One of the biggest highlights of East Coast Connection Vol. 4 was special guest Redman. He is considered by many hip hop enthusiasts as one of the premiere hip hop artist of all time. For ECC Vol. 4 he emptied out his inventory from his storage collection and had his own booth with exclusive merchandise. Attendees got the chance to purchase merchandise that hasn’t been attainable since the time of its release. Some of the pieces included “I’ll Bee Dat!” merchandise which was a single from Redman’s fourth album “Doc’s da Name 2000” released in 1998. Throughout the day people gathered around the table waiting for their chance to get their hands on his exclusive merchandise and a conversation with the hip hop legend.
Much appreciation to Redman for being apart of another successful East Cost Connection.
Redman X Futurepastnyc X Freshkillsvintage X Spider Cuz
East Coast Connection Vol. 4 brought out the vintage community for a full day of NYC’s biggest t-shirt exchange on October 3rd. The venue was full with over 40+ t-shirt vendors and 700 shoppers/collectors. People came from all over the country and even some from overseas. Some familiar faces were even spotted during the event such as radio/TV personality Peter Rosenberg. In NYC Peter Rosenberg is best recognized for being the voice of radio station Hot 97. He is also notably known for his work with WWE as a host/commentator and for his work with ESPN/YES network covering sports. However his appreciation for vintage t-shirts is unknown to many. His love for wrestling as a child sparked his interest in vintage wrestling t-shirts. In an article with Hypebeast in 2017 Peter Rosenberg discusses his love for vintage wrestling t-shirts and how he sees an opportunity for vintage merchandise to evolve into something new. “Seeing how the merch game has become its own market is amazing, but also seeing how it’s led to a new market where you can have stuff like another collaboration between PUMA, the WWE and Foot Locker that does so well is cool too,” explains Peter Rosenberg.
Despite his love for wrestling his interest in vintage t-shirts goes beyond that and during ECC Vol. 4 Rosenberg was seen wearing a vintage Janet Jackson t-shirt.
Special thank you to Peter Rosenberg for being apart of East Coast Connection.
East Coast Connection Vol.4 was the biggest event we’ve had yet. This time it wasn’t just one day but an entire weekend with something going on each day leading up to ECC 4. The weekend started off with a kick-off party Friday night at Grand Street Local in Brooklyn, New York. The next day a special coffee & jays live stream was shot in the morning at Metropolis Vintage with @endoftheworldvintage, @champagneroomwithsinatra, and @singlestitchclub. Following at 1pm @davesdirtyclothes hosted a special installment of vintage yoga live from the Metropolis basement. Once yoga was wrapped up the basement was opened up to customers for an exclusive look at Metropolis owner Richard Colligan’s personal punk t-shirt collection. Saturday night ended with a trading pit party with a tattoo artist (@nostalgicjade) on site giving out tattoos throughout the night. This all lead up to Sunday, the most anticipated day of the weekend for the official East Coast Connection Vol.4 event.
The event took place on Sunday October 3, at the Metropolitan Pavilion in Manhattan, New York. ECC has grown so much from its inception it was only right to expand into something bigger. The venue was full with over 40+ t-shirt vendors and 700 shoppers/collectors, who bought, sold, and traded vintage t-shirts. People came from all over the country and even some from overseas! Doors opened at 9:30AM for early admission and 11AM for general admission. Early admission allowed attendees an exclusive look at what vendors had to offer while they were still setting up. By the time 11AM came around the venue was full with people & ECC Vol.4 was officially in full effect. Soon after doors opened special guest Redman arrived with pieces from his vintage storage collection. The nostalgia Redman brought to the event was like no other, with people gathering around the table waiting for first shots at his exclusive merchandise and a conversation with the hip hop legend. The infamous Spider Cuz was also a special guest bringing in that true NYC vibe with his Yankee fitted, Timberland boots, and bottle of Hennessy. The trading pit was active from start to finish and live auctions were ran during the show with a Salvatore Dali t-shirt auctioning off for $1.8k! Additionally an amazing East Coast Connection poster was created on site by talented artist @saintsoho
ECC Vol.4 poster by @saintsoho
By the end of the night everyone left with something in hand but more importantly with a smile on their face. “There is a lot of emotional attachment to tees. It is great to see a new vintage area developing with its own terminology and language. There is a need for these kinds of events. Vendors who sell 90’s vintage and t-shirts don’t always fit in with older events so they need new places to sell. And people want to come together. It is a big friendship, like a club”, Colligan says.
With each East Coast Connection the support continues to grow while new experiences and lasting memories are created. The main goal of East Coast Connection is to bring people together in the vintage community, hearing their stories, and building connections that go beyond just business. ECC Vol. 4 has helped us do exactly that.
This was the biggest vintage t-shirt expo to date here in New York City and we’re proud to be apart of bringing forth such an experience here in New York. The next East Coast Connection is in the works planned to take place around holiday time. So if you missed the last or have yet to experience an East Coast Connection get ready for what’s next. Follow our official instagram page @east_coast.connection for highlights of our previous events and stay tuned for details as we continue to post updates. Till next time✌️
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