There are certain cities around the world where culture isn’t just seen, but it’s felt, and heard, and worn. Sekou Thornell is the founder and creative director of the Atlanta-based streetwear brand and creative label, Kitboys Club. At the forefront of the brand’s development has been his love for the game. After an impressive playing career at Clayton State University, Thornell hung up his boots to pursue a career in fashion. Kitboys’ portfolio includes collabs with Atlanta United, New Balance, World Soccer Shop, and Adidas, placing them next to industry greats.
Together, he and his team are changing the soccer and fashion landscape by embracing one thing they’ve always respected: the culture. Forty-One sat down with the Georgia Kitboy and chopped it up.
Tell us how this all began. Whether it’s Kitboys, you discovering your passion, or the first time you released a project.
The journey really started back when I was a kid, man. It was probably early high school. The way I used to stack my bread as a kid, I used to buy and sell sneakers all the time. I was really into sneakers – I grew up on Jordan. At the time, that was my fascination: sneakers and streetwear. I spent a lot of time just beyond the sport, hustling, buying Stussy pieces, Obey pieces. That built this really intertwined love with streetwear and sneaker culture in general. It really starts there – having a real fascination with the intricacies of the game, the people running it.
The storytelling that was going on at the time was also super cool and then it led to this birth once I stopped playing in college. It was that intersecting moment when you’re thinking either you go try to play pro, maybe go overseas, try to play locally, or you go get that nine to five. It was a fragmented decision for me. Kitboys manifested itself. It was birthed in that moment. I think it was a special moment, you know, kind of changing my identity a bit.
I just wanted to do something that felt right, something I was really passionate about beyond just the game (on the pitch). And this was really one of the only mediums for me that kept me dialed in day to day.
Was there a particular person, brand or moment from your earlier years that you saw as an inspiration?
There were two brands that really impacted me early on. One was called fragment by Hiroshi Fujiwara – he’s basically considered a godfather of streetwear. What was super crazy about the brand was, he called it a brand identity, which meant his marketing and what the brand did in the streetwear medium was art through collaboration. I thought that was an interesting one, because the game is obviously played with 11 people on the pitch, and for me, collaboration is such a big thing in my life.
There’s another brand called Madbury Club, which back in the day, was ran by a guy named Phillip Annand. They built the brand on this foundational principle of bringing the homies in on whatever creative passion, whether it was industrial design, product design, streetwear design, it didn’t matter. He built this brand on the backs of his homies, his direct homies, his friends, and they built this fairy tale in New York for a long time. And for me, early on with Kitboys, the biggest thing was seeing some of my homies who played the game, push that love for the game. I think those two brands are really like the pinnacle of what Kitboys has evolved to now.
In what order do you identify as, creative, athlete, Black, Atlanta native, designer?
It’s being Black first. Me growing up, a lot of the things that made me who I was stem from that direct place, at a foundational level. My family, the culture, the creative, all that folded from that piece first. Creative would be the second one. Atlanta native would be third. Designer would probably be after that. I still play Sunday league here and there, but athlete would have to go last. We still share the same mentality as an athlete – it’s the same medium.
How has being from Atlanta influenced your brand?
You know, it’s so special, man. Atlanta for me has such a raw spirit, it’s such a communal energy. It’s almost like we collaborate. Once you become an Atlanta native, you know what it means to put on for the city and to be from Atlanta. You’re a part of this tribe. We love to rep Atlanta. Getting up with the people that share this identity of being from the South and being from this place is so dope. It’s such a tight knit community. It’s allowed for so much more meaningful collaboration. I think that is really undervalued and it’s something you don’t see in a lot of cities, especially LA and New York, it’s usually separatists or everybody’s just trying to get it for themselves. But in Atlanta, it’s the opposite. As soon as somebody sees you trying to strive to do something and you putting the city on at the same time, they’ll do whatever they can to open a door. I’ve had several moments in my brand journey where somebody just basically opened that door. And if it wasn’t for that kind of spirit being in Atlanta, I probably wouldn’t be the person I’d be right now as we have this conversation, to be honest.
What’s been your favorite capsule thus far?
This last project we did with Atlanta United was really meaningful for me. The women’s game is such a big thing for me, especially as I get older. To do a project in that space and to have people appreciate it recently after being away for a bit was really fulfilling. And I really put another battery in my back to focus on the genre and really make sure the voice is there especially for the women’s side of things.
If I’m going back… there was a capsule we did and it was around the time we were doing a bunch of stuff for Atlanta United. It was our Precision Academy stuff. We did our first track suit and that was the first time I did cut and sew from scratch – like fabrics, from trims. I spent a long time doing it. That was the most fruitful project. That was something that catalyzed another moment of, oh yeah, you gotta keep going.
One of the most amazing projects for me till this day. On Juneteenth Kitboys teamed up the Birmingham Legion to design their Juneteenth Kit for 2024.Taking on this project in such a impactful city meant the world to us. As a black-owned brand, paying homage to the rich history of such a trailblazing city was important to our design. We sought to connect with spaces in Birmingham that fostered unity, self-expression, and provided support and security in the struggle for freedom. Much like soccer does for individuals worldwide, both the beautiful game and this city operated as a platform for our excellence.
Talk about your transition from collaborating with Atlanta United with your brand, to working for the team directly.
It’s crazy honestly because the portfolio has transitioned me into new role with Atlanta United. The very first project I had was with the club and now that has led me to the opportunity to build the brand for the club and do meaningful projects for the city. They have welcomed me with open arms and it’s been another amazing step in my career.
I work across several verticals from Social, Retail, Influencers and Community and those are the same parallels that I’ve been operating with amongst the brand.
Who’s the Best dressed footballer in your opinion?
Kounde’s pushed the gap a bit on the back end of what Hector Bellerin was doing. Obviously, Bellerin’s more of the pioneer. I’m a big fan of Moise Kean and Rafael Leao, man. They carry the Atlanta spirit of streetwear; mixing designer and streetwear shit is such an Atlanta thing. Those have been my favorites lately. I think the Pioneers, again, Hector Bellerin, Memphis Depay, super dope. And then there’s tons that are being slept on. There’s a young boy, Stefan Bajcetic from Liverpool. This kid is jiggy at 18. David Alaba is another crazy one. And then Serge Gnabry. He’s closer to my style I would say so I get a lot of references to style pieces from Gnabry.
The soccer space and fashion world are starting to collide globally. How would you describe the state of this relationship?
Here in the States, the hypothesis for me is that what streetwear could be for soccer is the same thing as what skateboarding did for streetwear and built Stussy, Supreme, you name it. Like it’s no different of a consumer. If you look at places like Roma or Real Madrid, the game is almost cult-like. It’s religious. It’s a brotherhood.
If you look at soccer being the biggest sporting market in the world, it’s only inevitable that something like fashion or even music gets so intertwined to the point where it becomes an identity point.
You can see that by a lot of the brand deals, Tom Brown, Off White, AC Milan, you name it. Your merch is merch, but it’s bigger than just merch. It’s not just for the fan. A club is an identity just as much as streetwear is an identity. So, people are going to put that shit on.
You do a lot of purpose driven work. How do you see Kitboys impacting the game and culture?
It’s about being authentic. It’s about being morally driven. And then it’s about just building this mass of people who share an identity, those three components. How can I be more sustainable in the garments? Can I make sustainable jerseys? How do I support the women’s game through merch? How do I support my community through products? These questions are always things that Kitboys are asking themselves as a brand.
Then the other part is in five years, man, I just want it to be this big, massive group of people who share a split identity with the game, whether you’re creative, whether you’re an athlete, whether you’re just a fan.
Kitboys was always an identity for a group of people who share the love of the game, whether it be directly or not.
I just want to focus on growth – continue to pioneer and push things forward. It’s just a mission at hand.
