Concert T-shirt

T shirt associated with a concert or concert tour

A concert T shirt is a T shirt that is associated with a concert or a concert tour, often for a pop, rock or metal band. Bands and musical groups often promote themselves by creating and selling or giving away T shirts at their shows, tours, and events. A concert T shirt typically contains silk screened graphics of the name, logo, or image of a musical performer or group. One popular choice of graphics on the rear of the T shirts is a listing of information about the band's current tour, including tour cities (sometimes specifying venues) and corresponding dates. In the 1960s, printed T shirts gained popularity for self expression as well for advertisements, protests, and souvenirs. In 1968, rock producer Bill Graham co founded Winterland Productions, credited as "the first concert T shirt manufacturing company". One of the most popular colors for concert T shirts is a flat black. Fans often purchase or obtain these shirts to wear to future concerts. Wearing a concert T shirt is a cultural signifier, with commentators identifying various reasons behind the choice to wear a particular one. For example, attending a band's concert while wearing a T shirt from one of the band's tours long ago can give the wearer a certain prestige amongst other fans, it being indicative of the longevity of their support for the group.

Screen printing or silk screening is the method of printing designs on T shirts. The process begins by stretching a fine mesh around a rigid frame. Afterwards, a template is attached to the screen. The template covers the portions not to be printed. The completed screen is placed over a T shirt, and ink is then pressed through the screen, leaving a print. Multiple templates can be used on the same shirt to create a multicolored screen print. Screen printing is one of the most commonly used techniques for putting a design on a T shirt.