Image via Complex Original
We’re back. After being forced to move the festivities to the virtual world throughout the pandemic, ComplexCon finally returns to the Long Beach Convention Center this weekend for the first time since 2019.
There’s going to be plenty of special installations for attendees to look forward to. And of course, there’s going to be plenty of exclusive drops you need to be sure to take advantage of too. Barriers, the bubbling brand out of New York, will be selling its new project created in collaboration with the Tupac estate. Kerwin Frost invites fans to his kingdom for special music performances and an early chance at the latest pieces from his Adidas collab. Needs a fresh fitted? Check out the Brands to Watch activation and pop by the Everything We Do Is Limited booth, or hit up Jaetips’ Savior Worldwide booth to take advantage of the limited restock of his coveted Hat Club collab. Other brands like Circulate, Tombogo, Coreal Studios, and more will be offering amazing new products too.
If you need some help trying to map out your journey around the busy convention floor this weekend, check out our list of some of the best drops taking place at ComplexCon 2021 below.
ComplexCon takes place from Nov. 6 to Nov. 7 in Long Beach, Calif. Sign up for more info and access at complexcon.com.
KNC x Champion
Price: $35-$70
At ComplexCon, the athletic label Champion will team up with the cult-favorite natural beauty brand, KNC Beauty for a limited-edition capsule collection. The range of athleisure apparel includes classic Champion Reverse Weave hoodies, crewneck sweatshirts, joggers, bike shorts, leggings, and heritage cropped T-shirts. Size-inclusive garments in the collection arrive in black, light brown, dark brown, and pink colorways. The collection’s graphics read with phrases like “Be Your Own Champion, Babe” and “All Natural,” which highlight the collection’s message of women’s empowerment, diversity, and inclusion. The collection arrives first at ComplexCon before it hits other retailers in December.
Circulate
Price: $36-$300
Corey Populus’ Circulate will be selling its Fall/Winter 2021 collection, “CirculateArts Department of Design,” in Long Beach this weekend. As the name suggests, the collection pulls inspiration from various aspects of graphic design. Items include a hoodie with a bitmap graphic covering the back, cardigans covered in colorful vertical stripes or polka dots, T-shirts with various graphic design tools printed on the chest, and an orange wool varsity jacket to celebrate the modern athlete.
Barriers x Tupac Estate
Price: $150-$300
To celebrate the 30th anniversary of 2Pac’s debut album, 2Pacalypse Now, Barriers Worldwide will release an exclusive collaboration with Tupac Shakur’s estate at ComplexCon. The capsule collection features hoodies, T-shirts and a crewneck sweater. Standouts from the upcoming drop include “All Eyez on Us” pieces, which feature a photo of Tupac on the front and an image of hands forming the shape of Africa on the back. The “Keep Ya Head Up” pieces also feature images of Tupac and words from his famous poem book The Rose That Grew From Concrete. The collection was heavily inspired by Barriers’ founder Steven Barter’s recent trip to Egypt, which will also be seen at his mesmerizing space at ComplexCon this weekend. After Barriers drops these online on Friday, they will only be available at ComplexCon this weekend.
Kerwin's Kingdom
Price: TBD
One of the must-see attractions at ComplexCon will certainly be Kerwin’s Kingdom, which is a multi-room cardboard castle built by the one and only Kerwin Frost. Yes, the entrance will even have a drawbridge and will offer a mix of retail, exhibitions, and even performances from the likes of Mac DeMarco and Tommy Wright III. The products found throughout Kerwin’s Kingdom include a limited early pre-sale of Frost’s upcoming collaboration with Adidas, a special Snack Party Mix from 7-Eleven, archival grails from Frost’s closet, and Kerwin Frost merchandise. A custom-skinned Pioneer DJ DDJ-FLX6 and Beats by Dre headphones will be displayed and raffled off to benefit the Hi, How Are You Project, a non-profit organization inspiring new conversations around mental health issues.
C'est Bon
Price: $70-$300
Mamadou Bah has tapped contemporary artist and designer Julian V.L. Gaines (a.k.a. Ju Working On Projects) for a special capsule that will be available at C’est Bon’s booth this weekend. The duo met while attending college at Northern Michigan University. Now, they have come together to create a “From The Mud to the Marble.” The capsule includes a cream canvas chore coat and matching pants, a cream graphic T-shirt, and lightwash jeans. Both pants feature a repeated money bag print alongside the phrase “Reparations” in a dripping font. The jacket sports a green C’est Bon logo badge on the left chest area and an image of a kid flying a rocket above the phrase “Our Future Is in Our Hands” on the back. The entire capsule is doesn’t with an artistic approach. It can be worn, but it could also be framed and hung on the wall of your living room.
Brands to Watch
Price: TBD
Once again, ComplexCon will host a Brands to Watch space for emerging designers and brands. Since launching in June 2019 at ComplexCon Chicago, the space has become one of the most coveted spots to be in at both ComplexCon and ComplexLand. This year Juliet Johnstone, Curves by Sean Brown, Everything We Do Is Limited, and Advisry have been selected to present their work in this space. ComplexCon attendees can expect to see a designated section for these brands on the floor this coming weekend. Each brand is slated to bring new and exclusive pieces to the festival. Check out our post on all these brands coming to ComplexCon this weekend, and read our profiles on Juliet Johnstone, Lordfubu, and Sean Brown.
Pleasures x Crocs
Price: $40-$70
Pleasures will drop its fourth collaboration with Crocs exclusively at ComplexCon this weekend. The collaboration is centered on Crocs’ All-Terrain Clog and Classic Slide. Inspired by science-fiction, the All-Terrain Clog boasts a reflective upper throughout with large “Pleasures” branding across the midsole. The punk-inspired Classic Slide features unique Jibbitz charms that look like pins one would find on a leather rocker jacket. For those who miss out on the release at ComplexCon, fans can visit Crocs.com to enter the drawing for another chance to purchase the drop starting on Nov. 16.
Back Two School Special
Price: $99 – $450
Back Two School Special will be releasing a new series of T-shirts at ComplexCon 2021. Each will feature the youthful, hand-drawn graphics by founder Gino DeConti that the brand has become known for. Images depicted include rainbows, Earth, and colorful calligraphy of “ComplexCon” to mark the occasion.
Justin Mensinger
Price: $200-$1,500
The winner of the first season of HBO’s The Hype, Justin Mensinger is bringing his one-of-a-kind patchwork creations for ComplexCon. He has collaborated with two people, Donatella Azygous and Slobby Robby. The items with Azygous include patchwork anoraks made of black and gray denim, trucker jackets, olive green military vests, and tapestry hoodies that each depict their own mix of skeleton and butterfly imagery. With Slobby Robby, Mensinger has tapped into the collaborator’s expertise in vintage clothing to re-create unique T-shirts, crewnecks, hoodies, and more, constructed of vintage Gucci items.
Round Two
Price: $40-$160
Round Two will be releasing a brand-new colorway of its popular hiking pants. The style is a maroon base with pastel detailing and Round Two spiral logos running down the back of the right leg. There will also be graphic T-shirts in similar pastel shades with clowns holding balloons that spell out “Round Two.” These pieces coincide with the theme of the popular consignment shop’s booth, a traditional carnival that will give visitors the chance to win prizes such as stuffed animals or Sean Wotherspoon x Adidas SuperEarth sneakers by playing ring toss.
Tombogo
Price: TBD
Tombogo may be a familiar name for those who attended ComplexLand last year. Co-signed by the likes of J Balvin, Bad Bunny, Teezo Touchdown, and more, Tombogo was highlighted in ComplexLand’s Brands To Watch space last year. Now Tommy Bogo returns to ComplexCon for an in-person experience. Tombogo merch exclusive to the event includes candles and limited-edition branded spray paint cans. Pieces from his breakout Fall/Winter 2021 collection will also be available for pre-order, such as his “NYC Nostalgia” and “Day n Night” knit sweater, his “Light Flare” cardigan, and a collaborative T-shirt designed with the artist Leon Xu.
Coral Studios
Price: $45-$600
Coral Studios will be dropping a handful of items including T-shirts, hoodies, and totes displaying messaging like “The Late Great Planet Earth” and “Digitally Conscious.” The standout item is a varsity jacket with a black wool body and hot pink leather sleeves that is covered in various chenille patchwork and imagery to raise awareness of the protection and preservation of coral reefs.
Savior Worldwide
Price: $50-$85
Known for his wildly popular New Era collaborations with Hat Club, Jaetips will be hosting a booth for his brand, Savior Worldwide, in Long Beach this weekend. Along with a series of new Savior products, Jaetips will also be giving fans another chance at his coveted purple and infrared Hat Club collabs that will be restocking exclusively at the booth. Other items include special edition Dodgers fitteds embroidered with LA-themed text and graphics, sweatpants, shorts, graphic T-shirts, and even Aaron Judge trading cards remixed with Jaetips’ Hat Club collab.
ComplexCon x Snapchat
Price: TBD
When attending ComplexCon access the custom AR Drop Lens via Snapchat or ComplexCon’s event app. For several drops throughout the weekend, attendees must use the Snapchat Drop Lens to scan a certain marker at a certain time for the chance to purchase an item. Attendees who scan the marker within the correct time frame will be placed in a virtual waiting room. Once time is up, winners will be selected at random from the virtual waiting room and will be notified when they have copped the drop. Items dropping through these Snapchat drops include releases from Funko, Superplastic, Ron English, Distortedd, Sheefy Mcfly, Polaroid, GPK, Astro Gaming, and FEWOCiOUS. The drops include everything from apparel to collectible art toys. However, the most coveted drop will likely be from BAPE, which will release 100 exclusive pairs of Ska8stas through this AR Drop Lens. Keep your eye out for these markers in Long Beach.
The New Blue Collar
Price: $40-$100
New York-based brand The New Blue Collar will be releasing its latest capsule, “New York To Los Angeles Fall Road Trip 2021.” Inspired by the coast to coast travel the brand will take to participate in ComplexCon weekend, the drop offers a special crewneck and tote bag bearing a travel-inspired logo that has been created especially for this release. Other wardrobe staples like snap-button collared shirts, sweatpants, and nylon pullovers from past collections will also be up for grabs.
'Squid Game' x Emotionally Unavailable
Price: $45-$110
Thankfully, there are no Squid Game-esque events happening at ComplexCon this weekend. But there is some fire Squid Game merch coming to Long Beach, courtesy of Emotionally Unavailable. The officially licensed Squid Game collaboration includes T-shirts, hoodies, long-sleeve shirts, tote bags, and hats. All the merch features Emotionally Unavailable’s branding and iconic imagery from the hit television show.