A$AP Rocky once told Highsnobiety that he was on his dad swag but maybe he wasn't entirely telling the truth. See, Rocky already mastered dadcore: now he's gone grandpa mode.
Rocky epitomized elderly steeze on a late January 31 Beverly Hills shopping trip, where he hit up the hottest red carpet brand in the biz: Armani! A man of taste — and he was reportedly shopping for Rihanna's birthday, no less.
A little change of pace from his usual Bottega Veneta business, eh? Yes and no.
Yes because Armani is not Bottega.
No because, see, if you take a look at Rocky's shoes, or at least where his shoes would be, you'll see that Pretty Flacko is daintily stepping about in Bottega's $4,100 Domenica Boot — "knitted" lambskin leather socks by any other name.
Between the collarless cardigan, striped shirt, washed-out dad jeans, and socks, Rocky is very much the picture of a senior citizen shuffling around the house.
Well, except, you know, for being ridiculously stylish.
This is classic A$AP Rocky steeze: take something potentially stuffy and render it slick with purposeful proportions — waist-length knit sweater over loose shirt and looser jeans — tasteful accessorizing, and a dash of fearless flexing.
I mean, who else is pairing billboard-sized shades with gilded earrings and leather socks? Go on, name someone.
They can't keep letting Rocky get away with it. Dude has just made too much weird stuff look way too good way too often.
If only Rocky had headed out with his pearl-studded headphones — a little grandpa-grandma mix.
Regardless, this is a case study in how to make even an outré outfit feel approachable. It's all in the intent (the giant pearlescent smile helps).
This is why we all wanna dress like Rocky or, at the very least, wanna channel an ounce of his unbothered ease.
No one else is wearing complicated clothes with this much grace, certainly not on the menswear front.
In an era where it's so easy to step out in fancy shoes and think you're doing something, I fully respect the guys who dress with panache, and A$AP Rocky above 'em all.
That's the thing about Rocky's style: he's so far ahead of us that his style is actually a couple generations ahead of himself.
If this is how Rocky dresses at age 35, just think about how cool he's gonna look in 40 years.
