Jae Tips wears a grin on his face for the entirety of our 20 minute(-ish) video call.
The designer/rapper is getting taxied around Taranto, Italy as he speaks with me by way of Google Meet (on his phone, which means I get a lot of low angles of his shiny pink grills).
The launch party of his latest sneaker with Saucony, the Jae Tips x Saucony Matrix “No Shoes In The House” – which, fyi, marks the first time the silhouette has been released since the year 2000 – is what brings him to Europe. The affair is being held at footwear boutique Sneakers76, which is cool with Jae as this trip marks his first time in Italia.
The 34-year-old has been brainstorming with the Michigan-based sneaker-maker since 2021, but it was only last year that their collaboration made its debut. It's already very popular, to the point where sneakerheads are turning to resale marketplaces such as StockX to cop a pair.
Jae can't be mad at the game since flipping sneakers is something he used to do himself. He also worked at Footlocker. “I've learnt a lot about the sneaker industry from a lot of different angles,” he reckons.
“I started meeting people in high positions in the big brand, and it made me realise that there was more to the game that what I knew it for. So I kept pushing myself to learn.
“Fast-forward a few years later, I'm here talking to you.”
“It's a long way from the Bronx,” he says, referring to his home where he was born John Cotton.
Yet, he looks out the window to see a – to all appearances – local passerby on a scooter wearing shoes of his design.
“How does it feel to see that?” I ask.
“It feels amazing,” he says, his grin somehow growing wider. “It's amazing to design on this level. I don't want to take it for granted that I get these opportunities. Saucony keeps believing in me and keeps giving me space to design. I just want to keep making everyone proud, and make everyone feel that a project they spent a lot of hours on and time is worth it.”
Here's how the rest of our conversation – about the Matrix shoe, about his come-up, about Disney, My Hero Academia and all sorts of other things – panned out.
I'm just grateful Saucony decided to partner with me. I was designing hats in my own style and the brand saw this as something it wanted for its shoes. So, you know, I'm grateful the team chose to work with me instead of looking me over like others.
You're taught to wear muted colours and stick to the basics these days, I feel, but I remember growing up in times when everything was colourful and everything was inspired by something loud. Those were the best times. To me, when I see a blank piece of paper, all I see is colour... All I see is excitement. I see is the adventure you can go on. I never want to leave any room thinking, 'I could've done better.' I'm always learning how to put colours together like no one else.
The advice I give people all the time when it comes to my designs is wear what you already have on – you don't need to switch it up. Let the shoes do the speaking for you. You don't have to match everything with everything; you can put them on with whatever you're comfortable with, with what you were already going to wear, anyway. It's all about what's going to make you feel good and happy.
We were always set to release around this time of the year, the time when everything is about family. So, it's “No Shoes in the House” – the message is to put your loved ones before work.
The design is inspired by a Ralph Lauren x Disney collaboration that they did in the nineties. I released some hats a few years ago inspired by the same thing. I may be telling my secrets but I find a lot of inspiration in Disney.
I didn't tell the story so well then because hats are different to shoes, but I used wool on this sneaker to nod to the headwear that came before this. The result is a shoe that feels authentic to me, my story and the things I'm interested in.
I watch more animation now because of my son who is currently big into anime. He falls in love with things and watches them again and again. An anime he watches a lot of is My Hero Academia. Outside of anime, he keeps watching the Pixar movie Elemental. I watch them all with him for the aesthetics.
Restaurants. I think a lot of the best marketing comes from restaurants, coffee shops and things like that.
I wear Omnis a lot. I wear every colour that Saucony send me. I feel like it's just the most comfortable and you can just slip them on and head out.
The first silhouette I worked with: the Grid Azura 2000. It was a shoe that Saucony was ready to throw away, and then I came in with me re-design which was very off the wall. I think I put life back into the shoe – I put another spin on it.
I think Joe Freshgoods; I think Salehe [Bembury]; I think James Whitner. These are people that have reached out to me and, you know, told me about their experiences and things I can do different, or ways that I can navigate the industry. I appreciate them. I don't see them as competition, I see them as part of my community.
Yes, definitely. I'm excited to be working with different silhouettes and colours. I hope people are excited about what's to come. There are some different things coming up that are different to what people have come to expect.
Originally published on Esquire UK
Pharrell Williams and Tyler, the Creator share a longstanding collaboration in the music industry, with many of Tyler’s songs produced by Williams. They also feature in each other’s tracks, including Williams' 2022 single “Cash In Cash Out” and Tyler’s “IFHY” from his 2013 album Wolf. The close friends are in constant creative dialogues and thrive on it. Taking it to a new level, the Louis Vuitton men’s creative director delivers a new capsule collection created in collaboration with Tyler.
This isn't Tyler's first brush with Louis Vuitton having most recently composed the soundtrack for the Maison's Autumn/Winter 2023 menswear show. The Louis Vuitton Spring 2024 Men’s Capsule Collection by Tyler, The Creator is a melodic combination of the visual vocabularies of Tyler and the Maison, especially the one that Williams has established—it's preppy meets dandy with a whole lot of fresh interpretations of both.
The collection features pieces that Tyler would personally wear. “I dress the same in a meeting as I do a performance or grocery store trip, so hand drawing the monogram felt like the perfect balance to me,” he says. Dubbed the "Craggy Monogram", his hand drawn monogram comes in chocolate, vanilla and pastel shades. In addition to the usual LV symbols and 4-petalled LV Flowers, the Craggy Monogram incorporates representations of daisies and Airedale Terriers—familiar motifs from the visual universe of the artist. The uneven shapes of the hand drawn Monogram are echoed in lines and details throughout the collection, from chocolate down jackets to vanilla windbreakers, denim jackets with matching denim pants and denim dungarees, along with accessories.
Known as the guy who turns up to awards shows in shorts, Tyler’s collection just had to include them. Classic shorts and chinos with pleats and fold-ups appear alongside dandy-esque shirts adorned with graphics. With his penchant for pastels, the collection also features baby blue cable knit jumpers with a craggy V-neck and cuff stripes, and a pink fair-isle vest. As a nod to Tyler's obsession of luggages, a special-edition Courrier Lozine 110 trunk featuring the Craggy Monogram was created for the collection.
Tyler's authenticity shines through his recurring playful motifs in the collection’s accessories ranging from flower-studded rings to a Craggy Monogram cereal bowl with a matching spoon. The collection also features a chess set with its chess pieces portraying melted chocolate, hand-sketched by Tyler himself. This is also, unsurprisingly, the rapper’s favourite item from the collection. “I wanted to mix my style and Louis Vuitton’s codes together in a way that felt slightly whimsical but could still be worn to the gas station on a Tuesday,” he explains.
Needless to say, Williams is a fan of the collection: “This collaboration is unique to Louis Vuitton because it’s a natural extension of our LVERS philosophy, building on our network of incredible artists and creatives. There are so many elements specific to Tyler built into these pieces and it’s been inspiring to see him hone in on his craft and collaborate with him for this spring collection."
The Louis Vuitton Spring 2024 Men’s Capsule Collection by Tyler, The Creator is now available in boutiques and online.
If you ever want the intelligentsia up in arms about aesthetics and the merits of conscious rap, bring up the subject over dinner. If you want to hear a Harlem barbershop hella vociferous with avowed expertise, mention some list compiled by a music mag. If you want to lose the lion’s share of a few nights’ sleep, pay serious consideration to rank one yourself. That was me over a few days in April as I prepared my list of the five all-time greatest rappers.
Rap music's origins trace back to the Bronx, where many of its pioneers were former members of crews or gangs and used battling as an alternative to actual violence as well as a way to foster esteem. Throughout its evolution, rap has retained its fiercely competitive nature, one whose artists tout themselves as the biggest, best, greatest. The “top five dead or alive”, that aggressive spirit makes it ripe for ranking. However, before delving into that realm, let's consider a few important points.
The criteria I use for my list are Skills, Content, Bona fides, and Impact. I must also disclose that I am quite critical of a significant portion of the new rap scene—the mumbling, the seeming de-emphasis on technical skills, and the mundane perspective that rap is merely a path to wealth. Furthermore, I don't advocate promoting obscure elements as a means to criticise the mainstream.
Jay's an exceptional storyteller and wordsmith, adept at creating powerful imagery, metaphors, and analogies. Moreover, he possesses a wide range of styles and is renowned for his insightful wisdom.
Jay has spent much time mining his backstory as a hustler and ascendance to rap’s first billionaire. He spoke his place in this pantheon into existence, rapping in hi-s “Grammy Family” freestyle, “Hov got flow though he’s no Big and Pac, but he’s close / How I’m ’posed to win? They got me fightin’ ghosts.” You’d be hard-pressed to find a better song about the hood than “Where I’m From.” His oeuvre also includes the daring 4:44, which plumbs his once-troubled marriage, and some of rap’s most memorable guest appearances, like his four- minute verse on DJ Khaled’s “God Did,” historicising America’s war on drugs.
Jay holds prestigious spots in the Songwriters Hall of Fame (as the first rapper ever) and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. He also holds the record for the most Billboard 200 No. 1 albums for solo acts and has won an impressive 24 Grammys in hip-hop, tying with Kanye for the most in the genre
The irrefutable successes of Roc-A-Fella Records, Rocawear, and Roc Nation have helped launch Kanye West and Rihanna into the stratosphere. His astronomical wealth in a genre born as an antidote to structural poverty—he proclaimed, “I’m out for presidents to represent me” on his first single—is an exemplar of manifesting a destiny.
Another rapper sans technical weakness. He can rap fast or slow; create unforgettable metaphors, and analogies as great as “Swimming Pools”; rivet us with storytelling à la “DUCKWORTH.” Kendrick demonstrates his versatility by adjusting his tone, delivering a softer vibe in songs like 'Auntie Diaries' or going all-out incendiary on Big Sean's 'Control': 'I'm in destruction mode if the gold exists / I'm as important as the Pope, I'm a Muslim on pork / I'm Makaveli's offspring, I'm the king of New York.
Each album is a concept—a day in his young life in Compton (good kid, m.A.A.d City), or a therapy session (Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers) exploring the uncommon territory of gender, toxic masculinity, and sexual abuse. He also spends as much time as any rapper inhabiting the interior lives of others. He rapped as a young woman on “Keisha’s Song” and was Nipsey Hussle on “The Heart Part 5.”
DAMN. made Kendrick the first artist outside classical or jazz to win a Pulitzer Prize. He’s won 17 Grammys, including three for Best Rap Album.
Despite not making it his sole focus, Kendrick has achieved tremendous mainstream success, with tracks like "Humble," "Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe," and "Love" immediately springing to mind, though his most significant song is “Alright,” the unofficial anthem of Black Lives Matter. After a cosign from Dr. Dre and a classic debut, Kendrick seized the crown of the West Coast and is the most laureled and important rapper of his generation.
While Tupac may be considered the least technically gifted among the top five MCs, his go-to delivery—a melodic singsong—is undeniably the most distinctive in all of hip-hop. What he lacked in varied rhyme patterns and tropes he compensated for with passion, charisma galore, and a knack for selling what he said as scripture.
Pac left an indelible mark on rap with some of its most timeless songs: the anthemic "Dear Mama," the poignant "Brenda's Got a Baby" and "Keep Ya Head Up," alongside commercial hits like "California Love" and "How Do U Want It." Not to mention, he stirred up intense controversy with the fiery "Hit 'Em Up." Pac broke through on Digital Underground’s posse hit “Same Song” in 1991. He was killed five years later. In between, he served nine months in prison for sexual abuse, a sentence cut short by Suge Knight paying his seven-figure bail. Pac signed to Knight’s Death Row Records and released two albums, the first being his diamond-selling magnum opus All Eyez on Me. On “California Love,” its first single, he announced, “Out on bail fresh outta jail, California dreamin’ / Soon as I stepped on the scene, I’m hearin’ hoochies screamin’.”
Pac has sold more than 75 million albums—four released while he was alive, eight posthumous—and became the first solo rap artist in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
Not only is Tupac one of the few figures known the world over by his first name, his lore seems eternal.
Biggie had a preternatural gift for language. The opening of “Who Shot Ya”: “Who shot ya? Separate the weak from the obsolete / Hard to creep them Brooklyn streets / It’s on ni%%*, fuck all that bickerin’ beef / I can hear sweat tricklin’ down your cheek.” He was a consummate storyteller, as evidenced in the booty-call-gone-bad tale of “I Got a Story to Tell”; could go from bravado to the self- deprecating candor of “Heartthrob—never / Black and ugly as ever.” Notably, he displayed his versatility, mastering any style, as demonstrated when he skillfully outrapped Bone Thugs-N-Harmony in their own signature style on 'Notorious Thugs.'
Biggie favored hyperbolic street tales but was an astute chronicler of hood hardships. (See “Juicy.”) And on a posse cut, his verse was the best verse—period. “I been had skills, Cristal spills / Hide bills in Brazil, about a mil, the ice grill” began his incredible verses on Puffy’s “It’s All About the Benjamins (Remix).”
He released just two albums—the ominous Ready to Die and the prophetic Life After Death (the latter a few weeks after his murder)—but each has sold more than 5 million. Add: First-ballot induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
Premature death amplified Biggie’s legacy, but his living impact was also significant. He helped herald Lil’ Kim, a future icon in her own right, and was the luminous nexus of the Junior M.A.F.I.A. crew, whose debut album went gold. Had Biggie not been killed so young, he might’ve become the incontrovertible GOAT.
Wayne is a virtuosic wordsmith who began his career as an 11-year-old wunderkind on Cash Money Records. Like Biggie, there’s no style beyond his repertoire. He can sustain a narrative but seems more at home in the lyric—his verses luxuriate in image, metaphor, punchlines. On “A Milli” he raps, “A million here, a million there / Sicilian bitch with long hair, with coke in her derriere / Like smokin’ the thinnest air / I open the Lamborghini, hoping them crackers see me / Like, look at that bastard Weezy.” His drawl—made more pronounced in his syrup- sipping days—is inimitable.
Wayne has spent a helluva lot of his career boasting about his skills, threatening opps, testifying to the violence of his hometown, and boasting of his sexual prowess. He’s a notable contributor to some iconic Cash Money songs, including “Back That Thang Up” and “Bling, Bling.”
Twenty-one million albums sold. Nine platinum. Five Grammys, including the coveted Best Rap Album for Tha Carter III.
Wayne had one of the most successful runs in the history of mixtapes. He’s credited with launching Nicki Minaj and Drake, major artists by any measure. As Wayne, the biggest artist from the South’s most storied label, rapped on “Mr. Carter”: “The next time you mention Pac, Biggie, or Jay-Z / Don’t forget Weezy.”
My list. Why does it, or any damn list, even matter? Because hip-hop was born as a way for Black and brown people to fight oppression. Because what better way to assert worth than to be judged excellent if not the most excellent in a given field? The list of the top five all-time MCs counts because hip-hop is American. And greatness, or so the propaganda goes, is the American way.
