1980s to 1995: Rise to prominence At the age of ten, fellow New Yorker, from
Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, Michael McLeer said he started graffiti writing. He explained that at the time he was gravitating toward the arts because he was looking for something that would have his voice, however, there was no after-school program for the youth that took that direction, but there were plenty of graffiti writers that lived in his neighborhood, hence he joined them. He also explained that at that time the graffiti art form was going through a change as in the 1970s most of them were made by peaceful hippies, and that by the 1980s, the art form became competitive and gang-related where you had to hold your own. and would spray graffiti on much of the public transport trains. During this time, he made a name for himself in the world of
graffiti in New York City, by climbing down a fire exit to spray paint the subway line. By the age of fifteen, Kaves had become an esteemed graffiti artist was featured in
Henry Chalfant's book
Spraycan Art. Kaves explained that the book served as graffiti bible, and that from that point on he would get commissions to make art. Their eventual demo had tracks produced by Public Enemy member
Professor Griff and a guest appearance by
House of Pain for the song "Baseball Bats and Beers." In 1992, the group appeared and made the background graffiti in House of Pain's music video for the song "
Shamrocks and Shenanigans (Boom Shalock Lock Boom)". Also that year, Dino Cerillo (Bottz), and Paul Nugent (Paulie Two Times) joined. Kaves described his mother as a
hippie who encouraged him and his brother to pursue their interest in hip hop. During this time, on his own at the age of 24, Kaves had worked as a back vocalist for House of Pain, with whom he toured the US and Europe. Also, he opened a shop called BMT Lines where he sold merchandise that promoted Brooklyn artists. In 1995, they released their debut
All in the Family, signed to
American Recordings/Ventrue. They group had to work hard to convince a label to welcome an Italian white group with gangland imagery. Kaves explained that the objective of the album is to take to on a train ride thought Brooklyn, and make an album that give his mother full credit on the support she gave him. Their first single "Saturday Night Fever" is a tribute to Kaves's favourite film by the same name. It generally received favorable reviews. Paola Banchero of
The Wichita Eagle, said there is "more musical twist than most hip-hop", described it as "gritty", and "good to listen while hanging out with the crew".
1996 to 2006: Subsequent releases and start of tattooing career In 1997, they provided some exclusive songs for soundtrack of the film
Gravesend. In 2000, with
Bumpy Knuckles, they released the vinyl EP
The Lordz of Brooklyn Meet Bumpy Knuckles. 2000 also saw the release of the Lordz of Brooklyn cover version of
Run-DMC's hip hop classic "
Sucker M.C.'s" on the tribute album
Take A Bite Outta Rhyme: A Rock Tribute to Rap. Their version featured Stoned Soul and Everlast. Kaves explained that during this time he began his tattooist career, Also that year, Kaves was the cover illustrator of
The Criterion Collection promotional DVD named
Intergalactic DVD Single by the
Beastie Boys. In 2003 they released,
Graffiti Roc. By this time the group consisted of the McLeer brothers as a duo. Their style leaned towards a crossover sound of both hip hop and rock influences. It featured
Busta Rhymes,
Korn,
Rampage, Everlast,
O.C.,
Freddie Foxxx, and
Lord Finesse. Live musicians were added, on guitar (Patrick Saccenti), bass and drums to tour festivals such as
Vans Warped Tour in 2003, 2004 and 2005. In 2006, the group shortened their name to "The Lordz" for the release of the third album
The Brooklyn Way. Featured artists are Everlast,
Bedouin Soundclash, and
Tim Armstrong. In April 2008, The Lordz had their own reality TV show on
Fuse entitled
The Brooklyn Way. The show focused footage Kaves shot over the years focusing on their daily lives. and was nominated for Best Short Narrative at the New Hampshire Film Festival. Also that year, from April to September, some of Kaves's works were exhibited at
The Blackstone Hotel's art floor. In 2011, Kaves made a mural for the walls of the construction site of the Greenwood Beer Garden. The temporary mural had a
The Honeymooners theme and was welcomed by the resident of the neighbourhood. Kaves said " It's the purest form of art,” and it still has an outlaw soul”. That same year, he designed the label of
Georges Duboeuf's wine bottles of
beaujolais nouveau. Also that year, Kaves had his first solo art show at the Hionas Gallery, which was a success with the critics and the collectors. Justin Wolf, a representative of the gallery, said “his art is very mature, distinct, and confident, he is a master at his trade.” In 2012,
Jaguar's Director of Design
Ian Callum hired Kaves to paint a series of cars for the company. Kaves said "I was enlisted to come up with something exciting and spontaneous. I went back to my roots and picked up the spray cans. Seeing the car itself and its great lines, it just inspired me." On painting the
Jaguar XK, he said "it's the first car I've ever done legitimately" and that he "wanted to work with the lines of the car". In 2013, at the Write Of Passage Opening Party, one of the installation was Kaves's tattoo parlour. That same year, he co-authored with Billy Burke the book
Skin Graf: Masters of Graffiti Tattoo, which is about the artistry of both graffiti and tattooing, and the aesthetics that links them together. The book also covers several graffiti artist who became tattooers. During this time he owned a tattoo parlor named Brooklyn Made Tattoo. With the rest of the cast, they won Best Ensemble at the Queens World Film Festival. That year he also painted a mural dedicated to his mother and his sister, on the hit-and-run location. In 2015, Kaves painted the mural
Brooklyn Made. Also, that year
Aston Martin's hired Kaves to do a unique paint job on their new
Aston Martin Vanquish the "Vanquish Volante". According to Kaves,
Marek Reichman their design director “wanted to have an art car, something tattoo-inspired, so he came to me." The car was meant to be auctioned at "The
Art Basel" but sold prior to the event. In 2016, Kaves opened the restaurant "The Brooklyn Firefly" which specializes in pizza, beer, music and art. Kaves said "We wanted to do something that felt homemade, and Bay Ridge is known for having some great pizza, so we wanted to throw our hat into that. We're not reinventing the wheel but we're definitely putting our own neighborhood shine on it.” In 2017, Kaves illustrated the children book
Hip-Hop Alphabet. In 2019, in the artisan-retail space "That Maker Guild", Kaves opened "Mr. Kaves Pigtown Tattoo", which is both a tattoo and graffiti shop. As well as getting a tattoo the visitors can observe the procedure, and buy custom made graffiti. Also that year Kaves illustrated,
Metallica's children book
The ABCs of Metallica. In 2020, with Lordz of Brooklyn, they released a new album
Family Reunion, with the participation of Westerman and Nugent. Also that year, from February 8 to March 8, Kaves's art show "Concrete Cathedrals" was exhibited at Brooklyn Industry City. On the website
Staten Islander describes his canvases to be "featured hand-styled typography, overlapping in many layers forming complex textures, juxtaposed against backgrounds of black, grey, and sepia, with street scenes of Kaves’ home-town, Brooklyn. Media included China markers, acrylic, oil, and spray paint. Canvas sizes ranged in proportions, with dimensions of 48″ x 36″, 59 x 102″, 65″ x 141″, to cite only a few. All were different." In 2021, at
Sean Penn's CORE benefit, during the event Kaves painted a large canvas to be auctioned. Furthermore, he acted in the film
The Many Saints of Newark. Also in 2021, he received 4th place of
Loud News Net top graffiti artists of the 1980s. In 2022, Kaves acted in vignettes for the documentary series ''
Everything's Gonna Be All White.'' Also that year Kaves illustrated,
Grateful Dead's children book
The ABCs of The Grateful Dead. In 2023, Kaves a was guest at the
Porshe Festival in Japan. Also that year at
Sotheby's third hip hop auction for hip-hop's 50th anniversary, Kaves's piece book page from 1985 named
Rock the Bell, which he made in honor of
LL Cool J's
single by the same name, was auctioned. In 2024, with collaborators and assisting artists, Kaves completed and led the mural project
Welcome to Bay Ridge on 86th Street. Neighborhood figures and cultural nods included in the mural are
Albert King, Chef Rawia of Tanoreen,
Chuck Connors,
Saturday Night Fever's
John Travolta and
Karen Lynn Gorney,
Brooklyn Dodgers'
Pee Wee Reese, and the Lordz of Brooklyn. Of the project, Kaves said, “my work is all about the landscape of Brooklyn and the struggle. In that struggle, we made something beautiful and that's how I look at the mural. It's a celebration of Bay Ridge — past, present and future.” On September 28 of that year, “Brooklyn Pop,” an immersive exhibit at Industry City in Sunset Park, opened to celebrate Brooklyn's global influence on culture through art, music, and film. Created by Kaves the 11,000-square-foot exhibit features installations like a subway car honoring
The Warriors and the disco dancefloor from
Saturday Night Fever. Inspired by Kaves's travels and Brooklyn's underdog spirit, the exhibit blends his family's story with the borough's creative legacy. Visitors can explore Brooklyn's cultural history and catch performances of Kaves's play
A Brooklyn Dream. Within his career, Kaves did graphics, illustrations, and logos for
Nike,
Rockstar Games,
WWE, Pony, the musician Everlast,
Mtv,
Adidas, and
Vans Warped Tour. Galleries where his work was exhibited are the MTV Real World: Brooklyn loft, Gunter Sachs Museum of Fine Arts in Germany, The Hard Rock Hotel in San Diego, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. == Artistry ==