SOUTH DETROIT BAPTIST CHURCH

South Detroit Baptist Church is my forthcoming brand in collaboration with designer Michael Yarborough that exists to question the structures of evangelical Christianity in America and explore the deep yet tainted significance it holds to those of us raised within it and molded by it.

SDBC all began with a relatively simple yellow hoodie sample. I had developed a tech pack for the hoodie pattern but was uncertain about what to print on it. Having tossed the idea of playing around with making fake church merchandise, I typed out “SOUTH DETROIT BAPTIST CHURCH” and tried to arrange it in such a way that would leave people uncertain as to whether or not it was merchandise for a real church or a streetwear label. Initially, my goal was just to test the printing and washing capabilities of the factory I was working with. But when I wore the hoodie to a club during NBA All-Star Weekend, it instantly (and surprisingly to me) caught the attention of Anthony Edwards, 50 Cent, Druski, and Jeff Hamilton. Certainly not a group of individuals I had ever expected to lay eyes on one of my pieces.

That moment and those conversations led me to reach out to my close friend and colleague, Michael Yarborough, to begin the process of developing a brand ethos that would encapsulate and add some visual commentary to our experiences before leaving the evangelical church.

Sampling has begun with an expected May/June 2025 launch date for capsule 1.