Jackson Wang on Design, Art and China – WWD

Shanghai – For Jackson Wang, Hong Kong-born singer and director of fashion lifestyle label Team Wang, work and play merged seamlessly this summer.

After releasing a capsule collection for his brand called “Sparkles — Mudance”, Wang held a party at Singapore’s biggest nightclub Marquee to celebrate and introduce new artists such as Laurie, Zenzu, Boitoy and local beatboxing champion Darney under his record label.

Jacky, nicknamed by Wang’s fans, appeared in the crowd dressed in Mudans clothes. “It’s becoming part of the culture in our brand. When we drop something in a region, we’re going to have a party,” Wang said.

Wang, 28, has had a busy year. In April, he made history as the first Chinese solo artist to perform at Coachella as part of the 88racing act at the music festival. This month, Wang released the second single “Cruel” from his solo album “Magic Man,” which will drop in September. In late August, Wang will co-headline 88Racing’s 2022 Head in the Cloud Festival with Rich Brian and King in Pasadena, Calif.

“For me, this is my story working,” Wang said. “I want to bring everything I do to the world, not just the music. It’s the same as designing for Team Wang. We want to bring many values ​​to the world.”

It’s the first collection to gain international traction for fashion brand Mudance, which Wang launched two years ago in Shanghai with childhood friend Henry Cheng. The capsule launched a three-month run of pop-up stores simultaneously on August 4 at Chengdu’s popular shopping destination IFS, Bangkok’s popular luxury mall ImQuarter and Singapore’s premier shopping mall Voco Orchard.

“We are a Chinese brand, but that doesn’t mean we have to stay at home all the time. The biggest part is sharing what we have and spreading our story. We have to show people what we have,” Wang said.

Swapping the brand’s signature black and white designs for a vibrant pastel pink palette, Mudans showcases vibrant digital prints of China’s national flower, the Chinese Peony Mudan. To evoke the Year of the Tiger, Wang also added a fluttering tiger tail to the print design.

The 12-piece summer collection includes floral-printed bikini sets, Hawaiian shirts, beach towels and swimwear. Popular items were immediately sold out through Team Wang’s Wechat Mini program and the brand’s official website.

“I always wanted to make a bikini, which a lot of people told me not to do. who cares? I just do it,” Wang says of his favorite pieces in the collection.

The design process for this set was deceptively fast. “I thought of it in five minutes,” Wang said. “It’s not that I don’t respect art. It just means I randomly hit my head and trust that gut feeling.

Trusting his gut has become Wang’s motto, especially after the pandemic. He is open about the “negative times” that consumed him in 2020, which changed his approach to work and life.

“Whoever I am, whatever I am, I decided to leave it behind. I wanted to start by being who I really am, and I think it’s important to be more honest with my audience,” he said. “People love me, people hate me, it happens and I accept it. But as long as it’s me, it doesn’t matter.”