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lil wayne February 19, 2018
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Lil Wayne drops a surprising, but very fly, collab with Neiman Marcus

Rapper Lil Wayne has personally pulled up at the Beverly Hills Neiman Marcus to promote the drop of his exclusive apparel collection, which launched February 16.

Lil Wayne announced the collaboration on his Twitter and has continued to promote the line. Neiman Marcus also plugged the apparel launch through their social media.

Available for sale at the Beverly Hills Neiman Marcus and online, The Young Money line consists of T-shirts, jackets, a hoodie, a pair of pants, and a hat.

“Young Money” is emblazoned on each article of clothing in clear, bold type, repping the record label which Lil Wayne founded in 2005 with artists include Drake, Tyga, and Nicki Minaj.

The brand takes center stage in the design, as the apparel is otherwise clean, crisp, and plain, aligning with Wayne’s modern streetwear style.

The new launch departs from the style of Lil Wayne’s previous forays into fashion. Trukfit, a brand he launched about 6 years ago, centered more on a skater aesthetic.

Trukfit appealed to a younger crowd and featured BAPE-like graphics.

In addition, Lil Wayne has previously collaborated with California footwear brand Supra to create the Chimera shoes, which featured (among other color options) neon, cheetah print, and giraffe print.

The new collection’s stark simplicity contrasts with the rapper’s past style. Lil Wayne is the man who popularized the phrase “bling bling” back in the day.

And considering that he wore leopard print jeggings to the 2011 VMAs and a pink camo hoodie on the cover of Vibe, this Young Money collection is noticeably more subdued and wearable.

The minimalistic approach may appeal more to Neiman Marcus consumers, but the line is reasonably affordable considering the usual pricing at the luxury department store.

Despite the fact it’s being sold at the same high-end retailer that offers items like a $19,500 fur and cashmere blanket, The Young Money capsule collection is relatively accessible, ranging from $55 to $140.

Through working with Lil Wayne, a powerful force in hip-hop, Neiman Marcus expands its market, appealing to old and new customers.

Despite the subtle design, the line intends to be memorable. “Young Money is in every youthful person,” creative director Mike Morris told the Los Angeles Times.

“It really is about believing in yourself, and it’s about having a drive, having a passion, self-motivated, tying up the shoelaces and getting out there and making your way from nothing. That’s pretty true to who Wayne is and his character.”

Similarly, on the Neiman Marcus website, the product description expresses that “Young Money Merch is for individuals who want to stand out and whole-heartedly express themselves.

The brand supports those who are unrestricted by their originality and live to collaborate and create.”

It’s undeniable that Lil Wayne is an icon with a completely unique fashion style. In a 2012 interview for Vibe, he stated “I’m really fond of Marc Jacobs as a designer.

Everybody knows I love Polo. But as far as me being fixated on some person’s style, that just ain’t…nah. That just ain’t me.” He also shared that he “love[s] the opportunity” to create apparel which lets kids of any background “dress fly.”

Lil Wayne has been an influential figure to fans, but also top people in the music industry. Both Drake and Kendrick Lamar cite him as one of their leading inspirations. On Wayne’s 35th birthday, Drake posted about his reverence for Wayne’s mentorship and determination.

In an interview in Manchester for Coveteur, Kendrick also professed, “Yeah, man, we was heavy. That’s a real story like, we was just huge, still to this day, huge Lil Wayne fans. Lil Wayne is the greatest. Not only because of his music but also because of the culture he put behind it.”

A father of four and New Orleans native, Lil Wayne has been in the rap game since the early ‘90s and continues to stay relevant. His apparel launch comes at a busy time.

The second part of his mixtape Dedication 6: Reloaded recently dropped on January 26, he has a scheduled appearance at San Diego’s Parq Nightclub on February 18, and he is set to perform in Australia’s Jumanji Festival in March.

Meanwhile, on February 16, Apple Music released its documentary Before Anythang: The Cash Money Story.

The documentary explores the life of Cash Money Records founder Birdman, who Lil Wayne sued for $51 million in 2016 because of withheld money.

Now, with the release of the Young Money Merch capsule collection, we can all be “So Young Money.”

In the words of Chris Brown, “Look at me now.”

lil wayne August 18, 2017
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MTV to bring back ‘Unplugged’ series, will premier with… Shawn Mendes?

MTV is set to revive one of the network’s most popular and iconic series Unplugged, in which musicians perform a no-frills set without electric instruments or big stage regalia.

The network is bringing back Unplugged with a performance from Shawn Mendes, who apparently sits atop the radio charts with his single “There’s Nothing Holdin’ Me Back,” a song I have never heard before and will not be listening to.

Mendes’ performance will take place at the Theater at Ace Hotel in Los Angeles, according to Variety. The pop star told Variety that he’s intent on recreating the classic Unplugged vibe.

“We’ve been working our asses off just trying to figure out the most beautiful way to play these songs in a smaller, stripped-down way that still feels as impactful. I feel like if I can do this right, then it will be a moment for me — where people can really understand and see me as a musician and a singer, and where I’m coming from.”

Amani Duncan, MTV SVP of Music and Executive In Charge of Music for Unplugged, spoke to Variety about the network’s goals with the new project:

“’Let’s take it to cool locations’ was the thought. Like where the artist played their first major show, or maybe they choose a location to make a pro-social statement, or it’s, ‘I always wanted to play Carnegie Hall.’”

And Duncan isn’t worried that the younger generation may not have the same attachment to Unplugged as older music fans because the MTV brand still holds a lot of weight.

“At MTV, the brand equity is still so strong. It gives us an opportunity to bring back nostalgia and also recruit an entirely new consumer who may not know what Unplugged was because they weren’t born.”

Unplugged was definitely a pretty dope series with some of the most legendary televised life performances in music history.

Nirvana’s 1993 Unplugged set is probably the most well known performance in the series.

The sweater Kurt Cobain wore during Unplugged just sold for a reported $137,500.

Lil Wayne had one of the last Unplugged sets and it will be interesting to see how MTV works hip-hop into the series as there may be a shortage of rock bands to choose from.

We’re all for bringing back Unplugged, we just hope they find some more interesting talent than whoever Shawn Mendes is.

lil wayne May 18, 2017
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Lil Wayne and T-Pain drop ‘T-Wayne’ a surprise album from 2009

In one of the most lit things to happen in music in a minute, Lil Wayne and T-Pain just dropped T-Wayne, the long-lost album from 2009.

The 8-track ready for SoundCloud project has been under wraps for seven years and so far shit is already too fire. The fact that these two dudes decided to drop this throwback shit in a year when music was already too poppin’ makes it even better.

First off, you already know when the album starts off with T-Pain spitting bars, shit is about to get real. As for Wayne’s parts, this was from the era when you wouldn’t even question when he said he was the best rapper in the world.

Mad auto tune, mad tracks about smacking cheeks and just being dumb rich.

Seven years ago doesn’t seem like that long, but realistically, everything has changed. This shit will take you back to whatever the f*ck it was you were doing pre-2010 and it will make you think what other unreleased shit like this is out there.

T-Pain actually teased this album release yesterday with this series of cryptic tweets.

These are great tracks to mix in with all the other wild shit you’re listening to at the moment and who knows, maybe the younger generation will begin to respect these old heads. They shoulda got Yachty on Uzi on some tracks if they wanted to do that though!

This makes us wonder what else is on T-Pain’s hard drive? I’m sure both of their fans are asking this question right now but realistically you still mess with Wayne and T-Pain like that you’re most likely a washed millennial.