A week ago I gave my blog a much needed facelift and direction dedicated to showing more creative content and what I am doing here!
It looks a little something like this:
Adjust your google reader, change the bookmark and follow me now on www.lemelp.com
” There’s kids who wanna leave and I encourage them. Go out and see the world, never return from. Yeah, you don’t come back until you learn some” – I’m Beaming, Lupe Fiasco
I chose the above quote by Lupe Fiasco because it really resonates my experience in America as a whole so far. I’m really fortunate with this whole Year Abroad experience because I’m able to really see American life and culture not only first hand through living here in Philadelphia and travelling to neighbour states but most importantly through the learning aspect.
What I’m learning and being introduced to here is influencing my thought process in so many ways, it really is mind-blowing and I’m having to alter my perceptions and pre-dispositions in order to allow these new ideas in and let them grow alongside my own thoughts. The beauty of the African American studies here at Temple is that it encompasses so many topics and angles in order to teach you about African American people and the black lived experience here in America.
There are classes that focus specifically on the African American and African in areas of Psychology, Philosophy, Literature, Music, Dance, Gender, Photography – you name it and I guarantee there is a subject through which you can explore the African American experience. People may criticise and say that’s way too much and why does it need such focus but in order to dissect a culture, you need all those angles.
I’ve just started my second and final semester at Temple and I know already that more than anything I’m going to miss the education aspect when I go back home.
Although I’ve just come off an extremely long, tiring and strenuous term and although it looks as if the upcoming one will be the same – this is the aspect I am truly going to miss the most. In my experience there is something quite unique about the way and the standard of teaching is conducted here. My opinions about this come heavily from being so involved and so in awe of the AAS department here as they have embraced me so heart-fully and in the case of some exceptional Professors taken the time to teach me outside in the classroom and educate me on Philadelphia life.
As well as that I do believe that the American way of things in education leads and is more susceptible to student contact and interaction and open-ness. I’m not saying come here and learn in America and you can suddenly feel liberated in education and have a great rapoor with your educators, that’s not it all. It’s just the American way of things that I have experienced at Temple is built more around student interaction and involvement. I think this is the first time I haven’t felt like I have a price tag over my head and that I am truly getting value for money – if I was paying these ridiculously priced fees. Here at Temple my breadth of knowledge has increased and I’m able to create and write things that I never could before.
I’ve made a documentary on and could possibly be writing my dissertation on the effects of sneaker culture – I mean come on! My ability to do both of these has come from being at Temple.
It may sound as if I’m totally bashing the British way of things but that is not my intention as certain parts of the American system are not all rosy and great. I’m purely commenting on the social,personal and intellectual level of teaching here because that’s what I crave for and what I have had to really hold onto as being the saving grace for this American college madness.
Lupe says, “Don’t come back until you learn some” and sometimes I feel like lying and saying I haven’t learnt a damn thing, in order to stay here longer. But I know there is a great benefit of being here for my third year as I can go back and approach my last year with tenacity and encompass all these new ideas, thoughts and approaches to my discipline.
I want to be as energised back home as I am here!
This has been my heart for the past two months, correction this has been my baby. It may seem like a disturbing comparison but this documentary was born out of my mind and fathered by my passion for all things kicks.
Sitting in that class today and watching my work on screen there was a sense of pride and slight embarrasment, mainly because I hate the sound of my voice – suprising as that may seem! Yet, for the most part pride.
Before I started creating my documentary my main goal was to give this topic justice. To get across not just the passion I have for sneakers but the appreciation for the design, implementation and process of it also. While I realised I wasn’t doing something entirely new here, the whole process of interviewing, editing and communicates my ideas visually was new to me. And in some cases the subject matter was new to my audience of class mates.
This documentary gave me the opportunity to introduce, explain and critique sneaker culture and explain why people are associated with it. I had to play devils advocate as I made this.
In doing so I learnt some amazing stuff about the business of sneakers and mentality of brands but also peoples insights and personal opinions which are the real highlight to this documentary.
Yet, suprisingly I learnt about why I am associated to this culture. I think that was really defined while making this.
It is clearly evident that sneaker culture has changed.
I understand it’s transcendents, as this New York phenomenon is now appreciated all around the world yet in it’s transformation? Has the essence of the culture been lost in its growth ?
I remember the first ever blog post I done here called Old Love New Love and explained why I loved sneakers so much.
Upon reflection it should have been entitled New love and just that! I have only contemporarily become a member of this burgeoining culture but as everything there are people before you who enjoyed it but most of all enjoyed it in it’s purest form.
Its purest form being a niche sub culture – the readings of Bobitto Garcia showed me this. Yet, contemporarily we claim it as our own because the technology is much more advanced and the rules of the game have changed. Today sneaker culture is defined by a Hypebeast mentality, people wear sneakers, trainers, kicks, with little or no understanding of the history of the culture.
I believe brands have changed the direction of sneaker culture, they became rich by marketing a culture that before relied on word of mouth and foot soldiers, they put it on tv, on billboards and turned the sneaker into a form of social normality, you needed to have it to be hip, cool and chic. Today the marketing and advertising strategies of leading brands have remained same and the faces associated with the product have changed. This is what has made sneaker culture new, these are the rules we adhere to, the ones created by the brands and not the people.
The basis of sneaker culture may remain the same – the passion, the love, the adoration for kicks yet the modes of operation have significantly changed.
What of the state of sneaker culture today? Since I’ve been in America I have only purchased 1 pair of kicks – fact.
A pair of Vans Authentics. Nothing is catching my eye at the moment, nothing is making me want to spend by money. The market is heavily saturated with product that favour style over substance.
This may sound like a defamation of sneaker culture but it really is just an eye opening to me of what I was buying into. I want to understand the business aspect of sneaker culture the most. The communication of ideas all spread from here.
So you say where is this “masterpiece”?
And I reply soon good people soon!
Dear All,
Thank you for taking your time out to read this and possibly help me with my request.
For the past two months I have been making a short documentary on sneaker culture for a class I’m taking out here. In my documentary I focus on three factors the culture, the business and the social aspects.
The Business: When did sneaker culture become something for profit? How significant is Michael Jordan in the changing of sneaker culture?
The Social Aspects: Why were kids being killed for their sneakers? What do sneakers symbolise in inner-city neighbourhoods?
What I’m asking of you guys is a picture of you with your favourite sneaker which will be used in the closing credits of my documentary.
This is an example of what it should look like.
Please e-mail all entries to lemara@lemelp.com.
THANK YOU IN ADVANCE! YOUR HELP IS GRATEFULLY APPRECIATED!
A very LONG while I said I would do store profile’s on the sneaker and clothing stores I see over here. This is the first instalment hopefully of many where y’all can see the places I window shop at.
The first store I’m introducing you all to is UBIQ.
Situated in the heart of Phiadelphia on Walnut Street, they are the only store in Philadelphia to carry a Tier 0 account with Nike SB, Nike, Palladium Boots as well as stocking a range clothing and accessories from brands such as: The Hundreds, Stussy, 1o Deep and Original Fake.
What I really like about UBIQ is the decor, it’s not your usual sneaker store as its modern and sleek look definitely gives it boutique status. The store has the look of a gallery and the sneakers are the masterpieces on the wall. The bright bulb lights on the ceiling highlight every stitch, colour and detail of the sneakers.
Walk into the back and you have the clothing and apparel section or the extended sale section on the day I went. Again the decor shines through with mahogany shelves that hang jumpers and jackets from The Hundreds, Original Fake, and Nike – my favourite being the Nike M-65 jacket, unfortunately not in the sale.
I mentioned that Ubiq to me was like a gallery and I was true in every sense as upstairs is where TKP Gallery currently resides. I came across the work at TKP Gallery before at an event called October Gallery, the artist in question was heavily influenced by hip-hop, graffiti and pop.
Enjoy!
