Rap and anime are two genres that are dominant in pop culture and have a high profile in the collaborative fashion space. And they are increasingly coming together in streetwear collections that pair rap artists with existing anime properties or that integrate anime-style imagery of the rappers themselves. Most of the musicians involved have spoken of their love for anime and have been known to incorporate references to the genre into their music. The collections often involve Crunchyroll, the leading distributor and licensor of anime content in the U.S., but other partners are in the mix as well:
- Rapper Logic created a streetwear collection with Crunchyroll based on Cowboy Bebop, a “neo-noir space Western” that originated on TV Tokyo in the late 1990s. The collection debuted in the Crunchyroll store and at Anime Expo 2024 in early July. The 11 pieces included t-shirts, sweatshirts and hoodies, a varsity jacket, a beanie and a corduroy hat, a skate deck, and a poster.
- 999 Club, the brand of the late rapper Juice WRLD, partnered with Crunchyroll in August 2023 for an apparel capsule based on Jujutsu Kaisen. The anime series, produced by MAPPA in Japan since 2020, is based on a Shueisha comic book that debuted in 2018 and is published by Viz Media in the U.S. The six-piece collection included four t-shirts and two hoodies featuring the characters and iconography of the series.
- Soulja Boy worked with Sprayground in December 2022 for a capsule collection of backpacks. The designs featured original art inspired by comic books, including one with an anime-style depiction of the rapper himself. The other incorporated various comic book panels based on scenes from the musician’s life. (There was also a 3D backpack of the character Soulja Bear; Sprayground is known for its teddy bear backpacks.)
- Trippie Redd and his apparel label 1400 released a limited-edition collection in early 2022 highlighting Naruto Shippuden, licensed by Viz Media. Viz is owned by Shueisha, Shogakukan, and Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions of Japan and is one of the leading publishers of manga in the U.S. The seven-piece unisex collection, centered on t-shirts, was released at Spencer’s, which also sells a broader range of Trippie Redd 1400 products.
- Megan Thee Stallion’s second merchandise drop with Popeye’s, the partner for her Hottie Sauce, was the Animegan collection, released in November 2021. The capsule included a t-shirt, hoodie, plush figure, bandana, and tote featuring anime-style graphics of the musician created by McFlyy. They were sold through the custom ecommerce site TheeHottieSauce.com. Separately, the rapper teamed with Crunchyroll in 2020 to create a line that featured anime-style images inspired by visuals from the music video for her song Savage. The six-piece, limited-time capsule included t-shirts, a long-sleeved t-shirt, hoodies, and a tote bag.
Rappers have been involved in anime and manga projects beyond fashion collections as well. As part of his promotional partnership with Axe body spray in 2023, Lil Baby starred in a custom manga called Shōnen Baby that could only be accessed by buying an Axe product. (The shōnen genre of manga is aimed, like Axe, mainly at teenage boys.) And Megan Thee Stallion, who watches anime daily, has mentioned the genre in her music, and often is inspired by anime in her fashion choices, had a high profile at Crunchyroll’s 2024 Anime Awards as the presenter of Anime of the Year, won by Jujutsu Kaisen.
Comments are closed.