Bullseye with Jesse Thorn is a production of MaximumFun.org and is distributed by NPR.

It's Bullseye, I'm Jesse Thorn. These days, the look is everywhere. But the next time

you see someone in a designer logo, head to toe. Know that Dapper Dan brought you that.

When Louis Vuitton and Gucci were still scared of hip-hop, Dapper Dan bought garment bags at boutiques,

sliced them up, and made them into snorkel coats. He printed up his own Vuitton canvas and made

bucket hats and trousers. Anyone who was anyone on the streets of Harlem knew Dapper Dan's

clothes was the place for the most outrageous and extravagant styles.

If you can picture LL Cool J or Ra Kim in 1987, you're probably picturing something Dapper Dan made.

Back in the day, the labels took him to court to shut him down. Now they bring him to their offices and ask him to collaborate.

In fact, a few years ago, Gucci ran a knockoff of a classic Dapper Dan design down their runway.

35 or 40 years later, those fashion businesses want that special thing. And that's the thing that Dapper Dan has always had.

I was thrilled to get to talk to a four-real fashion legend and needless to say, when he showed up for the recording, his outfit did not disappoint.

Alright, Dan, welcome to Bullseye. Nice to have you on the show.

Oh, thank you for having me, man. I'm excited about this. All new experiences, though, take me to another level. So thanks, guys, for having me.

I got to tell you, usually when I do one of these interviews, I'm the one who has outdressed the guest.

Today, I'm just wearing a crewneck sweatshirt. And you're absolutely suited and booted. You're in New York. I can see you through a webcam. Can you tell me what you're wearing today?

Well, today I'm wearing snake skin pants. Gucci snake skin pants. I'm wearing boots by Puma. And my vests by Dapper Dan. My blazer, my leather blazers by Dapper Dan. My mascot is by Dapper Dan. I have a Gucci belt on me.

Now we're talking. You look like a million dollars. Tell me about the first piece of clothing that you remember having in your childhood. The first one that sticks out in my life and my entire life from. Yeah, when you were a kid, jeans, Wrangler jeans.

The reason Wrangler jeans was important is because it would be two actually Wrangler jeans and khakis. But Wrangler jeans as a brand name would stick out the most. The reason Wrangler jeans was so important is because we used to do the ham bone. You know the ham bonus. No, sir. The ham bone is like when the slaves.

What are you talking about like body music. That's it.

And the reason why we use jeans, the Wrangler jeans back then because of the heavy weight and the sound that it made.

So we are used to wear Wrangler jeans when we sit on the stoop or go somewhere as a geo like the school G.O. Perform and things like that. So the ham bone was very, very big when I was a kid.

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