I may be an influence on culture, but culture is also an influence on me. I may draw
curiosity out of my audience, but my audience also draws curiosity out of me. My
one goal is to push boundaries without building boundaries. I am only created to
created.
pg. 18
I Am The Fashion Industry.
by Gracie Young
Fashion designers influence everyday society: from the straight
silhouette of the famed t-shirt dress last summer to this year’s coral color
trend from the 2019 Paris fashion show. It is fascinating that fashion
designers influence society, but who influences the designers?
Currently, influence is coming from an entire pop culture movement being
driven by rappers.
In a backwards way, rap culture actually influences the high fashion community.
Usually, innovative designs are first seen on the runway in an
extreme form. Then the design eventually evolves into a trend that can
be bought in-store. However, members of the influential rap community
instead pull designs similar to common street-wear to wear in the public
eye. These common pieces then catch wind in high fashion and end up on
a runway faster than Twista can spit out a single verse.
An example of common street clothing making it to the runway would
be the fisherman’s hat (more popularly known as a bucket hat). This style
was originally brought to light in the 1980s by the rap community as a
fashion trend, even though the actual article of clothing was created in
the early 1900s. The trend faded and eventually came back in the 90s
through the rap community once more. More recently, rapper Earl Sweatshirt
and other musicians belonging to the rap collective Odd Future adopted
the bucket hat around the late 2010s. By 2012, almost immediately
after Odd Future showcased their blast from the past bucket hats, one
of the largest names in fashion featured a black leather bucket hat on a
male model during a high fashion runway show. Yes, the hat was styled
to look like high fashion, but it was clear that the influence came from
the ever growing popularity of the street-inspired outfits displayed in the
rap community.
Every creation is influenced by a past creation. Originality comes inspired
by that which already exists. Fashion is inspired by every aspect of life,
but the most popular pieces as of late are coming from the streets where
famed rappers grew up: common neighborhoods full of normal people
whose culture bleeds into the style of a famous artists who grew up calling
those towns “home.” It is extremely fascinating to watch such a powerful
pop culture movement take over an industry that influences society. Anyone
searching for the next trend in high fashion simply has to look to the
rapping influencers taking over the evolving music scene.
Shoutout to Josh: a real one who helped plan this article.