When Hajar Benjida began photographing exotic dancers around the Atlanta area, she didn't want to take typical images of them performing on stage. Instead, she photographed many of the women at home, including Cleo, who had recently given birth to a baby boy named Andy.

当哈尔本吉达开始在亚特兰大地区拍摄艳舞女郎时，她不想拍典型的她们在舞台上表演的画面。相反，她拍摄了许多在家的女性，包括克里奥，她最近生了个男孩叫安迪。

One of Benjida's striking images is composed like a modern Madonna and Child, with the then new mother cradling her son in her lap, eyes meeting the camera. Her mesh top -- a vintage Jean Paul Gaultier piece with the Mona Lisa gazing out -- is nudged up just high enough for Andy to breastfeed.

本吉达的一幅引人注目的照片就像现代版的《圣母与圣婴》(Madonna and Child)，当时刚做母亲的她把儿子抱在腿上，眼睛对着镜头。她的网眼上衣——让·保罗·高缇耶(Jean Paul Gaultier)的经典作品，上面有蒙娜丽莎(Mona Lisa)的凝视——被推高到刚好够安迪喂奶的高度。

"Sometimes people forget (they) have families outside of the club," Benjida said over a video call. "They just want to glamorize the life, or the performance they've seen on stage."

“有时人们会忘记他们在俱乐部之外还有家人，”本吉达在视频电话中说。“他们只是想美化生活，或者美化他们在舞台上看到的表演。”

The portrait, part of Benjida's series titled "Atlanta Made Us Famous," celebrates the lesser-credited players of the city's famed hip-hop scene, which has been the launching pad for artists from T.I. and Ludacris to Young Thug and Playboi Carti. Through the series, the Dutch photographer, who was working in Atlanta at the time, turned her attention to who she believed to be the real kingmakers of the music industry: the exotic dancers at legendary clubs like Magic City.

这幅肖像是本吉达题为“亚特兰大让我们出名”系列的一部分，颂扬这座城市著名的嘻哈乐坛中名气较小的玩家，这是T.I.、卢达克里斯(Ludacris)、Young Thug和Playboi Carti等艺术家的起落之地。通过这个系列，这位当时在亚特兰大工作的荷兰摄影师将注意力转向了她认为的音乐行业真正的缔造者:魔幻之城(Magic City)等传奇俱乐部的奇异舞者。


Cleo and Andy at home. Credit: Hajar Benjida

呆在家里的克里奥和安迪。 编辑：哈尔本吉达

"They play a really big part (in) the current hits that we hear," Benjida said. "(The songs) get tested out in the clubs. When these women dance to it....the audience goes with it."

本吉达说:“他们在我们听到的当前热门歌曲中扮演了非常重要的角色。”“(歌曲)在俱乐部进行测试。当这些女人随着音乐跳舞....观众会认同的。”

The dancers, considered the "movie stars" of Atlanta, according to Lauren Greenfield's 2015 documentary about Magic City, have the power to make or break a track through their song requests and enthusiasm for new music. Unreleased, unmixed tracks come straight from the studio to the club, and if they fare well, can be propelled straight to radio stations and eventually music charts.

根据劳伦·格林菲尔德(Lauren Greenfield) 2015年关于神奇之城的纪录片，这些舞者被视为亚特兰大的“电影明星”，他们有能力通过自己的歌曲要求和对新音乐的热情创造或打破一条轨道。未发行的、未混合的歌曲直接从录音室传到俱乐部，如果它们表现良好，就可以直接进入广播电台，最终进入音乐排行榜。

"The DJs and the dancers are more like A&Rs," said Diamond, a dancer in Greenfield's documentary, referring to the talent scouts at record labels. "We know what we love to dance to and we know a hit when we hear it."

“dj和舞者更像是艺术与舞者，”戴蒙德说，他是格林菲尔德纪录片中的舞者，指的是唱片公司的星探。“我们知道自己喜欢跟着什么跳舞，我们一听就知道什么是热门歌曲。”

A single frx

一个单独的框架

Benjida took posed portraits of the women backstage or at home with an intimate and soft sensibility. Instead of going for the allure of raw sex appeal or peformance, the dancers often appear relaxed but self-assured, gazing directly at the viewer. One woman holds her twins on her lap, while another lays supine with her hand resting above her pregnant belly.

本吉达带着一种亲密而温柔的感觉在后台或家里为这些女性拍了肖像。舞者们不是追求原始的性感或表演的诱惑，而是看起来轻松而自信，直视观众。一位妇女把她的双胞胎抱在膝盖上，而另一位则仰卧着，手放在怀孕的肚子上。

Cleo lives in Stone Mountain, a suburb outside of the city, and at the time, in 2019, was commuting to work in different clubs during the week. Benjida spent the day with her at home, and though many images were posed, the moment she took the strongest frx was by chance.

克利奥住在该市郊区的石山(Stone Mountain)，当时是2019年，他每周都在不同的俱乐部上班。本吉达和她在家里呆了一天，虽然有很多照片摆了pose，但她拍出最强壮的那张照片的那一刻是偶然的。

"Mid-shoot she was breastfeeding her kid and I asked her for one shot," Benjida said. "I didn't even see the photo right away...so I really had to trust in that one shot."

本吉达说:“拍摄过程中，她在给孩子喂奶，我就给她拍了照。”“我甚至没有马上看到照片……所以我真的必须相信那一声咔嚓。”


Cleo and Andy at home one year later. Credit: Hajar Benjida

一年后在家的克里奥和安迪。 编辑：哈尔本吉达

But seeing the strength in the details -- the similar hairstyles of Cleo and Leonardo's enigmatic famous subject and the Renaissance-like composition, she knew the power of that single frx.

但看到细节中的力量——克里奥和李奥纳多神秘的著名主题相似的发型和文艺复兴式的构图，她知道单一画面的力量。

One year later, she returned to Stone Mountain to photograph the pair again -- this time outside of their home. Like many of the images in "Atlanta Made Us Famous" the portrait radiates a sense of confidence, foregrounding the women who are the backbone of Atlanta's hip-hop scene. Cleo holds Andy on her hip, her ombre orange hair matching the children's McLaren sports car beside them. But here, if you look closely, there's another subtle reminder of her motherhood: two matching orange toy cars tucked inside the platforms of her heels.

一年后，她再次回到石山给这对夫妇拍照——这次是在他们家外面。就像《亚特兰大让我们出名》中的许多照片一样，这张照片散发出一种自信，突出了亚特兰大嘻哈界的骨干女性。克里奥把安迪抱在她的臀部，她浅橙色的头发和旁边孩子们的迈凯轮跑车很相配。但在这里，如果你仔细看，还有另一个微妙的提醒，她的母亲:两个相配的橙色玩具车塞在她的鞋跟里。