Posts Tagged ‘INTERVIEW’
Inside Supreme – Anatomy of a Global Streetwear Cult Part II
January 11th, 2012 / No Comments » / by Staff
Here is the second part to the, The Business of Fashion’s Inside Supreme article featured here. You can read part 2 here as well as part 1 here in their entirety. An excerpt can be seen below.
NEW YORK, United States — The mythology behind legendary New York streetwear brand Supreme is so potent, it’s easy to imagine founder James Jebbia as a king pin of downtown Manhattan. But as he will be the first to tell you, that couldn’t be farther from the truth.
In fact, Supreme’s core creative and business philosophies are the sum of Jebbia’s patchwork retail past; not, as one might assume, a storied legacy in skateboarding. His resume reads like a series of interconnected Google-map pins on a late-80s and early-90s SoHo New York. A British-transplant who arrived in New York around 1984, Jebbia got a job working at the now-defunct Parachute clothing store in SoHo.
“I didn’t know what I was doing, but I knew I enjoyed clothes,” he says. He quit five years later to open, along with his girlfriend at the time, a small flea market on Wooster Street inspired by the myriad of stuff he coveted from The Face and i-D magazines. The project evolved into his first proper store, Union, an experimental shop on Spring Street that carried “mostly English brands” and one very important streetwear juggernaut at the time by the name of Stüssy. This allowed Jebbia to work with Shawn Stüssy, who asked him to partner with him to open one of his eponymous boutiques on Prince Street in 1991.
When Stüssy left the business, Jebbia opened up Supreme in 1994 in a small storefront on Lafayette, a then-desolate street that was a perfect place for his clientele to skate first, shop second – an order that would very quickly be reversed. “I opened Supreme because there were no other decent skate shops around at the time,” Jebbia says. “I thought, cool, I might as well be the one to do it.”
The store was able to become the holy grail of high youth street culture by curating a mix of the city’s iconography – fashion, music, celebrity and politics – within its walls and then instantly sledge-hammering the city’s high-low playing field.
Limited-edition Damien Hirst skateboards are around the same price as decks featuring lyrics from Public Enemy; custom Spalding basketballs might be sold under the artist Nate Lowman’s gritty canvases hanging on the wall. The brand’s iconic T-shirts, like everything in the store, have become collector’s items that are collages of controversial provocations and heady imagery. Designs have included an oversized New York Times logo, a portrait of Kate Moss, lyrics from the reggae musician Lee “Scratch” Perry, Mickey Mouse’s hands praying with rosary beads, Budweiser labels, and alarmist political slogans such as “Illegal business controls America.”
Source: Hypebeast
GQ Interviews Nick Wooster
October 18th, 2011 / No Comments » / by Staff
Nick Wooster recently sat down with Gentleman Quarterly, to talk about his daily life, fashion, blogs and his infamous mustache. Check out a portion of the interview below with the full interview available at GQ.
GQ: Do tastemakers and editorial outlets dictate the direction of fashion? Or do the designers and brands?
Nick Wooster: I think one can’t work without the other, each side needs the other. There are some people who feel that bloggers have been given too much prominence or that designers have sort of dictated the terms for far too long.GQ: Who’s right in Nick Wooster’s eyes?
Nick Wooster: Well, here’s the thing: Change is painful. Bloggers and stores and publications and brands and houses all need to sort of take a deep breath and relax because no one is going away. The brands aren’t going away. The designers, bloggers, publications aren’t going away.GQ: Stores like Uniqlo and H&M have been killing it sales-wise. But you’ve typically worked for companies that specialize in very upscale, expensive clothing. It that frustrating at all?
Nick Wooster: No. To me it’s amazing. There’s so much great stuff at every price. But the problem is that so many people spend so much money unnecessarily because they’re insecure about things. They feel that if they spend thousands of dollars on something they’re somehow going to be better dressed. When the reality is, you don’t have to spend billions of dollars on things in order to be well-dressed. It has to come from inside. I know that I spend money for reasons of insecurity, whatever it might be. But I also happen to love things that are expensive, and buy them simply because I love them. I think that good, great things can come at every price. I’m wearing a suit by J.Crew and I love it because of what it represents. It represents the opportunity for a wider audience to experience something with beautiful fabric, etc. The taste is right, the cut is great and if it meant the difference between a 24-year-old guy being able to look well put-together it’s great. I wear Uniqlo, love Uniqlo. Those cashmere sweaters at $99 are great. When I meet young guys that I help out and buy them a first suit for an interview, that’s where I take them. I know they can get a great flannel suit and it doesn’t cost them $3,000. I think that’s part of my obligation.GQ: So, you’re from a little town in Kansas.
Nick Wooster: Yep, Salina, KansasGQ: I would have never guessed that. What are some of the other misconceptions that you think people have of you?
Nick Wooster: Well, I went through a Billy Idol phase. I had white hair when Peter Rizzo hired me at Barneys.GQ: Did you have the moustache then or no?
Nick Wooster: No, no, no. Hair-wise, I wanted to look like Anderson Cooper. Before I moved back to New York, a barber suggested it. If it’s a signature or a trademark, okay. Last summer I did shave it off and I felt completely naked.GQ: What’s one non-fashion-related thing that you’re good at?
Nick Wooster: Smoking.
The Talks: Interview with Tom Ford
July 20th, 2011 / No Comments » / by Staff
Tom Ford recently was interviewed by The Talks to talk about his personal life, fashion and inspirations. Check out a small portion of the interview below, with the rest of the interview available here.
Mr. Ford, have you had a midlife crisis?
Yes. Leaving Gucci was devastating for me. Devastating because I had really put everything into that for fifteen years and all of a sudden I had no identity. “Who am I? What am I doing? I have no forum to speak to anyone anymore or to convey my thoughts or ideas.” Maybe I drank a little too much – living in London that’s a very easy thing to do. The emphasis in my life maybe switched to things that were not the important things. So yeah, I had a bit of a midlife crisis. I wish there was a better term for that. It comes to everybody, maybe in your thirties, maybe in your forties, maybe in your sixties or seventies, who knows. You get to the moment where you feel the clock is ticking and you are wondering if you are really getting the most out of your life.
If you have everything in life it is easier to lose yourself, it seems.
And if you do have everything it is also easier to understand that those are not the important things. Unfortunately a lot of people don’t get to that point. They spend their lives striving and still don’t learn those lessons. Other people figure it out at age twenty and they’re completely balanced and together and understand how to keep things in check from an early age.
How would you describe your current state of mind?
I feel that I don’t need anything for a good life. I grew up in New Mexico and the older I get I have less need for contemporary culture and big cities and all the stuff we are bombarded with. I am happier at my ranch in the middle of nowhere watching a bug carry leaves across the grass, listening to silence, riding my horse, and being in open space. So I have some sort of security that if I lost everything in my life, I would be very happy with the simple things because they are the ones that are important.
So the glamour you stand for doesn’t interest you?
After just being in New Mexico for two months, I realized that I could really work from anywhere. I am really a loner after all; I am really not a social person. Because of my job people think I am out every night, but I really hate all that. I am somebody who likes to be alone and see some close friends. I am a shy and introspective person.
Do you get the most inspiration from nature? It is the ultimate beauty, after all.
Yes, nature is the closest thing to God and I don’t mean God by any sort of religion but by the connection to the universe, which I think we have lost. The American Indians had that and where I live is actually the center of the Anasazi Indian civilization. I even have two huge Anasazi ruins on the property of my ranch. I am not saying that there definitely is some sort of spirituality coming from there, but there might be. When you are close to the earth and you get up when the sun comes up and you go to sleep when it goes down, it puts everything in perspective.
Really?
Yes, all the rest of this crap just fades away. We’ve lost our contact with the earth. Dogs don’t have guilt, dogs don’t have insecurity complexes, dogs don’t think that they need a bigger house than the other dog. Dogs are just completely themselves. They’re very in touch, they’re not thinking about their death. They are just rolling on their back, enjoying what that feels like. I think that is sort of the appeal of animals in our lives; that is what’s important.
Are you a spiritual person?
I am a spiritual person in an eastern religion kind of way. I learned that happiness for all of us is a switch that you flick in your brain. It doesn’t have anything to do with getting a new house, a new car, a new girlfriend, or a new pair of shoes. Our culture is very much about that; we are never happy with what we have today. We always think that we need something else to be happy.
Mac Miller Interview With Nardwuar
July 14th, 2011 / No Comments » / by Staff
Mac Miller sat down with Nardwuar to talk about his roots and how he has made to the situation he is in today.
Curren$y x DrozDailySteezin Interview (Video)
July 13th, 2011 / No Comments » / by Staff
Curren$y sat down with DrozDailySteezin TV to talk about cartoon characters, smoking with Jessica Alba and Britney Spears, and much more. Check it out.
Source: ImFlashy
Diggy Simmons Interview With KLTV (Video)
July 12th, 2011 / No Comments » / by Staff
Diggy Simmons recently sat down with Karma Loop TV to talk about his new album, what it was like performing at the BET awards, and his new sneaker line. Check it.
Source: OnSmash
Tim Westwood Interviews Tyler, The Creator (Video)
July 12th, 2011 / No Comments » / by Staff
While Tyler, The Creator was performing in London, Tim Westwood got a chance to talk to the artist. Random to say the least, the conversation goes in many directions. Check it.
RESPECT. MAG Interviews Tyler, the Creator
July 11th, 2011 / No Comments » / by Staff
Respect. MAG recently got a hold of Odd Future creator, Tyler, The Creator. The magazine covers important topics like how OF was started, Tylers personal background and his lifestyle along with other cool things about OF we didnt know.
How’d you come up with the Odd Future concept?
It was supposed to be a magazine, at first, in my sophomore year. But what 15-year-old do you know—from a single parent—who’s gonna make enough funds with no job to really do a magazine? But it was supposed to be a magazine that sponsored artists. It was me, Left Brain and Hodgy. I like keeping shit in-house. I wanted my friends to be the ones taking the pictures of the people I’d interview, which were my friends who were skateboarders. I’d make advertisements to go in there instead of getting ads from some clothing line.But when did you take it seriously, the idea that you could be a rap star?
I knew it was gonna happen. I been rapping since I was 7—in 1998. I always knew I’d be great. I just didn’t know it would happen this quick. I thought I’d be 26, finally getting a deal. I signed that shit and I was 19 with a history already, so I’m doing pretty good. I was always into music.What were some of the MCs and artists who influenced you the most?
The Black Eyed Peas’ first album, Eminem, Dr. Dre’s 2001 record. I thought I was Usher at one point—not gon’ front. My Way was a tight album. The video with Tyrese? The fuckin’ “My Way” video where they dancing and shit? I could do that whole muthafuckin’ dance. I liked music, it wasn’t just rap—
music in general. I didn’t know how to play piano ’til [I was] about 13, after I seen Pharrell play during the Clones DVD. I’m a big Neptunes fan, like, die-hard. Name a date—I know when it came out, how many tracks, how long they are. But when I seen him play that piano, I was like, That is the coolest shit ever. I was like, I need to learn how to fuckin’ play piano. My mom never wanted to give me lessons, so I taught myself to play.But your mother was still supportive, right?
She bought me a keyboard when I was 14. At first I was just playin’ with four fingers, until I learned and taught myself chords. I still can’t read music to this day, still can’t even tell you what chord I’m playing, I just know. It was one summer where I printed [OutKast’s] The Love Below, all the notes, and I tried to learn ’em. I got to “She’s Alive,” number 15 off that album. I learned the first eight bars to that, and I was so happy.
Read more of the interview below, with more information available through Respect.
Big Sean x DJ Skee Interview (Video)
July 8th, 2011 / No Comments » / by Staff
DJ Skee talks to Big Sean about his new music, the internet’s influence on the music industry and more. Check it.
J. Cole Interviews With SoulCultureTV (Video)
July 5th, 2011 / No Comments » / by Staff
J.Cole recently sat down with SoulCultureTV to discuss his upcoming album and the production that the album is to receive.
SoulCultureTV caught up with J. Cole on his return to the London’s Wireless Festival this weekend, having torn down the Pepsi Max stage for his second year running, to discuss the theory behind the title of his debut album Cole World: The Sideline Story [out on September 27], his fans’ mixed reactions to the project’s lead single Work Out as the follow up to Who Dat, and his understanding of the need to “play the game to change the game” with radio-friendly tracks without compromising the quality of his finished album; swearing, “I’m not gonna have an album full of pop records… I would quit before I did that.”
Big Sean x Bootleg Kev Interview (Video)
July 1st, 2011 / No Comments » / by Staff
Big Sean recently made an appearance on radio to talk about performing at the BET awards, he tells the story on how he met Kanye West, why there isn’t any Kanye West production on Finally Famous, and why long-time collaborator Mike Posner wasn’t on the album. Check it, boi.
Interview Magazine: Rick Owens Interview
January 24th, 2011 / No Comments » / by Staff
Interview Magazine recently met with high-end fashion designer Rick Owens to converse about his role in fashion after his Paris fashion show. Check it out below.
ALICE PFEIFFER: Five years ago, you were at the forefront of a neo-Goth movement. Today, lots of other designers have been influenced by that aesthetic. How do you progress and move away from that?
RICK OWENS: When something is in the air, everyone is influenced, so I don’t really think of it like that. But in any case, you move on, you try to develop, grow and stay true to yourself.
PFEIFFER: Have you evolved much since you launched your label?
OWENS: I think so—I actually feel this show is a lot different from what I was doing five years ago, and hopefully in five years’ time I’ll be doing something different too. Again, you never radically change either, there is always a sense of continuation, every collection is an extension of the previous, some things are never going to change, and I will always still be me.
PFEIFFER: So what are you leaving behind, what are you keeping, and what are you introducing in your collection today?
OWENS: There is a lot more control today. Five years ago, I worked with the idea of collapse, downfall, abandon—now I work a lot more with control, which I find a very poignant idea, because one inevitably always fails. So I suppose I’m drawn to a control doomed to collapse.
PFEIFFER: And how do you feel about the collection we just saw ? Happy with the result?
OWENS: Well, I hope this looks like me! I hope it doesn’t look like I tried to do something tricky—because I’m very conscious of being consistent, no matter what else is happening in the world.
We are fans of Rick because he is often imitated but never duplicated. He is original and we believe his aesthetic is one he owns.
