Unbiased Label

Unbiased Label

By Host Zara KorutzArtsFashion & Beauty
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Unbiased Label episodes

  • Mykel C. Smith is a New York Fashion Cult Icon

    This episode is a conversation with Mykel C. Smith whose New York based namesake creative agency is a think tank for all things fashion. In 2020, Mykel was featured in a CFDA article by Karyl Truesdale who described him as, "a most amazing and very grandiloquent creative who brings the drama to everything he touches!"   Mykel has been in the fashion industry for over 20 years as an event producer, celebrity stylist, casting director, event planner and creative director. 

    Currently, Mykel is producing the S/S 2022 Cult of Individuality X HVMAN runway show called ASCENSION which takes place on Thursday, July 22, 2021 at the Cult Lab located in New York, NY. Cult of Individuality was founded in 2009 by founder and designer Ron Poisson and has forged a reputation as the Jeansmith rooted in badass rock and roll. The brand ethos is a community of people who beat to their own drum of individuality and identify as a misfit, outsider, dreamer, trail blazer, and contrarian.  The global denim streetwear brand is all about quality and being a "Cult of One...The Cult of you."

    Please join me as I talk with Mykel at his New York City home office just days before the Cult of Individuality Fashion Show.

    21 min
  • Research & Heritage: West African Fashion Designer Milcos Badji
    This episode is a conversation with Milcos Badji who is a Senegalese fashion designer from Dakar. His eponymous brand Nio Far by Milcos means "We are together" in Wolof.  
    The design ethos of Milcos is deeply connected to heritage with research at the center of his artistic process. He uses a mud based fabric known as ‘Bògòlanfini’ (often referred to as Bògòlan) or mud cloth that gives his fashion designs cultural depth, rich in meaning and "the quintessence of authenticity". 
    The latest hand made collection of Nio Far by Milcos is named "Po Tolo" inspired by the Dogon tribe central to Malin in West Africa. The legends of the Dogon tribe lies in their unique ability to give precise locations of astronomical bodies and phenomena for centuries pre-dating modern science. 
    Nio Far by Milcos is unisex and handmade.  Orders can be placed on-line at https://www.niofarbymilcos.com/ .
    38 min
  • Fashion Critical Studies @ Central Saint Martins: Dr. Elizabeth Kutesko
    This episode is a conversation with Dr. Elizabeth Kutesko who is the MA course leader for Fashion Critical Studies at Central Saint Martins in London. Elizabeth published the book Fashioning Brazil: Globalization and the Representation of Brazilian Dress in National Geographic (Bloomsbury 2018) which examines the dynamics between subject, photographer and viewer exploring Brazilian dress and fashion practices within key global cultural debates.  
    Dr. Kutesko earned her PhD from the Courtauld Institute of Art under the supervision of Dr. Rebecca Arnold. Elizabeth's research interests are Latin American bodily practices and the intersections of fashion, cultural identity, representation and power. 
    This talk examines the idea of decolonisation and ideas of power and representation along with notions of popular cultural trends within the fashion industry.
    30 min
  • Transmasculine Fashion Design: Finnegan Shepard
    This episode is a conversation with Finnegan Shepard who is a writer and founder of Both&--a start-up clothing brand which answers the needs of the transmasculine or gnc-identified community.  The ethos of Both& is evidence-based fashion design stemming from personal conversations that creates a space for a diverse and underserved population.  Each capsule drop is made in small batches and garments are sustainably and ethically produced. 
    Finnegan, who grew up in both America and England, shares his journey of becoming an entrepreneur through being a renaissance man. Finnegan shares wisdom learned on his journey starting with a love of academia and pursuing a PhD at Cambridge to becoming the founder of a fashion brand. His nonlinear path is filled with experiences good and hard which led to discovering the importance of humanity in business. 
    ---------------------------
    As we celebrate Pride month, may we be reminded of the importance of honouring the unique specialness of ourselves and each other.  One of the challenges that the trans community faces is labels on dressing rooms.  If you want to help, please start advocating for a friendlier retail experience for all by asking brands to remove gender specific dressing rooms. Together we can uplift and amplify the voice and visibility of the trans community.
    38 min
  • BONUS: The Dandy as Original Street Style Innovator
    This bonus episode is an academic talk by host Zara Korutz focused on the dandy as the fashion innovator of street-style using style as agency. Dandy fashion connects to authenticity as a creative expression and position within society. In this talk, I explore the notion of fashion capitals, the style of the dandy, social meaning behind the fashion, and black dandies with roots in Africa and the Caribbean.  
    Dandyism's historical roots creates a myth of authenticated personal identification. The word “myth” is not an untruth but rather a complicated system that theorist Roland Barthes describes as a form of communication.  
    If you geek out over fashion theory, then this talk is for you… Please engage with your thoughts afterwards on social media or with a personal voice note.
    References: 
    Barthes, R (1957) Mythologies 
    Breward, C. (2016) The Suit. London: Reaktion Books. 
    Croll, J. (2015) Fashion that Changed the World. London: Prestel. 
    Lewis, S.P. (2017) Dandy Lion. First edition. New York, N.Y: Aperture. 
    Meinhold, R. and Irons, J. (2014) Fashion Myths. Bielefeld: Transcript Verlag. 
    Musgrave, E. (2019) Sharp Suits. GB: Pavilion. 
    Rocamora, A and O’Neill, A (2008) ‘Fashioning the Street: Images of the Street in the Fashion 
    Simmel, G. (1905) “Fashion” International Quarterly, 1,22, pp. 130-155 
    Woodward, S (2009) ‘The Myth of Street Style’, Fashion Theory, 13, 1: 83 – 102 
    Cover Art Photo of Dandy Wellington By Julia Bahlsen
    29 min
  • A Gay Baby Boomer's Journey to Out and Proud: Ken Regnier

    This episode is a conversation with Ken Regnier who came out as an openly gay man at the age of 28 in 1991. Being raised Catholic in Aurora, IL, a mid-west manufacturing suburb outside of Chicago, the pressures to conform to a straight existence in society prevented him from living his authentic self.  Ken shares his personal journey of moving away from his hometown in order to live his true identity as an openly gay man. His story reveals trials of self-acceptance, heartaches of loss, and triumphs of love. Ken currently lives in Washington, D.C. with his husband Carl and double-doodle dog Ollie. 

    38 min
  • London Underground Fashion Factory: Tee Eben
    This episode is a conversation with Terence (Tee) Ayuk Eben who is founder of the Never Fade Factory -- a futurist fashion brand showroom based in Soho, London.  The flagship underground concept store and creative space is focused on innovation, social impact, technology and sustainability. The creative-process is the heartbeat of the Never Fade Factory which promotes artistic community for fashion, art, photography, design and exhibition.
    The ethos of the Never Fade Factory is to incubate and accelerate emerging talent by providing free work space and commercial opportunity to showcase their art fostering a knowledge based ecosystems of support, teaching and sharing human resources within the creative industries. This philosophy creates brand collaborations between emerging brands and corporate partnerships focused on tech and sustainability.
    Please join us for an on-location conversation that took place on a sunny Saturday in the window of the Never Fade Factory located on Old Compton Street where we discuss Tee's journey of being the only black owned business in Soho and examine fashion from a zeitgeist point of view including circular fashion and the Factory's #swapfactory partnership with Lablaco.
    35 min
  • Success and the City: Bruce Weldyn
    This episode is a conversation with Bruce Weldyn who is a New York City based luxury fashion business insider, author of 'If You Can Put Ketchup on it, Don't Eat it' and co-founder of ALL11-- a sales training platform with a 'talk show' style format.  For over 20 years, Bruce's retail leadership success has extended across luxury fashion brands including Prada, Gucci, Armani, John Varvatos, David Yurman and Bergdorf Goodman. 
    Recently, Bruce completed an Instagram Vlog project called '75 Success Secrets in 75 Days'--daily conversations with guests on topics based on the book 'Do The Right Thing Do It All The Time: 75 Success Secrets Listed for Fast Reference by Frank Leigh (2020).
    Join us as we talk about the reflection of Bruce's 75-day journey as he shares his secrets to success in life, business, and in the city or wherever you may live.
    32 min
  • The Bronx Gender-Free Fashion Style: Victor Lopez
    This episode is a conversation with New York based, Bronx raised freelance men's fashion stylist Victor Lopez. He has styled international creative campaigns for GQ, Vogue, MM Scene, Bello, 365 Male, Cool Korea and Travel Magazine France. Victor's unique visual style is personal and best described as a marriage between his passion for the 90s Hip-hop fashion combined with an innovative gender-neutral undertone which creates a fresh yet classic aesthetic.   
    As told to VoyageLA, Victor says, "as a young boy from the Bronx. I have never struggled when it came to style and fashion. I remember when I was younger, the kids at school would always ask me questions of 'where did you buy this?' For some reason, I always felt quite good when that happened. As I got older, I become more driven reading magazines like Vibe and XXL where I got most of my style from." 
    Please join us as we talk about the cultural influence of the Bronx on fashion, 90's Hip-hop, and the art of styling men in gender-neutral clothing.
    35 min
  • The Fashion Battle of Versailles: Scott Schiavone
    Have you seen Netflix's biopic miniseries 'Halston'? This episode is with London based fashion historian and curator Scott Schiavone, who you may know from his YouTube channel Fashion &.  This timely conversation is about the 1973 fashion show (with Halston) that transformed fashion history--known as 'The Battle of Versailles'.   
    This monumental fashion competition is a story between the French, who were considered the giants of Haute Couture, and the Americans, who were the underdogs of Ready-to-wear. The French team was a roster of fashion kings including designers Hubert de Givenchy, Pierre Cardin, Yves Saint Laurent,  Marc Bohan for Christian Dior, and Emanuel Ungaro. The American team was a diversified roster of designers including Anne Klein, Stephen Burrows, Bill Blass, Halston and Oscar de la Renta.   
    The gala fundraiser is described by Robin Givhan (2015) in the prologue of her book The Battle of Versailles as follows,  "On November 28, 1973, the world's social elite--men in dashing tuxedos and women dripping with diamonds--gathered in the majestic Theatre Gabriel at the Palace of Versailles.  Originally conceived as a publicity stunt and fund-raiser for the dilapidated French landmark, the Grand Divertissement a Versailles had become an international fashion extravaganza, bloated with pomp and passion.  Style writers and society columnists; royalty, tycoons, diplomats, and politicians; the creme de la creme of the jet set; stagehands, set designers, burlesque dancers, ballet starts, drag queens, glamorous models, famous choreographers, and one Academy Award-winning triple threat all watched in eager anticipation as five kings of French fashion faced off against five unsung American designers.  By the time the spotlight dimmed and the curtain came down on the evening's spectacle, fashion history had been made and the industry had been forever transformed." 
    Please join Scott and myself as we talk about this historical event that changed the global landscape of fashion by cementing the switch from the era of Haute Couture to the global explosion of Ready-to-wear fashion. If you love an underdog story woven with threads of beauty rooted in diversity, then this conversation is for you.
    49 min

About Unbiased Label

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Tune in for real talk on fashion x culture that cuts through bias. On this podcast, we believe that labels belong on clothes, not people! Join the journey of discovery at the intersection of industry and academia where we ask deep questions meant to inspire change.