Wisdom Kaye Goes From iPhone Fashion Videos to Winning the Virgil Abloh Award

Wisdom Kaye started making fashion videos in 2020, filming styling ideas at home and posting them on TikTok. Six years later, the fashion creator has received one of the industry’s honours named after the late Virgil Abloh.

Kaye was presented with the Virgil Abloh Award, presented by LVMH, at Harlem’s Fashion Row’s 19th Annual Fashion Show & Style Awards in New York on September 8. The ceremony, held at The Glasshouse, was part of the events surrounding New York Fashion Week and recognised Black creatives across fashion, media and culture.

Photo: Instagram/@Wisdom Kaye

The award is particularly fitting for Kaye because his route into fashion did not begin with a traditional fashion job. His online presence came first. He built an audience through styling videos before moving into modelling, brand campaigns, runway appearances and major fashion events.

Kaye’s early TikTok videos were built around styling and visual transformation. He used clothes, editing and different characters to create short fashion-focused videos from his home. His work soon attracted attention from the fashion industry, and he was signed by IMG Models.

Photo: Instagram/@Wisdom Kaye

From there, the Houston-born creator began working with some of fashion’s biggest names. Harlem’s Fashion Row lists Dior, Fendi, Prada, Valentino, Ralph Lauren, Tiffany & Co., Coach and AMI Paris among the brands he has worked with. He has also walked for Balmain.

His move from social media creator to fashion professional has also included appearances on some of the industry’s biggest stages. In 2024, Kaye made his Met Gala debut wearing a dramatic Robert Wun look. The appearance further established him as a fashion figure beyond TikTok, while his online platform remained an important part of his career.

In 2025, Kaye was included in the inaugural TIME100 Creators list, recognising creators whose influence extends beyond social media. A year later, he took another step into the traditional fashion establishment when he joined the expert panel for the 2026 LVMH Prize for Young Fashion Designers. LVMH lists him alongside editors, stylists, creative directors and other established figures in the fashion industry.

Photo: Instagram/@Wisdom Kaye

That progression makes his Virgil Abloh Award notable. Abloh himself became known for challenging the usual boundaries between luxury fashion, streetwear, music and popular culture. He founded Off-White and became Louis Vuitton’s Men’s Artistic Director in 2018, a position he held until his death in 2021.

Kaye’s career has followed a different route, but there is a clear connection in the way both understood the importance of culture beyond the traditional runway. Kaye first built an audience through his own content before fashion houses, modelling agencies and major events became part of his professional life.

Photo: Instagram/@Wisdom Kaye

At Harlem’s Fashion Row, his award was announced alongside honours for Erykah Badu, Brandon Blackwood, Jahleel Weaver, Audrey Smaltz and Recho Omondi. Badu received the Fashion Icon Award, Blackwood was named Designer of the Year, Weaver received Stylist of the Year, Smaltz received the Ann Lowe Maverick Award and Omondi was named Editor of the Year.

For Kaye, the Virgil Abloh Award marks another stage in a career that began with a phone, a wardrobe and an audience on social media. What started as fashion content made at home has grown into work with global fashion houses, appearances at the Met Gala, a place among TIME’s leading creators and, now, an award carrying the name of one of fashion’s most influential modern figures.