What It's Like Styling WNBA It Girls

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Being an elite athlete isn't just about your in-game performance. Part of the job includes how you present yourself online, the sponsorship deals you land, and, yes, even what you wear to games. That's where stylists Manny Jay and Brittany Hampton come in.

Jay began his career as an editorial stylist working with actresses and musicians, and he even assisted the legendary costume designer and fashion stylist Patricia Field. Through the power of manifestation, Jay says he was able to make the pivot to working with a top athlete, the WNBA's Skylar Diggins. "Just last year, I started saying to myself, 'I'm going to start doing tunnel walks at the top of the year,'" Jay said. "By the end of the year, that's when I had met Skylar [Diggins], so yeah, I kind of manifested that too."

Hampton got her start in fashion by designing prom dresses while she was still in high school. "There were girls that were in my class that were like, 'Hey, could you design my prom dress?'" Hampton said. "MySpace, at the time, was really big on finding the new, up-and-coming artists, and I had that platform to showcase that I was a designer and made a couple girls' prom dresses, and it kind of went viral." Eventually, Hampton made the transition from designing to styling after moving to Los Angeles.

For the latest episode of The Who What Wear Podcast, Jay and Hampton sit down with Who What Wear senior fashion editor Eliza Huber to share how they got their start in the fashion industry, why they decided to work with athletes, and more.

For excerpts from their conversation, scroll below.

Do you remember when you first realized that you wanted to be a stylist? How did you go about pursuing it as a career and building your portfolio of clients?

Manny Jay: When I first was shopping on my own, my parents gave me the free will to shop when I was like 8 or 9. [They were] just like, "Pick out whatever you want. We're just gonna buy it." That led to me picking out my 'fits and then my sister being like, "Well, I like what you're wearing. How about you pick out my 'fits?" So I started doing that. That led to my mom being like, "Well, you gotta pick out my 'fits too." That was something that I naturally was just doing all the time.

What ended up happening in my life was I ended up getting cancer right after I graduated, which was when I was 19. At that time, I didn't know what I wanted to do. I knew I didn't want to go to college, but I was like, "If I beat this—or when I beat this—I want to pursue something that would be, ideally, a dream." I ended up going into remission. I was about 20 at the time.

I met some friends on MySpace at the time—Coco and Breezy—and we just became really good friends. They were like, "Hey, you know, what you're doing with your friends and what you're doing back home, that's styling. You can get paid for that. That's a career. You should move to New York. I have friends that are making a lot of money doing this and are really fulfilled." I was like, "You know what? That sounds like my calling. I think I'm gonna try to do that."

Coming from a small town like Lancaster, Pennsylvania, that was a big deal. No one really left home. [I moved] to New York and [was] just kind of assisting. Wherever I could work, I was just there. However I could assist, I was there. Brick by brick, I was building something for myself and making connections. I was pretty much manifesting it. I was like, "I'm a big-time stylist" even though I didn't even know I was a stylist till the day I moved to New York.

You started out designing, Brittany. When did that switch happen that you were like, "Okay, we're gonna change this up"?

Brittany Hampton: I've been designing since I was a kid. My chores weren't regular chores. I didn't get to wash dishes. I didn't pull out the vacuum cleaner. My grandmother was always like, "Pick needles out of the carpet." When it came down to me being above age, my grandmother always taught me that if I sketch something, I had to physically sew it, which stopped me from sketching. Eventually, I was like, "I don't want to sketch anymore then."

But I found myself in high school still sketching, and I would find times where you might be not paying attention in class and just doodling away. There were girls that were in my class that were like, "Hey, could you design my prom dress?" MySpace, at the time, was really big on finding the new, up-and-coming artists, and I had that platform to showcase that I was a designer and made a couple girls' prom dresses, and it kind of went viral. I was making dresses for girls in Houston and in L.A.

Going from that and then into styling, I was like, "Let me let this go." I had a brand called Dolls Couture. I started styling. Moving to L.A., I was working for fashion shows, runway shows. L.A. was the closest for me, so it was always easy to be a backstage dresser and then end up leading into styling.

[Manny], you mostly styled musicians up until you met Skylar Diggins. Was that intentional? Now that you've broken into the WNBA, do you see yourself leaning more into sports in the future?

MJ: I am a believer of manifesting. At one point, my manifestations were like, "Oh, I want to work with Disney kids and up-and-coming talent," and I was able to do that. When I got tired of that, I was like, "Oh, I want to do actresses." Then I started getting actresses manifesting that type of work. Then it was musicians, which I really enjoy because I get to be a little bit more creative. That has been the lane that I've been in for the last few years heavy.

Just last year, I started saying to myself, "I'm going to start doing tunnel walks at the top of the year." By the end of the year, that's when I had met Skylar [Diggins], so yeah, I kind of manifested that too. I love it. I think that there's so much opportunity within the sports styling world, and I've come to realize that a lot of brands love athletes as well. That has been fun working with different brands that want to support. I can see myself doing a lot more sports styling too.

[Brittany], you've been a staple in the sports world for a while now in different leagues and different levels, but it seems like women's basketball and the W now, specifically, are your biggest styling markets. What, to you, makes this space so fulfilling and these women so fun to work with?

BH: It's a unique story. I think that we see youth differently, right? I think it's because we've been in their shoes. We know what that age feels like. To be able to identify with who they are and then be able to help mold them into who they're about to become—especially stepping into their power—I think that's been my main stance and why I am the woman that I am in this industry.

I think getting Paige [Bueckers] was one thing and then being with her through her career when she tore her ACL, and she became the comeback kid. … You put your faith in these kids. That really helps define who they are and then who you are to them as their mentor. They like to call me their auntie, and I love that for me.

I've gotten to work with literally any and everyone. I take their perspectives as very unique, but then I try to redefine the younger girls and the rookies and really just be able to help them and lead them into their way.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.