How It All Began

I've loved clothes for as long as I can remember.

Growing up in the '90s, I'd watch MTV and see rappers, punk rockers, and artists wearing things I'd never seen before. The fashion was wild. Different. Unapologetic. Groups like Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park, or even Ruff Ryders and Outkast ruled the culture. The way the dressed was a beacon of "Who" they were.

I wanted to be part of that world.

But my family didn't have money for high-end brands. We wore Kmart clothes and whatever we could find at the swap meet.

And I got picked on for it.

People made fun of my clothes. They made fun of my shoes. For a young kid, those moments stick with you. The type of memories that flips a switch inside your soul.

But instead of letting that experience kill my love for fashion, it fueled it.

Years later, KORPSxCollection was born.

The name KORPSx carries something much deeper than fashion. It's the name of a close friend I lost to gang violence when I was in high school. I never would've thought that morning would have been the last time I would ever see him.

I chose to carry his name forward—to preserve a piece of his memory and give it a new life through something positive.

Then life changed again.

I lost my father.

And around that same time, I found out I was going to become a father myself.

I was forced to think about the kind of world I wanted my own child to grow up in. All during the time the only world I ever knew was crumbling around me.

And that's when the mission became bigger than clothing.

I wanted to create a place where people could belong.

A place where young people could express themselves.

A place where artists, dancers, athletes, outsiders, creators, and anyone who has ever felt like they didn't fit in could say:

"This is a place for me."

KORPSxCollection is my way of creating that place.

Because the things that make us different aren't always things we should hide.

Sometimes they're the very things that make us who we are.

Embrace the things that make you different.