The People’s Runway returned to Brooklyn Borough Hall on Saturday for its second edition, bringing five emerging Brooklyn-based designers onto the official Spring Summer 2027 New York Fashion Week calendar. Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso presented the event with Brooklyn Arts Ambassador Colm Dillane, founder and creative force behind KidSuper.
SPRING SUMMER 2027
The outdoor show drew several thousand people to Borough Hall Plaza and gave the selected designers a public platform during one of New York fashion’s busiest weeks. This year’s participants were Kuai Li, Lamin Rey Jaiteh, Laurel Tiange Fang, Moses Aina and Roderick Reyes, chosen by Reynoso and Dillane from more than 200 applications submitted through an open call.
Each designer received industry mentorship in the weeks before the show from figures including Angelina Cantu of Paper Magazine, Caitlin Monahan of Hypebae, Tchesmeni Leonard of Condé Nast, Rick Davy of Fashion Week Brooklyn, Madrell Stinney of Hypebeast and Nicole Phelps of Vogue Runway and Vogue Business.
The program also provided direct financial support. Borough President Reynoso awarded each designer a $5,000 grant, while Converse and Cash App matched the funding, bringing the total to $15,000 per designer. Converse supplied fat-laced Chuck Taylor Throwbacks that appeared throughout the collections.
The runway presented five distinct approaches. Kuai Li, founder of Quine Li, showed Tender Armor, a five-look collection built around the transformation of a heart into a wing. Sculptural volume and engineered softness accompanied a color progression from blue-black through red and black to white.
Lamin Rey Jaiteh presented iDEK (I Don’t Even Know), using tailoring, denim and contrast to examine uncertainty and the process of moving forward without complete answers. Laurel Tiange Fang, founder of Laurel Blue, introduced Forms of Water, translating the rhythm and fluidity of the ocean through kinetic systems, digital fabrication and handcrafted textiles.
Moses Aina, designer of IGBO-SISUN, presented LEGACY, drawing on the story of his great-grandfather, President Sylvanus Olympio of Togo. Roderick Reyes showed Gettin’ Fly, incorporating security tags and anti-theft materials into garments as a critique of consumer pressure, exploitation and survival under capitalism.
Music also played a major role in the evening. The Songs of Solomon Chorus, led by Bishop Chantel Wright and featuring 30 young student performers, appeared throughout the show. Wyclef Jean, dressed in KidSuper, closed the runway with a performance dedicated to Brooklyn. He then brought out Ms. Lauryn Hill for a surprise performance of “Ready or Not,” coinciding with 30 years since the Fugees released The Score in 1996.
The People’s Runway grew from Reynoso’s appointment of Dillane as Brooklyn’s first Arts Ambassador in 2025. The initiative connects emerging creatives with mentorship, funding and public exposure while building closer ties between artists and cultural institutions in the borough. For its second year, the project again placed emerging Brooklyn designers directly within New York Fashion Week while giving them resources intended to continue beyond the runway itself.
