Is there a better way to display your love for a musical artist than rocking their merch? Wearing a performer’s tee or hoodie not only tells the world who you listen to: It signifies who you are, what you’re about. Better yet, it is also a special connecting tool. It’s an easy way to meet and identify fellow fans out in the wild, acting as a cultural signifier, if you will.
There’s certainly more merch to choose from than ever before. Almost every performer now has a full-on collection of pieces, ranging from skeleton-print sweatpants (Phoebe Bridgers!) to more unexpected pieces, like Lana Del Rey’s brass whistle. Their items aren’t just tees with logos slapped onto them; the pieces now act as an extension of their brand, whether it’s the specific visuals or typography used or the quirky accessories to go with them, like Drake’s Toronto Maple Leafs OVO hockey puck.
The question is: Who’s been doing the best merch design out there? Below, nine Vogue staffers scoured the retail scene to see which artists are doing personal branding the best. See if your favorite singer made the cut.
Emma Specter, culture writer
Reneé Rapp! Her Young Ex Wife tank tops make me want to be married and divorced.
Hannah Jackson, fashion writer
Boygenius really knows their audience with their variety of merch. From their monster-truck T-shirt to biblically accurate angel and girly Y2K-friendly script tees, there’s a piece for everyone. The trio—Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, and Julien Baker—clearly knows the value of funny yet well-designed pieces, and the fact that they make a variety shows just how savvy they are.
Christian Allaire, senior fashion and style writer
Beyoncé’s assortment of Renaissance merch was the hottest collection of the summer. I’ve seen it countless times in the wild—at an airport, in a restaurant, on the subway. Whoever designed the graphic tees totally captured the silver, disco-ready feel of the tour. My favorite piece of merch is the Beyoncé tee I picked up at the Toronto show; on the back, it reads, “We shut the city down.”
Abrigail Williams, audience development coordinator
After Phoebe Bridgers reposted a pic of a fan wearing her skeleton sweatpants—captioned “[Phoebe Bridgers] owns my ass, literally”—the bony bottoms have become somewhat of an inside joke. It’s Juicy Couture tracksuit coded and the one piece of merch I’m begging Miss Bridgers to restock in all sizes—even though I know she’s living it up as one-third of Boygenius right now.
Suzie Lechtenberg, vice president, global audio
This kind of niche, but Devendra Banhart’s merch is always either funny-quirky or pretty.
Sarah Spellings, fashion news editor
The best merch feels really on-brand. I don’t know if there’s a better example than Lana Del Rey’s store. It has a pretty tight edit, but everything makes sense. A brass whistle? Sure. A racing jacket? Why not? A pill case? What did you expect! Everything the A&W in your life would need.
Laia Garcia-Furtado, senior fashion news editor, Vogue Runway
A highlight of the year was seeing Le Tigre at Brooklyn Steel in their first tour in 18 years. Their first record came out when I was in high school, so I was fully ready to indulge in my teen-girl feelings (which, when it comes to matters of Le Tigre, are remarkably similar to my adult-woman feelings). At first I wasn’t going to buy any merch, but after seeing a few people in the audience rocking the tank, I knew I needed to get it. I loved it the most because it’s such a cheeky take on the viral Prada and Loewe tank tops that have been all the rage lately—another way to bridge my teen-girl with my adult self.
Taylor Anderson, associate manager, social media
There simply cannot be a conversation about the best artist merch without mentioning Tyler, the Creator. His fashion and lifestyle brand, Golf Wang, has gained a cultlike following for a reason. Think pastels and fun, bold prints on high-fashion streetwear pieces.
Irene Kim, production and editorial coordinator, Vogue Runway
While I’ve never seen Blackpink live in concert, I do have some merch, thanks to my wonderful colleague Christian. I just remember when Christian was texting me the options, from light sticks to hand sanitizer to T-shirts—they were really on a level I’ve never seen before. Plus, their merch is so cute that the girls were spotted a number of times opting to wear their tees over the custom designer pieces their superstar stylists pulled.
