StyleLikeU » Hip Hop

Fatima Robinson

Ramona_Canino — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 23:23:32 +0000

Fatima’s story is the stuff that dreams are made of. The certainty that there was a bigger world for her outside of her suburban hood was the first sign that there was a warrior goddess in Fatima, not unlike the Ethiopian queen tattooed on her arm and a penchant for exotic headresses. Fatima’s absolute lack of need for a steady man in her life – aside from her eleven year old son – is another. Her mother was a very religious person, a “hardcore evangelist,” she says, and the one thing that Fatima took away from her compulsory trips to church was, “If you want something in life, you speak it into existence.” For Fatima, the “closest to God” she has felt was when she was dancing in clubs as a teenager. She trusted that instinct and by the time she was 21 it found her choreographing (a word she says she had never even heard before) Michael Jackson’s “Remember The Time” video. The rest is music history. Fatima helped give birth to hip-hop as a true art form of dance, and not by coincidence; here is someone who, for her 40th, dressed herself in a feathered hair piece – with a tribal straw backpack, while otherwise “butt naked” to this year’s Burning Man.

It took an individual like MJ to spot one like Fatima. The two not only share a birthday but are both fueled by sheer emotion, a relentless quest for truth, and the perfect accessories. With the King of Pop, it was never about the “counts” that measure the beat of a song, Fatima recalls, only the sound of the music. Moving to her own rhythm and beat comes naturally, enviably, to Fatima, whether riding her bike through Paris in the most colorful ensembles, like Cavalli leopard platforms, jodhpurs, a vintage Alaia jacket, and her signature armful of bangles. Her comfort with the “scary and the challenging” make her grow as a person. “The great part of what I do is ‘not knowing.’ I have to approach every kind of job in a different way. I may be on a music video this week, I may be doing a scene in a TV show, staging a show for eighty thousand people at a stadium… I like that journey, the figuring it out.”

“The studio is my canvas and the dancers are my paint,” Fatima says. She often avoids hearing a song until the day she begins the dance routine. Just as she freely imagines a pair of over-the-knee rubber army boots with a grader and mixes Fendi high-waisted trousers and stacked pumps with a lace bustier and layers of vintage and Hermes bracelets. Appreciating the “valleys” while soaring to the peaks keeps it real, and keeps Fatima close to her art. She chose to work on a play with George C. Wolfe, where she could learn something new, for a tenth of the money she would have made on a giant concert tour. So, too, does traveling in the summers to recharge, visiting friends in Barcelona, Prague, Cannes, and that place that she dreams of where she can let it all go, start over, and find the love and passion again: Paris. Spoken by one who knows exactly when to add balance to a sartorial moment with giant Monie’s cocktail rings or turn a simple turban in an Audrey Hepburn look with a gilded Calypso top, skirt, and flats: “When you do things in their proper time, everything flourishes.”

If you love Fatima, you may also like Virginie Sommet, Jenne Lombardo and Rashida Robinson.

Lindsay Luv

'Funminitemi Oluwadare — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 23:49:17 +0000

I love how Lindsay came to DJing after working in A&R in the music business. I think we all can agree that someone who has actually earned their title before claiming it is refreshing. Obsessed with the band Dispatch in their infant stages, she promoted their music from her high school parking lot and followed them as a fan to the top. When Lindsay was twenty-one, Sire Records co-founder Richard Gottehrer recognized Lindsay’s ability to recognize untapped talent. He gave her the job of helping to grow indie talent on the rise like the Raveonettes and booking Chromeo and Justice for events. The rest is history, from gangster rap to hipster disco, with a little Beethoven’s 5th thrown in. Lindsay is a much sought after DJ, traveling all over the world despite her fear of flying. It doesn’t seem that much gets in her way. She taught herself her trade under the tutelage of DJ AM, but not far behind in her mind was loads of classic rock influence, instilled by the vinyl that her parents listened to while she was growing up.

With lots of red lipstick, Lindsay is passionate about the virtues of variations on the little black dress and you can see how this could make living life on the fly in night clubs work in the style department. She adds her eclectic sock collection in the mix, much like she adds classical music to top forty hits. Just as Lindsay is the real deal as a musical artist, she is also authentic in everything she approaches. I appreciate her honesty and depth in recognizing that SLU is not about being outlandish, but about being true to yourself.

If you love Lindsay, you may also like Liz Doupnik, Kristine Barilli and Sabrina Bacon.

Elliott Sainsbury

'Funminitemi Oluwadare — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 00:33:56 +0000

Wisdom is an understatement, but frumpy chic is not, when it comes to Elliott. He was brought up in South London by his grandparents and mother, who have never left England. It’s an area where taxi drivers won’t go, though nothing stops him from going anywhere, either physically or mentally. Elliott says that “a contrast world is always at your door,” and he has practically made it his personal mantra to discover everything – “the high and the low” of culture and the meeting of the two, because “everything has a kind of intelligence.” Sipping tea and watching reality TV, a cooking show, or The Barefoot Contessa is as normal for him as exploring London’s Tate or temples. His influences read like a Ph.D dissertation on pop culture hopped up on steroids. They run the gamut from Bernhard Wilhelm, african prints, Laurie Anderson, Thomas Hirschhorn, Chris Isaak’s tour jackets, Lizzie Mercier Descloux, Take That, Kool Moe Dee, Inner City, early ’90′s house music, ’80′s French punk and Barbara Kruger, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Clothing for him, just like his music, is all about building your personality and channeling something. He is fascinated with the idea of un-style, like the juxtaposition of chavs wearing a button-up. In alignment with his notion of “unfashion,” his repertoire consists mostly of the “white English, Irish side” of his “dapper” grandfather – in old man toggle coats, double-breasted jackets, scarves, Church’s brogues and wallabees – and the “black, geeky, Earth, Wind and Fire,” cool of his dad, who was a DJ in the ’80′s – think rolled-up dungarees with round glasses. He is most at home with old and crazy people at the car boot sales, where the people who sell don’t care about clothes. However, he likes to throw himself out of his comfort zone to be inspired and he finds it humorous to confront people’s disgust with his “tribal rude boy” hair cut. It is most likely the unconditional support of his grandparents, who love his hair, that gives Elliott the freedom to be so tuned in to himself. “Reputation is the bigotry of man,” he once heard someone say. I personally love this quote, as I find the thought that others should dictate how you dress cruel and oppressive. Let go of it and grow.

If you like Elliott, you may also enjoy Louis Mandelbaum, Raymond Chu and Brett Banks.

Lindsey Caldwell

'Funminitemi Oluwadare — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 20:50:50 +0000

I was drooling listening to Lindsey’s stories about her experience in Atlanta’s rich, underground music scene during the ’90s. She recalls what is now, sadly, an almost extinct phenomenon: sweaty nights of dancing at low-key clubs with ratty sofas, where people like Erykah Badu, Andre 3000, India Arie or Chilli might pop in and sing. Lindsey says, “Everyone wanted to know everyone… everything was a mix… it wasn’t pretentious.” For Lindsey, it was in this environment that she fell in love with drums and beats and rave and learned to be a skilled DJ, the kind with two turntables who knows how to blend songs and genres. In order to make her own imprint as a DJ, Lindsey moved to NYC with hundreds of vinyls in tow. It was while living on St. Marks Place that her drums and beats identity morphed into something solely her own, the long-running Negroclash night in NYC. The party was “a celebration of the African-American contribution to electronic music, it was a little bit electronic, soul classics, some top forty and hip-hop, both current and contemporary.” Personal style is Lindsey’s middle name, whether it’s expressed through music or clothes. From a Minnie Mouse sweatshirt to high-waisted jeans and a fedora to a Marc Jacobs demure silk dress, she appears in her clothes as she does in life – humble and distinct. I love how Lindsay describes authentic DJing as equivalent to passing down a family recipe. The knowledge of music gets passed down and reinterpreted as something new and original, just like her.

If you like Lindsey, you may also enjoy Erica Yarbrough , Ugo Mozie, and Dalad Kambhu.

Ashton Michael

'Funminitemi Oluwadare — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 11:17:13 +0000

Ashton was born and raised in East LA, where he was a child actor, growing up on tv and movie sets. Today, the bow tie tattoo on the front of his neck, and his “Dali” moustache exclaim the dramatic, “dapper dan” in him. However, don’t let his appearance fool you, as today, Ashton is all about focusing on the background artistry, the “behind the scenes.” With his partner, Marko Martone, they are center stage as the founders of The House of Infinite Radness, where performers experience 360 degrees in fashion and beauty styling, head-to-toe, including access to Ashton’s own “glamourized, ghetto punk” clothing line. Ashton says, “give me a treatment, give me a direction… and I will kill it.” The stars may come to him for dressing, but Ashton is the lead in his own style story. There is the collection he designs, and his “dailies” (aka what he relies on to feel himself or “presentable”). These include his Lanvin shades, his “bling bling” earrings, his high top sneaks (he never leaves home without them), despite the fact that he feels that everyone should own a pair of creepers and his own brand of harem trousers, that can be dressed up or down. The New York in him is hard working to the point of exhaustion, but it’s all with passion. He would rather be “beat, after working eighteen hours, than be tired from doing nothing.” Whereas the “LA” side adds a certain lightness and self deprecation, like when he refers to his underwear and socks as the “president” of his outfit “foundation.” The foundation, he believes is essential and right now, it’s about the classics, like, black and white, and houndstooth. Ashton feels there is no challenge too big for him, just like the prominent coi-fish (fish who swim upstream) tattoo on his arm will tell you.

If you like Ashton, you may also enjoy Craig Robinson, Asher Levine, and Emmanuel Limon.

Marcus Holmlund

'Funminitemi Oluwadare — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 16:27:21 +0000

There was a turning point for Marcus in high school when he was cast in Oliver! – “it became more about the costume” than musical theater. “I remember stealing some knickers and some monk shoes from the prop closet and wearing them to school the next day…that is what shaped my view about fashion.” Today, Marcus continues to express himself as he chooses and enjoys “blowing the preconcieved notions of things out of the water.” Thus, you might see Marcus giving his rock and roll and urban touch to a respendent kimono or a lavender feathered women’s bolero. He was once wearing a long t-shirt over short shorts that prompted a man to come up to him and say, “Excuse me sir, where are your pants?” Alittle reminiscent of “please sir, can I have some more?” Appropriately named Smoke & Mirrors, his blog is a reference to “what you see isn’t necessarily what you get.” He writes about his passion for hip-hop, despite the fact that he is a half-Jewish, half-Swedish white kid from Buffalo who is infatuated with eighteenth-century dress (as in Amadeus Mozart, who “wore wigs, tights, and heels on a daily basis”). Marcus doesn’t wear a wig – he possesses a dazzling head of long hair, that contributes to people’s quick judgement about his androgynous appearance. I couldn’t agree with him more that men’s fashion since the early 19th century has succumbed to social tunnel visions, who really wouldn’t feel dazzling in a Commes des Garcon coat with a bustle to a Northface? I can’t help but wonder if Marcus’ almost maternal love for Janet Jackson, whom he saw as the “underdog” next to her brother, came from the boundaries he has been forced to have to push through. Thanks to Marcus’ integrity and tenacity, the magic of the Prince and the Pauper and a time when men were more liberated, ironically, lives on.

If you like Marcus, you might also enjoy Olof Erlandsson or Bradley Smith.

Kevin Leong

'Funminitemi Oluwadare — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 20:40:49 +0000

Kevin’s cultural references blow my mind – he is an extraordinary observer, storyteller, and interpreter of life in his designs. His ADD seems to work for him, because I have never come across anyone who marries function, form, fable and fashion quite like he does. His own clothing line, Origami Clothing: Fold Your Paper, is a play on words and the ancient folk art that his Chinese grandfather taught him as a kid while hanging out in the family’s laundromat. As he explains, origami is the art of paper folding, and you have to make money, or fold dollar bills, in order to buy his clothes – did you get that? The origami grasshopper logo for his clothing line pays homage to René Lacoste crocodile, the first appearance of a logo outside of clothing (he likes getting inspiration from the people who did it first). And just in case that isn’t enough, the insect is also a reference to David Carradine in old Kung Fu movies, where the apprentice is called the “young grasshopper” and tries to grab the stone from the master’s palm in order to get to the next stage of enlightenment. The fabric for his collection was chosen because of its paperlike consistency and its reversible watermelon print. In case you weren’t aware, there was a $1000 bill made back in the 1800s called the Grand Watermelon – it had three zeros on the back that looked like watermelons, bringing it all back to paper again.

In his spare time, when not making a deep and complex statement with fashion, Kevin is making one as a graffiti artist, influenced by the art he would see on his drives from his home on Staten Island to Brooklyn, where his grandparents lived, as a child. “[Graffiti] is a form of expression, like getting dressed.” His graffiti tag is SAER, for “Slanty Asian-Eyed Rebel,” or ” Setting An Example Righteously.” Kevin’s tattoo represents his birth in the year of the horse. The following is an explanation I came across for people born in the year of the horse, and I feel like it sums Kevin up perfectly: “exciting and extroverted, vivid and animated, the Horse is the life of any party he attends. He is bursting with energy, always looking for the next place to kick up his heels and hang loose. He entertains friends and strangers alike with his humor and appeal.”

If you like Kevin, you might also enjoy Jose Pozo, Matt Parrotti, or Erica Yarbrough.

Mari J Brooklyn

'Funminitemi Oluwadare — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 13:44:46 +0000

Clothes are so much about whom is wearing them. Mari J has backpacked the world, inhales ideas, and it shows. She derives cultural references for her style from Tokyo to Bob Marley to Disneyland. I admire her freedom with creative impulses, like cutting her hair on the spot or throwing her three-year-old’s “happy birthday skirt” with pompoms in the hem under a dress to give it the right volume. Everyday is Halloween for Mari J, in the sense that she is unafraid to fully express herself and she doesn’t feel she needs a reason to, whether it’s picking herself up and traveling to India and Indonesia, hitchhiking through Japan, or recycling African fabric into art. Mari J redefines the rules in the most creatively exciting way, mixing Scottish plaid with camouflage and Chanel or Mickey Mouse ears as accents to a Hirajuku hoodie in a suits-of-cards print. She says that she will be traveling soon with her daughter Lino (whom is nicknamed Hemp), “to Mars possibly.” If having a sense of humor with fashion leads to this kind of joy with clothes, it might be worth having a private moment with our inner-child every so often to remember the abandon.

If you like Mari, you might also enjoy Rinat Welsing and Shayne Oliver.

Jules Kim

'Funminitemi Oluwadare — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 11:28:58 +0000

Jules has daggers tattooed on both arms from her wrist to her elbow, in honor of her Korean origin and of her “duplicitous” status as a twin, where the ancient royal women hid swords in their cloak sleeves in case of emergency. She is a force to be reckoned with (weapons aside), with her jewelry line that she spends every waking and sleeping moment either working on or thinking about – she “can’t get the ideas out fast enough.” Jules grew up in Virginia, where she first pursued classical music as a flutist, but would be reprimanded when she “breathed or crescendoed” in places that she perceived were correct, instead of where her teacher knew they were supposed to be. Needless to say, Jules beats to her own rhythm and creative calling now, designing collections for people whose passion she can relate to (musical artists included, even though she is not one herself). Much like pulling a jean micro-mini over a lace skirt, her designs are both urban and romantic. For example, little mouse bones as a fringed modern mask or hardened fairy dust as a two-finger ring. She considers her creations to be a connection between herself and her client. I think everyone would benefit from a little, if not a big, communication with Jules and her jewels.

If you like Jules, you might also enjoy Ms. Fitz or Terry T..

Rinat Welsing

'Funminitemi Oluwadare — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 11:41:33 +0000

Rinat grew up in Germany – his mother is Russian and his father is Ghanean. For me, he is a kind of embodiment of every man, from a world in which this United Colors of Bennetton ad campaign has come true. Rinat is mature enough in life’s experiences to spew the kind of wisdom that stops me in my tracks in its truth and sincerity (“my influence is in my mind, my influence is me”), and young enough in spirit that he can make a snowman cardigan that cost him $3 look like the newest at Barney’s Co-Op. Rinat’s huge dimpled smile, un-self-conscious manner, and coming-together of worldly good looks and style are luminous when compared to the more typical, close-to-the-cuff urban demeanor (he would never wear sunglasses unless he needed them – he loves people’s eyes). When Rinat arrived in the Big Apple after finishing his civil service at home (as a dishwasher, because he says he could never carry a gun), he knew no one. However, the influence of his father’s home country and its accepting nature (when you pass women on the street, they are referred to as “mother”) brought him to fashion-related events and shows all over town with an air of innocence as if he belonged forever (oops, hopefully no fashion PR companies are reading this) and he for me, was a welcome breath of fresh air. I first became riveted by his Simpsons-meets-afro trademark hair when he was modeling in Michael Calloway’s fashion show, having no idea that Michael had discovered him at our launch party. Then there he was, in some captivating variation of a perfectly gigantic Kente cloth scarf, sweatpants rolled into knickers, an old woman’s oversized red coat, neon orange skinny jeans, and possibly his chain handbag strap as necklace at our holiday party and many, if not all, of fashion week’s shows and events. Rinat defines the word original – he gets the combinations of multi-references so right. If his music is anything like the scope of clothes and accessories that I walked into when I arrived to interview him in the middle of a Nor’easter, then we are in for a party of some universal proportions.

If you like Rinat, you might also enjoy Haley Wollens and Kukso Koo.