1. What?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s up Adam styles?¢‚Ǩ¬¶how goes it? Are you ready to have fun?
Always
2. What?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s behind the name SlamXhype?
I always say, if I’d known the site would have blown into something for the people, I would definately come up with a better name, basically Slam was the name I used for myself, and the ‘X Hype’ was an ironic piss take on colabs and their involvement in Hype, and it all tied into my site which was my own colaboration with the world of Hype. Kinda seems stupid now.
SLAMX…SKYLINE..NZ…STYLES!
3. Have you ever skated? If so, when did you start?
I did for a while when I was younger, but to be honest, I started playing football(soccer) very competitively shortly after and I didnt really have the time or could risk the injuries, so it ended.. All my friends skated throughout my teenage years, but basically I was always training.
4. What has been the most important album in your lifetime? Why?
You probably know by now Sean, that Im pretty much obsessed with Fashion and Streetwear, it runs my life, and while it seems pretty contrare to most people, it was probably more the album covers and the style of artists that impacted me most, It was probably mid 90′s Beastie’s albums that hit me most, it was at a time when I was starting to get my own money and buy my own shit… ‘Check your head’ etc
5. What role has your taste in music played on your politics?
I would honestly say its played quite a small role, other than that it tends to bring about a sense of familarity with a particular regional mindset. I’ve gone through stages where I’ve been really into UK music for example and so this generally has pushed me to become more interested in the UK way of life and pay more attention to their political movements etc. Im not someone who has been hit by movements from lyrics and artists who have stood up for certain movements, i think maybe the the era in which I grew up, and the fact that I lived so far away from many of the worlds issues, made this all seem very distant to me.That might have been naive but its honest atleast 
WE ENJOY THE SAME TASTE IN MEDIA.
6. How do people in New Zealand view American politics?
New Zealand is a country with a very strong standpoint on the environment and equality. At the same time we’re a very small country and so economically can be dependant on larger nations. We were the first country in the world to offer Women the oppurtunity to Vote, we’re completely Nuclear free and have a very big standpoint on this issue, and all in all are anti war and anti bush currently. But as I said, at the same time, we often need to follow the UK or Australia in their decisions to ensure our economic trade is kept safe, for this reason we have peace keepers in Iraq for example, but its made very clear in the media the reasons behind this. NZ is so small, clean and honest, we often find the whole american way of life beyond comprehension. People here are layed back, relaxed, and generally carefree, it takes us further and further away from life in the US.
SHAPING DREAMS FROM A LAPTOP.
7. What draws you to a brand and makes you say wow?
I think its hard to be over analytical about what in particular draws me to a brand.. at the end of the day, there are lots of values that give a brand creditability in my mind, but it needs to look good.. after all thats what fashion is. Whether we anaylise the authenticity in recreation, the cultural relevance in design, the quality of craftsmanship, etc. none of this matches whether or not it looks and fits well. On a personal level, I actually find it hard to decide what I like to buy or wear myself, Im far too analytical, anyone who reads my blog on Riottt will know I think about this shit far too much, and take it all far too seriously, basically this train of thought leaves me thinking nothings good enough.. doing what I do also unfortunately can lead to a sense of overwhelming under-hype, because I see so much, it takes alot more to impress me now.
8. What fashion designer was the first to push your wig back? Why?
The first? As I said Im pretty obsessed with this shit, but the first was probably Margiela. Back in the 90′s he was miles ahead and in a way that was obvious through following trends, I could see what he did was copied over and over and would almost always eventuate in it becoming a ‘trend’ amongst mainstream fashion (the kind of designers that show at fashion weeks) in years to come. I was also drawn to the fact that his ’10′ line for men, was labelled as a wardrobe and was not collection based and very wearable, you could buy things from 1994 and wear them in 1999 and they would continue to be a part of that same ‘wardrobe’. While this all seems obvious now, at the time it was my first big lesson in fashion, and till this day, his aesthetic is something thats stuck with me, as has his philosophy to design and styling.
Mr.ADAM.SLAMX!!!…
9. How has blogging changed fashion?
Haha… Ill give you the short answer…There are numerous aspects of how its changed the way we see fashion and the way fashion operates as an industry. The biggest is the speed of movement. Trends and Hype move alot faster than they may have before the internet’s involvement, it no longer takes time for trends to reach different parts of the world, its now all at your fingertips. If kids in NY are wearing a certain style, then you don’t have to wait for the process of some tastemaker or influential person to go to NY, take this on board and develop it in their own region.. its blasted all over within minutes. This also leads to the inevitable loss of obvious regional seperation in trends and style. For this reason its affected the industry in numerous ways, its created a strong sense of teiring, its allowed smaller companies to compete, its lessened the importance placed on quality, and much more.. I could go on.. but you get the jist.
10. Where do you see the blog in the next five years?
Impossible to say.. I didnt see it doing what it does now 3 years ago, so Im afraid to say what I think it will become. I have recently changed my own standpoint and the focus and philosophy behind the site, and I hope over the next few months or years, this will continue to develop and at the same time make a change within the industry. I feel I am trying to take a stand with this new mission statement and hope others will see this and it can change the way people view the culture and the web culture inparticular. I think that sites like Slam were gaining negative exposure within the industry and I felt it was time to make a change, I hope that this means in 5 years we would have developed further. There are numerous web 2.0 concepts that would be great and ways of creating reader interaction and community, but to me at the end of the day the content is vital and I hope in 5 years, our content will be perceived as of a higher quality than any other publication, whether that be print or web, there are numerous benefits of coming from the web side of the media and I think we all need to take advantage of this. We have some movements and projects we are working on at the moment, the recent relaunch of the site was merely stage one in this project and so you’ll see more changes soon, which could signal whats to come over 5 years.
WALL 2 WALL.
11. Any closing shout outs?
There have been numerous people that have helped immensley over the years with Slam, and most of them know who they are, and rather than list hundreds of people, I’ll just say THANKS TO ALL. And especially my girlfriend for putting up with the fact that my job never ends.
RockersNYC salutes ADAM&THESLAMX.FAMLEE
FOR DOING WHAT YOU!…STAY TUNED FOR MORE INTERVIEWS.
