ABOUT RATEDKFORKIDD
ABOUT RATEDKFORKIDD, A CINCINNATI STREETWEAR BRAND
I'm Isaiah "Zay" Kidd. RatedKforKidd is an independent Cincinnati streetwear brand with raw humor, real feelings, and the stuff people usually edit out.
ISAIAH "ZAY" KIDD — FOUNDER
Isaiah "Zay" Kidd, founder of RatedKforKidd.
01
THE PERSON BEHIND RATEDKFORKIDD
Kidd is my last name. Putting it on the brand made it personal.
RatedKforKidd is my own rating on what I put into the world. The humor, the honesty, the experiences behind the graphics. All of it carries a piece of me.
I don't have everything figured out. I'm building, learning, and working through my own shit. I've had moments where I felt discouraged, questioned myself, or thought I should be further along by now.
I'm not giving the internet every detail. But I'll tell you what those moments taught me, and you'll see them in the work. Sometimes you need something that makes you laugh while you're going through it.
I've got Cincinnati roots. To me, "city raised" means carrying the people, experiences, and lessons that shaped you into whatever you build next.
02
I started RatedKforKidd because I had things to say, and clothing gave me another way to say them.
WHY I STARTED A CINCINNATI STREETWEAR BRAND. HOW IT GETS ON THE SHIRT.
Some days that's raw humor. Other days it's mental health, where I'm from, or something people feel but don't say out loud. I wanted clothes that could hold all those sides of a person, because that's how I am.
Every design starts with something I can't stop thinking about: a funny observation, a frustrating experience, a phrase that says exactly how I feel. Then I work the wording, imagery, colors, and placement until they connect. Sometimes I love the phrase but the graphic isn't there yet, so I keep changing it. A strong message still needs a strong design.
FRONT
Catches your attention.
BACK
Adds to the story.
SLEEVE
A quieter signature. Embroidered KIDD or RatedKforKidd.
Every part needs a purpose. What makes the process mine is the judgment: what I choose to say, how I want it to feel, and what I keep revising until I'm willing to put my name on it.
03
UNFILTERED SINCE DAY ONE
It means being honest about who you are, what you've been through, and who you're becoming.
I design for the person who reads a graphic and says, "That's exactly how I feel." Someone with a sense of humor, a story behind them, and something to say, even if they don't always know how to say it.
Maybe you're repping your city. Maybe you're in a rough chapter. Maybe you just want something that makes you laugh.
YOU CAN BE WORKING ON YOURSELF AND STILL TALK YOUR SHIT.
When you put it on, I want you to feel like yourself. Confident. Represented.
And when a stranger reads it, I want a reaction. A laugh, a second look, or that quiet "Damn, I needed that." Maybe it starts a conversation between two people who've been through something similar.