Incorporating iconic musicians and albums into football kits, we shed a spotlight on AP Recess’ fantastic one-of-one designs.
Inside the heart of designer Andrew Edwards beats a love for soccer, fashion, and music. Combining these three interests, he embarked on a personal project about a year-and-a-half ago in which he envisions album art as one-of-a-kind soccer kits.
Dubbed AP Recess — a play on the advanced placement classes offered within the American public school system and the joke that recess is many kids’ favorite subject — Edwards, based in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, shares his jersey designs on Instagram. And, while he doesn’t sell them, “for obvious reasons” according to him, his designs have drummed up a steady online following of music-loving soccer fans.
A lifelong fan of vintage clothing, Edwards began upcycling about two years ago. He acquired a vinyl cutter, a sewing machine, and an embroidery machine that he uses to not only make his album art jerseys, but also to customize his own vintage clothing and make custom motorbike decals with friends.
“I’ve always really loved vintage fashion,” Edwards said. “Ever since I found out that you could buy vintage clothes online, a part of every paycheck I’ve ever earned has gone to that.
“And with all my hobbies and interests, I feel like liking it isn’t enough. I want to get under the hood and really explore it even further. I always wanted to start making clothes. Like you’re wearing something you made that no one else has. So, the individuality aspect is really fun for me. And as far as the concept of reward goes, you literally get to wear your hard work.”
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Before he began working with tactile materials, Edwards first got into digital design as a pre-teen, when internet users on various online forums could have a signature or tag at the end of their posts. Making these graphics is how he was introduced to Photoshop, and as he got older he’d become acquainted with the rest of the Adobe suite.
As for his love of soccer, Edwards grew up playing the sport, but is the first to admit he wasn’t as good as some of his teammates.
“I was the smallest kid in my class by far,” Edwards said. “And I was the last one to really grow, too. So, I kind of quit soccer in ninth grade and started doing track and field instead.
“But I still played a ton of FIFA with my friends. And when I got into college, I started watching a lot more soccer. I’ve always loved sports. I’ve watched American football and basketball my whole life. I also watch every English Premier League game, every major tournament.”
From following teams and leagues worldwide, Edwards also started to appreciate the fashion element of soccer, particularly the aesthetics of the ’80s, ’90s, and early 2000s.
Music of course goes hand-in-hand with fashion and sport, and Edwards’ background growing up playing several instruments including the trombone and guitar gave him a love for music as well. Coming of age during a time when the music industry experienced a radical transition from physical to digital media shaped the way he consumed music as well.
“I was like 7 or 8 when iTunes became a thing,” Edwards said. “And so, it was an interesting time with the availability of music being online, but you didn’t have Spotify or anything; you still had to go out and find it.”
The spark for Edwards to combine his love of music, soccer, and fashion finally ignited when he came across Instagram accounts such as Killa Villa, Full Kit Wankers, and Blood in, Blood Out, all of which found ways to infuse soccer with music.
Ideas ran wild in his head, and he took to Photoshop to mock up a slew of different projects. It gained popularity on social media, and he continued to post his different mockups to his account. Then he transitioned to actual IRL designs — perhaps illustrating the trend of physical media coming back — and his creative freedom expanded even more.
“I look at the album cover and visualize what I can work with as far as imagery, shapes, colors, patterns, typeface, stuff like that,” Edwards said. “And then I search for a template kit — something that’s affordable, clean, and in good shape. Then, I’ll take the picture from the listing and do a mockup in Photoshop of exactly what I’d have it look like. And if it looks nice, I’ll go ahead and buy it.
“I then come up with an insignia because each soccer jersey has a unique crest. On a soccer jersey, it’s like, manufacturer, crest, and then usually a sponsor, right? So where you’d have the sponsor, I’d place the name of the album or the artist’s name, and then come up with some kind of insignia. That’s where I get to be the most creative — coming up with the badge.”
The attention to detail and desire to pay homage to the bands and artwork itself, paired with Edwards’ knowledge of soccer kit design, has not just resonated with like-minded individuals, but it has even caught the attention of some of the bands he has found inspiration from.
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“I really like the Aja Steely Dan kit I made,” Edwards said. “That got a lot of traction on the internet from people reposting it. Not only that, the session trumpet player from the band actually reached out to me and wanted me to make a couple versions for him and his family.
“But that template kit was very hard to source, so I wasn’t able to create more than one. But if I could make a bunch of those and sell them in the name of adidas and Steely Dan, that would be peak.”
Right now, designing and making jerseys is just a hobby for Edwards. He hopes that his side project will garner enough support and interest to allow him to professionally branch out into graphic design. In the future, Edwards hopes to begin designing merch for bands and local soccer clubs, and hopefully even organize a few fashion pop-ups with friends.
“This is what I do on the side, and this is not something I do to make money at all,” Edwards said. “It’s just like a passion project and a creative outlet. One of the goals with this project is to develop it to a point where people reach out to me and want me to make stuff for them, for their soccer club, for their brand, for the band, for anything, really.”
Keep up with AP Recess’ latest designs on Instagram.
