RK joins Le Cercle PXP
RK, from child prodigy to accomplished artist
If we had to list the favorite passions of urban youth in France, football and rap would surely be at the top. Countless references from rappers to footballers appear in tracks. We also notice that more and more footballers seek to get closer to the rap world, appearing in clips, showcases, or concerts. The main reason for this connection is simple: football and rap have flooded the suburbs, which are the main sources of talent in both music and sport. For youth from the outskirts often victims of prejudice, rap and football represented two obvious ways out to rise socially and gain recognition. RK, a proud son of the city of Meaux in the 77, practiced both intensively in his youth. To the point of considering becoming a pro, before being held back by injuries and street life. Ultimately, he turned to rap but always kept an eye on the world of football. And we can say he made the right choice: his first track, released in 2017, is called “1ère mi-temps #RiyadMahrez,” named after the Algerian winger playing for Manchester City. A real hit for the young rapper, who had been practicing rap since he was very young to emulate the greats from his neighborhood.
A hit that caught the attention of Sofiane, a kind of Arsène Wenger of 2000s rap who spotlighted so many talents. It must be said that RK and Fianso had everything to get along, starting with a true love for very fast, aggressive kick flows, sometimes shouting, like in the era of great trap bangers. After that, everything happened very quickly: a series of freestyles named after the buildings in his Meaux neighborhood, a major rap hub since the 90s. Then a first project, “Insolent,” which went platinum in a few months. Very quickly, it became clear that RK started to evolve his music, adding more melodies with his voice, more musicality in the beats, even if the kick flow remained on many tracks. A winning formula with which he regularly reaches 20 million views on his clips. At that time, it was 2018, the rapper was only 16 and his success was already huge. One might have thought success went to his head and he’d rest on his laurels, but not at all: the second project came a few months later, in April 2019, called “Rêve de Gosse.” With big hits like “Rédemption” and “C’est mon sang” featuring Fianso, the prodigy hit hard again and scored big. Then came the third project, “Neverland,” released in summer 2020.
Again, RK took a step forward, especially in communication. More present, he was more comfortable explaining his artistic choices, his journey, and his approach seemed clearer and more thoughtful. You can feel the young prodigy matured quickly and even worked a lot on his aesthetic. While his clips were quite close to PNL’s early style, he distanced himself well, although he kept a taste for somewhat “dreamy” shots and metaphorically depicting the grind. A flawless artistic project, quickly followed (perhaps too quickly) by “100 Rancunes” in 2021. A good project, which unfortunately didn’t achieve the expected success, but the rapper is not one to give up. He’s been in it since he was very young and has bet everything on rap, so he reflected, strengthened his mindset to deliver his brand new project, “Mentalité.” Even more seasoned, more composed, he came back strong, notably thanks to the hit “Lola,” a standout single from the album. Always combining melody and kick flow, with effective themes revolving around the street but also love, a sometimes complicated subject. But where he really amazed us was in the acoustic version clip of “Lola,” with a simple but incredibly effective outfit.
RK & PXP, the most sporty collab
Light grey Stone Island sweater, light pants, and a small pair of slightly tinted glasses, a flawless look. So, it made us want to study the RK phenomenon more closely, especially by looking at what we could offer him that would both match this idea of stylish sobriety while staying in the spirit of sport, to keep his footballer and competitor side. Starting obviously with the classic, the Signature capsule. A sober and classy set, with a unisex white Signature hoodie and matching white Signature joggers. All worn with a pair of PXP sneakers, as they suited this classic and effective streetwear outfit perfectly. In the background, you’ll notice the “cardboard workshop” vibe with “PXP / RK” graffiti everywhere. In the same setting, we had him wear a Tech set that fits perfectly with his love for football, with rather slim joggers and a zipped hoodie, all in two shades of light grey. You can see some stylized logos on the chest and hood, which could refer to a technical garment or a football club set.
Next, a new vibe: you know us, at Project X Paris we like to change things up to avoid staying in a comfort zone. This time, we moved to a “crime scene” style set with tarps and some mirrors for stylish optical effects. For the outfit, we kept it sober, with a mood that’s both stylish, soft, and comfortable thanks to the brand new Wavy Wear capsule. A two-tone jogger in wave style, blue color, and a two-tone hoodie in the same wave style and color, and that’s it. All worn over a slightly oversized white t-shirt, for a double “style / chill” effect appreciated by rappers. Again, we stayed within the sobriety of design and colors, a niche that suits RK perfectly. Our stylists nailed it!
