GRMY x SHIRT KING PHADE Drop Collab Streetwear Collection
If you’re up on your Hip Hop history, you already know about the legendary and iconic New York graffiti artist, Shirt King Phade. If the name doesn’t sound familiar, images of his custom airbrushed apparel probably do. From JAY-Z, Jam Master Jay and RZA rocking the custom-made gear to it being featured in several of these artist visual media, Phade and his partners “the Shirt Kings” have helped create some fo Hip Hop’s most iconic images.
In the early days of hip hop, Shirt King Phade created a following with his custom airbrushed t-shirts, which transferred his passion for graffiti from the surface of trains to t-shirts. Fabric became his new canvas and soon enough, Shirt King Phade, along with his partners “the Shirt Kings”, transferred street culture and street art onto clothing becoming the first to commercialize their graffiti. This is what some say this was the birth of streetwear.
Customization was the hallmark of the Shirt Kings. For every piece and customer, the graffiti was custom-made. Always painted with airbrush, the Shirt King style is immediately recognizable. Remixing pop culture elements and icons, we see Mickey Mouse sporting a gold chain while smoking, the Pink Panther reclining on a champagne bottle, and more. Through their vision, cartoons became badass and a part of the foundation of graffiti streetwear.
After opening a store in Queens at the Coliseum Mall, the shop became iconic in the hip-hop scene, in the same way Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McLaren’s SEX shop was to the punk scene. Today, Shirt King Phade continues to work with the biggest names in Hip Hop, Hollywood and beyond. His artwork has undoubtedly transcended boundaries and influenced style movements. Phade has collaborated with the biggest names in streetwear including Supreme, Stüssy, Nike, Champion, and his current with the most important brand in Spanish streetwear, Grimey.
With more than 10 years in the game, Grimey created his tour based on success. Grimey has also collaborated with Dickies, Natos and Waor, Cherry Massia and Sfera Ebbasta, and others. According to Grimey, "The collaboration with the great Phade, a legend who we truly admired. We had the luck and honor of meeting him in Las Vegas and that’s when the magic happened."
Reflecting the purest of streetwear culture, the collection is completely unisex, consisting of a tracksuit complete with a sweatshirt, long-sleeved shirt, graphic tee and shorts. The GRMYxSHIRTKINGPHADE collection is on sale at Grimey’s online website, store.grimey.es and selected retailers around the world. So, show love and get your very own piece of Hip Hop not only Hip Hop art but history.
Photography: @jward_shots
Model: @finessawilliamz
