DJ Clark Kent seemed like he was on a mission Thursday night (May 24). Upon entering the Beats Store on 67 Greene Street, in the SoHo section of New York City, Kent sifted through the packed crowd, desperately trying to find someone. Past the security and past the bar he went, until he found his man just beside the DJ booth: Jeff Staple.

Kent embraced and congratulated the popular streetwear designer for his limited-edition Beats Pigeon headphone (Only 500 pairs made). Kent was one of many supporters, including rap legend Bun B, who showed up to celebrate Staple’s design of the Beats headphone.

“That’s Clark Kent. He was Jay-Z Reasonable Doubt and he’s here giving me daps. That’s mind-blowing,” Staple said referring to Kent, whose production credits on Jay-Z’s classic Reasonable Doubt album, included “Brooklyn’s Finest,” “Coming of Age” and “Cashmere Thoughts.”

Kent reciprocated the respect.

“Jeff Staple has been so important to the streetwear game and to the design game, the marketing game and just to the game, period,” Kent said. “I have so much respect for the work that he’s done. To come here and give him a pound was too easy.”

Staple’s Beats Pigeon design, features his trademark pigeon on one speaker of the headphone with pigeon excriment on the top of the headphone piece in a slate and white design that screams New York City.

“I kept it pretty simple,” said Staple, who was rocking a camo blazer with the pigeon imprint. “If you look at the pigeon stuff that we’ve done, it’s all based on the real pigeon color or variation. So, these Pigeon New Balances that I’m rocking were all white. So, when doing the Beats, we wanted to keep that same philosophy. We didn’t want to do a magenta thing.

“We wanted to keep it real to the pigeon,” added the designer who cites Kanye West and Pharrell as his biggest rap fashion influences. “When you rock ’em on the side, these colors represent the wings. They match with everything.”

Added Kent: “You know why his Beats by Dre design is crazy? Because he’s the only person to shit on a pair of Beats. He’s the only person who could shit on Beats. The Staple Design is crazy. He’s knows what he’s doing. All of the pigeon collabos have come out crazy. He’s doing it right.”

Before Beats came knocking, Staple has been commissioned to collabo with the likes of Nike, New Balance, Converse, Timberland, Reebok, Mitchell & Ness, New Era, Starter and Kia. —Mark Lelinwalla

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