Kemar Reid on reaching his creative peak

The North Face’s latest capsule honours the great Kit DesLauriers, the first person to ski down the Seven Summits. That is, the seven highest mountains from each of the seven continents, or a whopping 40,657 metres (phwoar).

To celebrate the esteemed ski-mountaineer and The North Face’s accompanying F19 Seven Summits collection, The Face spoke to seven style leaders at the top of their game. Sharing stories of their own creative endeavours aboard a rooftop in Wapping – where a backdrop of the capital’s towering landmarks emulated pure mountain epicness – it’s a reminder of the relentless pursuit of challenge behind every creative peak. One that then takes you to even greater heights.

DJ, designer and all-round creative Kemar is all about creating good vibes, whether through music or by simply cracking a joke or two. The biggest avalanche he’s faced? Self-doubt. But he’s not afraid of a challenge – you’ll find him swimming in the deep end most of the time…

AUDIO TRANSCRIPTION

“First off I’m a creator, second of all, I’m a vibes man. By that I mean creating vibes and creating atmospheres and moods, I think music makes up a lot of me and design had been a big part of me since studying, then getting a job in design. I’d say that’s two things that make up who I am.

“From base camp I’ve always been a dreamer and with that, I’ve never seen any obstacle as being one that can’t be overcome just by hard work and I’ve done that and will continue to do that. In my mind, hard work will always lead you to the top. Is there a top? I don’t think so. There’s always somewhere that you wanna go, always a different direction.

“Biggest avalanche would be self doubt. I don’t think I struggle with it anymore, now I see life as a big pool and sometimes you’ve just got to jump in the deep end, even if you don’t know how to swim, learn how to swim in the deep end. I’ve just done that and learnt how to overcome it. Been swimming in the deep end since.”