A star-studded ode to Paris: Pharrell makes his Louis Vuitton debut

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Pharrell Williams brought the fashion and music worlds together in Paris on Tuesday night for his blockbuster debut for Louis Vuitton. Some 1,750 guests attended the show, including Jay-Z, Beyonce, Rihanna, A$AP Rocky, Zendaya, Naomi Campbell, Kim Kardashian, Jared Leto and Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo. The scale of the event demonstrated not only Williams’s grandiose vision and Louis Vuitton’s firepower as a luxury brand — its sales surpassed €20 billion in 2022 — but also the strength of its Parisian roots.

As teased before the show, house codes such as the Damier check were reinterpreted and used across several of the 71 looks. Louis Vuitton’s popular Speedy bag also got an update in a range of bright colours. The word “Lovers”, incorporating the LV monogram, was emblazoned across one jacket – referencing the wider theme of the collection. Revived from the archives, the phrase “Marque L. Vuitton Déposée” was seen both on the catwalk and on Jay-Z’s custom leather jacket. Williams, meanwhile, wore trousers and a jacket in the new “Damoflage” pattern, which appeared across the collection, including on tailoring, intarsia and fur coats.

Photo: Julien De Rosa/AFP via Getty Images

And while Williams has taken the helm of menswear, three female models — including Liya Kebede — walked the runway, confirming his gender-agnostic take on fashion (“I make things for humans,” he told Vogue Business ahead of the show).

Paris was a lead character in the event: guests were taken by boat to the show venue on le Pont Neuf, Paris’s oldest bridge located at the foot of the Louis Vuitton headquarters and of LVMH’s Cheval Blanc hotel. There, the show took place against the backdrop of the river Seine and the Eiffel Tower. The bridge was covered in Louis Vuitton’s signature Damier check in gold. “It feels like a destination show — but in Paris,” said one of the attendees.

A three-hour experience followed, where music took centre stage alongside the fashion in line with Williams’s background as a musician and producer. There was a band playing music composed by Williams and a gospel choir. The excitement reached a peak when Jay-Z started performing, and Williams joined him on stage. “I am so proud of you,” Jay-Z said to Williams, whose appointment as men’s creative director for the luxury house — making him the first multi-season successor to the late Virgil Abloh — was announced in February.

“I liked the collection a lot — the tailoring, the scenography, the exceptional music, the finale. I have rarely seen such an ambiance. He really impressed me with tailoring,” said Sidney Toledano, chairman and CEO of LVMH Fashion Group, after the show.

Photo: Daniele Oberrauch / Gorunway.com

Local residents were watching from their windows, as well as guests at the Cheval Blanc hotel. Afterwards, chicken nuggets by celebrity chef Jean Imbert (who’s behind the Monsieur Dior restaurant in the Avenue Montaigne flagship) were served with cocktails.

The show and performance were live streamed globally. “No matter where you are on the globe tonight, you are here with us in Paris,” Williams said on stage.

Louis Vuitton CEO Pietro Beccari, who stepped into the role in February and appointed Williams shortly after, is no stranger to securing unique venues: when he was CEO of Fendi, the house celebrated its 90th anniversary at the Trevi fountain; during his tenure at Dior, the house staged a show in front of the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt. Securing use of the Pont Neuf is another feat. “Two fashion generations will remember this moment,” Beccari told Vogue Business.

In a statement, he added: “Everyone has been very collaborative since day one. Louis Vuitton has fantastic creative teams, savoir-faire and ateliers, while Pharrell and his longtime collaborators bring with them a strong creative direction and unique vision. Together, it’s a hub of creativity and innovation – there are no limits to what we can do. I am convinced that we are going to achieve great things, shaping the future of Louis Vuitton.”