Business Of Fashion 500 is now 499:
Business Of Fashion 500 is now 499:
I want to clarify what I said last night on Instagram.
When we were younger, all of us heard the same advice:
"If your gut is telling you not to leave the house, just stay in."
I dissented from it.
I dissented from it.
Against my better judgement, I attended the BoF 500 gala last night. If you didn't already know, BoF (The Business of Fashion) is a newspaper for the fashion business that is renowned for providing the latest information on developments in the sector. Imran Amed founded it and serves as EIC. The BoF 500 is a list that BoF releases every year honouring the individuals they believe to be the most influential in fashion. BoF is also well-known for its Voices conference, which is held in London.
Both have grown to be respected in their own way.
To set the scene, I was asked to speak at and attend BoF Voices last year. They said they wanted to hear about how PM came to be and my experiences navigating the market. Being an outsider for so long, I was honoured to accept the invitation and tell my tale. It seemed to me to be a dress-down version of TED. Having a one-on-one talk with Bethann Hardison also excited me. I had given up holding group panels.
My justification is that so many of these group panels simply throw us all together, 'Black in Fashion' or 'Diversity & Inclusion', but in actuality my family is very different and making progress.
Instead, they push us to talk as one in the language of our shared blackness, make us argue in front of others, and encourage internal strife. Finally, we are required to perform emotional labour to make the oppressors comfortable.
So I agreed to participate in this solo panel, and they made the travel arrangements. However, at the very last minute, actually while I was in the air, they informed my team that the panel had changed to a group one. (It was their original plan.) The panel would now feature Bethann Hardison, Patrick Robinson (Trailblazer, former creative director of Gap and Armani Exchange), and my buddy LaQuan Smith; it would be hosted by Tim Blanks, who I respect. Considering how much I like Patrick and LaQuan as designers .
The crap was fam-degrading in a subtle way, but I let the audience know my fourth eye was open. (Check out the video) But later that night they had this furious and awkward "Salon" discussion. I won't say anything additional regarding that. A handful of us left the campus the following day and returned to London, concluding the vacation two days early. Perhaps my friends who were there can explain it more fully in the future. Yes, at that time we were insulted.
Business Of Fashion 500 is now 499:
A short while after that awful "Salon" and panel. Imran contacts me and asks to speak with me on the phone. He apologised and explained why we were all unhappy before leaving, saying that there had been a communication error.
He claimed that after observing the work Pyer Moss and I had been doing in the neighbourhood, he had chosen me to appear on one of the three covers of the BoF 500 magazine. Large "oh shit" moment for me. I will cover. He and I then started talking on the phone and scheduling meetings in Paris as a result of this. Jide and I went to one of them together.
In the sake of being open and honest, I told him about potential Creative Director positions I had been considering, brand-new projects I was working on outside of PM, and my upcoming Reebok appointment. Since this is a cover story for a September issue, I decided we could be completely honest.
He appeared content with the facts following our most recent encounter, and I departed with a strange yet relaxed sense. Getting to his location from the Marais was insanely congested, and during our meeting there was a blackout at his location.He gave us a location to meet. I should have seen that was one of my ancestors telling me to stop talking and avoid this man. The third eye was open, while the fourth eye was closed. I glanced at Jide and said, "Something's off."
After that meeting, he texts me to tell me that "we are going to go a different route with the cover"..
I struck Nate in a "bro, I felt it" manner. I understood I was being used as information.
Forward to the present —
They placed me on the 500 list and extended an invitation to the Gala last night. After the way he handled that, I had no desire to attend.
Man, I had been acting nicely all along. I even texted Nate to let him know that everything was fine. I played the game, shook everyone's hands, said all the wonderful things, and then suddenly everything goes wrong!
I had about 60% of "had it" with this whole shit when Imran got on the mic and said, "I want to just shout out a few people who inspired us to focus our issue on Diversity and inclusion." He then called out a list of names, maybe 20 names, including Olivier Rousteing and Pierpaolo Picolli as leaders in "Diversity and Inclusion," adding, "I want to just shout out a few people who inspired us to focus our issue on Diversity and inclusion."
I was shut out.
Observe the logos on the book covers.
That increased the percentage to 80% "had it."
The choir then returns to the stage. Imran, the man, transforms into Kirk Franklin and joins them in dancing and crap on stage. to an audience that is mostly white. We are now at 90%. What drives people to act in this way? Why does a person believe they have the right to perform a Kirk Franklin dance on stage? Because the fundamental problem is eventually that sense of entitlement. People having the impression that they may purchase or possess anything they want, provided it has to do with their race. We are constantly for sale.
So here we are. In other words, fuck that publication and fuck that list. I don't claim to own Christianity, choirs, or creating safe spaces for black people. That is something "We" do.
Appropriation constitutes homage devoid of empathy and representation. Investigate your own ancestry, culture, and religion instead. You demonstrate to us that you view us as a trend by copying ours while excluding us.
Like, are you going to die black with us?
Was the plan all along to use me and others like me to gather information about our community, package it, and sell it again to bigger businesses without actually trying to effect change?
The choir—was that the change?
I applaud everyone who makes an effort, even if it falls short. I admire companies that are forming committees, interacting with underserved groups, expanding their influencer networks, and making an effort to be inclusive in the hiring process. I oppose "cancelling" people in general because doing so is equivalent to applying a band-aid on a gunshot wound. Moreover, I tend to think that most people are nice. I'm aware that we require allies. resourceful partners.
I also regret giving the middle finger to the photographers when we all stormed out. Although I'm sure you deserved it, I'm better than that, and that was still in bad taste.
Thanks for Reading:
No matter who you are, what you do, or how much importance you place on looks, the advantages of the convergence of Business Of Fashion are clear. Either join the movement and welcome the future, or you'll fall behind.
No matter who you are, what you do, or how much importance you place on looks, the advantages of the convergence of Business Of Fashion are clear. Either join the movement and welcome the future, or you'll fall behind.
Are you anticipating the direction of fashion?
Did I overlook any noteworthy businesses? Please share your thoughts in the comments.
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Business Of Fashion 500 is now 499:
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