“I am a Black man before I am a brand,” Dapper Dan, the beloved designer and tailor, declared on Instagram last week after the revelation of an $890 Gucci knit top that resembled blackface, with a black pull-up neck and grotesque red-lip caricature. “Another fashion house has gotten it outrageously wrong,” he went on. “There is no excuse nor apology that can erase this kind of insult.” Dapper Dan once famously re–mixed and matched knockoff Gucci prints and materials for members of the black community, many of whom had little or no access to the luxury brand. Just last year, in what was viewed as an effort to atone for failing to acknowledge his influence, Gucci reignited Dan’s designs and embraced him into the corporate fold with the company’s launch of his Harlem-based atelier. Now, a short time later, here we are. On Friday, Gucci CEO Marco Bizzarri high-tailed his way to Harlem to meet with Dan and a group Dan described as “90% people of color” about the blackface controversy. Afterward, Gucci said it would step up diversity in hiring, bring on an executive focused on inclusion in New York, and launch a scholarship program in 10 cities.

The Bronx, New York City, New York, U.S. Artist Julius Dubose (born December 6, 1995), known professionally as A Boogie wit da Hoodie (or simply A Boogie), is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter NEW Young P3RK Freestyle Dropping Every Month Like, Comment And Subscribe To Stay Tuned!