Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers Want You to Have a Very Extra Summer
“Hearst Magazines and Verizon Media may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below.”
Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers had a big night. We're chatting on the phone together in late June, just before the end of Pride Month, to discuss their starring roles in Bonobos's "Extra Summer" campaign when, mid-conversation, a strange, awkward silence descends. It's not the sort of thing you'd expect from the co-hosts of the wildly successful Las Culturistas podcast. These guys are beloved by fans for their back-and-forth, their ability to energetically—and hilariously—riff off each other while discussing all things pop culture. And here I am, briefly wondering if the phone connection has cut out (or if I've just poisoned the vibe with my presence). Then Rogers reveals what's up.
"Bowen and I are hungover, okay?!" he says. "If you want to know what extra summer is all about, we’re hungover right now, on this call." Bowen laughs. I laugh. It's all in the inflection, the almost-accusatory "okay" and sly smile behind it. The knowingly over-the-top delivery. It's just funny (okay?!). It's also perfectly in line with the campaign we're discussing, which is all about taking the best parts of summer—the sunshine, the beach, the clothes—and cranking 'em up to 11.
It's tongue-in-cheek, sure, but it's also a nod to the summer we didn't get last year and the fact that we all deserve to take full advantage of the season this time around. Keep reading to learn how Yang and Rogers are doing just that while maintaining some sense of balance, what clothes they'll be wearing while they're at it, and why, if Rogers has his way, Bonobos might just get pulled into a fight with the New York government.
So, kicking off, how did this campaign come together?
Bowen Yang: They had reached out to us. It’s something that I never considered, but then as soon as it was brought forward to us—this idea that we’d do the summer of extra—it made immediate sense to me.
Matt Rogers: Absolutely. It was also an excuse for us to just have a fun day together wearing actual clothes that we like. They pitched us the concept and it was called “Extra Summer,” which, especially because we were bereft of summer last year, it was kind of nice to have a little extra summer this summer. So they got us together, put us in some really cute stuff, and we had a blast.
Did anything stand out as a favorite item on set?
BY: I’m really obsessed with the suit, that was maybe the highlight for me among the trunks and the trousers. But that suit, my god that suit was great. And if it looks good on me, it would look good on anybody.
MR: Lies! Bowen is a fashion icon.
BY: No, no. It’s like…suits are very personal things to have a relationship with, and I tend to not like wearing them. But that suit, I was like, “My god, this is phenomenal.” In the literal sense: It’s a phenomenon.
MR: I mean, he did look stunning in that. And I will say, also, there are these terrycloth button-downs we’ve been wearing that are just truly, truly great. The shorts have been really fun, because they really got me in a summer mood; I love the colors. But the terrycloth button-downs! I always love a strong Bonobos animal pattern. I’ve been a huge fan since I saw a friend of mine wearing, a long time ago, a black short-sleeve button-down with, not leopard print, but actual leopards all over it. I was like, "Where did you get that?" He said Bonobos, and I’ve been a fan ever since. And now we get to do this, and it’s really fun.
Did the summer of extra idea get developed between you and Bonobos or was it already kind of settled on?
BY: We kind of met in the middle. They were working around a theme, but then once we signed on, the concept became: Oh, Matt and Bowen are these kind of…at times, we choose to be over the top, so why not embody that in the actual story of the whole campaign? Everyone’s kind of overcorrecting this year in a way that feels fun, and nice, and I’ve thought about this, and it’s like, yeah, this is the summer of extra because there’s no other way to go about it. Unless you need to for your own mental state, to pull back, I feel like a lot of people I know are thinking they’re overcorrecting, and I’m like, “No, I don’t think there’s such a thing this year.” Everyone is just recalibrating their idea of what summer activities even mean, but I think the entire season for Bonobos caters to everyone having a little bit more fun than they would have before.
MR: Yeah. Last year we didn’t have a summer, so we didn’t get to wear that fun, bold thing that I think so many of us let sit in our closets sometimes, because we think, “Oh, that’s a little much.” But now it’s just like, we’ve got nothing to lose this year, because what if we don’t have one again next year. Not to be fatalistic about the whole thing, but you have to have fun now, in the moment. And I think that’s what the campaign really speaks to. Bonobos is just such fun menswear, so it’s so fun to see what Bonobos considers extra. Yes, they sort of magnified our personalities from our podcast, Las Culturistas, and all the work we do together, which is, I guess, quote-unquote extra. But then to see what that means for Bonobos as well is really fun and fun to be a part of. They’re already starting from a fun place.
What does extra mean to you for summer 2021?
BY: Extra is everything and yet—I’m being so woo-woo about this—but the meter and the gauge are off for people. Or, not off, but it doesn’t exist because everyone’s like, “I’m going to be extra by either going to bed at 9 p.m. or I’ll be extra by staying up until 5 a.m.” And both of those things I’d consider under the big tent of “extra.”
MR: I think everything has doubled, tripled, then quadrupled this year from other years. For example, ordinarily I would come to New York from Los Angeles to visit Bowen for maybe a weekend. Right now, I’m here for a month. Everything is supersized. It’s extra. We’re really spending the time, capital S.
BY: No capital Ts at all, sorry.
MR: Just capital S. [laughs] Bowen and I are hungover, okay!? If you want to know what extra summer is all about, we’re hungover right now, on this call. Sorry! Capital S!
Did you guys go out last night?
BY: We did. That was extra. It was extra to be packed in this room that was packed to the gills, and feel like, “You know, it’s summer. We’re going to put up with this because it’s summer and it’s the summer of extra because we’re being extra by coming here in the first place. By going out on a Thursday? Are you kidding me?
MR: And, obviously, this campaign launched at the same time as Pride Month. So that I guess sort of multiplies the whole thing, because everyone’s extra-proud to be out, extra-proud to be themselves, and extra-proud to get out there and express that because we know what it’s like to be inside. So, sure, we’ll tolerate some long lines and crowds because everyone’s excited, but the whole thing is extra.
It was the last day of to-go drinks in New York yesterday, too. So you guys got in right under the wire.
BY: What is this puritanical nonsense? Society didn’t fall apart when to-go booze was a thing for a year and a half. Why not keep it? Whatever.
MR: Wait, I’m actually learning about this in real time. That seems so anti-extra! That seems antithetical to the entire message of the campaign. We have to go to city hall!
BY: One hundred percent. I mean, being carded by your delivery person who’s delivering you a Moscow Mule is extra. And the fact that they’re taking that away from us is not extra.
MR: And it’s not the brand. Most importantly, first and foremost, capital B.
It seems clear we’re going to have to enlist Bonobos to literally fight city hall.
MR: They can do it. They’re a powerful company. I will admit to being uncool: I walked by Fifth Avenue to see Bowen’s and I’s window display, and I walked in, and that store is extra! You can’t even walk out with items of clothing; they have to ship it to you. Hello, extra.
Well, lack of to-go cocktails aside, when you look at the rest of the summer, is there anything you’re particularly looking forward to?
BY: I’m excited to have a destination—to go somewhere—and not do anything. Because I do think that in order to have a summer of extra, you need to have a summer of extra balance. Like, negotiate with yourself how much you want to go hard and how much you want to pull back a little. And that’s very healthy to do.
MR: I cosign that. Bowen and I are going to go to Fire Island and it’s going to be a lot of relaxing. Little dash of partying here and there, we’re going to be extra, but it’s going to be extra relaxing.
There’s something so fantastically luxurious about doing that. Like, doing the whole trip and arriving and just reading a book all day.
BY: You have to reestablish the power you have as a vacationer-consumer. Do not be the one consumed by having to plan a hike or something. Like, no. Park it somewhere and just stay there for hours and hours.
MR: I need to get better at that. When I’m vacationing, it’s a lot of organized fun. And then you realize at the end of your vacation that you’re more tired than you were when you started. And I honestly think going forward, that’ll be part of my extra summer, too. When I do have some downtime, let it be downtime. I have a tendency to drive myself crazy with over-scheduling because I get FOMO even on my vacations. I think that’s a symptom of living in the world that we live in. So maybe that goes back to the idea of the relaxation aspect of it all being extra, too. Extra everything! Whatever you need in the moment.
BY: And that’s what Bonobos is. Bonobos is extra but also relaxed. It’s balanced. You get a camp collar with a nice print on it or you do something more understated. The balance is there, Matt.
MR: It’s there! Nobody does work and play and relaxation like Bonobos. Come on. It’s all part of the brand.
Extra balance sounds like a great way to approach summer 2021.
MR: There you go. A self-care message.
You Might Also Like
