AS MARCAS DA RUA: EXPERIÊNCIAS DECOLONIAIS DE CONSUMO NO HIP-HOP

Abstract

This thesis set out to investigate three native brands of Brazilian hip-hop culture: Phantom Laboratory, Chronic and Kace. Using Paul du Gay's Culture Circuit and decolonial epistemologies, the research sought to understand how urban fashion brands created by artists and lovers of hip-hop culture behave both in terms of their representations, construction of identity, production, regulation and consumption. Likewise, we seek to identify the aesthetic and political experiences raised by these brands in front of fans/consumers. For this, we carried out a mapping of articles published in newspapers, magazines, interviews, institutional videos, video clips of artists linked to the studied brands, their websites and profiles on Instagram and Facebook. On these platforms, we observe the interactions, comments and engagement of the followers. The expressive materialities of these brands were also analyzed through the collections, prints and models of the clothes. All this material contributed to demonstrate the possibilities and potential in a practice of production and consumption supported by anti-racist and decolonial values. The performances of these brands demonstrate how the strategies adopted are regulated by political, social, cultural and economic issues. In addition to investing in campaigns and social projects, the three companies question and criticize at all times the way in which the colonial world-system works and demand the construction of a society based on solidarity, respect for ancestry and bodies not regulated by European rationalities.