Taste Test
What is “good taste” anyway? Allow your favorite actor, musician, celebrity, or comedian to let you in on what they’re watching, reading, and consuming.
Few collaborations seem as natural as the pairing of Tyler, the Creator and Converse. The artist has an eye for design, and his sense of style is innate. It works. “I just make some shit I like, and then we get it made,” he says with a laugh over Zoom. Throughout their ongoing collaboration, Tyler, along with his brands Golf le Fleur and Golf Wang, has redesigned the Chuck 70 and the One Star with his signature twist.
This time around, he dug into the Converse archives to revive the Naut-1, the brand’s take on a boat shoe, and the 1908 Jogger, a retro running shoe, in three new colorways. “I did not want to reinvent the wheel or get too crazy. I wanted these to be some shoes folks just throw on to get coffee,” he explains. We caught up with the star and asked about his thoughts on style rules, podcasts, and what he’s gatekeeping now.
Can you tell me more about working with Converse?
I was sent a PDF of the whole archive, and the joggers and Naut-1s stood out to me. I said: This is what we’re doing; I’m going to do some colorways we’ll update a little, but I don’t want to change the essence too much, because it’s pretty much perfect. I keep the colors fairly simple, especially on the Naut-1s, because it’s such an everyday shoe.
Converse 1908 Naut-1 $90 $90 Buy at Converse Buy
Converse 1908 Jogger $100 $100 Buy at Converse Buy
Since you said these are made to be worn with everything, do you have a go-to outfit?
I don’t think they’re made to be worn with everything, because that would be terrible. If someone wore the Naut-1s with basketball shorts — they would look dusty. I’d think Damn, you took this ill shoe and put on a terrible outfit? But I do want people to wear these every day on some regular-degular type of time. It could go with anything I wear because my style is mine. I only wear stuff that goes with how I dress overall.
You’re a pretty big collector of watches, cars, and Louis Vuitton trunks. Is there anything special in your collection that was hard to get? Do you have a favorite?
No, it all finds me. All the cool shit I got, it finds me. I walk in a random store and it’s like, look at this random cool thing that I just happened to find, in the city or country, and bam, I get it. I’m a magnet for shit I love because I’m just so pure about it. I found an F40; that car is sweet. It’s all fucking cool as shit. This is how parents are when people ask if they have a favorite child. Well, people have a favorite child; they’re lying if they say they don’t.
What are your thoughts on gatekeeping?
Love gatekeeping. Everything is not for everyone, and that’s okay. People have to stop wanting to be invited into everything; it’s okay to not be into something, bro. It’s cool, it’s chill.
I feel like people don’t usually agree with that. Is there anything you’ve been trying to gatekeep?
Gatekeeping music is a little weird, but when it comes to companies, restaurants, and clothing — like certain restaurants that some people really love can get fucked up because someone makes a TikTok and now everything is sold out. This small thing they loved and enjoyed is no longer available for them to enjoy because everyone wants in on this new thing to feel like they’re part of something. That’s when I’m like, no, fuck that, gatekeep your restaurant. When people are like, Where’d you get that from? We good. ID on Tyler’s so and so? No, we good. Let me have my thing; you might not look that fire in it.
Back to style: You don’t seem to be interested in fashion rules, but do you have your own fashion rules?
I hate brown, purple, and red together. It makes my body itch. The only time I think it worked was on Dru Hill’s first album cover; outside of that, purple, red, and brown together is fucking disgusting. But that’s not a rule, that’s just me hating that colorway, but I let people do what they love. I hate when women wear boots with shorts, the tall, long boots with shorts. There’s something so dusty about that to me, that Coachella look.
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I can’t agree with you there because I’ve worn that before. I wore that like a week ago.
I want people to do what they’re going to do. That proportion just seems crazy to me, but what I’m saying is not law, dude, there’s probably some shit I wear that people hate and that’s okay. I love individualism so much. There are people who hate how I dress, but I don’t ever want to look like them because they’re dusty to me. So what they say does not matter, and I’m happy they have their opinion.
You’ve talked a lot about wanting to ban podcasts; are there any you listen to?
I think we give a lot of people who aren’t smart and just want attention platforms to be loud and incorrect, and other stupid people follow them. Where are the people with skills? We need electricians, we need more drummers, painters, teachers. Everybody with a mic is crazy. I just think that shit is gross. Deante Kyle is sick, and The Cutting Room Floor is sick. Those are two podcasts that are in the right direction.
Where do you get your best culture recommendations from?
I just discover shit on my own; everything is dead. You know what happened? Everyone wanted to be everything. You used to go to a website that was specifically about this type of music and now they’re posting about shoes. Nothing is specific anymore. It’s like, damn, I followed this page because they posted the illest Italian cars and now they’re talking about so-and-so’s new country song. We don’t need everything to be multimedia; be specific so we can go there. Everything wants to be everything, and everyone wants to be a part of everything. I don’t need to comment on shit that I’m not into. It’s not my style, so I don’t even pay attention to it.
Which five celebrities are you hopping into an UberXL with?
Five celebrities, what the fuck? Okay. Lionel Boyce, Travis Bennett, Jasper, Malcom Washington, and Ayo Edebiri. My fucking friends. I don’t be out here. It could be somebody whose music I love, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I want to hang out with them.
So I’m assuming you’re watching The Bear when it comes out?
Of course. Are you watching The Bear when it comes out?
Of course. Speaking of food, what’s the last meal you cooked for yourself?
I’m gonna tell you something right now. If my house had paint chipping all over it and needed painting, do you think I’d get on the roof and start painting? No. You know why? Because I’m not the best option. So why the fuck would I cook for myself if I don’t have to? If I want Italian food, let me go to a place where they’re going to do it the best with love, with expertise. I’m not in my house cooking, are you crazy?
That’s fair. We mentioned The Bear, but are there any other shows you like to watch? Or comfort shows?
One of my comfort shows is Goosebumps, the original from 1994, ’95. I love the areas they shot in and the tone of it. It’s a little silly, but it has a light to it. The show is probably wack, but I grew up reading those, so my connection to it is so warm.
Have you ever watched Are You Afraid of the Dark?
I love that show; the dollhouse episode?
There’s the episode with Tia and Tamera and chameleons, which was traumatizing. Last question: Is there anything you wouldn’t watch?
No, not at all. If it looks interesting, I’ll check it out. I’ll tune into whatever. If that’s not my thing, I wouldn’t sit there and watch a whole season, but I’d check out ten minutes of it.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
