Birthday Dinner: KidSuper

Birthday Dinner is a Hypebeast series that explores how influential individuals in our space are approaching their next year of life. Ahead of the special day, each subject divulges all the stories that shaped who they were, who they are and who they would like to be next.KidSuper founder Colm Dillane pulls up to Williamsburg’s Bar Madonna wearing a green football jersey, the result of a newly minted dream collaboration with his childhood hero Ronaldinho. He’s in between closing down a whimsical Gustaf Westman pop-up at his brand’s headquarters down the block, jumpstarting a record label with a new music video for Quavo and Giggs, and scoping out a venue big enough to host 2,000+ people for his annual birthday bash this Saturday. This sort of high-octane chaos seems to define an average day in Dillane’s life. But today isn’t just any old dot on the calendar; it’s Dillane’s 33rd birthday, and that’s cause for a celebratory dinner.Sitting in the intimate eatery’s corner booth, Dillane is thrilled about his upcoming birthday festivities. Every year, he throws a costume-mandatory Brooklyn rager that doubles as a Halloween fête with stacked DJ lineups and famous performances (Waka Flocka Flame, Chingy and the late Rich Homie Quan were on the bill for previous editions). This year, he’s doing another big warehouse party with headlining acts from Paul Wall and a Panic! At The Disco cover band. “No one knows what Panic! At The Disco looks like, so everyone will think it’s the real thing,” he chuckles. Dillane is tight-lipped on who he’ll be cosplaying for the night. His past costumes have included a Juicy Couture-wearing Paris Hilton and Sydney Sweeney's cheerleading Cassie from Euphoria. His alter-ego typically ends up stage-diving into the shoulder-to-shoulder crowd, so expect something out of this world.According to the planets, Dillane is a Scorpio, the eighth Zodiac sign known for being intensely passionate, incredibly magnetic and unyieldingly determined. The designer himself, however, is skeptical about astrology’s credibility. “I have the same birthday as Drake, so does that mean we feel the same way?” Nonetheless, this interviewer presented him with his (and Drake’s!) birthday horoscope:You possess a high intellect, a strong will, an honest, faithful, and devoted nature, and the ability to bring joy to other people’s lives. You're at your most creative and innovative this year. There may be more fresh ideas and new plans than you know what to do with, so write them down for future use. Your intuition is strikingly accurate, so make sure to always listen to it.“This is how I feel, but now I’m even more like, ‘I need to listen to myself,’” Dillane responded."The fashion world constantly demands new ideas, so you have to be creative very quickly. You can’t be too picky or too much of a perfectionist because the industry keeps moving, and it’ll move on without you.”The idea of 33 being his most creative year yet is almost daunting when you consider the explosive success that defined his most recent trip around the Sun.In case you needed a refresher, it was this time last year that Dillane watched his Louis Vuitton FW23 collection — yes, the one he crafted as the legendary French fashion house’s first-ever guest designer following Virgil Abloh's passing — hit global storefronts. In January, he met his idol, Ronaldinho, who walked his FW24 “String Theory” runway. He opened a massive Williamsburg headquarters with a whimsical KidSuper shop, painter’s studio, art gallery, design quarters, soon-to-be speakeasy and more. He partnered with Cirque du Soleil for a theatrical Paris Fashion Week spectacle in June. He staged a comedy show at the historic Apollo Theater during New York Fashion Week in September.Sprinkle on BoF 500 recognition, a CFDA Menswear Designer of the Year nomination, more Kissing Bags, more Kissing Puffers, and a show-stopping Lovesac collab, and you have yourself a towering cake of exceptional, pinch-me feats in just 12 calendar months.How does Dillane outdo himself now?“It’s been difficult to be super creative because I find that I’m now in a lot of meetings, kissing babies and shaking hands throughout the day,” he admits. “To be creative, you need time off. But the fashion world constantly demands new ideas, so you have to be creative very quickly. You can’t be too picky or too much of a perfectionist because the industry keeps moving, and it’ll move on without you.” These days, he finds the most success tapping into his creative mind at 4 a.m. “Everyone’s asleep in New York then,” he explains.It helps that Dillane intentionally operates in spaces that actively stimulate his ideas. Bar Madonna, for instance, was opened in April of this year by one of his best friends, Eric Madonna, who used to live in the old KidSuper building for several years. Dillane came on as the restaurant’s art director, so the staff now wears uniforms designed by KidSuper; the eatery’s walls are covered in Dillane’s artwork (the bathrooms are especially picturesque), and patrons consume food from plates boasting the designer’s signature sketches of Madonna’s family members. The appetizers — Grilled Baby Romaine, Ossobuco Croquettes and Calabrese Hot Wings — are just as aesthetically pleasing as their accompaniments. “I love this place because the kitchen stays open until 2 a.m., and it’s hard to come across a late-night steak in New York,” he says, reaching for a wing and surveying the spot. “Damn, I can’t believe Eric did this. It’s so cool to see your friends accomplish things that you once thought were unimaginable, and then suddenly you’re a part of it.”“KidSuper is a universe that makes things feel possible."Dillane grew up in downtown New York. He went to high school in downtown Brooklyn. He spent his free time hanging out in Union Square and on Brooklyn stoops, selling his first T-shirt designs with a fledgling dream of becoming somebody at just 14 years old. “I was motivated as a kid, but I had no plan for how I would do anything I wanted to do.” Now, his brand occupies an entire block on Roebling Street. He’s sitting in a restaurant he designed. He’s wearing clothes he made in collaboration with Ronaldinho. “It all still feels unimaginable,” he says. (For Dillane’s full claim-to-fame story, revisit our Hypebeast Magazine Issue 31 feature, “How to Be KidSuper.”)In Dillane's simplified recollection, the kid behind KidSuper was an art-obsessed, football-manic, Austin Powers-loving goofball. “He was exactly like me today but even more mischievous and loud,” he says, wiping the wings’ pickled Calabrian hot sauce from his upper lip. If he could go back and deliver one message to his boyish self, he’d tell him, “It’s possible to do everything you want to do. You just have to really focus on it now.” In a way, all of Dillane’s larger-than-life KidSuper showcases — his animated claymations, his Usain Bolt-led cartoon series and stand-up spectacles — are about keeping his inner child happy. “If I could mentor little me, that’d be cool.”It’s Dillane’s dedication to creativity, though, that keeps that youthful dream alive. KidSuper is not just a fashion brand; it’s a film production company (watch all of Dillane’s documentaries on his YouTube), a theater department (revisit SS24’s “How To Find An Idea” play), a record label (Russ recorded his debut album in the basement of KidSuper’s first store), an auction house (Paris Fashion Week’s front row bid on Dillane’s SS23 “Superby’s” paintings for upwards of $200,000 USD) and so much more. “KidSuper is a universe that makes things feel possible,” Dillane says. “A lot of our success has come from zero to hero.”The lengths Dillane will go in the name of creativity are noble. “I’ve done so many things at KidSuper that were completely financially irresponsible,” he explains, noting that he’s allocated roughly a million dollars to past fashion shows. “But sometimes doing the creative thing purely for the sake of creativity becomes the best idea I ever had for the business.”In short, be delusional, and it might just pay off.Bar Madonna’s entrees — a NY strip with caper lemon brown butter, a smashed meatball parm sandwich and garlic fries — land on the table, as Dillane’s friends Foda and Juanda pop into the restaurant to dish their two cents on the birthday boy alongside Madonna, who was in the kitchen overseeing today’s meal. “He’s the funniest person you’ll meet. He might not look like it, but he’s also a great soccer player,” Juanda says. “Most people know everything about Colm because he’s always yapping,” Foda chimes in. “Never give him a microphone at any party,” Madonna laughs.Another hero in Dillane’s journey is J Balvin. The reggaeton superstar was among the first celebrities to endorse the brand, and the two met many years ago when Balvin DMed KidSuper’s Instagram asking if he could swing by the store to check out the latest collection. He’s now a good friend of Dillane’s, and he’s prepared a birthday message to be presented to the designer at this dinner (courtesy of his longtime publicist Britt McGovern, who’s “kind of the reason for a lot of this stuff,” Dillane says).Dear Colm or whatever your name is,Man, I'm so proud of you. I remember going with my great friend, Roman, to that special place in Brooklyn with your art pieces and with the dream you had, with the vision you had, which became a reality.I remember you in Amsterdam, selling your clothes in the back of the trunk, coming to our hotel and bringing out the clothes. I don't know if it was free or if I paid for it, but thank you. Man, I'm so proud of you.I definitely think that you're a great person. You're a person that people should look up to. Your vision, the way you change the game. You take a left when everybody goes right. You keep it real. You're still the same guy that I first met.You know our vision, too. Let's get this football team and make a difference. I love you G. I'm proud of you. Wish you nothing but the best. Keep shining man, and keep making people feel like KidSupers.Love,J Balvin“I’m going to cry,” Dillane says. “I was living in the back of the store then, and I couldn’t believe he was coming. I remember him texting me afterward, ‘Man, you’re going to be big one day.’ It was a huge moment for me.” Now, the pair have plans to form their own football team, Dillane reveals, so stay tuned for some celebrity matches (and collaborative kits?) in the future.“This was a better gift than you know,” Dillane adds. “This made everything worth it.”Balvin’s early cosign was certainly a major milestone for the designer, but even though Dillane’s more familiar with pinch-me moments now, he says he’ll never feel like he’s “made it.” “If you’ve ‘made it’ then it feels like you can stop,” he explains. Dillane has no desire to ever pull the breaks, nothing that he still hopes to be designing when he turns 60. He confirms he has several collaborations lined up for next year; grand fashion shows are to be expected, and he also mentions that he’s interested in taking on a creative director role for another fashion brand, but he’s careful not to reveal where exactly he’s looking.A fruity chocolate cake, iced with “Happy Birthday” lettering and jabbed with lit candles, slides onto the table as the meal’s closing delicacy. Dillane faces the age-old question: what do you wish for?“I don’t think you’re allowed to tell people that, and it’s also superstitious ... I’ve got to do a soft wish,” he says cautiously before giving in. “I wish to put a soccer field on top of my building.” Anything is possible in KidSuper world.With that, he’s headed to his headquarters down the block, where he’s building a California King-sized castle bed, styling his new collection of Gustaf Westman furniture and swiping Madonna’s moped to check out another venue for his birthday party. Back to that crazy life of his.Click here to view full gallery at Hypebeast