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ComplexCon 2017 - A Quintessential Beacon for Fashion and Entertainment Enthusiasts

ComplexCon took over the city of Long Beach this past weekend! Hip -Hop and lifestyle brands joined forces under one weekend to bring a full line up of conversation starters, exclusive drops, phenomenal performances.

Now in its second year, the sold out event was hotter than before as favorite brands such as:  PumaUndefeated, Union, adidas, RevengexStorm, Billionaire Boys Club, Colette, Nike, Kimoji, and many more dropped exclusive new merchandise.

Wiz Khalifa Showed Some Love at ComplexCon! Photo Credit: ComplexCon

ASAP Ferg, Rich The Kid, Leaf, Wifisfuneral, Smoke Purp, Virgil Abloh Lavar and Lonzo Ball, Chad “Ocho Cinco” Johnson, Andre 3000, Pharrell, Riff Raff, SuperDuperKyle, Wiz Khalifa, Rich the Kid, Pusha T, Ty Dolla $ign, Travis Barker, Ronnie J, professional skateboarder Erik Koston, and Rotimi were some of the few that joined the festivities.

The Expo was full with eager fans checking out hot brands and the latest art installations! 

K-Swiss is no stranger to showcasing its clean signature style. Fans were delighted, and surprised, to hear of their collab with social media powerhouse and entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk (‘Gary Vee’).  Based on the insight that ‘entrepreneurs are the new heroes’, K-Swiss partnered with Gary Vee on two sneaker styles bearing his signature and personal design input, a distinction traditionally limited to athletes.

“Since working with K-Swiss, people keep asking me when my sneaker is coming out,” said Gary Vee.  “Well, it’s here and it’s going to be the must-have sneaker for the true hustlers. Basketball players and football players have signature sneakers, so why not entrepreneurs?”

The shoes that Vee created pays homage to a few of his favorites as well as inspirational quotes. Being a fan of the New York Jets, it's only right for the shoes to be in hunter green. One unique aspect are the words of encouragement on the bottom.

“The reaction to our Generation K campaign proved the concept that young peoples’ aspirations have changed,” said Barney Waters, President for K-Swiss.  “They’re no longer basing success on who can run the fastest, but by who is the most successful, who has the most hustle, who’s a boss.” 

A Trak and Backpack Boy Stop By The Four Loko Booth! Courtesy Photo

Four Loko booth was a party on its own. Celebs such as Riff Raff, Migos, ASAP Ferg, and more were seen around the booth drawing the crowd. As guests sampled the new flavors Riff Raff spun the wheel and gave out surprise items by SSUR, tickets to MADE LA next year, Moose Knuckles jacketMister Green high minded products to lucky winners on Saturday! 

Migos also gifted 2 solid gold Four Loko x Fools Gold records can pendants by Rory Rockmore valued at 10K each on Sunday!

McDonald’s celebrated the kid in us all with its new Buttermilk Crispy Tenders and adult-sized playground games at ComplexCon in Long Beach, CA on November 4, 2017. Photo Credit:Soul Brother

Adult attendees celebrated the kid within by enjoying an outdoor play area celebrating the McDonald's new buttermilk crispy tenders and french fries while dancing to the sounds of Bova and DJ Kiss, as well as a performance by hip-hop artist Vic Mensa. Lifestyle curator Legendary Damon joined singer/songwriter Kelis during ComplexCon. Select attendees were also gifted with an exclusive McDonald’s sneaker box. 

Photo Credit: ComplexCon

It wasn't all about the latest products either.  Throughout the day attendees enjoyed ComplexCon (versations) with artists and industry leaders like ASAP Ferg, Andre 3000, Rick Ross, actor Michael B. Jordan and more. Check out one of our favorite panels below! In a floor stopping moment, Kobe Bryant and Kendrick Lamar took over the court at the Nike experience center to discuss how basketball and music influenced their lives.

During the day, Fool’s Gold Day Off took over the Pigeons & Planes Stage with Smokepurpp and Fool’s Gold artists G-Worthy, along with A-Trak & Friends, SuperDuperKyle, A$AP Ferg, Ski Mask the Slump God, Wifisfuneral, Dreezy, and Ronnie J.  The crowd went crazy when K$ace ran through the crowd to perform his Pigeons and Planes’ performance on the roof of the Fool’s Gold booth hundreds of feet away from the stage.

The heat didn't stop there, as the sun set top artists brought the heat to the main stage. In true Pharrell fashion, the main surprise was coming. N.E.R.D fans rejoiced as the group performed for the first time in three years and announced the release of their album, No_One Ever Really Dies as they closed out night two.

N.E.R.D Did Not Disappoint!

Gucci Mane, M.I.A, and Young Thug, closed out night two with remarkable performances. Atlanta based Gucci Mane brought his signature flare to the stage and even brought out Migos. British rapper M.I.A gave an eclectic performance for the diverse crowd. 

Gucci Mane Brought His Atlanta Flavor to the West Coast! Photo Credit: ComplexCon

The weekend peaked with endless collaborations that were too difficult to pass up. Both new age brands as well as familiar faces showcased their best for the lines of sprawling fans, (over 50,000) that attended. In its second year, ComplexCon has proved that it's quite quintessential and rather miraculous as it has managed to perfectly merge a platform that serves as the beacon for the fashion and entertainment lovers. 

Photo Credit: ComplexCon

ComplexCon is the world’s largest gathering of visionary pop culture enthusiasts. Whether you were there for the expo or the performances, ComplexCon proved it's a weekend fest that's here to stay.

Other notable mentions over the weekend included: 

Extra Butter and legendary Wu-Tang Clan rapper, Ghostface, have teamed up to work on a capsule featuring AsicsTiger and New Era.


- Inspired by one of Ghostface’s many nicknames, “Pretty Toney” lent an aesthetic of extravagant yet smooth, rugged yet premium. The Extra Butter x Ghostface x AsicsTiger Gel Lyte MT ($180) was designed with the rapper’s love for leather jackets.

- DJ Khaled brought out G-Eazy to introduce a new G-Eazy song; DJ Khaled also tossed boxes of coveted Air Jordans into the crowd and even removed his own and threw them to fans to end the set.

- Hello Kitty herself, today featured Sanrio characters Keroppi and Chococat.

- Usher, Travis Barker, 2 Chainz, Michael B. Jordan, Victor Cruz, Rei Kawakubo and more shopped the floor Sunday evening.

- Steve Aoki screen printed T-shirts at the Dim Mak booth and then went to Vision Streetwear to make a surprise DJ set with secret guest badbunny.
 

- André 3000 released 100 pairs of an exclusive sneaker he made in collaboration with Tretorn and unveiled the entire collection.
 

- Daniel Ashram from Snarkitecture made an appearance in his booth.

- Jerry Lorenzo and Jaden Smith checked out the latest gear at the Fear of God booth.

- Takashi Murakami signed his Black and White Flower bags at KaiKai KiKi booth for fans.

- Pharrell gave away the new adidas Hu NMD, a collaboration between adidas Originals and Pharrell’s N*E*R*D collective that dropped at ComplexCon. N*E*R*D also made a special appearance at the adidas experience at ComplexCon.

- SuperDuperKyle made an appearance at UGG’s booth.