Are fashion trends started from hip-hop or does hip-hop follow the fashion trends? This debate is almost as complex as the chicken or the egg debate. Some say hip-hop only reflects what is being worn on the streets. Others say hip-hip influences what people are wearing on the street. 

On one hand the fashion trends on streets do influence hip-hop artists because artists from different regions of the country have fashions styles that reflect where they are from. Nine times out of ten you can tell what part of the country an artist is from by the way they are dressed. If this is true then that would mean that the fashion trend had already hit the streets and the artist is just wearing what everyone else from they're area is wearing. For instance, khaki pants and Chuck Taylor's is the common gear of choice on the west coast. So when you see Snoop Dogg on the TV-screen all g'd up, there is no question what part of the country he is reppin'. 

On the other hand, this time last year everybody was trying to see who could rock the hottest throwback jersey. That was before Jay-Z's song, change clothes. After Jay-Z spit the line," And I don't wear jerseys/ I'm 30 plus/ give me a crisp pair of jeans/ and a button-up/", now the same dudes that was dropping mad paper on throwbacks are now rocking button-up shirts and jeans with S. Carter's on their feet of course. It doesn't stop there. Jay-Z also spit a line that goes, "no chrome on the wheels/ I'm a grown-up for real/. You may be asking yourself right now, why is he bring that line up and what does it have to do with fashion. Fashion or should I say urban fashion doesn't stop at the clothes you are wearing. 

A lot of people in the urban communities like to dress up their vehicles in the hottest accessories as if they were dressing themselves. One the main accessories being chrome rimes. This leads me to my story that follows up Jay-Z's line, no chrome on the wheels/ I'm a grown up for real. Well my story goes like this. I was in the barbershop just chillin', waiting on my turn in the chair when this dude rolls up in a new SUV. I believe it was a Yukon Denali or something on that line. Whatever it was I remember it was something hot because it caught the attention of everyone in the shop. The guy comes in and makes the usual barbershop entrance, give one loud "what's up!" and then makes his rounds around the shop giving pounds. He then goes over to one of the barbers and ask how many heads were in front of him, the barber tells him and then the guy said he'll be back after he makes a quick run. As the guy is leaving out of the door, the barber goes," damn, I see the new whip, that's a nice truck." The guy says thanks and then the barber jokingly says, " whatcha' gonna do put some 26's on it." The guy turns around to look at the barber and with a serious face this grown ass man said, "you heard what Jigga said, no chrome on the wheels, I', a grown-up for real." I must say, though the story sounds a little silly now, when it actually happened in front of me I was in complete shock. I was in shock not so much for what the guy said but for how much influence Jay-Z, a rapper, had over this grown ass man. 

As for the debate are fashion trends started from hip-hop or does hip-hop follow the fashion trends? I believe that they influence each other. There has been sort of a marriage between hip-hop and fashion over the last 10 years. Especially when you have hip-hop moguls such as Russell Simmons, Sean Combs, and Damon Dash heading up their own clothing companies now. It was only a matter of time before the marriage between hip-hop and fashion happened. Hip-hop since its beginnings has always been the voice of the young urban community.

Hip-hop has been used as a vehicle to show the world how we live and tell the world what we feel in the urban community, so it was only a matter of time for us to use hip-hop to show the world how we dress.