Musicians these days have a very difficult time selling their music; most of it falls victim to piracy. That’s why it’s more important now than ever before to sell as much merchandise – shirts, posters, buttons, etc. – as humanly possible. Some bands are better at this than others, but one band stands above them all: Insane Clown Posse.
One of the most impressive things about the Insane Clown Posse isn’t their success, their hatchetman logo, their enormous Juggalo fan base, their own festival, their wrestling league or their expansive record label -- it’s their unprecedented line of merchandise, or ICP gear. That’s why artist merchandise like ICP’s gear is so important – it goes a long way in making up for lost revenue from illegally downloaded CDs.
Necessity of the Hatchetman
Merchandise is much easier to sell when there’s a recognizable brand or logo plastering the item. When people like associating with your brand, they’ll take every opportunity they can to do so. Most artists have logos built around their name, but nothing more.
What makes ICP exceptional is that they have a band name, an aptly named record label (Psychopathic Records), a name for their fans (Juggalos), and a maniacal cartoon (the hatchetman) to brand it all with. That’s why all of the Joker’s Card faces are so crucial to the success of Insane Clown Posse.
If it weren’t for Insane Clown Posse member Shaggy 2 Dope sitting down and sketching the now famous hatchetman logo on a napkin back when the band was just getting started, ICP gear would not have nearly the significance it does today.
Product Variety
Aside from having multiple brands, the objective for every band should be to have as many individual products to sell as possible. If we were to list all of the hatchetman-branded ICP gear items out, it would take up multiple pages. The fact is, Insane Clown Posse members Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope realized the importance of diversifying their line of ICP gear early on, and today, there’s a multitude of ICP gear out there.
ICP Gear Diversification
Yes, Insane Clown Posse has branded traditional items like clothing, jewelry and accessories with the hatchetman as part of their ICP gear line. And, also to be expected, ICP’s gear line is stocked with all of the music and other media like books and movies they’ve put out under the Insane Clown Posse name over the years.
Not to be expected -- and this is what makes them so unique among bands today – is the collectibles section they’ve built into the ICP gear line. Insane Clown Posse comic books and action figures based on characters in those comic books have become something that diehard Juggalos pine for regularly.
Insane Clown Posse have even gotten creative with their traditional ICP gear items like clothing, extending it to include items like backpacks, wallets, and school supplies. Back to branding, much of these items are stamped with a Joker’s Card face or the hatchetman.
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Horror rap duo Insane Clown Posse have made a name for themselves not only in music, but also through their impressive merchandise line of ICP gear, mostly branded with the famous hatchetman and joker’s cards faces. To learn more aboutICP Gear or the hatchetman, please visit the band’s website at http://insaneclownposse.com/
Showing posts with label free hip hop. Show all posts
Showing posts with label free hip hop. Show all posts
Monday, October 3, 2011
Juggalo Documentary: A Family Underground
How many artists can boast that they have an entire musical festival to their name? Or a giant family of underground followers. Very few, but Insane Clown Posse can!
Gathering of the Juggalos is one of the largest music festivals in the country, and has been around for 12 years. Every year, tens of thousands of Juggalos (referred to as a family underground when spoken of collectively) flock to the Gathering of the Juggalos music festival, hosted somewhere in the Midwest.
And the family underground knows how to party. Don’t believe it? Just watch the 2008 documentary A Family Underground.
“Whoop whoops,” oil wrestling, late night parties and more are all documented in A Family Underground. The film does a great job of providing insight into the legitimate family that horror rap duo Insane Clown Posse has created. The Family Underground label isn’t just because it’s a large group of fans in the same place at the same time; there’s more to it than Insane Clown Posse appreciation.
The Gathering of the Juggalos Family Reunion
As Juggalos explain in A Family Underground, the family terminology is used because there’s a sense of unity amongst Juggalos. They all feel misunderstood, and have had to face enough BS in life that coming together with like-minded people creates a wonderful sense of belonging. One festival attendee in the documentary says there’s incredible openness between Juggalos too; people talk about their problems like they were having heart to heart conversations with life-long friends.
It doesn’t hurt that the Juggalos who make up the Family Underground have a lot in common with each other either. They’re fans of Insane Clown Posse’s music, horror rap in general, wrestling, Faygo soda, face paint, and causing mayhem. Put these people in the same enclosed area for four days in August and it will be unforgettable.
That’s not to say they come from many different walks of life. The video loosely follows a British couple in their early 30s around who took time off from work to come to the Gathering of the Juggalos. When Shaggy 2 Dope drives by in a golf cart, both of the Brits say they can go home happy now, and are visibly in awe for a considerable amount of time after. If that wasn’t good enough, the couple is unofficially married by Insane Clown Posse member Violent J at the end of the video.
In fact, wrestling has been so ingrained in the Gathering of the Juggalos music festival and Insane Clown Posse culture that there’s a wrestling league within it all. Juggalo Championship Wrestling (originally Juggalo Championshit Wrestling) plays host to epic rematches and world famous WWF wrestlers at every Gathering of the Juggalos festival. Blood and guts galore are displayed to much delight.
Juggalo Empire is Only Growing
Insane Clown Posse members Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope deserve a lot of credit for doing what they’ve done. Not many artists can say they’ve yet or ever will build a cult-like following consisting of fans as devoted as the Family Underground. With the 12th Insane Clown Posse album releasing in 2012, there’s no end to the Family Underground’s expansion in sight.
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A Family Underground is a 2008 documentary directed by Paul Andresen about the Insane Clown Posse’s musical subculture. Featuring interviews with similar artists, fans in attendance and local bystanders, it provides an insider view to this hidden Family Underground. To learn more Insane Clown Posse, or their Juggalo followers and the Family Underground as a whole, please visit their website at http://insaneclownposse.com/!
Gathering of the Juggalos is one of the largest music festivals in the country, and has been around for 12 years. Every year, tens of thousands of Juggalos (referred to as a family underground when spoken of collectively) flock to the Gathering of the Juggalos music festival, hosted somewhere in the Midwest.
And the family underground knows how to party. Don’t believe it? Just watch the 2008 documentary A Family Underground.
“Whoop whoops,” oil wrestling, late night parties and more are all documented in A Family Underground. The film does a great job of providing insight into the legitimate family that horror rap duo Insane Clown Posse has created. The Family Underground label isn’t just because it’s a large group of fans in the same place at the same time; there’s more to it than Insane Clown Posse appreciation.
The Gathering of the Juggalos Family Reunion
As Juggalos explain in A Family Underground, the family terminology is used because there’s a sense of unity amongst Juggalos. They all feel misunderstood, and have had to face enough BS in life that coming together with like-minded people creates a wonderful sense of belonging. One festival attendee in the documentary says there’s incredible openness between Juggalos too; people talk about their problems like they were having heart to heart conversations with life-long friends.
It doesn’t hurt that the Juggalos who make up the Family Underground have a lot in common with each other either. They’re fans of Insane Clown Posse’s music, horror rap in general, wrestling, Faygo soda, face paint, and causing mayhem. Put these people in the same enclosed area for four days in August and it will be unforgettable.
That’s not to say they come from many different walks of life. The video loosely follows a British couple in their early 30s around who took time off from work to come to the Gathering of the Juggalos. When Shaggy 2 Dope drives by in a golf cart, both of the Brits say they can go home happy now, and are visibly in awe for a considerable amount of time after. If that wasn’t good enough, the couple is unofficially married by Insane Clown Posse member Violent J at the end of the video.
In fact, wrestling has been so ingrained in the Gathering of the Juggalos music festival and Insane Clown Posse culture that there’s a wrestling league within it all. Juggalo Championship Wrestling (originally Juggalo Championshit Wrestling) plays host to epic rematches and world famous WWF wrestlers at every Gathering of the Juggalos festival. Blood and guts galore are displayed to much delight.
Juggalo Empire is Only Growing
Insane Clown Posse members Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope deserve a lot of credit for doing what they’ve done. Not many artists can say they’ve yet or ever will build a cult-like following consisting of fans as devoted as the Family Underground. With the 12th Insane Clown Posse album releasing in 2012, there’s no end to the Family Underground’s expansion in sight.
--
A Family Underground is a 2008 documentary directed by Paul Andresen about the Insane Clown Posse’s musical subculture. Featuring interviews with similar artists, fans in attendance and local bystanders, it provides an insider view to this hidden Family Underground. To learn more Insane Clown Posse, or their Juggalo followers and the Family Underground as a whole, please visit their website at http://insaneclownposse.com/!
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