gucci
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TGU50: The Dap Award
The category is: Icon. There are designers, there are influencers, there are activists…and then, there are changemakers. The innovative couturier fondly known as Dapper Dan is all that and more. Like Madam C.J. Walker, the historic black icon and heroine of Netflix’s upcoming series Self Made, Dapper Dan’s enterprising genius and ingenuity propelled him from…
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A Year After Its Blackface Scandal, Prada Agrees to Longterm Structural Changes
“When I spoke out about Prada’s blackface line one year ago, I feared that racism in fashion was a just bitter pill we collectively had to swallow,” said Chinyere Ezie, a civil rights attorney with the Center for Constitutional Rights, on Wednesday. “Now I know that speaking truth to power can lead to meaningful change.”…
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Because Opportunity Shouldn’t Be a Luxury, Gucci Announces Its Inaugural Changemaker Grants
When it comes to diversifying the fashion industry, “change” is more than a buzzword; it’s a moral imperative if the historically exclusive arena is to evolve. Last year, Gucci, along with many other luxury brands, was forced to confront its own missteps in creating “diversity and inclusion,” both by hiring a dynamic new head of D&I…
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Come Again? Commes des Garçons Ignites Cultural Appropriation Controversy With Cornrow Wigs
Hot damn heaux, here we go again! Another day and another high-end fashion brand embroiled in a cultural appropriation controversy. On Friday, Japanese fashion brand Commes des Garçons–which I thought was French all this time (shrug)—held its Fall 2020 menswear presentation during Men’s Paris Fashion Week with their models wearing what appeared to be oversized…
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Eddie Murphy and Lizzo Didn’t Just Bring Big Ratings to SNL; a Few Black Designers Got a Boost, Too
The ratings are in, and Eddie Murphy’s return to hosting Saturday Night Live with music from breakout star Lizzo was a massive success, giving the 44-year-old sketch comedy show its best ratings in two years. But show creator and producer Lorne Michaels wasn’t the only one who got a boost on Saturday night; both Lizzo and…
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From Here to Eternity: Fashion Icon Bethann Hardison Proves Her Slay Is Timeless in Gucci's New Lookbook
When it comes to fashion influencers, there’s one who’s been at it since before Instagram was a twinkle in its creators’ eyes. Advocate, activist, agent, influencer and prodigal model Bethann Hardison began her approximately 50-year career in fashion as a merchandising student who failed to graduate from New York City’s Fashion Institute of Technology (h/t…
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Be the Change: Gucci Is Offering Up to $6.5 Million in Grants and Scholarships Via Its Changemakers Program
You can talk about it, or you can be about it. While Gucci may have made a major misstep or two this year, the label has also made major progress on their expressed desire to be leaders in diversifying the fashion industry. Aside from making some significant hires, they’re also hoping to equip a more…
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On Brand: Gucci Mane Announces a Collaboration With—Who Else?—Gucci
So, what took so long? Trap originator Gucci Mane borrowed part of his famous moniker from the Italian fashion house of the same name and has frequently sported the brand in public (and likely, private) appearances. But despite the obvious and natural affiliation—and a recent front-row seat at Gucci’s Spring/Summer 2020 show in Milan—no formal…
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‘Mental Health Is Not Fashion’: Gucci Sparked Controversy—Again—as a Model Protested on Its Milan Runway
It’s been a long year for Gucci, as it has both sought to stay on the cutting edge of fashion and convince the world it’s made some major positive changes since the “blackface sweater” controversy that rocked the legendary fashion house this January. But proving that the label still loves to provoke, creative director Alessandro…
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Making Good on Its Promise to Make Change, Gucci Announces a Global Head of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion—and It’s a Woman of Color
Representation matters. It matters at the ballot box, at the box office, and most importantly, in the boardroom. And as Gucci and any number of fashion brands have discovered, it matters when it comes to the bottom line. After weathering a media firestorm and celebrity-proposed boycott when a sweater eerily resembling blackface hit the shelves,…