Pair of Kings: A Fashion and Culture Podcast

Is Kai Cenat’s VIVET good fashion or great marketing? What is New York Fashion Week actually selling? Was Stephen Kolb just a figurehead for a wack organization? Is it worth paying attention to fashion made after the year 2007? Sol and Michael welcome creative director Cody Parks back to Pair of Kings Podcast to talk menswear, vintage clothing and fashion culture in 2026. The trio dig into the state of New York fashion, NYFW Spring/Summer 2027 runway shows, influencer access, GRWM content and...

Why are vintage Mary Maxim sweaters so good? What happens when gorpcore actually goes camping? Did American fashion miss its America 250 moment? Sol and Michael are back on Pair of Kings Podcast to talk knitwear, outdoor style and American identity. After a month apart, the boys reunite for a conversation about the clothes we collect, the places we wear them and the culture that makes us want them in the first place. From an Idaho vintage-store discovery to the 2016 fashion revival, this Sept...

Why does fashion need posers? What is Ball Hog style? Should men wear loafers without socks? And why should every pair of suit trousers be high-waisted? Sol and Michael return to the Pair of Kings Podcast for a thesis-driven conversation about the people, money, taste and contradictions that keep modern fashion culture alive. The central argument: fashion scenes need “posers." In their definition, these are especially wealthy consumers willing to buy at retail, spend heavily in boutiques and...

What are the best FIFA World Cup 2026 kits, and why do so many modern football shirts look worse than their vintage predecessors? What is the difference between a bootleg and a knockoff? When does a garment become vintage, true vintage, or archive fashion? Why does fashion feel like it is in a down cycle—and why are Leviticus, Obsession, Backrooms, and Longlegs part of the same cultural conversation? Sol and Michael return for an episode about sports fandom, fanaticism, horror movies, and “i...

Is fashion art? Why is archive fashion everywhere in 2026? Have designers created anything genuinely new since 1970—and what do postwar Paris, May 1968, 1970s punk, quiet luxury, vintage clothing, fashion TikTok, and the decline of print magazines tell us about how people dress now? On this episode of Pair of Kings, Sol and Michael sit down with Dr. Alexis Romano, fashion historian, writer, curator and professor at Parsons School of Design, for a conversation about fashion history, modern fas...

What do shoppers actually want in 2026? Do brand vibe, culture, and ethos matter more than the clothes? Is experience-based fashion just better marketing? And what does “integrated fashion” look like when your wardrobe is built around music, sports, clubs, video games, vintage, coffee shops, and the internet? On this episode of Pair of Kings, Sol Thompson and Michael Smith break down the largest survey they’ve run on fashion preferences, shopping habits, and taste: 1,500+ responses on how peo...

Was Dave Macklovitch right about the Hedi Boy revival? Is Hedi Slimane’s skinny-jeans-and-leather-jacket universe bigger than fashion? And what happens to musicians when AI can make the record but not the room? Sol and Michael sit down with the podcast's favorite well-dressed unc, Dave Macklovitch of Chromeo, for his second episode and a proper apology tour after the 2025 Hedi Slimane craze proved him right. The trio explore the Hedi Boy phenomenon, Celine skinny jeans, Dior Homme codes, Sain...

Who was Stanley DeSantis? Why is a 2004 Slipknot tee selling for $2,000? And what does a Daft Punk Roulette residency shirt have to do with how fashion brands sell you a lifestyle in 2026? Sol Thompson and Michael Smith return from their Neuehouse live recording for Episode 3 of Pair of Kings Season 14, continuing the season's deep dive into integrated fashion — the symbiotic loop where brands, hobbies, and ephemera matter more than the clothes. This week the boys go solo on the post-COVID ex...

Is fashion still just about clothes? Why are cars, watches, and Formula 1 the new menswear? What does Aime Leon Dore have to do with Porsche, and why, in an age of automation, are buyers paying a premium for things that are...worse? Sol Thompson and Michael Smith sit down with Wesley Breed, the New York-based influencer, storyteller, and car enthusiast who pivoted his fashion platform into automotive content, to unpack the rise of "integrated fashion": the symbiotic loop between brands,...

Why does every fashion brand run a coffee shop? How did a Stussy varsity jacket network from the late 1980s predict the business model of modern fashion? What does used spray paint have to do with why Miu Miu is one of the most effective brands in the world right now? Sol Thompson and Michael Smith open Season 14 of the Pair of Kings Podcast with a level set: the history of integrated fashion—the idea that buying clothes has always really been about buying into a lifestyle, a cult of personal...

Why are men's style guides just glorified affiliate link shopping lists? What should a real style guide for men actually teach you? And how do you build a wardrobe you love without spending a fortune? On the Season 13 finale, Sol and Michael tear apart the modern men's style guide — from GQ and Esquire to The Rake — and expose why today's fashion advice is failing young men. We do what none of those guides bother to do: share real, practical styling tips that will actually make you dress bett...

What does it take to throw the most viral murder mystery parties in New York City? How do you go from pin-up modeling in Pittsburgh to walking for Vaquera at Paris Fashion Week? What happens when Rick Owens calls your name at a casting—but not for the runway? Sol and Michael sit down with Born DuBois—model, stylist, creative director, personal shopper, and the woman i-D Magazine called "A Star is Born"—for her very first podcast. Born has quietly become one of the most interesting people in N...

Is Raf Simons finally back? Is Rick Owens still the GOAT? Did Jonathan Anderson fumble his AW27 Dior menswear show? Why does Dsquared2 keep putting giant furry hats on models—and why do we respect it? Sol and Michael break down 2026's Paris Fashion Week and Milan Fashion Week with their most unfiltered runway reviews yet. Which designers are cooking? Which creative directors are washed? Find out. RUNWAY REVIEWS: Prada FW26: High button holes, dirty French cuffs, and silhouettes echoing early ...

What does a creative director actually do at a major fashion publication? Is Chrome Hearts still worth the investment in 2026? How did vintage Bape become the gateway drug for an entire generation of streetwear obsessives? And why is Rick Owens' FW14 Moody still influencing how we dress today? We sit down with Paul Heavener, Creative Director at Hypebeast, for a deep dive into his decade-long journey from Bape Talk forum moderator to leading one of fashion media's most influential creat...

What's the best men's cologne in 2026? Is Orto Parisi worth the hype? What does "grassy" mean? How do you actually describe how something smells without sounding pretentious? In the 2026 Scentacular, Sol and Michael sit down with over 50 fragrance samples (thank you, ScentSplit!) to answer these questions and more to create the ultimate 2026 fragrance guide for men. The duo dive deep into niche perfume houses like Orto Parisi, Serge Lutens, Frederic Malle, and Amouage—reviewing cult cla...

Is Stone Island actually worth the price? What lifestyle requires techwear? Is Timothee Chalamet overrated? Why does Lady Gaga feel less authentic than Charli XCX? What is gooning, and how did it end up in Harper's Bazaar? This week, Sol and Michael sit down with Shane O'Neill, writer for The Washington Post's twice-weekly pop culture newsletter "Seriously?," to unpack the weirdest corners of the internet and how they intersect with fashion, music, and modern masculinity. The trio explo...

Did Rick Owens really design leather jackets for Ghost of Mars? Is Timothee Chalamet running the exact same PR playbook as Jack Harlow? What the hell is Goouch, and can a goose be a Muppet? Sol and Michael are back! They sit down to break down Rick Owens' early Hollywood costume design work (Ghost of Mars, Tank Girl, Otto; or Up with Dead People), the sock-heel technique that created the iconic pagoda shoulders, and Bailey Goldberg's knitwear producers. The pair then dives into the Timothee C...

Where does your field jacket actually come from? Were WWII soldiers the original hypebeasts? What is the M-43 jacket? Sol and Michael sit down with Avery Trufelman, host of Articles of Interest and 99% Invisible veteran, to break down the military origins of menswear and why everyone's suddenly obsessed with gorpcore. The trio dive deep into the history of the M-65 field jacket, how World War II military surplus shaped American fashion, the invention of layering (yes, someone had to inv...

Is that Chrome Hearts real or fake? Should guys actually use skincare? Why are "stylists" wearing head-to-toe counterfeit on the subway? Sol and Michael are back for a boys episode as they chat about spotting fake Chrome Hearts (and why people can't dress when they wear fakes), the perfume habits of Albanian men in the club, men's skincare routines that actually work (CeraVe, The Ordinary, La Roche-Posay) from an unsponsored viewpoint, men's skincare mistakes (and why Neutrogena face wash is ...

Who were the best designers of Paris Fashion Week 2025? Sol and Michael are talking the future of fashion this week! The duo sit down with Mandy Lee (aka oldloserinbrooklyn) to chat about fashion trend forecasting before TikTok existed (and TikTok fashion trends), microtrends vs macro trends (and why everyone's obsessed with ranking them), the Simone Rocha bride aesthetic, designer fashion show debuts in 2025, what it's really like being a Gen Z fashion influencer, how TikTok changed fashion ...

Is Glenn Martens a good designer? Who owns Maison Margiela (and thus, controls the brand)? Are Margiela gats, futures, tabis, and shoes enough to carry a designer through their tenure? Join Michael and Sol as they chat about what it means to be a designer in 2025, Maison Margiela shoes, John Galliano, Martin Margiela, Hedi Slimane Jeans, Saint Laurent's rebrand (why did YSL change to SLP), mm6 (and the connotations of the line), Margiela's Line 2, Vetements Hoodies (and how to legit che...

Where DO you find the best vintage jeans? This week, Dr. Sonya Abrego, the world's preeminent Westernwear historian joins Sol and Michael to talk about vintage jeans, American-made denim, the Cone Mills Corporation, Lee Jeans (and why pocket designs matter!), what IS selvedge denim, (and what is raw denim), her greatest finds from her days as a picker, the modern landscape of denim, how to date levis, what is so special about raw denim (especially if it's made in the US), some myths about den...

You could hear episode early and get access to our Rick Owens "Temple of Love" Giveaway by subscribing to our HeroHero! Michael's back! Michael's back! Sit down as Sol catches up with his work husband and chat about Rick Owens, Helmut Lang, Stone Island, CP Company, Balenciaga, Adidas, Italian fashion, the downfall of tourism, Issey Miyake shirts, Margiela, Margiela Couture, Glenn Martens, Off-White hoodies, the now-defunct Pyrex vision, Virgil Abloh, LL Bean and Eddie Bauer, popular f...

You could hear episodes early and get access to all of our giveaways on our HeroHero! It's with great pleasure that I announce this week's episode with Sophia Stel, the artist/producer/singer/songwriter behind not one, but two of the year's best EPs: Object Permanence and How to Win at Solitaire. Tune in as Sol and Michael chat with Sophia about her soon-to-be international tour, finding and working with "anime baddie" opener ilykimchi, living life without a phone, thrifting in New York City,...

This episode has a $250 ESSX Giveaway! All HeroHero subscribers are automatically entered. The boys are back for a totally normal, definitely-nothing-amiss episode. Join Sol and Michael as they cover all of the recent runway debuts of Paris (J.W. Anderson's Dior, Pierpaolo Piccioli's Balenciaga, Louise Trotter's Bottega Veneta, Duran Latnik's Jean Paul Gaultier, Mathieu Blazy's Chanel, Ann Demeulemeester, Alexander McQueen, Glenn Martens' Maison Margiela, Miguel Frietas' Mugler, Loewe) and ch...

You could have heard this episode early and had access to our $250 Komune Giveaway on our HeroHero! That title isn't a joke, everyone! This week, instagram.com/_smithstagram and instagram.com/solthompson sit down with their new friend, instagram.com/caitlepillar (also known as Caitle, Caitlin Dark, Cait, or the progenitor of the health goth movement) to chat about their professional basketball career, what it was like to hang with Anna Delvey, Australia's fashion scene, *potentially* walking ...

Get early access to episodes and automatic entry into our giveaways when you subscribe to our HeroHero! Michael and Sol report live from their Komune popup, full of a live studio audience! Tune in as the boys talk about the highlights and lowlights from New York Fashion Week, why calling brands "emerging" isn't only a misnomer but deeply offensive, how to be #26andtappedin, the lack of quality menswear in New York, comic books, Matt Mercer, perfumery, hatmaking, what it's like to run a popup,...

You can hear episodes early and get access to our weekly giveaways on HeroHero! The glaring issues of the greatest city in the world (New York) frustrate the Pair of Kings: little access to trains, high costs of living, improper addressing of the upper class' disparate tax burden... the list goes on. How can we change any of this? What can we do? This week, Sol and Michael bring New York City's District 36 Councilman, Chi Ossé on to the pod to chat Why Shit Not Working, how we can fix the cit...

Hi everyone! After a very long wait, we're back with a new season of the podcast! Tune in as the boys talk about the upcoming Friends of PoK popup (September 26th-28th at Komune) featuring designers NEVER BEFORE SEEN IN NEW YORK like Lac Demure, Ives Barrera, Bailey Goldberg, Perfume Making Co., Kozaburo, Jordan Arthur Smith, and so many more! Sol and Michael also discuss the changing landscape of the Lower East Side (uh oh!) and the mega-list that covers literally EVERY fashion stop in the n...

You can enter into all of our giveaways (including the one on this episode) and get early access to episodes at our HeroHero Michael's back from Berlin and telling Sol (and the listeners) about his experience with Berlin Fashion Week - the hottest, best run, and most interesting up-and-coming fashion week in the post-COVID era. Tune in to hear about Michael's picks for the best and brightest designers and some of his favorite shows: the duo chat about SF1OG, Balletshofer, Milk of Lime, and o...

We're giving away a beautiful AV Beamon jacket on our HeroHero to celebrate the episode: subscribe to support the show, enter into the giveaway and get early access to episodes! Sol spent a ton of time on a Substack article called Hometown Heroes; join Michael and Sol as they sit down and discuss a selection of amazing brands from around the world (including Isabella Charles, Empath LA, and Ulysse Poulin, to name a few), up-and-coming music act Sophia Stel, why Zegna suits cost >$10,000 bu...

You could hear episodes early, get access to all of our giveaways, and more over on HeroHero! Subscribe and support the show! This week, Sol and Michael sit down with on-set tailor and clothing wizard Chloe Boxer to learn about her practice, work, and about her takes on clothing in general! Join the trio as they chart Chloe's introduction to and growth in the fashion world, historic clothing trends, her senior thesis (where she proved that a certain item of clothing was completely misinterpre...

To enter into all of our giveaways (including this episode's!), get access to exclusive episodes, and to hear episodes early, subscribe to our HeroHero! Wow! We're doing policy analysis? Sol's putting his degree to use? Michael's talking about some of the craziest reproductions of vintage clothing? What the heck? A podcast with heavy, heavy research? What's going on? Tune in to hear the duo talk about ESPR, tariff laws, fast fashion, medium-enterprise end-of-life adjustments, fabric responsib...

You can hear episodes early and get access to all of our giveaways for only $4 on HeroHero! Go support the show! We're back this week with our wonderful friend Tanya Ravichandran! Join Michael and Sol as they discuss the incredible team at Coach, Tanya's love for Ann D., how to host the perfect runway show, why all the guys in New York dress like shit, making the Margiela 5 Zip Exodia, Lee Alexander McQueen, some grails still eluding her collection, her wonderful boyfriend Roman's style, gett...

To listen to the full episode and to be automatically entered into this episode's giveaway, subscribe to the HeroHero! It's time for Michael and Sol's favorite yearly tradition: talking shit on the celebrities who spend thousands of dollars to walk the red carpet at the largest event in fashion! Join the duo as they talk about the best (no spoilers, but it rhymes with Mom Crown) and the worst (no spoilers, but it's (not) shockingly a white girl in a durag) of the night, chat about what makes ...

You could have heard this episode early and had access to giveaways on our HeroHero: https://herohero.co/pok The title isn't hyperbole: Sol's back from the wilderness! Join the intrepid duo of Sol and Michael as they discuss Kanye West somehow proving that yes, you can always lose your mind just a little bit more, the Pope dying, what gorpcore's cooler older brother looks like, some slept-on outdoor brands, a horrible new beard, how the hell you dress for the longest river trip in the world (...

You could have heard this episode early and had access to giveaways on our HeroHero: https://herohero.co/pok Hello my dear friends! In this episode Sol and Michael eat way too many lil baby themed potato chips. We also discuss the Thom Browne employee uniform guidelines, the difference between "vintage" and "archive," the bible (again somehow), Alfargo's marketplace, military surplus (again somehow) and Sol's absolutely diabolical plan to undermine the fashion communities most prolific gateke...

You could have heard this episode early and had access to giveaways on our HeroHero: https://herohero.co/pok Hello Everyone! On this Episode Sol and Michael sit down with Luke of Lukes NYC. We talk about being an unc, scaling a business, getting tricked into tattooing a very large garfield on your head, rocket launchers, how much Luke really loves and respects Rick Owens and wants to wear it all the time, the largest prime number Sol can think of, and much more!We had a lot of fun recording ...

You could have heard this episode early and had access to giveaways on our HeroHero! Hey Everybody! Sol has run off to the grand canyon for the next 3 weeks and left me alone, afraid, and in charge of uploading the episodes. He has no phone and I am scared. But! there was a time that I was not scared and Sol was by my side and we recorded this episode for all of you. In this episode we discuss biblical names, that guy on instagram who does an incredible job of making bad hats, and how a numbe...

You could have heard this episode early and been entered into all of our giveaways on HeroHero! Subscribe and support the show! On this episode, Sol and Michael sit down with their good friend Ella to chat about the long-awaited comeback of Soft Hands Knit Club, Ella's career as a model, DSquared FW25 (and their unfortunate gap between what they show on the runway and what they sell through sites like SSENSE), the "White Boy of the Month" phenomenon of the Lower East Side, environmental susta...

One big announcement! We're organizing a pop-up at Komune (our favorite NYC boutique) with Kozaburo on April 11th! Swing by for a chance to win a free hat, say hi to the boys, and shop some of the Phantom Ranch goodies! You could have heard this episode early and been entered into all of our giveaways on HeroHero! Subscribe and support the show! This week, listen in as Sol and Michael discuss Jonathan Anderson leaving Loewe, being a vindictive ex-boyfriend, the legacy of fashion adverti...

One big announcement! We're organizing a pop-up at Komune (our favorite NYC boutique) with Kozaburo on April 11th! Swing by for a chance to win a free hat, say hi to the boys, and shop some of the Phantom Ranch goodies! You could have heard this episode early and been entered into all of our giveaways on HeroHero! Subscribe and support the show! The boys are back - and just in time! This week, Michael and Sol sit down with musical legend Dave Macklovitch (@dave1) of Chromeo acclaim in h...

Two big things! 1. Don't forget! We're organizing a pop-up at Komune (our favorite NYC boutique) with Kozaburo on April 11th! Swing by for a chance to win a free hat, say hi to the boys, and shop some of the Phantom Ranch goodies! 2. We're doing a giveaway for this episode! All HeroHero subscribers will be automatically entered into a drawing for a Bryan Jimenez logo tee - we'll select two winners on the Monday after this episode! Sol and Michael are back with a boys episode! Strap in a...

You could have heard this episode early and had access to giveaways on our HeroHero! This week, Sol and Michael sit down with Bryan Jimenèz, a New York based designer whose sampling, patterning, and referencing make him one of the most exciting young designers in the city. The trio talk about Bryan's inspirations, some of the challenges of scaling a brand, boxing, the other creatives he lives and works with, creating clothes that feel authentically lived-in while still being new, attending an...

Subscribe to our HeroHero for the full episode and a chance to win a Blackmerle field shirt! On this HeroHero-exclusive episode of the podcast, Sol and Michael announce a giveaway, try to big dog each other over pairs of pants, talk about the variety (or lack thereof) in their wardrobes, think about their next purchases (if any), discuss the ongoing conversation regarding racism in the archive community, examine who get access to what (shocker, it's the hyper-wealthy), and, finally, pick thei...

Want to support the podcast and hear episodes early? Subscribe to our HeroHero! This week, Sol and Michael are joined by the founders of Blackmerle, the South Korea-based brand making some of our favorite clothes of 2025. Tune into the podcast to hear the boys chat with Terry and Justice about how they approach design, how they choose materials, popups, their event at Komune, what they wish they could make, masculine cues in an outfit, double cuffs, color choice, rare Japanese fabrics, unifor...

You can get access to our Rick Owens beanie giveaway and hear episodes early at our HeroHero! Hi everyone! On this episode, Sol and Michael bring back the listener question format from earlier PoK seasons! Tune in as they discuss Sol's theory of the four quadrants of clothing, Discwoman, Sweat Equity, the underground warehouse raves of pre-COVID Brooklyn, fast fashion, finance bros, cabaret laws, how to get cheap raw denim, Mercari / Yahoo Japan, how clothing has changed to accommodate for a ...

We're starting our guest episodes of Season 12 strong with Hypebeast's Art Director, Kevin Chen! Join Sol and Michael as they chat with Kevin about his practice, what he wears on set, how Art Directors adapted to the growing field of AI, where fashion campaigns are moving, his dream campaign, ERD, elite boarding schools, how to land a fighter jet, classic photographic conventions, and his graphic design practice! We hope you enjoy as much as we did recording! Lots of love! Sol Sol Thompson an...

On this episode of Season 12, Sol and Michael sit down to discuss Michael's recent trip to China (a three week excursion which saw Michael discover what might be the best clothing store in the country), differences in the fashion scenes between the US and China, Sol's Substack, serial killers and doing thing with zeal, and the changing face of who's impacting the clothing and fashion world (hint: it's changing from Kanye/Playboi Carti/Travis Scott to people like IShowSpeed and Kai Cenat). We ...

Welcome to Season 12, folks! You can hear episodes early, get access to our Pearled Ivory Belt and Glove giveaway, and hear exclusive episodes over on our HeroHero. Sol and Michael are back for a brand new season of the podcast. They're revitalized and revamped; tune in for discussion about Glenn Martens' new appointment at Margiela, Y-Project, some of the couture shows, the new Comme Des Garcons boots (that may or may not have been ripped from Rombaut, if you believe the claims), people not ...