Jason “Jam Master Jay” Mizell, Joseph “Run” Simmons and Darryl “D.M.C.” McDaniels (“DMC” standing for “Dirty, Mostly Clean”) made up the 80s trio Run DMC.

These guys were not only trendsetters in music, but their uniforms of adidas tracksuits, shell toes, gold rope chains and Kangol hats helped define street style during the popular 80s decade.

Their flashy, colorful looks are constantly regurgitated on celebrities and even runways of today:

DSquared2 spring/summer 2009

Teyana Taylor loves her some retro 80s flavor

The group rocked adidas like it was going out of style (which fortuantely for the brand, it never did).  Run DMC even created a track titled “My adidas” -

Now
me and my Adidas do the illest things
we like to stomp out pimps with diamond rings
we slay all suckers who perpetrate
and lay down law from state to state
we travel on gravel, drit road or street
I wear my Adidas when I rock the beat
on stage front page every show I go
it’s Adidas on my feet high top or low
My Adidas..

“Run DMC took hardcore hip-hop from an underground street sensation to a pop-culture phenomenon. Although earlier artists, such as Grandmaster FlashSugar Hill Gang, made rap’s initial strides on the airwaves, it was Run DMC that introduced hats, gold chains, and untied sneakers to youth culture’s most stubborn demographic group: white, male, suburban rock fans. In the process, the trio helped change the course of popular music, paving the way for rap’s second generation“- Rolling Stone magazine. – Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll.

Peep this old interview from the early 80s with Andy Kershaw where Run DMC discusses “fresh out the box” sneakers, their style of rap and more:

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