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Kanye West has been called a lot of things. These days, the names people call him include anti-Semitic, unhinged, Nazi sympathizer, and a bunch of other things that aren’t publishable. But, before the shit hit the fan for the now-hated rapper Kanye, he had some pretty cool nicknames, including but not limited to:
- Ye
- Yeezy
- Saint Pablo
- The LeBron of Rhyme
- K-Rock
- Omari
- The Black Zac Efron
- Evel Kanyevel
- Swag King Cole
- Malcolm West
- Ye Guevara
- Yandhi
- The Day Ice Cube Met Michael Jackson
- The Abomination of Obama’s Nation
But one important Kanye nickname stands out among the rest: The Louis Vuitton Don. Since the very beginning of the hip-hop genre, it seems that rappers have had a strange obsession with Louis Vuitton. The French fashion house, with its iconic “LV” logo, has become a ubiquitous symbol of wealth and success, probably because they charge outrageous prices.
Some Louis Vuitton handbags carry five-figure price tags, and a specific bag known as the Urban Satchel is apparently worth $150,000. Why would you spend that much money on something that’s going to get filled with tampons, loose Advil pills, broken sunglasses, used tissues, and a few nickels?
Anyway, as we all know, rappers love to show off their wealth, and wearing Louis Vuitton is just one way of doing so. And, if they’re going to wear Louis Vuitton, they need to talk about wearing Louis Vuitton. And they can’t just tell their friends about their Louis Vuitton. They need to tell the entire world about it by writing it into a song. So, let’s look back at 6 hip-hop songs that mention Louis Vuitton, starting with one by The Don himself.
1. Kanye West “Last Call” (2004)
Lyrics: “I’m Kan, the Louis Vuitton Don / Bought my mom a purse, now she Louis Vuitton Mom”
So, another thing that rappers love to do is brag about stuff that they bought for their mothers. And the unhinged, conservatorship-needing Kanye (yes, he was still referred to as Kanye back in 2004) checks off both boxes here: talking about Louis Vuitton and talking about buying stuff for his mom. This was also the first time that Ye referred to himself as “The Louis Vuitton Don” (at least publicly), and the name really stuck.
The song “Last Call” appeared on Kanye’s debut album, The College Dropout, which won Best Rap Album at the Grammys. Whether or not Kanye actually bought his mom a Louis V purse before the album came out is unclear, but he could definitely afford one after the smashing success of The College Dropout.
2. 2 Chainz “Birthday Song” (2012)
Lyrics: “When I die, bury me inside the Louis store”
“Birthday Song” is undoubtedly one of the masterpieces of 2 Chainz’s career. This song represented an era of rap when we were transitioning from serious and lyrical rappers like Jay-Z and 50 Cent to the current climate of rap, which can be summed up by the song “WAP” by Cardi B. “Birthday Song” was 2 Chainz saying, “I’m gonna say a bunch of ridiculous shit on the track, and people are gonna love it.” And we did.
It takes a serious love of Louis Vuitton to want to be buried inside of one of their stores. And I’m not sure that Louis Vuitton’s representatives would be thrilled knowing that there’s a dead body in their store. Nonetheless, the 2 Chainz lyric still sounds pretty hard. And, by the way, this song also features The Louis Vuitton Don himself, Kanye West. It was only right.
3. Pop Smoke “Christopher Walking” (2020)
Lyrics: “Don’t make me pull up with the stick / I got a Louis V bag to match with the fit”
First off, the feeling that Pop Smoke’s voice gives you can only be described by that emoji that’s blowing air out of its nostrils. I don’t care if you’re a 4-foot-tall accountant or you decorate cupcakes for a living. When you’re listening to Pop Smoke, you are the toughest person that’s ever lived. And, it’s worth noting that, despite being a Caucasian freelance writer, I was listening to the song “Christopher Walking” and feeling like an absolute badass when I came up with the idea for this article.
Unfortunately, Pop Smoke was tragically killed in 2020. But, before he left this Earth, he got a little taste of the high life. In fact, Pop Smoke was pictured wearing Louis Vuitton on several occasions, accompanied by some very large and expensive pieces of jewelry.
4. Skepta “That’s Not Me” (2014)
Lyrics: “I used to wear LV / I put it all in the bin ‘cause that’s not me”
For our U.S. audience, Skepta is one of the forefathers of the rap genre from across the pond known as “U.K. Drill.” In fact, some even credit Skepta with inventing this style of rap. So, it’s no surprise that this rapper, who’s known for paving his path, would go against the trend of glorifying Louis Vuitton. In fact, he says that he even threw his multi-thousand-dollar threads in the garbage!
It should be noted that the song “That’s Not Me” isn’t actually U.K. Drill but another genre known as “Grime,” which is also a product of the United Kingdom. Regardless, hearing a rapper say that they don’t like Louis Vuitton is sort of like hearing a mouse say that they don’t like cheese. It’s hard to comprehend. But despite saying that he threw away all of his Louis V, Skepta has actually been photographed wearing the French fashion house several times since “That’s Not Me” was released. I guess he came back around.
5. 50 Cent “Ghetto Quran” (1999)
Lyrics: “Helicopters, Rolls-Royces with Louis Vuitton interior / Might sound like I’m fantasizing but, son, I’m dead-serious”
Now, to bring it back a couple of decades, let’s look at a time when 50 Cent was telling stories of life growing up in Queens. The song “Ghetto Quran” is apparently about a notorious drug kingpin named Thomas Mickens, who controlled the drug trade in Queens for about a decade, earning himself the nickname “Tony Montana” (a reference to the 1983 film Scarface). In this song, 50 Cent tells of the opulent lifestyle that this caliber of drug dealers can afford to live.
And, of course, lining a Rolls-Royce with Louis Vuitton fabric sounds unnecessarily expensive to most of us. However, 50 assures us that this is the kind of luxury that drug dealers live in. But ultimately, this song is a warning for those who get involved in the drug game. Sooner or later, everyone ends up either dead or in jail.
6. Lil Uzi Vert “Seven Million” (2016)
Lyrics: “Might need a better dude /Louis Vuitton, the Gabana, Prada, the better shoes”
Now, let’s return to the current era of rap, when it doesn’t matter what you say as long as your flow is weird and interesting. And that’s exactly why Lil Uzi Vert is able to list off the names of a bunch of designer brands, and it sounds super cool.
Of course, most people connect Uzi with the Balenciaga brand after videos of him recording a song about Balenciaga in a Balenciaga store went viral. However, it seems that Lil Uzi doesn’t discriminate. As long as it’s a wildly expensive designer brand, Uzi is about it. And that includes Louis Vuitton.
