It was a humid evening in Miami on July 21, 2017, when visual artist John “JonOne” Perello walked into Wynwood’s Cafeina in an all-white jumpsuit, ready to create another vibrant masterpiece.
He approached his glass canvas with brushes in one hand and a Hennessy V.S. cocktail in the other. Once the DJ turned up the volume on Mobb Deep’s “Shook Ones,” JonOne shifted into grind mode to work on the final creation of his multi-city tour around the U.S. for the Hennessy V.S. Limited Edition by JonOne bottle.
Over the last three decades, JonOne has become internationally revered as one of the most groundbreaking graffiti artists to come out of New York City. The artist, born to Dominican parents in Harlem, spent the latter part of his teenage years leaving his signature “Jon156” tag in subway trains and buildings all over the city. Rappers who lived in and around the Uptown sector of Manhattan and the Bronx knew about JonOne’s historic contributions, including Fat Joe.
Joey Crack stepped onto the red carpet with coolness in a baby blue V-neck and crispy white kicks. He proceeded to walk into the venue looking forward to watching JonOne craft his new piece of art while celebrating his Limited Edition creation for Hennessy.
“JonOne is a legend man,” Fat Joe told VIBE Viva. “I used to watch him tag graffiti over in Washington Heights back in the days. The fact that he can come back here and work on this project with Hennessy is a beautiful thing. I just had to let him know that I respect him for his contributions to the art form.”
JonOne began his art journey in the ‘80s as a teenager who tagged up buildings with his infamous 156 All Starz collective, which includes him and fellow artists Rac7 and Kyle. Once he relocated to Paris, Jon passed down the collective and spent the last 30 years an international icon, loved by many for his vibrant installations and exhibits featured around the globe.
“My stuff is very colorful, and it brings a smile to everyone’s face when they see it,” JonOne explained to us during an exclusive lunch before the event. “Half of the work, in my head, is doing something very colorful, energetic and joyful. The other half is making it live and having a great time doing it. So it’s all about that and enjoying life.”
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