Picked Last’s latest single ‘Room 42’ is a multi-faceted masterclass. On the surface, the song is a straightforward banger. Pulsating 808s make it perfect for the club, an infectious energy makes it a pivotal moment in your playlist. As the song progresses, the creativity on display becomes an almost-blinding beacon of light. Agung Mango and MAMMOTH. relish in a series of seamless flows. Manny Mula and Boy Ace effortlessly weave earworm melodies into the mix. CD’s howls float throughout, creating a hypnotic atmosphere. It’s what makes this Melbourne collective fit seamlessly in with Champion as a part of Champion What Moves You, the iconic brand’s platform dedicated to propelling the voices of creators.
Champion and their Champion What Moves You ethos has become common armour for creatives pushing their field forward. Last year, they tapped 66 Records for their Winter/Autumn Puffer campaign, highlighting the label’s quest to change the framework of hip-hop in Australia. Over in the UK late last year, Champion worked with Signkid, a hearing-impaired musician who uses visuals and vibrations to create, using sign slang to convey his lyrics, and looking to redefine accessibility within the artistic space. Working with Champion marks Picked Last’s first collaboration with a brand, and the message they’re trying to convey means more than just the milestone of this moment.
Picked Last and Champion’s camaraderie comes to life in Escape to Room 42, a collaborative campaign and mini-film. It takes us to the ice-cold conditions of the mountains, before journeying to an underground bunker where Picked Last is seriously heating up. You’ll see producer/emcee Eissa equipped with the black puffer engaged in botany, planting the seeds of evolution that will emerge from this underground lair. Manny Mula can be spotted sporting the brown puffer with a seemingly endless scroll in his hand, symbolising the never-ending quest to continue improving as a songwriter. As every scene passes, a new idea manifests within the four walls of this dungeon; each unique to the spellcaster, and all polymerising to turn the isolation of this bunker into a sanctuary.
“As artists, we can often feel trapped within the four walls of a studio, but I think creativity thrives in limitations, and that gives us the ability to kind of disappear wherever we want internally while we’re working,” Agung Mango says as he joins us on Zoom, alongside CD. Every time Picked Last enters the bunker, they are underdogs. Making something from nothing is a pretty tall mountain to climb, resembling the frozen peaks that surround them in Escape To Room 42. But this is something Champion has experienced, starting as a humble sportswear company in 1919, and paving their own path to becoming a streetwear staple shouted out by the likes of Nas and Raekwon before the century ended; it’s why this collaboration blossoms. “Working with Champion felt so authentic because they let us have the opportunity to really get creative with it,” CD explains.
Before united as a collective, Picked Last kicked it as homies, each sticking to the grind of their respective solo careers. It was during lockdown times that Picked Last formed, bunkering in the studio as a united front of creatives, with friendship as their cornerstone. “It’s nice to have these collaborative tracks to bond over, and I think each time we do it our chemistry grows stronger,” CD says. Agung agrees, stating “There’s no better feeling than making a song with all your homies and bumping it while you’re getting lit.”
Picked Last’s unity is perfectly captured in Escape To Room 42, as you see them form a circle, celebrating the cutting-edge results of their creativity. It’s the moment they seek every time they enter the studio, and in this shared goal, the individuality of each member stands out. They wield different weapons as they try to find the form their contribution to a song is going to take, fighting on a journey to usurp the underdog status the studio’s walls enforce on them. “The visuals for this campaign are kind of an exaggerated depiction of what’s constantly going through all our heads, and I think it represents that we all try to think as big as possible because we never want to fall short,” Agung says. But as Picked Last fight individual battles during this process, they also possess the superpower of seeking help from one another, sharing guidance in order to reach the gargantuan summits of songwriting. “I admire the confidence they’re able to bring to recording music, especially since I’m quite shy, and I think the more time goes on, the more we’ll learn from each other in both music and how to carry yourself in life,” CD remarks.
Picked Last feels like a representation of a hip-hop boom in Australia right now, where different styles, cultures, and identities are thriving alongside each other. From fierce missile-like drill music of Western Sydney to the West-Melbourne rappers wading through a haze of experimental rap, a vast array of sounds ring out like sirens, alerting people to a scene that isn’t defined by a preset, but by a beautifully diverse pandemonium. Agung and CD feel like there isn’t a blueprint available to follow as music in Australia evolves, and are aware of the importance they have in helping create it. “I think being a part of the blueprint is going to be something we enjoy because it allows us to inspire the kids, who can hopefully guide themselves based on things we’d done in the past,” Agung affirms. This is seconded by CD, who adds “We’re determined to be a part of the blueprint, and while that can be something that weighs on you at times, we need to contribute to truly complete our legacy.”
As we finish our conversation, CD states in closing that “When I get caught in the detail of what I’m doing or making, Champion’s less-is-more approach is something you can always come back to,” exemplifying the fact that both Picked Last and Champion weave their stories on a common thread. They both possess instant appeal, with Champion providing comfort and Picked Last catapulting onto your playlist. Both have much deeper goals than their surface selling points, as Champion presents you the page to pen your story on, and Picked Last paves the way for future creatives to harness their individuality. This makes the Champion What Moves You collaboration more than just a campaign, but a testament to the potential of the underdog, looking to defy expectations and elevate the scene around them. It’s what has made Champion an iconic brand, and it’s why Picked Last continues to break through the bastions of Australian hip-hop. Together, their goals know no bounds.
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