In 2022, Harlem fashion icon Dapper Dan and Gap teamed up for the first time to release a limited edition “DAP GAP” hoodie. The two have dropped a few collections since then, though their latest one for Spring 2024 is their largest yet.
The upcoming 22-piece collection features a Western-inspired theme that pays homage to the “original cowboy.” Though this is rarely depicted in media, historians estimate that around 1 out of every 4 cowboys were Black. The term cowboy itself originated as a pejorative, as only African American cowboys were called cowboys and White cowboys were called cowhands.
To capture this cowboy aesthetic, Dapper Dan designed a collection of denim pieces inspired by Gap’s archival denim. This includes a Western-style denim button-down shirt, a denim kimono jacket, and a houndstooth icon denim jean jacket with matching straight fit pants.
The DAP GAP logo hoodie continues to be at the heart of the collaboration, making its return in four new colorways. It’s Dapper Dan’s mission to destigmatize the hoodie in the community that inspires him most, reclaiming it as a symbol of the shifting views in clothing and brand identity in culture today.
“At certain points in history, the hoodie had been used to represent the dark side of our culture, so this partnership with Gap presents it in a way that shows you can wear a hoodie and be fly, be international, and elegant,” says Dapper Dan. “This new installation also symbolizes universal love and unity. You’ll see every single piece of this collection was created with love and intention down to the updated logo stitched inside each garment. We are in the present preparing for the future because this brand, this collaboration, is about bringing everybody together. We were some of the original cowboys. But we are also the faces of the world to come — we are the urban cowboys.”
The announcement of the new collection is accompanied by a 2-minute film shot by Ghanaian-American creative Joshua Kissi that features the many faces of the community who live in Harlem’s historic Graham Court apartment building.
The DAP GAP Spring 2024 collection will be available February 9th at 12pm ET on gap.com. Seven GAP stores nationwide will also be carrying the collection:
- Times Square, NYC
- 85th & 3rd, Bay Plaza, Bronx
- Gap Outlet at 125th Street, Harlem
- 2 Folsom, San Francisco
- Gap Grove, Los Angeles
- Tyson’s Corner Center, Washington, DC
Check out the short film, campaign photos, and product images below.
