iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

50 years of Songs in the Key of Life. ❤️🎶 One of the first records I remember truly loving as a kid was Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life. Happy 50th anniversary to Songs in the Key of Life—a masterpiece that changed music, changed the world, and definitely changed me. ❤️

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

COLTRANE AT 10 “My music is the spiritual expression of what I am — my faith, my knowledge, my being…” Happy 100th Birthday to JOHN WILLIAM COLTRANE—saxophonist, composer, innovator, and spiritual guide whose sound continues to inspire generations.

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

“There is two kinds of music, the good, and the bad. I play the good kind.” Happy Birthday to “POPS”, LOUIS ARMSTRONG (Different takes over the years.) #louisarmstrong #jazzart #jazztrumpeter #lineart #penandink satchmo iamtheleopard pagestreetbooks @painted.words @pwlicensing @paintedwordsartrep

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

“Change will not come if we wait for some other person, or if we wait for some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” Happy Birthday, BARACK OBAMA #repost #barackobama #Barack #keithhenrybrown #iamtheleopard

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

Happy Birthday to the incomparable trumpeter/composer LEE MORGAN. Commissioned piece. @iamtheleopard #keithhenrybrown🎨 #watercolor-painting🎨 #legendaryjazzmusician #collageart #leemorgan leemorgantrumpet @icalledhimmorgan @painted.words painted.words beautifulbizarre

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

Concept art for a magazine cover project that never came to be. Even so, I really enjoyed working on these drawings. Funny enough, I honestly can’t remember what the article—or the illustrations—were supposed to be about! #pencilsketches #pencildrawing #magazinecover #magazinelayout

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

“Blues is a natural fact, is something that a fellow lives. If you don’t live it you don’t have it. Young people have forgotten to cry the blues. Now they talk and get lawyers and things.” Happy Birthday, BIG BILL BROONZY #bigbillbroonzy #bluesmaster #bluesguitar #watercolor #legendarybluesartist

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

“I don’t have to agree with you to like you or respect you.” - Happy Birthday, ANTHONY BOURDAIN #watercolor #watercolorportrait @anthonybourdain #renownedchef #televisionchef

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

Just heard it’s #InternationalPortraitDay. Here’s one of the most personal portraits I’ve done. “Man Sitting Facing Left (Imaginary Portrait of My Father),” Painted over 25 years ago. At the time, I hadn’t seen my dad in years—and I didn’t have a photo. So I painted from memor or maybe imagination.

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

It’s Summer, folks. Stone ridge. (Inspired by a great photo on @molly.ragan’s IG. #collage #photoshop #foundtextures @iamtheleopard #keithhenrybrown🎨 @painted.words #beautifulbizarre

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

“Nothing pleases me more than to go into a room and come out with a piece of music.” Happy Birthday, Sir PAUL McCARTNEY #paulmccartney #thebeatles #inkdrawing letitbe letitbefilm @pwlicensing @paintedwordsartrep @painted.words

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

Farewell to the great pianist and composer Abdullah Ibrahim (Dollar Brand), 1934–2026. Born in Cape Town’s District Six, he was a pioneering force in South African jazz during apartheid delivering the influences of Duke Ellington and Thelonious Monk, he created a timeless and deeply personal

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

Happy Birthday to my dear friend, Nessa Vanessa (@vs.aquarell)! 🎉💖 Three years ago, we connected through a mutual admiration for each other’s work. Vanessa is an incredibly talented artist, museum guide, mom, and wife from Cologne, Germany. When she came to New York years ago, our friendship began.

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

“We have to be students of life and be very careful as we move through it. There’s always some kind of unexpected moment that happens each and every day, and you have to adjust. Music is like that. — Geri Allen Honoring the late genius, renowned pianist and composer Geri Allen on her birthday.

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

Happy ( Belated -June 8) Birthday to the amazing musician/actor SEU JORGE! Unforgettable as Pelé dos Santos in the Wes Anderson film The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou performing the songs of David Bowie. #seujorge #thelifeaquaticwithstevezissou #davidbowie @pwlicensing @paintedwordsartrep painted.

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

“Just start by creating your day. Then create your life.” Happy Birthday to the singular genius PRINCE Rogers Nelson #prince #princerogersnelson #purplerain #nothingcompares2u #aroundthe worldinaday popsinger soulsinger legend rockandrollhalloffame theartist @pwlicensing @paintedwordsartrep

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 05/06/2026

“Paradise is exactly like where you are right now... only much, much better.” Happy Birthday to musician/composer/ performance artist and possessor of the greatest dimples in music LAURIE ANDERSON @laurieandersonofficial #laurieanderson #performanceartist #loureed @loureedofficial #pencilsketch

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

This Is Our Music. Happy Black Music Month! Today we celebrate the artists, innovators, and visionaries whose contributions have shaped culture, inspired generations, and changed the world through the power of music. #BlackMusicMonth #AfricanAmericanMusicAppreciationMonth #BlackExcellence

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

“When people talk about the ‘60s I never think that was me there. It was me and I was in it, but I was never enamoured with all that. It’s supposed to be sex and drugs and rock and roll and I’m not really like that. Happy Birthday to the late🌙 CHARLIE WATTS

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

“I know a lot of people who have a lot of everything, and they’re absolutely the most miserable people in the world. So it won’t do anything for you unless you’re a happy person and can have peace with yourself.” Happy Birthday (May 26, 1964) LENNY KRAVITZ @lennykravitz #letloverule #zoekravitz

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 31/05/2026

Happy Birthday to my friend and favorite collaborator, the great Christian McBride 9-time Grammy Award-winning composer, bassist, bandleader, and musical force! We’ve created so much together over the years, and I’m always proud and grateful to be associated with his extraordinary musical genius.

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 27/05/2026

“Being able to channel my energies into that music, bring it to reality, to perform it, saved me” Happy 76th Birthday to the magnificent DEE DEE BRIDGEWATER @deedeebridgewater #legendaryjazzsinger @iamtheleopard #keithhenrybrown🎨 #deedeebridgewater #pencilwatercolorsketch #@painted.words

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

“I thought of Jazz as something which was extremely special. Yeah, that’s the word. It was special. Everything about it was great. - Sonny Rollins Farewell to the to the Saxophone Colossus, SONNY ROLLINS I’ve probably drawn Sonny more than any other single musician.

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 23/05/2026

Unboxing! We book creators love that magical moment when illustrator copies arrive and we finally hold the book in our hot little hands. Always a rush! Postcards from Malcolm X: How Yuri Kochiyama Became a Civil Rights Activist, written by Mia Wenjen Out October 13. Available for preorder!

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

“With music you can express any emotion, you can paint pictures...” Happy Arrival Day to one of the fathers of Afrofuturism, the great musician/composer/ mystic SUN RA @pencildrawing #collage #photoshop #portraitillustration #jazzmusic #sunra #sunraarkestra @pwlicensing @paintedwordsartrep

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

Winners have been officially announced for american_illustration_winners’ 45th Annual Competition. The selected piece an illustrated travel narrative documenting a jazz fan’s long-awaited journey to New Orleans. It originally appeared in the Winter issue of National Parks magazine.

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

“I’m for truth, no matter who tells it. I’m for justice, no matter who it’s for or against.” - Happy Birthday, MALCOLM X born Malcolm Little, later el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz; May 19, 1925 – February 21, 1965 #malcolmx #malcolmlittle #watercolor #watercolorportrait

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

“I can be a pain, but most of all, I can be a pleasure.” Happy 78th Birthday to the original Influencer: the TRULY ICONIC artist/writer/model/musician/actress GRACE JONES #sketchbook @gracejones #keithhenrybrown @iamtheleopard #supermodel#jeanpaulgaultier @paintedwords

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 17/05/2026

Last October Pushing Hope: A Memoir of Survival, written by Raymond Santana, was published. The long journey of creating this book was unique in my career. It took two and a half years to complete and, for a while, anyone who knows me knows it completely encompassed my life.

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 16/05/2026

1991 watercolor based on a police photograph from the early 1900s. From a book of B&W NYC crime scene photos called Evidence by Luc Sante. Two men after falling down an empty elevator shaft. #lucsante #evidence #watercolor #keithhenrybrown #iamtheleopard @painted.words @paintedwordseditorial

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 15/05/2026

“My father was a slave and my people died to build this country and I am going to stay here and have a part of it just like you.” Singer/actor/social activist/lawyer/athlete PAUL ROBESON #paulrobeson #oldmanriver #activist keithhenrybrown iamtheleopard @paintedwordsartrep @painted.words

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 14/05/2026

“I’m just an advertisement for a version of myself.” Happy Birthday, singer/songwriter/artist DAVID BYRNE @davidbyrneofficial @iamtheleopard #keithhenrybrown

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

Happy Birthday to my friend and master pianist ELEW (Eric Lewis) #ericlewispiano #elew #elewpiano #keithhenrybrown #WyntonMarsalism @elewrockjazz vectorilustration illustrator jazzart jazzposter @paintedwordsartrep @painted.words

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

“Just because a man lacks the use of his eyes doesn’t mean he lacks vision” -Stevie Wonder. Next to @johncoltrane , no musician has moved me more than Stevie. @steviewonderoficial Happy Birthday, Steveland Morris. #steviewonder #illustrator @pwlicensing @paintedwordsartrep @painted.words

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 12/05/2026

Film recommendation: The Christophers (2026), which features an extraordinary performance by Sir Ian McKellen alongside the astonishing Michaela Coel (@michaelacoelweb). I was especially struck by the structure of her face and head — as though carved from the most exquisite grade of ebony wood.

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 12/05/2026

“I want to make beautiful things, even if nobody cares.” Happy Birthday legendary graphic designer/fimmaker/artist/conceptual genius SAUL BASS @ottoppreminger @saulbassarchive #billywilder #portaitillustration #keithhenrybrown #iamtheleopard Painted Words @paintedwords @paintedwordseditor

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 06/01/2025

God breathes through us so completely... so gently we hardly feel it... yet, it is our everything.” - John Coltrane @iamtheleopard #keithhenrybrown🎨 #jazzlegend #johncoltrane #pencilandwatercolor #jazzportrait #jazzcomposer #legendaryjazzmusician #alicecoltrane #ravicoltrane @painted.words

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 01/12/2024

“My one regret in life is that I am not someone else.” Happy Birthday, Heywood “Woody” Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg) #woodyallen @iamtheleopard #filmdirector #anniehall #keithhenrybrown🎨 #portrait #watercolor #watercolorportrait #watercolorillustration #portraitillustration

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 24/11/2024

We Thought He Would Live Forever. The Fountain Of Youth, drummer supreme ROY “Snap Crackle” HAYNES, has transitioned at 99 (Mar 13, 1925 - November 12, 2024). The world just lost a whole lotta serious swing. @royhaynes #royhaynesdrummer #royhaynes #pencilsketch #pencildrawing #painted.words

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Keith Henry Brown @iamtheleopard.bsky.social · 24/11/2024

“Of course one should not drink much, but often.” Happy Birthday Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec! Really enjoyed recreating his wonderful picture “Divan Japonais” #henridetoulouselautrec #frenchpainter #crosshatching @henritoulouselautrec @painted.words @pwlicensing @paintedwordsartrep

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