As someone who’s spent the better part of a decade living and photographing in Los Angeles, few things felt more exciting than capturing my first rodeo here and the Black riders who personified athleticism, passion and courage. As part of my journey over the past several years to find Black faces and places to document in ways only my ancestors could have dreamt of — under the project name Black Magic — I went in search for Black horseback riders and rodeo participants of all ages chasing their desire to ride, jump, lasso and embody the spirit of the old West while making it new again. Starting in January 2024, this journey has led me to the small-but-mighty city of Tulsa, Okla.
Known by most as the site of the 1921 Race Massacre and historically Black Greenwood District, Tulsa and the greater state of Oklahoma is home to some of the richest pockets of rodeo and Western culture in the country, just ask the creators of the 2023 film “Riding Legacy (An Oklahoma Black Cowboy Story)” directed and produced by Kian Taylor, Jay Ridley, Nicole Jocleen and Brittany Taylor. Unlike Tulsa, L.A.
is typically one of the last places people might assume any rodeo culture exists, let alone a Black rodeo. Little did I know upon entering the Industry Hills Expo Center in West Covina recently to witness the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo for the first time last year, I had stumbled onto an event where Black communities across the country congregate yearly for a day of fun, food, ridin.