Closer Look: A Lesson in Style Contradiction With NYC Creatives Aisha Farida and Manny Omitto
Learn how to play with the creative friction of grit and polish in your fashion expression.
Developing personal style can be filled with contradictions. One day you’re dabbling in nostalgia with retro pieces, the next day, you’re experimenting with current trends, playing with artful patterns and shapes. It truly requires a mix of authenticity and unabashed confidence to find your personal style code. With Levi’s® spring arrivals, you can easily embrace this ethos with the range’s versatile aesthetics and creative grunge styling.
Think of the quintessential Brooklyn musician, the thrifting connoisseur, the alternative art kid — these style identities come to life with Levi’s® vast selection of denim, outerwear, cardigans, T-shirts and structured button-ups, which all nod to the brand’s heritage craftsmanship.
NYC creatives Aisha Farida and Manny Omitto explore the new range through a distinctive lens, exemplifying how they can effortlessly pivot from rugged to polished looks. Farida works as a full-time distiller, but in her free time, she’s a globetrotting fashion savant with a knack for content creation and personalized storytelling. Her style, a little bit edgy and flirty, always has elements of NYC grit. Likewise, a seasoned NYC-based fashion stylist with an equally city-slick approach to luxury threads, Omitto can seamlessly transition from maximalism to muted minimalism. Their ability to embrace the creative friction of clothing highlights the fun of fashion, a freedom to curate your daily expression.
Hypebeast
Hypebeast
Farida plays with the dichotomy between edginess and refinement with androgynous fashion combos. Though sparse and restrained, a laidback T-shirt with fringed, relaxed-fit denim can take on a whole expression with the right seasonal layers. Levi’s® asymmetrical Kendal Moto Jacket is sleek and unfussy, elevating shirt-and-denim combos as Farida demonstrates in her first grunge-inspired look.
“My music taste hasn’t evolved much since the early 2000s, hence my reverence for the ’90s. I owe my love for a baggy outfit to hip hop and R&B icons like Aaliyah, Tupac, and TLC,” she shares with Hypebeast. “As someone who wears jeans more than anything else, I know I can always find good-fitting denim at Levi’s.” She’s effortlessly undone — a simple yet put-together outfit perfect for running errands, talking shop with your bodega man, or bar hopping in the LES.
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Hypebeast
Omitto’s grunge ensembles lean into sportier expressions — silhouettes are baggy, layered, breathable and comfort-focused. In conversation with Hypebeast, Omitto shares A$AP Rocky and Prince as fashion influences. “Some days I just want to wear baggy denim and a varsity jacket and call it a day. And sometimes I want to wear a suit and tie or a kilt (people may call it a skirt), but that’s what [fashion] is about — self-expression in however many forms that looks like for you.”
Clad in the MA-1 Bomber Jacket, Omitto wears a stealthy black crewneck and cotton undershirt, breaking up the monochromatic color story with Levi’s® striking camo-themed XX Cargo Straight Pants.
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Hypebeast
Mixing voluminous and streamlined pieces, both Farida and Omitto showcase the freedom of styling you can achieve, going from street casual to prep. Ommito’s second curated outfit is a modern, street-infused take on the Canadian Tuxedo, a ’90s fashion trend that’s resurfacing. Textured and tonal, his double-denim formula with the Levi’s® Relaxed Fit Trucker Jacket and stonewashed, extra-baggy denim combines different fabric washes and a muted plaid button-up for visual dimension.
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Hypebeast
Hypebeast
Hypebeast
Farida anchors to Levi’s® camel-colored Bree Classic Long Trench Coat as her statement piece, pairing the soft-wool, vibrant green Catalina Cardigan over a structured button-up shirt with ripped denim to create a breezy, functional city-inspired outfit.
Hypebeast
Hypebeast
The duo’s most refined looks are clean-cut and monochromatic. Farida’s all-black ensemble features a form-fitting cardigan over a white collared button-up shirt for contrast and slim boot-cut denim. “When I’m really stepping out, I feel like a heel paired with even a casual outfit always pulls it together and makes me feel more confident,” she shares.
Hypebeast
Hypebeast
Omitto pairs a muted bomber jacket with a cardigan-and-shirt combo, once more clad in roomy, worn-in denim. The look is polished yet streetwear adjacent, using soft neutral colors to unify each element. “I think what I love about Levi’s® is the history behind them and how long they’ve been able to adapt and stay relevant. I think that’s rooted in the fact that you can buy a pair of [Levi’s®] 501® denim and literally wear them for 20 years. They’re timeless, and that’s how I want my style to evolve: a timeless blend of different styles.”
For those looking to freshen up their wardrobe rotation, explore Levi’s® spring arrivals in the galleries above or on the brand’s website.
