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For New Orleans native Kenneth Dabney, Below Average is becoming more than a clothing platform. Below Average Clothing founder and creative director is extending his brand into music and community events, bringing it all together around a message of perseverance.
An August 2026 music release and a back-to-school giveaway illustrate that expansion. The seven-track Below Average EP carries the brand’s themes into music, while the community event distributed approximately 250 backpacks to children outside its store.
Both efforts reflect Dabney’s vision for a business that gives people who have felt overlooked a place to connect.
Giving Below Average a Different Meaning
The brand’s name challenges the expectations it appears to suggest. For Dabney, Below Average represents the determination to move beyond limits imposed by others.
That outlook draws on his experiences growing up in New Orleans. Dabney describes being underestimated because of his size, appearance and the color of his skin. Those experiences helped shape an approach centered on perseverance and a belief that other people’s judgments did not have to determine his future.
Clothing became one way to communicate that perspective. The expansion into music gives him another.
A Soundtrack for the Brand
Released in August, the Below Average EP features Willhebe, 3dNatee, GreatWhite, MaxxP, Jay Jones and Kidd Kidd.
The project’s seven tracks explore faith, family, struggle, purpose and personal growth, extending the ideas behind Below Average Clothing into a different creative medium.
The tracklist includes:
- “Purpose”
- “Rose”
- “Psalm 56”
- “Mothers Prayer”
- “The Process”
- “Little Ole Me”
- “The Benediction”
For Dabney, fashion and music are connected parts of the same undertaking. The clothing establishes a visual identity, while the songs provide another way to share the experiences and beliefs behind it.
Listen to the Below Average EP on Apple Music.
Bringing the Community Together
Below Average’s community work puts that message into practice beyond its creative releases.
During the brand’s 2026 back-to-school car show and giveaway, approximately 250 backpacks were distributed to children outside the Below Average Clothing store. Families, local businesses, organizations, car enthusiasts, and supporters gathered for the event.
The giveaway brought practical support and a shared experience to the storefront, reflecting Dabney’s interest in making the business a gathering place as well as a clothing destination.
New Orleans Roots, Broader Ambitions
New Orleans remains central to Below Average’s identity. Dabney’s work brings together interests that have shaped his own experience of the city: fashion, music, entrepreneurship and community.
Faith also informs the brand’s direction. Its phrase “BIG GOD little me” expresses a perspective grounded in humility and the belief that the purpose of the work should extend beyond its founder.
As Below Average develops across clothing, music and community programming, Dabney is keeping its message focused on people who know what it means to be underestimated. His ambition is to turn that experience into a reason to keep creating, building and participating.
Explore Below Average Clothing and follow Kenneth Dabney and Below Average the Brand on Instagram.
The post Kenneth Dabney Builds Below Average Beyond Fashion appeared first on The Hype Magazine.
