1-Stop Solution with LessWork

Team fundraiser

Breyon Oneofmani Sommerville and Akiya Alexander are organizing this fundraiser.

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Breyon “1neofmani” Sommerville & Akiya "KILO." Alexander,

2 Black Wisconsin-based local artists and entrepreneurs are fundraising to purchase the building formerly known as the Art In to operate our business,

LessWork Local Lifestyle - A group of individuals embracing delegated roles to complete common goals to Netflix the music industry in Madison, Wisconsin and beyond. This story is unique, and we are excited to share it with you.

This project is the physical explanation of what LessWork -

(Let's Emphasize Self-Service With Optimistic Resourceful Knowledge) means. In 2018, my business partner/CEO (Akiya "KILO" Alexander, a gay local hip hop artist) and I (1neofmani), signed our first office lease to give this dream an address. Thank you for supporting our campaign.

Our goal is to raise $2,000,000 to purchase the formerly known Art In building in the populated corridors of 1444 E. Washington Ave, Madison, Wisconsin. Madison's population (at the time of this campaign) is 277,166 residents. The Black population in Madison, Wisconsin is 19,071; percentage-wise, Blacks make up only 7.3 percent of Madison's population. Black-owned solutions are also limited with most Black residents living in poverty-stricken areas, with KILO and myself included. East Washington Avenue/Winnebago St median real estate price is $371,640, which is 90.4% more expensive than the neighborhoods in Wisconsin and 71.0% more costly than other neighborhoods in the U.S.

Although Black people in Madison are small in numbers, our community of Black artists have created an interest in music and media solutions. Underserviced artists in the Madison area would benefit tremendously from a 24/hour production house to productively express themselves while creating services from the talent they produce under 1-roof.

In 2020, (due to COVID 19 ), we discovered a solution for artists and entrepreneurs who were financially affected by the virus. We converted our single-office space into a platform for hosting pop-up shops every Saturday to keep them visible during our country's most challenging times.

We really could use your help with launching the world's first 24-hour, subscription-based production house, right here in Madison, WI.

The plan is to offer maximum value at minimal monthly rates allowing local artists to focus on their art instead of their overhead. We will operate within the niche of services from a hip-hop perspective, under three pillars:

LessWork Lyrix (Lyrics)

LessWork Lens (photography)

LessWork Literature

These are assets artists and entrepreneurs need to sustain their art and businesses. Imagine utilizing audio production, video production, and marketing services without the current pressures to pay-per-usage. 1neofmani coined this model, "NetFlixing" the music business. *Watch our interview with Corey "Dash Dub" Whitmore of Media 22 as we cover the benefits and obstacles of launching a 24/hour production house in Madison. Our video series is titled: "Controlling The Narrative. Your donations and dedication will assist us with making this conversation a reality.

*Fun Fact: We recorded & edited this entire series on a cellphone.

What will be inside the 24-Hour Production?

Photography Studio - to offer hybrid solutions in capturing professional images to display, promote, and sell art.

Music Recording Studio - to discover talent and offer versatile audio solutions in recording, mixing, and mastering music, lyrics, and voice-overs.

Media Center - to create digital content for videos, blogs, and graphics to highlight artists and entrepreneur's contributions.

Apparel Print Shop - to offer solutions in merchandise for local artists and entrepreneurs to brand their offerings.

Event Hosting/Live Performances - to present our final productions to our community in Madison and our online supporters virtually.

The funds generated for this project will be used for staff, repairs, equipment, marketing, and beautification of the space to be fully functional in early 2024 or however long it takes to raise the capital.

All supporters will receive a virtual tour and exclusive updates on this project as a token of gratitude for your investment in futuristic innovation. In collaboration with a local print shop, if you contribute $100 or more to this project, you will receive our “Control The Narrative” shirt in the mail. Why a shirt? LessWork Local Lifestyle apparel designs are carefully crafted as fabrics to speak aloud against negative views of Black people, hip hop, and social injustices. I hope you earn respect for this shirt and treat it as a souvenir to highlight our relationship.

This project will not only engage with our community of local artists but also build and grow into the fabric of the community already established on the east side of Madison, Wisconsin. We will employ local artists, share collective wealth, produce, and display content representing us. This will result in supporters like yourself viewing this project as a template for local artists to use worldwide to sustain their positions in their residing communities. LessWork motto is "Local Is The New Global" because the internet allows us to co-exist beyond our geographical locations.

With your support, by the first quarter of 2024, we intend to launch the world’s 1st subscription-based hip-hop production house. Servicing local artists and entrepreneurs as subscribers to the LessWork Local Lifestyle. Help me bring my vision to physical fruition by creating a place that produces positive narratives to standardize and sustain local artists in Madison, Wisconsin and beyond.

Thank you.

PRESS

"2 Madison rappers "Netflix the music process to assist hiphop artists."

- Wisconsin State Journal

"LessWork works to establish an incubator space for rap artists."

- Isthmus

“LessWork Lifestyles is a group of individuals embracing delegated roles to complete common goals.” – Madison365

I have worked with them on multiple occasions. Various projects and deadlines and they always came through for me. Professional, forward thinking, reasonably priced, community orientated, and action based. - Antoine McNeail , Madison’s Favorite Comedian

Kingdom Restaurant and LessWork Lifestyle partners together to introduce their audiences to each other. – LessWork Blog full list of LessWork Literature Series

Our goal is to assign, demand, and create our own narratives around hip hop outlets and inclusion in the Madison area. – weekly pop-up shops.

LessWork Lifestyle reviews

Madison, Wisconsin population. photo credit: worldpopulationreview.com

A photo of the once known headquarters to Madison's Great Big Pictures which was built in 1946. photo credit: wisconsinhistory.org

2020, A current photo of what the building looks like today. Not much has changed but residents and supporters do appreciate the older characteristics of the building. photo credit: Breyon Sommerville

LessWork will offer in-house solutions to service local artists and entrepreneurs.

LessWork vision board for apparel creations. photo credit: Akiya Alexander

1neofmani leads weekly meetings with Black local entrepreneurs to uncover solutions for servicing local artists and entrepreneurs in Madison, Wisconsin.

photo credit: Akiya "K.I.L.O" Alexander