Streetwearbustedmy, through a series of Instagram posts, called out sneakerheads who pair hyped sneakers with cheap apparel. Bryan Chin, founder of Sneakerlah, was not ok with these remarks. Cue a social media feud.

It’s not uncommon to see sneakerheads pair a Uniqlo tee with H&M cargos and a coveted pair of Yeezys or Travis Scott Air Jordan 1s. But according to @streetwearbustedmy’s recent Instagram stories, a get-up like this is a tell-tale sign that the sneakers worn by the person are probably fake.

In a series of heated exchanges, Bryan Chin, founder of Sneakerlah, called out Streetwearbustedmy for making that claim.

Wanting to find out more, we reached out to Chin to get his thoughts on the Streetwearbustedmy-Bryan Chin saga.

The backstory

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Chin had once favored @streetwearbustedmy, viewing them as a necessary Instagram watchdog that helped to curb the growing popularity of fake sneakers and even called out celebrities who wear fakes.  

But over time, Bryan started to notice toxicity develop in the content on the page and among its followers. He observed that @streetwearbustedmy started calling kids out for wearing fakes, while publicly tagging their Instagram accounts. 

“This was when it started to feel like something was wrong; this was cyberbullying,” Bryan shared. Even then, Bryan chose to bite his tongue.

However, when @streetwearbustedmy started a series of Instagram stories that showcased regular people wearing mass-made clothing from the likes of Uniqlo and H&M and alleging that their sneakers were probably fake, Bryan felt he could no longer stay silent on the matter. 

Bryan’s thoughts

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“He (@streetwearbustedmy) released a statement saying that if you wanted to tell if someone was wearing a fake shoe, all you have to do is look at his outfit. If the person is wearing Uniqlo and other cheap brands with a hype shoe, you can assume the sneaker is fake. This statement is so wrong on so many levels—it is utter bullshit,” Bryan explained. 

As to why Bryan decided to call them out so publicly? He explained that streetwear is like a “public park” and everyone is just there to have a good time.” 

“If a person comes along and steps on your food, starts harassing people and making a lot of noise, disturbing everyone in the park, should I just keep quiet or tell him off?” he said. 

We don’t condone fakes, but neither are we here for public shaming. Everyone’s trying their best to look their best within their means so we hope there can be more room for empathy in the sneaker community.