Specifically I thought back to this summer when I was working at Macy’s. There was one day that a mother walked in with her son. He looked to be around 5 or 6. The boy had on a flat brim hat and an oversized shirt that said swag in large white letters. I automatically related this to the hip-hop style unconsciously at the time. And the site was unusual to me because I always thought of the commodified hip-hop style to be something adopted at a later age and it being a choice and sometimes phase of the adolescent. I never saw it as something that parents would choose to dress their kids in.
Reading the Hebdige essay brought me back to this thought and the idea of ‘normalizing’ a sub-culture, hip-hop in this case. I saw that moment now as evidence of the commodification of hip-hop. Parents these days find the hip-hop style as enough of a norm and even a fashion statement that they will dress their kids in it. Twenty years ago and even further back then that this was not the case.
Hebdige talks about clothing as an example of a commodity and different styles speak to a subculture and/ or its beliefs, rather you actually see yourself as a part of it, “the conventional outfits worn by the average man and woman in the street are chosen within the constraints of finance, ‘taste’, preference... and these choices are undoubtedly significant”. The oversized clothes, the ‘bling’ and the hats and the expensive kicks were symbolic of the hip-hop generation. And just as hip-hop adopted Tommy Hilfiger at one point the fashion industry adopted the urban consumer as a demographic in the 1980‘s. The baggy jeans paired with brand-name jackets, flat brim hats, oversized t-shirts, and ‘bling’ were no longer associated primarily with the Bronx and first generation, they are now worn as an unofficial uniform by the suburban fans.
Willi Smith was one of the first designers start the look of “streetwear” and as the style was later coined in the fashion industry Cross Colours became a major contributor. This is a Cross Colours ad from the 80’s (thus the loud colors and patterns of the pieces) that was popular in majority of styles from the runway and ready to wear retail styles adopted from runway fashion.
BET event “Rip the Runway” where Hip-Hop music and fashion are brought together.
These Urban consumer’s brought millions to the fashion industry once they became a target audience. And this stereotypical hip-hop look was adopted and normalized to the point over the years that parents (not all of course) are comfortable enough to dress their children in the style. Something that once represented the rebellion against the upper hand of society, the struggles of living in the Bronx and being a minority has become just another fashion statement today. A few current day designers and brands include Karl Kani, Emily Bustamante, Baby Phat, Sean John, G by Guess, Gucci and FUBU.
If I had seen that kid I would have looked at the mother and father who accompanied the kid because I would have been intrigued as to who was influencing the style of the boy. Also, I find the commodification of clothing in Hip-Hop to be a very interesting subject to me because usually, when the culture cannot obtain something or are held back in a way, they take advantage of these circumstances and make their style their own. I feel that this culture is constantly morphing due to the constraints that are placed upon them, yet they continue to thrive, as seen with their attire.
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