Dior Partners With Rapper IDK to Dress 25 Music-Business Students
Enrolled in No Label Academy’s two-week mini-course at Harvard University.
In partnership with rapper Jason “IDK” Mills and nonprofit No Label, Dior will dress 25 students from diverse backgrounds enrolled in an “innovative educational course” under No Label Academy, according to WWD.
After partnering with No Label for the first time last year, IDK announced in May that he would revive the organization’s academic arm, with a two-week, tuition-free music business course for students in America. The seminar, which is open to BIPOC students aged 18 to 25, will take place at Northwest Labs at Harvard University. “Basically, I saw what I thought was a hole in the education system that didn’t really serve people who come from a different background,” the 31-year-old rapper told the outlet.
“This year I want to tackle the correlation between fashion and music,” IDK added. “Taking the concept of an artistic director and adding it to the concept of creating an album will create something that I believe is really important in the communication between album and fan, because these days the music is cool but how do you communicate that?”
That’s where Dior comes in. The French fashion house will craft exclusive uniforms for the students, comprising of a sweatshirt, a T-shirt composed of Sea Island cotton and chino pants. Each item features a signature Dior patch and appears in Harvard’s colors of burgundy, navy, blue and cream. Dior Explorer moccasins round out the range, with either the CD diamond or Dior oblique motifs. Here, the intention is to instill excitement in education.
“I think about it like this: I didn’t like school growing up at all. Ivy League education was impossible — I didn’t even think I would graduate high school and I technically didn’t really graduate. So I said, what would make someone like me care about education?” IDK continued. “The reason why I went to school for the most part was to dress nice. I loved the feeling of people liking what I was wearing.”
IDK told WWD that this is just the beginning for No Label Academy. “I would love to do this more than just 10 days and more than just even a semester and more than just at Harvard. My goal for this in 10 years is to be in all 50 states, at Ivy League schools, HBCUs and D1 colleges and not just have me as the professor. I would be able to create a program that others could teach.”
As IDK looks to expand the program, No Label Academy’s second-annual mini-course will begin on August 19.
In more fashion news, Balenciaga’s Fall 2024 show will be held in Los Angeles.
