Reality celebs draw fans in Lithonia
by Brian Egeston
be@brianwrites.com
Angela and Vanessa Simmons |
In the 1980s, three aspiring rap artists gave a boost to the invasion of hip hop.
The group RUN DMC would prove to be a seminal act and permanent fixture on the genre’s landscape. More than 20 years later, one of the members has passed along the torch of success–to his daughters.
Vanessa and Angela Simmons are the daughters of Joseph Simmons aka Reverend Run, one-third of the famed rap group. While most rap artists from the ‘80s have fallen into relative obscurity, Simmons’ career was reborn through his popular reality television show Run’s House–now in its fourth season–which some call the hip-hop Cosby Show.
The show introduced viewers to the daughters. Vanessa is an aspiring model and actress while Angela is a magazine publisher. Now the two are trying their hands at fashion, having launched a brand of footwear called Pastry. The footwear will be accompanied by an apparel line and handbag collection.
When the sisters visited Underground Station at the Mall at Stonecrest earlier this month, the crowd reception was reminisce of a RUN DMC appearance. Lines snaked through roped-off areas as patrons funneled in and out of the store to purchase shoes and get a glimpse of the reality stars.
The brand expansion is the result of a collaboration with the Betesh Group and Innovative Fashion Group—a division of Adjmi Apparel Group. Founded in 1976 as a children’s apparel importer, Adjmi Apparel Group is based in New York City. It has since developed into four companies in the apparel industry–covering boys’ newborn through men’s wear and girls’ newborn through ladies ready to wear. The Betesh Group is a privately held, family-owned business that manages four independent companies with offices across the United States, Hong Kong and China.
Vanessa and Angela said they were involved with the Pastry brand shoes design.
“The Pastry brand should embody the body, the brain and the spirit,” said Vanessa. “As the evolution of Pastry goes on, we’d like to take in the different things that people tell us so that we’re eventually able to appeal to every type of female.”
The sisters said as they grow, the brand will grow and they are currently working on other casual wear.
Brian Morton is part of the Pastry design team, “The shoes are designed to reflect the personality of the girls–modern, chic, flashy, powerful,” said Morton. “I’m a designer so I pull from different things–music, art, fashion.
The word Pastry and what it conjures up, gives me a lot of inspiration for materials graphics and colors.
For more information, visit www.pastrykicks.com.
|
