Chris Printup, known as Spanto, a co-founder of Born x Raised, passed away in a horrific car accident on Tuesday, June 27. Printup and Alex “2Tone” Erdmann founded the renowned business a decade ago. Numerous Los Angeles sports teams, including the Lakers, Kings, Dodgers, Rams, and LAFC, as well as New Era, Converse, and Babylon, were among its high-profile partners.
A month after he launched Born x Raised in 2013, Printup received a fatal cancer diagnosis. He was said to have been cancer-free in 2018. A meaningful post on his health and experience was shared by Printup on Instagram barely six months ago.
Chris Printup reflected on “what has happened over the last ten years.” Read the statement that was issued by Printup through his Instagram post. We have provided an official Instagram post above.
Printup wrote-
“I just want to take a moment to take a long, hard look back and what has happened over the last ten years. I think if you would take a peek at my instagram and see the highlight reel and think it might’ve been easy – but.. from where ive started (like in the early years of my life).. growing up my dad was homeless and my mom was mentally ill – I spent a lot of time in and out of the system from an early age from central juvenile hall to many years spent in the county – I decided to create a clothing brand while the last time I was incarcerated – I cooked up bxr while I was in the hole at supermax (idk if anyone who is reading this has been there but if you’ve ever eaten juke balls for a month you know the deal).”
He added-
“A couple years after working on bxr we started moving, things were great and one month after we launched with union I was diagnosed with terminal cancer (YES, TERMINAL) so from 2013 until now I’ve been battling cancer, did 4 years of chemo lost 100 lbs and my hair numerous times – what I’m getting at is life is hard for everyone and I want anyone to know, that if you’re feeling discouraged or like life has given you too many handicaps – ITS OKAY. you’re going to be fine things will get better.”
He continued-
“I’m cancer free, I’m not incarcerated and my family has a house to live in and I want to look back at all that has happened and say THANK YOU – because just 5 years ago I was in the worst place in life I’ve ever been and just this last week I’ve been in Vogue, NY Times and a bunch of other places that I am extremely grateful for. If you would have told me 10 years ago I would be hosting a dinner with Nike on the roof of Soho house for 100 of my friends I would’ve never believed you,” respecting a few important people in his life.
If you want to know about nearby happenings, check the breaking news:
- 5 Teenagers, Including 4 Texas Roadhouse Employees, Die After Car Crash into Florida Pond
- 1 Person is Killed in a Car Crἀsh Involving Ten Cars in Upland
This month, Born x Raised collaborated with Levi’s on a project to honor Printup’s late father, Butch. Butch allegedly died this year. “I found this Levi’s denim jacket that he used to wear a lot when I was a kid and immediately knew I wanted to dedicate a project to my father’s memory,” Printup explained to Vogue. Levi’s collaboration photographs were shot in Los Angeles and his grandfather’s childhood home in White River, Arizona.
Details of his death are yet to be officially announced, though it is reported that he died on Tuesday evening. Many of his close friends and colleagues in the industry, including Ben Baller, have begun to pay tribute to the designer on social media. The company has yet to make an official announcement on social media.
On June 28, Ben Beller posted a tribute to Chris Printup on his official Twitter page.
RIP TO THE HOMIE SPANTO! 💔🙏🏽😔 pic.twitter.com/2JhcA0hLT1
— BEN BALLER™ (@BENBALLER) June 28, 2023
Please add TheCurrentOnline.com to your bookmarks and return regularly to see if any updates have been made. Feel free to share this piece with anyone you think might be interested.