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Dapper Dan, New York style icon, Harlem legend, and global tastemaker knows what he likes. That includes everlasting logomania, rich and earthy colors and the reinvention of certain iconic American fashion staples–like the hoodie. And so, it’s no wonder he’s decided to release a new limited edition collaboration with the American fashion giant Gap, available December 5, 2023 in select stores and online.
As the story goes, Dapper Dan opened his Harlem boutique on 125th Street in 1982 that once became so in-demand it stayed open 24 hours a day. He quickly dressed LL Cool J, Mike Tyson, Salt-N-Pepa, Diddy, and Run-DMC, all in his own version of luxury logos. His latest Gap collaboration takes inspiration from those aforementioned roots. “I would describe it as a combination between what I'm known for and where I plan to go in the future,” he tells us by phone. “How can I take Logomania into a future space without it dominating the garments the way it has been?”
This fourth capsule expands on Dan’s previous (and of course, sell-out) hoodie drops from last year to bring something for everyone–kids included. The whole range comes in sizes toddler 2T to adult XXXL and retails from $25 to $128. Think: graphic hoodies stamped with “Harlem” and the DAP logo, matching pleated logomania sweatpants, caps and much, much more. Of the 18-piece collection, Dapper Dan is most excited about the kids’ pieces. “I often tell people my goal is not to dress bodies,” he says. “My goal is to dress young minds. And that more than anything else excites me about what we're doing now. I get an opportunity for young people to wear what represents me, and their parents are proud about it.”
Without a doubt, the hoodies, which are directly inspired by his own wardrobe, are an instant favorite of his. “The hoodie has been—especially among minority people; in fact, only among minority people—stigmatized. So the thing that I do most, is to bring life to it and elevate a look.” Dapper Dan is set on dressing up the once-casual piece, styling it with fedoras, ascots, and white shirts underneath, always with his collar popped. “It's like poetry,” he says. “You take words and use 'em in a way that they've never been used before.”
Considered a bold love letter to Harlem, the underlying message of the collection, much like the first hoodie Dapper Dan designed with Gap last year, has an overwhelmingly positive message of bringing people together. But it also represents a deeper reflection of the coded meaning of his own complex version of logomania. “My journey of fashion is a journey by way of trying to define myself,” he explains. “The journey started for me by trying to understand my spiritual self, and that's how I stumbled across logomania. When I studied all the religions in the world, I noticed that everything went back to a symbol and it made me realize the power of a symbol.” Looking at everything from the metaphysical world and the European Renaissance with Leonardo da Vinci juxtaposed with the American motto E pluribus unum, he developed his own sort of logos throughout the years.
“I believe in the power of symbols,” he says. “I believe that if we get deep down, then we'll find that we connect. We need to come together. We need to find out that spiritual geometric formula that will bring us together. So that's what it's about. That's my approach to fashion. Everything else is just an extension of that.” Following that mentality, the campaign for the collaboration includes a poetic spoken word love letter to Harlem and features a multigenerational cast of Harlem icons.
Shoppers will get their first pick of the collection at the Harlem Gap location a day before the collection drops everywhere else. And while Harlem will always be home, Dapper Dan has seen his influence firsthand, all the way down to Wall Street. “Logomania, for me and for the people who I've served throughout my career, is probably the most transformative thing that I've ever been able to touch on,” he adds. “It lets people know that you have arrived.”
The collection is sure to go quickly–shop it before it’s gone, below.
