“It’s sport-inspired, it’s Jameson-inspired, it’s kind of like the history of my life,” says KidSuper creative director and founder Colm Dillane on his new collection. “My father is Irish, I grew up in New York City, I’m a streetwear guy but also I’m a soccer player, and I think it combined all of those things.”
KidSuper x Jameson©
We’re in Brooklyn, it’s kind of rainy, but who cares because we’re here to celebrate KidSuper’s new collaboration with Jameson Whiskey. Teased at Paris Fashion Week, the designer’s new venture explores football culture with a Jameson twist. “Honestly, it’s a pretty good collab,” he says. The eight-piece collection takes on Jameson’s 200-year heritage but also Dillane’s own, taking on his family history and his love for football: “that pattern on the jersey is similar to the pattern of my grandma’s couch – my grandma lives in Laois, Ireland.”
If you can’t juggle over 100, you shouldn’t make a jersey.
The moodboard featured “90s to early 2000s soccer style, tunnel fits – and when I say tunnel fits it’s not like the clothes that they wear on the street, but more like the clothes they wear on the game.” Our content creator Taylor Lumley chimes in and says that this reminds him of Vinnie Jones. “‘Snatch’ Vinnie Jones, greatest thing ever,” Dillane says. “Dude, that’s what I was saying to other people, England is having a renaissance culturally. I think you guys are all posers and none of you are good at soccer,” he jokes (hopefully). “If you can’t juggle over 100, you shouldn’t make a jersey.
KidSuper x Jameson©
I got sport, I got art, I got fashion, I got Ireland, and I got Jameson.
“The collection was obviously soccer-inspired, or football, however we want to say it,” he says. “And I got to go to the [Jameson] distillery in Ireland – I went with my cousin and my uncle who live there – they have such a long history so we were looking at the old logos, and the first sketches of the town and all these different things and if you look at the Letterman jacket [J Balvin’s personal favourite from the collection], it’s got an embroidered sketch of the old town, there’s a lot of details and meanings. This was really easy for me to design because I got sport, I got art, I got fashion, I got Ireland, and I got Jameson.”
The launch party is celebrating all of that: the night has kicked off with a five-a-side football game on the KidSuper’s Brooklyn Headquarters terrace – “it’s my greatest accomplishment, it’s a field on a roof,” Dillane says – Jameson cocktails are flowing and everyone’s donning their new KidSuper x Jameson kits, locked in watching the game.
KidSuper x Jameson©
When people ask what’s the connection with soccer, I’m kinda like what’s not the connection with soccer? We’re in a clubhouse currently, there’s a soccer field on my roof, I’m wearing soccer shoes.
“When people ask what’s the connection with soccer, I’m kinda like what’s not the connection with soccer? We’re in a clubhouse currently, there’s a soccer field on my roof, I’m wearing soccer shoes,” Dillane adds. “A lot of designers get called streetwear designers and don’t really like that. I always wanted to be called a streetwear designer because I liked what streetwear represented, I liked the community driving, I loved that these brands represented niche people that were into different things.”
Dillane prides himself for growing the football culture in the US: “We created some of the American football culture, we were screaming from the mountaintops that soccer is the coolest sport in the world, and now, finally, soccer is the coolest sport in the world, and everyone wants to be a part of it. I was always, since the onset of KidSuper, talking about soccer, trying to do soccer collaborations, trying to get our idols to participate, like Ronaldinho [aka one of the best players of all time] walked my fashion show.”
Dillane even has his own football club, Super Niños, which he owns with his friend, and KidSuper x Jameson campaign co-star, reggaeton legend J Balvin. “I love to be with Colm at any time, any moment,” J Balvin says, “he’s the best partner, we’ve got a football team, we've got the Super Niños, we’re winning.”
KidSuper x Jameson©
It’s safe to say that Dillane and J Balvin have bonded over their mutual love for football and for Ronaldinho. “I watched his documentary btw,” J Balvin says. “He became my favourite, and also he has a lot of [Colm’s] personality, he’s always happy.”
“I’m the biggest Ronaldinho stan of all time, he’s the background on my phone,” Dillane adds and turns to J Balvin, “Did you see for a split second, I’m in the documentary? In the quote it goes, ‘Ronaldinho does a lot of random stuff’, and it’s a picture of me and Ronaldinho – it’s the greatest thing anyone’s ever done.”
So, how did the two guys meet? “Tinder,” J Balvin says, laughing.
“He slid into my DMs, he said ‘r u up?’” KidSuper jokes. “No, he slid into my DMs and I remember running around the store and yelling ‘J Balvin DMed us, this is crazy!’”
J Balvin adds: “We connected immediately. His happiness is contagious, I always ask him have you ever been sad? He’s like an alien, he’s always happy.”
“I always ask him, you’re J Balvin, how are you not always happy?” Dillane says. “Seriously though, obviously he’s unbelievably gracious but the ability to be so warm and open to different people and open to seeing people’s talent no matter what, to get to the level where he is and still be humble and open-minded is amazing.”
When asked if they get competitive with each other, Dillane says: “Not really, I would like to but he kind of beats me in most things, we’re not very competitive.” J Balvin has a different point of view: “Yes, you are, you’re so competitive – don’t you see yourself in the game? And he’s selfish, it’s all about the ball. He don’t pass the ball. He thinks he’s Ronaldinho, he’s in his own world.”
What’s next for KidSuper’s next collection? “100% soccer-inspired for the World Cup. 48 looks, each look inspired by a country in the World Cup – I shouldn’t be telling you that but that’s the answer.”
KidSuper x Jameson©
Who are you supporting? “Colombia,” J Balvin says straight up, but Dillane has a more complicated answer: “Taking my family and my culture and everything away, I want Portugal to win because then it’s the Cristiano Ronaldo-Messi story, which would be amazing.” J Balvin comments: “They wanna get the rematch again, they’d be battling for 200 years.”
“Then I want Brazil, I want Neymar to win,” KidSuper continues, “and then Spain would be cool – my mum’s from Spain – USA would be cool…”
J Balvin laughs: “You’re not supporting Colombia?” Dillane says: “Colombia would be amazing…”
The collection is out now, you can cop the drop at kidsuper.com.
