The Funk Boutique: The Black Fashion Industry Is Not Only for You...But for Everyone

Telfar Clemens debuts his first post-pandemic collection at the Olympic opening ceremony, Hot Girl Meg rides off into the sunset, and Saweetie stuns in Vietnam.

More often than not, the Olympics opening ceremony is tacky but overwhelmingly bland; an oxymoron, if you will. The ceremony doesn’t always reflect the grace and pure talent that come with being an Olympian—but Telfar Clemens’ “collection” of Liberian Olympic uniforms checks all of the boxes.

The debut of the Olympics “double[d] as a runway show for Telfar.” While the brand has had many drops and collaborations since the pandemic began, this is the first time the designer has presented a show since before 2020. Liberia only has three athletes competing this year, which alone poses as a major moment of speculation, where all eyes are on them. The collection’s flowing fabrics in gold, red, white and navy blue make up the three-person team’s uniforms, ensuring the team will be one to watch.

According to The Root, Telfar—one of this year’s The Glow Up 50 honorees—is both the sponsor and outfitter of the Liberian Olympic team. Going back to his own Liberian heritage, he is honoring his country by showcasing its culture, placing it on a global pedestal.

W reports it was Emmanuel Matadi, one of the Liberian team’s athletes, who presented the idea of Telfar designing the uniforms. It was his “girlfriend’s obsession with Telfar’s bags that gave him the idea to ask the designer.”

The brand believes that fashion is for everyone, and keeping that same mentality, a few of the pieces that debuted at the Olympics will be made available to the public as well as other “more athletic-inspired pieces later this year.”

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Hot Girl Sunset

Image for article titled The Funk Boutique: The Black Fashion Industry Is Not Only for You...But for Everyone — Image: Courtesy of Revlon

Set your alarms, Stallions, Hot Girl Meg is releasing a very limited edition 4-Piece Hot Girl Sunset line through her partnership with Revlon. According to a press release provided to The Root, Hot Girl Sunset is the first collection curated by Meg through her collaboration as a brand ambassador for the beauty juggernaut. The collection—which is only being offered at 450 sets—includes 10 high-pigment matte and shimmer eye-shadows, false lashes for all the bad bitches out there, some high-sheen, super lustrous “THEE GLOSS” in a perfect coral shade and a hot girl pouch to keep it all in.

The collection drops on July 28 at 12pm ET only on StockX via DropX. So set them alarms for 11:59 am and get on your real hot girl shit.

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Icy Girl Is a Cover Girl…Again

In preparation for the release of her debut album, Pretty Bitch Music, Saweetie graced the cover of Harper’s Bazaar Vietnam’s 10th anniversary cover, stunning us with a burgundy fit that stood out against a bight blue backdrop.

“WELCOME TO MY LABYRINTH” she captioned a Instagram post that showed off the cover.

The rapper is seen in various monochromatic shades of gold, blue and black, courtesy of Saint Laurent, Christian Cowan and Valentino. There is an iridescent glow in each of the photos that not only reflects the photographer’s work, but the amazing glow Saweetie seems to have around her at all times. The makeup is both reminiscent of fairytales and an Afrofuturistic vibe.

This is a major step for the rapper as she prepares to take the industry by storm from her viral hits to the founding of her label “Icy Records.” Pretty Bitch Music was set to be released on June 25, 2021, but has been pushed back due to some reconstruction of songs.

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You Too Can Learn to Do Hair Like Jawara

It’s true!! The incredibly sought-after celebrity hairstylist has just joined Fekkai as its new international stylist partner. Jawara was the genius behind the hairstyles at Pyer Moss’s history-making haute couture fashion show and his work has been featured from the Met Gala to Vogue. On top of all that styling power, the 2021 TGU 50 honoree is the beauty editor-at-large for i-D magazine. The new Fekkai partnership will include “salon education and creative work,” according to Glossy, and Fekkai products will be used by Jawara in upcoming fashion shows. The salon education portion of the partnership will be teaching people how to use techniques and products specifically designed for textured hair.

The education aspect is particularly important to Jawara because when he was in beauty school, he personally taught a class about textured hair after finding there was nothing offered in the curriculum. In a quote to the magazine, Jawara states, “I’m going to make sure that, with this partnership, I can inform as many people as I possibly can.”

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Kennedi Carter Comes “Full Circle” With Her Collaboration With Google’s Creator Labs

In my opinion, one of 2021 TGU 50 honoree Kennedi Carter’s most beautiful photos is when she photographed a person wearing a pair of rainbow angel wings at Pride 2017. With that, her idea of what progress looked like for an artist is “making art that highlights a subject matter that should be highlighted in the world already,” according to W. Her recent collaboration with Google’s Creator Labs got down to the root of how progress could be seen—thus creating a project focused around a couple she really loves and admires. The sepia-esque photos show the couple kissing, highlighting the art featured on the bodies of both. One of the photos shows them laying on the ground, the viewer unable to tell where one body begins and ends. It’s an incredible project and opportunity to express Black love through a platform as big as Google.

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Ulta and Target and Pattern…Oh, My!

Speaking of textured hair, Tracee Ellis Ross’s cult-favorite haircare line, Pattern Beauty, will be launching at Ulta@Target in over 100 locations nationwide. The full line of products will be available and with this new collaboration, the brand will be able to reach more people than Pattern has to date. As of August 2021, Ulta@Target will be carrying the line.

According to Happi, Ross states, “We are thrilled to be a part of this exciting partnership that marries Ulta Beauty’s distinguished expertise with Target’s ease and convenience. Ulta@Target presents a disruptive, new and more engaging way for us to connect with more and more consumers.”

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The Great Alton Mason Modeling as the Great Gatsby

Yessirrrrr! Alton Mason, one of the industry’s most sought-after male models, landed the August 2021 cover of Harper’s Bazaar Kazakhstan. The black and white cover (so goddamn chic) features Mason in an all-white suit, dressed to the nines in jewels and leaning on a cane. The shoot was inspired by The Great Gatsby and shows Mason alongside Mona Matsuoka in a car, Matsuoka in the driver’s seat applying lipstick while Mason takes the wheel. The imagery is gorgeous, as well as recreating the iconic scene where Daisy throws all of Gatsby’s shirts into the air. Ugh. This shoot is everything.

In his interview, Mason talks about how the industry needs to be doing more: “I am the first Black male model to hit the runway at a Chanel show. And that’s great! We must continue to move in this direction.” He also talks of the racial bias he faces daily in his career and how he uses dance and performing as a way to separate himself from the judgments.

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