We caught up with the artist last night in NYC to talk about the meaning of luxury and how he chills out.
Last night we stepped off West 34th Street in New York straight into the world of Gucci Ghost (also known as Trevor “Trouble” Andrew). It was the New York launch of Reebok Presents 3:AM—Reebok and Foot Locker’s new content and event series that focuses on creatives and their late-night working habits—at Foot Locker’s NYC33 space. We walked into a room full of graffitied step-and-repeats, with the OG DJ Clark Kent spinning, and a few of our favorite friends milling about—JonBoy and Mike “Upscale” Camargoincluded. Andrew collaborated with the footwear brand to create a capsule collection of t-shirts and long sleeves, and at the event he revealed a workout sneaker as well. The event was also linked to Cam’ron, who performed a few of his top hits at the party prior to the reveal.
We were rushed into the back room upon arrival, where Andrew was waiting for us, perched in front of his own work with his new Reebok sneakers directly in front of it. The artist, who tags all of his pieces with the iconic Gucci logo (which, yes, is Alessandro Michele-approved), chatted with us about the inspiration behind the sneaker, what it was like to work with Cam’ron, and where you can typically find him at 3:00 AM.
What does luxury mean to you?
“Luxury is something that I haven’t always been able to reach, I guess. But I feel like you can create your own luxury, you know what I mean? I guess there’s always a dollar thing that goes with it, but to me it doesn’t. A lot of things that are the most valuable to me are things that I’ve made or that my friends have made for me or things that are just one of a kind. I think that’s real luxury.”
What do you do to indulge yourself?
“When I indulge I buy lots of toys that I had when I was a kid, or movies that I had, or skateboards that I had. For me, it’s collecting memories or creating new things that remind me of something or an experience.”
How did the opportunity to design your own Reebok shoe come about?
“Through a friend of a friend, friend of a family, that was at Reebok and had reached out. We had been in contact over the years, and basically it was just perfect timing. It was like, ‘Yo, do you want to draw Reebok shoes?’ And I was like, ‘For sure, let’s do it, but let’s do more than that. Let’s really use that as an opportunity to go super far with whatever it is that we’re dreaming about.’ For me to work, I have to have that open space to not feel like somebody wants me to do something specific. So that’s where it started, just conversation about stuff like that.”
How did you come up with the design?
“I use very basic symbols to tell a story. So for me, [the shoes] were about moving forward and that motion of walking forward—you know, the ladders, the stairs, the shoes, the spring, and all these symbols that represent that motion. It represents the beginning of something new.”
How did you and Cam’ron meet?
“We actually just met through Reebok. When I first went to Boston to meet with Reebok, they were like, ‘We’re working with Cam’ron.’ And I’m like, ‘I’ve been a fan of Cam’ron forever, so…’ [and] actually in the first conversation of us meeting, they were like, ‘You know, maybe if we do something, we can get something done quick enough, and you and Cam can meet, we can throw a party together and have a little launch.’ The relationship through Reebok has brought us together even though I feel like we’ve been really close, mutual friends, but we never actually linked until now, which is great.”
How do you chill out?
“Listen to Miles Davis or Coltrane. That’s my go-to if I’m on the plane and stressed out, nervous, or if I’m in a hotel room or the studio in the morning. I feel like jazz is always a good calming thing.”
Where can we typically find you at 3:00 AM?
“At 3:00 AM I’m usually in a work space. It could be anywhere in the world, but typically Brooklyn, watching movies, painting, listening to records, just trying to absorb as much information as I possibly can just so I can spew some other shit back out into the world.”
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