Hypebeast
In 2018 I was a Hypebeast.
It was the first time I felt like I was part of something that was of my own interest, outside of my family's sphere of influence. In fact, my parents simply couldn't understand how some of my high school friends were spending over R$1200 (about $300 at the time) on Yeezys. Not only that, but they were waking up at 2 AM to wait in line for a pair - the same friends who would arrive late to school the next day, and almost every day.
To refresh things a bit, hypebeast culture was a digital-era trend that embodied streetwear's intersection with high-end fashion. A typical hypebeast would wear brands such as Supreme, Off-White, A Bathing Ape (Bape), and listen to rap and trap music by artists such as Travis Scott, Kanye West, 21 Savage, Drake, and other big Western names.
It felt like a collective fever. The first major hypebeast event I attended was called Sold Out, and I think it was its second or third edition. I went there with my brother and some high school friends, although I had no money to get anything. Given that hypebeast culture is rooted in shopping, there wasn't all that much for me to do there, but it still felt delirious. To see and touch those extremely rare and expensive shoes that you would never be able to find anywhere else in Brazil felt like being in a different place entirely. I knew then and there that I wanted to design sneakers for a living. Fast-forward to today, and I have become an Industrial Designer, and even though I have yet to design my own sneakers, the drive to create something that emotionally appeals to people is still very much there.
The classic mid-2010s hype culture died down later on, being replaced by other fast-paced trends driven mostly by social media. It was, after all, "just a phase, mom."
I think most hypebeasts got tired of big logos and bold colors, and for me particularly, the end of that era represented a new phase in my life - leaving my teenage years and entering early adulthood, and new phases ask for fresh interests and styles.
I still very much love sneakers, and frankly, maybe I wouldn't have gotten into product design if it wasn't for my formative years' hypebeast fixation.
"Everything I do is for the 17-year-old version of myself" -Virgil Abloh