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. Kerby Jean-Raymond Read Quote
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 Read Quote
All my collections are based on something I like or something I’m dealing with. They are always deeply personal. Kerby Jean-Raymond Read Quote
All it took was one conversation to know that Reebok was the right home for our team. Kerby Jean-Raymond Read Quote
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 Read Quote
I’ve never seen Ralph Lauren, Rick Owens, or Raf Simons described as white designers. They are just designers. Kerby Jean-Raymond Read Quote
Is the ‘black designer’ label there to warn everyone not to have the same level of expectations for me, or is it some type of prize? I just want to work in an even playing field where I can get press for my work and not just my race and my personal views on it. Kerby Jean-Raymond Read Quote
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. Kerby Jean-Raymond Read Quote
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. Kerby Jean-Raymond Read Quote
