Hip Hop and Fashion
Fashion is part and parcel of our daily life. Through fashion, one is able to re-establish a new line of the existing culture and helps one invent new ways of redefining oneself. In fact, newer fashion trends have a say in deciding what we wear in a particular season.
Usually, people follow certain practices and norms in the hope to be ‘in’ with the popular styles and trends. Mostly, it is the celebrities who update on the fashion trends, and people follow it. In fact, people judge these celebrities by the dress they wear on different occasions. So, celebrities usually make use of the services of famous designers in the hope to incorporate their attitude and an exclusive sense of style in their dresses.
Hip hop fashion style has been around since the early1980′s. This was when celebrities including Will Smith and Christopher Reid showed the young population the way it should be done. In fact, hip hop is not at all a newcomer to the world of fashion scene. Of course, hip hop as a fashion trend has evolved in the past twenty years. The tastes and styles also have changed a lot in accordance with the cultures of the time.
Regarding the hip hop style in the early 1980′s, many of the major brand names became synonymous with the latest in hip hop fashion trends. Big brands of the likes of Nike and Adidas were sported with leather bomber jackets and brilliantly coloured tracks. Jersey became a hot commodity, and Will Smith would show them off in the hit television show, the Fresh Prince of Bel-Aire. During this period, heavy gold jewellery and big sunglasses came into the fashion scene and created an image of wealth and luxury in the eyes of the connoisseurs of hip hop culture of the time. In the second half of the decade, rappers like MC Hammer introduced new trends in hip hop fashion by wearing baggy pants with baseball caps.
From the Gangsta look of the 1900′s, hip hop fashion trends made its transformation to the Gangsta look of the fashionable Los Angeles Chicago gangsters. This particular style sported baggy pants worn at low waist without a belt. Shirt tails would hang outside the pants and bandanas were worn on the head. In the wake of this new trend, designers were supplying the youth with something that they liked, and the popular brands like Tommy Hilfiger, Polo and Nautica came into this industry. And, hip hop fashion trends made its change over into urban street wear, and big names of the likes of Mecca USA and Rocawear came into the scene.
High end designer Gucci also made its presence during this time. Today, the hip hop style has toned down a little bit. Nowadays, hip hop fashion trends come well tailored, and the trend is mostly embraced by the youth. After more than twenty years of existence on the fashion scene, it seems that the hip hop trend has proven to be more than just another trend.
