brand during the 1990s. The label, which at one time consisted primarily of conservative clothing, began taking its fashion cues from urban neigh- borhoods. Enter the superbaggy, waistline-below-the-underwear look. Teens thought they looked hot, and parents of the suburban kids who wanted to sport this look paid big bucks for designer versions of urban clothing donned by gangs. The Tommy logo was everywhere as it pushed the urban look up- ward to suburban markets. The brand and its dominant red, white, and blue Tommy logo were even big inside urban neighborhoods, the realities of which had inspired the fashions themselves. In the hood, one way a young male gains manhood is to do time-once he is out,     he is a man. But what is one of the first things that happens to a man when he goes to prison? The police take his belt, and his pants droop below his waist, a look that became popular back on the street. However, after helping urban fashions trickle up to mainstream markets and profiting from them, Tommy is being passed over by ur- ban constituencies for labels they see as more authentic, such as Fubu, Phat Farm, and Sean John. Today, Tommy Hilfiger is changing its branding tune, going back to some of the more conservative styles of its past-where perhaps more of its authenticity resides. Because of trickle-up consumer trends, marketers that scour urban settings to monitor changes in fashion, language, behavior, and atti- tudes can identify some trends that will eventually hit the suburbs. Hilfiger is just one example of a label that took an urban look to the masses with great market acceptance. The Cliffs Notes version of monitoring trends in real urban markets is monitoring trends in pop- ular music. Successful artists portray well what is happening in urban settings and what is likely to take off in mainstream markets.   Fixing the Machine To this day, the "Walk This Way" video is included in the top 10 on both the VH1 and MTV most influential video lists, primarily because of the effect the video had on breaking down the real barriers between rap and rock, between black and white kids, and between generations. Aerosmith broke into music television the day the video aired and hasnt looked back, reinforcing the personality of the band and the strength of the brand. It also crushed any notion that this middle-aged rock band couldnt be accepted by a new generation of fans. For Aerosmith, the rebirth of the band was the relaunch of its brand, but it would have to prove it wasnt just a reincarnated one-hit wonder. Pressure mounted for the band to release a stellar album, but it couldnt afford to generate attention, start a tour, or release an album without being ready physically, professionally, and personally.