Support Talent, Not Popularity; Culture Vultures Are Jacking Black Fashion Brands – #WEAreTheCulture
The monolith that is the Kardashian brand is simply undisputed. Kris Jenner, who’s a talent manager, owner of a production company, and the brains behind their popular reality show, is a marketing mogul and genius. Simply having the name Kardashian or Jenner automatically opens doors for members of that family, when most of us may have to work years, or decades to have these same opportunities – which is why #BlackTwitter is pissed!
In less than a week, two black fashion brands have been battling with the monster Kardashian brand regarding these bold jack moves they’ve been pulling.
PluggedNYC and its founder, Tizita Balemlay are the latest victims in this fight for authenticity. Balemlay recently did an interview with the Tom Joyner Morning Show about how she started her brand. As a child of a strict, African family, she was disowned for some time because her parents wanted her to become a doctor or lawyer, like many hardworking, older parents from overseas want for their children. Tizita had a different plan and was left to go for her dreams and goals, alone. While sitting on the floor of her apartment, she took scissors and a glue gun to some camouflage clothing she purchased from a local thrift store for $100, posted a picture online, and went viral. Balemlay then built a website and turned her $100 into $1000, and from there, on the floor of her lonely apartment, PluggedNYC was born.
Tizita Balemlay’s street chic designs are so popular, Rihanna, Keke Palmer, Kehlani and more have all rocked her fashions. You know who else drooled over her designs – Kylie Jenner! In her radio interview Balemlay was honored to have Kylie wearing her designs, however while she was on a video shoot with Wale, she began to receive hundreds of notifications.
On June 8, Kylie Jenner launched her collection of clothing. Kylie’s designs were also camouflage, and even much of the styling, poses, even the shoes used in the photography of Kylie’s brand were almost exactly like the branding for PluggedNYC. #BlackTwitter was on the case and began to call out Jenner through social media.
Tizita also made a post on her Instagram saying, “When you really Pablo…I am the Influence *drops mic. Copy Paste down to the shoes I used on my models. The Kardashians will take your nigga & brand… #WeAreTheCulture“
Unfortunately, Tizita Balemlay is not the only victim. #BlackTwitter also went in this week on Kylie’s sister, Khloe Kardashian for the jack moves she pulled on another black designer, Destinybleu. Yet another designer who’s been featured in Sports Illustrated, and sported by Beyonce on numerous occasions, also had to call out a Kardashian for theft. Destinybleu even provided receipts of the communication she’s had with Khloe, who ordered one of each of her designs, and then copied and branded them as her own.
They say that, “imitation is the sincerest form of flattery”, but this isn’t imitation; this is downright theft. Ordering one of everything from a designer’s site, never wearing it, never publicly mentioning it, then months later “crafting” designs that look almost exact? Oh the trickery of that Kardashian clan!
Though many people on social media, including blogs and magazine, have come to the defense of these talented, hard-working designers, any attempt to beat a Kardashian in court would take man and money power some may not have.
There is only one real way to defeat people who blatantly use their money to take advantage of others and steal ideas to pass off as their own. The only solution is to support (BUY) these talented designer’s products.
Culture vultures take bits and pieces of black culture, flip it, use their resources, and make a return on our culture. Remember Miley Cyrus circa 2013; Miley was collaborating with Juicy J and French Montana, while topping the Billboard charts. Fast forward to Miley Cyrus in 2017 who, in a recent interview, stated that she is now trying to distance herself from hip-hop because of the lyrics – (when we saw from her Billboard performance that she is working on changing her brand identity). Someone tell Miley ‘don’t come for hip-hop cause we didn’t send for you girl’. She, along with many others are culture vultures who have no issues using the culture to get the buzz they want.
Vultures are people that do not deserve your business, views, likes, or attention. Vultures change their features, hair and clothing, even their dialect to mimic black culture, but are silent when it comes to the important, life-changing issues of black people.
So we challenge everyone to support real talent, not popularity; because, in 2017 – ‘I don’t want no frauds’ – and neither should you.
Follow @theplugsdaughter & @pluggedNYCstore and @dbleudazzled & @destinybleu on Instagram
Syllabus Magazine, the Carolina’s source for Music, Culture and Fashion
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