You barely see a figure that appears on the scene. She gets on top of a yellow Cadillac while the first chords of the song play in the background. Candy from Rosalia. Smeared with her down coat, her hood on, and even with sunglasses covering her face, the Catalan artist begins to sing. It could be any concert of his, but nothing is further from reality. This is the fashion show for the men’s autumn-winter 2023-24 collection of Louis Vuitton. An express concert in which the singer reviewed recent songs from her repertoire such as Candy, saoko, get rid of either CUUUUuuuuuuute. Once again, live music meets fashion.
That music “concerts” are increasingly playing a leading role in fashion is not new. You only have to go back to what were the most famous parades in the world of lingerie: the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. Every November thousands of users eagerly awaited what for many was the most anticipated event of the year. “Angels” in tiny lingerie walked the catwalk and showed off their long legs. Gisele Bündchen, Heidi Klum, Alessandra Ambrosio, Adriana Lima, Gigi Hadid or the Spanish Blanca Padilla. The best models in the fashion industry paraded with the famous wings, and they did so to the sound of music.
The expectation of the event, which was held in a different country every year, was not only around the angels, but also the artists who sang during the parade. Maroon 5, Justin Bieber, Kanye West, Ariana Grande, Ed Sheeran, Selena Gomez, Rihanna, Bruno Mars, Taylor Swift, The Weeknd, and the Black Eyed Peas. There are many who went through those parades. In a single parade, up to 3 different artists performed. The show was such that even the singers themselves ended up being a part of it, with some of the singers wearing lingerie.
It was the dream of any model, to walk the parade of El Secreto de Victoria clad in their wings, but while criticism of the event increased, television audiences for the parade have been declining in recent years. Both because of the extreme thinness of the models, and because they offer such a sexualized image of women and because of the lack of inclusion and diversity. In fact, the New York Times published a report titled Angels in Hell: The misogynistic culture inside Victoria’s Secret, in which he revealed the racism, abuse and sexism that many models had suffered while working for Ed Razek’s lingerie brand. After 24 years of parades, everything fell apart. In 2018 the underwear brand said goodbye to the catwalks.
A El Secreto de Victoria it lacked reality, inclusion, and a wide range of cultures, religions, races, and genders. That was where Rihanna saw the business opportunity. Savage x Fenty It was born from the need to show a strong, empowered and comfortable woman with her body regardless of whether or not she met the standards set by society. The singer did not want to be left behind and she combined, once again, lingerie and live musical performances. The 4 parades that she has had the signature she transmitted by streaming and can currently be viewed on Prime Video.
“Technically it’s a fashion show, but Rihanna doesn’t do anything conventional, so she takes the concept somewhere else,” they say during the brand’s first show. The artist from Barbados, in addition to betting on lingerie, has done it for the show. It is a hybrid of music, fashion and dance that celebrates diversity. The visual impact is tremendous, it looks like a video clip composed of dance, music, lights and performance.
They imitate what the brand of angels did, but this time showing the so-called “non-normative” bodies on the screen. The Savage x Fenty not only includes corporeal diversity, it also has the participation of drag queen (Gigi Goode, Shea Couleé), people from the trans community such as the actress of Pose Indya Moore and a great representation of African American culture.
The main artists in the music sector have also sung in Rihanna’s fashion shows. Some of them Latinos like Ricky Martin, Bad Bunny or Anitta. This confirms, once again, that Spanish-speaking artists have crossed all kinds of borders.
Beyond the lingerie
Rosalía was one of the singers who triumphed in the Savage x Fenty of 2020. And he has done it again this year in the parade of Louis Vuitton. His performance in the autumn-winter 2023-24 men’s collection has gone around the world.
Fashion catwalks have had live music for years, but performances by the artists of the moment are not that common, at least outside of lingerie. Normally the music is in the background, and the pieces and the clothes are the main protagonists. But when a renowned singer enters the scene, the show revolves around him, or he is the one who revolves around the parade, but he is integrated and is one more figure in the show. It’s what he did El Secreto de Victoria in her shows, what Rihanna has inherited, and what she did last week Louis Vuitton.
Rosalía was not the protagonist. Her shots mixed with the bags and suits the models wore. It should not be forgotten that the main objective was to show the collection, but the Catalan singer’s audition put the spotlight on an event that perhaps, had it not been for her, many fewer people would not have seen it. The same thing happens with any other product of a brand: you attract their fans. And Rosalía, as has been seen, is one of the brands’ favorite artists.
This show by the French luxury brand has brought to light the possible fusion between concerts by famous artists and fashion shows. A new way of presenting the latest collections of the brands, through a show reminiscent of those famous parades of the angels of El Secreto de Victoria.