Photos: Mr. Carmichael
Story: Evan ‘Evo’ Yates
Art can be celebrated across countless mediums from custom vehicles to graffiti-laden buildings, upscale clothing to detailed tattoos. Broken down to its rawest form, custom car culture is essentially a celebration of an art form where the vehicles are the proverbial canvas. California native and current ATLien, Fennell ‘Ink By Kali’ Cunningham and his HUGLIFE Hooligans represent the next generation of creativity dabbling in all forms of art from his matte black M5 to his tattoo trade.
RIDES: How long have you been into cars?
Kali: I’ve been into car since I was about 15 years old when I bought my first car which was an ’84 Cutlass Supreme.
RIDES: What made you cop the M5? Anything special about the BMW that you like?
Kali: A lot of the people I hang around drive BMW’s so that steered me into the direction of the vehicle. Once I test drove it, I was convinced. It felt as if I were playing a video game.
RIDES: If you had millions on deck, what would be your next three cars you would buy?
Kali: Lamborghini Aventador, Gold Delorean DMC-12 and the “Eleanor” 1967 Mustang Shelby GT500.
RIDES: How long have you been tattooing?
Kali: I’ve been tattooing for about 3 years.
RIDES: How did you get started?
Kali: It was something that was on my bucket list that I ended up picking as a trade because I loved the craft.
RIDES: Being a creative tattoo artist, do you feel it gives you an advantage when customizing your ride(s)?
Kali: It gives me a huge advantage because I am a very visual person without actually having to see it.
RIDES: What exactly is HUGLIFE?
Kali: It’s basically a lifestyle turned into a business. We just promote positivity in every aspect. HUGLIFE is a collective group of creative people spreading positivity each and every day. HUGLIFE basically means “HUG LIFE” – hug it for what it is and don’t stress or worry about things that you cannot control. We have different groups within HUGLIFE; Huglife Cares, Huglife Music, Huglife Marketing & Promotions, Huglife Creative Group, & Huglife Management.
Spec The Technique:
Vehicle: 2001 BMW M5
Performance: 4.9L V8 engine with 94 mm bore, 89 mm stroke, 11:1 compression ratio, double overhead cam, variable valve timing/camshaft and four valves per cylinder done By J & J Auto in Atlanta
Exterior: Matte black wrap with 3m reflective, M power detail in the front grill , M power sport front bumper and half smoked rear tail lights By BBC Motorsports
Interior: All Black Leather
ICE: Two Alpine Type S 12-inch subwoofers in a ported custom box , MTX Thunder 2300 amplifier, Dynamat trunk kit, installed by BBC Motorsports ATL
Wheels/Tires: Accelera phi2 tires zr-19 96y XL , Matte Black Rims installed by J & J Auto in Atlanta
219 14th Street NW
Atlanta GA, 30318
