Kanye West has always had an affinity for streetwear and fashion and that was on full display when he sat down with Shayne Oliver for Interview Magazine. Oliver is the man behind Hood By Air, a brand that was actually shut down in 2017. Since then, Oliver has worked for brands like Helmut Lang and Colmar but according to this brand new interview, Hood By Air is actually coming back. When asked by Ye about how the brand got off its feet, Oliver explained how the brand never had any official backing.
“The marvel of HBA is that we never really had a backer backer. We always did it on our own … It was an insane ride and we felt like we wanted to elevate to the next level. Then we began a partnership with New Guards Group in Italy, and that was only a temporary situation. After [Fall 2016], we kinda had to come back to be on our own. That was when the question came up: “Why am I doing this?”"
Kanye also complemented Oliver by saying that he feels as though Hood By Air helped to elevate streetwear. Oliver was pretty modest when hit with the praise as he explained that streetwear is something that anybody can be a part of no matter what walk of life.
"I think that opens streetwear up to a larger market of people, because the culture it comes from is very insular. It’s weird because they say that about fashion people, but it’s the same thing within the streetwear world, you know what I mean? When I see streetwear, I see silhouettes. Some people tend to be more intuitive about it, like the people that I grew up with from inner-city backgrounds, but in the larger discussion about luxury, streetwear is already in the merchandising plan."
If you're interested, you can read the entire interview right here.