Written by: Génesis Ventura
Fashion trends come and go, and sometimes we don’t realize who started these trends. In honor of entering Black History Month, these are some trends that African Americans have influenced. There are many African American renowned stars who have been very influential in fashion, like Beyonce, P. Diddy Combs and many more.
One of these popular trends is baggy clothes. According to INClub Magazine, the baggy clothes trend was popular in the 90s and early 2000s and continues to be favored now. Many artists adopted this trend, like Aaliyah and Billie Eilish. The trend would take on different forms like baggy mom jeans and cargo pants.
Another very influential trend is logomania. According to Pure Wow Magazine, logomania is why luxury brands started to use very loud logos. The person who started this is Daniel Day, known as Dapper Dan. In 80s Harlem, many hip-hop artists started using it “by using fabric splashed with knock-off designer insignias.” Dapper Dan collaborated with Gucci in 2018 on an ongoing partnership after his great success in creating logomania.
The style of bucket hats has changed due to African Americans’ influence. According to Jordan Anderson at NSS Magazine, before bucket hats were trendy, they were called fishing hats and popular in the 1900s. Later on, they morphed into a women’s accessory. However, street-style bucket hats were introduced in the 1980s by the hip-hop community.
“It is rumored by many that one of the first celebrities to sport the bucket hat was American rapper Big Bank Hank during a performance in 1979,” Anderson wrote in the article.
Lastly, an African American trend that can be both a fashion and beauty trend is hair. For example, hairstyles like cornrows, braids, dreads and much more are rooted in African American culture. In an article in Elle Magazine, Anya Byrd speaks of the significance of Black hair and its influence. Byrd writes, “so simple, just three strands of hair interlocked around each other — tells a really complicated story.”
She co-authored a book on the significance of Black hair, which she described as “227 pages on the aesthetic, economic, and political meaning of African-American hair and its significance for Black people, white people, and all people throughout American history, the business world, and popular culture.”
One of the many people who admire and appreciate this trend is Soleil Joseph, junior animation major.
“So, the trend that I’ve seen influential in Black culture the most is hair,” Joseph said. “Like hairstyles, like Spacebuns [are popular] now, but Black people have been wearing their two hair puffs like that for decades. The way we style our braids and the cornrows – we’ve seen people try to emulate that now. And it’s like a style that we’ve been doing for centuries.”
