Jenna Lyons | HS20

Everything Is Streetwear: 20 Years of Stories From the Underground That Went Global Videos by Peter Sidlauskas Words by Ross Scarano With additional reporting by Jian DeLeon There is no definitive streetwear story. Anything claiming that title would be unwieldy, contradictory, and too mythologized to be useful. “IYKYK” may be a recent bit of slang, but the principle has undergirded subculture since the beginning — it was never meant for everyone. Still, there’s no way to describe the past 20 years of fashion without engaging with this scene we’ve retroactively labeled streetwear. No two definitions are the same. Some are so broad and abstract they’re almost religious: Streetwear is self-expression. Some are precise and long-winded, many caveated and discursive (we’ll spare you those). Some folks hate the labeling exercise altogether. At Highsnobiety, we feel there’s value in taxonomy and narrative — we have a long tradition of white papers, for instance. They are an acknowledgment that, with all the information slung around, sifting and sorting is required to make sense of the historical moment. Speaking with 20 designers, brand founders, store owners, and creatives who played a role in the past two decades of personal style results in a collage, rather than a linear timeline. There are tangents unremarked upon and important figures left out. Because you’re probably reading this on your phone, feel free to Google anything that needs further context. Or try walking into