FASHION KVLLAZ

Slick Rick with the eye patch.

Run DMC with the adidas.

Nelly in his Air Force Ones.

LL Cool J in Kangol.

Lil Kim in Chanel.

Kanye in the Pink Polo.

Camron in some baby blue fur with a flip phone.

Rihanna in.....just about anything.

We all know that Hip-Hop is more than just a genre of music but an entire culture. This, more often than not, is expressed through clothes, accessories, shoes, hair and our everyday experiences. It is through Hip-Hop that we're bless with some of our most iconic moments that are points of reference. i.e Serena Williams crip walking at Wimbledon, Snoop Dogg at the Super Bowl or Alan Iverson's mum braiding his hair courtside.

Secondary to being rappers and singers, Hip-Hop's pioneers are the true influencers of style and fashion. From the earlier days of classic street, to pure extravagance, to the barely there, to high fashion, to being literal creators of style.

The culture's influence on fashion is such that, it infiltrated one of the most affluent annual fashion events. The Met Gala, which started in 1948, was invitation only and mainly attended by New York's high society and those in the fashion industry. Over the years the guest list has diversified to epic proportions. If you think back to where society on a whole was back in 1948, you can imagine there would not have been many black faces. Now, "we in this bitch" and have created some of the most note-worthy, iconic moments. Just this year, Rihanna's constant and consistent winning of the Met Gala was honoured with a marble Greek goddess statue in her likeness; and for the first time ever, all of the Kar-Jenners gained invitations in their own right.

These moments have created a bridge for fashion of all kinds and music to be cohesive and more inclusive than ever. Below the surface however, we're reminded that style and fashion SHOULD be inclusive! Every time your favourite artist stepped out of their prescribed activity, we're reminded that we shouldn't box ourselves in and that expression is for everyone. With that said though, we're still waiting for someone to say "I just wanted to create something for my fans that was budget friendly" and actually mean it. I don't know about you, but I'm not buying shape wear for £60 (no shade).....