In a day and age where streetwear is loved for its fast-changing and internationally flavoured styles, AMIRI’s dedication to Californian rock-‘n’-roll renders the brand almost as timeless as the genre’s fashion and more exciting than ever now.
Before the big players started incorporating a realist take on street fashion into entire show concepts and looks, the market for luxuriously made, culture-led pedestrian wear had already flourished. AMIRI, an LA-based brand headed by Angeleno designer Mike Amiri, is one of the leaders; what started as a mere capsule collection in 2014 very quickly became a brand you had to know and own if you were any serious about luxury streetwear or menswear.
In a world where trends are increasingly inconsequential to fashion’s creative direction, Mike Amiri’s unchanging love for gunshot holes, dip-dyed flannels and free-hand embellished suits grant it a kind of immortality that is especially powerful in the still hype-driven streetwear and mass-consumed luxury spaces. The designer’s glitzy effects on slouchy tailoring and ever-innovative treatments of denim, leather, wool and knits are not just celebrated for being the conviction of Mike Amiri’s creative direction but also for the distinct SoCal DIY attitude that it represents.
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But he is not just a patron of the street culture — he grew up in it. Prior to AMIRI, Mike Amiri first cut his teeth as a music producer of pioneer Korean hip-hop group Drunken Tiger (which makes AMIRI’s popularity amongst Korean celebrities feel somewhat like a full circle moment) before handcrafting stage outfits for rockers Axl Rose and Steven Tyler. Even in AMIRI’s FW23 show, music remains the genesis of the designer’s work; legendary New York producer DJ Premier’s musical processes of sampling and remixing pillared this season’s exploration of tailoring and material use, topped off with many a rendition of the newsboy cap.
Having been stationed in the heart of Californian skater, surfer, graffiti and artist cultures for most of his life, Mike Amiri ensured AMIRI had a formidable street cred from being able to manufacture ideas straight from the ground, turning them into real and elevated wearables in the same place. The tasking of local artisans, craftsmen and garment workers in LA to do so is why AMIRI will always be West Coast to the bone, unfazed in ethos and by the uniformity of factory standards and fleeting global trends — appealing to the younger, value-driven and fashion-forward crowd.
With denim pieces going through an elaborate 16-step deconstruction process similar to surgery, to knits being sourced from nest mills in Japan, made in LA, and then shotgunned in the Joshua Tree Desert, AMIRI has somehow managed to become an advocate for a slower and more considered approach to fashion, while still retaining its more carefree approach to fashion design.
There will always be a place for Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love in the fashion vocabulary, but perhaps AMIRI’s social media era-borne approach to “making something really special” in this genre of wear will be the first to approach streetwear at a luxury level that places a larger emphasis on long-standing character over short-term exclusivity.
Check out Amiri here. Once you’re done with this story, click here to catch up with our February 2023 issue.
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