Born in Tema and rooted in the grit of Ghanaian street style, FREE THE YOUTH (FTY) is more than fashion, it’s a cultural uprising. Founded around 2012–2013, the team looked at streetwear in Ghana and saw something missing: culture. As they reflect:
Streetwear in Ghana was just people wearing cool clothes and going to take a picture, but there was no culture to it… we wanted to add a culture to whatever people were wearing.” — Free The Youth Interview, PAUSE Mag
They weren’t just dressing, they were curating a narrative.
A Movement with Roots and Wings
What began as individuals taking Tumblr-style street-shots in Accra, sharing architecture, style, positivity, was a direct stand against misrepresentations of Africa. As they put it:
We just wanted to showcase how beautiful Africa is through street style and through culture.”-FREE THE YOUTH
That simple yet urgent impulse, represent, resist, create, fuels their trajectory.
Crafting Ghana’s Streetwear Ecosystem
From the streets of Tema emerged a collective, not a label. As they met:
Everybody had their own individual style… we all came from the same hood… we had to come together and combine our powers.” pausemag.co.uk
Their journey didn’t smooth itself, producing in Africa posed challenges:
Our final touches are not the best… production is difficult too… we try our hardest to produce as much as we can here.” pausemag.co.uk
And even explaining the concept, that a shop could also be a cultural meetup—didn’t click overnight.
Yet they persisted.
The Dual-Engine: Brand & NGO
Today, as a crew turned collective turned brand, FTY carries two engines: the label and the Ghetto University NGO, a creative education hub. As Wikipedia explains, their goal isn’t just style, it’s sustainable, arts-based activism:
Their initiative has been developed into a two-pronged entity, the brand and the NGO… to make it possible for art-based, youth-oriented, sustainable programming.
It’s community, not commodity.
The South African Moment
And now, Johannesburg. On Saturday, 30 August 2025, the collective lands at Shelflife Johannesburg (Rosebank Mall) for their South Africa debut, an intentional expansion of their narrative into another vibrant youth scene.
Picture Accra’s DIY energy meeting Jozi’s content-first culture. Expect exclusive drops, creative collisions, digital creators shoulder-to-shoulder with streetwear OGs, an immersive dialog, not just a pop-up.
Check Out the Pop-up at Shelflife Rosebank 30th of August
