Fashion trends are, have, and will always be on a conveyor belt. For every trend that comes on, another falls off. Because of this, it can be difficult staying updated with what’s hot and what’s not. To keep up it’s best to pay attention to this figurative conveyor belt’s operator: the youth. Generation Zers and Millennials have controlled the sways and shifts in the fashion world; and quite frankly this age group always will. Keeping up to date with where youth culture takes fashion trends can be done with relative ease. The difficulty comes with staying ahead of it. Fashion moves too quickly to jump on a trend when it’s popular. Luckily some of these trends are within closer reach than one might think. There are clues about the trends of tomorrow within those of today. It is just a matter of picking up on them. In this day-and-age, the most popular fashion designers and influencers dictate what the next trends are. Their style contains hints about where popular fashion trends will eventually be headed. Based on today’s biggest names in our youth fashion culture, some trends to look out for in the future of menswear are the following:
Chokers
Crop Tops
Fitted Caps
Chokers
Fashion is becoming progressively more unisex. Men’s fashion has taken influence from traditionally female garments and vice versa. In this transition towards a more progressive age of fashion, men have taken more and more women’s accessories, put their spin on them, and made them masculine. This is what has influenced the widely overused trend of the skinny jean. A decade or so ago men’s pants were aggressively baggy. Boot cut jeans were in, and as years came and went men began wearing jeans tighter fit to their legs. This has started to happen with the necklace/chain that is slowly but surely shifting towards a tighter fit too. Eventually, this will end up becoming a choker. One of the first clues to this trend can be seen in Dior Homme’s Spring 2019 menswear collection.
Here we see this model sporting a Dior necklace fitted tightly around the neck. While not quite at the tightness that would deem it a choker, it is an indication of how neckwear has started to become more close fit for men. With Dior being one of the most well-respected brands in fashion, most of what they say, goes. This can also be attributed to the great number of artists, models, designers, and influencers that adore Dior. Soon after this show, more and more male celebrities have sported closer than normal fit neckwear. In the photo below we see UK rapper Skepta sporting close fit chains and necklaces that represent a cultural wave that has led to an increasingly tighter fit neckwear on men.
While we are not quite there yet, like jeans, men are progressively becoming more comfortable with tighter fits. Eventually the male choker will be the next skinny jeans.
Crop Tops
Crop tops made with the intention of men wearing them has been hinted at for a good while. It is only a matter of time before it becomes an article of clothing that is not DIY required. The mere fact that men have made their own crop tops is enough of an indicator of its eventual prevalence. Part of this can be attributed to the influence of sports on fashion. The two cross paths in ways that go unnoticed. Take for example football players: athletes who have been turning the shirt they wear under their pads into crop tops far before our time. However, as fashion becomes more unisex the crop top has become more accepted for men to wear outside of athletics. It is only a matter of time before these become a widely respected and curated article of clothing. Below are two photos. One is of Luka Sabbat, one of the most well-known names in fashion currently; the other is model Fisher Smith wearing Spring 2020 Matthew Adams Dolan. These two outfits incorporating crop tops show where men will eventually gravitate to.
Although this is not as high cut as the standard crop top is, it is pushing boundaries that have not been pushed before. For a long time, you would never catch a man wearing a shirt that shows the entirety of their belt without their shirt being tucked in. The belt exposure along with the lower part of the torso being visible shows where men’s fashion is headed along with a nice substitute for your typical t-shirt.
Fitted Cap
Unlike the choker and crop top, whose eventual plunge into the forefront of streetwear comes from high fashion designers and models, the fitted cap’s popularity stems from renowned recording artists and New York Culture. The likings of artists such as Delly and GIANNI: two of the hottest young artists in the hip-hop industry right now, are partly responsible for the return of this New York staple. Fashion and music are greatly intertwined communities. Recording artists nowadays can be found in pieces that are aligned with or ahead of where fashion trends tend to sway. Therefore, what they wear we will end up wearing. Delly’s relationship with the fitted cap is nothing short of intimate. The 20-year-old artist is on track to be the face of New York hip-hop in the near future. His style and swagger embody all that is New York and its tremendous contribution to fashion. GIANNI, a 21-year-old recording artist is also a true product of New York. The Queens native’s style ranges from flashy and bright color combinations to minimalist and traditional looks. This range can also be seen in his music as he utilizes both his intrinsic knack for rap and harmonization skills to develop a diverse palette of music.
These two are representatives of New York youth culture and its tremendous impact on fashion and music. So best believe if both are wearing fitted caps, many people will be wearing them soon enough.
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