LeBron James’ latest apparel collection with Nike is directly inspired by MF DOOM and Madlib’s legendary 2004 collaborative album, Madvillainy.
The new collection consists of a hoodie and t-shirt featuring Bron’s likeness during his famous stint wearing a protective carbon fiber mask while playing for the Miami Heat in 2014. Titled the ‘Masked Menace,’ the design is a reference to the stark black-and-white cover of Madvillainy, the only full-length collaborative album between Madlib and the late DOOM. It even features a similar font and a small colored square like the original artwork.
The collection is expected to drop on March 24th, the same day as the coinciding LeBron 23 ‘Masked Menace’ sneaker. The collections make reference to his final season with Miami, during which he was recovering from a broken nose. Despite the injury, he managed to turn in several stellar games throughout the season.
LeBron has long made it known that he’s a huge fan of hip-hop. Alongside his close friendship with several big-name rappers, including Future and 2 Chainz, among others, he has also indicated in the past that he might look into putting an album together. In 2021, he shared a post on social media and said that his love for music is “INSANE” and he wanted to make a compilation record, on which he wouldn’t rap but serve as curator.
Fans of DOOM were shocked when the British-American rapper’s widow revealed that he passed away in October 2020. Despite never achieving mainstream success with his music, the rapper and producer garnered a lot of love for his distinctive flow and voice. He released several full-length collaborative records throughout his career, but his most iconic was 2004’s Madvillainy, which was released the same year as his similarly beloved solo album, Mm..Food.
