Written by Audrey Nyamucherera

It’s been 1 or 2 Saturdays since BROKE took over the streets of Johannesburg, you can still feel the energy they left till now. The brothers of BROKE pulled up to Jozi and showed the people the real power and impact of community at the first BROKE give-away aka ROYAL RUMBLE.

From the kids searching the streets like hoards of luh tweezys to them watching socials the whole city was watching BROKE. No one expected the mobs to pull up the way they did and with the most love and respect. From Vaal to Fourways, and from Bree to Bryanston the youth pulled through. Even competitor brands showed love and showed their faces.

 

What started as a work trip for Adidas and to create music as BROKE, turned into much more. We asked ourselves…for a city that’s done so much for us - how do we give back, how can we make the best of this time for everyone?  We decided we have a bunch of samples and pieces laying at home so let’s give back, CPT is getting a store, Jozi deserves something too, let’s connect to our people, the ones who resonate and genuinely support the brand! Not just exist online or virtually like the celebs we loved but never saw but get to know our community and them to know us - that’s what was IMPORTANT. So, we packed a bag full of free merch and said LET’S RUN IT. We had everyone out mobbing, taking over the streets of Braam like Bramm back in its golden age, rain or shine the kids were outside, they waited no matter what! The masses searched for the BROKE boys high and low, hoping to get a piece of South African heritage all for themselves.

 

In the BROKE CAMP, we felt nothing but a mix of emotions, gassed up and nervous at the same time. That feeling of crazy hype, mixed with bubbling wonder and just a healthy bit of doubt. Would this work out? would the kids show up? would competitors come to support? would the energy we put out, come to meet us outside? Then we saw the numbers pop up on IG LIVE and from every corner, street, and store in Braam we saw them, that’s when we knew. People didn’t just travel kilometres and kilometres out their hoods just for clothing or hype, but a lot more than that, they showed up because of belief, because they believe anything is possible, and through BROKE we’ve shown them it is, that they can take it to the top, that they can break the boundaries! I mean you saw…It was mental, completely gnarly!

 

Even in the chaos you felt the unity, you felt the love, everyone was there, and the energy was elite! We filled the streets with the Kulture and it was alive like never before. This was the first but certainly not the last, we’ll be back, but then again, we never left. What is broke…? BROKE is love, BROKE is you, BROKE is community, that is all.


Special Thanks to Lesedi Malete ,Phuti Styles & everyone that came through .

Stay Bless,

Stay BROKE

Stay POWERFUL.