Infamous rapper PG One is pivoting to fashion

The world hasn’t heard any new music from Chinese rapper Wang Hao 王昊, a.k.a. PG One, for months. After he apologized for vulgar lyrics and removed his songs from all streaming service platforms in January, the controversial rapper pretty much disappeared from showbiz. During his prolonged hiatus from music, Wang made an unsuccessful comeback to social media in April, with his return post only lasting on the internet for a few hours.

Probably seeing no imminent resolution to his dying music career, PG One has turned his energy to DeeVan, his new fashion line that has proven to be wildly popular amongst his diehards.

The label’s first collection, all modeled by PG One, was unveiled on Taobao on August 13. It consists of items like streetwear hoodies ($70), T-shirts ($38), and caps ($41). The design is minimalistic, featuring limited color options, including black, white, and pink. Every piece is embroidered with “I’M NOT PG ON1,” but there’s no explanation of what that exactly means.

As of 6:30 p.m. on Monday, about a half-hour after the pre-sale started, 2,740 hoodies, 2,770 T-shirts, and 1,899 caps were booked, racketing up an incredible amount of sales (2.6 million yuan, or $378,000).

It’s hard to fathom someone honestly appreciating the brand’s vanilla design, so it’s safe to assume that DeeVan only appeals to PG One’s devoted fanbase, which continues to rally around the controversial rapper no matter what happens to him. Now the only questions is: How soon will PG One be allowed to drop a new track before his fans’ patience wears thin?