A T-Shirt For People Ready to Move Beyond Lil Pump and His Gucci Gang
This Sun Ra t-shirt is for Harvard drop-outs who want total enlightenment.
The god Ben Park, of course.
As much as I Belieb in big choruses written by a team of experts, it’s important to dabble in the less popular, the more obscure genres of music. Obviously, this sort of discussion is quite nuanced and relative, but for most people (especially the frat boys who read this column; sorority tested, mother approved) the pioneer of Afrofuturism, Sun Ra, would be considered a cult hero, not a hitmaker.
The ideas that Sun Ra championed were about improving the lives of black people. The message was focused on free expression, self-awareness, and empowerment. His seminal 1973 album “Space is the Place” is a free jazz masterpiece—imaginative and basically FROM THE FUTURE. When Sun Ra combined his powers with his progressive backing band, the Arkestra, they created an undeniable shape-shifting cultural force that went on to influence everyone from Lady Gaga to Sonic Youth to Solange.
The immensely talented artist Hassan Rahim partnered with Total Luxury Spa to create merch from an imaginary series of concerts that Sun Ra Arkestra did at the Great Western Forum (merch for imaginary and amazing events: an emerging trend!). The set is a white long sleeve featuring the man himself, and a black long sleeve featuring his massive backing band. This is a reasonably simple concept—one that created some really fire t-shirts. These will sell out, so take acid and cop both immediately. Show your friends and acquaintances that you listen to real music with substance, not just Lil Pump. You may have dropped out of Harvard, but you can still achieve “Enlightenment”!
