By Yang-Yi Goh

Copyright gq

Travis Barker’s daily uniform hasn’t changed all that much since he was a teenager. The legendary drummer and producer is on tour right now with Blink-182, and every night when he hits the stage, he’s wearing pretty much the same thing he would’ve while skateboarding in Fontana, California, at 18: enormous Dickies work shorts, studded belt, Vans, a chopped-up tee if he’s wearing a shirt at all. (Spoiler: he’s probably not.)
What has changed, however, is his willingness to mix it up and experiment for special occasions. “Back in the day, if I had to dress up, I’d wear a tie but still rock my DC shoes and my Mohawk to try to feel good in those clothes, you know?” Barker tells me from his tour bus, a few hours before Blink play a show in Virginia Beach. “Now I love a Saint Laurent suit. I love really owning whatever I’m wearing, and just committing to looking different or dressing different for different occasions.”
That evolution has helped turn Barker—already long a style icon for his SoCal punk-meets-New York streetwear sensibility—into one of the most sublime and unpredictable dressers on the planet, clashing together hardy all-American workwear, archival grails from Raf Simons and Dior Homme, elite contemporary designers like (N)umber Nine and ERL, and his own vast collection of vintage graphic T-shirts.
Barker’s also been a celebrated fashion designer since 1999, when he first launched his blockbuster label Famous Stars & Straps. His latest endeavor in that realm is a wide-ranging collection for Hurley, which encompasses the kind of comfortable, attitude-heavy aesthetic he’s known for: boxy, sun-faded hoodies; deer-camo football jerseys; heavyweight denim overalls.
“Hurley approached me and said they really wanted to get back to their roots and their DNA. They were always a surf brand, but at one point they were also all about music, Southern California lifestyle, tattoos and cars,” Barker says. “I just tried to find that healthy balance between what I would wear and what everybody would want to wear, and I feel like it really worked.”
Here, the pop-punk icon dives deep on his own style history, from Blink’s late-’90s rise all the way through today.

Billboard Music Awards, December 1999
“My hair right there turned into dreadlocks a few months later. My dreads were one of my favorite haircuts—or whatever you want to call them—that I’ve had. I would’ve had dreads forever, but it was easier said than done. I ended up having to shave them off. You’ll notice I went from having dreadlocks down to my chin to no hair at all, because my dreadlocks were disgusting. I loved them, but I needed a change so bad.
“And I’m wearing the very first Famous Stars & Straps shirt—the very first design I ever made that I still love to this day. Even my son [Landon] admits, like, ‘Yeah, that’s the best one. I wear it all the time.’ It’s really easy to wear. It’s one color. It’s in the veins. It’s named ‘Dirty Black Summer,’ after the Danzig song.
“I can tell I just got those flags [tattooed] on my neck. So, I’d just got my ’66 Cadillac. And I probably had some chest tattoos and some arm tattoos, but I wasn’t nearly as covered as I am now. I was just starting out. And you could tell I was just starting on the neck right there, which was a bold move.”

MTV Video Music Awards, September 2000
“I was obsessed with soccer jerseys at the time. I had this one in red and in black, and really no one was wearing them.
“I remember walking outside in New York, walking up to the building [Radio City Music Hall] where the show was. We were so different from everything else that was going on, and whenever we did anything like this—when we played the MTV Awards or SNL—we had no idea how big of a deal it was or anything. We were just so out of place in the best possible way, you know?
“I always say, thinking back on it, that bands that are punk rock—or influenced or inspired by punk rock—usually aren’t supposed to be that big. We never dreamed that we would be as big or successful as we were, so I think we were just grateful.”

Los Angeles, July 2001
“I loved wearing my hat to the side or back. I remember I used to put spikes on it. This was around the time of Warped Tour, because I remember every one of my shirts were cut off. I was at my house that I did Cribs at in Corona, really close to where I grew up.
“I’m wearing baggy gray Dickies—I pretty much wore gray Dickies or Ben Davis every day of my life. That was kind of my thing. I remember when I joined Blink, Mark and Tom were like, ‘What are these shorts you’re wearing?’ And then our whole band ended up wearing them a lot—that was kind of our whole style. We’d buy them at the Fontana Swap Meet or the Riverside Swap Meet where I grew up.
“And then, at this time, this was a big deal: That is the first Cadillac Escalade that ever came out. Big, big, big deal to me. You know, I had Cadillac tattoos on my body. I remember everything so distinctly. The big rims—my KMC rims were everything. The Hot Boys had the same Cadillac. It was such a good time.”

Teen Choice Awards, August 2004
“That’s just how I wore my shorts. That wasn’t even low—that was probably a good day. There were times where it was way worse. But I think it was just where I grew up and how I grew up, how we kind of rolled.
“I never had a shirt on, whether I was playing drums or whether I was out skateboarding, riding bikes. And to a point, [because of my tattoos] it kinda looks like I’m wearing a T-shirt. [Laughs.] Honestly, I’m like, Damn, not much has changed. I still walk off stage looking exactly like this every night.
“I remember I’d just discovered Lisa Kline boxers—that was a big deal, I loved those boxers. That was right around the time Famous Stars & Straps started making belts and belt buckles, and that cassette tape belt buckle was a really popular one for us.”

MTV Total Request Live, April 2005
“I wonder if I had to wear a tie. It kind of looks like I had to. [Laughs.] Nowadays, I wouldn’t half-step it: if I’m going to wear a suit, I’m going to go all out. I’m going to look sharp and clean up nice. Back then, it was more like, Yeah, I’ll wear a tie, but I’m still going to wear my DC shoes and I’m still going to have my Mohawk. Probably just trying to feel good in those clothes, you know?
“The tie kind of reminds me of the Louis Vuitton checkerboard. At the time, a lot of streetwear kids were really obsessed with Louis Vuitton, their monogram, their all-over prints. It was everything back then.”

Stuff Style Awards, September 2005
“This was around the time that Billionaire Boys Club, Ice Cream, BAPE, Famous—everyone—we all had all-over print sweatshirts. My other brand, Rogue Status, was getting popular at the time [for all-over prints], too.
“Camo shorts for life—I still have camo shorts packed on this tour that I wear all the time. And I was wearing my signature DC shoes that I designed that had ghetto blasters on them, like the ghetto blaster [tattoo] on my stomach. I’d just started designing stuff for DC. I was wearing the DC chain right there. That was cool. I feel like this look right here is very popular again.”

Country Music Awards, May 2006
“There were only two haircuts that I liked and would ever even consider having: dreadlocks or a Mohawk. So if I wasn’t wearing either of those, I was just shaving my head. This is a pretty good ’hawk right here. By that point, I could put my hair up so quick. It would take me two minutes. I would wash my hair, not condition it, and then I would just grab some hairspray and a blow-dryer and I’d be out the door. It was the best. But dude, it is really hard to drive with hair like that if you’re not in a convertible, you know?
“I really loved that time [for Famous Stars & Straps], too. It was so cool. That was one of the Family shirts that we started making. My brand, especially right then, was a big family of skateboarders, motocross riders, low riders, graffiti artists, everything.”

Grammy Awards, February 2016
“I took [my kids] Alabama and Landon to the Grammys. The best. I remember I got her a dress for that and they were both really hyped.
“There’s two stories about that hat. It’s so funny, because Landon will heckle me so bad about this hat. And then I’ll also heckle him so bad, because he was wearing one around the same time—so much so that in one of the portraits of my kids I have on my back, he’s wearing basically this exact hat. Like, dude, I have a tattoo of you in that hat. You can’t say anything!
“I started wearing the hat after my accident. [Ed. note: In 2008, Barker survived a harrowing plane crash.] I had just been born again, in a way, and I remember I had to do all this big press afterwards—I think I did Larry King on CNN or something. And I was just thinking to myself, How can I present myself to people where I won’t look like a criminal or too scary? So, I wore this hat for different things. Once things had calmed down, I was like, Oh, no, no, no, I don’t ever want to hide who I am. Even if I do go on a huge news show or whatever, I just want to be myself, because there’s only one of me. I realized I don’t need to wear a hat to cover up who I am. Because despite how I look, I’m still a really great person, and I’m out here spreading a positive message. So, that was pretty much that.”

Grammy Awards, April 2022
“I was just going to go with the black suit, but then there was this Raf Simons pink coat that just felt so cool to put on over top—it’s loud, it’s a statement. And then [my then-fiancée] Kourtney [Kardashian]’s really good at figuring out how to complement me. We pull it off in the coolest fashion. She doesn’t really tell me anything, we don’t really coordinate. She just finds out what I’m wearing, and then she’s like, ‘Oh, okay, this is what I’m going to do.’”

Met Gala, May 2022
“This was my first Met Gala. Thom Browne’s so cool. He just gets it—we think alike. So I was really, really excited that they were the people we ended up going with and I loved what they gave me to wear. It felt very mod, very punk. I thought it was so cool.
“The Met was one of those things where, again, I didn’t really know the significance of going, and I like not knowing. I just like going and being myself. We had so much fun and hung out with a bunch of our friends. It was really, really cool. It was wild to see how much goes into a lot of people attending Met Gala. I was just stoked. I like the fantasy element of becoming something or someone else for fashion—I think that’s fun. So, we had a great time.”

Met Afterparty, May 2022
“These fits are all Thom Browne as well, they gave us different fits for all the different things afterwards. I love that tank top and everything. It feels very outrageous compared to, like, the Motörhead sweatshirt I wear every day, but it’s supposed to—we’re at the Met. It’s like you’re living in a different universe at the time, which is cool.
“My wife looks smoking hot. That night was so fun. We have actually really, really good photos from the hotel room that looked too…not PG-13 enough. Never posted anywhere.”

Portofino, Italy, May 2022
“This was out on a boat on one of the days leading up to our wedding. Dolce & Gabbana made everything for our wedding—they styled everybody, made Kourtney’s dress, made my suit, and then they also wanted us to have looks for the entire week that we were there. I showed them [some of my clothes], and they got an idea of what my style was, and we came up with a bunch of different stuff. I’d shown them this oversized poncho that I got in Mexico, and then they made this based on it and I loved it. I looked like some kind of evil priest or something, it was so cool.
“Every day I had the illest outfits—the boots, the casual wear, they make the best suits. They knew I love hotel slippers and made me a pair. It was incredible. As someone who’s made clothes since I was 21, I couldn’t believe their resources—they turn all of this around in a matter of days.”

Los Angeles, August 2022
“The Balenciaga slippers were a Christmas present, Kourtney got me those. But 40 percent of the time, this is what I’ll be in: hotel slippers, some cutoffs—either sweats or jeans—and my favorite hoodie. It’s an old-school Motörhead hoodie, really soft. That’s my uniform if I’m just walking in and out of hotels, going to the gym or anything. It’s just comfortable.”

New York Fashion Week, September 2022
“I did this campaign for Tommy Hilfiger with Jon Batiste and Kate Moss, where I was playing drums and got to go through all the clothes with him. And then a few months later, this was the show [where the campaign premiered]. I was so excited about having on the biggest puffer trench coat. That was just wild. And I don’t have a shirt on underneath, just some pants and boots, and my wife’s wearing a Tommy Hilfiger catsuit. Actually, all my kids were there, too—Alabama was dressed in head-to-toe Tommy Hilfiger. It was really cool to just embrace old-school Hilfiger and remind people how cool that brand was.”

New York Fashion Week, September 2022
“Just a great night out at New York Fashion Week. One of Kourt’s sisters was walking in a show, so we went to watch. I’m wearing this black trench, but then the blood splatter shirt is vintage Dior Homme, from back when Hedi Slimane was designing for the house.”

Palm Springs, October 2022
“I could rock this every day: Vetements bomber, big white tee, baggy pants, some Vans. That’s my uniform. I couldn’t feel better. I have those bombers in every color—green, white, black, tan. I love those. That never gets old. And my truck compliments the colors, too. The K5 Chevy Blazer—that’s part of the fit.”

New York, May 2023
“I love jumpsuits. I was a trash man when I was 19 in Laguna Beach, so I just feel at home in workwear. This one is Prada, but I’ve got jumpsuits from Dickies, Enfants Richés Deprimes, Neighborhood, Number (N)ine. Hard to play drums in a jumpsuit, but when you’re just moving around, it’s cool and comfortable and you don’t look like everybody else.”

Los Angeles, August 2023
“That’s a Famous Stars & Straps shirt. I’ve heard people say, ‘But he can’t wear that, he’s famous!’ I’m just like, Wow.
“I love smart word shirts that get a reaction out of people and make them feel some type of way—laughs, frowns, whatever. (N)umber Nine from Japan always have great ones. And I do some of the merch for Blink sometimes. We did one last year that said ‘Work Sucks,’ after that line from ‘All the Small Things.’
“I probably have 500 to 800 T-shirts total. A lot of vintage. Some stuff I’ll buy and then just never wear, but that’s just collecting. I got into it a long time ago, too. Me and DJ AM, rest in peace, we both used to collect and were very early to vintage tees, because they were so much better than what any brand was putting out. They were softer and so nice to wear. I really just love vintage everything: T-shirts, old-school BMX bikes, muscle cars.”

Santa Barbara, December 2024
“For Christmas last year, I had ERL make my whole family pajamas. We have seven kids all together, so I figured out everyone’s sizes, and we woke up on Christmas Day and everyone put these on. Me, Kourt, and [our son] Rocky ended up going to Santa Barbara. It was so cool.
“But honestly, when it comes to Rocky’s style, I want to match him, not the other way around. There’s this Australian brand called Ziggy Zaza that we buy all of his stuff from. It’s amazing. Everything’s really soft and oversized. He has these really baggy striped pants that look like Beetlejuice. Everyone that sees Rocky, they’re like, I want those pants! I’ve made him some stuff from my other brand, Don’t Trust Anyone, like a sweatshirt that says ‘Rocky Barker’ on it. But lately, yeah, even I just want Rocky’s pants because they’re so good.”

Los Angeles, July 2025
“We made this BMX, moto-style jersey for the Hurley collection, which is really comfortable to wear. It’s got Olde English on the front, which never gets old. Checkerboard down the sleeves. And then those are my white signature Vans that come out in February. It’s rare for me, but I love certain outfits with white shoes.”