Wardrobe needs updating? Check out the latest streetwear clothes from EMP

Clothes are not just a fabric to cover our skin according to society’s rules. The clothes we choose always have other functions and are used to communicate something. When I choose the clothes I wear, I am also choosing the message I want to convey.

Clothes can be used to communicate your personality, to perform gender and mix roles, or they can be used to support a designer or band of your choice whose clothes you buy. Some may also seek status for themselves. Wearing Supreme, Off-White or Gucci, for example, is a message to the wearer that they understand the value of expensive clothes and can afford to buy them.

There are as many styles as there are wearers. One major and very popular style is the so-called streetwear. Streetwear refers to a style that emerged from the streets of New York in the late 70s and has since become a strong part of the style of skateboarders, punk rockers and rockers. The style was established in the 80s, and became a global phenomenon by the 90s, and has remained a strong fashion phenomenon to this day.

When talking about streetwear, we often refer to clothing that is casual and whose wearers are strongly linked to a popular culture and subculture. For example, skateboarders, punks, hip-hop listeners and rockers. This style has been heavily influenced by hip-hop listeners living in the suburbs of the United States, skateboarders and surfers from California, for example.

At the heart of the casual yet stylish dress style are often seemingly casual every-day items of clothing such as jeans, sweatpants, hoodies, jeans, t-shirts, flannels, hats, caps and leather jackets. The user can combine these garments to create their own look and feel, which can communicate their own preferences. For example, wearing band shirts and leather jackets gives an outsider a different image of a person compared to baggy jeans and massive hoodies.

Street style can be achieved with clothes bought from flea markets as well as from expensive clothing brands. However, some items of clothing also have strong associations with certain subcultures. For example, the Thrasher brand is strongly associated with skateboarders, and there is sometimes resentment in skateboarding circles if someone wears a Thrasher hoodie without being part of the community. The same can be seen among rock and metal music listeners, when Kendall and Kylie Jenner, for example, wear band shirts without being a visible part of the subculture.

Streetwear is particularly associated nowadays with limited edition products that sell out fast. For example, Supreme and Stüssy sell shirts and other products that are only available in very limited quantities. Such sales tactics create FOMO, the “fear of missing out”. Many have criticised the shift in street fashion to more expensive and exclusive fashions, and the so-called hypebeast effect is seen by many as futile. The hypebeast phenomenon refers to people who buy expensive designer clothes just to impress others.

Some of the best-known streetwear brands include Stüssy, Supreme, BAPE, Kith, Vans, Balenciaga, OffWhite and Adidas. Band shirts include various rock, punk and metal bands, but you’ll also often see shirts adorned with old sdchool rap artists, such as the late Tupac Shakur. Street fashion can be found in many different places, but the online shop EMP is one of the most popular sites selling street fashion and band clothing.

Chaoszine in collaboration with EMP is sharing a 15% discount code to their webstore. Coupon code is KAAOSZINE15. Minumum order value for the order needs to be 30€ or 35£. You can visit the webstore here. Code valid until 30.9.2021.

Excluded products: Media, Tickets, Books, Gift Voucher, Products with donation, Rammstein, Böhse Onkelz, LEGO, Sale