The story of the influences and impact of African-American culture and style is told by leading voices in hip-hop in the wildly entertaining but informative documentary, Fresh Dressed.
It is no secret that Black people have been fashion trendsetters from the time they began to express themselves to the massive influence we have had in the current culture. Since the dawn of hip-hop, this style has been at the vanguard of the movement, as important some would say as the DJ and the emcee. But the question is if the style and clothes of the hip-hop have had such a vital role in its growth, what factors influenced that fashion?
Director Sasha Jenkins enlists some of the leading rap artists to discuss their influences in creating their style and how it impacted the audience and themselves. Jenkins takes it back to slavery when once a week on Sundays, slaves were allowed to shed their work clothes and put on their “Sunday Best.” As time evolved and the Black Church gained in prominence, Black people really began to exhibit their unique style, dressing to the “nines” for Sunday worship.
Near the end of the most volatile decade of this country’s history, the 1960s, a significant event happened that marked an important precursor to the hip-hop movement; the release of Easy Rider and it’s biker culture built upon the movement that began in the 1950s. This counterculture would spread to the streets and soon gangs in the Bronx would use the fashion as a symbol to create their identities.
In the early years of the game, the streets were like a “runway,” according to Nas. Customizing their denim clothing and vests with graffiti, each crew created their own “colors” that they wore while waging battle against each other. Many of the early rappers, including groups such as The Treacherous Three, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, The Cold Crush Brothers, The Funky Four+One and others were pioneers in the look that would establish the foundation for early years of hip-hop.
As the fashion of the street culture evolved, so did the look of its artists. Some of the early fashion setters were groups like Run-DMC with their leather and Adidas as well as fashion pioneer, Dapper Dan who dressed not only the top rappers in the game such as LL Cool J and Big Daddy Kane and Eric B & Rakim but kept the street hustlers “fresh dressed like a million bucks, as well.” Dan’s shop, which operated 24 hours a day for eight years, was the precursor to taking high-end brands and logos and interweaving them into clothes, hats and even car paraphernalia. Asked what was his secret, Dan stated “I Blackenized it!”
Featuring street terminology for the uninitiated, Fresh Dressed is not only a look at the evolution of the look of hip-hop, but the emergence of fresh voices as well. As new groups in the nineties emerged, so did a bevy of designers who would dress the emcees. Also impacting the fashion of those periods were shows such as the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and In Living Color, which featured the baggy style of Cross Colors. Additionally, entering the game during that period were fledgling brands such as Karl Kani, FUBU and a host of other trend-setters such as Russell Simmons and Sean John.
Co-produced by Nas, Fresh Dressed is a super-informative, wonderful throwback and homage to the look, locations and characters who served as the foundation of fashion for this movement. While the audience has proven to be trendy and no designer has established the staying power of some of the more established fashion houses of Europe, what is really clear isthat the powers that be will continue to keep their eye on the style of the streets to keep fashion moving forward.
Grade: C+