An Occasionally Absurd Style Conversation With Lawrence Schlossman and James Harris
Even if you’re not a podcast person, it’s impossible to ignore the antics going on at Throwing Fits. It is, after all, “the only podcast that matters”—at least according to cohosts James Harris and Lawrence Schlossman. The duo came up together in the heady, hashtag-menswear days of the internet. After a shared gig in fashion PR, they hopped over to the streetwear powerhouse Complex, where they first teamed up to deliver fast-paced riffs on the world of style as the Fashion Bros. on a TV series of the same name. From there, they moved on to Failing Upwards, which fine-tuned the formula for the podcast format. And now, after a rebrand, they’re breaking open brains and dropping in all sorts of new and niche knowledge for an audience of enthusiastic experts and fashion dilettantes alike. Esquire caught up with Harris and Schlossman for a suitably irreverent conversation about where we’re at these days, stylewise.
Esquire: Going sockless with a suit?
James Harris: Hell, no!
Lawrence Schlossman: Fuck, no!
How about sneakers with a suit?
LS: Absolutely not.
JH: Maybe if this was 15 years ago. But no, not even then.
Black and navy together?
LS: Black and navy are absolutely spectacular together.
JH: Yeah, that’s a must-do.
Black and brown?
JH: Big brain move. Highly recommended, but not for the beginners.
Hybrid dress shoes?
LS: No, because you’re going to look like you work on Capitol Hill, and the only good politician is a dead politician.
JH: Let’s not play God here, all right? We have shoes, and we have sneakers, and those two cannot intermingle.
What designers do you love right now?
JH: Our Legacy, Auralee, 4SDesigns, Mfpen.
LS: Christophe Lemaire, Stòffa.
JH: J.Mueser for suiting.
LS: Patrick Johnson also, for suiting.
Do trends matter for you personally or for the world generally?
JH: I think trend chasing is a waste of your time. If you put on an outfit and you don’t think, Am I going to look back on a photo of this in five years and think I look like an idiot? you might want to trend carefully.
LS: The foundational bit of trendiness that I appreciate is trying new things. You find some things you like; you find some things you don’t. You keep the stuff that you like, and you keep moving along the journey of personal style.
JH: You have to think about it critically. You can’t just be like, “Oh, I want to try this trend because it’s the trend.” You have to think, Why do I want to try this? Do I like it? How can I make it my own? Versus just copying and pasting what you see on Instagram.
LS: Here’s a trend: Use your fucking brain.
Who is your style icon?
LS: You’re looking at him. My style icon is me, and that’s what it should be for everyone. You get dressed for yourself to be the best, most confident version of yourself that you can be.
JH: Katt Williams in The Pimp Chronicles Pt. 1, 2006.
What do you spend the most on in your wardrobe?
LS: Tailoring. I mean, someone’s got to make that.
JH: Shoes and lightweight outerwear. You never know how to dress for a day that’s going to be 50 degrees in the morning and 70 degrees in the afternoon. But we do have 12 of those days in the year here in New York City. So I’m covered.
LS: So, you have 35 of those jackets for 12 of those days?
JH: Yeah. I’m good for the next 14 years.
What’s your one go-to style rule?
LS: Your penis should not be out in public.
JH: That’s pretty good. I don’t know if I agree with it. My one style rule is don’t wear a hat on a first date and don’t wear shorts on an airplane.
What was your aha moment involving your own style?
LS: I have that aha moment multiple times a day because my brain is broken and I spend too much time thinking about clothing. It’s not healthy at all, and I need to go to therapy.
JH: Probably traveling and just really seeing how other guys in other places do it themselves. It’s not crazy esoteric or avant-garde. But it’s being like, “Oh, I can maybe take a little from here, take a look from there, and work it into my own.” And understanding that your wardrobe and personal style, it takes mistakes, it takes time. You’re going to mess up. You got to learn from your mistakes. You got to learn what not to buy, what not to try. You got to learn what looks good on your own body. So, yeah—multiple aha moments. And you got to hold on to those.
LS: It’s about the journey, fellas, not the destination.
Photography: James Macari
Sittings Editor: Alfonso Fernandez Navas
Hair: Kevin Ryan using Unite
Grooming: Ryo Kuramoto for Nars
Design Director: Rockwell Harwood
Contributing Visual Director: James Morris
Executive Producer/Director: Dorenna Newton
Director of Photography: Elyssa Aquino
Camera: Derrick Saint-Pierre
Video Editor: Josh Archer
Associate Producer, Video: Janie Booth
Associate Producer, Video: Carly Bivona
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