The athlete and the artist

Words by Laura Markwardt. Photography by Daniel Shea. Video directed by Mollie Mills.

The sun is up and across New York, people are connecting, creating and making things happen. It’s the first time rapper Rejjie Snow has joined Brooklyn local Izadora Joseph to run. 

Rejjie is a man on a journey. Born to an Irish mother and a Nigerian father, Rejjie – née Alex Anyaegbunam – was raised in the northside of Dublin, Ireland. Jazz and ska formed the soundtrack to his early years, while his teens were influenced by street art and the transatlantic appeal of Nas and Wu-Tang. Always an athlete, Rejjie won a scholarship to play soccer at college in Florida, eventually settling in London, from where he’s taken his unique creativity to the world.

Living in New York since 2008, Haiti-born Iza, played volleyball in college. She later found her momentum in running, joining Black Roses — a group at the vanguard of the outlier-led global run crew movement. After years of self-coaching, Black Roses gave Iza the accountability she craved.

Vision and ambition fuel both Rejjie and Iza. But these streets won’t run themselves. The hype is real and needs to be put to use: it’s time to move.

The route winds through the saturated soundscape of the neighborhood. The pair hustle their way across to Queens, where the vibe subtly shifts: sights and soundtracks changing block by block. Their senses are fired up: “Running through all the crowds, it’s like a game,” says Iza. “Yeh,” says Rejjie, “you feel like kids.” 

Instinct connects them: “It feels so rhythmic, you know? We’re all just one, in unison with the city and the sounds,” says Rejjie. 

Art and athletics aren’t obvious bedfellows, but there’s much more that unites than divides. The craft of the artist is that of the athlete.

Just as lacing up and getting out the door is the hardest part of any run, so an artist begins every day facing down the challenge of creating music where there was silence, art where there was a blank canvas, poetry where there was an empty page. The only solution is to commit to a practice of making dreams become real. Progress is rarely a result of raw talent or genius – creative breakthroughs are born of consistent discipline over months and years. There’s no substitute for the work.

The grind builds a momentum that Izadora brings to every part of her life: “Running has made me realize that I can push a little more when things get hard. I have it in me – I’m a strong person.”

It’s the Black Roses’ collective strength that keeps her showing up, “We have this strong connection and we hold each other accountable. We check in on each other. It’s organic, just a natural thing.”

“It’s important to have people around you who understand,” says Rejjie.

When you run with others, you bare your soul: “I just feel this openness,” says Rejjie. That forward-facing motion takes out eye contact. Run as you are, with no pretense. And Black Roses give that “support to be vulnerable,” says Iza.

Phil Stutz, the US therapist [in his 2022 Jonah Hill-directed documentary, Stutz] reveals the psychological subtext behind sharing vulnerabilities: “Vulnerability connects you to the rest of the world. You’re giving out the signal: I need you, because I can’t do this by myself.” Far from the shrink’s couch, runners often find themselves doing this on two feet, moving side by side. There’s an emotional connection, Iza explains: “Running: you feel free.”

Moving with a community that’s got your back nurtures the safest space for every member to be truly authentic. “It quickly became this kind of family vibe,” says Rejjie. That unconditional support – and celebration of authenticity – are central to Black Roses’ ethos: “That’s what keeps me coming back,” says Iza.

Every run is an exercise in freedom, releasing what Iza calls “the feel good chemicals that go off in our brain.” Again, we reach a collective intersection between art and athletics – chasing that flow state, a place where creativity thrives.   

Like the stories behind the crew, New York City itself is packed with textures: a jigsaw that comes together, where each piece is different but always fits: “It makes you feel alive and it’s vibrant,” says Rejjie. 

Running the city with the Black Roses, Rejjie and Iza tune into the subtleties of what’s new, picking up on shifting frequencies with every step. They share so much more than a route: “I’ve got a team now,” says Rejjie. Creativity thrives on momentum and in New York City, it’s only when you’re moving that you start connecting those dots.