If you grew up in Brooklyn in the 80's like I did, you know you lived through a special time. A whole culture was spawned out of the 80's Rap scene. It was "Rap" back then, not Hip Hop. You probably knew how to Break dance. You or someone you knew had a piece of linoleum or cardboard to break dance on. You had a T-Shirt with your crew, and your AKA on it. You probably had a radio with those huge 'D' batteries, and you simply called it a "BOX", not a "boombox". Your tapes played Kurtis Blow, Run DMC, Just Ice, Grandmaster Flash, Afrikka Bambataa, Eric B & Rakim, EPMD, Boogie Down Productions, Fearless Four, Ultramagnetic MCs, Stetsasonic, Sugarhill Gang, Fat Boys, Big Daddy Kane, Biz Markie, Slick Rick and Dougie Fresh, UTFO, Roxanne Shante, and Kool G Rap & DJ Polo. You knew that Five Minutes Of Funk was the theme to Video Music Box.

The world was a simpler place and everything that happened was in some way connected to a soundtrack that defined what our Hip Hop culture has now become. There was no MTV. There was no way for the culture to spread around. And it simply wasn't thought of as a culture to "spread around". It was simply what it was. So for a time, New York lived in it's own little bubble. The Hip Hop culture was set in motion by the inner city soundtrack. Sounds that came from everywhere. The Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Long Island, and Harlem. I'm not claiming Rap started in Brooklyn. It started in the Bronx. All the boroughs had their own contributors. They would pave the way for sounds and culture today. Hip Hop has become an unstoppable force. It has evolved and morphed. It's no longer Timbs and Hoodies. It’s a phenomenon. It's everywhere.

It was a different time back then, a bubble, not as worldwide as it is today. We all dressed pretty much the same but rocked our gear in our own unique style. You probably had Lee jeans. You probably had shell top Adidas or suede Pumas. You saw the movie Beat Street. You knew who the Fat Boys were. You played Skully, but pronounced it Skelly. You played Manhunt as a kid. You had a rope chain or wanted one (most likely just wanted one), or a sheep skin jacket. You probably wore a BVD tank top over a BVD T-shirt. Beatboxing was part of the language, and so was pounding a beat on a table. Cazals and Kangols were everywhere. You had a brass name buckle or you wore your crew on your hat or shirt. All in velvet black letters. All things that were about the same all over New York; but everyone rocked them individually, differently. Even with all similar gear, you still stood out. All of New York made Hip Hop what it is today... Not just Brooklyn. I am biggin' up my borough though. Of course back then it was more simple. Good music, fly gear, whether you were in Red Hook, Williamsburg, Bushwick, Park Slope, Crown Heights, Brownsville, Bed Stuy, Kensington, Flatbush, Borough Park, Gravesend, Coney Island, Sheepshead Bay, Flatlands, Canarsie, or East New York, it was all about the fly gear... matching.... and keeping it breezy and fresh. So check out our line of T-Shirts, Baseball Tees and Hoodies. They were inspired by the simplicity of what things were back in the day, but brought back through the filter of the here and now. Still simple and plain but at the same time fly and flashy.

Brooklyn stand up.... we love you world... Thank you for your support... Brooklyn is not a place… It is a state of mind.

Be sure to check out our Youtube page for our Old School Hip Hop playlist!