文章作者：蛋扯扯 OURDEN

一、为什么饶舌歌手们要装饰自己

在滚滚长江东逝水的历史长河中，HipHop从各个阶段不断产生着变化，这种变化不是单一性的某个方面，从音乐本身到音乐人本身，总在接受着某一时代所特有的印记，这其中很重要的一个方面就是饶舌歌手们的着装风格。2015年，一部名为”Fresh Dressed”的电影问世，导演是Sacha Jenkins，监制之一是Nas。在接受The New York Times记者Hilary Moss的采访时，Nas藉由这部电影发表了他对于HipHop着装风格变化的看法，并由The New York Times发表了一篇名为”A History of Hip-Hop and Fashion, as Told by Nas”的文章，对于这一发展过程，Nas应该是很有发言权的，当然Nas的论调只是我这篇文章的一个引子，先来看看他怎么说的吧。

“Your coming of age is about representing who you are, and hip-hop music contains a message--it tells a story about who you are--and what you wear is also proof of it,” says the rapper Nasir Jones, a.k.a. Nas. It was with this in mind that he and a business partner, Sacha Jenkins--both onetime Queens residents currently in their 40s_set out to provide a cinematic reminder of “the importance of something that we’d grown up around and that is still strong in pop culture--clothes, fashion or what we call ‘gear.’”

“你的出现，只是为了代表你自己，以及你的HipHop音乐中所包含的信息，它讲述了一个关于你是谁，以及通过你穿什么来证明你是谁的故事，”Nas说。为此，他和它的生意伙伴Sacha Jenkins——两位都已时年40岁的纽约皇后区人，开始通过影院去提醒人们“那些在我们成长的过程中始终坚挺的流行文化——着装、时尚以及我们称之为‘衣装’的东西”。

The ensuing film, “Fresh Dressed,” which Jenkins directed and on which Nas served as a producer, spans the past four decades: from the 1970s’ ubiquitous B-boy style that created a uniform of BVD tank tops, Lee’s jeans, Puma sneakers, Cazal glasses and Kangol hats; to the ’90s, marked by Tommy Hilfiger rolling up to the ‘hood and handing out apparel; to the digital era, a roster of the who’s who of hip-hop (Kanye West, Sean “Diddy” Combs, Pharrell), the once-emerging genre’s de facto designers (Karl Kani, Dapper Dan, Carl Jones of Cross Colours) as well as a handful of insightful personalities (André Leon Talley, the photographer Jamel Shabazz) help tell the tale.

之后就诞生了这部由Sacha Jenkins导演，Nas监制的电影作品”Fresh Dressed”。电影中涉及的内容跨越40年，从上世纪70年代“无处不在”的B-boy风格所创造出统一的BVD背心、Lee的牛仔裤、Puma运动鞋、Cazal眼镜、Kangol帽子；90年代，Tommy Hilfiger的”hood and handing out”风格服饰；到数字时代，这份榜单上则囊括了那些HipHop歌手例如Kanye West, Sean “Diddy” Combs, Pharrell Williams，那些新兴流派的设计师例如Karl Kani, Dapper Dan, Carl Jones of Cross Colours，以及少量富有洞察力的人物例如André Leon Talley, Jamel Shabazz，帮助我们讲述了这段故事。

Your outfit reflects your state of mind--and being.

你的衣服反映了你的精神状态和存在。

“If you look a mess, usually there’s a mess in your head, and if you look pretty organized, that speaks without words,” he says. As for his own evolution, he offers: ”What was important to me in the ‘90s was representing that guy from the inner city, but once I brought that message from the block to the world, there became another side to it--a fancier. It’s the more expensive clothes and it’s the nice chain. You’re in front of the audience and you have to look the part, so I adopted more of a rap-star look.”

“如果你看上去一团糟，你的头脑也会一团糟，如果你看起来很有组织，则不说自明，”Nas说，至于他自己的变化，他提出：“90年代对我来说最重要的着装是，最能代表我是从市中心区走出来的那种，但是一旦我把这种信息从街区传到世界，就变成了另一种形式——发烧友。这是更昂贵的衣服，这是更好的链子。你在观众面前，你必须让大家看到这一面，所以我更会让自己像一个说唱明星的样子。

You should be yourself when you’re ready to.

当你准备好了的时候，你应该做你自己。

“I used to keep away from red carpets in the way that I like to hang out, with my Yves Saint Laurent shirts and my European, slimmer-fit dress slacks, because for me that was personal,” he explains. “I still was so connected to the street mentality that I felt like I had to reserve something that was private for me and I didn’t trust being in the music business; it wasn’t real to me. Rap music is real to me, but the business of music didn’t seem like a place to get comfortable. Now, I don’t have to hide that from people anymore. I know that nothing is going to happen.”

“我曾经远离红地毯，我喜欢闲逛，穿着我的Yves Saint Laurent衬衫和我的欧式细长修身长裤，因为那是我的风格，”他解释道。“我仍然是如此希望去将自己连接到一种街头的心态，我觉得我必须保留属于我私人的东西，我不相信自己在音乐业务的角色，这不是真实的我。对我来说说唱音乐是真实的，但音乐业务本身似乎不像一个能让我获得舒适的领域。现在，我不必再隐瞒那些人了。我知道，这不会发生什么。”

You must learn to walk before you run.

在跑步之前，你必须学会走路。

Citing “men’s men” that range from Martin Luther King Jr. to Frank Sinatra, Nas mentions that he likes to look at old pictures for inspiration; however, some of it’s hereditary. “I got a lot of style from my dad,” he says. “I’d emulate him and I’ve got it on my own now. Once you take the training wheels off, you can ride.”

引用“男人中的男人”，这个范围从Martin Luther King Jr到Frank Sinatra，Nas说他喜欢从老照片中获取灵感；然而，其中带有着一些遗传性。“我从我父亲哪里得到了很多种风格，”他说。“我会模仿他，但我现在已经掌握了它们。一旦你把训练的辅助轮子写下来，你就可以骑自行车了。”

Age-appropriate dressing is part of the style game.

年龄合适的着装是风格游戏的一部分。

“If all of the kids are wearing, say, Versace belts, I’ll try not to wear them too much--but it’s a struggle,” the “Illmatic” rapper admits. “ still like all the brands I liked as a teenager, so I go back to them, but the young kids are discovering them now for the first time. It’s their game. So, I like to dress age-appropriate and wear something by a designer you might not recognize and that looks good.”

“如果所有的孩子都系着Versace皮带，那我尽量就不会去太多地穿它，但这是一种挣扎，”Nas承认。“我仍然喜欢我青少年时期所喜欢的所有品牌，所以我会回顾它们，但年轻的孩子们可能只是第一次发现它们。这是他们的游戏。所以，我喜欢穿合适年龄的衣服，穿一些你可能并不是熟知的设计师，但确实也是看起来不错的东西。”

Clothes are art.

衣服是艺术。

And, “wearing clothes is art,” he continues. “I think God creates people and that we are his art, so what we can sew and put together, and what we put on--ow we put it on--it’s art.”

而且，“着装是一种艺术”，他继续补充“我认为上帝创造了人类，而人类是它的艺术品，所以我们可以不断进行缝补和拼接，我们穿什么，我们如何穿，这是艺术。”

二、HipHop着装经历了怎样的发展过程

知名摄影师Ariel LeBeau曾经发表过一篇名为”Happy Birthday Hip Hop: A Timeline of Hip Hop Fashion”的文章，其中选取了一些具有标志性的饶舌歌手以及他们的经典着装，来为这段时期进行定性。这些具有借鉴意义的打扮，或许在那一个年代，被赋予了太多的时尚元素，影响着一批当时的弄潮儿们。

Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five

One of hip hop's earliest rappers and crews, Grandmaster Flash and his Furious Five were as interesting to look at as they were to listen to. We can't help but think some of today's risk-takers in hip hop have been inspired by the iconic rap collective

最早的HipHop说唱歌手和组合之一，Grandmaster Flash和他的Furious Five看上去和听上去的同样“有趣”。我们不禁会想，在今天一些HipHop冒险者的灵感来自于这个标志性的说唱团体。

Run DMC

Run DMC were iconic hip hop pioneers, both musically and aesthetically. When they burst onto the scene in the 1970's, their Adidas track suits, shell toe sneakers, Kangol hats, and oversized gold jewelry set the standard for B-boy fashion.

Run DMC是标志性HipHop音乐和美学的拓荒者。当他们在70年代突然出现，Adidas运动服、贝壳头运动鞋、Kangol帽子、超大的黄金首饰成为了标准的B-boy时尚。

Big Daddy Kane

For better or worse, gold chains remain one of the most enduring visual symbols of hip hop culture. Back in the 80's, Big Daddy Kane was one of the key artists who helped popularize huge gold jewelry, name plate necklaces, and chunky chains.

无论好坏，大金链子仍然是HipHop文化最持久的视觉符号之一。早在80年代，Big Daddy Kane是帮助推广巨大的黄金珠宝、名牌项链和chunky链子的关键人物。

Run DMC & Beastie Boys

Not only did these two New York trios exemplify the sound of 1980's hip hop, they also perfectly personified the style.

这两支纽约三人组是80年代HipHop典型，他们同样也有着相当典型的风格。

Public Enemy

As if their politically charged lyrics didn't say enough, Public Enemy's image was extremely indicative of the cultural climate of the late 80's. While some of their members sported the typical starter jackets, sports sneakers, and baseball caps that were in vogue, other members of the group dressed in paramilitary uniforms as a political statement.

如果他们的政治抒情桥段不会并说够，Public Enemy的形象极为代表着80年代末HipHop的文化氛围，他们中的一些成员穿着代表性的starter夹克、运动鞋、棒球帽，充满着时尚，其他的成员则身着武警制服般的服装以体现一种政治声明。

Salt N Pepa

As hip hop grew more socially conscious, another trend that took off during the mid-to-late 1980's was the influence of Black Nationalism. The salient colors-- yellow, red, green, and black --had long been a facet of reggae culture, but were ushered into mainstream hip hop by the likes of Salt N Pepa, Queen Latifah, Public Enemy, and others.

随着HipHop日益成长的社会意识，在80年代中期的另一个趋势是黑人民族主义的影响。突出的颜色是——黄色，红色，绿色，黑色，如同另一宗的雷鬼文化，但被Salt N Pepa, Queen Latifah, Public Enemy以及其他一些人领进HipHop的主流。

N.W.A.

This legendary group embodied the attitude of hip hop at the end of the 80's, and it was apparent in their image. They wore casual staples like crewnecks, jeans, and tees, but coupled with their swagger, took them from basic to bold.

这一传奇HipHop组合体现了在80年代末HipHop的态度，这在他们的形象中体现的很明显。他们主打休闲，穿着像圆领衫、牛仔裤和T恤，但加上他们昂首阔步，体现了他们最基本的大胆。

Queen Latifah

Throughout the 80's and early 90's, fashion for women was mostly similar to fashion for men. Sneakers, snapbacks and loose-fitting clothes were the way to go.

在整个80年代和90年代初时期，女性的时尚大多相似于男性的时尚。运动鞋、Snapbacks和宽松的衣服。

TLC

When the 90's kicked off, so too did a more youthful wave of hip hop. Bright colors, wild prints, and imaginative ensembles started to catch on.

当90年代大门拉开的时候，也有了更多年轻的HipHop风潮。明快的颜色、野性的图案和富有想象力的创意开始出现。

Kriss Kross

Younger artists coming up in the early 1990's seemed partial to extra-oversized clothes, making hip hop style baggier than ever before.

年轻的饶舌歌手们在90年代初似乎偏爱超大号的衣服，似的HipHop风格比以前宽松。（以及Kriss Kross经典的牛仔裤反穿）

Will Smith a.k.a. The Fresh Prince

Throughout the 70's and 80's, Adidas had been the most prevalent brand in hip hop, but in the 1990's that swiftly changed to Nike -- all thanks to a marginally popular athlete named Michael Jordan.

在整个70年代和80年代，Adidas已经成为HipHop最流行的品牌，但在90年代，Nike迅速改变了这一状况，一切都是因为Michael Jordan。

Biggie & Puffy

Jerseys, baggy jeans, and sneakers took somewhat of a backseat around 1995, when Death Row and Bad Boy Records were at the height of their success. Instead, rappers started to develop a taste for designer clothes and accessories, and mainstream hip hop as a whole adopted a decidedly more glamorous image.

1995年，球衣、宽松的牛仔裤和运动鞋成为主流，源于Death Row和Bad Boy Records达到了他们成功的高度。相反，说唱歌手开始发展成为设计师的能力以品出服装和饰品的味道，主流HipHop作为一个整体获得一种更加有魅力的形象。

Snoop Dogg & Tupac

Another fad that manifested itself in the mid 90's was gangster fashion. No, not "gangsta" - this trend was influenced by the original Prohibition gangsters of the roaring 20's. Double-breasted suits, alligator shoes, silk shirts, and fedoras found their way into the closets of Snoop, Pac, Diddy, and others.

另一种时尚，体现在90年代中期的是匪帮时尚。不是“黑帮”，这种趋势是受禁酒令时期匪帮在20年代穿着的双排扣西装、鳄鱼皮鞋、丝绸衬衫和浅顶软呢帽，发现在衣柜里的Snoop, Pac, Diddy, Diddy和其他人发现了它们并把它们重新拿出衣柜。

Notorious B.I.G.

That's right, even Big Poppa was in on the Al Capone aesthetic.

是的，Big Poppa有种Al Capone（禁酒令时期的著名匪帮头目）的审美。

Aaliyah

The late 90's was when fashion finally started changing gears for the ladies, too. Here's Aaliyah rocking a look that would become her signature; refreshing the baggy tomboy style of her precedents with a subtly sexy twist.

90年代后期，当时尚终于也开始改变女士们的“衣装”。Aaliyah的装扮一看即会成为她的标志——结合清爽宽松的假小子风格与她与性感扭动身形的先例。

Wu-Tang Clan

By the late 90's, the flamboyant colors and conceptual costuming had mostly leveled off and hip hop fashion found a more refined foothold. Classic pieces prevailed, with an updated attitude.

到90年底，其艳丽的色彩和概念服装已经基本上趋于稳定，HipHop时尚发现更精致的立足点，经典作品以最新的态度占尽上风。

Foxy Brown

By the turn of the century, women abandoned their baggy, oversized outfits once and for all, in favor of fashion that was form-fitting and more feminine. For rappers like Foxy Brown and Lil Kim, style was synonymous with sex appeal.

到了世纪之交，女士们彻底抛弃了宽松的超大衣服，时尚、合身得到了更多女士们的青睐。说唱歌手像Foxy Brown和Lil Kim，她们的风格是性感的代名词。

Ludacris

Jerseys, diamonds, do-rags -- Ludacris highlights the essentials of the early 2000's look.

球衣、钻石和do-rags（头巾）——Ludacris高光了新世纪早期的着装风格。

Nelly & Jay-Z

The turn of the century saw an influx of rappers trying their hands at designing fashion lines of their own. Nelly started his clothing line Vokal in 1997, followed by Apple Bottoms in 2003. Jay-Z, meanwhile, co-founded Rocawear with Damon Dash in 1999, which subsequently skyrocketed. Other rappers who founded their own lines around the same time were Diddy (Sean John,) Pharrell (Billionaire Boys Club,) and 50 Cent (G-Unit).

世纪之交的说唱歌手们开始尝试设计自己的时装线。Nelly在1997开始了自己的服装生产线Vokal，紧随其后的是2003年的Apple Bottoms。与此同时，Jay-Z在1999年与Damon Dash共同创立Rocawear，随后获得了井喷式发展。其他说唱歌手同一时间也在创立自己的生产线，例如Diddy的Sean John，Pharrell Williams的Billionaire Boys Club，以及50 Cent的G-Unit。

Kanye West

It might seem like an eternity ago, but when Kanye first broke out in 2004 he did not have the the avant garde taste he does today. Nevertheless, his collegiate style distinguished him as a trendsetter. Many consider him single-handedly responsible for catalyzing the integration of high fashion into hip hop as we understand it today.

它可能看起来像是永恒的，但当Kanye West于2004年突然出现，他还没有今天这样的先锋味道。然而，他的学院风格将他同一个时尚者分开。很多人认为，是他一手催化了高端时尚融入HipHop，并产生我们今天对于HipHop时尚的理解。

Tyga, Chris Brown & Wiz Khalifa

These days, the stylistic staples are hard to miss. Snapbacks, tattoos, tight jeans, and streetwear are the key components in the formula for swag.

如今，我们很难去错过HipHop风格的主要部分。Snapbacks、纹身、紧身牛仔裤和街头穿着成为了Swag的关键部件。

Kanye West & A$AP Rocky

Amidst a sea of streetwear devotees, a relatively small handful of today's rappers make up a school of high fashion fanatics. Kanye, of course, has long departed from his pink polo days in favor of brands like Givenchy, Louis Vuitton, and Maison Martin Margiela. A$AP Rocky has also become a runway darling (literally -- he walked in the Hood By Air show this year during Fashion Week) known for rocking trendy designers such as Jeremy Scott, Rick Owens, and Raf Simons.

在街头的簇拥的包围圈中，相对较少的饶舌歌手成为了高端时尚的狂热分子。Kanye West，当然它早已离开粉红色的Polo衫许久，转而青睐Givenchy, Louis Vuitton,和Maison Martin Margiela这些品牌。A$AP Rocky也成为一员（字面上的意思——他在2013年时装周期间走在了Hood By Air的展台上），并深受Jeremy Scott, Rick Owens,和Raf Simons这些时尚设计师的影响。

Nicki Minaj

Whether she's rocking a multi-colored wig or keeping it simple with a chic, blonde bob, Nicki Minaj has single-handedly changed the way we think of fashion in hip hop .

不管她顶着一头五彩缤纷的假发或保持简单与别致的金发波波头，Nicki Minaj凭一己之力改变了我们思考HipHop时尚的方式 。

Jay-Z & Kanye West

Did someone say "All Black Everything?" When Yeezy and Hova are together, nobody nails modern chic better.

有人说过"All Black Everything"吗？当Yeezy和Hova在一起，没有会说时尚能做的更好了。

Kendrick Lamar

Kendrick Lamar is quietly one of the most stylish rappers in hip hop today. On top of his indisputable skills on the mic, fans are always eager to see what he'll rock on stage.

Kendrick Lamar在饶舌歌手们最为时尚的今天选择静静地做自己。他对麦克风有着不容置疑的掌控技巧，人们总是渴望看到他在舞台上做一些突破。