Photo Cred: @stevenDDozen ‘s trip to NYC last month.

One of the most respected and biggest names in the rap game industry has reached out to sports and brought a team to his hometown. The first and probably only rapper to ever do so. Within the past year or so, Jay Z brought the New Jersey Nets to Brooklyn and built the Barclay Center as their home court. What better way to have a proper opening than to have Jay Z perform there. In this short documentary, they start from the beginning of building the Barclay Center to the days of his performances.

My favorite parts are: when Jay Z decides how and what photos to show in the background of the stage and of course the subway part towards the end. It really shows how involved and creative Shawn Carter is and why he has gained so much respect. He isn’t just a person singing/rappin behind the mic; He is the whole performance – what you see and hear. The subway part shows Jay Z sitting next to an elderly lady and having a conversation with her on the way to his performance. The fact that she heard of him, really tells you how big of an artist he really is. Generations before and generations after remember his name.

If you haven’t already, check out the documentary below:

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NYC based brand SSUR, by Russ Karablin, has released its 2012 Fall/Winter “COMME” line. A play on the words of the high-end Japanese fashion label “Comme des Garcon”; the infamous phrase “COMME DES FUCKDOWN” has been re-released to the public and made popular via ASAP Rocky and the whole ASAP mob. Originally released 10 yrs ago, the design made its way back into the streetwear scene to give its final message to the over-hyped 2012 end of the world craze: Chill the Fuck out.

I’ve seen many brands release their own twist on a high-end fashion label logo, but none of them had real meaning to it other than another cool looking design. I personally like this version of the logo and I have my own interpretation of the design. Agree or Disagree, I think of it as a message for all the hype surrounding expensive fashion labels: Comme des Fuckdown.

Check out the SSUR “COMME” collection with a variety of shirts, tanks, crewnecks, snapbacks, and pocket tees.

 

 

 

 

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LRG has been putting out a series of spotlight interviews on some of the most talented artists out right now. Heres an interview with one our favorites, Mixed By Ali.

 

 

It’s always good hearing the city’s name and we’re proud that its some someone as focused and motivated as Ali. If you’re a fan of Kendrick Lamar and his recent album good kid m.A.A.d city or the rest of T.D.E, then you already know how he gets down on the mixing board.  I like how he speaks on the importance of being open minded and being able to take feedback from people, even if its not what you want to hear. His skills as a sound engineer are promising and its dope knowing the City of the Green native is coming after the game with the right mindset.

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It’s been a while since we have been doing brand coverage and it’s crazy how we never wrote about any of Black Scale’s collections.  Black Scale has been one of my favorite brands because of their individuality.  Their designs have a distinct look and feel to them which really makes them unique and masters of their own craft.  They created their own lane by being the first “dark” brand, and have been running with it since.  Even their unofficial sponsorship of ASAP Rocky and the rest of the ASAP Mob fits perfectly with the dark theme.

Black Scale recently released the lookbook for their Winter Collection “Desire” and sure enough they stayed true to their dark religion-based roots.  The lookbook features their signature dark religious symbols in the backdrop while showcasing brand new overcoats, flannels and beanies for the winter season.  The line was based on the quote “A creative man is motivated by the desire to achieve, not by the desire to beat others,” and I think the collection really reflects their individualism.  They’ve successfully branched out to become more than a graphic – heavy brand and have had major success with their upscale collections..all while staying true to their dark roots.

 

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About a month ago I started a lil series on our blog about how I feel Jordan Brand has lost its touch.  Yea every retro shoe sells out almost instantly, yea everybody is rocking Jordan’s now, and yea they seem to be killin it right now.  But still…Jordan’s aren’t the same.  I’ll admit I have been writing these posts with a little uncertainty, but it wasn’t until recently that it really hit me about why its not the same.  Jordan ruined his shoes legacy by constantly retroing original colorways.

There used to be a time when retroing a shoe took years to wait for.  Not like 5 years, but somewhere around a decade later they would be brought back out.  Jordan Brand spaced out releasing “Holy Grails,” the most sought after Jordan’s, and instead used their creativity to keep up with their competitors.  Once in a while Jordan Brand would retro an original color way, but for the most part it was new colorways of shoes.  That’s where some of the dopest shoes came out..the Cool Grey IX’s, new colorway.  The Altitude XIII’s, new colorway.  The “Laney” V’s, new colorway.  Nowadays, we get stuck with half ass attempts of a retro..no dope colorways, no real meaning behind them and hyped up retros.  Those same Raptor 7′s that everyone woke up early in the morning cop a few weeks ago, were on sale for like $100 in 2003 when they originally got retroed.  Same thing for those Olive IX’s…but now because it’s 2012 you gotta camp out for them?

 

Don’t get me wrong though, there have been some good releases.  The Chicago X’s weren’t brought back out for almost 15 years after their original release and the  Olympic VI’s, 12 years later.  Those retros were good for Jordan Collectors.  But bringing back the Olympic VII’s after only 2  years just because of the Olympics just so happened to be this year?  You’re better than that Jordan Brand.  On the back of the XII’s there is a quote. “Quality inspired by the greatest player ever,” so  what happen to the quality of the company?

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