1 minute read
If We MustCrown Rhianna
C.L. Blackburn CNW Staff Writer
Let it be known that Rhianna is the Beauty Rock Star, so it’s no wonder Fenty and Puma have waited with bated breath for her return. She’s that magical mega magnet that attracts makes her a brand’s best bet. She’s worth it. She’s that girl, tall and tan, young and lovely and everyone wants a piece of her magic. Just ask expert shoe designer Manolo Blahnik who began his very different love collaboration with her in 2016 shortly after she kicked off a line of sports shoes with Puma.
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On March 1, Rihanna announced the return of her Fenty x Puma collaboration with a simple message posted to Instagram: “She’s back.”
The ‘beauty rock star’ is like water always flowing and the undercurrent is never predictable so her very nonchalant announcement was no surprise but expected maybe. Rihanna’s relationship with Puma began almost a decade ago. She first joined the brand in 2014 as creative director, and released a series of sell-out sneakers, staged a number of shows at New York Fashion Week, which received positive reviews from critics and customers alike. Then the Beauty Rock Star shifted her attention and segued from the last Puma collection in 2017, with the collaboration going on an informal hiatus.
We all know what came next. Fenty, a ready-to-wear line was launched in 2019 (the year before COVID-19) with LVMH, and Rhianna became the first Black woman to launch a luxury line with the top fashion conglomerate. Two years later, the brand shuttered with the pandemic causing a decline in sales. Details of what and when the new collaboration with Puma will include or arrive have not been announced. All we know is that it is “coming soon.”
What we can expect whenever the launch happens, is more of Rihanna’s style signatures that put a more playful bent on the athleisure staples that dominated the market during the early reign of chunkysoled sneakers, brightly-colored bodysuits, oversized graphic hoodies, and thigh-high boots. We can count on Rihanna to be the brand’s most effective ambassador. But who knows? Rhianna is full of the new and unexpected.
