Meet the rising designers A$AP Rocky reps in new ‘RIOT’ video

In case you missed it, A$AP Rocky just dropped the video for new track “RIOT [Rowdy Pipe’n]”, and while conversation quickly switched to whether or not he and Rihanna have tied the knot, as some of its lyrics seem to imply, our eyes were focused on the fashions. 

Working with longtime collaborator Matthew Henson and London designer Mowalola on styling, the video sees Rocky step into a series of looks fresh off the Louis Vuitton runway – which makes a lot of sense when you find out Pharrell Willams took some time out of his role as the house’s new creative director to produce the track. He wouldn’t have had to go too far, since one of the first things he did when he took the reins at Vuitton was install a recording studio at LV HQ.

Alongside Vuitton comes a bunch of Bottega Veneta bits, in the form of a long, slick trench coat and a pair of Timberland-esque suede boots, and a couple of Hermès bags, plus a stand-out Issey Miyake bomber dug up from 1996. 

Best of all, however, is Rocky’s longstanding commitment to supporting rising designers at the very start of their careers, and mixing them in with the big hitters. Making the cut this time is Dazed fave Gerrit Jacob, whose signature spray paint motifs appear across a patriotic Stars and Stripes emblazoned jacket and jeans set, and Hattie Crowther, who created an England football shirt with “HUMAN RIGHTS” plastered across the chest.

The British designer largely creates corsets crafted from soccer kits as a means of questioning the toxic masculinity that underpins the game, and offering a big ‘fuck you’ to Fifa, which did nothing to stand up against the homophobic laws of Qatar, where the 2022 World Cup was held. 

Rounding things off is Coucoubebe, who lends the rapper a leather jacket reading ‘DUMB SHIT’, in reference to his upcoming album. Based in Paris and founded in 2016, the brand is led by an anonymous figure known only as Kanoush, who finds inspiration in politics, pop culture, and conspiracy theories, repurposing existing garments into fresh new statement pieces.

Revisit our interview with Gerrit Jacob here, and click through the gallery above for more of his work. 

Revisit our interview with Hattie Crowther here, and click through the gallery above for more of her work.