Prince’s late-career clothing designers create 1999-inspired apparel

Coinciding with the release of the highly-anticipated Super Deluxe reissue of Prince’s iconic double album, 1999, the Estate has commissioned the Toronto design duo of Cathy Robinson and Lori Marcuz—known by their studio name Call & Response—to create an evocative, hand-crafted collection of custom jackets, vests and hand-dyed tunics exclusively for Prince’s fans.

Starting in the early 2010s, as Prince’s music morphed into a rawer, more rock-oriented blues sound, he started wearing an evolving collection of textured, distressed jackets that resembled the ’60s wardrobes of Jimi Hendrix and Sly and the Family Stone.

Though the public didn’t know it at the time, these striking jackets were a signature creation of Call and Response Clothing, who outfitted Prince in countless pieces from 2011-2016 — from his incendiary HITNRUN shows with 3RDEYEGIRL to the #GRAMMYS, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and Saturday Night Live.

“It was like being in the middle of a creative maelstrom,” remembers Cathy Robinson, who runs Call & Response with fellow designer Lori Marcuz. “There were no mood boards, no story lines, just raw visceral design.”

With all of the excitement surrounding the expanded reissue of 1999, Cathy and Lori were honored to continue to create new pieces based on their profound creative connection to Prince and their appreciation of his 1999 era.

The pieces evoke some of Prince’s trademark fashion elements from the era—including his famous shiny, studded purple trench coat—but are updated with Call & Response’s attention to textured fabrics, overlays, and detail.

See the full line of Call & Response’s 1999 designs here: store.prince.com