reboot his image from the ground up
through smash-hit records
, public
apologies (sometimes in the form of
hit records), and not letting his pets
cross international borders. But
trying to earn back the respect of the
public is one thing; morphing into
someone the public sees as an arbiter
of cool is something that can't be
planned. It turns out the Biebs has
managed to do both. And if you need
proof, just check out the hundreds of
people waiting hours in line to get a
piece of the pop star's surprisingly
good Purpose World Tour gear.
Bieber & Co. have taken over the
VFiles store space in New York City
through today and stocked it with
merch that's simultaneously
promotional and just plain cool, as
far as "cool things" in 2016 are
concerned. The man behind the
oversize hoodies and boxy graphic-
print tees is none other than Fear of
God founder Jerry Lorenzo , whose
designs are a favorite of Justin's—as
well as Lil Wayne’s, Swaggy P's, and
numerous others. (Kanye West even
wore Jerry-designed jeans to the Met
Gala on Monday.) Lorenzo is also
responsible for some of Bieber's
Purpose Tour on-stage looks, forging
his grunge-inspired drapey vib
The merch designs up for grabs pull
inspiration from some currently very
in-demand pieces (a Metallica-level
"Purpose Tour" logo, Vêtements-
leaning sleeve prints), continuing the
memento-as-menswear trend we've
seen with Kanye West's highly
coveted Life of Pablo gear (also sold at
a NYC pop-up store last month).
Copying trendy gear and changing
the name to one's own might seem
lazy, but it's actually a refreshing
concept. Mashing up an aesthetic
people already want with that of an
artist they already like elevates
something as common and as
traditionally bad (especially when
we're talking pop stars) as
promotional T-shirts. Given the ways
artists actually make money in 2016
(hint: selling albums isn't what it
used to be), simply slapping an
artist's face on a tee and listing tour
dates on the back just ain't gonna cut
it.
The most surprising thing here is that
people actually want Bieber
merchandise. And we're not just
talking about the screaming teenage
girls who dominated his fan base for
most of his career. These are adult
men clad in Pablo merch, Supreme
hats, and Jordans—the same types
you'll see at any hyped-up streetwear
release in 2016—clamoring for gear
with the name Justin Bieber on it,
this writer included. Is there a slight
dose of irony baked into people's
desire to wear a tee that reads "My
Mama Don't Like You" on the back?
Sure. But irony wears off fast and
probably isn't worth $120 for a
hoodie, $50 for a tee, and hours of
your time. At a certain point,
wearing a hoodie or tee means you
kind of just actually like it. And it
seems with this pop-up shop, liking
Justin Bieber seems to officially be
not just okay but straight-up cool.
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