Surfing off his latest success with G-Shock, it appears the sky’s the limit for musician John Mayer—proving once and for all, there’s literally no timepiece the public won’t demand if it receives his stamp of approval.
“I don’t want to push the envelope,” he recounted for our crew. “Because really, there’s no envelope to push anymore. To take it from the proverbial to the literal, I want to rip it open with the kind of swagger that makes you question how we strayed so far from snail mail. Let’s bring it back to simpler times. Back when you’d ride your Huffy up to the mall window, pubescent posse in tow, and there, behind the fogging glass is your first horological love and guess what. It’s a f*cking Invicta.”
He flared his fingers as if lusting beyond a wall of nostalgia. “And that’s what this is all about. The first love… while, albeit is something you’re not proud of, is something you aren’t ashamed about either… in all its grotesque, glitz-and-glam glory.”
Mayer’s limited edition collaboration with Invicta, deemed the “Bubblegum Tongue,” was released last Wednesday exclusively on [redacted], a multi-media lifestyle website that has continued to make good on his financial investments. Of the two thousand produced, all sold out in less than two hours. It is a metric marked even more impressive due to Invicta’s omission of deep discounts. Whereas most their collections can be seen discounted 88% or greater, the Bubblegum Tongue maintained an MSRP of $2,195—a staggering price tag, even when factoring for all its chrome plating and Swarovsky crystals.
The shift leaves many wondering how Invicta could be displayed alongside Longines or even Tudor. While some AD’s fear this could lead to cross-contamination of brand identity, others have resigned to embracing the inevitable demand. “Goddamit,” recounted one dealer. “Do you have any idea how many grown men I’ve said, ‘No Bubblegum Tongue left’ to?” He closed his eyes and tilted his head back. “Hundreds. Literally hundreds.”
When questioned about why he’d selected Invicta, Mayer paused for beat while hammering fingers across the frets of his guitar. “Honestly it crossed my mind to do Rado at first, but I think Invicta’s just funnier.”
Damon is based out of the Bay Area, where he’s a black sheep among Apple Watch loyalists. Having served as a Combat Engineer with the USMC, he believes a true field watch’s success is measured by how closely it compares to a “G-Shock.” Nonsensically, a background in design has guided his preference toward higher craft, as he struggles to become the lifestyle his watch tastes more closely reflect.
Cool, but I’m holding out for a Mayer/Huffy collab.
Oof. A boy can dream.