There’s a saying that the “F” in FAMU also stands for fashion, and indeed, a trip to the Tallahassee campus of Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University is one of many examples of the inextricable link between the Black experience and style. It’s one Vogue captured at Morehouse College in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, observed outside of Abyssinian Baptist Church on Easter Sunday, and celebrated at the 2025 Met Gala in honor of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s ode to the Black Dandy, Superfine: Tailoring Black Style. Last weekend, we documented the inimitable style of an HBCU homecoming at FAMU, home of the Rattlers.
Anyone who has attended an HBCU—or even stepped foot on an HBCU campus—knows that for the students and faculty, every day is an occasion to dress well and flex one’s personal style.
“From a fashion perspective, you got the D.C. kids, the Atlanta kids, New York, West Coast California kids, Chicago… and you’re seeing the best of all these styles,” says Jerry Lorenzo, who graduated from FAMU in 2000. Prior to enrolling, the Fear of God founder was one of few Black students at his high school and at Oral Roberts University, where he spent his first year of college. “To come from that experience to being entrenched in us, it was really what I needed in my life at the time, and so inspirational on every level,” he says of his time at FAMU.
Those feelings of pride and belonging, as well as a commitment to style, are especially heightened during homecoming—among current students and alumni who return for the festivities. “The emotion, specifically of homecoming, I use that as a gauge for when I’m designing,” Lorenzo says. “Is this going to feel like that felt? Like that feeling of the band coming out and playing [their] interpretation of Outkast? Like the stands swaying back and forth? If it doesn’t feel like that, it needs more work.”…