Kerby Jean-Raymond Quotes
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I was going to college on a full scholarship. I graduated summa cum laude. I was always on the dean's list. I was never a kid that started any kind of trouble.
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I grew up in East Flatbush, Brooklyn. At the time I was growing up with my father - before it was gentrified - it was a very rough neighborhood. He felt that if I got into or started embracing the rap culture, I would be one step closer to being on the streets.
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Financing is always the hard part, especially if you don't have friends or family to back you, which was my case and the case for most designers.
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My earliest memories of defying my parents were through music. I remember rap being banned in my house, and then getting a Cam'ron album.
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If you put the collections together, whether it's Rick Owens, Alexander Wang, or whomever, sometimes they do streetwear, but they're never called that. They're always called 'sportswear' or 'high-end' or 'luxury.' I feel like I'm tossed into that streetwear category so that I don't exist in this space.
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We need to think forward and keep making America greater. Not that old America, again.
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I'm desperately trying to unplug. The last thing I want is a watch that connects to my phone which connects to my iPad that connects to my computer that airplays to my TV.
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America is a flawed land but a great one indeed.
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I don't think the narrative I was stuck in - the 'black' designer category - was going to go away anytime soon.
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Think about how much fashion profits from black culture and how underrepresented we are in the industry. If you insist on using black celebrities to peddle your merchandise and add a cool factor to your front row, it is indecent to not care about the plights of that person's community.
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One of the things about runways that I hate is that you can't accommodate so many people because you don't have those in-and-out privileges where people can come and go.
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All it took was one conversation to know that Reebok was the right home for our team.
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We're always ready for a pick-up game. I walk through the park on the way home every day and just think to myself, 'I'll take on any of these kids.'
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I came back from Standing Rock, and one of the things that struck me was their respect for elders. It was something that I felt like I needed to work on in my life.
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All clothes are worn on the street, but 'streetwear' had once described T-shirt brands and skate-inspired brands, and now it's just a lazy innuendo used to describe clothing made by designers that the establishment deems 'less than.'
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A president's power is limited. We need to vote down the ballot as well, from your councilman all the way up to your governors and congressman.
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If you're on the fence about speaking your truth or sharing your world with a greater audience, don't be. We need each other badly.
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I've always felt like an outcast. My aesthetic is very high-end, but I still get classified as streetwear. There's really no other reason for than other than my age, the way I look, and where I'm from.
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In my shows, I always try to incorporate music because it's the most natural way to set a tone. So if I want to do a show about depression, I use the opera. If I want to do a show about greed, I use spoken word. If I want to do a show about the injustice that's taking place in the world, I might play Sam Cooke.
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Nobody can shut the door in your face if you own the door.
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I played baseball, was on the basketball team in high school, did crew at Hofstra, and randomly played ultimate frisbee, too. But none of the organized teams I was on were anywhere near as competitive as the games on the street.
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My dad was always so strict that I was scared to speak to him. Haitian parents are very, 'This is adults' business; this is kids' business.'
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My dad used to give me old electrical equipment that didn't work anymore, and I'd put things together. I think that's why I like to mix things that don't belong.
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I've never seen Ralph Lauren, Rick Owens, or Raf Simons described as white designers. They are just designers.