Merch is so ingrained within the world of album releases that practically every new record
also gives birth to a T-shirt line. (In recent years, the practice of bundling limited tees with album purchases to goose chart numbers has given rise to even more merch.) Lots of artists have done it: Travis Scott, Taylor Swift, and Tyler, the Creator, just to name a few. It got so out of hand, Billboard changed how album sales are counted so merch bundles weren’t included.
Naturally, Drake is up to something else entirely. Forget merch—the guy is, outside of Kanye, basically unparalleled when it comes to fusing his artistic output with his status as one of the world’s most insatiable and eclectic shoppers. In January, he and Future released “Life Is Good,” which was basically a love song for his latest cop (a Virgil Abloh-customized Patek Philippe Nautilus.) The video for his latest track “Laugh Now Cry Later” is quite possibly one of the greatest Nike commercials ever made. And now, on Instagram, Drake is teasing a line of merch, seemingly made in collaboration with Nike, for his upcoming album Certified Lover Boy.
