When did you first become a Kanye fan?

I'm not exactly sure what year it was but I remember one of the first songs I heard from him was "Slow Jams." That came out in 2004. I was around 10 or 11 years old. I was still pretty young. I grew up in the south, so there was a lot of gangsta rap that was really starting to emerge at that time and it just sounded really different. His overall style, his vocals, and the way he sounded at first seemed effortless, like it was just natural for him. When I started getting more into him, I really focused on his production. It was like he pitched up the vocals. That's something that's been predominant throughout his career, just like vocal sampling, and that brought me into learning more about music as a whole.

So when did you start buying the merchandise?

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That was actually way later because my mom was never really a big fan of Kanye. We just have different tastes in music, she's more into contemporary Christian music. Some of the stuff Kanye talks about didn’t directly align with her beliefs. Living in your parents' house you abide by what they believe in at least for a little while, until you can break free. The first album that I got was 808s and Heartbreak. That's the first album that I actually straight up went out and purchased. That's my favorite album too. I was just like, I really don't care what she thinks . I'm gonna buy it.

After the album, what was your first piece that you bought?

I’ve only been collecting for about a year because I'm only 22 years old, so I haven't really been working that long, and I had to get my money right. It was really early 2015 around the time that "All Day" was released, because he performed at Wango Tango 2015 and there was exclusive merchandise for that show. One of the shirts had the picture of him from the Time Magazine cover, but the hoodie with the "All Day" artwork on it was the first thing that I bought. I have a friend who lives in L.A. who went to the show and he helped me out.

So do you have multiple plugs in other cities?

I've had a few plugs in other cities. I don't trust a lot of people online who say "Hey, I have this shirt.” So most of the time when I buy merchandise it's me straight up, or I have a friend who’s there then they'll hook me up. Otherwise I just don't get it. If I know somebody at a Kanye show, then I’ll ask in advance but, I usually just stick to the stuff that I go to.

Besides finally getting your money right, what drew you to actually want to spend your money on Kanye's merch?

I believe that fashion in general is about channeling your inner personality and then putting it on display. So, because I'm a huge fan of Kanye and because his music has always been a really huge inspiration in my life, I just chose to reflect that in the way I dress.