Rapper DMC of Run-D.M.C. and longtime Hip-Hop photographer Ernie Paniccioli have entered a deal to license images to Omage, a new retrospective line of clothing.
The collection features graphic t-shirts inspired by Hip-Hop’s five elements: break-dancing, graffiti, deejaying, emceeing and knowledge of self.
The shirts, priced at $24-$32, are currently available at select retail locations.
Total Luxury Group’s subsidiary International Apparel Group recently started shipping Omage to various retailers in the United States and abroad.
“This is just beginning of the business we envisioned when we acquired IAG last month,” said Sandy Masselli, CEO of Total Luxury Group. “We look forward to continuing to build upon the foundation of Omage and DMC.”
The line will be prominently featured in over 200 mall-based D.E.M.O. stores in over 35 states.
Paniccioli, an award winning photojournalist, historian and lecturer, has covered Hip-Hop through photography since the ’70s.
In 2004, he released the critically acclaimed book Who Shot Ya: Three Decades of Hip-Hop Photographer, a collection of vintage photographs of artists, B-Boys, graffiti and various other aspects of Hip-Hop culture.
“Our mission is to educate the public about the true essence of the Hip-Hop culture through our apparel,” said IAG’s president, Janon Costley.
According to IAG, the company is also negotiating licensing deals with other well known Hip-Hop artists.