Photos by Mattia Carà (@mmauricee._)
The Italian clothing brand has redefined what Italian street style has looked like for almost 20 years and shares insights on where they see the brand heading for the next decades.
When you think of fashion in Italy, your mind immediately takes you to Milan; The city streets roaring with high-end shopping at stores like Giorgio Armani, Prada, and Bottega Veneta in the Fashion Quadrilateral. However, after paying a visit to Milan this winter and becoming exposed to underground culture throughout the city, it’s clear that there is a rising stardom of streetwear representation.
I recently moved from NYC to Rome and decided it would be fun to take a trip up north on the Frecciarossa train to Milan to scope out the captivating Italian brand known as Propaganda.
Propaganda was founded by CEO/founder Andrea "Andrew Propaganda" Corona and Italian rapper Noyz Narcos as a merchandise brand with an iconic logo. They envisioned a brand that would encapsulate the raw, rebellious spirit of the culture that the team is so deeply embedded in. Launched in the early 2000s, Propaganda quickly gained traction for its edgy designs and bold graphics, resonating with a youthful audience that identified with its urban roots, following their brand's motto “Proudly spreading Italian underground culture”
Since transitioning from merchandise they have become known for pushing boundaries and challenging the status quo in fashion. The brand's aesthetic draws heavily from graffiti, punk, and skate culture, mirroring their own artistic influences, lifestyle, and identity. As Propaganda grew, it maintained its authenticity, becoming a staple in the streetwear community in Italy and a testament to the synergy between music and fashion. Rooted in counterculture, Propaganda blends bold graphics, political statements, and cutting-edge designs to create clothing that goes beyond mere style; it’s a visual form of expression. The brand and team fearlessly tackle controversial themes while using its platform to critique societal norms and question authority. By merging streetwear with a rebellious ethos, Propaganda has carved out a niche for itself as a brand that speaks to those who aren't afraid to stand out and make a statement through what they wear.
I was happy to sit down with three integral members -- Andrew (CEO/Founder), Daniele (Creative Director), and Matteo (Designer)-- behind the brand itself to dive deeper on what this company has not only meant to their consumers but to them as well.
Part I: Andrea Corona/Andrew Propaganda
Isabella: I was hoping you could give me the rundown on how Propaganda came into existence for you specifically.
Andrew: Well, I come from the rave culture. I was very young when the techno sound and the rave parties were going throughout Europe. I started traveling during this time… going to these raves, and then I went to Rome to study around 21, 22 years old. I started to have my own parties in Rome... After two years I met Emanuele, my associate, who became my very good friend while he was starting his journey in the rap scene. He told me, ‘You’re very good at what you do, with the organization of parties, why don’t we start to do stuff together?’ This was the first start of our collaboration…and long story short, 18 years we’ve been working together since. It’s a very cool story.
Isabella: ...and it started out as a merchandise brand for Noyz?
Andrew: It started as merchandise because at that time rap music didn’t make money. And so, of course, we need to sell shirts in order to make that money so we can travel, and do everything. In 2015 we came to Milan, a friend of mine told me his father had a small shop in the center of the city, and the father wanted to help him start to work, so they called me and asked ‘Come to Milan, we have a small shop, you should join us,’ so for 8 years we started putting little shops everywhere: Russia, east Europe.. A shop in Amsterdam, Barcelona, Milan, Roma, Bari, and now we’re opening a shop in Berlin. The core business doesn’t come from the shops in the street, we know we need to sell online.
Isabella: When did you feel the switch? When did you realize Propaganda was going to be more than a merchandise company to become its own brand?
Andrew: When we opened the first store in Milan I saw outdated hoodies and t-shirts with only one logo. I saw how many we sold… I thought we could do something else with this. But when you ask when it really switched, and when we became more of a brand, I would say it was when our team would come together in the mornings and I could look at everyone and see them as family. I trust so much in everyone and their projects.
Isabella: Your demographic is changing so much as you guys grow as a company.
Andrew: Yes we make shirts for Men, Women, and Youth. Propaganda is a box, and inside that box, everything comes from under the surface. Everyone can recognize themselves inside that characteristic.
Isabella: “Proudly spreading Italian underground culture” … How do you guys stay true to that ideology?
Andrew: Everything we do is through our interests, and most of that comes from underground culture. We come from the streets, and all of us remain in the streets. But now, even though we’re bigger, we have families and children, these guys every day still get inspiration from everything going on. This is the real difference between Propaganda and the other streetwear brands.
Isabella: It's very clear to me that every design and idea you guys have comes authentically from you. Do you ever feel like you need to cater more towards what people are asking for or wanting more of? How do you find that balance?
Andrew: We try to do some outside collaborations of course. We took two years to take inspiration from outside, and then do everything inside. When we started to make collections, we developed a philosophical kind of thinking; I was trying to figure out what mood the collections should be in. After this, everything started to come together and come more easily.
Part II: Daniele and Matteo
Daniele "Dani" Attia is the mastermind behind many of the graphics you see and love from Propaganda. Andrew admits that Dani’s touch was what they needed as a brand. Recently this year Propaganda delivered a creative new project titled Blood Fanatic which truly defines the edginess of the brand as a whole. Matteo Pini, a full-time designer at Propaganda, chimes in supporting Dani’s work as well.
Isabella: How did you come into the world of Propaganda? Were you already graphic designing? Or did you adapt with the brand?
Dani: It started with graffiti and street culture in general. I had become friends with Noyz through graffiti; I was a fan of his music, and he was a fan of my work. He is my favorite rapper so when he called me up to paint a wall for him, I said yes and we became friends through that… In 2017 I was a graphic designer for another brand… I've always painted, always drawing and always doing art in general. But then I started graphic designing for clothing, and after that, my priority became oil painting. I started working freelance until 2019 when I started at Propaganda.
Matteo: In the beginning, Andrew and Noyz’ focus was merchandise, tees, and hoodies. The whole Propaganda idea was that it was Noyz’s merch, it was his brand… his thing! After the brand started getting bigger, that is when it changed from it being exclusively Noyz’ merch to being an actual brand.
Dani: Blood Fanatic is the name and concept of the collection. Because we are huge fans of Horror… everyone here loves the aesthetic of violence. One thing that is super important is that your brand must have an identity. It cannot just be built off of logos, there has to be a mood; Our mood is always ironic death.
Isabella: Do you feel like because your concept or theme is so specific it could be more challenging to come up with new ideas? Or is it possibly easier to produce these things because they are on brand?
Dani: We as a team are always connected with those themes. It's what people expect from us, so it is natural. Also, we don’t always have to be politically correct; People can understand when you’re lying, people want the truth. If you look at a Graphic like “Fuck Pigs” you know it's exactly about how the police are pigs; This message can be dangerous for brands, but at Propaganda we have a high limit of what we think is too much. At Propaganda, we can play with these ideas and talk about what is and what is not allowed and whether society will accept it, or not.
Isabella: When you guys are coming up with designs, do all the Graphic Designers talk about your new concepts and ideas or do you all work individually and then converse after?
Dani: We don’t work individually. We have a very strong collaborative style of work. For example, Noyz will give ideas and then me and Matteo will work as a team to design it. It's a strong quality to have in an office like this
Matteo: With everything we do, we do it together
Dani: If you’re a graphic designer or a creative person, you have to take advice from other people. If you don’t, you will probably think you are good… but it's not possible to get by just like that. You have to accept the challenge to improve yourself towards your point of action and goal.
We are always searching… looking through a lot of old references: Books, Art, History. I studied art and art history in college and high school. So I still search through all of the books from when I was studying. When I have creativity I can't understand the value so that's why using books as inspiration helps. I can use images like this because if the artist has died over 60 years ago you can use their designs freely because of the copyright law.
Isabella: I think that is such an interesting take that you guys are doing; I feel like every brand wants to be the next best thing, follow along with everything up-and-coming, wanting to create these new ideas before other people do, etc. But it's important that you guys are incorporating old ideas by highlighting their importance, while still making it your own.. It's definitely why Propaganda continues to grow.
Dani: That is the exact reason behind our success.
Isabella: Do you feel like your background as an artist, a painter, has brought out the 'imperfection’ idea to your work at Propaganda?
Dani: Absolutely! When I start to paint, my graphic designs follow that mentality. My mentality is not perfection...What even is perfection? Because you can view art in different ways; It depends on the viewer's feelings. So, I put my roughness in my graphic design. When I talk with other graphic designers, I show them my paintings; They always say, ‘oh shit!’ because doing paintings could be considered impossible for a graphic designer.
Propaganda is a brand that has adapted and grown over time and it won't be stopping anytime soon. Seeing firsthand how everyone works together as a family and the amount of care, attention to detail, and thoughtful execution that is put into every design, and collection, it is clear they are on their way to being a household name in both Italian and global streetwear fashion.
Isabella: Where do you want Propaganda to be in the next 18 years from now?
Andrew: I want to conquer the world! That is my goal.
