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Platters of greasy, delicious sliders greeted guests at The Well in Brooklyn last night. They were served by employees of the LeFrak City, Queens, location of White Castle, dressed in their new uniforms designed by CFDA nominee Telfar Clemens. The occasion was the release of his “LeFrak” collection, an eight-piece unisex capsule—named after the massive apartment complex where he has lived since childhood—that includes black, blue, and white hoodies, tees, and hats printed and stitched with mash-up Telfar and White Castle logos and in some cases, the local zip code. Priced between $60 and $220, Clemens’s unusual new line is available on his website beginning today and will also be for sale inside that White Castle location, a fast-food outpost the designer grew up going to and still rides his bike past every day. For all items sold there, the burger chain will donate 100 percent of proceeds to the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Liberty and Justice fund, which works to bail out minors locked up on Rikers Island.
Ironically, and somewhat unfortunately, Clemens’s original party was shut down just three days before by the NYPD. It was meant to take place at the White Castle, with a surprise performance on the roof by rapper Cam’ron. But nevertheless—as has been the case since he was a scrappy kid making clothes at 15—he persisted. Cam’ron still performed out back at The Well, as did Dev Hynes, Venus X, and Total Freedom. The Hood By Air kids came dressed in their finest wigs and platform boots, clutching Crave Cases filled with Telfar x White Castle goods. There was dancing, beer drinking, and plenty of chomping down on chicken rings. “I really appreciate that so many people came out to support me and I love seeing people leaving with Crave Cases of clothes they bought to give money back to this great cause,” Clemens said as the rager was winding down. “This is going to be in 60 locations throughout the country, and people all over the nation are going to get to experience my brand for the first time—it’s much bigger than me or fashion, and I like that it’s going to be impactful.”
To further that impact, Telfar and his creative director, Babak Radboy, will soon debut zip code–specific capsules at White Castle stores in Detroit, Chicago, St. Louis, and many more. As Radboy explained after Cam’ron’s set, “When I started visiting different White Castles around New York—none are in Manhattan anymore—I realized that their story and the Telfar story really connect.” He added, “To be honest, it’s really about starting out in public housing areas and the idea of gentrification, so that made me want to take the zip codes of these different locations and make that our headline.” Even in the midst of bringing attention to these specific communities across the U.S., Radboy and Clemens have inadvertently had some international interest, too. As Radboy said with a laugh, “There’s a Japanese investor that wants to start a Telfar White Castle in Japan—it’s like a nightclub-slash-fast-food chain.”
Walking into the green room once all of the performances had wrapped was like walking into a modern-day version of the Factory, with musicians, artists, designers, dancers, videographers, and friends hanging out and chilling, like nothing had ever changed since the day Clemens first visited that LeFrak White Castle as a kid. On one couch was Cam’ron, seated in front of a table covered in half-eaten White Castle sliders and empty cups of Zirkova vodka. “I’ve always been a fan of White Castle and I think White Castle, Telfar, and I are a good combination,” he said. Looking down at the mini cheeseburgers, he added, “I am shooting a movie on Wednesday, so I am very much resisting, but you know what helped? They were cold when I got here. Otherwise, I would have definitely taken one and cheated.”
Above, an exclusive look inside the throw down for Telfar’s new partnership and capsule collection with White Castle.