A$AP Bari Talks Fashion, Traveling, and Harlem with CLOT

Hong Kong clothing brand and retailer CLOT recently caught up with the MOB’s A$AP Bari during his recent visit to Asia. The Harlem native, went on to talk about personal style, tastes, and his VLONE brand and his overall approach to life. He also shared some insight on who the thought was the best and worst dressed members of A$AP Mob. Check out some excerpts of the interview below:

What do you think of the industry and contemporary culture going forward?

It’s VLONE. VLONE can be put into any matter. I’m trying to get VLONE in the dictionary. It’s a lifestyle, so if you believe in a lifestyle, you believe in VLONE. It’s something that’s in you. Me designing clothes wasn’t just me looking at people and looking at blogs. It started with me on my own. I wake up and I don’t plan what I want to wear or what I want to do today. I just do it, you know.
I’m a day by day person. It can be dangerous at times too but that’s just the life I live – It’s up and down.

Thanks in large part to the internet, we’re seeing a lot more designers – or aspiring designers – doing things despite not having a formal background in design. What do you think of these designers?

Where I’m from it was blessed to be from Harlem because it opened up my mind to different things. As a child I always wanted to be a grown man, so I had to carry myself a certain way. With that being said, it’s about you not switching up your style but living your lifestyle.
Most of these people that started what they’re doing aren’t doing it just because they’ve seen other people doing it. It’s because they want to do it themselves. That’s what it’s coming to with the modern day kids – they see other people doing things and they want to try too but it’s mostly about you being yourself. It’s only you that can talk to yourself, nobody can tell you what to do.
It’s always a learning process with everything you do but somebody can’t tell you what you want to do or what you’re going to be when you grow up. That’s dependent on you. You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make a horse drink. So it’s you.

Has it been an adjustment coming from Harlem and now spending so much time overseas?

I’m just happy to be out here. I’m 14 hours away from where I’m from, so I’m ahead of time right now. China is always ahead of time for me. Y’all are 14 hours ahead of us – it’s a full day. So I’m ahead of people that are in America right now and I’m taking advantage of it.

Was there a specific moment or event that made you want to get involved in clothing and fashion?

It was living in Harlem. If you’re not fly, you’re not nothing you know.

Who’s the best dressed in the A$AP crew? You?

Hell yea.

Do you give the rest tips on style?

We all doing our own thing. It’s kind of a disrespect for somebody to be telling you what to wear. My favorite person’s style in A$AP would have to be A$AP Twelvy. I like how he came from being in the hood and now his style is slowly progressing. He could rock a pair of LeBrons with an Acne jean jacket or vans and still keep that hood effect. A$AP Nast is more like a sportswear/high fashion guy so he can rock some Rick Owens cargo pants or some New Balance or some shit like that.

The worst dresser in A$AP?

The worst dresser in A$AP would probably be… Rocky. That nigga wears Desert Boots and shit like that. 2010-11 I was rocking them desert boots. I like the old rocky; I like sneaker rocky. I always told him that shit too.

Check out the full interview at CLOT.