Rachel Zoe famously said, “Style is a way to say who you are without having to speak.” Hip-Hop has always been about presence. Rappers and designer fashion have been tight since the 80s. Everyone from Slick Rick and Rakim to Cool C has worn Bally shoes, Benetton, MCM, Fendi, Louis Vuitton and Gucci. During that era, Dapper Dan, a designer out of Harlem, would take designer fabric and create everything from jackets to upholstery for cars, which was popular among the local dealers and rappers. Fast forward to the 90s, Tommy Hilfiger, Girbaud, Nautica and Polo became the gear of choice for hip-hop – I still have my Polo flag sweater.
The 90s brought about change when designers like Tommy Hilfiger began to embrace the hip-hop community. I remember seeing a video of Raekwon walking the runway at a Hilfiger show. Innovators like Russell Simmons saw an opportunity and began to create their own lines. Brands like Phat Farm, Mecca, Karl Kani, Maurice Malone and Enyce appeared – launching what we know now as street wear.
Since then the tide has drastically changed. Though lines such as Supreme, The Hundreds and 10.Deep have carried on the tradition of hip-hop fashion, high end designers like Margiela, Givenchy and Lanvin have also been embraced by the culture like never before. I call it the Kanye Effect. Kanye, in my opinion, single handedly popularized Hip-Hop Couture. His successful collaboration with Louis Vuitton helped usher in a whole new realm of possibilities. Now many lines have started to design clothing geared towards street wear. The fashion houses have embraced hip-hop. Seeing artists like A$AP Rocky, Theophilus London and Azealia Banks sitting front row, or even performing for Karl Lagerfield or Alexander Wang, is proof of that.
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