TO ANYONE LOOKING FOR CHANGE

To anyone looking for a change, 

Last month we interviewed Lisa Li, a Los Angeles-based wardrobe stylist. Chances are, she’s probably styled your favorite rapper. Lisa is one of those women we have always dreamed of being: bold, spunky, fucking funny, and straight talking. 

You can’t put her style into any one box, she is both inherently feminine and also a complete tomboy. But even though she’s styled artists like Kendrick Lamar, SZA, and Zendaya within her first few years as a stylist, she never saw that coming when she was in college. 

A child of immigrants, there was pressure to succeed and clearly defined expectations. Her parent’s dream for her included a career that was stable and certain. Lisa pursued this steadily, but after several years of feeling stuck and uninspired, she decided to take a chance on a new career in fashion and styling. 

If there’s something that makes your heart race, that when you think about it you feel a distinct joy, what a special fucking thing. We hope that you will pay attention to your joy. It can be a great guide. 

Hopefully all of our joy leads us on the path to SZA!!!

Xx, 
(street) GRANDMA

STREET GRANDMA: So you’ve worked with idols like SZA, Ariana Grande, Normani, Kendrick, YG, Amine...  What’s your favorite job you’ve worked on so far?

LISA: I’d have to do top 2. I worked with TDE (Top Dawg Entertainment) for about 2 years and knew the director of several TDE videos, Jack Bergert. Jack was the director of Amine's Compensating Music Video, and I was brought on as the wardrobe stylist. We all Facetimed with Adam Amine Daniel, and Adam told me his expectations, exactly what he was looking for, and the vibe he wanted to create. I threw my own creative twist on it when I went to pull the clothing. It came together nicely and I'm really proud of it.

And the other job? 

It was the first job I ever worked as an intern. My first day ever and I walked onto the set of Kendrick Lamar’s Humble. I mean, I met Kendrick Lamar my very first day. 

Unbelievable. 

I was shitting my fucking pants.

Do you remember anything in particular about that day? 

I remember I showed up wearing a Lil’ Wayne t-shirt to meet Kendrick Lamar. Because I just thought --  honestly, I don't know what I just thought. I thought I would just run errands. So I wore a t-shirt with Lil Wayne on it and I was like, is this disrespectful? Am I being disrespectful? That I’m wearing another rapper? I don't know how this works. But I just remember thinking, I cannot believe this is happening. 

What did you do before becoming a stylist? 

I graduated college from UC Irvine with a business economics degree and I moved back home to the Bay. I started working first as a tech recruiter, making little money and hating my fucking life. Eventually, I became a financial advisor in wealth management. I was trying to make my parents happy, all while dreaming of being rich since I was working with all these rich people.

Did that bring any fulfillment? 

It was just a land of old white men. Someone even called me ghetto. I eventually quit and started working as a menswear buyer for a startup in San Francisco. That's where I first started in fashion. After 3 years I quit and moved to LA a month later. 

When you made that huge career change, were your parents supportive?

My parents are immigrants. My mom is from Hungary and my dad is from Hong Kong. They are deaf and met at a school for the deaf in Fremont, CA. That gives you a little more insight on my childhood, too. So the pressure was always there. When I made the decision, they knew this was about me, they knew that I just do things, not necessarily with permission or with approval of any sort. I told my mom and she was devastated. My dad was really worried about his only child being away from home. To this day it is very tough. They still don’t quite understand what exactly it is I do, only that I work in fashion and with celebrities. It’s something that I definitely still struggle with. I just want to like to become majorly successful. Buy them homes or, whatever makes them happy.

How does working with women differ from working with men? 

Men are easily persuaded. I mean, you have a confident woman telling them that this is going to look good on them, then odds are they're going to at least consider trying it on. Women are harder to convince. But, they are also much more adventurous. 

Do you still pull from the same places for women as you do for men?

Yes and no. I'm the first to put girls in dude’s clothes just because that's how I personally dress. Not that I dress my clients like how I dress myself, but I'm not going to put something on somebody that I myself wouldn't rock to an extent. It might not be my style, but if I can't be like “hell, I would feel good in that”, then forget about it. So I definitely do pull from the same places. It’s a mix of both, tight to the body for performance/stage looks and I’m all for baggy clothes on women otherwise. 

Which women do you think are the biggest trendsetters right now?

Besides the obvious, Rihanna, I love the Hadids. Bella, I mean, honestly - she is everything. In terms of influencers, I would say Aleali May (@byalealimay). She's always out here killing it. I also really fuck with Alani Figueroa (@wuzg00d). It's not my style at all, the bright and bold colors, but I think she rocks the shit out of it and I really fuck with her for that.

What are some middle to upper tier streetwear brands you like right now? 

Stussy has been really killing it. Stussy, I think, is great because it’s affordable to the average consumer. People who aren’t celebrities, right? Celebrities can wear/buy, whatever the fuck they want. Every time I wear designer, no one even cares. And then the second i’m wearing, just some normal shit, like Stussy, they’re like, damn that’s dope. I think Brain Dead is also killing it. 

How would you describe your style?

Girl, catch me on a regular day and I am in probably a vintage T-shirt and some old sweats -- I got sweats from the swapmeet and I got sweats from Vetements. But today I decided to go nice for you guys. I'm wearing my secondhand Jean Paul Gaultier pants, my shirt is MM6, and this jacket is Joe Chia. I would say my style is anything that's not necessarily in style. So you'll never catch me wearing like -- not that I don't think they're hella cute, but the Bottega Venetta boots that everybody is wearing. I'm not going to buy them. I'm not putting them on somebody just because I don't want to fall into that trap. I believe in my classics. At my core I'm a classic gal, you know what I mean? White Air Force Ones, lows, a pair of Levi's, and a t-shirt. Probably vintage, probably secondhand, probably a designer bag. That's more my style.

How has this last year affected you professionally? 

I think this last year has really taken a toll on every single stylist or creative person. Especially in L.A., because this is where Hollywood is. I think it's been a huge learning curve for us. I was grateful to have work pretty consistently from like July to December (2020). But I'm starting this new year and I'm like, damn, I genuinely don't have anything lined up today. But that could literally change tomorrow. Something I’ve had to teach within myself is to just take it day by day. I feel successful in what I have done and I'm super proud of what I've done. I'm sure my parents would say the same for me. But it's hard because as an independent stylist, you don't always know if you’ll have work tomorrow. 

What's your favorite item in your closet right now? 

This Dior Rasta Boston Bag is my favorite piece as of right now. I got her in Japan and it was an amazing purchase, I highly recommend vintage shopping in Japan. 

When you walk out the door with this bag, how do you feel?

I feel like a bad bitch honey, ok!!! 

Top left photo: Amine on the set of Compensating shot by Christian Lanza
Top right photo: SZA for British Vogue shot by Elizabeth Wirjia
This interview has been edited and condensed.