Atlanta rapper 2 Chainz had a very merry Christmas after making $2 million off his “Dabbin’ Santa” ugly Christmas sweater line.
Forbes reported that the artist earned $2 million from his holiday merchandise sales after assembling a team of 70 people to fulfill and handle orders. The rapper combined Atlanta’s latest dance craze, “dabbing”, with an ugly Christmas sweater idea to create the “dabbin’ Santa” sweater.
2 Chainz told Forbes during an interview that his Christmas clothing line success was a result of hard work and good timing. He said:
“I don’t want people to think this was an overnight success. We’ve been trying with a bunch of designs for a couple years now. This is just timing meets opportunity. There’s the whole dab thing, and Atlanta’s always been somewhere that actually moves the culture a little bit. We have been the backbone of hip-hop for the past couple years. So with dabbing coming out of Atlanta, it just began to grow legs and start moving on its own.”
Subscribe to
NextShark's Newsletter
A daily dose of Asian America's essential stories, in under 5 minutes.
Get our collection of Asian America's most essential stories to your inbox daily for free.
Unsure? Check out our Newsletter Archive.
The ugly Christmas sweater, which retailed for $40, was featured on big media outlets and supported by a number of the rapper’s friends. Marketing was key to driving sales as 2 Chainz added:
“I had a numerous amount of celebrities helping with the shirt. It was on NFL, it was on TNT, it was on ‘Good Morning America,’ it’s on ESPN. So I could not continue receiving those blessings without giving back at the end of the day.”
Riding the wave of his good Christmas fortune, 2 Chainz collaborated with Apple to create the Dabbin’ Santa app. The app also turned out to be a good idea as the rapper explained:
“Apple worked with us — it’s the fastest-cleared app in Apple history. It’s only 99 cents, and some of the proceeds go to charity. It’s a continuation of maximizing a trend.”
In the spirit of the holidays, 2 Chainz donated his wealth back to the community through his T.R.U Foundation. The foundation will help pay for a year’s rent and new furniture for Deirdre Palmetto, a disabled veteran and single mother from Palmetto Georgia. The funds also went to purchasing a minivan for a family who lost their home in a house fire.
2 Chainz elaborated on what giving back meant to him. He said:
“Like I say, actions speak louder than words. We could have spent this money on possessions, but giving a family that needs it will actually go further for them and for me.”
