A$AP Rocky Looks Back His Best and Worst Fashion Moments

Of the many revelations dished by A$AP Rocky in his recent GQ interview, perhaps the juiciest revelations are about his hush-hush relationship with Rihanna. “She’s the One,” he gushed. “The love of my life.” And though it’s rare indeed to hear the Testing rapper open up about his relationship, Rocky delved even deeper into the origins of his second love: fashion.

“This shit is more than just rap to me,” he began. “I’m into design, I’m into detail, I’m into elevated taste value.”

According to Rocky, it was OG A$AP Mob member Relli, an early adopter of Maison Margiela and Gucci, who aided in blossoming Rock’s hunger for style into a genuine obsession by the early ’10s. Rocky soon became a name-dropping proponent of progressive menswear, becoming one of the first famous faces to explore the utility of purses, the allure of pearls, the opulence of painted nails, and the satisfaction of scarves.

“The nails, the kilts, the pretty-boy swag, the pearls—I think it’s just being comfortable,” continued Rocky. “I just express myself with fashion, and what’s fly is fly.”

Rocky also reiterated a true zeal for garment design. Remember when Rocky’s AWGE imprint dropped “regenerated” clothing with Marine Serre? Rocky disclosed that he began designing that line on his own during that stint in a Swedish prison, demonstrating a flair for garment production, proportions, and silhouette that goes beyond mere sketching. As Serre told GQ, “I liked the fact that he really knew how to stitch and how to understand the material.”

In fact, during quarantine last year, Rocky developed those skills further. In between acid trips and national parks visits during a 2020 road trip with Rihanna, Rocky hand-stitched, patched, and dyed his own T-shirts and trousers, sharpening his grasp on the fundamentals of apparel.

The rapper made it clear that those handmade goods aren’t part of any upcoming A$AP Rocky clothing line, though he’s gently toying with the idea of launching one “maybe next year, but who knows?” Instead, look out for a forthcoming Vans collaboration and, if the stars align, apparel co-created with Rocky’s dream collaborator, film distributor A24.