At the Movies with 8103
With some of the craziest tee graphics on the Kazbah site, it’s no wonder that 8103 is one of the most sought-after underground brands in the marketplace. Seamlessly blending the hilarious with thoughtfulness, and at times the provocative, 8103 tees come off the press as hot as the Jacksonville, Florida weather in which they are born, often featuring pop-culture immortality, always dope enough to be sold in grams.
“I never killed anyone who didn’t deserve it.”
One of the baddest lines spoken in one of the baddest films ever made. Christopher Walken’s titular turn as crime boss Frank White, a.k.a. King of New York, has reached cult iconic status since 1990 with the help of The Notorious B.I.G. and soundtrack contributor Schooly D (the “Godfather of Gangsta Rap”) amongst hundreds of others sampling clips of the Abel Ferrara classic. 8103 takes it’s turn in a piece of graphic design wizardry, inspired by the infamous Park Plaza Hotel scene after Jimmy Jump and Test Tube plug bitchass King Tito (“… for the bullet holes, puto!”). Featuring the wonderfully maniacal face of Walken with an implied window-reflection of Midtown below, like the movie, we sense instant classic with this joint.
“I’ve been sitting on this design for a while, just figuring out the right way to approach it,” explained Mark Braddock, owner and lead designer for 8103. “I’ve always wanted to do a Walken tee. His style and persona always leaves you guessing. That’s the vibe I’m creating for 8103, you never know what’s going to drop next and when it does, you gotta have it.”
“As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster.”
8103 pays tribute to another cinematic masterpiece from 1990, Goodfellas, sequencing the pistol-whuppin’ scene after Henry Hill’s girl is assaulted by her jock nerd neighbor. In contrast to The King of New York Tee above, we’re loving the grainy, rugged look of the print that almost looks as though it was jacked from security camera screenshots. This D.T.M.G. Tee hits as hard as a revolver to the snout and saves you from blood on your hands (literally and figuratively).
“Another one I’ve always wanted to execute properly when [Ray] Liotta was in his prime,” Braddock said. “We’ve all seen Goodfellas shirts… but not anything like this. This shirt has a couple of subliminal messages being put out through the design. Aside from Liotta being a badass, this one goes out to all the dudes out there that’s ever wanted to beat the shit out someone for touching their girl.”
Featuring Clint Eastwood’s turn as Blondie in all-time classic Il Buono, Il Brutto, Il Cattivo (a.k.a. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly), The Outlaw Tee pops like dude’s hand-cannons in this stark black-and-white sketched print. Whereas “every gun makes it’s own tune,” this 8103 piece has The Blogs singing songs of praise not only for paying tribute to another one of our all-time favorite flicks, but for finally giving the outlaw his moment in the limelight.
Click the banner below to check out the rest of 8103’s killer fall drop, including one tee Braddock “[doesn't] think people were ready for, ha ha.”
Tags: 1990, 8103, abel ferrara, always wanted to be a gangster, baddest films, baddest lines, black and white, blondie, blood on your hands, christopher walker, classic, clint eastwood, cult, Dope, every gun makes it's own tune, favorite flick, florida, for the bullet holes, frank white, godfather of gangsta rap, goodfellas, grainy, grams, graphic design, hand cannon, henry hill, iconic, Il Brutto, Il Buono, Il Cattivo, jacked, jacksonville, jimmy jump, Jock, joint, Karmaloop, Kazbah, killer, king of new york, king of new york tee, king tito, limelight, mark braddock, midtown, neighbor, Nerd, outlaw, park plaza hotel, pistol whip, pop-culture immortality, praise, ray liotta, revolver, rugged, schooly d, security camera, singing, snout, songs, test tube, The Bad and The Ugly, the blogs, the d.t.m.g. tee, The Good, the notorious b.i.g., the outlaw tee, Tribute, underground brand
