This is even more visible now, where each wrestler has their version of the Bullet Club t-shirt that showcases their personality through the design and aesthetics. From Kenta’s Go2Sleep t-shirt which has the BC logo and lettering to Guerrillas Of Destiny’s use of military design and colours. Or EVIL’s white on black, using the BC style of font but making a different statement using design and contrasting primary colour, to Bad Luck Fale’s Rogue General, adding to the original design with a red beret.
These may seem like simple things, but they bring attention to the individual as well as allowing the storytelling of the group to be prime. These small details are what make a good Wrestler and Drag artist. Because both are a form of art, the small details matter and also will make people want to keep buying your product.
Speaking of buying, one of the ways that Wrestling has influenced Drag in recent years has been merchandising. Over the last decade drag has become part of the mainstream and one of the ways Drag Queens, especially ones who have made it onto RuPaul’s Drag Race have made money, is through branded merchandise. This includes t-shirts, fans, makeup, and even food.
So, we have established just how much of an impact costume has on the character, storytelling, an overall view of a wrestler, so now I want to show you just how much activism has played a role in both art forms.
This can be as simple as a wrestling show raising money or awareness, such as GCW’s For The Culture, which gave a platform for underrepresented Black indie wrestlers to show what they can do, to a wrestler being part of a faction that has a political agenda in mind. But when we get down to an individual wrestler, it can be far more subtle or so in-your-face that it makes the audience stop and think.
Some of the most recent examples of this have been about the Black Lives Matter movement, something that needs to be seen on mainstream media. This has been done through armbands worn by Big E and Kofi Kingston with the names of victims of Police violence and murder, such as Breonna Taylor, Tamla Horsford, and Shukri Abdi.
Through t-shirt designs such as The Rev Ron Hunt’s which breaks it down into individual people who matter such as Black referees, managers, wrestlers, and commentators. More recently, the success of Bobby Lashley winning the WWE Championship has been celebrated online – not only as he’s one of only a handful of Black World Champions, but for the work and efforts put in by MVP to make The Hurt Business stable (which also features Shelton Benjamin and Cedric Alexander) a positive celebration of black athletes.