IAMDDB, British rapper, to rock first thrift social event of 2019
Africa’s biggest fashion market Thrift Social is celebrating its 4th year anniversary with a Tie & Dye theme at the GoDown Arts Centre, Nairobi on Sunday, June 9th, 2019. The theme is an ode to the fashion fad common during the rise of counterculture in the 60s and 70s. The theme also captures the spirit of the event’s humble ascent from its modest backyard market days, to a curatorial showcase that has reshaped Kenya’s creative art and fashion scene. The event is an immersive fashion experience that strives to foster opportunities and possibilities within the Kenyan creative ecosystem.
About Thrift Social
If you’ve never heard of Thrift Social, all you need to know is that it is an event series founded in 2015 by Oliver Asike and Velma Rossa, a brother and sister duo of style entrepreneurs. It was founded as a platform for the exploration of fashion, visual art and music in a bid to inspire innovation in Kenya’s vibrant and multi-faceted creative industry. The market invites fashion and style enthusiasts to shop from a curated selection of the city’s cutting-edge vendors, attracting a plethora of creatives from fashion enterprises, designers, photographers, stylists, models, art directors and other fashion actors in the Kenyan fashion ecosystem.
What to expect this year
The artist line up this year reflects a blend of sounds that are all distinct but still denote the market’s consistent focus on featuring innovative, progressive, and up and coming artists. British rapper-singer IAMDDB (pronounced I am D. D. B), the “Shade” hitmaker with a fierce blend of soulful hip hop, pounding trap and swirling urban jazz, will headline the event alongside an eclectic Kenyan lot including soulful R&B singer Karun, Wanja Wohoro, and a mix of DJs from Mix Master Lenny, TAIO to Shishi.
For the 4th year milestone, expect a curated Thrift Store and a Vitimbi fashion installation by one of the founders of Thrift Social – Oliver Asike. Vitimbi is his first fashion brand which draws a lot of inspiration from the city’s street culture, government, middle class and low-income communities. The stylist-cum-designer will, through his Vitimbi installation, introduce his fashion venture set to reimagine Kenya’s apparel scene. His unique approach upscales secondhand clothing and recycled fabrics to make new garments. The underlying vision is to transform Vitimbi into Africa’s first fashion streetwear brand throughout the continent.
