Why Brent Fayaz and Mark Chanaf started NUWO on Independence Day

Brent FayazA singer-songwriter teamed up with her longtime creative director, Mark PeaceTo launch a new fashion brand called Meaning. NUWO stands for “Not Our Own” and aims to revolutionize streetwear and culture with its debut collection. It’s familiar territory for the R&B singer as a newly independent recording artist.

Brent Fayaz recently shocked the music industry after officially signing with the independent label boss. United Masters. The wonderful partnership gives the soulful and introspective artist greater creative control over her projects. The collaboration between Fayaz and United Masters undoubtedly heralds a new era of creativity and success for the rising star and with NUWO, Fayaz opens a new avenue to mesmerize audiences.

NUWO is a work in progress that has been worn by Fayaz for years but has resisted its official launch until today. „I love so many different brands and aesthetics, I’ve never really found one thing to stick to,” Fayaz says, describing finding his sartorial cues. “I can’t call any brand my favourite. So, I would pull from silhouettes that I was always inspired by as a kid—that made me go, 'Yeah that’s it,’ and made it for me.

Fayaz continues, „’Let me create my favorite brand and live in it.'” He was familiar with fashion’s marketing schemes, having participated in them before his music career took off. But he understands the power of building a community around brands with a deeper message for audiences.

Fayaz is a generous storyteller in his music and does so with his fashion sense after donning some exclusive NUWO looks. He notes, “Then we gave [it] To our friends,” referring to the distribution of his early NUWO designs. „It wasn’t for sale or anything. It was just for us to wear.

Similarly, with the NUWO brand, he and Beast are launching a label that reflects their sense of being talented artists and marketers. „My mother introduced me to fashion,” recalls Fiyaz. „As a child, she always instilled in me the importance of taking pride in my appearance, so I stuck to that.” Fayaz understands the branding effect of fashion in having a catchy message just like his music.

“He would dress us up for a church or take us back to school shopping, and I always loved how I felt when I wore something new or hard to get,” Fayaz recalls of Hype-Clothes. „At school, I would buy rare clothes from my classmates, or skip school and go to the mall to steal things I couldn’t afford. I was voted best dressed in school.

Peaced is very aware of the creative process and finds natural movement central to creating. She says, „It’s another medium to create. Brent is one of the best singers and songwriters, I’m a photographer-director, and we’re very passionate about fashion.

Silent and Fayaz nurtured their relationship due to their lust for hype products and the moments attached to them. His father “wouldn’t give me toys for my birthday, he would buy me watches,” Chanut recalled. After Baby G Shock and Swatch, as I got older, I graduated to Seiko and Movato. Today she shares this nostalgia with Fayaz, „Brent and I have always loved pieces, whether it’s high-end streetwear, but 90s, college, streetwear, we both love and enjoy.”

NUWO’s nostalgic designs draw inspiration from music, art and the late 90s/early 2000s, heard in his music, telling stories through vivid imagery and fast-paced world-building. Fayaz has built his image through these channels, “It goes hand & hand as it is based on lifestyle. It defines an era. A sound and a look will create a feeling that words cannot describe. Fashion influences music & Music influences fashion.

NUWO stands for self-authority and reflects the importance of ownership in creative endeavors in any space, be it music or fashion. Fayaz is an independent artist and hopes to inspire others through NUWO’s designs and messages.

„I don’t know what to call it,” Fayaz says of his music, „I just throw things together that make sense to me. That’s how I approach music. It sounds cliché, but I just do what comes naturally. That’s how NUWO is in his world.

„It’s still evolving. It’s like this living, breathing, ever-changing idea,” says Fayaz. „If it’s not seen — it’s because it hasn’t been created. [yet]. You will see – what I see. NUWO’s debut collection was officially released on „NUWO Day” on July 4, 2023 with a one-day pop-up event in Los Angeles. The event will showcase NUWO’s unique creations, featuring peers from the music and fashion industries.

Following the pop-up, exclusive NUWO items will be available on the influencer resale platform Basic.Space. Additionally, the official NUWO website will be launched at a later date.