SINA: Somewhereinamerica is a fashion and music collective native to the "Boogie Down" Bronx, New York, and these young creatives are definitely ones to watch! This brand was first created last March by childhood friends Carl Francis (co-CEO), Ross Alexander (co-CEO), and Malik X (creative director). SINA also includes Patro Lawrence (board member/bartender), and Jeremy Rivera (board member/ graphic designer). Before becoming a brand, the group of friends would often attract attention by their style of dress and their personalities, so they decided to put their talents together and become official!
On the fashion side, SINA is a streetwear brand that produces pieces like t-shirts and dad-hats, but they hope to expand further in the near future. Malik X, the creative director, says that SINA's products have a feel of Egyptian royalty. "I was always a fan of ancient Egypt and everything involved with it, including the pyramids, and the concept of gold, so I went with that theme." Malik says that one of their short term goals is to get their products into department stores like The Dover Street Market and Saks Fifth Avenue. They're also working on putting together a look book to show their products and a preview of things coming in the future. As far as long term goals for SINA's fashion, they plan to open stores in big cities like New york, L.A., and Vegas, and possibly even go international. On the music side, talent is something the artists of SINA are not lacking at all! They have a New York sound that reminds me of the whole A$AP crew with the flow of their rhymes on top of their well-produced beats. I can't wait to see more from this brand, and I suggest you all tune in as well!
Check SINA out for yourself at www.somewhereinamerica.net/ And follow the crew on Instagram : @sina_lifee @supremecarl_ @malikkk.x @kinng_ross @bev_god07
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Amorphous, who's real name is Jimir Reece Davis, is an Orlando-based talent who has recently been recognized by BET, Billboard, Complex, Paper, and Vibe. His most popular works are his mash-ups, where he takes the beat of one song and adds another artists' vocals to it. Some of my favorites of his are "Work The Boat" (an Aaliyah X Rihanna mash-up), and "Summer Rain" (an Aaliyah X Biggie mash-up). He even made a whole mash-up album of Jay-Z and Beyonce songs called Bey-Z, which was recognized on both HLN and CNN news and featured as the number 1 album on Bandcamp!
Although Amorphous' mash-ups are everything, that's not where his talent stops: he also produces original music, does beautiful artwork, and even does film making! He is currently working on a documentary of Aaliyah, an artists he considers a huge inspiration (something we have in common), which is set to premiere August 25th! Of his recent success the 19-year old says that this is just the beginning for him. With all of the talent he has, I most definitely can't wait to see more! Click the link below to listen to 'Bey-Z' on BandCamp: officialamorphous.bandcamp.com/album/bey-z Listen to Amorphous' other mixes on soundcloud: soundcloud.com/whotfisamorphous Instagram: @theofficialamorphous Twitter: @loneamorphous Karl Kani, called "The Godfather of urban street wear" by Forbes, has recently dropped a limited edition "Throwback Collection." For those of us who know the history and importance of Black-owned fashion brands like Kani, FUBU, Phat Farm, and Pelle Pelle (to name a few), this is big news! Back in the day Kani was worn by the hottest of the hot and even featured stars like Tupac and Aaliyah in advertisements. As hot as it was though, Black owned urban street wear brands fizzled out due to the takeover of bigger brands like Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger. In recent years, urban street wear and Black owned businesses have both become more relevant. With Kani being a combination of the two, it's safe to say that now is the perfect time for his comeback.
If you haven't already, I highly suggest watching the film Fresh Dressed, produced by Nas, available on Netflix. In this film, the original urban street wear brands and designers like Kani are recognized for the trends they set that never went away. You can also catch a few original Kani pieces in the upcoming Tupac Shakur biopic, All Eyez On Me, coming out June 16th. In the meantime, follow Karl Kani on the social medias and stay tuned for what he drops next! So this past week, SZA finally released her debut album, Ctrl. SZA fans have been waiting and waiting on this album ever since Z, her last EP, dropped in 2014. She gave us a teaser in 2015 though, with her single Drew Barrymore, which was featured in a Ford Focus campaign starring SZA herself alongside Zoe Kravitz. while Drew Barrymore was the perfect preview of the album to come, her second single Love Galore set the tone even more. Personally, I had to listen to the album about three times to really hear what SZA was saying, and to really get a feel for the story. Ctrl, at least to me, is about growth. It's about drowning in insecurities but also learning to accept those insecurities to find self love. It's about dealing with unstable and time-wasting relationships, and wanting better; wanting real love. The main theme though, is obviously finding control. There's an overall feeling of vulnerability, mixed with empowerment and hope. In a way, (and this may be a reach, but this is from my perspective) Ctrl reminds me of A Seat At The Table; with the openness and vulnerability, the angelic vocals, a relatable struggle, and even the organization of the track list. SZA even features quotes from her mother from what seems to be a conversation on the phone, which makes this album feel even more personal. For me, I would have to say my favorite songs from this album are Supermodel, Broken Clocks, and Garden (Say It Like Dat). Garden, because I feel like I can relate so much to the situation. In this song she talks about a relationship where she doesn't feel like she's good enough, and she needs him to build her up and support her, in spite of her flaws. I'm gonna be real: one of my biggest fears is that I'm not good enough to be loved. Something I day-dream about often is being with someone who will love all of me and support me at my lowest points. That's basically what Garden is about!The chorus of the song begins "Open your heart up. Hoping I'll never find out that you're anyone else, 'cause I love you just how you are. Hope you never find out who I really am, 'cause you'll never love me, you'll never love me, you'll never love me..." A lot of times, this is how I really feel; it kinda just hit me that SZA basically put my feelings into a song.
What's your favorite song from Ctrl and why? Comment below! |
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