Native-owned Hip Hop collective opens near Taos Plaza

On the corner of Camino de la Placita and Paseo del Pueblo Sur, a new kind of cooperative

has recently opened its doors. ArrowSoul Trading Post, now in its

second month of business, aims to present authentic Hip Hop music, art, graffiti and culture to Taoseños and visitors alike.

“We’re here. We do music. We do art,” said AJ Tracks, one of four owners of the cooperative. “You don’t have to go to a big city to find quality art and music as far as Hip Hop is concerned.”

The new retail shop and gallery sells custom-made apparel, art and ephemera, while serving as a nexus for Hip Hop-related culture. The store, open everyday

from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. (except the occasional Tuesday) plays Hip Hop, Funk and Soul music as a means to draw in customers.

“It’s like a hummingbird feeder — you attract the Hip Hop heads. I see people walking down to the brewery and they’ll stop, they’re

listening, and then they start crossing the street,” said Tracks. “‘I

heard the music, and felt the vibe.’”

Early Years

Tracks was born and raised in Taos, and comes from Taos Pueblo, Lakota–Sioux and Diné tribes. His

friendship with ArrowSoul-partner Neight Larcen goes back to when they were in high school.

“We would see each other around at house parties when we were younger, and while people would be partying, we would be outside in the parking lot freestyle battling each other,” said Tracks.

Larcen was a member of a local Taos band called Adrenaline that

played a mix of Rock, Punk and Hip Hop. He moved to Minnesota, and then to Portland, and the two

lost touch with one another.

Good graffiti

“Fast forward a couple of years — we connected again, and started doing music,” said Tracks. “On a

smaller level, you know, nothing too major. Just having fun with it.”

In the spring of 2021, Tracks said someone in-artfully spray painted “WATER IS LIFE” on a wall along Kit Carson Road in

downtown Taos. Local activist Buck Johnston, who was arrested

in 2019 for climbing on top of a water-well drilling rig, was blamed for the vandalism.

In a Facebook discussion about maintaining the integrity and

honor of water protectors, Tracks offered his talents to create a proper

mural of the quote.

“If you need an artist, I’m more than willing to lend my skills,” said Tracks. “I got a call a day later, and a GoFundMe campaign started. We raised $2,000 in about four days.”

The campaign money paid for the paint, as well as anyone else who joined in the effort. Tracks contacted a fellow artist named Saba Wear, who helped with the new mural and then came aboard the ArrowSoul collective.

“After I invited him up here to do the mural, I said, ‘What are your

plans? Are you just gonna chill?’ and he said, ‘Well, I actually want to open a Native-owned business.’”

With the planned demolition of the west infill of the Historic

Taos County Courthouse, the site

for the Native-owned Smoke Signals, there were no Native-owned businesses on or near Taos Plaza, except for the recently opened Atcitty gallery at the north east corner of the Plaza intersection.

“We need to change that, man,” said Wear, who comes from the Diné and Jemez Pueblo tribes.

Representin’

Tracks and Wear looked for vacant properties close to the Plaza, and secured a one-year

lease at 101-B Camino de la Placita (the old Carhartt store) in a matter of hours.

The cooperative included Tracks, Wear and Jisk, when fellow artist Larcen was invited to join in.

“He was hanging out at the shop, supporting us and asking ‘What do you guys need? You know, I’m willing to help with whatever,’ “

recalled Tracks. “Eventually, we just were like, ‘Hey, man, you want

to quit your job and come work with us producing your art? Do what you love and get paid for it?’ Because we all want to be living off of our art.”

The shop features a six-arm silkscreen press used to produce their custom apparel. The collective is set up to pay each artist 70

percent of every sale, with 30 percent going to the shop.

“We’re doing that because we want the artists to get the credit

they deserve, and feel like they’re not being undersold, under appreciated,” said Tracks. “We really want to get down to — art is the lifeblood of this community.”

Tracks said they all have their own signature style that revolves around Hip-Hop culture. “We just want to do Hip Hop a solid,” he said.

For more information, visit