Nike Techs? Nah, It’s Quarter-Zip Season Now

According to TikTok, it’s time to hang up your beloved Nike Tech and step into your grown-man era. Yes, apparently maturity isn’t about paying your bills on time or finally scheduling that dentist appointment. It’s about… a quarter-zip sweater.

TikTok creator Jason Gyamfi declared the rise of the quarter zip with the seriousness of a man announcing a global takeover. In his now-viral clip, sitting at nearly a 600,000 likes and counting, Jason delivers a sermon straight from the church of casualwear.

“And another thing, I'm a quarter-zip through now, simple. I don't do that Nike-type stuff, which y'all little boys do. I can't do that. I'm elegant. I'm classy for me. Like, you could take me somewhere. I look presentable. Y'all Nike Tech dudes scare me. Y'all put actual fear in my heart. Like, after God, I feel y'all Nike Tech dudes, truthfully.”

He even gestures to the sweater like it’s a luxury timepiece.

“This is elegant. Forget the Nike Tech. This is, like, 15 cash. And I feel classy," he said.

@whois.jason
Simple as that. #quarterzip #perfomative #niketech #grownman
♬ original sound - Jason Gyamfi

But Jason wasn’t always a quarter-zip evangelist. No, he, too, was once “in the trenches,” wrapped in polyester blends and matching sweatpants.

“I used to be a Nike Tech dude, just like y'all. I'm speaking from experience… You couldn't tell me nothing about my Nike Tech a few years ago.

His redemption arc video is hilariously soundtrack by dramatic motivational music that makes it feel like a trailer for a coming-of-age film set in a Foot Locker. Then the twist comes in. He found the quarter-zip, and suddenly life aligned like a perfectly curated LinkedIn profile.

“The quarter-zip got me in my bag. It got me presenting about wrongful convictions, real-world problems," he said. “It got me viral on TikTok. It got me inspiring the youth. This is only the beginning of the quarters takeover. We've taken over the world with this one. I want us to dress how we want to be addressed.”

Jason is the latest in a growing wave of Black men on TikTok leaning into “non-traditional” aesthetics, drinking matcha, soft-life preaching—except this time, the gospel is knitwear. Even Kyle Umemba, the matcha king himself, has shown the quarter-zip some love.

And Jason’s lifestyle adjustments don’t stop at clothes. No, the quarter-zip is a mindset.

“And we don't ask women for the Instagram no more. It's, ‘Hey, what's your LinkedIn?’" he said. "Instead of doing Instagram, it’s, ‘Hey, what's your availability on Google calendars? Let's meet on a Zoom.’ You elegant now, gang.”

“No more DMs we on outlook and teams,” someone hilariously joked in the comments.

So there you have it. The era of the Nike Tech menace is over, and the era of the Quarter-Zip Gentleman has begun.