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I thought it would be useful to know and understand peoples current shopping habits during current circumstances. this would help with my SWOT analysis on how ell the range would do. some of my results discovered that more people 52% of people prefer to shop online. it could be argued however that my sample size was fairly small therefore my data could've been swayed. majority of my sample would be customers of the high street and not more high-end brands. Perhaps when shopping more high-end the preference would be to shop in store due to it being arguably safer.

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Marc Jacobs designed a hoodie for Fike's sold out rain-or-shine world tour. The hoodie is over sized with small butterfly embroidery and costs $195.00 form Marc Jacobs.

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HaberdasherNYC.com | Men's Fashion News & Trends

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Emerging artist Dominic Fike captured the attention of music industry insiders with his 2017 demo Don't Forget About Me, Demos. Released independently through Soundcloud, Fike cut the tracks while sentenced to house arrest for battery of a police officer. The demo sparked a much-publicized bidding war between several major labels. After signing with Columbia Records, Fike re-released Don't Forget About Me, Demos as a six-track EP. The first single, 3 Nights, was a top 10 hit in Australia, New Zealand and several European countries.

A longtime fan of Marc Jacobs, Fike collaborated with the designer on an exclusive hoodie. Decorated with oversized butterfly embroidery on front and small butterfly embroidery on sleeve, Jacobs designed The Hoodie for Fike's sold-out Rain or Shine world tour.

Dominic Fike x Marc Jacobs The Hoodie ($195.00) from marcjacobs.com.

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Emerging artist Dominic Fike captured the attention of music industry insiders with his 2017 demo Don't Forget About Me, Demos. Released independently through Soundcloud, Fike cut the tracks while sentenced to house arrest for battery of a police officer. The demo sparked a much-publicized bidding war between several major labels.

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This video gave me the idea to do interception lips of both Dominic Fike and skate boarding within the IGTV video.

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I also watched this video with the intention on finding out a bit more of what to include within a brand collaboration video.

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I decided to explore the official PALACE YouTube channel to distinguish how they decide to create their videos. from watching some of the videos on their YouTube I was able to identify the retro/ 90's ambiance

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To make my press release more realistic i researched into area codes and London phone numbers. This meant the contact number is actually realistic

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London phone numbers

020 numbers are for London, including all of central London and the majority of the outer London boroughs.

The boundary of the 020 area code does not follow the Greater London boundary. Several areas outside Greater London use 020 numbers while the outer parts of some London boroughs use their own area codes instead of 020 numbers.
List of areas using 020 area code...
As is the case for all UK area codes, such numbers may also be used for services without any physical link to the area.

Types of London phone number

All 020 numbers are normal, London phone numbers and calls to 020 numbers are charged at standard landline rates.

For historical reasons, there remain misconceptions that '0207 numbers' are for Central London or that '0203 numbers' are dedicated to business users. In reality, there is now no official or technical difference between the different batches of numbers - they can all be issued for any purpose, anywhere in London.

Since the introduction of the 020 area code in April 2000, London numbers have been issued in distinct batches as follows:

As of September 2019, almost all numbers starting (020) 3 and (020) 7 have been issued to phone companies. Most requests for new numbers are currently being met using numbers starting (020) 8 and (020) 4 will be issued soon.

London 0200 numbers and 0201 numbers

Unlike normal London numbers, numbers starting 020 0 and 020 1 cannot be dialled locally in London without using the 020 area code and are therefore not supposed to be used for standard home and business telephone lines.

Generally, these numbers are used for services that will never need to be dialled by members of the public, such as machine-to-machine communications or broadband-only and corporate telephone lines that do not receive incoming telephone calls. Using these numbers in such circumstances helps conserve stocks of normal London numbers for more mainstream uses.

Although not intended for normal public use, such numbers may sometimes be presented on caller display or through the 1471 service by mistake.

Formatting an 020 number

020 numbers should be displayed in the format 020 xxxx xxxx or (020) xxxx xxxx, with the first space always placed between '020' and the eight-digit local number.

For international callers, use: +44 20 xxxx xxxx.

0203 numbers, 0204 numbers, 0207 numbers and 0208 numbers should all be written as above; formats such as '0207 xxx xxxx' are incorrect.

Recent history

London has gone through three area code changes since the introduction of widespread direct dialling in the 1950s.

Between 1990 and 2000, separate area codes were used for Central London and Outer London. This temporary division of London into separate inner and outer areas was abandoned when the new London-wide 020 area code was introduced.

The most recent area code change in the year 2000 resulted in over 79 million numbers from (020) 2000 0000 to (020) 9989 9999 becoming available for use in London - although only local numbers starting with 3, 7 and 8 are currently in general use.

1958

Start of 'subscriber trunk dialling'; 7-digit numbers and a London-wide area code of 01 become the standard over the next decade.

01 222 1234

1990

London area splits into two: 071 area code for inner London and 081 code for outer London. This doubles capacity while keeping local numbers at 7 digits long.

071 222 1234

1995

Area codes change to 0171 and 0181 respectively in line with nationwide changes. No change to local numbers.

0171 222 1234

1996

Consultation proposes eight-digit local numbers to deal with continuing high demand. Respondents reject separate 020 and 022 area codes for inner and outer London in favour of a single city-wide code.

1999

020 numbers start to run alongside old numbers from June. Either version can be used when dialling a number in full, but dialling locally using seven digits is unchanged.

2000

Final changeover to single London-wide 020 area code takes place in April. Local numbers lengthened to eight digits by prefixing with '7' in old 0171 area or '8' in old 0181 area.

020 7222 1234

2005

Local numbers beginning with 3 introduced.

2019

Local numbers beginning with 4 introduced.

Links

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020 area code location and overview - Area-codes.org.uk

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020 numbers are for London, including all of central London and the majority of the outer London boroughs. The boundary of the 020 area code does not follow the Greater London boundary. Several areas outside Greater London use 020 numbers while the outer parts of some London boroughs use their own area codes instead of 020 numbers.

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After reading up on palace's start i felt it would be important to support smaller brands at my launch party. I decided to research online vinyl retailers to invite to the launch. They would have the opportunity to sell some of their retro vinyls to guests at the party. They will have a small stool within the bowel.

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Discogs - Music Database and Marketplace

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Discover music on Discogs, the largest online music database. Buy and sell music with collectors in the Marketplace.

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I visited this website with the intention of bettering my understanding of Palace's seasonal drop list. I learnt that Palace drops their summer collections throughout may in small quantities.

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Palace Skateboards Drop Community: Summer 2020 Everything about Palace skateboards and Palace clothing droplists

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Droplists and time for Palace clothing Summer 2020 - Palace Drop Community

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All droplists for Palace Skateboards Summer 2020 season clothing and drop time.

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To help with my press Release i decided to research how the media view Dominic Fike. I wanted to see how he was already being described within the media to see if i could reflect that in to the writing of the press release. I like how he was described as being strongly inspired by the 'Skate Spirit'.

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The news shook the music industry: last August, Dominic Fike, a young 22-year-old nobody signed a $4 million contract with Colombia Records. All the songs he'd previously recorded disappeared. The record label kept the mystery going until October 16th when the EP Don't Forget About Me was released (and credited to Colombia Record). Then things started to move quickly. Dominic Fike was suddenly being endorsed by numerous American celebrities including DJ Khaleb, Khalid and Kourtney Kardashian. Celebrities mostly defined by their number of followers...

Strongly inspired by the "skate spirit", his universe brings to mind the soundtracks of the 2000s hit TV dramas Newport Beach or Les Frères Scott.

Rarely has a musical rise been this quick. Nothing suggested that Dominic Fike was destined to follow this career. Born in Naples, a small town in Southern Florida, he was raised by his single mother, a drug addict with multiple convictions. The young Dominic was left unattended, on his own, often without resources. But he still grew up like a normal enough teenager, listening to rap music and hanging out with friends at the local skate park. He describes his home town as a quiet place filled with ill-intentioned police officers. Despite his best efforts, Dominic Pike didn't manage to avoid house arrest or prison. It was during these darker times while addicted to drugs that he started composing and seriously making music.

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Who is Dominic Fike, the nobody already worth millions?

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The news shook the music industry: last August, Dominic Fike, a young 22-year-old nobody signed a $4 million contract with Colombia Records. All the songs he'd previously recorded disappeared. The record label kept the mystery going until October 16th when the EP Don't Forget About Me was released (and credited to Colombia Record).

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This blog post gave me some tips on what to include in a press release. It is gave a consumer point of view of the PALACE X adidas collection. Therefore i must consider how the consumer as well as press view the press release.

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Cult London skate brand Palace Skateboards show off their second collab with adidas Originals in this new lookbook.

Having launched their first ever flagship store in London's Soho district last Saturday, Palace have wasted no time in dropping another bombshell in the form of this long awaited followup. This time around, it looks like we can expect a mix of updated classics and bold, futuristic designs. Palace have gone to town on some vintage silhouettes including tracksuits and football shirts, utilising the German sportswear giant's technical know-how to add features such as textured tesselated fabrics and 3m reflective print. Palace x adidas part 2 comes topped off with headwear in the form of a 3-striped 5-panel complete with legionnaire-style neck protector, as well as a range of reversible bucket hats. In Palace founder Lev Tanju's own words: "It is for sure the best sportswear we have ever done."

The Second Line will be available online from midnight Friday 1st May, and in-store Saturday 11am at the new Palace London store, as well as selected stockists. Footwear including a ltd edition pair of adidas Gazelles will be released later on this year.

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News | Palace Skateboards x adidas Originals: The Second Line - Concrete PR

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Cult London skate brand Palace Skateboards show off their second collab with adidas Originals in this new lookbook. Having launched their first ever flagship store in London's Soho district last Saturday, Palace have wasted no time in dropping another bombshell in the form of this long awaited followup.

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The following website helped me to develop and further my understanding of what a press release is and what it should include.

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In today's world, brands have to generate their own buzz. Consumers aren't waiting for the daily newspaper anymore to get their news. Instead, they're scanning headlines on Twitter, Facebook, and other social media platforms.

One way to control the narrative surrounding your brand is through press releases. Whether it's sharing a new product release or changes in your organizational structure, a regular cadence of meaningful news can help a company stand out and build mindshare with journalists over time.

In this post, we'll discuss:

What is a press release/news release?

A press release is an official statement (written or recorded) that an organization issues to the news media and beyond. Whether we call it a "press release," a "press statement," a "news release," or a "media release," we're always talking about the same basic thing.

While the heading should contain action verbs, the first paragraph should answer the "who," "what," "why," and "where." The press release should also contain understandable language and a quote.

Most press releases are succinct at just a page long - two pages tops. Ultimately, companies want to provide enough information so that news outlets have sufficient material for publishing their own stories about whatever the company is announcing in the release.

One thing to remember is that press releases live in the public domain, which means your stakeholders and customers can see them.

So, instead of thinking of a press release solely as a ticket to earning news coverage, consider it as a valuable piece of marketing content.

While there's no cut-and-dried formula for what a press release should include, here are a few types of occasions to help you carve out a focus for your press release and determine what content would help you broadcast your news in the best way:

Product Launches

The product launch type of press release is valuable to get the word out about the new solutions your organization is offering to consumers.

It should emphasize the product's specs, pricing, availability, and any other details that may be valuable to consumers.

Mergers and Acquisitions

Organizational change is noteworthy enough to warrant a press release, especially for informing current and future stakeholders about the growth and trajectory of a company.

To announce an acquisition or merger, include details about all organizations involved, information about the merger or acquisition, and quotes from the leadership teams.

Product Updates

Similar to a new product launch, product updates and expansions are also ripe for promotion. Explain what the change is, why it was made, and how it benefits the user.

Events

Press releases are an important component of event marketing to attract promotion from news outlets and other media sources.

You'll want to include:

What the event is about

Who should consider attending

When and where it will be held

Pricing

Grand Openings

Whether you opened up a new office, relocated, or are opening for the first time, announce the details with a grand opening press release.

Announce the date and location the grand opening will be held, who is involved, how the grand opening is being celebrated, and the reason for the move (if applicable).

New Partnerships

Similar to mergers and acquisitions, a press release announcing new partnerships is a mutually beneficial marketing tactic.

To effectively execute this type of release, be sure to write a summary about each company, why the partnership was created, who benefits, and any additional important details for current and future stakeholders.

Rebranding

Rebranding is a difficult thing for any business to do, and it can occasionally result in confusion and awkwardness.

One way to make the transition smoother is by announcing the rebrand with a press release, including details on what is changing, the reason for making the change, dates the changes go into effect, and quotes from the leadership team.

Executive Team Changes

Executives often serve as faces of the company, and a press release functions to kick off this role.

It may include biographical information to establish their credibility along with a photo and other pertinent details.

Awards

When it comes to business excellence, it's OK to brag. Press releases about awards and accomplishments serve to cement your organization as an authority in your space.

Such a press release includes information about the company and why they were given the award, information about the award itself, and details about the ceremony (if applicable).

When formatting a press release, you want to write it in a newsy, straightforward way so a journalist who might write about it can imagine it as an article on their news site.

To start, here are the basics every press release should include:

Your contact information located on the top left corner

The phrase "For immediate release" located on the top right

A headline that quickly explains the announcement

Your business location in the first sentence of the press release

A quick bio about your company at the end of your press release.

You also might want to include "###" or another signifier to show the journalist that the release has ended. In the past, this prevented busy journalists from waiting or flipping the page for more information when there was no more news. However, this tradition is still adopted and highly-respected today.

Now, onto the body of your press release:

Your first paragraph should state what the announcement while providing some context around your business and what it does.

The next two to three paragraphs should include quotes from a company spokesperson or business executive to explain the "why" behind this announcement.

Your last paragraph should be an "About Us" section that explains what your company is and what it offers.

In this example, Catbrella Inc., a fictitious ad agency that just gained its 10th Twitter follower after two years of paid social media efforts, announces its achievement in a press release.
*Disclaimer: HubSpot is entirely responsible for the silliness of this faux announcement.
Writing a press release to break important company news can help businesses grow better, but doing it right is just as important. Here's how to write a press release, like the one above, step-by-step.

1. Write a compelling headline.

You've got your announcement in mind, and now it's time to get it down in words to share with your community, industry, and followers.

Just like writing the perfect blog post title, setting up your press release for success starts with your headline. You only have one line to work with, which can seem scary, but consider your words carefully to make your headline captivating.

Here are some tips to make your headline stand out:

Use action verbs.

Be specific.

Keep it short.

Most importantly, make it interesting: Keep in mind that reporters get dozens, if not hundreds, of releases each day, so invest the time to write a compelling headline.

Consumers, on the other hand, see news stories all over their timelines. As such, your headline needs to be interesting enough to reel them in.

2. Convey the news value to the press.

If you want your press release to be newsworthy, you have to give readers a reason to care.

A good way to ensure this is by using the reverse pyramid formula when writing your press release: Going from the most important information to the least important.

While the first paragraph of your release should explain the who, what, where, the second paragraph should cover the why.

Reporters don't have a ton of time to sift through details and fluffy background information - they just need the facts that'll help them tell your story to someone else from a position of authority.

There shouldn't be any new, crucial information covered after these sections because the readers could potentially miss them.

3. Offer a tempting quote.

Once you've set the scene, it's time to bring your details to life with a quote that reporters can use for context around your announcement and help paint a picture of how your news affects the given industry, customer base, and landscape.

Ideally, quotes will be from key stakeholders in your company including your executive team, project leads, or those directly impacted by your announcement.

Quoting key figures and authorities underlines the importance of your development. The chosen quote should shape your narrative and emphasize the core of the announcement.

Don't ask everyone in your office for a comment or feel compelled to quote all 25 people included in the acquisition. Pick one or two critical spokespeople and focus the quotes around their unique perspective.

4. Provide valuable background information on the subject.

In this last paragraph, keep in mind that the reader should already have key details they need regarding your announcement.

Offer details here that strengthen your narrative, like creative or noteworthy ways your company developed the project or announcement at hand. Or, when applicable, comment on the future implications of your announcement.

Another good way to add value to your press release is by using newsjacking. A process of relating your press release to something currently going on to make it more valuable to the journalist and reader.

5. Summarize the "who" and the "what" in a boilerplate.

Twitter is chock-full of reporters lamenting press releases or pitches that don't clearly explain what the company does or what the announcement is actually about.

Describe what your company does in clear, plain language and include a link to your company's website early on.

If you cite data, include a reference link for the data source, and make sure every name in the release has an associated title and company as well.

To keep yourself honest on this front, ask a colleague to read the release without context and ask them to relay the information back to you. If they can't recall the who, what, or why get back to the drawing board.

Press Release Templates

Now, it's finally time to write your press release. How do you even begin? Use the templates below to guide your press release creation process. Each document has placeholders for the critical information you need to include, depending on the announcement you're making.
Download This Press Release Template for Free
Adding a new product to your existing lineup is always an exciting development, one that you should announce the moment you're ready to generate interest, jumpstart sales, and get early signups. This press release template from HubSpot allows you to do just that in a succinct manner, while still advertising the benefits and features that you're offering customers.

You can also share when the product will be available, how much it costs, and where to find more information. This sort of critical intel is essential to drive early qualified leads.
Download This Press Release Template for Free
Use this template to announce a new round of fundraising for your business. You can include a quote from your investor and one from your representative, as well as the reasons for why you're fundraising.

Fundraising is one of the most critical things you need to do for your startup, regardless of which stage your company is in - whether you're still in the developing stages or at a more mature level. You might already have a few rounds of funding under your belt, but if you're delving into a new round, the public should know.

Using this press release template will not only help you build buzz around your company, but help you attract the attention of angel investors looking for new, growing startups to invest in.
Download This Press Release Template for Free
If you're partnering with another business to offer an improved product or a new integration, use this press release template. You get space to describe the new benefits and features customers will enjoy, as well as direct quotes from your and your partner's representatives.

A partnership announcement will generate excitement for your mutual collaboration and allow you to attach your name to another leading company (and vice versa, for your partner). Note: If you're merging or acquiring another company, we have a different template for that - download it here with the rest of the kit.
Download This Press Release Template for Free
Milestones are absolutely worth announcing - especially if you're a public company or planning to seek funding from investors. Use this template to share your milestone, why it's important, and which successes you've recently experienced. In addition, you can share direct quotes from your executives and directors about the positive impact of the momentum you're seeing.

Not sure what a milestone press release can look like? Here's one example from HubSpot.
Download This Press Release Template for Free
Whether you've recently hired a new Chief Marketing Officer or on-boarded another high-level executive to your Board of Directors, it's essential to announce these major changes. It not only helps the public get to know your leadership team, but helps your own company experience the excitement of having a new executive on their side. Plus, it can be an excellent morale booster for your new hire.

Use this template to do just that. You have space to share direct quotes and specific examples of why your newest executive is such a great fit for your company.

Looking for more? The kit below includes all of the above press release templates, plus more templates based on the type of announcement your company wants to make.
Download This Press Release Template for Free
This template kit also offers creative replacements for the traditional press release and a guide on how to create a comprehensive promotional plan. You'll have exactly what you need to drive brand awareness and stand out among your competitors.

Press Release Examples

Many people think press releases have to be chock full of buzzwords and branded terms.

"Big data," anyone? Five-syllable words you have to look up on Thesaurus.com? Quotes from every executive on the planet that go on for pages? We've seen it all. Unfortunately, so have reporters - and they are not fans.

Instead of stuffing your next release with industry jargon, take a page out of our book (OK fine, ebook),The Newsworthy Guide to Inbound Public Relations, and brainstorm some creative approaches for your next announcement.

Can you include new data? A remarkable graphic or video? A shareable SlideShare? If so, a creative angle can help carry your content and increase the likelihood of social sharing.

Now, to get you thinking on the right track, take a look at some creative press release examples below, the type of news each one is reporting on, and what makes the release unique:

Type of press release: Acquisition
Image Source
The first thing that stands out in this press release is the headline. It tells a full story without being too long: It covers who's involved (Microsoft and Activision), what's happening (an acquisition), and why it matters (to bring the joy and community of gaming to everyone).

Throughout the press release, you get quotes from leaders in both organizations, helping explain the benefit of this acquisition and how it will move the industry forward.

Toward the bottom of the press release, you get additional context surrounding each company's market share and how this acquisition will impact the industry.

Type of press release: Team and office expansion
Image Source
Organizational changes can seem relatively boring. One way to generate some interest is to include visual elements to add more dimension to the story.

In this press release announcing a team and office expansion, venture capital firm Flourish shares photos of some new hires right at the top, immediately drawing readers in.

The release dives into the reason behind the expansion and the key areas of focus moving forward. Then, we get a quick bio for each hire featured in the image, which can help build excitement surrounding the brand's future.

The key takeaway here is: Don't be afraid to use visual elements in your press release, as they can help draw readers in.

Type of press release: Event
Image Source
As the shortest press release in the bunch, SuperCom shows that less is often more.

In this release, security solutions company SuperCom announced its participation in an upcoming conference.

When it comes to events, the most important details are date and location. As long as you have those key pieces, everything else is a bonus.

One thing that would've elevated this release is a quote on who can benefit from attending this event and why, as a way to reel in potential attendees.

Type of press release: Program launch
Image Source
We've also crafted this comprehensive, easy-to-follow press release template complete with a promotional plan and considerations for your next announcement. We use these same guidelines when writing and formatting our releases here at HubSpot, and created a faux, sample release to illustrate what content goes where and why.

Tips for Publishing Press Releases

Writing a press release is really only half the battle. Once you're finished with production, it'll be time to focus on distribution.

Of course, we're all familiar with the traditional distribution levers we can pull, which include publishing the press release on our website/blog as well as sharing the press release with our followers/subscribers via social media and email.

To get the maximum amount of distribution possible, here are some tips you can follow.

1. Reach out to specific journalists.

Instead of blasting a press release out to every journalist you can find an email address for, focus on a few journalists who have experience covering your industry (and company, hopefully) and send them personalized messages.

Connect the dots. Show why what you wrote connects to what they write.

2. Send the release to top journalists the day before.

Give journalists some time to craft a story around your press release by sending it to them - under embargo - the day before it officially goes live.

"Under embargo" just means they aren't allowed to share the information in the press release until the time you specify.

3. To avoid competition, don't publish your release on the hour.

If you're publishing your press release on a distribution service like PR Newswire or Business Wire, avoid publishing it on the hour (e.g., 1 p.m., or 3 p.m., or 5 p.m.).

The reason? Most companies schedule their releases to go out on the hour, which means if your release goes out on the hour too, it's more likely to get lost in the shuffle.

Instead, try going with a more distinct time (e.g., 1:12 p.m., or 3:18 p.m., or 5:22 p.m.).

4. Share your media coverage.

If all goes according to plan, and your press release gets picked up by the media, your job still isn't finished.

To keep the buzz going, you can release a "second wave" of distribution by sharing the specific stories that news outlets write based on your press release.

You can also share the news on your digital channels, like social media and email, to bring awareness to your announcement.

How To Stand Out In The News

The key to keeping your PR strategy new school is forgetting preconceived notions of what public relations is and instead focusing on creating highly remarkable content. Traditional press releases can still be really valuable when executed well.

Instead of ditching releases as a tactic, give them a modern makeover to make them more useful for your marketing.

Think about how you've used inbound methods to transform your marketing strategies to be more personalized, approachable, and build relationships. Those same principles apply to your PR strategy: Create content to craft your own story and use tactful outreach to get the media familiar with (and excited about) your brand.
Editor's note: This post was originally published in November 2019 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

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How to Write a Press Release [Free Press Release Template + Examples]

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Learn how to format and write an eye-catching press release. Plus, get inspired by recent press releases from real brands.

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Michael Burnett celebrates twenty years of Thrasher

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Michael Burnett celebrates twenty years of Thrasher

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this article gave further insight as to who Michael Burnett. I now see Burnett as a must to have on the event press list.

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For over twenty years, Michael Burnett, legendary pro-skater and editor-at-large of skate bible Thrasher Magazine, has been photographing his world of gnarly bails, stoked teens and sick tricks. Having grown up in the surf town of Cardiff-by-the-Sea in southern California, he caught the bug early on, eventually producing his own independent skate zine while studying at the University of Colorado. When, at seventeen, Burnett was offered his dream job as staff photographer at Thrasher, he began an artistic journey from which he never looked back.

Over the course of the next two decades, Burnett fleshed out his unique style, capturing the weird and often unexplored peripheries of skate culture as well as the stars that dominated its sponsored competitions. His success stems from the fact that his photography is not exclusively concerned with skating. Instead, he focuses his images on questions of identity, the excitement and insecurities of teenhood, and the freedom of the 'bowl jam'. Now, as part of a commemorative exhibition looking back at his time with the publication, House of Vans London are showcasing some of the most iconic photographs, videos and artefacts behind Burnett's career.

Now, obviously this wouldn't be an opening of a prestigious skate photographer without some bowl action, and so the launch will include a cash-prize competition hosted by none other than Thrasher editor Jake Phelps. If anyone can still talk (or walk) after all that shredding, the event will be followed by a Q&A session with Burnett hosted by Marc Churchill, with live music courtesy of Jagger and skate celebs Geoff Rowley, Pedro Barros and Ronnie Sandoval all in attendance.
Full Blast: 20 years of Thrasher photography, is on at House of Vans from 14th June - 8th July 2018. Entry is free.

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Legendary skate photographer Michael Burnett celebrates twenty years of Thrasher

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For over twenty years, Michael Burnett, legendary pro-skater and editor-at-large of skate bible Thrasher Magazine, has been photographing his world of gnarly bails, stoked teens and sick tricks. Having grown up in the surf town of Cardiff-by-the-Sea in southern California, he caught the bug early on, eventually producing his own independent skate zine while studying at the University of Colorado.

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Omar Apollo and Dominic Fike’s collaborative new single

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Omar Apollo and Dominic Fike’s collaborative new single

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i came across this collaborative single when finding people that id like to include on my event press target list.

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NME Music News, Reviews, Videos, Galleries, Tickets and Blogs | NME.COM

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Dominic Fike and Omar Apollo have released a new collaborative track called 'Hit Me Up' - listen below.

The Florida rapper and the Indiana singer-songwriter, who are proving themselves as two of 2019's most exciting rising artists, appear on the Kenny Beats-produced single which arrived online today (November 5).

" You know I wouldn't tell you where to go/ Nobody listen to the radio, baby/ We're bending corners like were running from the sun/ Whip is turning different colors and you're taking on changes, " Fike raps midway through the song.

"Hope y'all r vibing," Apollo tweeted shortly after the song premiered on Zane Lowe's Beats 1 radio show.
November
19th - Paris, France @ Badaboum
21st - Glasgow, UK @ The Blue Arrow Club
22nd - Manchester, UK @ Night People
23rd - Leeds, UK @ Belgrave Music Hall
25th - Bristol, UK @ Exchange
26th - Brighton, UK @ Green Door Store
27th - London, UK @ Heaven

Speaking to NME earlier this year, Apollo discussed his creative process, explaining: "Writing these songs has to be quick for me.

"It has to be a whole moment in time and the creative flow has to go quickly. Even if the words don't make sense at the time, I know I have to keep going with it to complete it."

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Listen to Omar Apollo and Dominic Fike's collaborative new single, 'Hit Me Up' | NME

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Dominic Fike and Omar Apollo have released a new collaborative track called 'Hit Me Up' - listen below. The Florida rapper and the Indiana singer-songwriter, who are proving themselves as two of 2019's most exciting rising artists, appear on the Kenny Beats-produced single which arrived online today (November 5).

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I watched this YouTube video while researching current Thrasher Magazine editor Michael Burnett. Within the video Professional skateboarder 'Lizard King' says: 'Burnett's awesome, i mean look at the mag. The mag has been awesome for a long time and Burnett has been apart of the reason why that mag is the shit.

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KING OF THE ROAD Crew Shows Some Love for Burnett

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Upon researching who i would like on my event press Target List I found out about the late, previous, Editor of Thrasher Magazine Jake Phelps. The article revealed how important Phelps is to the skateboarding community. Interestingly, within the comment section below people shared their stories of Jake and the influence he had on their lives.

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Jake Phelps was 100% skateboarder, but that label sells him way too short, because beyond his enormous influence in our world, he was truly an individual beyond this world. When loved ones pass we sometimes mythologize about their full lives rich in friendships and experiences. Sometimes we need to talk ourselves into believing it all. It makes us feel better, and helps us cope with the loss. Well, in the case of Jake, the task becomes wrapping your head around just how many lives one person could possibly live. He really did see it all, do it all, and that incredible brain of his could relish every last detail.

But most of you reading this now identified primarily with Jake Phelps the skateboarder, and editor of our magazine, so I will leave you with this truth - I never met anybody who loves anything more than Jake worshipped skateboarding. Just as we need food and water to survive, Jake needed skateboarding to keep his blood pumping. It was more than a hobby or form of transportation or way of life - it was his oxygen. Here's another thing. Jake never bailed. Jake fucking slammed. And there is a big difference. He only knew commitment. He was going to go for it without hesitation, and there were only two outcomes. Either you'd see his triumphant fist pumping in the air or it'd be an earth-shaking collision with the concrete. I remember him telling me once that he never fell backwards, he always fell forward. Leaning back meant there was hesitation, and Jake was all the way IN.

There was no myth. The man was the myth. We love you, Jake. -Tony Vitello

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Jake Phelps was 100% skateboarder, but that label sells him way too short, because beyond his enormous influence in our world, he was truly an individual beyond this world. There was no myth. The man was the myth. We love you, Jake. -Tony Vitello

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Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Palace Skateboards

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Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Palace Skateboards

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This article has been an extremely beneficial source. It starts from the very beginning discussing the 'origins' of PALACE and ends with multiple sections on several brand collaborations in which PALACE has done over the years. Some of these collaborations include PALACE X adidas. It enable me to have a clearer understanding of why PALACE's brand identity is the way it is. It seems to have developed further than founder Lev Tanju could have ever imagined. from the article it was also made apparent how important music is to the brand as it is well connected to the independent record label 'The Trilogy Tapes'. It was apparent, however, that they had never released a fashion collaboration with a music artist before. This supports my collaboration with Dominic Fike.

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If there's one thing Palace Skateboards has done over the past eight years, it's break the rules. When it comes to fashion and style, anyone in the industry will tell you there's a way things are done: a convention; rules and regulations. Like any other field, the art of making and selling clothes is a method that's been perfected through trial and error over decades. Cast your mind back to when Kanye first entered fashion and began an internship at Fendi. One of the reasons many people in the industry were so frustrated by this news was the fact that West hadn't gone through the conventional channels to get there, and as a result the idea of him receiving the real experience of an internship at an Italian fashion house was patently absurd. Though we all might hate the dogma of any industry, we often equally resent the people that fail to respect it.

On the other hand, every so often something comes along which seems to fly in the face of all convention, flouting every preconceived notion of how things should be done. And gets away with it. More than that, makes a killing.

This, in my eye, is the central phenomenon of British skate brand Palace Skateboards. From humble beginnings selling t-shirts in a handful of London stores, Palace has erupted into one of the biggest streetwear brands in the world.

But far from approaching their success with greater levels of professionalism, the Palace team has only gotten more belligerent; clapping back at negative comments on Instagram, exploiting every new release as an opportunity to take the piss, and using their online store's product descriptions less as a space to sell product, and more as a space to insult their customers (and their mothers). If they carry on at this rate, Spring/Summer 2018 will just be a load of t-shirts of dudes giving you the brown eye, and it'll sell out faster than ever.

Nonetheless, beneath their obnoxious exterior, there's a lot of depth to the Palace backstory. With that in mind, here's a comprehensive guide to one of the most interesting brands in skateboarding and streetwear today.

PWBC: The Origins of Palace

In the late '00s, Lev Tanju and a number of other London skaters were living in a squat flat in Waterloo near London's iconic Southbank skate park. Ironically referred to as 'The Palace', the squat's regular inhabitants became jokingly known as the 'Palace Wayward Boys' Choir', a play on the Victorian religious charity organizations you'd expect to read about in a Charles Dickens novel. When Tanju decided to start his own skate brand down the line, the name was obvious; Palace.

The Palace Logo

From the Nike Swoosh or the adidas 3-stripes to Apple's iconic bitten apple, the most effective logos are simple, clear and distinctive. The Palace logo is no exception in this regard, and was designed by legendary London illustrator Fergus Purcell aka 'Fergadelic'. Having previously designed for labels like Stüssy, as well as his own brands Tonite and Silas, Purcell is no stranger to creating strong, compelling graphic designs. I actually interviewed him a few years back and he explained the situation quite simply: Lev Tanju came to him with a brand completely planned out, and all he needed was a logo. Drawing from his vast knowledge of pop culture and comic books, Ferg came back with a modified take on the Penrose Triangle featuring 'Palace' branding on each of the impossible object's sides. The Palace logo was a triangle designed by Fergadelic - a 'Tri-Ferg'. Then Rihanna wore it and the rest is history.

The VHS Aesthetic

One of the things that immediately set Palace apart from other skate brands in the scene was the distinctive lo-fi aesthetic of their videos. At a time when the skate industry, like everyone else, was pushing ever further toward HD 1080p video and surround sound, Palace suddenly popped up with a series of short, grainy videos that looked like they'd come straight out of the '90s. Tanju's reasoning for this choice was that, when he watched classic '90s skate videos, there was something about the raw, low quality that the newer technology seemed to lose. He clearly wasn't the only one who felt this way, as the style proved a hit with viewers and became a core element of their early identity. Combined with the laid-back, "who cares" attitude of their videos and DIY aesthetic, Palace's early videos looked like the kind of footage you'd film with your mates with a crappy handicam on the weekends, and captured the essence of street skating.

The Slam City Skates Connection

Another thing that the Palace brand had going for it from the early days was its connection to legendary London skate store and distribution company, Slam City Skates. For over 25 years, the Slam City team has been the de facto gatekeepers of the London skate scene (and maybe even the whole UK). Being founded by a bunch of London skaters meant Palace was sure to get support from the Slam City team, which is pretty much the best co-sign you could ask for, and Slam City co-owner Gareth Skewis is also joint-owner of Palace with Lev Tanju. The result was a combination of Lev's creative vision and Skewis's unparalleled knowledge of the skate distribution business. Has it worked out for them? Duh.

The Reference Points

At its core, Palace is a skate brand, but like many other labels, they incorporate a wealth of references into their designs that celebrate broader elements of British culture. Tracksuits, shellsuits and windbreaker jackets pay tribute to the sportswear silhouettes that will be familiar to any working class British person and are a popular choice of clothing for the Palace skaters.

More flamboyant parts of the brand's collections, such as their penny loafers and chelsea boots or the quite literally fruity shirts and trousers of their most recent drop, pay homage to Italian fashion labels like Moschino, Versace and Iceberg that were the UK club culture uniform in the late '90s and early '00s (reiterated through nods to Italian luxury sportswear a la 'Palazzo' and so on).

Lastly, the history of dance culture, from the original Chicago house scene, to the UK's '90s rave scene right through to the present day, features heavily in the brand's designs. On the more obvious side, you've got pieces like a Palace logo tee covered in Mitsubishi ecstasy pills, symbolic of original rave culture, or the occasional psychedelic all-over print that look like they've come straight out of the glamorous days of UK Garage. But take a closer look and you'll find much deeper references; in one of their earliest collections, the brand released the 'Rockin' Palace' t-shirt, featuring a flip of the logo for Rockin' House Records, an early Chicago House label founded by dance music pioneer Rodney Bakerr.

Palace's interests in music goes beyond fashion and logo flips, as well. The brand is well-connected to The Trilogy Tapes, an independent London record label run by Will Bankhead. Bankhead is probably one of the most knowledgeable people on dance music in the UK right now, and every so often The Trilogy Tapes and Palace cross paths for a vinyl release.

In 2014 they released a 12" by Chicago House legend Theo Parrish, followed by a split release by Mix Mup and Kassem Mosse, and then a 12" for Syrian dance music extraordinaire and general legend Omar Souleyman featuring remixes by Rezzett on the reverse. There's an Omar S. Palace T-shirt floating around from a few years back as well which is, frankly, nothing short of fantastic.

The Palace Skate Team

Though the brand is pretty quiet about their day-to-day operations, one thing that Tanju has made clear about Palace Skateboards from the beginning is his ultimate goal: to make enough money to be able to pay his mates to go out, skate as much as they want and not have to worry about anything else.

In this regard, he's been true to his word, and the Palace skate team is a mish-mash roster of pros, amateurs and close friends that all feel the benefit of being part of the UK's coolest skate team. At the center you've got UK skate icons Chewy Cannon and Benny Fairfax, Lucien Clarke and Blondey McCoy (faces of most of the brand's recent campaigns), as well as Charlie Young, Danny Brady, Shawn Powers, Olly Todd, Torey Goodall, and Rory Milanes. Other regular faces in the brand's videos include Karim Bakhtaoui and Gabriel 'Nugget' Pluckrose.

2009: The Early Days

Palace first emerged onto the London scene very unceremoniously in 2009, popping up in a handful of boutique stores like The Hideout (R.I.P.) with little more than a whisper. Initial designs like the brand's now iconic Versace and Chanel flips sold out to those in the know, and within a year ripples started to spread throughout the city. Other stores that were quick to pick it up include Present in East London's Shoreditch and Liverpool's iconic Lost Art skateshop.

If I remember correctly, the brand's original Tri-Ferg tees were reversible with a different color design on the reverse, so if you ever see a reversible Palace tee going for cheap on eBay, snap it up. Don't do it if it's expensive though, Lev will just laugh at you on social media. You were warned.

2011: Supreme London Opens

Comparisons between Palace Skateboards and New York's original irreverent streetwear label are a dime a dozen these days, but the connections were present even in the early days, and many people theorized that the brand was deliberately following the Supreme model, or was maybe even part-funded by Supreme.

When Supreme opened their first European store in London in late 2011, many noticed that the Fall/Winter 2011 lookbook was modeled by Palace rider Lucien Clarke, and over the next few years Supreme would continue to focus its attention on British skateboarding culture, much to the benefit of Palace. Not only that; footwear aside, on the London store's opening day, only two brands were available to purchase at Supreme: Supreme, and Palace. That's the kind of promotion that money can't buy.

The Palace 'Pop-Off' Shops

In the early days Palace was only available from skate stores (and the occasional boutique store), all of whom quickly sold out of product. The brand would also occasionally open an online store on their website for special releases, but trying to buy stuff from there was always a nightmare. From late 2012 to 2013, Palace first began dipping its toes in brick-and-mortar retail with a series of brief pop-up stores in London known as their 'Pop-Off Shops' or 'Palace Retail Powerslide'.

In one of the first flashes of what would become the brand's trademark irreverent sense of humor, flyers for the events promised 'fully untrained staff' and 'posh new high-end shit'. Needless to say, the ventures proved to be a success and soon led to a more permanent fixture...

The Palace Shop in London

In April 2015, barely six years since the brand first launched, Lev and co made big steps when they announced the opening of the first ever Palace shop in London. Located in the heart of Soho on Brewer Street, the store's plush marble flooring made clear references to the opulent Italian fashion labels that London's youth wore during the UK Garage days (such as Moschino, Versace and Prada), and brought to the fore the brand's unparalleled knack for taking the piss in the best way possible.

Located just around the corner from Supreme, the Palace shop has continued to benefit from the cross-pollination of hype between the two labels, with one clever adjustment; Supreme releases new product on a Thursday, so Palace releases theirs on Saturdays, giving the youth two days to run back home, drop off their bags and grabbeth more pea from Mumsie in time for the drop. Like clockwork.

The Palace Shop in New York

Having firmly conquered London in little more than two years, the choice was obvious when it came to the location for the next Palace shop. NYC is arguably the streetwear capital of the world, home to dozens of brands, sneaker stores and, obviously, skaters.

The latest chapter of Palace Skateboards continues in the brand's ostentatious style, featuring a wall-sized velvet flag, marble flooring throughout, a giant TV screen at the background and, obviously a P-shaped fountain, obviously with a brass cherub who's obviously holding a P whilst obviously taking a pee whilst obviously taking your p. Tanju's japes have gone meta with this one.

How the Drops Work

Though the brand was a little bit more unpredictable in its infancy, these days Palace follows a relatively straightforward release schedule, releasing four seasonal collections a year; Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. Spring and Fall tend to be a little bit larger, but recent releases have seen the brand dropping pretty hefty collections throughout the year, to be fair.

Collections tend to release in a handful of drops throughout the season, announcing at the beginning of the week and releasing on Saturdays, launching at 00:00 GMT on their online store and the following morning at brick and mortar locations. Try to cop from the safety and comfort of your bed, and if it all goes wrong, wrap up warm and prepare to camp. Isn't choice a liberating thing?

The Collaborations: Palace Skateboards x Umbro

One of the best things about the Palace brand is their completely unapologetic celebration of streetwear and urban culture from a British perspective. From UK Garage and House music to football and beers, Palace has always made a point of celebrating their homegrown culture. In 2012, the Choir pushed this to the max with a collaboration with iconic British sportswear label Umbro.

The capsule collection featured a number of classic athletic pieces, capped off with a pair of football jerseys inspired by the England team's official kit for the 1990 World Cup in Italy. Then they rounded it all off with a grainy VHS tape of the whole gang drinking in a pub and watching the football. Absolutely flawless.

The Collaborations: Palace Skateboards x Reebok

For their next collaboration in 2013, Palace would join forces with another UK sportswear staple, this time on a footwear release. While Reebok might be better known for its aggressive basketball silhouettes in the U.S., back in Britain the brand is defined by its Reebok Classics training shoes. For their first footwear release, Palace recreated the Classic Leather and Workout silhouettes in classic color palettes with some subtle details including embossed Palace logo branding and very gaudy branded laces.

Americans might have been left scratching their heads, but to the UK, it made perfect sense. The two brands would reunite a number of times in the following years with increasingly bonkers promotional videos, most notably a bizarre infomercial starring comedy superstar and absolutely shameless streetwear fiend Jonah Hill.

The Collaborations: Palace Skateboards x Tate

Arguably the brand's most interesting collaborative works to date, in late 2013 Palace founder Lev Tanju was invited by British art institution the Tate to experiment with artworks on display in the Tate Britain gallery and create a new series of skate decks. The three resultant graphics, created by projecting John Martin's 'The Great Day of his Wrath' onto one of the sculptures in the gallery, were put on display in the gallery and, to my knowledge, were never physically released. Check out the video of Tanju explaining his creative process here:

The Collaborations: Palace Skateboards x adidas Originals

With Umbro and Reebok crossed off the list, all Palace needed to complete the European sportswear holy trinity was adidas Originals. In early 2014, they tested the waters when adidas Skateboarding produced a Tri-Ferg-decorated jersey and skate deck for Palace rider Benny Fairfax, followed in September with the brand's most comprehensive collaborative release yet.

Once again, the designs leant heavily on adidas' football legacy, channelling references to a number of classic kits across apparel, outerwear, accessories. True to form, Palace came through with a promotional video celebrating their collaboration with the 'sportswear bigboys', presented by a man who claimed to be (and definitely was) Palace founder Lev Tanju. Other cameos in the video include Benny Fairfax, Blondey McCoy and Fergus 'Fergadelic' Purcell.

The Collaborations: Palace Skateboards x Bronze 56k

Though Palace might be the best known brand in the new wave of independent, self-made skate brands, they're certainly not the only one. Dime in Montreal, Quartersnacks in NYC, Polar Skate Co. in Sweden and loads of other teams around the world are reinventing the idea of skate brands in the 21st century. And though people often put Supreme and Palace alongside each other, Palace's true kindred spirit is arguably NYC's Bronze 56k skate team.

With their tongue-in-cheek graphics, lo-fi production style and raw, uncompromising approach to street skating, the Bronze guys were the perfect skate brand for a Palace collaboration. Joining up in 2015, a capsule collection of apparel and decks featured graphics by Shawn Powers, joint-branded Tri-ferg tees and some much-needed references to white powder. Tee hee.

Beyond Palace: Thames by Blondey McCoy

Over the years, a number of Supreme alumni have gone on to create their own projects; Aaron Bondaroff launched aNYthing, OHWOW Gallery and Know-Wave radio; Jason Dill runs his own brand Fucking Awesome; Angelo Baque has been putting the work in Awake, and so on. It seems fitting, then, that Palace has been encouraging members of its own clique to do the same.

Over the past few years, Palace rider and gold-toothed model Blondey McCoy has been working on his fledgling label, Thames. Inspired by London culture in its purest form, Thames incorporates imagery from Soho nightlife, London sculptures and more into his label, which is stocked in Palace's brick-and-mortar stores as well as Dover Street Market London.

Lead image:Alasdair McLellan

Gregk Foley is a writer based in Berlin whose work explores the intersections of style, culture, politics and identity.

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Palace Skateboards Guide: Everything You'll Ever Need to Know

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If there's one thing Palace Skateboards has done over the past eight years, it's break the rules. When it comes to fashion and style, anyone in the industry will tell you there's a way things are done: a convention; rules and regulations.

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This screen shot is taking from the official PALACE Instagram page form July 2019. It is an example of an existing marketing strategy that the brand has used.

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The caption to this picture: 'Dominic Fike is reviving a bygone era of skate- and surf-bro rock, but he’s refracting it through the lens of modern hip-hop'- explains, perfectly, who Fike is as a musician.

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Within the article by Carrie Battan we learn about Dominic Fike's interesting childhood and 'edgy' style. The article reveals how he grew up in the 'south Florida region' with a single mother who was 'in and out of jail'. It is revealed that Fike spent his teenage years partying with skaters and other aspiring musicians.His major single, “3 Nights,” could generously be classified as high-quality retail music.
I see a refection of Dominic's style within the PALACE brand. He himself, was a young skater with a mischievous edge.

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The most important thing to know about Dominic Fike, a twenty-three-year-old musician from Florida, is that, someday soon, he'll be very famous. If you haven't yet heard of him, you will not be able to stop hearing about him (or hearing his music) in six months or a year. At least, that's the party line of the music industry, which has hung an extraordinary amount of hope on a young star with about fifteen minutes of officially streamable music. Fike is a precocious, photogenic artist with edgy face tattoos and sufficient talent. More important, he embodies the hazy, genre-less future of popular music.

For a potential music star, intrigue is the most valuable currency. Nobody has generated intrigue quite like Fike has, which makes his position as precarious as it is promising. At the time of his reported four-million-dollar deal with Columbia, which he signed last year, Fike had no music available to stream on major platforms. His previously recorded music had been scrubbed from the Internet; there was an understanding among his handlers that scarcity would lead to buzz. (One YouTuber, BrandMan, recently posted a video about Fike titled "Dominic Fike's Mysterious Rise," and coverage in the press has used similar language.) By the time Fike released his début EP, in October-a collection of languorous demos called "Don't Forget About Me"-that buzz was palpable. Within days, his music was being praised on social media by suspiciously notable figures like DJ Khaled, Khalid, and Kourtney Kardashian. The attention seemed hazardously premature, as though Fike's superstardom was a foregone conclusion, and incidental to whatever music he ended up producing.

Fike grew up in South Florida, a region that has been unusually fertile for hip-hop talent over the past several years. Raised by a single mother who was in and out of jail, he had a mischievous streak, and says he spent much of his teen-age years partying with other latchkey kids-skaters and aspiring musicians-in the area. Though he listened to a distinctly Californian set of pop-punk and beachy alt-rock acts (Blink-182, Jack Johnson, the Red Hot Chili Peppers), he and his friends were mostly interested in rapping. They gathered at a friend's guest house, which they dubbed "Backhouse," where they'd take turns freestyling; Fike self-released some of his rap songs here and there. Eventually, his tinkering crystallized into a style that felt both familiar and novel. His more recent songs bear little resemblance to any mainstream hip-hop, although they may signal its future. His EP, "Don't Forget About Me," is nostalgic for the early-two-thousands beach-bonfire style of Johnson, with some of the watered-down reggae of 311 and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. His major single, "3 Nights," could generously be classified as high-quality retail music. It is, above all, easy to listen to. It shares plenty of DNA with a song like "Rude," a schlocky lawn-party reggae jam from the Canadian band MAGIC!, which riled and amused music critics for a passing moment, in 2013, before slipping into oblivion.

All of which doesn't sound like much cause for celebration, let alone an unprecedented frenzy of hype and expectation. But part of what makes Fike so alluring is that he scratches the nebulous aesthetic itch of Gen Z, the first cohort of music fans to largely shed all genre allegiances. Fike is reviving a bygone era of skate- and surf-bro rock, but he's refracting it through the lens of modern hip-hop. Like much successful hip-hop today, "Don't Forget About Me" is a blunted, nihilistic version of its influences. It features a sound that is fluent in the genre but not beholden to it; Fike slips easily between modes of singing and rap-singing. (Fike also has multiple face tattoos, perhaps the strongest aesthetic signifier among rising hip-hop stars.) He's the logical progression from someone like Post Malone, who makes a savvy blend of pure pop, blues-rock, and rap but is often classified as a hip-hop artist simply because of his social and aesthetic preferences. At times, Fike's music is almost oppressively low-key: "I'm the king of everything / Make rules up on my own," he sings on a particularly dreary track, "King of Everything," making a kind of dry joke about the very act of self-mythologizing. Like many of his peers, jubilation is not in his emotional wheelhouse.

Fike played a number of live shows with his Backhouse collective years ago but has only a few performances to his name as a solo artist. In February, he performed at a small club in Williamsburg, which was filled with what has become, in this nascent stage of his career, his core audience: music critics and label representatives. They wanted to know what all the fuss was about, and for good reason. Fike, after all, is a symbol of the music business's newfound momentum. Five years or a decade ago, during the industry's fallow period, his four-million-dollar deal would have been unthinkable. But in this era of streaming-fuelled prosperity-the business grew twelve per cent in 2018-that sort of contract is becoming more and more common. And Fike is a reasonable canvas on which to project fantasies about the future. He can play the guitar and rap, and he can engage a wide range of audiences without particularly satiating any of them.

It's difficult to express suspicion of Fike without sounding dismissive, curmudgeonly, or overly nostalgic for pre-Internet music fandom. Admittedly, there is something thrilling about him. He seems like a conceptual slam dunk, a triumph of branding and stylistic needle-threading. Onstage in New York, though, where he appeared for about fifteen minutes total, he seemed less like a superhero than like a scrawny kid behind a giant guitar, strumming some lightly catchy songs he'd come up with in his bedroom while dreaming about the future.

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The Twenty-Three-Year-Old Who Embodies the Hazy Future of Pop Music

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The most important thing to know about Dominic Fike, a twenty-three-year-old musician from Florida, is that, someday soon, he'll be very famous. If you haven't yet heard of him, you will not be able to stop hearing about him (or hearing his music) in six months or a year.

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Reading the article by Pete Pabon inspired my ideas of what I want the launch party to be like. Pabon explains how it 'seemed everyone wanted to be there' and 'as the night progressed, so did the crowed outside'.To me this indicates how successful the party was. Word was spread of the launch fast.

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By Pete Pabon

Palace Skateboards threw a party this past weekend to celebrate their collaboration with adidas Originals at their pop-up/"pop-off" on Mulberry Street. On their promo video for the collab, Palace wrote that the union has been "rigorously tested by the Palace riders for use on or around track, field, street, skatespot, sofa, pub and club" and called adidas the "legendary German Uberlords of sportswear." The irreverent and ahead-of-its-game brand brought the goods and the launch party was a blast.

The event was at capacity pretty much throughout the night and it seemed everybody wanted to be there, with the likes of A$AP Rocky, Ricky Powell, Jonathan Mannion, Lily Allen, etc. As the night progressed, so did the crowd outside. To the point where the event was eventually shut down by the cops due to overcrowding. Everybody poured into the streets. Both myself and Seville made our way to Eva's and caught up with Ricky Powell, grabbed his signature sandwich The Lazy Hustler and wandered to Washington Square Park, where there was a rumba band playing. We went our separate ways. Indeed a interesting night.

::

Adidas X Palace Gear on display

Jonathan Mannion and A$AP ROCKY.

Lily Allen.

Peter Huynh (AYC and UXA) and Brad Clarke (Green Label).

Brad Farrant and Ricky Powell on the right.

Power moves...

A$AP ROCKY and Brock Fetch.

Takuya Sakamoto and Mike LaPilusa on the left.

Ray Mate (Mighty Healthy) and A$AP.

Adidas x Palace Gear (track suits are in)

A$AP NAST gets the money...

Late night drum session at Washington Square Park.

Seville Michelle

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Palace Skateboards threw a party this past weekend to celebrate their collaboration with adidas Originals at their pop-up/"pop-off" on Mulberry Street. On their promo video for the collab, Palace wrote that the union has been "rigorously tested by the Palace riders for use on or around track, field, street, skatespot, sofa, pub and club" and called adidas the "legendary German Uberlords of sportswear."

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London, being the first location for a PALACE bricks-and-mortar store made me want to hold the launch party in the capital. However at first I wanted to host it within the actual PALACE store in Soho but the i decided that the Selfridges Skate bowl would be ideal for the party. The Skate bowl is located on the Men's Street Wear floor and can be accessed by the public for free.

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Selfridges is continuing to focus on experiences as it upgrades its Oxford Street, London flagship and on Monday unveiled an innovative 18,000 sq ft menswear destination, complete with Britain's only free permanent wooden skate bowl.

Selfridges

The Designer Street Room "breakthrough" retail concept is dedicated to menswear "but welcoming of female shoppers who like to buy men's fashion." It's anchored by that wooden skate bowl that looks set to become a major attraction and could fill the room with the sneaker-obsessed, streetwear-loving Gen Z and Millennial consumers who could help boost the cool factor of the space.

Other innovations include a permanent custom-built Land Rover Defender on display, complete with Selfridges branding; a custom-built speaker wall and the space able to transform into a venue for events and music launches; and a brand new category for the room with grooming hosted by Acqua Di Parma, which will house its first Barbiere concept outside of Italy.

But the big story (apart from that skate bowl) is the menswear line-up that "will present luxury, street and progressive fashion product together for the first time in one area." With streetwear frequently presented separately from 'regular' luxury fashion in traditional department stores and often coming across as second best as a result, this is clearly an attempt to put it at the heart of its men's offer.

CONCEPT

The "conceptual pillars" used to develop the Designer Street Room's identity are fashion, art, music, skate and cars "with a focus on how our customer and partners use these elements as a way to communicate," the retailer said. "With its original architectural concept, the room will give brands and customers space, acting as a platform for creative output and exchange."

Selfridges

Selfridges said that it used customer research and insight to see the way street-to-designer menswear categories are shopped today and will increasingly be shopped in the near future. "For this new space, more than ever, customer behaviour and customer demand have been put at the centre of every aspect of the new destination," it explained. "A new approach has been applied to selecting the brand mix and predicting cross-category shopping; the versatile customer service adapted to respond to all customers regardless of gender; to the floor design layout and architecture; the product replenishment driven by just-in-time fashion stock drops, not just seasonality, plus all customer activities and events within the space."

The room was designed with Jamie Fobert Architects, which also delivered the women's Shoe Galleries in 2010 and the women's Designer Galleries in 2012.

It has a flexible design ("but tough in both material and form") and is "light-filled" after uncovering the store's giant windows and restoring the columns and ceilings from the original Selfridges 1909 building.

"Making reference to drive-in movie screens and billboards, an adaptable set of frameworks in mill-finished aluminium was custom-made," Selfridges said. "The frameworks are industrial, yet light and reflective. The loose-fit construction forms a creative and adaptable backdrop for designers and guests to customise."

PRODUCT FOCUS

As for the products, the space houses flagships for Gucci, Off-White c/o Virgil Abloh, Stone Island, Amiri, A Cold Wall, A Bathing Ape, Versace and Kenzo.

At launch, an edit of 40 new labels (of a total 88 in the room) has been curated, including ReadyMade from Japan, Warren Lotas, Facetasm and Ader Error. British labels include Ryan Hawaii, Places + Faces, Hey Reilly, Studio Alch, Assid, Saint London, GEO, Corella Lnd, Horn Please, Val Kristopher and Bowl Cut. Some 70% of the labels are independent.

The company is clearly responding to demand out there in the market and also said that it sold 80% more men's T-shirts in the first half of 2018 compared to 2017. As a result, a dedicated T-shirt destination housing over 30 brands, "with a focus on the cult and hard to find has been created," it added.

Selfridges

Reflecting the way the modern consumer thinks, labels and projects will drop strategically throughout the year, "segmenting and energising the season." Chinatown Market is in the room at launch with an exclusive Original Penguin partnership, followed by a Nike recycling programme from London-based Studio Alch, limited edition 1 of 1 sneakers from Fear of God, a worldwide exclusive capsule from A Bathing Ape and Blondey McCoy's latest 'art merch'.

Selfridges said that "this is indicative of an intuitive buying strategy that is not characterised by price-point or traditional ideas of 'department' or season."

And it will also be active digitally saying that for launch, Instagram and online store @dotCOMME "bring an original collection of archive Walter van Beirendonck pieces, alongside the SS19 collection chosen by Selfridges buyers. This is the first in a series of digital-to-physical partnerships that will see the room host personal archives and shoppable retrospectives."

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New Selfridges men's streetwear room has skate bowl, gender-neutral edge

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News distribution : Selfridges is aiming to shake up the designer streetwear market with the opening of a new dedicated 'menswear' room that will welcome women too and also has a free skate bowl while acting as an events space. (#1029277)