Daniel Campos is shaking up the fashion side of the rave scene with his blossoming brand XXXDCD, and he sat down with us to chat about it.
When you think of rave fashion in the scene’s current era, it’s easy to imagine outfits with bright, vibrant colors and outlandish prints or all-black for those in the underground side of the community. While these certainly fit the vibe of the festivals and shows that many attend, it can be tough to transition these same fits to everyday life when you’re hanging out with friends, going to work, or hitting the gym. Daniel Campos and his XXXDCD brand are on the path to changing that.
Turn back the clock to the last decade, and that’s where you’ll find Daniel Campos beginning to grow XXXDCD into what it is today. Originally centered on one-and-done pieces in small quantities, the brand has expanded to include some items that he considers “pillar pieces,” all of which celebrate his mission to highlight rave culture and his Mexican roots. Corridos x Techno, No More Afters After The Afters, and God Loves Raves are just a few of the pieces that showcase his passion.
At the core of XXXDCD is the community that has been fostered alongside it. Go to any festival at the NOS Events Center or a rave in downtown Los Angeles, and you’ll likely find someone wearing one of his shirts or hoodies, not to mention artists like Deorro, John Summit, and more who have rocked his prints. The future is brighter than ever for this blossoming brand, so we jumped at the opportunity to chat with Daniel to learn more about XXXDCD.
Check out all the latest designs from XXXDCD by visiting their official website. Read on for the full conversation to learn more about the roots of XXXDCD and where it’s heading in the future.
Hey Daniel, thanks so much for chatting with us today. We love what you’re doing with XXXDCD and it’s been so amazing to see the growth of your brand over the past few years.
Thank you so much to the entire EDM Identity team for taking the time to spotlight my journey and XXXDCD in the rave scene.
Let’s start at the beginning. Tell us the story about how XXXDCD first came to life and the early days of building this brand! What led you to launch it?
I got into streetwear and raving around the same time in 2009. Both have been a part of who I am and, to this day, still are. I’m a first-generation Mexican-American who grew up in the Inland Empire, where there aren’t many creatives that have the light shined on us, and there’s often a lack of a sense of inspiration. This can bring you down or motivate you, depending on your mindset. I got the opportunity to live in London and travel in Europe. That changed my life. I didn’t know anyone that had ever been out of the country like that. I wanted to come back and share that sense of inspiration with my friends, family, and community. So, I used a YouTube username that I came up with in 2006, “XXXDANIELCD,” and shortened it to XXXDCD to share my experiences in London.
I built this brand from ZERO. Zero apparel background. Zero-backed funding. Zero marketing knowledge. I worked hard doing outdoor labor with my Dad, saved $300, and put that into making caps. I wanted to share my story, have my voice heard, and connect/inspire people. What did that for me growing up was always streetwear and going to raves. So I made these caps and continued to go to raves, sharing my story with people and making them feel a part of this “thing” that inspired me and would inspire others.
XXXDCD has transformed from producing limited-run prints to now having pillar pieces that continue to leave an impact. Can you speak to the growth you’ve achieved recently?
In our current creative space, whether it’s music, art, clothing, or content, it’s high pressure to feel the need to drop non-stop, drop, drop, drop. Sometimes, we need to let things simmer. Slow and steady. When I started XXXDCD, we’d do limited runs of everything until last year. One and done. It would get people talking and get them to think twice when they’d see a product they wanted.
As we’ve evolved, there are now cemented pillar pieces that people connect with on an extremely personal level. Corridos x Techno, No More Afters After The Afters, God Loves Raves. They speak to people in and out of the rave that there’s a real cultural impact you can’t fake, built through longevity and “letting things simmer.”
We still have limited-run prints to balance us out. A little bit of everything for our people.
Unlike other brands, XXXDCD’s shirts, hoodies, and more are versatile enough to be worn at a rave, the gym, or any other setting, yet they seamlessly blend in. Could you shed light on the design philosophy that enables this flexibility in your lines?
I’ve had a lot of great mentorship within streetwear. Shout out to my brother Bobby Hundreds. Growing up with streetwear and going to raves, we wore streetwear in and out of the rave. It was versatile. It’s that simple. K.I.S.S. “KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID”. XXXDCD is heavy in the rave scene, but it’s a lifestyle brand in the bigger picture. A lot of the momentum you see outside of the rave scene has been built with us through our community. Flexing at the gym, travel, streetwear pop-ups, and casual wear.
The design philosophy is simple: high-quality products that you can wear in and out of the rave, that are comfortable, confident, and last you beyond wearing them to the show. You don’t like repeating outfits? Cool. The quality is durable enough that you can wear it to the gym. It’s streetwear you can wear out in public without it being over the top.
Seeing artists like John Summit and others rock your merch on stage is always a treat, but the community has embraced your designs as well. What does it feel like seeing so many people wear your products at shows?
I love to see the biggest DJs in the world flex XXXDCD. I’m a firm believer in alignment. The energy you output has to make people feel a certain type of way. Shout out to my brother, John Summit, for rocking with us. Beyond that, I think it’s cool people find that cool, but to me, whether you’re an artist selling out stadiums, have been with us since day one, or are rocking with us now off the hype, I see everyone the same. It circles back to me saying we build the brand together. I’m in the mix, meeting people wearing XXXDCD and getting asked for photos wearing XXXDCD. I’m with my people and my community.
Seeing people rocking XXXDCD at every rave after the massive underground festival I go to is so surreal. It’s almost expected. Like I know I’m going to meet people wearing the brand. It can be overwhelming at times. It’s surreal. I’m very grateful that people connect with my ideas, and that’s very personal to me. I’m always happy to chat, take photos, and hear feedback and ideas from the community.
One piece that I thought was spot on is your “God Loves Raves” shirt. It’s a pretty direct response to the religious people who stand outside festivals in SoCal saying we’re all sinners. Can you dive into your message and what prompted this design to be created?
It’s a very bold message. I’m a spiritual person myself, and it’s an idea that came to me in downtown LA after I got home from the gym—like a download from the universe. As tired as I was, it was right before going to sleep when the concept came to me. Something told me I needed to do this now, at 2 am I took out my notes, my streetwear design book, and my laptop. I got right to work.
The design features multiple elements of Rave Streetwear and my Mexican heritage.
- GOD LOVES RAVES is a spin on GOD HATES STREETWEAR – we need more love in the world. Those people don’t promote love. Heck there’s a lack of love in the world currently.
- Storytelling. If you’ve gone to a rave in the USA, you’ve seen these people. We all know them, yet zero brands in the rave scene capture storytelling. That’s what sets us apart.
- Triple X Smiley in an avocado suit – The avocado is a symbol of Michoacan, Mexico, where my family is from.
It’s simple; it’s storytelling. It’s XXXDCD. It’s If you know, you know. It’s bold. It’s true.
A newer design, The Internet Ruined Raving, also speaks to many who were in the scene before smartphones became as popular as they are today. What’s your favorite memory of raving before the internet had a stranglehold on the scene?
It’s very popular to hear, “TikTok is ruining raving,” but I’ve been around long enough to share that this is a trend we’ve heard for over a decade, even before I was raving. I think saying TikTok ruined raving is lazy because most people can’t even go into detail explaining how. Before TikTok, the same was said about Instagram, Twitter, MySpace, and even phone lines. A sense of the scene being “better when I started” is a tale as old as time, even in the late ‘90s. Enjoy the moment. That’s all we’ll ever have.
My favorite memory prior to raving being directly connected to raving was how unknown everything was. You showed up to everything without expectations and had the time of your life, and that was it. Everything has evolved so much that it’s easy to complain about anything and everything when I feel like the scene has improved in many ways. But you’ll never hear anyone thank Tiktok for that. Pros and cons to everything.
Every creative journey is marked by challenges. Could you share some of the most significant hurdles XXXDCD has faced and how the brand overcame them?
I think with anything in life that’s greatness comes points that test you. There have been times when a product hasn’t come on time, and I’ve had to fire or remove people from my life. I think the biggest challenge right now is scaling and going bigger. When you’re “coming up,” and this wasn’t my full time, I had a 9-5 to fall back on versus when you’re focused on going bigger, costs go up, and pressure goes up. You work longer and harder. It’s a lot to manage. Very few people understand it, and that’s what separates me from others, which is not quitting.
Not quitting. That’s literally it. It sounds crazy and simple, but there have been times when I’ve worked until the sun’s come up, and I’ve found myself asking, why am I doing this again? Passion and heart. You must have passion and heart in your work to get you through those moments. As I said, I’m blessed to have had great mentorship and conversations with peers in creative spaces. We’ve all felt it. I think talking about this point also creates unity in some capacity. A sense of wow, it’s not just me that’s felt this way.
What’s the biggest piece of advice you could give to someone who is looking to embark on their own journey in the realm of streetwear?
Don’t do it. [Laughs] Don’t do it unless your heart is in it. Don’t do it to look cool, money or anything like that.
BIGGEST ADVICE: Believe in yourself and your work above everything. You can make zero sales, one sale, 400 sales; it doesn’t matter. Believe in yourself. Speak highly of your work and work hard. Don’t quit, no matter how hard it gets. Sometimes, your biggest blessing comes right before those breaking points.
Finally, where do you plan to take XXXDCD next? Can you share any upcoming items for the summer season with us?
As far as where XXXDCD is going next, we want to continue to scale the brand organically. We have a lot of momentum going and eyes on this. It’s easy to get comfortable with that, but I don’t want to continue keeping my foot on the gas pedal. If you think we’re hot, we’re just getting started. That’s out of respect for everyone buying, sharing, and flexing XXXDCD.
We want to focus on growth, partnerships, collaborations, and a bigger impact on the scene. As for the summer, we’ve got a VERY special drop in store, XXXDCD 4 HER. This is for all the women in our community who have rocked with us and asked for more multi-purpose products for women. I’m also hoping we can do a pop-up this summer as well. We’re well overdue for one.
And thank you to the entire EDM Identity team for taking the time to feature us. It’s personal, and we appreciate working with you.
