The Mind Behind Kanye West's 'The Life of Pablo' Merch Finally Speaks Up

For quite some time many have been curious to know the mind behind Kanye West’s highly coveted The Life of Pablo merchandise and that moment is finally here. Currently residing in LA, the 43-year-old Cali Thornhill DeWitt is no stranger to working with notable names as he has previously served as a roadie for Courtney Love’s band, Hole, and also played the role of babysitter for Love and Kurt Cobain’s daughter, Frances Bean Cobain. He also made an appearance on the cover of Nirvana’s In Utero project dressed in drag.

Nonetheless, it was shown that DeWitt gained the attention of Kanye West during Tidal’s launch event in March of 2015 as Yeezy sported a commemorative sweatshirt in honor of his late mother — one sporting the widely recognized font we’ve seen on Yeezy’s The Life of Pablo merch. Almost a year later, a frenzy was created due to the heavily sought-after merchandise at West’s Yeezy Season 3/The Life of Pablo reveal, which took over Madison Square Garden in New York.

In a discussion with Vogue regarding his work on the merchandise, DeWitt expressed his gratitude toward West and his camp, recalling a conversation with ‘Ye where he states “whether we do this or not, I appreciate your reaching out,” knowing that they could’ve easily just taken the styling and produced it themselves.

DeWitt also touches upon the thrill of having less than five days to come up with final designs to hand in for Yeezy’s MSG takeover and touches on the foundation behind his work: paying respect to those who’ve passed away.

To find about more about Cali Thornhill DeWitt, check out the piece in its entirety over at Vogue’s website.