Bobby Hundreds knows streetwear. He lives it, he breathes it, and guess what? He writes it. He penned the controversial 50 Greatest Streetwear Brands for Complex. Not surprisingly, a lot of people are heated. Bobby has been bombarded by an onslaught of comments and tweets since the post went up—both respectful and hostile. Maybe more of the latter.
So how can he "defend without sounding defensive"? By writing this. It seemed like Bobby made it clear in the introduction to his list how he went about choosing and placing the brands, but not everyone is satisfied with his explanation. So, he decided to reiterate a few key points. Like, why LRG isn't included ("Jonas had said it himself, that LRG is NOT a Streetwear brand, it’s not skate, it’s not surf.. it’s for everyone.") and why brands like Rebel 8, Upper Playground, RVCA, and Obey aren't ranked (they belong in a whole different category). In the end, this was Bobby's list. You might disagree, but he stands by it. Read the rest of his response for yourself.
Andrew June 22nd, 2011 at 11:10 PM
Regradless of what Jonas said about his own company LRG not being a streetwear brand, even you Bobby know LRG is a streetwear brand that helped shape the "Streetwear" scene to what it is today. Calling them an "urban brand" is a lame excuse. And I don't understand your logic by seperating streetwear brands and what you call "Graffiti Brands" by leaving out Rebel 8, The Seventh Letter, Obey, Upper Playground, etc. To quote Revok "All these brands are based on nothing. All these Streetwear brands out there, what the f*ck about them are street." I guess you proved his point. If this is the 50 greatest streetwear brands, I'm done with streetwear.
Andrew June 23rd, 2011 at 01:23 AM
^oh hay look, i iz cutting and pasting shit to look cool and obnoxious when all points actually make sense from teh response. I must be wetarted dan...
The Hundres...of people who disagree June 23rd, 2011 at 02:35 AM
via Culturist June 22nd, 2011 at 03:01 AM >>>>>>>> I get it. Bobby's defining what "streetwear" is now. The thing is, the definition of "streetwear" now isn't what streetwear is. Exclusivity isn't a choice for true streetwear, it happens by default. Selling tees out of your trunk isn't because you choose to, it's because you don't have any other choices at that time. For example when Supreme doesn't sell to other doors, and keeps their distribution highly filtered, that has nothing to do with their brand being skate/street/contemporary. Supreme is street because they were born in the street with messages that speak to those that grew up in the street. I agree with most of Bobby's list. But taking a step back, and feeling his opinion as a whole - makes me feel as though he doesn't really come from this culture. It appears that he is a great learner, and that he learned alot about the businesses targeting this culture, but it doesn't seem like he is truly a part of street culture. What the fuck does internet social merchandising have to do with street culture? This isn't "WEB-Wear" , this is about clothing that is made by urban creatives that use garments as expression. Reading about each brand that he chose, and the reasons make sense from a business standpoint, but I don't feel any connection to his cultural standpoint. How do you know about a culture you aren't a part of? Does Bobby skate? Does he write graffiti? Does he emcee? Does he make beats? Does he fucking hate cops? Does he ever just chill on the street and get fucked up? Can he roll blunts? Has he ever gotten jumped? I wan't to know if he partakes in the culture he is claiming is his market. Because I am a part of this culture, and none of The Hundreds clothing has ever been in my closet. Not because I hate it, but because I never felt a connection to it. Much respect to his blog, or his level of journalism - but again, that has nothing to do with street culture. As for LRG, I don't care what Jonas wanted it to be or if he hated streetwear, or if he made triple digit millions, no matter what - LRG is one of the originators of true streetwear. From the artists and musicians LRG supported, to the connection they made with the culture through their designs... LRG just oozed authenticity. If you are a part of the culture, you will be able to recognize one of your own, and The Lifted Crew is one of our own. Hip Hop started streetwear. Period. Skateboarding too, but if you are a skater you probably - actually scratch that, you have some or mostly Hip hop in your headphones. I'm not talking about Hip hop in only it's audible form - but in all of it's elements. Graffiti / Street art, Beatmakers, Deejays, B-boys, Emcees, etc. All of this spreads its way out to mesh with Skating, Basketball, Snowboarding, Surfing, etc. But deep within streewear's core - is hip hop. And deep within Hip hop - is rebellion. All this shit is a rebellion against rules and grids and guidelines to how life should be lived. I can type on and on about why I think something is missing on this list. Simply put, I guess it's because some of the MOST influential parts of streetwear are not present. I wouldn't feel this if a few minor contributors didn't have a spot on this shelf...but brands like: TRIPLE FIVE SOUL, OBEY, L-R-G, UPPER PLAYGROUND, PNB Nation, ECKO, even fucking CROSS COLORS is more street than some of these brands in this Top 50 list. Don't tell me fucking Invisible Man, Primitive, or Fucking Awesome influenced us more than any of the labels I listed above. Straight trippin. You can try to explain why they are not on the list, but your reasoning will not make sense. Sales and Distribution? Even if your in malls like OBEY, (Shepard) still gets up. You know when someone is still putting up 10 foot tall stencils or posters and getting arrested after being on the cover of Time magazine and owning a huge brand, is not doing this for different reasons now than when the brand started. He gets up because he wants to. That is authentic. It doesn't matter if it's sold from a trunk or Zumies. Exclusivity isn't from streetwear, thats from the LV's, The Fendi's, and Coco-fucking Chanel. Ok I'm done.
DeLo June 23rd, 2011 at 02:58 AM
well done real talk
unclesam June 23rd, 2011 at 10:49 AM
Word, dope comment. But next time do use paragraphs :P
splashkicks June 23rd, 2011 at 02:57 AM
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Well put.. its a lot of shit to read tho..... COMPLEX REPOST THIS!!!!!!!!
Not Jay Miller June 23rd, 2011 at 03:03 AM
What a Great read, wish i could say the same for Bobby's defense, did ben write that? haha
Adam West June 23rd, 2011 at 03:07 AM
Wait, complex put another post about Bobby? But instead of it being mostly about Bobby Hundreds this times its all about him? LOL did the hundreds buy complex? Man that guy loves attention.
EARL June 23rd, 2011 at 04:12 AM
I WILL ADMIT, WHEN YOU COMPILE A LIST LIKE THIS THERE WILL ALWAYS BE A SMALL GROUP OF PPL WHO ARE GONNA DISAGREE JUST FOR THE SAKE OF ATTENTION OR ARGUMENT OR WHATEVER, BUT WHEN THE MAJORITY OF THE COMMENTS DISAGREE WITH YOU, AND PPL ON TWITTER AND FB ARE UPSET, I HAVE TO SAY YOU ARE PROBABLY WRONG. IF BOBBY SEES NO FAULT ON HIS PART OR EVEN CONSIDERS NO REVISIONS TO THIS "LIST" THEN I FEEL BAD FOR HIM. HE HAS BECOME SO ARROGANT AND FULL OF HIMSELF HE HAS LOST SIGHT OF WHAT HE ONCE WORKED AT, HE IS A SHELL OF WHAT HE USE TO BE AS IS HIS BRAND. R.I.P TO THE RESPECT I ONCE HELD FOR HIM AND HIS COMPANY.
Yale June 23rd, 2011 at 04:25 AM
Complex is like Fox News, "We write what we want, and fuck what the people think". Bob Hundreds Must be Bill O'Riley, "The Kim Factor" > "I'm never wrong and if you prove me wrong I will be sarcastic to make you look dumb"
enliten.me June 23rd, 2011 at 05:24 AM
He's basically classifying the brands by who has "sold out" the most (aka "for everyone" aka "can be purchased at Macy's in the mall") - what's the big deal?
Stephanie Dohse June 23rd, 2011 at 09:55 AM
Great Articlew, really enjoyed it. Great to see someone not going with the flow but instead standing up for what his believes are
Chris Browns Hairt cut June 23rd, 2011 at 11:52 AM
ITS EASY TO STICK BY YOUR SHITTY LIST WHEN YOUR ONLY RESPONSE CAN BE SUMMARIZED INTO "FUCK YOU, IM RIGHT". bobby DIDN'T INVENT STREET WEAR, YOUR DEFINITION OF IT MEANS NOTHING, THE BIGGER PICTURE IS THAT COMPLEX APPROVED THIS LIST???? THEY MUST REALLY LOVE THE TASTE OF ben AND bobbys WIENER.