Young Thug's 10 Greatest Style Moments

Image via Complex Original

In every cliché movie plot ever, the beautiful female lead inspires the male lead and brings out his very best. Young Thug’’s fiancé Jerricka Karlae seems to do that for him in real life. In the visual ode to a fallen friend titled "King Troup," Thug is seen resting aboard a private plane in a camel turtleneck, tinted frames, a fine leather jacket, and his signature entanglement of diamond chokers. All the while his gorgeous wife-to-be by his side, fumbling thousands in cash.

2014 was a big year for the then-Gucci Mane underling. He released 1017, covered The FADER and Complex, produced hit solo smashes in “Danny Glover,” and “Stoner,” and shined on collaborative efforts with Rich Gang in “Lifestyle” and alongside the Trouble Man, T.I., in “About the Money.” Thug not only kills it in his feature verse and bridgework on the song, but is also on one from a style perspective. He pulls off three different looks beyond the abilities of those with less moxie.

Thug first gives us his best Kyrie Irving to T.I.’s Lebron James in an all white number accessorized with a leather snapback and fur shawl combination. Later, Thug appears in a red ski-mask-turned-beanie paired with a white henley and the third look is comprised of a pair of sunglasses, a head scarf, and a chest full of diamond-encrusted pendants. Thug was pure sauce throughout this video, giving us a preview of what we could come to expect from the budding superstar.  

In January of this year, Thug sat down with Sway and Erica B wearing a dashing tan coat with an eye-catching geometric pattern. If not for the in-depth hour-long conversation with the notoriously-difficult-to-interview rapper, Thug’s outerwear just may have stolen the show. Add in the fact that he layered a black turtleneck under it and you have an outfit only Thug could pull off. Aside from adding further fuel to his feud with Plies, ‘fit envy was one of the more memorable takeaways from the interview.

“Plotting on Donald Trump,” Thug exclaims in the opening verse of his 2014 hit “Loaded.” He’s talking about robbing the future GOP nominee and he’s already eerily aware of Trump’s still-to-come megavillain status. It’s as if Young Thug’s mind was years ahead while his body remained in the present. A body that is shirtless, barring a tattoo-covered wiry frame, wielding an assault rifle and topped off by gold teeth, messy dreads, and lip and nasal piercings. Though septum piercings can generally be tied to rebelliousness, it’s not something you’d quickly associate with rap music or rap culture. It is even less commonly associated with the real life drug-dealing, trigger-squeezing renegades standing next to Thugger in this video. Debuting with such a perplexing personality and wardrobe clash is a noteworthy style moment all on its own.

It wasn’t enough for Kanye West’s Yeezy Season 3 to create a spectacle at Madison Square Garden that streamed in theaters across the globe. He also cast the world’s fastest rising rapper to model in his show as the toy to his Happy Meal—McDonald’s pun intended. Thugger dressed in a faded yellow shearling coat, dangled his Yeezy 950s off the edge of the stage, and wore his boredom on his sleeve by warily resting his head in his hands. His IDGAF body language throughout the appearance was a style statement in and of itself. Not to mention, when Thugger got the AUX cord he premiered the intro track for his I’m Up project. The celebration at MSG was about Kanye’s new album and upcoming fall collection, but reflecting on the night is hard to do without mentioning Jeff.

In what’s arguably his greatest accomplishments within the fashion world, Thugger starred alongside dozens of other faces in Calvin Klein’s #MyCalvins campaign. Past Calvin campaigns feature icons like Kate Moss, Mark Wahlberg, Brooke Shields, and more modern day stars like Justin Bieber and Kendall Jenner. Young Thug now stands among those giants and he did it all in his signature gender-bending style by wearing women’s clothing in the ads.