Stephen Hutchinson
Dr. Cryer
English Composition II
9/18/2018
Hypebeast, a new fashion style popular among some of most influential people in our society. Professional athletes, pop stars, and other culture icons all partake in this trending fashion that has quickly spread in popularity around the world in response to its prominence in the famous social circle. Rappers, like Kanye West, design clothes that fall into the category, and even major corporations such as Nike, and Adidas have made contributions towards this growing trend. Chris Hwang, an inspiring film maker, is currently involved in the Hypebeast community, and it even plays a role in his films that he posts on YouTube. Hypebeast has helped Chris not only develop into a happier, more vibrant and confident young man, but also provided common ground to develop friendships and a hobby he enjoys. Chris believes finding this fashion outlet has given him a confidence boost he was lacking prior to his involvement in this fashion community.
Many years ago, prior to Chris’s involvement in Hype-beast, Chris was a very different person entirely. Chris says, “I was incredibly shy in high school, and struggled to make friends.” He goes on to talk about why he was shy in high school saying “Even though I was a part of sports, like swimming, it just didn’t feel like I entirely fit in. I had people I hung out with at school and during practice, but I never had much of an urge to talk to people.” Chris never considered himself different and never felt that people did not want to talk to him; but he did want to have a closer group of friends. Chris said he never was able to find the courage to approach people he was not comfortable with. Chris wanted more from his timid life but found it difficult to change; and his shyness kept him from reaching out to achieve this.
Fortunately, Chris was given an opportunity to become part of something to help him escape his previously timid life. This opportunity came about when Chris’s friend introduced him to his community, Hypebeast. He showed him some YouTube videos involving the community and asked Chris if he wanted to help him make similar videos. The fashion is not the focus of the videos, but the aesthetic of the videos fit into the style of hype-beast and it got Chris into wearing the clothes more than just in the videos because according to Chris, “I just thought the clothes looked really cool, and I thought I looked good in them.” Even in retelling of Chris's early experience in the community it is evident his confidence was just beginning to grow.
Furthermore, Chris started to expand his involvement in his community forcing him outside of his comfort zone. Chris and his friend had to expand their video operations, and the most effective way to do this was to communicate with others in their community. Chris needed to talk to other Youtubers to get an idea what their viewers enjoyed and had to get actors for their videos. Chris says, “these are things I would have never of had the guts to do back before I started getting interested in Hypebeast.” The people he messaged out YouTube for advice quickly became his peers that his channel would collaborate with, and though they were mostly just friends through an online median they were still close people that Chris looked forward to talking to and seeing them when he did.
In addition, to the online community he was apart of was gaining friends through creating his videos. While filming in public, Chris and his friend would need to ask people, who were wearing clothes that fit into the realm of Hypebeast if they were willing to be filmed. Just because Chris had more confidence did not mean that these interactions were never awkward though, and more often than not Chris was turned down. Chris even says “Asking random people if we can film them is definitely the most awkward part of making these videos” Chris goes on to say, “We mostly just use actors who I am good friends with now, but some of these people became my friends because they would hang out at places we would film frequently, and they just became regulars in our videos.” No one enjoys an awkward situation and many people get anxiety when having to talk to random people let alone ask them something that might be considered odd. However, it is a testament to Chris’s courage that he was able to handle many of these situations confidently enough that people felt comfortable to agree to a stranger’s uncommon request.
As expected, Chris continues to be a member of the Hypebeast community today. He continues to make videos on YouTube and continues to rock Hypebeast style clothing. Chris loves his community and looks forward to what the future may hold. He says, “I hope I can continue to play a role in this community, but I know that no matter what happens it has changed me for the better.” Becoming deeply immersed into the Hypebeast community has changed Chris’s life for the better. Thanks to it he is able to hold his head up with confidence compared to his former timid self who struggled to talk to most people. Joining a community helped Chris become the person he wanted to be, and he seems much happier because of it.
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