Before he even turned 20, Shane Gonzales was being heralded as one of the leaders of the next generation of streetwear. His brand Midnight Studios quickly became one of the hottest new brands out of the streetwear hot bed that is Los Angeles. With its punk edge and luxury-leaning designs, Gonzales caught the attention of tastemakers like ASAP Rocky. He called Virgil Abloh a mentor. When the second annual ComplexCon took over the Long Beach Convention Center in 2017, Midnight Studios’ event offshoot Midnight Rave was one of the hottest emerging brands on the floor. Its booth was right next to Abloh’s.
“It was a blessing just being in his world in that moment and getting to watch firsthand the amount of love and respect he received from everyone there,” Gonzales tells Complex. “I remember wanting so badly to walk away from my own booth, sit in his, and just watch a master at work.”
A decade later, a lot has changed. ComplexCon will turn 10 years old in Los Angeles, not Long Beach. Gonzales’ Midnight Studios has gone on indefinite hiatus (the designer never formally ended the brand entirely). Since 2023, he’s been focused on growing Alice Hollywood, a spiritual successor to Midnight Studios that follows a similar design ethos inspired by LA’s punk scene.
One thing hasn’t changed. Gonzales is still showing up at ComplexCon to showcase his latest creations to thousands of current and hopefully soon-to-be fans.
“ComplexCon has always been a place where everything and everyone I’m inspired by come together, so it’s something I’ve always felt connected to,” says Gonzales. “There’s still something really valuable about being able to experience a brand and its world in person.”
Ahead of ComplexCon 2026, Gonzales discusses 10 years of growth, moving on from Midnight Studios to create Alice Hollywood, the biggest lesson he ever learned from Abloh, and more.
ComplexCon 2026 tickets on sale now.
You were at the first ComplexCon in 2016 with Midnight Studios. How does it feel to be participating at the show 10 years later for its first time in LA?
It kind of feels like tradition at this point. Being part of the first ComplexCon back in 2016 and still being here 10 years later was never something I imagined possible back then. I started this journey with Midnight Studios, and 10 years later we’re coming back with Alice Hollywood, which feels like a full-circle moment.
ComplexCon has always been a place where everything and everyone I’m inspired by come together, so it’s something I’ve always felt connected to. And finally bringing it to LA feels long overdue. This is home for us, so being able to celebrate 10 years of ComplexCon here makes this one feel even more special.
Outside of the new brand, how would you say you have evolved most as a designer over the past 10 years?
I’m definitely older now, and maybe even wiser, but I think my design language has stayed pretty consistent at its core. Over the last 10 years I’ve moved all over the place, from streetwear to tailoring and back to streetwear, but I’ve never really tried to force myself into one category. I’ve always just designed what feels authentic to me and where I’m at in that moment.
You did a booth with Virgil Abloh at ComplexCon 2016. What is your biggest memory from that experience?
I didn’t quite do a booth with Virgil, but I was lucky enough to share a space directly next to him. Being that he was a mentor to me, it was a blessing just being in his world in that moment and getting to watch firsthand the amount of love and respect he received from everyone there. I remember wanting so badly to walk away from my own booth, sit in his, and just watch a master at work. It’s one of those memories I appreciate even more looking back on it now.
What’s the biggest lesson you learned from Virgil that you still incorporate into your work to this day?
Virgil taught me that there really is no ceiling. He kicked down every door in front of him and showed all of us who were lucky enough to be around him that no idea is too big or too far out of reach. There have been plenty of spaces where I’ve felt like I didn’t belong, or brands I felt would never value what I do, but watching him proved otherwise. That’s something I still carry with me.
How would you describe Alice Hollywood and its offering compared to Midnight Studios? Why did you ultimately decide to enter this new chapter after all of the history you had with Midnight Studios?
After 10 years of Midnight Studios, I think I had reached a point where I had told the story I wanted to tell. There is so much history there and I’ll always be proud of what my team and I built, but creatively I didn’t feel like there was much more of that world for me to explore. Alice Hollywood gave me a blank canvas again to challenge myself and build a new world from the ground up, which was something I really needed. The offering may be different, but the DNA is still very much mine. In a lot of ways, Alice isn’t about leaving Midnight behind as much as it is about taking everything I learned from those 10 years and starting a new chapter.
What are your plans for ComplexCon 2026?
I don’t want to give away too much just yet, but we’re working on something special with some really talented friends out of Korea. It’s really about bringing our two worlds together here in LA and creating something that feels unique to the moment.
What do you want the main takeaway to be for anyone who visits your booth?
I think it’s important to remember that it isn’t always about us, especially being on our home turf. I’m always looking for ways to bring other talented creatives into our world and showcase what they’re doing. Not that they need the spotlight from us, but shining a light on different parts of the world is important to me, especially because I’ve always been welcomed with that same love whenever I’ve traveled and brought my work into their spaces. This feels like an opportunity to return some of that energy here in LA.
Why is it important for you and your brand to have a presence at ComplexCon?
ComplexCon is one of those rare moments where so many talented people from different worlds are all in the same room, and I think there’s something really inspiring about seeing it all come together every year. For us, it’s also an opportunity to put Alice Hollywood in front of people who may not have discovered the brand otherwise. We live in such a fast-paced, social media driven world where everything can come and go so quickly. There’s still something really valuable about being able to experience a brand and its world in person.
