKY,COOK2,NED,DI-ONE.SN,SD3,HOMIE, ETC. SIKE TOOK ME UNDER THE WING LIKE A BIG BROTHER SHOULD AND GAVE ME AN EDUCATION ABOUT GRAFF AND ABOUT LIFE. DONDI TOLD ME WHEN WE WERE IN HOLLAND AT A GRAFF SHOW THAT THE FAMOUS MICKEY 729 OF THE TOP CREW, MADE A COME BACK BECAUSE, I QUOTE ( THE WHITE BOYS FROM QUEENS ARE TAKING OVER THE LINE) SIKE DID A LOT OF DAMAGE, A LOT OF WHOLE

CARS, TOP TO BOTTOMS, AND LOADS AND LOADS OF INSIDES. HE WROTE WITH WRITERS SUCH AS IZ THE WIZ, JESTER AKA DY 167, FANE AKA PI-2, KEVIN 97-EX-ONE, ST-3,AND TEAR-2. WHAT WAS IMPORTANT TO SIKE, WAS THAT EVERY TRAIN THAT CAME DOWN JAMAICA AVENUE WHERE THE 112 PARK GANG HUNG OUT, HAD A SIKE ON IT. FROM 1975-1980 EVERY J-TRAIN THAT CAME DOWN JAMAICA AVENUE DID. HE WAS A LEGEND IN QUEENS, EVERYBODY CALLED HIM SIKE, SOME DIDN'T EVEN KNOW WHERE THE NAME CAME FROM.

HE WAS A FAMOUS BODYBUILDER, LEADER OF 112 PARK CREW, A TOUGHER THEN TOUGH GANG IN THE 70'S, HE WAS A SCHOOL YARD NIGHTMARE, IF HE WAS LOOKING FOR YOU, YOU WOULD BE FOUND. EVEN NOW HE REMAINS, LARGER THEN LIFE.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

1) Where did you grow up and why did you choose to write?

RICHMOND HILL QUEENS MY OLDER BROTHER WROTE NIP 112 ( RIP ),HE CAME UP WITH THE NAME SIKE AND PASSED IT ON TO ME. I WROTE BECAUSE I LOVED TO TAG MY NAME I DID SK THROW UP'S FOR SHORT. IT GAVE US SOMETHING TO DO, IT WAS ADVENTURE AND IT WAS ABOUT US. IT BECAME US. OUR OLDER BROTHERS WROTE, SO-ONE, SI-ONE, COOK, KEEP 112, FANE , WE SAW IT AND DID IT TOO. IT MADE US POWERFUL, FAMOUS, WE WERE UP. THAT WAS IMPORTANT TO US.

2) What were the biggest names on the streets & Subways when you first started out? what writers inspired you to start writing?

SO-ONE, SI -ONE, DON-ONE MAFIA, UNCLE JOHN 178, HE-3, KEON, DIME 139, TEAR 2, DUKE9, FANE 2 AKA PI-2 AKA CIPPY 13, STEEL AND STINE WILL BLOW YOUR MIND, JESTER AKA DYE 167, VINNY, LEE TF5, AND THE KING IZ THE WIZ AKA IKE 327.

3 ) Who were some of your earliest writing partners?

ST-3 WAS MY FIRST, WE WERE A CREW CALLED 112 PARK NUTZO. ROCKY-1, COOK-2, CAP 1, JAY 1, NIP 112, SO-ONE, SA-1, SHARK 1, FIT 1, I WROTE WITH FANE 2 AKA PI-TWO, EX-ONE AKA KEVIN 97, IZ THE WIZ AKA IKE 327, SAR 1, HOMIE-1, SIKO AKA TEK-2 AKA BT2 AND HIS PARTNER RUST, AND LATER ON I WROTE WITH CAVS AND BLADE, A FEW OTHERS

4 ) Would you have any racking adventures you can share with us?

No not really. I USED TO RACK A LOT OF MY PAINT LOCALLY AT FRIENDLY FROST ON ATLANTIC AVENUE, AND WANE RIGHTS PAINT STORE.

5 ) What were your favorite yards or lay up's to hit and why?

THAT'S AN EASY ANSWER, THERE WAS THE J - ELEVATED LAY UP, THE " A " ELEVATED LAY - UP, GRANT AVENUE, THE A YARD. I WOULD SEE MY SHIT RUN. THOSE WERE MY LINES. 111TH STREET LAY UP WAS MINE AND ALL MINE.

6 ) What were all the Writing groups you were a member of and what one group did you push the most?

I PUSHED KEVIN 97 AKA EX-ONE'S CREW, ( BEAT THE CITY ), TGU ( GRAFFITI UNDER GROUND ) UNCLE JOHN & TEAR 2, JESTER'S- ( THE CREW ) M.A.F.I.A - DON 1's CREW , BYB ( BAD YARD BOYS ) DEAN'S CREW, MINE, TSB ( THE SUBWAY BANDITS ). NCB - ( NO COMP BOYS ) ROTO AND SNAK'S CREW AND TMB- ( THE MASTER BLASTERS. )

7 ) Can you tell us all the Subway lines you hit and which one was your favorite and why? Have you ever hit the I.R.T's and what Subway lines do you feel you were king of?

I BOMBED THE J LINE, THAT WAS MY LINE. THE J'S RAN ON THE LL, M, B, AND RR LINE. I BOMBED THE A'S, CC'S D's, AND E'S & F LINES.111 LAY-UP ON THE J WAS MINE FROM 1975-1978

8 ) The insides of the subways are very over looked. Did you get you up on the insides and what other writers did you feel had the best hand writing flair on the insides ... what writers do you feel were the Kings of the insides in your opinion?

I LOVED DOING INSIDES, THEY WERE MY FAVORITE. I BOMBED THEM REAL HARD, THOSE WRITERS THAT WERE AROUND THEN WILL REMEMBER . MY FAVORITES WERE... DON ONE! HAD A GREAT TAG, JESTER, DIME 139, AND DUKE 9, SHORTY 13

10 ) Would you have any raid stories you can share with us?

I GOT CAUGHT ONCE DOING SK THROW UP'S ON THE J LINE. I WAS RAIDED AND BUSTED. NOT MUCH TO TALK ABOUT. I HAD TO SCRUB, MET KIT 17 AND SOME OTHER WRITERS WHEN I WAS SCRUBBING.

9 ) In the 1970's the outlaws gangs were very big. Did they ever cause a problem for you while you were getting your name up?

I WAS THE PROBLEM!, 112 PARK AND 90 PARK WERE THE TOUGHEST GANGS IN R.H QUEENS BACK IN THE DAY.

This Photo shows some of SIKE's earliest writing partners from 1977... SCOPE 1, NIP 112, ROCKY 1, SO-ONE, ZEP-ONE and MOVIE.

12 ) Can you tell us all the writers you have hit the Subways with, that you felt the most Comfortable Bombing?

ST-3, ( SEAN ) HE WAS VERY COOL IN THE LAY- UPS AND IN THE YARDS. SAR BECAUSE I TOOK HIM TO THE LAY-UP'S HIS VERY FIRST TIME, WE ARE FRIENDS TILL THIS DAY.

11 ) What writers do you feel are very over looked in history?

THAT'S A VERY EASY ANSWER ... DON ONE- " MAFIA ", UNCLE JOHN 178 & TEAR 2, SO-ONE, HE 3, DIME 139, DUKE 9, VINNY, HURST AKA OI AND MICKEY 729 AKA TO ( SUPER KINGS OF THE B.M.T's ), EX-ONE , ROTO & SNAK, LEE.

13 ) Who were the biggest transit cops in your day and were you ever nabbed by them?

ARTIE G MARINO WAS THE BIGGEST, WELL KNOWN GRAFFITI COP IN MY DAY.

14) What years would you say was your best years on the Subways? Did you ever have any problem with other writers back grounding your stuff?

1977 WAS MY BEST YEAR. TOYS WOULD GO OVER MY STUFF AFTER A WHILE. I HAD SOME PIECES RUN 3 OR MORE YEARS ON THE J AFTER I STOPPED. SACH AND HIS PARTNER SAKE 102, WOULD START HITTING THE SUBWAYS IN 1978.

18) Could you tell us what year did you stop writing and why?

WHO SAID I STOPPED?, THE LAST TIME I HIT A TRAIN IT WAS IN CONEY ISLAND WITH SAR AND CAVS IN 1991

19) Would you have any closing words for our readers?

GRAFFITI WAS A WAY OF LIFE, SLEEPING ON THE TRAINS, PUTTING EVERYTHING ELSE OUT OF YOU MIND. YOU RACKED, YOU PLANNED, YOU SKETCHED OUT WHAT YOU WERE GOING TO DO, YOU PLANNED COLORS, YOU WERE A WRITER ALL THE WAY.

YOU FLOODED MARKERS , UNI'S, MINI, FLOPENS, MARVEYS, PENTELS, PILOTS, NIJI'S. IT WAS A BIG PART OF MY LIFE. PEOPLE CALL ME SIKE EVEN TODAY, THAT'S WHO I BECAME. WHAT WOULD IT BE LIKE IF A TRAIN WASN'T HIT BY THE SIKE.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

We would like to thank SIKE for sharing a little of his history with us. Photo credits go to SAR 1, DON ONE, DUKE 9, THE M.G BOYS , FLINT... , Henry Chalfont, FUZZ ONE and the team at Subway Outlaws.com. " CHECK IT OUT! " Just off the presses. Click here. Should any one have photos of SIKE's work, please contact us at MESSAGE@SUBWAYOUTLAWS.COM