ROOK x Adventure Time Limited Edition Collaborative Collection by Brian Farmer

ROOK has partnered with Cartoon Network to present a limited edition collaborative collection based on the popular animated series Adventure Time. The one-of-a-kind collection showcases original artwork by ROOK co-owner and creative director Joe King and features the beloved characters Finn and Jake. The three-item collection will include graphics the brand’s signature hand-drawn style displayed across an all-over print T-shirt, crew neck fleece, and bucket hat. The collaboration will be available to the public in August alongside ROOK’s Fall 2014 collection. A special preview pack that includes all three items packaged inside an exclusive tote bag will be available for one night only at the opening night reception of the Adventure Time art show, taking place at Gallery 1988 (West) on April 3 from 7-10 p.m. local time.

Gallery 1988 (West)
7308 Melrose Ave
Los Angeles, CA

Hip-Hop Making Moves into Mainstream Education

Good news hip-hop community, Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs has become the focus of a university course. The Clive Davis Institute of Recording Music at New York University will be offering a class called: 'Topics: Sean Combs & Urban Culture. The course aims to shed light on how Combs became a successful mogul and hip-hop producer.
It is no secret that his record company, Bad Boy Records is one of the biggest record labels to appear in the 90s. One of their biggest artists and possibly the greatest rapper of all time, The Notorious BIG, bolstered the success. Unfortunately, he was gunned down and a coastal feud. Six months prior to his death, his rival 2Pac as gunned down in similar fashion.

Combs then went on into the liquor business, having a share in Ciroc. In 2013, he launched his first TV channel, Revolt TV, a music channel based in America. To find out more on the course click here. For other US-based colleges offering similar courses, click here.

NBA Signature Shoes Recreated as Hip-Hop Albums by Brian Farmer

Designer Patso Dimitrov recently put his talents to great use and recreated his favorite NBA signature shoes based on some the best rap/hip-hop albums from the past few years. The designer paired LeBron James’s Nike LeBron 11 with Jay Z and Kanye West’s Watch the Throne; Paul George’s Nike Zoom Crusader with Kendrick Lamar’s good kid, m.A.A.d. city; Kyrie Irving’s Nike Zoom HyperRev with Kanye’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy; and Kevin Durant’s Nike KD 6 with Jay’z Magna Carta… Holy Grail. Check out the pictures at this link.

(Source: highsnobiety.com) 

11 Ways to Tell if Your Lover Loves You

Relationships. One human quality that no one can survive without. Sure you can be alone, but not for long because you will need others to co-exist. This particularly takes me back to the days of solitary confinement, during those days of oppression. The old regime would banish you to a strange area and most times be on your own just to break your spirit. Some comrades start experiencing hallucinations, and noises. Fortunately, that did not stop them from liberating us and we are really thankful, but this is not the reason for this post.

When you are in a relationship, there are certain gestures that will tell you whether your partner is in to you or not. In my case, the way my girlfriend would stare at me and listen attentively will tell me how much she loves me. For others it is through actions and through material possessions. Each of us have different ways of knowing what our partners think of our love. Want to find out more? Then head over here and take note of the eleven tips that will guide you in your search of authenticity.

Dear Westernized World, Stop The Name Massacre!

There is nothing more frustrating than an individual who massacres the pronounciation of your name. They pronounce it in that condescending, "it is not my mother tongue" attitude to a point you want to slap them! Especially, Afrikaaners (I am not attacking). It was very evident during high school. They tend to come up with unexplainable versions of your name, like one of my high school rugby coaches would say 'Busisiwe' whenever he wanted to say 'Sbusiso'.

When I was still in primary school, only one teacher could pronounce my Sotho name although with a Tswana dialect ('g' instead of 'h'), and since grade 2 I've been called Daniel up til this day. Recently, a woman from England came under attack for calling Barack Obama 'Barraco Barner'. To make matters worse, she even thought Obama was THEIR prime minister, (shameful).

The Western world have a strong penchant for frowning upon those of us who mispronounce their names, especially the Spanish and French. During first year, I decided to take up French. The pronounciation was really stressed upon. Writer Sitinga Kachipande has released a fantastic article on this 'massacre', I urge you to read it, it will help!

Kanye West x Adidas Collab Coming In September?

(By Kim Kardashian)

A few months have passed since Kanye West announced that he had severed ties with iconic Portland-based Nike and jumped onto the Adidas ship. This came as a shock to sneakerheads and fans of West's 'Yeezy' lineup. The line is also famous for the rap line, "The Yeezys jumped over the Jumpmans" where West boasts about the success of his line of sneakers. West also famously made it known (about the Adidas deal) that he was done with Nike.

During a radio interview on Sway In The Morning (in the USA), he went on a rant on how Nike marginalized him and his creative efforts. He was clearly disgruntled that not enough creative muscle and money were put into his lines. West also designed sneakers for Louis Vuitton and female shoes for Giuseppe Zanotti. 

There could be a drop in September. West reportedly claims to have designed 20 pairs of sneakers for Adidas. This tells us how relaxed the German outfit is when it comes to control and creativity, compares to their American counterparts. To listen to Kanye discuss his Adidas collaboration, please click here.

Champagne Wishes and Caviar Dreams

"Champagne Wishes and Caviar Dreams" - that was a phrase famously coined by veteran lifestyle American entertainment celebrity reporter writer, Robin Leach. Leach is more famous for hosting the popular show, Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. He was even mentioned in Notorious BIG's single, Juicy.

Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous was a popular show that would profile wealthy celebrities, athletes and business moguls. The show's title changed when Robin was joined by Shari Belafonte, and the show was called Lifestyles with Robin Leach and Shari Belafonte during its final season. I particularly remember how it would fascinate me whenever the show played on SABC3 (if I remember correctly) in the early 2000s.

But what reminded me of this program, was a Tumblr blog called Rich Kids of Instagram. RKOI is a blog that 'profiles' the lives of those born with a silver spoon in their mouthes. To see more of their lavish lifestyles, I suggest you head here.