Family is at the core of each of Angelo Baque’s creative endeavors. When launching Awake in 2012, the Queens native built the brand on a steadfast foundation of his extensive experience and the ethos of all five boroughs, the latter of fueled heavily by an almost palpable feeling of community.

“Growing up here in the city, yes, you have your blood family, but then you have your chosen family, your tribe, and it’s with those people that a lot of growth happens. That’s why community has always been such a big part of the Awake narrative,” Baque shared with Hypebeast. It’s why he opened a brick-and-mortar storefront on Orchard Street. It’s why there are regular free events at the store. It’s why there are barbecues over the summer. “I want you to meet your new best friend at Awake.”

Awake’s collaboration with Gap, like all of Baque’s other pursuits, is rooted in family ties. His older sister grew up wearing a lot of Gap (she had a green anorak Baque would often steal), and his aunt and uncle would always gift him clothes from the brand for birthdays and holidays. His classmates who weren’t wearing Gap enviously eyed those who were, and the brand served as Baque’s prelude to Polo, Ralph Lauren, and Nautica. So when the collaborative opportunity came across his desk, it was a no-brainer.

The campaign visuals feature not only Baque’s instant family unit – his son included, as the collab includes children’s apparel, too – but his aunt and uncle appear alongside other carefully curated New York City talent. Lensed by HIDJI WORLD, the visuals star Potluck Club’s Cory Ng, Frenchette’s Riad Nasr, and Planta Industrial’s Saso and AKA DarkKnight; a lineup of local cultural tastemakers across all mediums, but also individuals with whom Baque has close relationships.

It’s not forced. It’s family. “The currency is in the community.”

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Hypebeast: Let’s start from the beginning. What was the initial inspiration for this collection?

Angelo Baque: New York City’s music DNA. Specifically, from 1988 to 1992, the years before clubs in New York City became musically segregated. If you were a big DJ, you had to play all the genres. It wasn’t just split into reggae night, hip-hop night, and house night. All the big DJs were playing everything, and this diverse scene played a big part in shaping how the youth, like my older sister, dressed. She’d have an oversized polka dot shirt with baggy jeans and some Timberlands on your feet, big gold earrings, and the Gap anorak wrapped around her shoulders, so that’s why I wanted to tell that story through both the clothes and the visuals through the lens of music. The moodboard was already fully formed in my head before I had the opportunity to work with Gap, and when that came through, I knew this was the perfect concept for the collaboration.

Could you elaborate on your connection to Gap specifically?

AB: I have a multilayered personal relationship with the Gap. For so many of us growing up in New York City in the late 80s and early 90s, Gap was premium. Before Ralph Lauren, Nautica, Polo, or any of that stuff got put in front of me, it was the Gap. It was one of the first brands to speak to social status in elementary school. People would be like, “Oh, is your turtleneck from the Gap?” My sister, who is six years older than I, was kind of the rebel of the family; she’s still my style icon to this day. As I said, she had this green Gap anorak, and I wanted it so badly that I kept stealing it from her. Similarly, my aunt and my uncle, who are featured in the campaign video, always gifted me the Gap. At any Christmas or birthday, it was a guarantee I would get that blue box from them.

Tell me more about growing up in Queens in the 1990s – what about the cultural scene left a particular impact on you?

AB: While I grew up in Queens, it was more the journey from Queens to downtown New York City at that time that influenced me the most. That’s where it was all happening. If everybody’s listening to the same song in Queens, they’re listening to the whole mixtape downtown.

“You have your blood family, but then you have your tribe, and it’s with those people that a lot of growth happens. That’s why community has always been such a big part of the Awake narrative. It’s why we opened the store on Orchard Street … I want you to meet your new best friend at Awake.”

What was inspiring your fashion choices at the time?

AB: Wanting a girlfriend [laughs]. What I experienced as a kid in New York City back in the early 1990s is no different than what kids are experiencing growing up in the city today. The city has its own energy, its own movement, its own vibration. Whether you’re a transplant or you’re born and raised here, there’s something about New York City that will always attract you and make you want to stay. It’s the most punishing relationship that you can have, but it’s also the most rewarding. From the different faces on the train and the different fashion styles to the music blasting from cars on the street and the graffiti everywhere, for me, it’s all inspiring.

Family is something you’ve circled back to throughout this conversation. You also feature your wife and son in the campaign. How does family – both blood family and chosen family – play into this collaboration?

AB: First off, it stems from those early childhood memories with the Gap, and now I have my own family to share it with. I get to pass that connection down to my son and continue this multi-generational tale. I love that you also mentioned chosen family, because, growing up here in the city, yes, you have your blood family, but then you have your tribe, and it’s with those people that a lot of growth happens. That’s why community has always been such a big part of the Awake narrative. It’s why we opened the store on Orchard Street. It’s why we host all the free events, barbecues, and music performances. I want you to meet your new best friend at Awake.

On that note, I want to talk more about the campaign’s casting, which HIDJI WORLD shot. Not only do you and your family appear in some of the visuals, but other NYC cultural pioneers, ranging from Bronx rapper Planta Industrial to Potluck Club’s Cory NG, also appear. How did you select the cast?

AB: There are all these multi-layered stories within the cast that you wouldn’t know at first. My friend Scarr from Scarr’s Pizza and his family, Riad from Frenchette. I met Riad when I was working at Nom de Guerre back in 2000. When I was broke, Riad would hook me up with a table at Balthazar, so to me, Riad is like a big brother. That’s family. It’s not about casting for clout. The currency is in the community.

I worked with HIDJI WORLD on the Jordan campaign, and in that, we featured Corey Ng and his grandmother. She’s 90, and she still cooks dinner for her whole family every Sunday. It’s the intention, and that’s what I really want people to gravitate towards. I also want to challenge the ” New York is dead” narrative. New York is dead? Really? Look at this campaign.

You and Gap both have established your own instantly recognizable signature typography. How did you guys come together to create the collaborative Awake x Gap core logo?

AB: Gap is a global icon. There’s no questioning it. So I always say it’s like a David and Goliath. dynamic. We’re still small ball. A lot of people think we’re bigger than what we are, which is great, but at our core, we’re still a very mom-and-pop operation. So anytime that we can put our logo next to something like the Gap, it’s a win, and especially when it doesn’t feel forced at all. There’s something about the collaborative logo that just has a nice flow to it. It’s the North Star of the collection. I wasn’t going to try to shove the “A” between the “G” and the “P.” It had to aesthetically look good. It was a no-brainer to choose this logo to represent the entire collaboration.

Focusing on the denim set – could you walk me through how that went from initial concept to final product?

AB: It goes back to me wanting a polka dot shirt when I was a kid. When I work with brands like the Gap, I like to think about, “What wouldn’t they do on their own?” I think about what I can do that is different but doesn’t feel too disruptive.

What do you want this collaboration to leave people with?

AB: I want people to – especially after they see the video – to pick up the phone and call your mom. Call your favorite aunt. Call your best friend. Tell them maybe we should go out dancing, or maybe we should go do this thing together. We should kick it. Those are the heartstrings I’m trying to pull.