Kicking off this Tuesday, August 12th, the inaugural Memphis Urban Fashion Week (MUFW) will spotlight creatives shaping style in the South.
Curated by designer Prep Curry, the week of events, sponsored by We Are Memphis, lasts through Saturday, August 16th, and culminates in a fashion show with 13 local and regional designers working in a range of attire — from streetwear to high fashion. Among those to be seen include The Grizzlies, South of Mane, Ashton Hall, Peer Pressure, Immoral Ink, and FUBU, whose co-founder Jay Alexander also is co-founder of MUFW.
“I wanted to create a lane for Memphis and people that don’t have exposure, as well as the people that do have exposure, [with a focus on people of color],” Curry says of MUFW.
Curry himself has been in fashion his entire life, he says. “You know, my name speaks for itself. They used to just call me the little preppy guy. So I was always into fashion. Starting next month, it’ll be 15 years since I started my brand, and I realized that I have a voice and people listen to me, and I’m very good with putting events on as well. So I just wanted to keep pushing and keep inspiring other people.”
With his Memphis Urban Fashion Week, he hopes Memphis can one day compete with LA Fashion, New York Fashion Week, and the like. “[Memphis] is definitely starting to come into its own, and there are more people that are learning how to make clothing and wanting to have fashion events,” he says. “Memphis, we got swag; we got style.”
On Tuesday at 7 p.m., the Fitness & Wellness Bootcamp & Pop-Up will start the week with movement sessions, wellness vendors, and athleisure drops at Wayne Fitness. Wednesday will see the Fashion Entrepreneurs’ Panel at the New Daisy Theatre, where Memphis-based designers, stylists, and brand builders will speak on the business of fashion from 7 to 9 p.m.
The Fashion Jookin’ Battle will pair local designers with Memphis jookers in a dance battle that blends style and street dance on Thursday, 7 p.m., at the New Daisy, and the Adult Prom on Friday at 7 p.m. will have guests celebrating on the dance floor of Grindhouse Dance Studio. “They can dress up; they can dress down — however they want to come in whatever way that shows off their fashion sense,” Curry says. “We’re gonna just be there having a good time.”
Wrapping up with the MUFW X FUBU Fashion Show on Saturday at 7 p.m. at LeMoyne-Owen College, these events, Curry says, “each show a different side of me. … I wanted it to be something that literally everybody can come to.”
A percentage of the proceeds from MUFW will go towards St. Jude Children’s Hospital, the National Civil Rights Museum, and LeMoyne-Owen College.
For more information and to purchase tickets to Memphis Urban Fashion Week’s events, visit here.