Get QuoteDark Inspirational Quotes App

" In September of 2015, I did the unthinkable: I used my second-ever runway show to bring awareness to the Black Lives Matter movement. It was the hardest thing I've ever had to do professionally. It was lonely. "

Related Quotes:

" There were times when gangs would approach me, but my father was way stronger than them. They would come make threats and stuff, and I was like, 'You don't know the opposition I've got upstairs. I'm not scared of you.' "

Kerby Jean-Raymond

Know

You

Stronger

" In my shows, I always try to incorporate music because it's the most natural way to set a tone. So if I want to do a show about depression, I use the opera. If I want to do a show about greed, I use spoken word. If I want to do a show about the injustice that's taking place in the world, I might play Sam Cooke. "

" I've always felt like an outcast. My aesthetic is very high-end, but I still get classified as streetwear. There's really no other reason for than other than my age, the way I look, and where I'm from. "

Kerby Jean-Raymond

Always

Look

" All my collections are based on something I like or something I'm dealing with. They are always deeply personal. "

Kerby Jean-Raymond

Dealing

Deeply

" All clothes are worn on the street, but 'streetwear' had once described T-shirt brands and skate-inspired brands, and now it's just a lazy innuendo used to describe clothing made by designers that the establishment deems 'less than.' "

" Music has always been my first love, and I appreciate how a great musician can bring awareness to tough issues through their work. "

" Financing is always the hard part, especially if you don't have friends or family to back you, which was my case and the case for most designers. "

" The world absolutely needs your voice. "

" If you're on the fence about speaking your truth or sharing your world with a greater audience, don't be. We need each other badly. "

" The work of black creatives seems to always get undermined in one way or another, and that's what this new generation is actively changing by speaking up. We aren't accepting group categorization and group classifications to describe our work anymore - it just leads to group dismissal. "

" I think that when you rally powerful voices around powerful issues, what you get are positive results. "

" I came back from Standing Rock, and one of the things that struck me was their respect for elders. It was something that I felt like I needed to work on in my life. "

Kerby Jean-Raymond

Respect

Work

" A president's power is limited. We need to vote down the ballot as well, from your councilman all the way up to your governors and congressman. "

" If you put the collections together, whether it's Rick Owens, Alexander Wang, or whomever, sometimes they do streetwear, but they're never called that. They're always called 'sportswear' or 'high-end' or 'luxury.' I feel like I'm tossed into that streetwear category so that I don't exist in this space. "

" My earliest memories of defying my parents were through music. I remember rap being banned in my house, and then getting a Cam'ron album. "

" A lot of us who are creative and have all these great ideas just don't have the money to do it. "

" We're always ready for a pick-up game. I walk through the park on the way home every day and just think to myself, 'I'll take on any of these kids.' "

" You have these megabrands who make most of their money off hip-hop culture. Where were they in the time of need? "

" Our first fiscal year, we were profitable. "

" I design for social media. My customer reads blogs, is on social media, so I design with contrast in mind. An all-black shirt looks good on the shelf but not online. "

" 'Bernie versus Bernie,' for me, is these two extremes of capitalism. It's Bernie Sanders, the ultimate socialist, and Bernie Madoff, the ultimate capitalist. "

" I wanted to be a sneaker designer since I was 10; it was my dream to work at Nike and design signature shoes for Michael Jordan and Penny Hardaway. When it was time to select high schools, I wanted to go to one that would help me get a jump-start on my dream. "

Kerby Jean-Raymond

Design

Help

" We need to think forward and keep making America greater. Not that old America, again. "

" I was going to college on a full scholarship. I graduated summa cum laude. I was always on the dean's list. I was never a kid that started any kind of trouble. "

" I don't know which was the first love - music or fashion. "

" My dad was always so strict that I was scared to speak to him. Haitian parents are very, 'This is adults' business; this is kids' business.' "

" I grew up thinking my father was tacky. There was no color coordination. It was whatever was cool. 'These sweatpants are cool. I'll wear them with these shoes that are cool.' He had less inhibitions. I wasn't respectful of his swag then. "

" America is a flawed land but a great one indeed. "

" I don't think the narrative I was stuck in - the 'black' designer category - was going to go away anytime soon. "

" One of the things about runways that I hate is that you can't accommodate so many people because you don't have those in-and-out privileges where people can come and go. "

Kerby Jean-Raymond

Come

Hate