Never mind the backdrop of clashing environs in Vybz Kartel and Russian's new video—these protagonists are more interested in pointing out the likeness of styles between "Uptown" and "Portmore" than their difference in lifestyles. An extension into Kartel's epitomized look, "Straight Jeans and Fitted," is a simple song about the freshness of straight jeans, a fitted hat, and white tee. After his successful trilogy on his favorite shoe—"Clarks" parts one, two and three—soared into the airwaves in spring with the same tenacity as a global ad campaign, his new track appears likely to follow suit based on the same argument: everyone likes a basic. Knowingly or not, Kartel and Russian have struck a chord with the roots of streetwear. After all, isn't this menagerie of elements how streetwear developed a uniform to begin with? It seems in taking cues from Jamaica's innate sense of crisp clothing, the uniformity of streetwear, and his own sense of style, Kartel is building a wardrobe of his own, one song at a time.
