Behind the Mask: Tunde Olaniran’s Futuristic Style

Below is an interview I did with artist Tunde Olaniran about his fashion style: 1) Describe your style. What different elements make up your style? My style is meant to evoke visceral emotions as well as exuberant nostalgia. I blend very tribal shapes and influences, 90s grunge and punk, and large, changeable shapes and draping. […]

Behind the Mask: Butch Diva

Brooklyn fashion designer Tiffany Rhodes, the “Queen of Spandex,” is raising money to open a store for her line, Butch Diva. In the description of the name of her line, she explained, “I thought ‘butch’ was an expression of androgyny, boldness, masculine aggression, and a tough edge, and ‘diva’ was still sexy, feminine, boss, and […]

Behind the Mask: Playin’ Mas

As we are in the midst of carnival season, I would like to share something interesting that I learned about carnival in Dominica. The other day I visited my family in Brooklyn and one of my cousins let me borrow his book, Ma William and Her Circle of Friends. Written by Giftus John, who taught […]

Behind the Mask: I Met A Clown…

Last weekend, I went to Brooklyn for the Soul of Brooklyn Block Party. I was curious to know what was going on there. While it didn’t turn out to be the block party atmosphere I expected, I was able to listen to a couple of steel pan players do their own version of popular songs, […]

Behind the Mask: Lil Kim Then, Nicki Minaj Now….

It is like they are twins or more Minaj as the younger sister who borrows without permission her big sister’s clothes. The beef between Lil Kim and Nicki Minaj works partially because our society has short-term memory as well as people who are too young to remember anything before a few years ago. Well, here […]

Behind the Mask: Coco and Breezy

Meet Coco and Breezy, who describe their style as “futuristic punk princesses.” Be sure to catch them on Rip the Runway and Afropunk‘s collaboration on BET.

Behind the Mask: Is Willow Smith Too Young?

Tamar-Kali – Boot Willow Smith, the daughter of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, is known for her eccentric fashion sense, which I love. Yet lately she has been turning heads with her hairstyling and a possible tongue piercing. The Daily News has reported that her piercing is fake, but many are still questioning Will […]

Behind the Mask: Uncensored

Fashion Q & A did a beautiful, fantastical photo-shoot called Uncensored. Qianna Smith styled the models and they were photographed by Fernando Colon. I love the purple hair, probably because one of my favorite colors is purple.

Behind the Mask: Adidas, Monsters and Slaves

The internet was buzzing with Adidas’ now debunked concept for a new pair of sneakers that had an interesting design – orange ankle shackles. Now my concern over the sneakers was not only that Jeremy Scott’s design looked awfully similar to slavery shackles or imprisonment, and that Adidas sells shoes to a mostly urban audience […]

Behind the Mask: D. Denenge Akpem

Here is another segment. Its focus will be fashion – hair, clothes, carnival costumes, etc. First, D. Denenge Akpem’s performance-lecture on Afrofuturism and fashion, “Constructing Future Forms.” Update: Read her two articles from Chicago Arts Magazine Constructing Future Forms: Afro-Futurism and Fashion in Chicago, Part I Constructing Future Forms: Afro-Futurism and Fashion in Chicago, Part […]