Celebrities and the Fashion Industry

1 Celebrities and the Fashion Industry Introduction A celebrity is an individual who is widely recognized and receives a significant amount of media and public attention. Celebrities have an appeal that makes them interesting to people. Usually, people become celebrities from entertainment activities such as playing sports, hosting television shows, making music and acting in movies (Rockwell, & Giles, 2009). Some people may become celebrities from non-entertainment activities such as politics, business, and philanthropy. In some cases, a person may achieve celebrity for their success in different careers; for instance, some musicians are also renowned for their philanthropy, while some actors are also musicians. The term ‘celebrity' is often associated with social influence, an expensive lifestyle and wealth (Kohler, 2014). Celebrities have different levels of fame; some are known internationally, while others are known within a certain region or country.

Buy this excellently written paper or order a fresh one from ace-myhomework.com

2

Origin of Celebrity Fame and celebrity have been present in society from as early as the 17th century when people would gain prominence in society through their participation in the arts, entertainment, sports, and politics. These included painters, artists, politicians, poets, writers. Celebrity culture grew exponentially with the invention of tools of mass media such as the radio and television, which made it possible to broadcast the activities of famous people to a broader audience. The advent of the television, particularly, enabled people to watch movies, sports, music, and news, thus giving rise to the modern version of celebrity culture (Agins, 2014).

Mass media gave people a glimpse into the lives of notable people and also offered access to entertainment.

However, there is a significant difference between the idea of celebrity in the earlier centuries and the modern concept of celebrity. In the 1700s and early 1800s, a celebrity was often a heroic person who was either highly talented in their craft or demonstrated virtues such as courage and patriotism (Pappas, 2012). However, as the years progressed the definition of celebrity has changed, and there is no longer a strong emphasis on moral values but on their ability to entertain and influence.

The changes in the definition of celebrity and fame are mainly caused by advancements in technology which have made it possible for people to become more available to an international audience and therefore achieve fame and celebrity faster. Today, celebrity culture is an integral part of everyday society, and it reflects people's preferences in sports, music, fashion, politics, and movies (Hamad, 2015). Hollywood, in California, US, is

3 the most notable sources of films, music, and other entertainment. The name ‘Hollywood' has over the years become synonymous with fame, entertainment, and celebrity.

The relationship between Celebrities and Fashion, Past and Present Celebrities have always been influential in setting fashion trends. The pursuit of dressing well and looking good is not a new phenomenon. In earlier centuries, people would follow fashion trends as seen in portraits by famous artists. In the modern day, people follow celebrity fashion through movies, print and digital media (Sutori.com, 2018). Celebrities have a strong influence on fashion because to be noticed in their highly competitive industry; they have to dress in a manner that distinguishes them. By creating their personal style, they thus begin fashion trends.

As early as the 18th century, the Queen of France, Marie Antoinette was famed for her extravagant way of dressing. Many women emulated her fashion choices. In the 1930s, as people in the western world got access to films through the silver screen, it became easier for celebrities to sway fashion choices. Fashion icons of the mid-20th century include Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, Jacqueline Kennedy, and Elizabeth Taylor, among others. These celebrities created trends through their keen knowledge of fashion and their ability to influence people’s opinions. In the 1960s Hubert de Givenchy and Audrey Hepburn’s partnership propelled the Givenchy fashion brand (Norman, 2015). Throughout her career, Hepburn wore the label severally, and due to her fame, the brand became recognized for high quality and elegance. Today, designers and celebrities often work together to set trends by creating fashion collections. Celebrities drive fashion by modeling for clothing designers, attending major events in designer clothing and some cases, starting brands of their own.

4 Internationally recognized celebrities such as Kim Kardashian have made several brands highly famous by merely wearing their clothing.

Difference between Celebrities’ On-Screen and Off-Screen Persona Celebrities often have to wear costumes that are different from their off-screen clothing when acting, performing or playing a sport. Entertaining fans involves wearing clothing that reflects the character and status of the person they are playing. For instance, an actor playing the role of a king would wear a crown and royal regalia; however, in real life, they would not wear the same clothing since it is a costume. To make public appearances, for instance, when attending awards shows, celebrities often wear heavy makeup and wear extravagant gowns (Carroll, 2008). In their day to day life, many celebrities have a more casual style of dressing. However, some of the extremely famous celebrities such as the Kardashian family, Rihanna and Beyoncé have makeup and wardrobe teams that ensure that they are well-dressed and groomed daily. There are celebrities such as Halle Berry who prefer to stay off the limelight when they are offscreen and live relatively normal lives doing normal everyday activities for themselves such as shopping and running errands. However, some celebrities prefer to live their lives in the limelight to attract media presence at all times; this strategy enables them to become more famous and grow their brand faster. Examples of such celebrities are the Kardashian and Jenner family.

The nature of their work allows most celebrities to amass a vast fortune in the course of their career and they are therefore able to afford a higher standard of living than the average person (Tehrani, 2013). Different celebrities live different lifestyles depending on their level of wealth and personality. There are some who opt to live lavishly, while others prefer to adopt a humble lifestyle.

5 The Relationship Audiences Have With Celebrities Celebrities are admired by the public because they have the things that most people desire such as fame, fortune, great physical beauty, talent, and rewarding careers. Their fans admire celebrities because they trigger the longing for comfort, beauty, charisma and wealth.

Audiences are inspired by celebrities' courage to live their lives in a bold, visible way, and intrinsically they wish they could also be just as bold. In society, there has always been a clamor for role models and figures of admiration; celebrities are perceived to fit this mold because their lives are seemingly perfect (McKernan, 2011). However, most of it is an illusion of perfections which can mostly be attributed to their carefully crafted public image and personality.

Different Types of Celebrities There are various types of celebrities depending on an individual’s unique niche and talent. These include actors, musicians, sports personalities, socialites, writers, business moguls, philanthropists, and religious figures. The public relates to different categories of celebrities differently. Some celebrities are revered due to their extensive knowledge and talent in a particular field; for instance; Steve Jobs and Bill Gates are admired for their ability to build multinational corporations that have transformed their world despite their failure to complete university. Sports figures such as Michael Jordan, Roger Federer, and Serena Williams are admired due to their sports prowess, discipline, achievements and wealth. In recent years, there has been a rise in celebrities who are not necessarily outstandingly talented but can attract significant media and public attention (Wesołowski, 2018). Such celebrities are both admired and despised by the public for attaining fame and wealth despite an apparent lack of talent.

6 Audiences often have one-sided relationships with celebrities; they devote their time and effort to acquiring information about them and develop a bond with them through their work, whereas celebrities do not know their fans on a personal level. For instance, ardent fans of Beyonce refer to themselves as the beehive and understand each of her songs as well as her background and life history. On social media sites, they communicate with her, despite knowing that there is a high probability that she might not acknowledge their admiration.

Celebrities occasionally give fans glimpses into their lives through interviews and social media postings, thus perpetuating the audience’s illusion of proximity to the celebrity.

How and Why People Copy Celebrities Celebrities are widely emulated by society and easily influence people’s culture. The public's curiosity and subsequent admiration of celebrities are driven by the basic human instinct to achieve higher levels of success and fame, and in the absence of that, to admire people who have attained our intrinsic desires. Society is divided into hierarchies; the wealthy, talented and famous are placed at the top of the hierarchy, while other ‘normal' people are at the lower levels of the structure. It is human nature to seek growth and mobility from one level of the social hierarchy to the other; celebrities are admired because they have attained the level which many people desire to reach. From the early ages, society admired people who demonstrated having superior skills and would reward them greatly for their talent, while seeking to learn from them so that they could also evolve to a higher level of the societal hierarchy. Whereas in the earlier centuries people admired traits and skills that were useful to the community such as ethical leadership and courage, modern society has many celebrities who possess characteristics that maybe detrimental to the moral well-being of society (Keel, & Nataraajan, 2012). It is therefore essential for the younger, more

7 impressionable members of society to determine who a good role model is by determining whether the traits they admire in a celebrity are useful to society.

Admiring famous, accomplished people is a natural human trait because human beings are social creatures who need to feel accepted, admired and respected. In today's world, many people desire prestige, and as a result, admire people who have attained it. Audiences emulate celebrities by copying their personal style, food choices, mannerisms and lifestyle (Brown, & Fiorella, 2013). For instance, in 2010 when Rihanna dyed her hair red, hundreds of thousands of fans across the world colored their hair red in admiration, thus creating a fashion trend.

Similarly, Audrey Hepburn is recognized by many celebrities and non-celebrities as the ultimate style icon due to her simple, crisp and timeless style.

Conclusion Celebrities are always in the pursuit to make a style statement since it contributes significantly to their stardom. Over the years, celebrities have had a significant impact on the fashion industry; this impact continues to grow in the modern day due to advancements in technology. Many ‘common’ people make fashion choices based on the outfits that they have seen celebrities wearing. People associate celebrity and fame with prestige, thus emulating celebrity style enables them to enjoy a certain level of the same prestige as the celebrity but at a lower cost. Celebrities have makeup artists and wardrobe stylists to help them achieve the looks; however, by emulating them, it has become easier for ‘common' people to achieve prestigious looks at a lower cost. Celebrities are perceived to be fashion leaders because they are usually among the first people to wear fashionable outfits sometimes as soon as they appear on international fashion runways, and sometimes they have unique outfits specially

8 designed for them. Due to the exposure to celebrity trends through the media, the public will buy items worn by the celebrities they consider to be fashion leaders.

Additionally, people trust celebrities' fashion choices because they are known to have a strong interest in fashion and easy access to internationally recognized fashion stylists and designers unlike their fashion followers; therefore, most of the fashion choices they make are considered to be trendy and well-informed. Celebrities’ fashion sense is also trusted because they frequently attend fashion events where they are exposed to new fashion trends.

Celebrities influence followers who have a deeper appreciation for fashion more easily since they are willing to take fashion risks and copy trends easily. Some followers are more susceptible to celebrity influence due to personality traits such as impulsivity, lack of a strong personal identity and in some cases, an obsession with the celebrity. Social media also contributes significantly to allowing fans to access trends instantly.

9 References Agins, T. (2014). Hijacking the runway. Penguin Publishing Group.

Brown, D., & Fiorella, S. (2013). Influence Marketing: How to Create, Manage, and Measure Brand Influencers in Social Media Marketing. Indianapolis, Ind.: Que. Carroll, A. (2008). Brand communications in fashion categories using celebrity endorsement.

Journal Of Brand Management, 17(2), 146-158. doi: 10.1057/bm.2008.42 Donald, S. & Stefano, T. (2012). Fast fashion lesson , Journal compilation. London Business School.

Hamad, H. (2015). Introduction: intersections of fame, politics and power in the contemporary celebrity mediascape. Celebrity Studies, 6(4), 601-602. doi: 10.1080/19392397.2015.1092212 Keel, A., & Nataraajan, R. (2012). Celebrity Endorsements and Beyond: New Avenues for Celebrity Branding. Psychology & Marketing, 29(9), 690-703. doi: 10.1002/mar.20555 Kohler, S. (2014). Why Are We Fascinated By Celebrities?. Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/dreaming-freud/201408/why-are-wefascinated-celebrities McKernan, B. (2011). Politics and Celebrity: A Sociological Understanding. Sociology Compass, 5(3), 190-202. doi: 10.1111/j.1751-9020.2011.00359.x Norman, A. (2015). Behind Faves: Why We Grow Emotionally Attached to Celebrities.

Retrieved from https://www.themarysue.com/science-behind-celebrities/ Pappas, S. (2012). Oscar Psychology: Why Celebrities Fascinate Us. Retrieved from https://www.livescience.com/18649-oscar-psychology-celebrity-worship.html

10 Rockwell, D., & Giles, D. (2009). Being a Celebrity: A Phenomenology of Fame. Journal Of Phenomenological Psychology, 40(2), 178-210. doi: 10.1163/004726609x12482630041889 Sutori.com. (2018). Sutori. [online] Available at: https://www.sutori.com/story/how-docelebrities-influence-fashion--nbPKPytkxLsb2ND1WDDgrCoT [Accessed 28 Mar. 2019].

Tehrani, J. (2013). Viewpoint: Did our brains evolve to foolishly follow celebrities?. [online] BBC News. Available at: https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-23046602 [Accessed 28 Mar. 2019].

Wesołowski, A. (2018). Beyond celebrity history: towards the consolidation of fame studies.

Celebrity Studies, 1-16. doi: 10.1080/19392397.2018.1527705