Music is all around us, whether it’s blaring from a Project window, banging out of the trunk of a passing car or perfectly nestled near your eardrum via your iPod headphones. Gregory Diaz and Kerry Granger, owners of B-Sharp Fashion, work to translate that music into their clothing. The duo began their partnership back in 2005 with a common goal of being “half a step above the competition.” The line’s foundation was built on their love and passion for the Hip-Hop culture, and that love for Hip-Hop is visible with every design.
We sat down Gregory Diaz and lead designer Crys Cash to talk about B-Sharp’s motivation, grasp on the direction of fashion and why they feel your closet isn’t the only place their clothing should be.
AllHipHop.com: B-Sharp is a clothing line birthed from Hip-Hop. Tell us about your apparel’s DNA.
Crys Cash: First of all, I’d like to say that the apparel is based on the music. I was raised on Hip-Hop. For as long as I can remember, Hip-Hop has been a major part of my life. What I do with each design is make sure that it dictates everything that I’ve seen in the past. I try to keep everything current and classic.
AllHipHop.com: How do you envision your product being worn on your consumers?
Gregory Diaz: When you wear B-Sharp, you can pretty much match it with anything. For example, the colors that we are using aren’t the crazy colors that everyone else is using; the purples, the oranges and all of that. So you can match B-Sharp with anything; boots, Air Force Ones, any style of footwear. Actually, what we try to do from time to time is find out which colors companies like Nike will be using. And sometimes we will use those colors within our designs so that it will match a lot better. All of our designs speak for themselves. We want for people to feel sharp when they are wearing our product.
Crys Cash: B-Sharp keeps everything fresh and presentable. We want you to be able to wear it at anytime, for any occasion. You can wear B-Sharp with Timbs, some Air Force Ones or your Jordan’s and still keep your fresh; you can even wear B-Sharp with a pair of suede Puma’s with fat laces or some Prada shoes. People should realize how important we all are to each other when it comes to fashion.
AllHipHop.com: What have you seen transpire in the world of fashion over the past year, that the average consumer wouldn’t have an understanding for?
Greg Diaz: I would have to say, history. Fashion always repeats itself. Right now, I can see that there are a lot more trendsetters, which is perfect for us, being a brand new company. But there are a lot of people who are getting into fashion now who don’t understand the history. There are people who don’t even know which styles they are wearing, when it was started and where did it come from. It feels like the ‘80s are back. You have trendsetters coming up who are like 15 and 16 years old, who weren’t around in the ‘80s to understand what they are doing when they lay their clothes out in the morning or before they go out for the evening; that history has repeated itself with them.
Crys Cash: I would say that people need to realize how influential Hip-Hop is on them, and the youth should realize how influential their aunts, uncles and parents are on their current style choices.
AllHipHop.com: Name one celebrity that if you find that they are wearing your product, you feel that you’ve made it to the big time?
Greg Diaz: I can name a few. I would have to say Jay-Z, definitely. But I’ll also have to say 50 Cent. 50 Cent really doesn’t wear other people’s product; he’s strictly G-Unit. So I think for someone like 50 to put on a B-Sharp t-shirt would be huge.
AllHipHop.com: The t-shirt is one of the most basic, yet crucial parts to complete urban wardrobe. What makes B-Sharp the best choice [for everyone]?
Greg Diaz: B-Sharp thrives on being different; our designs are extremely different. We have this sick designed called Crown Eye by Crys Cash, that nobody else could have thought of. We also have our #1 seller Mic Man which is a man made out of microphone pieces. We are different, definitely a half step above the competition.
AllHipHop.com: Tell us about your current progression at B-Sharp, and give us a peek into your 2008 line.
Greg Diaz: B-Sharp has been in place for the past two years. I feel that we have accomplished all of our goals, plus more. Our first line was Spring/Summer 2007, so for the first complete year we took care of our business. For our 2008 Fall/Winter line, we have some long sleeve sweatshirts. We have a new design called The Track Board which will be available on our site in a week. We’re also doing varsity jackets. As far as our 2008 line, consumers can be on the lookout for three amazing designs that we have. We’re working on two polo designs and also fitted caps.
Crys Cash: I just have to say that while other companies try to stand out, we’re unique. We like to keep things subtle and effective. At B-Sharp, we don’t try to stand out, we just do.
For more information on the line, go to www.justbsharp.com