FROM THE DLOW CURRY TOUR TO DETROIT: THE STORY BEHIND KOLAK’S BOSSMAN DLOW TEE

The Jay Worthy Experience Brings West Coast Energy to San Jose

BOSSMAN DLOW BRINGS THE DLOW CURRY TOUR TO SAN FRANCISCO

Producer Slaps

A one-off anime comic-strip tee, a backstage roast and an Instagram Story from Detroit brought an unfinished KOLAK idea back into focus.

AUGUST 23–29, 2024 — FROM ROUGH SKETCH TO FINISHED PANEL

The original BossMan concept was already in development on August 23, 2024. At the prototype stage, KOLAK was building from the visual language of classic side-scrolling beat ’em up games, using a Streets of Rage-inspired concept to frame BossMan as the antagonist — “The Final Boss” — and KAKA as the protagonist.

The idea was bigger than a single shirt graphic. These early drawings were part of the startup phase of KAKA Adventures — KOLAK’s comic-book concept for the clothing brand, where original characters, rivalries, music references and game-inspired storytelling could connect back to the clothes.

Over the next six days, the prototype moved from loose construction sketches into a more complete comic-page treatment. By August 29, 2024, the black-and-white panel was complete, giving the concept its finished manga/comic-book structure and making the BossMan-versus-KAKA storyline much clearer.

Together, the two stages document the progression of the idea: rough sketches on August 23 → completed black-and-white panel by August 29, 2024. That timeline places the concept’s development months before the March 2025 San Francisco meet-and-greet.

On May 11, 2025, BossMan Dlow shared an Instagram Story featuring a fan-shot view from a stage performance in Detroit, Michigan. When the KOLAK Team noticed the Story, it immediately brought back a moment from earlier that spring: the opening night of the DLOW CURRY TOUR in San Francisco.

MARCH 6, 2025 — THE DLOW CURRY TOUR, SAN FRANCISCO

BossMan Dlow's DLOW CURRY TOUR began in San Francisco on March 6, 2025, with a date at The Fillmore. The KOLAK Team was there for the show and meet-and-greet.

During the meet-and-greet, the KOLAK Team personally handed BossMan Dlow a shirt the team had designed. The design drew inspiration from the visual language of a popular '90s beat ’em up game. Within KOLAK’s concept, BossMan functions as the antagonist — “The Final Boss.” The shirt translates that idea into an anime/comic-strip narrative, using fan-art-inspired imagery and a panel-based layout that runs from front to back.

There was also a second KOLAK design present that night. KOLAK’s creator wore a self-titled piece called “The Final Boss” during the meet-and-greet. That design stayed on the creator and was not shown or presented to BossMan Dlow during the interaction. The anime-panel Dlow shirt was the design directly handed to him.

FROM THE ARCHIVE: For a full look back at opening night in San Francisco — including the performances and the meet-and-greet surrounding the shirt handoff — revisit BossMan Dlow Brings the DLOW CURRY TOUR to San Francisco.

THEN CAME THE ROAST

The interaction quickly turned into one of those unpredictable backstage moments. Members of BossMan Dlow’s crew pointed at the shirt and laughed. The audio is difficult to make out, but the reaction sounded like “What the hell?” The KOLAK Team tried to read the room, expecting BossMan Dlow might check his team, but the conversation instead ended with a handshake and everyone kept it moving. That is how KOLAK remembers the meet-and-greet moment.

According to KOLAK’s recollection, after the “What the hell?” exchange, BossMan Dlow turned to KOLAK’s creator and asked, “You do comics?” The response was direct: “No, I’m a designer. My brand is KOLAK. We’re a clothing company based in Silicon Valley. Check us out.”

There was no business card exchanged, no direct contact information shared and no follow-up interest established in that moment. The introduction ended with essentially one thing left behind: the KOLAK name.

At that point, the KOLAK Team did not believe the moment would lead to anything public later.

APRIL 29 — THE DM THAT CHANGED THE READ

On April 29, 2025, during the tour, BossMan Dlow posted an Instagram Story saying he was looking for a designer. The KOLAK Team responded immediately.

“Say less! What are your measurements and where to send customs to?”

A second reply followed: “CHECK ME OUT.”

KOLAK also sent a post from @johnsprague_ace from LAFW25 to show BossMan Dlow the work behind the brand. In the post, the model is wearing a replica of the anime Dlow shirt — the same game-inspired concept the KOLAK Team had previously created around the Dlow character and handed to him at The Fillmore. The message was meant to put the design language directly in front of him and show that KOLAK was ready to build custom pieces from that world.

No reply came back.

That silence became important later. At the time, it was simply unanswered outreach. But once the KOLAK Team saw the character-select screen during BossMan Dlow’s May 11 Detroit performance, the April 29 exchange took on a different meaning for the team.

That is where the tension — or belief — really began for KOLAK. The team started wondering whether the visual overlap was a coincidence, an alley-oop, a slight diss or something that felt closer to a “stole my design” moment.

KOLAK presents that as its own interpretation of the sequence of events, not as proof that BossMan Dlow or his team copied or stole the design.

DETROIT BROUGHT THE MEMORY BACK

Then came Detroit.

When the May 11 Instagram Story appeared, the KOLAK Team immediately thought back to The Fillmore. During the performance, a character-select screen appeared onstage — a visual that strongly echoed the game-inspired selection concept behind KOLAK’s original shirt design.

That was the moment the KOLAK Team started wondering whether what it was seeing was a playful alley-oop, a slight diss or something that felt a little too close to the creative idea KOLAK had previously shown. In the moment, the thought was essentially: “Did he steal my design?”

KOLAK presents that as the KOLAK Team’s reaction to the visual similarity — not as a factual allegation that BossMan Dlow or his team copied or stole the design. The Detroit moment simply felt close enough to the original character-selection concept to bring the memory of the San Francisco handoff rushing back.

Within KOLAK’s creative interpretation, the Detroit night played almost like a beat ’em up character-select screen: three characters were chosen, and all three occupied boss roles inside the game-inspired universe. Seeing that sequence during BossMan Dlow’s Detroit performance brought the original concept back into focus — Dlow as “The Final Boss”, surrounded by a cast built around the same boss-level energy.

For KOLAK, that visual callback is what connected the two moments: the shirt handed over in San Francisco and the character-select imagery seen later in Detroit.

FROM ONE-OFF TO POSSIBLE LIMITED RELEASE

The anime comic-strip tee was never meant to disappear into the archive forever. The concept had originally been considered for a public release, but that release never happened at the time.

That may change.

KOLAK is keeping the idea in the archive for a possible future drop. If the concept returns, it would be approached as a limited release for a limited time only — not a permanent product and not an endless restock.

The goal would be to preserve the original energy of the piece: anime panels, comic-book composition, fan-art-inspired character treatment and the feeling of a one-off garment created for a specific cultural moment.

STRAIGHT FROM THE KOLAK ARCHIVE

For KOLAK, this story isn't about whether somebody loved the shirt, roasted it or fully understood the idea at the time. It's about making something before you know exactly where the story will lead.

A shirt designed for a meet-and-greet in San Francisco. A conversation that continued on Instagram. A Detroit Story that brought the memory back. And a design still sitting inside the KOLAK archive, waiting for another life.

Maybe the first version wasn't the end of the story.

KOLAK ARCHIVE
SAN FRANCISCO → DETROIT
03.06.2025 → 05.11.2025

The referenced shirt was independently designed by KOLAK. This Archive story does not announce an official BossMan Dlow collaboration, endorsement or merchandise partnership. Any future commercial version would be released only in a form KOLAK is legally entitled to offer.