Costume worn by Michael Jackson in “They Don’t Care About Us” music video
date: label: Date
content: 1996
name: label: Manufactured by
content: Banda Olodum, Brazilian, founded 1986
label: Manufactured by
content: Levi Strauss & Co., founded 1853
label: Manufactured by
content: Dexter Shoe Company, American, 1956 - 2001
label: Worn by
content: Michael Jackson, American, 1958 - 2009
notes: label: Caption
content: This ensemble was worn in Jackson’s music video for his 1996 release “They Don’t Care About Us.” With lyrics addressing racism, bigotry, and police brutality, the music video was directed by Spike Lee and shot on location in Dona Marta, a Rio de Janeiro favela. The video brought attention to the widespread poverty in Brazil and, in a manner, promoted global solidarity against police brutality directed towards communities of color. The impending video shoot was not welcomed by Brazilian government officials who were initially concerned with how the favela would be portrayed in the video. Citizens of the favela welcomed the video and hoped it would bring doctors and better social conditions to their community. In a further nod to the Afro-Brazilian community, Jackson’s video featured Olodum (also the word on the shirt he wore), a drumline ensemble, or bloco-afro, derived from Afro-Bahia carnival traditions
label: Description
content: Costume ensemble worn by Michael Jackson in the 1996 "They Don't Care About Us" (Brazil version) muisc video, consisting of a t-shirt (2020.27.4.1), jeans (2020.27.4.2), and a pair of shoes (2020.27.4.3ab).
label: Description
content: 2020.27.4.1 T-shirt:
label: Description
content: The white t-shirt features a black peace sign with the word “OLODUM’ printed in black text above it. The top two quadrants of the peace sign are filled in with yellow, while the bottom proper right quadrant is red and the bottom proper left quadrant is green. The original crew neckline has been cut into a notched v-neck. Some make up can still be seen on the collar and also inside the shirt at the back of the neck. The back of the shirt also has makeup at the neckline. There is a manufacturer’s label on the back of the shirt below the neck. It is outlined in black and has a border of different symbols going around it in black. The background of the tag is white and features three paint-stroke shapes in green, yellow, and red. There is black text over the colored shapes which read [OLODUM / BAHIA – BRASIL]. “Olodum” is in a different font than the bottom row of text. There is a small white, rectangular tag on the side of the shirt which reads [OLODUM] written vertically in black.
label: Description
content: 2020.27.4.2 Jeans:
label: Description
content: The Levi brand traditional five pocket jeans are straight-legged and are a faded mid-wash blue. The button fly has a silver colored button in the front of the pants with raised letters that read [LEVI STRAUSS & CO S.F. CAL] and several other buttons below. There are several belt loops along the waistband. The jeans feature a yellow colored stitching in several areas. One area includes the two back pockets, which both feature Levi’s traditional bat wing shape “signature”, or arcuate. The back right pocket has a small red label with [LEVI’s] written vertically in white letters.
label: Description
content: 2020.27.4.3ab Shoes:
label: Description
content: The shoes are black leather penny loafers. The insides of the shoes have a leather sole and are lined around the sides and on the tongue with a tan suede. There are black numbers stamped onto the inside of the proper left show along with words that read [MADE IN U.S. ? ?]. The inside sole of the proper right shoe has a silver letter “D” printed on it and the rest of the letters are faded. The bottoms of the shoes have leather and rubber soles that are very scuffed in several areas. The shoes have a slight heel. The sole of the proper left shoe has writing on it in black ink. It reads [M.J.J. / T.D.C.A.U. / BRAZIL (?) / 2/2] and the final two lines cannot be completely made out. The bottom proper right shoe has black handwriting as well, but some of it has been worn away. [M.J.J. / T.D.C.A.U.] can still be made out. It is possible that the rest says /STREET / WALK]. There is also text which has been indented into the sole and reads [Leather Sole / made in USA]. The proper right heel is made of black rubber and looks different than the proper left heel, which looks like it has had wood or possibly leather nailed onto it. There is raised text on the proper right heel which reads [Dexter / U.S.A.]. The outsides of the shoes have scuff marks in several areas.
place: label: Place used
content: Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Latin America, South America
label: Cultural Place
content: Salvador, Bahia, Brazil, Latin America, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Activism
label: Topic
content: Clothing and dress
label: Topic
content: Costume
label: Topic
content: Dancehall (Music)
label: Topic
content: Popular music
label: Topic
content: Resistance
label: Topic
content: Rock and roll (Music)
label: Topic
content: Singers (Musicians)
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Clothing - Costume
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2020.27.4.1-.3ab
objectType: label: Type
content: shirts
label: Type
content: jeans
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Unknown – Restrictions Possible
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Rights assessment and proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: 2020.27.4.1 t-shirt: cotton and ink
label: Medium
content: 2020.27.4.2 jeans: denim, metal, and thread
label: Medium
content: 2020.27.4.3ab shoes: leather, metal, rubber, and ink
label: Dimensions
content: H x W (.1 Shirt): 30 × 20 in. (76.2 × 50.8 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W (.2 Jeans): 42 × 15 in. (106.7 × 38.1 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D (.3 Shoes): 3 1/2 × 4 × 11 1/4 in. (8.9 × 10.2 × 28.6 cm)