Why I Made This

Because I needed to know it all meant something.

Because I’ve spent most of my life watching good people get buried and fake ones get rich.

Because I’ve walked through years of tattooing, painting, hustling, breaking, surviving—and I wanted more than just a pile of used paper and half-finished sketchbooks to show for it.

Because “My Idols Are Dead and My Enemies Are in Power” wasn’t just a clever phrase—it was a truth I couldn’t stop carrying. And when I couldn’t carry it silently anymore, I printed it. Drew it. Wore it. And gave it to the world.

Because I believe in handmade things. In flawed things. In things that feel human.

Because I believe that even now—especially now—tattooing is folk art.

And art is a way to scream without raising your voice.

Because I’ve been in rooms where people were telling stories that deserved to be preserved—and I couldn’t believe no one was writing them down. So I started doing it myself.

Because I grew up around people who taught me about legacy, even if they didn’t use that word. People who left their mark even when the world didn’t ask them to.

Because I didn’t want to wait for a museum or a gallery to validate what I know is true.

Because Dead Idols isn’t just about death—it’s about what survives.

The shirts, the hats, the book—this is all evidence.

That I was here. That the work mattered. That someone cared.

And maybe—just maybe—you do too.

—Colby

Dead Idols

July 2025

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Why I Made This