Whether it be in their concert attire or song lyrics, musicians have a special way of influencing listeners. Their high status serves as the perfect advertising platform for new trends and name brands. From lyrical plugs like Schoolboy Q‘s “Gangsta in Designer“…
“Always rocking s*** I never seen or I never known/ Name grown overseas, fitter Sergio Tacchini shirt, real creeper slippers YSL see the logo on my zipper”
to an entire song name dedicated to fashion like Migos and Drake‘s collaboration of “Versace“, many musicians, especially in hip hop culture, exploit their ‘superior’ taste in fashion publicly. Not only do these artists sing about fashion and status, but revolve their music videos around it, exposing the viewer to even more tastes of ‘superiority’.
It seems the reasoning behind fashion name dropping stems from the overwhelming cultural evolution of fashion. It has developed into a symbol of status and success and has become a distinctive element to their imagine. Firstly, name brands are the easiest way for artists to assert their presence as icons, as the designers they tend to mention have the same frequency as them which makes the relation understandable to listeners that they, along with who they associate themselves with, are the top as well. As said in A$AP Rocky‘s “Fashion Killa“,
“Rocking, rolling, swagging to the max/ My b**** a fashion killa, she be busy popping tags/ She got a lotta Prada, that Dolce & Gabbana/ I can’t forget Escada, and that Balenciaga.”
Flickr: A$AP Rocky
It has almost become ‘human nature’ to gravitate towards name brands, and the more upscale and expensive the product is, the more desirable it becomes. Hence, why many rappers sing about top designers like Gucci, Prada, Versace, etc. While it may seem like human nature to desire these less likely obtainable clothing choices, it is a socially constructed part of society that lets individuals express themselves through wealth and taste.
