Tuesday 28 December 2021

EARSNOT FOR KROOKED SKATEBOARDS

"In this short documentary by KROOKED Skateboards, Kunle Martins talks about his studio, the place he lives and how it plays a role in his art-making process. Martins also goes into detail about how IRAK was born, how skateboarding has influenced his career and how a serendipitous mis-read of "earshot" in SLAP Magazine birthed the legendary moniker, EARSNOT."

(Via Juxtapoz)

Monday 11 October 2021

SUPREME 'MONSTER' TEE

Weirdo Dave's classic 'Monster' tee is given the Supreme treatment for Fall 2021. A Knowledge Jewels favourite!

Available here.

Wednesday 22 September 2021

CARHARTT WIP BY LUCAS PRICE

Carhartt WIP has enlisted artist Lucas Price to create a series of photorealistic oil paintings as part of its Autumn/Winter 2021 campaign. Check out more here.

Monday 20 September 2021

DIJON - MANY TIMES

Dijon returns with 'Many Times'. The track is set to appear on the singer-songwriter's upcoming debut album.

(Via The Fader)

Tuesday 31 August 2021

THE UNTOLD STORY OF IRAK

"They were a syndicate of street artists who became a family, and a revolutionary force in the world below 14th Street. Since their late-90s heyday, some members became famous. Some died. And one, Kunle Martins, endured years of struggle - homelessness, addiction, jail time - to finally get the acclaim he always deserved."

Read Noah Johnson's amazing profile of EARSNOT and the legendary IRAK crew here.

Friday 16 July 2021

MOMENTS LIKE THIS NEVER LAST

Check out the trailer for the upcoming Dash Snow documentary Moments Like This Never Last. More here.

Monday 5 July 2021

SNS RADIO - IRAK NYC

SNS sat down with Kunle Martins, Ben Solomon, and Mike IRAK to discuss formative meetings, formative T's and of course graffiti. Listen here.

Friday 21 May 2021

LINKED UP 011

What You Didn't Know About Barkley L. Hendricks
The less celebrated side of the artist's career, his photographs, receive deserved attention in a new book. (NYT)

In the year 2018 BC (Before Celebrities), Cody, Wyoming, was just Cody, Wyoming. But then Ye moved in, promising jobs, a creative scene, and... a urine garden? (Cosmopolitan)

Gen-Z's Gucci Mane changed the game with his inimitable - and unprecedented - style, and after a slew of hits has morphed into a brilliant businessman. (NME)

After finally being released from prison last year, the artist has been busy working on multiple projects and is now gearing up to take his pioneering brand of West Coast rap to even bigger audiences. (Huck)

Lichen founders Ed Be and Jared Blake on Nas, DJ Rashad, Sylvia Striplin and more. (Ghostly)

What's the most red-sounding song of the 21st century? Scottish musician Sam Gellaitry is here to tell you. (VICE)

From every room you can see trees, sky, and mountains. (Sitting Pretty)

What a long, strange trip it’s been. (Esquire)

Artists need brands for funding. Brands need artists for authenticity. The stigma is gone. Does everybody win? (Fast Company)

The streetwear veteran will try to revamp the ailing mall brand. (GQ)

Why are mass market brands now gobbling up the creative directors that were once being hired into luxury houses? (Highsnobiety)

Model in a baseball cap: Chic, easy-breezy, sporty yet feminine.
Me: Garth from Wayne's World. (McSweeney's)

We met the man throwing down crazy tricks on NYC’s heavy rideshare bikes. (Jenkem)

Friday 14 May 2021

LINKED UP 010

How Stussy Became the Chanel of Streetwear
The brand is somehow 40 years old - and, perhaps, more surprisingly, making some of its most exciting clothes yet. (GQ)

From battered Vans to box-fresh Adidas, how did sneakers become an $80bn-a-year global industry? Sneakers Unboxed at the Design Museum has all the answers - including how to get really fat laces. (The Guardian)

Writer and filmmaker Lyle Lindgren discusses his new book recounting the forgotten story of Eddie Plein, an entrepreneur who changed the face of hip-hop - one gold tooth at a time. (Huck)

Horse Power is a pretty illuminating documentary from the folks at Complex about how a merry band of Polo-obsessed, working-class kids from Brooklyn known as the Lo Lifes made Ralph Lauren an inextricable part of hip-hop culture. (Oi Polloi)

A portrait documentary of the NYC hip-hop and skateboard scene in the years before 9/11 will be released on July 23. (Deadline)

When fandom meets creativity. (The Sociology of Business)

Ceramics collection releases - or “dirt drops” as one artist calls them - are getting more popular. (NYT)

While enjoying an idyllic lockdown in France, the 83-year-old artist has created perhaps his most important exhibition ever - offering hope to an injured world. (The Guardian)

The photographer on addiction, international investigations, and winding up in the MoMA collection. (Gossamer)

Looking to create abstract narratives in her work, the Dutch photographer pushes symbolism to evoke a range of emotions in the viewer.
(It's Nice That)

From Punjab to Puerto Rico, here's a snapshot of the world from last month. (i-D)

Here's May - the trees are really starting to turn a new leaf; spring time is officially here. Time to pull out the picnic blankets and find a shady spot with friends - happy park season. (Corridor)

Wednesday 12 May 2021

LITERALLY BALLING

Literally Balling is artist Victor Solomon's ongoing exploration of the icons and totems of basketball - elevated in opulent form to celebrate the sport's evolution, omnipresence and parallel luxury context from antiquated mediums and processes. More here.

Friday 7 May 2021

LINKED UP 009

Before he succumbed to a drug overdose at the age of 21, the Chicago rapper's emotionally vulnerable style took him from SoundCloud to massive stardom almost overnight. This is the story of Juice WRLD's preternatural talent, his rise to the top of the charts, and the struggles with substance abuse and mental health that ultimately claimed his life. (GQ)

Twenty-five years ago, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony took the real-life tragedy that surrounded them and turned it into something that transcended their genre - and made good on the promise Eazy-E saw in them. (The Ringer)

A self-made music mogul with strong ties to his community, J.Prince has left an indelible mark on the hip hop canon. Now, his children are continuing his legacy. (Dazed)

Recent hits by SpotemGottem and Lil Nas X show the power of extending the life of a single track, album be damned. (NYT)

Aaron Bishop selects his highlights from the UK underground scene including projects and singles from names such as DC, Central Cee, M1llionz and Enny. (The Quietus)

Burned out and flush with savings, some workers are quitting stable jobs in search of postpandemic adventures. (NYT)


Thrift shopping is popular online, but some are worried about the effects of overconsumption. (Vox)

The marriage of digital photography with social media has fundamentally altered the nature of photography for most Americans. (Emulsive)

"We didn't know which kit he'd show up wearing - so we painted one part of the parking lot blue and another red." (The Guardian)

When I think of Todd James' artwork, I think of the quintessential American artist. There are so many entry points, pop-cultural winks, sub-culture nods, a heritage of graffiti and cartoon, TV and even just mid-century abstraction. (Juxtapoz)

Down and Kay spoke to Sharp about Industry's treatment of youth, the importance of its soundtrack, and why they chose to cast unknown actors in the show's lead roles. (Sharp)

A soulful ode to the under-seen, the underappreciated and the critically-reviled gems of the Kino Sphere. (Oi Polloi)

There's a bottomless pit of stuff dropping on all streaming services this month (the likely culprit: Emmy nominations cut-off on May 31st).
(Monster Children)

May has arrived and - carefully, cautiously - we find ourselves out and about this month. (Drake's)

Thursday 6 May 2021

TYSON - TUESDAY

The latest single from Tyson’s Pisces Problems EP. Be sure to check out her recent profile in The Guardian, as well as her previous musical project Panes.

Tuesday 4 May 2021

MITCH EPSTEIN

Mitch Epstein is an American photographer who helped pioneer fine-art colour photography in the 1970s. Check out more of his work here.

Saturday 1 May 2021

BRISTOL STUDIO

Cherry blossom print, triple-hem basketball shorts from Bristol Studio. Available here.

Friday 30 April 2021

BASKETBALL & KOOL-AID

David Hammons: Basketball & Kool-Aid opens at Nahmad Contemporary tomorrow. More info here.

DJ KHALED - WHERE YOU COME FROM

LINKED UP 008

The End of Kimye's Wild Ride
She thought he was an artistic genius. He wanted to "dip her ass in gold". And now it's over. (Vulture)

In 2014, Conor McDonnell woke up at his parents' house with a banging hangover and a request to work the biggest celebrity wedding of the decade. (VICE)

The Kanye West and Travis Scott collaborator talks about his influences and greatest hits for a GQ playlist. (GQ)

Michael Lawson traces the roots of NTS to celebrate 10 years of the game changing station. (Mixmag)

On 'Hyperballad', one of the finest moments in the Icelandic singer's catalog. (The Ringer)

Thirty years later, the reverb-drenched late '80s genre is still going strong on TikTok. (VICE)

Ingreasingly, what we're after on social media is not narrative or personality but moments of audiovisual eloquence. (New Yorker)

When An's gap year plans were put on hold due to the pandemic, he channelled a fascination for the early days of social media into a new way to connect. (It's Nice That)

The future of psychedelics could be legal, widely accessible and cheaper than growing your own 'shrooms. We investigate whether it actually works. (i-D)

Not your average food blogger. (Bistro Boys)

On Whole Foods, trains, and Miami. (Why Is This Interesting?)

Talkin' stoner home-goods, vibey vintage cinder-vessels & Japanese jawns. (Blackbird Spyplane)

Greetings from the mega wardrobe. (Fantastic Man)

Cobey Arner is a photographer, musician in the band Rebounder, and general man about town in the Lower East Side. (Corridor)

Thursday 29 April 2021

IN PRAISE OF GRAFFITI

In December 1980, as editor of the Village Voice, Richard Goldstein invited a number of graffiti writers to the Voice offices for a Q&A and photo session. The result was the cover story, 'In Praise of Graffiti: The Fire Down Below'.

(Via Zephyr)

MATT SWEENEY & BONNIE "PRINCE" BILLY

'Resist the Urge' is taken from the new album Superwolves, out tomorrow.

Wednesday 28 April 2021

THE KIDS

The Kids is the story of the young skateboarders who were plucked from the streets of NYC by Larry Clark to star in Kids, his 1995 cult classic. The documentary chronicles how they became overnight sensations, thrust into the mainstream spotlight. Some discovered transcendent lives and careers while others, abandoned and unequipped to handle fame, suffered fatal consequences.

The Kids will premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival this June.

Tuesday 27 April 2021

SPANISH HARLEM: EL BARRIO IN THE '80S

More great work from Joseph Rodriguez. Shot in the mid-to-late '80s, these photographs of Spanish Harlem capture a spirit and a time that survived despite the ravages of poverty. Check out more from the series here.