Inside the Multifaceted Universe of Straffitti

Notesphere caught up with Straffitti, the creative genius behind the high-end denim brand “Thirsty Laboratory.” A multitalented artist deeply immersed in various art forms, more than just fashion, Straffitti‘s passions extend to music and design. You may regard him as a polymath. Interestingly, his moniker ‘Straffitti‘ was born from a misspelling of the word ‘graffiti’. Olawale Olukolade, as he’s formally known, welcomed us into his store, Wear Thirsty, where we gained insights into his daily routines, creative processes, and forthcoming endeavors.

Interview:

When asked what a fulfilled day feels like, He Says;

“There’s never a fulfilled day, but a typical day is waking up in the morning after a studio session, I go to the gym, then from the gym, I head to the lab where all these pieces are made then in the lab we still have studio sessions there. Sometimes, I come to the store in case there’s Someone ready to spend some money LOL cause when people see me in the store they tend to spend more, sometimes I just pull up here to check what’s happening, and I also have meetings after the store, with people I obviously do business with and I go back home after to finish on some couple designs and yeah that’s it the cycle keeps on going like that. That’s like a long busy day.“

During this conversation, Straffitti demonstrates a high level of engagement with the production and design processes, showcasing a meticulous and intentional approach to his work.

Notesphere: Could you walk us through your creative process when it comes to designing these pieces on your own?

Straffitti: It depends, but if it’s stuff like the graphic tees, it starts with graphics on software like Photoshop and some couple image research and mood boards, sketches, etc. get it out of Photoshop and it’s done but for stuff as our denim wears, we have to always get it to the lab cause we have to cut and sew, try new patterns, bleach, etc it’s kinda hectic for the denim cause it’s more intricate than designing graphics on your computer cause you have to go deep into fabrics for the denim pieces.

Notesphere: What inspires you before you start designing on your computer? How does inspiration typically strike you?

Straffitti: It’s hard to get inspired in Lagos because there’s just too much chaos here, you kinda have to be a madman to be creative in this place. But outside Nigeria, you get inspired easily so it’s actually difficult sometimes but I try with music to keep inspiration flowing then when I’m outside the country in places like Cape Town I can easily get inspired by the scenery and landscape.

Thirsty Laboratory seems to be built on a series of releases termed ‘experiments,’ where disparate elements are combined to create a cohesive masterpiece. Straffitti takes immense pride in this innovative approach.

Notesphere: Your brand appears to embrace an experimental ethos. Could you highlight any projects that stand out as particularly successful or less successful compared to your overall body of work?

Straffitti: There’s nothing like a most successful experiment or project; every project complements each other. The denim in 2020 came so these could be possible. It’s a journey, so even if we’re probably selling more now, we can from our previous foundations and experience in this denim category, ‘cause once an experiment is done, it’s left for it to mutate into the next one.

Notesphere: But which one, whether recent or past, has sold the most?

Straffitti: I don’t know, to be honest, because I’m more involved in the design than sales, but I can tell you the pieces we did before are what brought people to us, like the Zeus denim piece right here in the store. It was very popular at the time.

Thirsty Labs gained widespread popularity, with top celebrities across the globe wearing one-of-a-kind denim pieces, propelling the brand to prominence for its unique denim wear.

Talking more on that Straffitti says;

“People simply love how unique our brand is. We’ve had artists like Rema, and Wizkid come up to us like oh “We like the brand, we’d like to wear a custom 1 of 1 piece” this is because our pieces are very unique, probably never seen before. They’ve traveled around the world but they’ve probably not seen anything as exclusive before. So that brought people to the brand ‘cause everyone now wanted a custom piece haha.”

Notesphere: What’s the most expensive piece you have right now in the Thirsty store?

Straffitti: Oh damn, it’s not here it’s actually in London. It got taken out. It costs about $4,000. But here in Lagos right now we have this jacket, which is about $1,200.

Notesphere: That’s quite expensive, about ₦1,800,000. This jacket, what’s the process to make this? How did you get inspiration for the fringes?

Straffitti: I saw something from a bridal dress or something, I think in 2022. I liked that it gives it that flare. That’s where I got that inspiration.

Over the past year, Straffitti has traveled the world with the Thirsty team, touring cities and promoting the Thirsty brand. He’s graced places including Milan, Italy, and London for fashion week, as well as curated personal events. His last show in Milan in September 2023, titled “Jeanius Sanitarium,” was a huge success and is still being talked about to this day.

Notesphere: You’ve been to a lot of places around the world promoting your brand. What’s that one place that makes you feel at home and most comfortable besides the UK?

Straffitti: I think it’s Cape Town, bro, at least for now ’cause I haven’t been to Asia but Cape Town feels so homely. The UK is just extremely tight and just too cold; the houses are also too small.

Notesphere: What’s the most exciting thing about Cape Town?

Straffitti: The landscape, the weather, like the scenery, you think you’re in GTA, bro LOL. I think I’m gonna get a house in Cape Town for sure.

Straffitti, who is also an independent recording artist under his label imprint ‘Thirsty Sonics,’ He’s widely known for his ability to create the most sonically pleasing songs, spanning from Afrobeat to rap music, and has made a successful career out of it with millions of streams across all platforms. Even his latest release, ‘Personally,‘ is gaining popularity across Nigeria and TikTok.

Notesphere: Congrats on your latest release, are we expecting more music from you, perhaps an album?

Straffitti: Thank you! And yeah, Of course, projects are coming from the Thirsty camp. We just recently had a recording camp so we’ll see.

Notesphere: You network with the biggest artists in Nigeria, including the “big 3” Who’s that one you’d love to have a song with?

Straffitti: Of course, it’s Wiz, there’s no one gonna do a song with love like Wizkid, for real, maybe Davido too but I’ll say Wiz.

Notesphere: Your work with Wiz on his latest project. You were the creative director of that whole process, even making the album art, the Wizkid tattoo, etc., what was that like?

Straffitti: Yeah, it was cool asf. Wizkid always listens to me; he always receives my opinion because I think he feels my creative judgment is kinda good, even down to the logo. The artwork was very spontaneous, y’know? I also designed his recent tattoo as well, and that’s where the artwork came from. I was just like, ‘Let me take a picture while you’re getting a tattoo.’ I didn’t want it to be like a photo shoot; I wanted to capture how you’re feeling at the moment. After I took the photo, I just knew that was the one. So Wiz was in Dubai for like two weeks, then he called me and was like, ‘Yeah, that’s the one!’ and I was like, ‘aiit, bet.’ But it’s funny that at that time, we were actually designing something else. We were working on a multi-million-dollar project.

Notesphere: That’s interesting! So you and Wizkid still got a lot of collab stuff coming?

Straffitti: Yeah. It’s still all in the works at the moment. I can’t say too much about it now.

Notesphere: That’s fair. So, it’s still International Women’s Month. Who are the female designers in Nigeria you like?

Straffitti: Idk if you guys know Ololade, but she’s one of the sickest designers I’ve seen in my life, down to sketches. She has done pieces that have walked on stages in London, Milan, etc., and she also works with Thirsty. And I think there’s this brand called JB, I think J Bottoms, she makes swimwear for girls. Yeah, I think these girls are the ones I’ll say are doing really good stuff from Nigeria.

Notesphere: A couple of weeks ago, you had a runway show for Thirsty coupled together with a camp.

Straffitti: It wasn’t a runway show; it was a simulation event. And a learning experience. But yeah, it was a fun time with Thirsty Collective, and we also got to host creatives from around Nigeria.

Notesphere: Oh okay that’s nice, so are we expecting other events to come from Thirsty?

Straffitti: Yeah, of course, man, couple parties I think for music though Thirstynalia will happen like it does every year.

Notesphere: A Straffitti concert?

Straffitti: That’s Thristynalia. It’s always happening every December since 2017.

Notesphere: So finally, we have a couple of questions for you to answer.

Straffitti: Okay! Let’s do it, LOL.

Notesphere: The First question is going to be: You’re going to a Wizkid concert, what are you putting on?

Straffitti: I dress spontaneously, but if it’s a Wizkid concert I’ll probably just dress all black, like black denim and kinda like a black plain tee or a Thirsty black shirt, and my grill, that’s an essential.

Notesphere: But you might be backstage tho.

Straffitti: Nah, I’ll be on stage.

Notesphere: You’re going on a date with Ayra Starr?

Straffitti: Something a little bit sexy, I could wear like a body hug and maybe some baggy jeans and also a face cap ’cause I don’t want to be seen doing that LOL, and my shoes are gonna be…but wait but I’m not gonna go on a date with Ayra Starr, I’m just saying this because you asked.

Notesphere: Haha, okay. How about going clubbing with Davido?

Straffitti: Ah, gahdem! That’s already a hectic one, so I’ll probably only wear a singlet and I’ll be jacked up so I can show them some muscle but I’ll wear a singlet cause I know it’s probably going to be very sweaty because his session is always with a bunch of people and I’ll wear like light tracksuit pants, I’ll probably wear a jacket actually but just to get in the club but when I get in I’m taking it off cause the energy at his section is always crazy and I’ll wear a bucket hat maybe just cause of the swag, and maybe some boots so if I get stepped on I won’t get hurt.

Notesphere: Party with Uncle Waffles?

Straffitti: Is it going to be in SA?

Notesphere: Yes. For sure LOL

Straffitti: That’ll be lit, so I’m wearing shorts with a Gucci jacket like it must be Gucci but I will still have my swag with a bucket hat like I can’t be caught without a bucket hat. South Africans love a bucket hat definitely shades and my grills too because South Africans love grills. Maybe a hoodie for the Wiz concert, just to match the vibe of being unseen.

Notesphere: Alright then, last question – you’re given three options to have a creative collaboration with: Nike, Adidas, and New Balance. Who would you choose to work with?

Straffitti: Def Nike bro, I feel like Adidas has limited options, maybe their Stan Smith and Yeezys are the only picks for me but Nike has so many hits then New Balance has less number of variables for their silhouettes to work with. Nike has a wide number of silhouettes that you can work and play with and it’ll make it difficult to convince New Balance to do something different. So it’s Nike for me.

Notesphere: Do you intend to do a shoe collection for Thirsty anytime soon?

Straffitti: I mean we did a Thirsty Labs denim shoe one time, it looked like a high-top type shoe but nah, shoes aren’t for now, not this year though maybe next year.