Mr. Hiroki Nakamura, the creative director and conceptual brain behind the Japanese shoe and clothing brand, Visvim, is the protagonist of streetwear today magazine no. 28. 'Product Fundamentalism' confirms as the title claim of our brand new issue and encapsulates Hiroki's exceptionally strong work ethic; a fundamentalist approach that holds neither religious nor fanatic connotations, but is radicalism based on a love for the product. Hiroki's work bears testimony to the fact that producing apparel items with the utmost meticulousness really adds up in numerous ways. It is a worship of the materials and the processing; something 'genuine' that all producers should share. There's no doubt about it!
Neither is there any doubt that lots of extraordinary cultural accomplishments in history have not been the result of the brainstorms of marketing agents, but have happened organically. In the majority of cases, these manifestations have been the result of a crew of like-minded people who came together to create something fresh and original for no other intention than a mutual love of doing it. This principle undoubtedly adheres to the domain of DIY arts. The Irieginators from Iriedaily, based in Kreuzberg, Berlin, are prime embodiments of this independent spirit and lifestyle. Like many of us they've been through lives' ups and downs but are kept alive by their curiosity and stay nonconformist and different. This year the brand commemorates its 15th anniversary and we took the chance to portray its history and evolution.
DIY, chapter 2: Aaron Rose. Rose's fresh, new DVD, 'Beautiful Losers,' tells the tale of a loose-knit group of American DIY artists and designers who learned their crafts through practice, trial and error, and good old-fashioned innovation. Influenced by the popular underground youth subcultures of the day, such as skateboarding, graffiti, street fashion and independent music, artists like Shepard Fairey, Mark Gonzales, Spike Jonze, Margaret Kilgallen, Mike Mills, Barry McGee, Phil Frost, Chris Johanson, Harmony Korine, and Ed Templeton began to create art that reflected the lifestyles they led, most of 'em without any formal training whatsoever. But eventually their movement inadvertently affected the 'established' art world, as well as the worlds of fashion, music, literature and film….
Ed Templeton, chapter 2. Skateboarding veteran Templeton's not only a protagonist of Aaron Rose's aforementioned DVD, but also of streetwear today issue 28. Editor Laurenzo Taurino talked to the artist, Ed Templeton, about skateboarding, painting, photography and his views on life.
Focus on media: After all those years in the game, hip-hop icon and turntable innovator, Joseph Saddler aka Grandmaster Flash, is still driven by an unstoppable love for music and strikes back with his brand new studio album in 20 years, entitled 'The Bridge: Concept Of A Culture.' For his mature offering, Flash managed to find a balance between fun and seriousness and delivers danceable as well as thought-provoking tracks, composed without the use of any samples. Legendary and up-and coming MCs drop verses over tracks that are balanced between now and vintage sound. There's a lot to gain from our interview with the original 'cut creator.'
Form & fashion: Zaha Hadid, adored for both her academic and practical skills as an architect and professor, internationally acclaimed for pushing the boundaries of design and the first woman to receive the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2004, just released a new collection of futuristic shoe silhouettes in collaboration with Lacoste; limited edition of course.
But of course there are a lot more interesting topics, people and styles in issue 28. As per normal, we have been very open-minded over the past three months; geared up to broaden your horizons with lots of needed and useful information and clues on upcoming freshness. So, get yourself some copies of streetwear today, a.s.a.p.
The Old West may be pure Americana, but that hasn't stopped other cultures from copping its steez, exemplified by the cowboys of Sergio Leone, and those of "Space". For duds by way of Kenya, check out Kilakitu.
Founded by a Vancouverite, Kila's "Kenyan Cowboy" shirts're styled after a classic 1970s Stetson job, but're crafted by Kenyan tailors using secondhand fabrics from Nairobi's bustling markets, then modeled by Kenyans, leading to the site's FAQ "I see African models wearing the shirts, are they just for Africans?"...hopefully that was actually just an AQ. While all shirts have the same cut -- a base fabric spiffed up by a second pattern featured on 1) dual chest pockets, 2) both shoulders, and 3) cuffs, plus pearlized snap buttons -- the range of found fabrics ensures crazy diversity, evident in eye-catchers like the floral lasso-patterned Nyati w/ its dark black accent; the deep-hued blue/red flannel Bata Mzinga, rocking safari-esque khaki patches; and the cream and purple polka-dotted Nyoka, which is Swahili for snake, but demands you call it Plissken. Each shirt's a wholly unique creation and usually made in one size only, but Kila's ensuring stock by promising a new batch of swaddlings every Monday, keeping hope alive for a killer pattern that fits you, as there's no Swahili word for "obese", but there is for "American".
If do-gooding's your thing, you'll find additional comfort in the knowledge that not only does the company provide employment for Kenyans, but also directs a portion of all proceeds to a charity program feeding local students -- if only Space showed the same magnanimousness, they'd be feasting on crunchy ice cream and delicious Tang.
Sign up for updates to see each Monday's launch, and the first 100 to use the code "thrillist10" get $10 off a shirt (limit two per customer) at
A-Trak, the Montreal-born, Brooklyn-based DJ/producer
"Infinity +1 effortlessly melds A-Trak’s hip-hop, house and electro influences into a creative and highly melodic uptempo party-rocking set. Equally at home on headphones as it is in the club, it features A-Trak’s signature scratching prowess, custom edits, and new and exclusive remixes – including his live-string disco remix of Sebastien Tellier’s “Kilometer” that is already being heralded as “remix of the year” by Pedro Winter, among others. Infinity +1 again sets A-Trak at the forefront of electronic music in 2009."
Tracklist: 1. Intro / John Dahlbäck "Sidewalk" 2. KIM "Party Machini" 3. Laurent Wolf "The Crow" 4. Farley Jackmaster Funk "Love Can't Turn Around" (Lifelike Remix) 5. MSTRKRFT feat. N.O.R.E. "Bounce" (A-Trak Remix) 6. Donnis "Party Works" 7. Kid Sister "Life On TV" 8. Sébastien Tellier "Kilometer" (A-Trak Remix) 9. The Golden Filter "Solid Gold" 10. Bag Raiders "Nil By Mouth" (Knightlife Remix) 11. Holy Ghost! "Hold On" 12. DJ Mehdi "Pocket Piano" (Joakim Remix) 13. Midnight Juggernauts "Shadows" 14. Gonzales "Working Together" (Boys Noize Dub Mix) 15. Soundstream "Freakin" 16. Little Boots "Stuck On Repeat" (Fake Blood Remix) 17. Housemeister "What You Want" (Siriusmo Remix) 18. A-Trak "Say Whoa" (DJ Spinna Remix) 19. Dam Funk "Galactic Fun" 20. Alexander Robotnick "Problèmes d'Amour" 21. James Yuill "This Sweet Love" (Prins Thomas Sneaky Edit)
With nearly 40 million albums sold and a business empire that includes clothing, fragrances, the New Jersey Nets, sports bars, liquor, and hotels, Jay-Z has transformed himself into one of the most potent brands in the world
"With education comes refinement," Jay-Z observes late one Friday afternoon. He's lounging on a couch in a studio at the Chelsea Piers Sports and Entertainment complex on the far west side of Manhattan and speaking between nibbles of a takeout salad in a plastic container and sips from a bottle of water. In his everyday speech, as in his raps, Jay-Z is inclined toward aphorisms, the compressed expression of complicated ideas, delivered with rhetorical flair. It's hard-earned wisdom, graced by a poet's touch.
He is relaxing after a typically jam-packed day that included a photo shoot, an interview, and a meeting about his potential involvement in a forthcoming video game. He celebrated his 39th birthday the night before with the staff of his Rocawear clothing line, so a mild fatigue has set in. Slender and six feet three inches tall, Jay-Z is an imposing figure, even in relative repose. He's wearing distressed jeans that hang loosely from the middle of his hips, black sneakers, and a long-sleeved black T-shirt that has replaced the pristine short-sleeved white one he wore before changing for his photo shoot. The look is studiously casual...until you glance at his left wrist and notice a diamond watch so thick it could pass for a weight band.
0904WEALTH_jayz_inline1.jpg The winter sky is growing gray in the bank of windows behind him as the sun sets over the Hudson River. Jay-Z returns to the narrative of what, in the 19th century, would have been called his sentimental education, the education of his emotional life. That journey to refinement began in the rugged Marcy Projects in Brooklyn's Bedford-Stuyvesant district, and now continues in arenas and boardrooms, in posh homes and VIP hideaways, around the world.
Jay-Z feels comfortable in all of these realms. "I've never looked at myself and said that I need to be a certain way to be around a certain sort of people," he explains. "I've always wanted to stay true to myself, and I've managed to do that. People have to accept that. I collect art, and I drink wine...things that I like that I had never been exposed to. But I never said, 'I'm going to buy art to impress this crowd.' That's just ridiculous to me. I don't live my life like that, because how could you be happy with yourself?"
Staying true to yourself might stand as a succinct summary of Jay-Z's philosophy of success. The notion goes back to Shakespeare's "To thine own self be true," and further back than that to the Greeks. But for Jay-Z, it has an urgently contemporary meaning. Even, or perhaps, especially, in recessionary times, amid the thousands of entertainment and lifestyle choices consumers have available to them, what separates winners from losers is a commitment to a single proposition: You are the product. If people believe in you, they will believe in what you create. Jay-Z understands this and is down with it.
By selling nearly 40 million albums and building a business empire that extends far beyond music into clothing, fragrances, the New Jersey Nets, sports bars, liquor, and hotels (to name just a few of his seemingly innumerable investments), Jay-Z has transformed himself into one of the most potent brands in the world. But that brand retains its power only if people remain convinced that the product they are purchasing somehow genuinely reflects Jay-Z and his tastes. As he famously put it in one of his raps, "I'm not a businessman/I'm a business, man."
"My brands are an extension of me," he says. "They're close to me. It's not like running GM, where there's no emotional attachment." The reference is apt, given the government's ongoing potential bailout of two major automobile companies. Jay-Z notes that resonance with a pause and a chuckle.
"My thing is related to who I am as a person," he says. "The clothes are an extension of me. The music is an extension of me. All my businesses are part of the culture, so I have to stay true to whatever I'm feeling at the time, whatever direction I'm heading in. And hopefully, everyone follows."
In conversation, Jay-Z's speech is slower, calmer, and more deliberate than in the propulsive, deep-voiced, and often incendiary raps that have made him a titan in the world of hip-hop, a man whose sales and staying power have elevated him above all but a handful of potential rivals. He's an engaged and animated speaker, quick to touch you in a friendly way to emphasize a point.
But as laid-back and accessible as he seems, he also exudes a calm air of confidence. He doesn't need to be aggressive or impose his will in a ham-fisted manner. Half a dozen people are floating around the studio, ready to read any sign of need or impatience on his part. He's cooperative and congenial in the way that only someone who knows he can immediately put an end to any experience that moves in an unpleasant direction can be. "Jay-Hova," he has called himself, echoing the name of the mighty, vengeful God of the Hebrew Bible. He has anointed himself the "God MC."
But he has also rapped that he "never prayed to God/I prayed to Gotti." Perhaps there is a distinction to be drawn between Jay-Z, the battle MC who to this day engages in raw exchanges with younger rappers looking to take him down, and Shawn Corey Carter, the far-sighted businessman who cofounded his own label, Roc-A-Fella Records, in 1996; who served as president and CEO of Def Jam Records from 2005 to early 2008 and helped launch the careers of Kanye West, Young Jeezy, and Rihanna; who sold his Rocawear clothing line in 2007 for $204 million, while retaining a major stake in the company; and who, following a path blazed by Madonna and U2, forged a $150 million deal last year with the concert-promotion firm Live Nation.
Last summer, Forbes ranked Jay-Z seventh on its "Celebrity 100" list of the ultrafamous and ultrapowerful. The magazine estimated his annual income at $82 million, and other sources have reported his net worth at $350 million. If that doesn't seem enviable enough, last year Jay-Z married Beyonce Knowles, one of the world's most desirable women. It is part of his attitude of ultimate cool that he never publicly talks about her.
Jay-Z moves in exclusive circles of all types. Musicians, actors, designers, politicians, captains of industry, and athletes all want to get next to him. He has developed an easygoing manner that enables him to cross these cultural boundaries in ways that make him seem accessible but still dignified, always aware of who he is. "I'm a mirror," he says. "If you're cool with me, I'm cool with you, and the exchange starts. What you see is what you reflect. If you don't like what you see, then you've done something. If I'm standoffish, that's because you are."
Occasionally, stereotypes rear their heads and uncomfortable situations arise. "It's hilarious a lot of times," he says. "You have a conversation with someone, and he's like, 'You speak so well!' I'm like, 'What do you mean? Do you understand that's an insult?' "
Growing up, however, Shawn Carter was far from the likeliest candidate for this sort of mind-boggling success. He was always recognized as bright--even today, the first word anyone who meets Jay-Z invariably uses to describe him is smart--and in the sixth grade, he tested at 12th-grade levels. But the Marcy Projects in Brooklyn were overrun by drugs and violence in the '80s. His father left the family when Carter was 11, and his mother had to raise him, his older brother, and his two older sisters. When he was 12, Carter shot his brother for stealing his jewelry. (They have since reconciled.) Carter attended high school with fellow Brooklynites the Notorious B.I.G. and Busta Rhymes, but dropped out to deal drugs in a region that extended from Brooklyn to Maryland and Virginia--as he details in his music--and to dabble in the still-nascent hip-hop game.
Along with the dealers who ran the neighborhood around the Marcy Projects, Jay-Z remembers identifying sports figures as his first models of success. "Growing up where I grew up, we looked to athletes," he recalls. "They were our first heroes. They came from the same places we came from. I mean, you can't watch TV and see someone who is successful that you can really relate to. That person isn't real, he doesn't exist. But athletes traveled the world, had these big houses, and gave their families a better life. We were like, 'Wow, that's really cool.' These guys get paid millions of dollars to play the game they love."
Around the same time that he began to identify with athletes, Carter experienced another revelation: hip-hop. He began writing nonstop in notebooks, keeping his mother and siblings awake at night as he pounded the kitchen table to create beats. He hooked up with local rapper Jaz-O, who brought him to England when he toured there. Carter recorded with Jaz-O and also with Big Daddy Kane. But despite the acknowledgment of his skills (and his growing anxiety that either violence or the law would eventually catch up with him on the streets), Carter was reluctant to give up dealing. He was rolling in a Lexus and making more money, as far as he could tell, than most rappers.
Still, he decided to take the plunge, but no record company was willing to offer him a contract. So with two partners, Carter formed Roc-A-Fella Records, and, in 1996, released his debut album, Reasonable Doubt, which established him as a major figure on the hip-hop scene. It was a heady moment, but Jay-Z barely realized it at the time. "I was naive," he recalls. "I made that album to impress my friends, so they would say, 'Oh, wow, look what you did!' It was my first album on the label that we owned. I was like, 'Okay, what happens now?' "
What happened was that Jay-Z left drug dealing behind and began to build his empire, moving steadily from "grams to Grammys" as he puts it in one song. But the process wasn't easy. The treachery of life on the streets, where he faced bullets at close range, turned out to be nothing compared with what he would encounter in the upper echelons of the music business. "I come from a world that's completely different from the music industry, and it wasn't recognizable to me at all," he says. "I come from a place where you had to keep your word, where people would stick with you no matter what. That's impossible in the music business, where if you're not hot, people are not talking to you. I just tried to be a man of my word."
The choice of Roc-A-Fella as his label's name would prove telling. On one hand, it's standard hip-hop braggadocio to establish a connection between a fledgling rapper and one of the richest and most powerful families in American history. But it also suggested the means through which Jay-Z would eventually establish his own business empire. The Rockefeller family and other 19th-century industrialists established a monopolistic hold on all aspects of the goods they produced. If you owned the mines that produced coal, for example, you also bought the railroads that transported it, the refineries that prepared it for market, and the utilities that provided its end product to the general population.
As Jay-Z's career has progressed in the past dozen years, he has sought to establish a similar hold on the lifestyle market for which his music provides the soundtrack, and in which he stands as the ideal model to emulate. Rather than providing anything as tangible as coal or oil, Jay-Z, through his myriad branded investments, manufactures a way of being that makes it at least theoretically possible to never leave the world of his products. You can enjoy his music while sporting Rocawear clothing (estimated as doing $700 million a year in business), wearing one of his fragrances, and sipping his Ace of Spades champagne. You can attend his concert and end the night at one of his 40/40 nightclubs. His videos, DVDs, and CD booklets provide free exposure for all of his products, all of which, in turn, enhance every other aspect of the Jay-Z brand.
The question then becomes how, with all this marketing and glossy brand extension, does Jay-Z maintain the credibility in the hip-hop world that made him such a marketable star in the first place? "We are excited to partner with an industry giant such as Elizabeth Arden," Jay-Z declared in the press release announcing his fragrance line, which made its debut last year. No matter how deeply you've absorbed the potency of Jay-Z's mainstream reach, that sentence still makes you do a double take. This is the man who took the film American Gangster as the inspiration for his most recent album? Jigga what?
But Jay-Z believes deeply in the aspirational power of hip-hop, the notion that the music's truest fans want to see their heroes succeed and want to emulate them. He draws a sharp distinction between hip-hop and rock 'n' roll, whose stars have often expressed disdain for business and success. "I noticed that difference early on, like if you were successful in rock 'n' roll, that was a really bad thing," Jay-Z says with a laugh. "You almost had to hide it. You had these guys selling 200 million records with dirty T-shirts on. I was like, 'Come on, man. Come on. We know you're successful.'
"Hip-hop is more about attaining wealth," he continues. "People respect success. They respect big. They don't even have to like your music. If you're big enough, people are drawn to you."
Consequently, any discussion of credibility, or keeping it real, elicits a response of disbelief from him. "That's an insecure emotion," he explains. "You make your first album, you make some money, and you feel like you still have to show face, like 'I still go to the projects.' I'm like, why? Your job is to inspire people from your neighborhood to get out. You grew up there. What makes you think it's so cool?"
Of course, Jay-Z has not been immune to those insecurities himself. In 1999, he was arrested for stabbing a record executive in a New York club, and in 2001, he was charged with possession of a loaded handgun. Against his lawyer's advice, he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge in the stabbing case and was sentenced to three years' probation. The gun charge was dropped.
It's generally thought that those brushes with potential incarceration cured Jay-Z of the need to prove that he could still live the thug life. He has rapped about both of those arrests ("Put that knife in ya/Take a little bit of life from ya/Am I frightenin' ya?"), but has shown no further inclination to transform his words into deeds that would put an end to the extraordinary life he has created for himself. In fact, quite the opposite. He has been baited relentlessly by other rappers--Nas, to cite just one example, taunted "Gay-Z" for his "dick-suckin' lips"--and has responded in kind, but only in song. In real life, he has taken steps to ease those rivalries and ensure that tragedies such as the killings of Tupac Shakur and the Notorious B.I.G. never happen again.
That's because too much is at stake now, far more than money or bling. At 39, Jay-Z is old enough to think about the cultural impact that hip-hop has already had, and the critical role he has played in it. "Hip-hop has done so much for racial relations, and I don't think it's given the proper credit," he says. "It has changed America immensely. I'm going to make a very bold statement: Hip-hop has done more than any leader, politician, or anyone to improve race relations.
"I'll explain why I say that," he continues. "Racism is taught in the home. We agree on that? Well, it's very hard to teach racism to a teenager who's listening to rap music and who idolizes, say, Snoop Dogg. It's hard to say, 'That guy is less than you.' The kid is like, 'I like that guy, he's cool. How is he less than me?' That's why this generation is the least racist generation ever. You see it all the time. Go to any club. People are intermingling, hanging out, having fun, enjoying the same music. Hip-hop is not just in the Bronx anymore. It's worldwide. Everywhere you go, people are listening to hip-hop and partying together. Hip-hop has done that." He pauses, as if marveling at the idea, and then repeats it for emphasis: "Hip-hop has done that."
Something else that hip-hop has done, in Jay-Z's view, is help to elect Barack Obama. "Rosa Parks sat so Martin Luther King could walk, and Martin walked so Obama could run," Jay-Z told a concert audience in the crucial swing state of Ohio shortly before the November election. "Obama is running so we all can fly, so let's fly." He recorded a get-out-the-vote message for robo calls to African-American voters during the primaries. Perhaps even more extraordinarily, after a particularly heated primary debate, Obama brushed off Hillary Clinton's attacks with a gesture of wiping lint off the shoulders of his suit, and hip observers recognized an unmistakable reference to Jay-Z's song, "Dirt Off Your Shoulder."
Jay-Z's eyes widen as he recalls that moment. "I felt like, man, what time are we living in, where a presidential nominee is making reference to a rapper?" he says. "What a beautiful place we've come to. Growing up, politics never trickled down to the areas we come from. But people from Obama's camp, and Obama himself, reached out to me and asked for my help on the campaign. We've sat and had dinner, and we've spoken on the phone. He's a very sharp guy. Very charming. Very cool.
"It's surreal," continues Jay-Z. "I couldn't imagine anything like that could happen. I didn't vote until I was an older adult. I didn't think I would ever vote, because it didn't matter who was in office. The situation never changed where we lived. Our voices weren't heard."
Jay-Z walks idly around the studio as crew members break down the set for his photo shoot. He's rapping along with a hip-hop track that's blasting in the room. When the sound system abruptly shuts off, Jay-Z continues rapping and moving to the music, like Wile E. Coyote in the moment before he looks down and realizes that he has run off the cliff. Jay-Z catches himself, looks around the room in mock surprise, and laughs. It's the sort of self-deprecating gesture he's good at, acknowledging that all eyes are on him, but humorously taking the edge off whatever intimidation factor his presence might have.
That's a quality he brings into the boardroom as well. He's far from just a figurehead or a media front man. He takes his businesses as seriously as his artistry, and he goes at both with the same level of determination. He's clear about his own views, willing to listen to others, eager to keep everybody loose and motivated, and far more interested in long-term strategy than short-term gain. Even in the current economic environment, which is challenging to say the least, he's insistent on executing his game plan rather than making changes that might not ultimately be right for his brands.
"He's smart as hell," says Neil Cole, chairman and CEO of the Iconix Brand Group, the company that bought Rocawear two years ago for more than $200 million. "He understands himself as a brand, and it's incredibly well thought out. We meet every week, and there's nothing impulsive about him. He's very consistent, and he won't settle. If something's not right, he's not going to do it for more money. He'll wait to get it right. He has a wonderful taste level about where he wants to take the brand. . .and himself."
Michael Rapino, the president and CEO of Live Nation, echoes Cole's assessment of Jay-Z. "In meeting with superstars about potential deals, there are some who spit out 'How much can I get?' and the meeting is over, because you know you're starting out on the wrong basis," he says. "When we sat down with Jay-Z, 'How much money are you going to pay me?' came up in maybe the seventh conversation. The first conversation was, 'Can we change the business together?'
"Right there, we knew we had a common agenda," continues Rapino. "It was like, 'I'm hungry. The business is changing. I'm a change agent, and I have a lot of years left.' Then the creativity flows. You don't become the best in the world at what you do, and then flip the off switch. Jay-Z wants to win. And for him it's also about the integrity of the win. He's a true partner, always looking for the win-win. He's asking, 'How do we win together?' "
Indeed, part of the refinement Jay-Z has attained entails that big-picture vision of success. It's a vision that extends beyond business and beyond music. It's about what makes your life meaningful, and it goes beyond lifestyle to a way of life. "I'm hungry for knowledge," says Jay-Z. "The whole thing is to learn every day, to get brighter and brighter. That's what this world is about. You look at someone like Gandhi, and he glowed. Martin Luther King glowed. Muhammad Ali glows. I think that's from being bright all the time, and trying to be brighter.
"That's what you should be doing your whole time on the planet," he concludes. "Then you feel like, 'My life is worth everything. And yours is too.' "
A unique belt represents a great opportunity to add distinction to your wardrobe. The Honeycomber Leather Belt ($50) is a laser etched 9oz belt made from American cowhide and hand-stained with a protective coating for water resistance and longevity. The brass buckle is removable for those with a buckle collection. A limited run of only 25 bee-tastic belts will be produced. Ignore the yellow handkerchief.
Crazy NYC $hopping Event : CLAWmoney $ample $ale!! BEATS AND BRANDS Friday. APRIL 17th, 2009 8 PM - 12 AM 601 West 26th Street Floor 2M Suite M227 One day only ! We are slashing our prices, seriously... ClawMoney - Both Mens and Womens collection jackets $100 all tees $20 sweats $50 eyewear $150 pillows $70 Join us as we bring you NYC's ILLEST Designers and Dj's for a night of DESIGNERS, DEALS, DRINKS and DANCING.
Hosted by: aroundthewaygirls.net, Lioness, Supreme Queens, The Fresh Fiends and Nfmstylez
NI**SKY DJ STEALTH RADIO ROSE SURE SHOT 8 PM - 12 AM Open Ciroc Vodka Bar - the whole night! 601 West 26th Street Floor 2M Suite M227 rsvp to events@nastyonesnyc.com See you there, care bear....
The Nike Bruin was one of the first low-top basketball shoes developed by Nike in 1972. It featured a plain upper with the Nike Swoosh on the side while the outsole had a classic herringbone design for added traction.
This week, Supreme will release an updated version of the classic Nike Bruin. Additionally, a Twill Pullover Jacket in three colors will also be released.
Available in NY & LA on Thursday, April 16th and online on Monday, April 20th. Available in Japan on Saturday, April 18th.
Get them @ SUPREME by clicking on the title of the post.
Copy's an OC-based tops-and-bottoms line from a former Perry Ellis/Gotcha guy, who claims a pervasive vintage 90s influence on his mostly limited-edition gear, but in reality, the stuff's so charmingly unfocused that...man, hot dogs make great lunches. Enzyme-washed, super-soft tees are resolutely all over the map, with everything from a simple, thick-striped v-neck, to a digitally printed greyscale moonscape (also available in a hippied-out splash of color), to a face composed of two different eyes, a mouth made of rectangles, and a plus-sign nose -- clearly waiting till it's 18 to get an operation for a greater-than. Other gear's equally rando: a pocketed, plaid button up, a slew of colorful tank tops, and an all-black short-sleeve hoodie, for making all your robberies armed ones.
The new drop's also got Copy's first couple pairs of jeans, one a fairly straight-forward five-pocket affair, the other with extra zippers at the hip, because no matter how ADD a man is, he's always able to buckle down and concentrate on one thing -- facilitating people getting into his pants.
British artist Damien Hirst was born in 1965 in Bristol, England. During the 1990s Hirst was known as a wild child in the art world and his work embodied both everyday realism and provocative sensationalism. Known for his ironic wit and cultural commentary, Hirst often explores the theme of mortality through a variety of mediums and techniques from installation work, to painting and sculpture.A series utilizing preserved dead animals suspended in formaldehyde (including a shark, a sheep and a cow) catapulted Hirst to fame amidst controversy. The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living, a 14-foot tiger shark immersed in a glassed display case of formaldehyde became the iconic work of British art in the 1990s. Its sale in 2004 made Hirst the world's second most expensive living artist after Jasper Johns.
Hirst is also known for his Spin paintings made at random on a spinning circular surface, and his now iconic, graphic Spot paintings that depict rows of randomly-colored circles. This week, Supreme will release a series of three decks designed by Damien Hirst featuring his Spin paintings. The decks will be released in-store and online on Thursday, April 2nd. Available in Japan on Saturday, April 4th. Damien Hirst Video This week, Supreme will release a series of three decks designed by Damien Hirst featuring his Spin paintings. British artist Damien Hirst was born in 1965 in Bristol, England. During the 1990s Hirst was known as a wild child in the art world and his work embodied both everyday realism and provocative sensationalism. Known for his ironic wit and cultural commentary, Hirst often explores the theme of mortality through a variety of mediums and techniques from installation work, to painting and sculpture.A series utilizing preserved dead animals suspended in formaldehyde (including a shark, a sheep and a cow) catapulted Hirst to fame amidst controversy. The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living, a 14-foot tiger shark immersed in a glassed display case of formaldehyde became the iconic work of British art in the 1990s. Its sale in 2004 made Hirst the world's second most expensive living artist after Jasper Johns.
Hirst is also known for his Spin paintings made at random on a spinning circular surface, and his now iconic, graphic Spot paintings that depict rows of randomly-colored circles. This week, Supreme will release a series of three decks designed by Damien Hirst featuring his Spin paintings. The decks will be released in-store and online on Thursday, April 2nd. Available in Japan on Saturday, April 4th. Damien Hirst Video This week, Supreme will release a series of three decks designed by Damien Hirst featuring his Spin paintings.
Check out this creative new book a collection with images of clean prospective walls to tag, graffiti and write up on. We guess it’s a safer, less vandalizing way to write your thoughts and design expressions.
Don’t know what Parallèle 45 means, don’t really care. This is one of the greatest, easiest-to-find, most viscerally satisfying values in the world of alcohol.
Dumped by Def Jam following her failed attempt to crack the American market, Lady Sovereign returns to Britain to find her lippy, dimwit banter outpaced by cultural turnover.
This kind of observational demotic has been done with more wit and care by Lily Allen and Kate Nash, and that affected, brat-speak delivery has long since become dated. The main problem is that the appealing chorus of the album opener, "Let's Be Mates" – "I'm weird, and you're weird, let's be mates" – is belied in lazy raps that actually celebrate her lack of any idiosyncratic charm or weirdness. In "Pennies", she moans about getting ripped off; "Food Play" recycles grub-based sexual clichés that are far less amusing than she imagines; and in "Guitar", she reacts to her inability to master this democratic instrument with infantile petulance. Face? Bovvered? If it wasn't already clear that she was suffering the classic inferiority complex of a school dropout, "Student Union" offers her opinion that "it was crap at the student uni bar". With such Wildean ripostes, how can she fail? Sadly, time abroad has also decoupled her musically – when the most potent backing on your album is the Cure sample in "So Human", it's time for a rethink. Maybe she should have stayed in America and learned from the more interesting M.I.A. and Santogold.
YUBZ (Why You Busy?) is on a mission to design something unique and functional for busy people like you and me. Our goal is to help people enjoy every moment of their lives by making everyday necessities attractive, fun and useful. Life is too short, don't let everyday mundane routines bore your again!
YUBZ started working on novelty ideas back in the year 2000, our design team shares a common dedication to provide design, innovation and fun to daily products we often take for granted. Our goal is to enrich your lifestyle by pushing common products to evolve beyond its initial function.
YUBZ TALK With mobile phone design and styles changing at breakneck pace these days, people have forgotten what it was like to have a real phone conversation with traditional handsets that were designed with comfort and health in mind. Luckily the YUBZ team has not forgotten, so by giving homage to this historical time proven design, the YUBZ headset was born - a unique product that comes in several models which can connect to mobile phones, Bluetooth paring with mobile phones, and USB ports for laptops (for internet based communication). Timeless, functional, comfortable and a pure joy to use!
We Care For Your Health: Experts have sited frequent use of mobile phones can have various negative health effects to the brain. Using handsets like the YUBZ TALK can keep your head at a distance from your phone as well as having the benefit of additional comfort. Why take the risk? And why not have fun at the same time!
It is a bi-annual arts festival in Charleston, SC put on every Spring and Fall. It is co-produced by three local entities: Suite Sole Sneaker Boutique, Charleston's Most Unique Magazine, and (Artist/Curator) Scott Debus. Our goal is to bring a new vision for local art, dance and music by combining traditional/conservative forms of display with more contemporary/modern designs to complete the thought of our theme "Kulture Klash". We seek out the most interesting local and regional artists, mesmerizing dancers and body shaking musicians that we can find to bring something unexpected and unforgettable to the Holy City.
How many people attend Kulture Klash?
Since the first installment in November of 2007, KK has grown at a steady pace. Our first event drew in almost 800 people, the second event attracted 1300, and KK3 pulled in an astounding 2300 (in the rain!). For this fourth event we anticipate a crowd upwards of 3000+. There is plenty of parking adjacent to the new venue.
What is the festival like?
Our new 40,000 square foot venue in the Navy Yard is only a block from our previous venue (we have outgrown). This huge new space offers unlimited wall space for hanging art from over 50 different artists as well as multiple small installation rooms for performances, intimate music and poetry, and silent documentary screenings. Performances should include a live ice sculpture demonstration, a recycled fashion collaboration and a Brazilian percussion dance.
30,000 square feet of fenced outdoor space allows our attendees to enjoy the beautiful spring weather while relaxing in the beer garden during any of our 6 musical performances on the outdoor main stage. Food vendors (Mellow Mushroom and Diggity Doughnuts among others) will be on site to offer a diverse selection of walkable food items to feed hungry bellies.
Our Spring event always coincides with Earth Day, so KK4 will be incorporating only re-usable and compostable materials for beverages and requires all food vendors to use compostable or recycled/recyclable plates, napkins and flatware.
Who attends Kulture Klash?
Our event crowd consists of diverse ages ranging from children to grandparents, and they all have a great time. Our main age ranges from 18-40 combining college students, young professionals, artists, the f&b crowd and all others with creative, forward thinking minds. Most are earth-friendly and looking for a fresh approach to the arts. They are also interested in seeing new things, meeting new people and letting their hair down in a typically conservative Southern town.
Top to Bottom: Black & White T-shirts, Alife store exclusive; T-Shirt Detail, black; ALIFE Puma First Round Details, a) woven label, b) inside tongue branding, c) lateral branding; White ALIFE Puma First Round, a) view from the right, b) view form the left, c) view from the back; Black ALIFE Puma First Round, a) view from the right, b) view form the left, c) view from the back; ALIFE Puma First Round Detail, alife-branded footbed; ALIFE Puma First Round Lace bag, 10 pairs of laces. ALIFE NYC 158 Rivington Street, New York, NY 10002 - TEL: (212) 375 8116 Monday - Friday: 11AM - 7PM Saturday: 11AM - 8PM Sunday: 12 NOON - 7PM ALIFE LA 451 N. Fairfax Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90036 - TEL: (323) 655 2093 Monday - Friday: 11AM - 7PM Saturday: 11AM - 8PM Sunday: 12 NOON - 7PM ALIFE VANCOUVER 350 Water Street, Vancouver, B.C. V6B 1E5 - TEL: (604) 685 6400 Monday - Saturday: 11AM - 7PM Sunday: 12 NOON - 5PM
Straight out of the Lower East Side of NYC. I always have had great visions in my head and sketched on paper but had never implemented them so I figured why not share it with the world via 100% personalized, limited edition t-shirts brought forward on the softest, most luxurious cotton available. There has not been in the past, is not at this time, and never will be another product available comparable to this. The name and the vision came from the idea that everything of vibrant color, culture and life could be associated with being DIPT NYC. Think ice cream, kotton kandy, blazing summer colors, gumballs, candy, and most importantly personality and life. The pillars of DIPT NYC are originality and individuality. Do what ya like and do what ya feel? Be yourself. Who cares what anyone else thinks! Do you and let me do me! This is the inspiration and life I live: music, film, passion, art, design, diversity, culture and everyday people. DIPT NYC is not to be defined to a single defined market, demographic or race. If you like it, cop it and rock it with respect. My vision is that DIPT NYC will meld all races and cultures together in harmony to bring forth an undeniable revolution in the streets. With this being said I present DIPT NYC:
"A REVOLUTION OF PERSONAL EXPRESSION" Stay Frosty and DIPT NYC!
Posts
