Our African Streetwear Designs & Our Roots

Streetwear has a long history going all the way back to the early 80s when adidas track suits, boom boxes and crews spinning around on their heads took over the streets of the Bronx. Expressing themselves and showing off their roots with comfy and casual clothing. Hip-hop culture has had the biggest influence on street culture, informing plenty of the style trends and clothing brands that rose to prominence. In just a few decades, it evolved from fringe subculture to the most dominant force in pop culture.

Today street style comes in a ridiculous array of clothing, but what remains true is that it is still all about expressing yourself. Some of the inspiration for our collection of African Street Style has some interesting roots, that surprised even me (Or I’d Forgotten).

Back in the 90s the Fresh Prince inspired a new wave of style. Suddenly multi-colored jeans and neon windbreakers were not only acceptable, but the new norm. Will’s style was an interesting mixture of eclectic colours and prints with a dash of hip hop street style. As with most people around my age I loved the ‘Fresh Prince’ and I loved the style on on the show. It was not until i started Continent Clothing that i realised how much this show had influenced my style and life.

In my early teens I quickly adopted the Fresh Prince’s colourful prints in comfy designs, and ill be the first to admit I did not always get the print mixes right. This ability to express myself with the clothing i wear clearly stuck with me though. Fast forward a few years and what do I decide to do at the start of my career. You guessed it. I started Continent Clothing. A brand that at its very core is all about expressing yourself through colour, comfort and vividly wild patterns, through community empowerment in African communities. I thank my parents for my passion for African & Human development, but I think I have the Fresh Prince to thank for my love of anything colourful, funky and comfy.

I didn’t purposely create and African urban street style brand with Continent Clothing. I didn’t have to. Customers would come and look at our Camden Market stall and were amazed by the colours and that someone was expressing their culture in such a unique way. I started out to start something that would provide some people employment in Africa, thats all i ever really wanted to do. Naturally i made clothing that i would wear, so it had to be comfy, simple as. From there our African Urban Clothing styles were born. People were coming from all over London to buy our clothing, and its because it resonates with them. I think the dreary days in the 1st decade and a half of the 00s are over. Now is the time for expression!

Check out the rest of our stuff on www.continentclothing.com and our story on www.instagram.com/continentclothing