We chat to Offspring Community member Nana aka @bossstyleldn

Tell us about yourself.

Hey everyone, firstly thanks for noticing my page, my style and welcoming me into the Offspring Community. I’m Nana and I’m Ghanaian British from Northwest London, though I spend some time in New York and Atlanta quite often. I work as an Associate for a management consultancy in London/NY.

How long have you been into sneakers and how did you get into them?

I have been into sneakers for my whole life but for the last 8 years, I have been active with my sneaker addiction and love. I was a street dancer a few years back and was in the good vibes environment where music and style were always the way forward. But what got me into sneakers was a good friend of mine who was a bit ahead of the years. He would always rock up to events with new styles and I was like, I gotta be like this dude but make it my own.

Do you have any early sneaker memory?

The most vivid memory with sneakers was when I went to an old event called ‘Southern Hospitality’ (a US type southern music event) some years ago in Old Street and damn everyone, I mean the girls and guys were all in sneakers and complete drip that made my white tee, denim jeans and white Air Forces look like an amateur (big LOL right).

This was when I first saw the Air Jordan 4 ‘Cement’ the ‘Military Blues’ and the Air Jordan 6 ‘Infrared’. I just knew I needed to step my game up because the tide had changed.

Do you have any sneaker regrets and what is your sneaker grail?

Oh man my sneaker regret was definitely the day I parted ways with my AJ4 ‘Military Blues’ for less than retail. I still regret it to this day and hope to cop when it relaunches in 2024 and it’s going straight into the vault.

It is also my first ever pair of Jordan 4s I own, the fact that it is rare and not the usual 4s you would normally see many people wearing on any day. I also have to add another one to the grail list and that will be the Air Jordan 1 Retro High OG ‘Yellow Ochre’ from the Best Hand in the game pack.

What sneakers are in your rotation currently?

I think I have a mixture of Nikes and a few adidas in my rotation currently including the Sacai LD Waffle ‘Black nylon’ and the Travis Scott x Air Jordan 1 Low ‘Fragment’.

Aside from sneakers what else are you into?

As some may know, I’m the master creator behind the page @5950fitteds. I started these page 3 years ago collecting Fitted caps after my last trip to NY and noticed the UK and Europe were behind on the new wave with scripted and side patched hats. I thought I’d start the page and showcase my collection with sneaker combos.

The page has grown and my networking with other hat community members is now international. Do check it out and contact me if you want to explore this area too – beware, it’s addictive.

Aside from sneakers, I do charity work that entails working mainly with young men and women helping them to see alternative ways to pursue their careers and stay focused on the right way to make it in life. 2 years ago, I founded a page called @brothersandkeeper which is a motivational page for mental health and encouraging men to speak up, work together and be more open about what they go through. I sometimes, invite a few people to come to smaller gatherings to socialise and take their minds off the busy world.

What does community mean to you?

People need people in this world as far as I’m concerned and there is a sense of belonging when you are part of a community. There is also the sense of winning or celebrating your wins with people who are genuinely happy to be part of your journey, share your interests and encourage you to keep working on becoming the better you for tomorrow. Glad to say I have met some people in this community that have shown me some love so sending that love back.

Check out more from Nana on Instagram @bossstyleldn and @5950fitteds.