Born x Raised’s Spanto Honors His Late Father With a New Levi’s Collab

Born x Raised founder Chris Printup—a.k.a. Spanto—found himself in Memphis shortly after his late father, Butch, died earlier this year. “The day after he passed, I flew to his home and was laying down in his bedroom, looking at all of his things and drawing inspiration from the iconography of his personal belongings,” says Spanto. When he came across one of his dad’s old jackets, the Indigenous streetwear designer had an idea: What if he used clothes to pay tribute to his father? “I found this Levi’s denim jacket that he used to wear a lot when I was a kid, and immediately knew I wanted to dedicate a project to my father’s memory,” says Spanto. 

On Friday, that idea will become a reality when Born x Raised releases its new collaboration with Levi’s, honoring the memory of Butch through style. Spanto put his own unique take on the heritage denim label’s key pieces, such as the classic 501 jean, the denim Trucker jacket, and graphic tees. All of the pieces—which range from $180 for the jeans, to $325 for the jacket—are screen-printed with a special graphic print that represents Butch “watching over him.” The Trucker jacket also includes the phrase “Born x Raised, In Loving Memory” embroidered onto the back of it. “Everything is a result of [Butch’s] life and teachings, and it’s all a spin-off of his actions,” says Spanto.