JESSICA MEDITZ
Editor in Chief
While walking around Fredonia’s campus and being involved in the community, you may have noticed a spark in social media presence for the student-run business, Jiggy By Nature.
You might’ve also come across the name on stickers around campus, on students’ laptops or across the chests of some students’ sweatshirts.
But what is the vision behind the name?
We live in a world that places an importance on materialistic things — a world where our “worth” is determined by the brands we wear and the clothes on our backs.
Everyone has their own personal style and should express that to feel good about themselves, but the reality is that we don’t necessarily need a Supreme t-shirt, Yeezy sneakers or Gucci accessories to do so.
Abdullah Yusuf, Andre Cowan, Lloyd Ansah and Mamadou Diallo had this epiphany when they were just freshmen at Fredonia, inspiring them to start up their clothing brand, Jiggy By Nature.
The men behind Jiggy By Nature, also known as JBN, continuously update and revamp their collections, products and ideas to fit the trends. Their designs include items such as hoodies, graphic t-shirts, sweatpants, shorts, hats and more.
Jiggy By Nature doubles as a clothing and lifestyle brand, initially seeing success and winning the hearts of many with their focus on positivity and comfort through their social media presence.
The slogan listed on their website, “Defining true expressions of fashion through music and comfort,” shows their audience the true meaning of Jiggy By Nature, which is “more than just a brand,” according to Yusuf.
He emphasized the fact that Jiggy By Nature initially started out as “just clothes,” but the brand has grown to become more than that. Their newest addition, Cozy By Voice, exemplifies this.
Diallo said that Cozy By Voice was a suggestion for the brand by Ansah.
“It is an entertainment company that markets not only Jiggy By Nature, but music itself through fashion,” Diallo said.
“Fashion and music go hand-in-hand… with that being said, representing your style of fashion and your taste of music together in your everyday lifestyle — that’s what our generation lives for,” he said.
Jiggy By Nature takes great inspiration for Cozy By Voice from influential modern artists, including A$AP Mob and A$AP Rocky, who market clothing brands alongside their music.
Ansah said that the goal for the artists associated with Cozy By Voice is to help with networking, to use their platform to update their audience with new releases and music videos and to promote their social media accounts.
These promoted artists include Ansah himself (NY LLOYD), Buddha Man and YoungRichoo.
Cozy By Voice is also the home of The Plug Radio, which provides their audience with, “all the latest updates in music, pop-culture and NYC’s underground talent.”
According to Yusuf, Jiggy By Nature is working to showcase the efforts of various up-and-coming creators and entrepreneurs, stressing the importance of networking. The brand has networked and taken other contributors under their wing for the sake of expanding to different genres of art and fashion.
One of them is Messiah Hill, who has helped Jiggy By Nature tremendously in terms of creative design and contributing new ideas.
“He’s basically our first official designer outside of the founders. From making multiple logos to doing photoshoots and more, he has been a huge addition to our brand and we are grateful to have him,” said Yusuf.
The men behind JBN are aware of the platform they have and the power they hold to continue to keep their audience informed about the current social climate.
“We’re using our social media as a way to talk to the people,” said Cowan. “We posted a lot of things about the [Black Lives Matter] movement, we’re showing that we care because we are Black men. Our words speak to a lot of people.”
The Jiggy By Nature team agrees that the sentiment of having conversations and seeing people’s real-time reactions to today’s issues is far more valuable than putting something on a t-shirt.
Ansah said that people find comfort in Jiggy By Nature’s message and story alone.
“Our skin is our nature. We are four Black men… in some spaces that we enter, some people will look at us a certain way, or look down on us in a sense. So I think our brand, designs and message overall show where we stand and who we are,” he said.
Yusuf said that he feels the brand has evolved to “set an example” for the Black community in Fredonia, in the same way they previously looked up to upperclassmen. He also expressed the importance of representing the potential of aspiring entrepreneurs, no matter their age or skin color.
Jiggy By Nature hasn’t let the pandemic stop them — there are a lot of things in the works for them, or “everything you could think of,” said Diallo.
“We’re working on skateboards, lighters, stickers, keychains, face masks and shorts right now. We want to have something for everyone; everyone deserves to be a part of JBN,” he said.
He encouraged fans of Jiggy By Nature to sit tight and stay tuned because there are “big things in the works” for the brand that cannot yet be shared.
You can check out JBN products on their website, or follow their Instagram for more information and updates.