Grace Jones walked the runway to her own song, “Pull Up to the Bumper,†at the Tommy Hilfiger x Zendaya show at Paris Fashion Week. Zendaya and her stylist, Law Roach, designed the show to echo the seminal 1973 “Battle of Versailles,†where American designers won major accolades from Paris for the first time. Designer Steven Burrows presented a show with all black models at the Battle, something that is still remarkable today when models of color are underrepresented on runways. “We’re paying homage to these women who changed our legacy … and allowed for me and so many others to be here,†Zendaya told WWD. “I remember when my Vogue cover came out, Beverly Johnson [the first African-American model to land the cover of American Vogue] tweeted me congratulations, and I said this wouldn’t be possible without you. This is about saying we appreciate and love you.†Johnson walked the Hilfiger x Zendaya show, along with Pat Cleveland, Winnie Harlow, and Jones. Several plus-size models also walked the show, at Zendaya’s request — a first at a Tommy Hilfiger show. “If women in my family can’t all wear it, I don’t want to make it,†Zendaya said.
The Hilfiger x Zendaya show was a welcome change from the big fashion stories last month. From Gucci’s blackface turtleneck, to Burberry’s noose hoodie, to Katy Perry’s blackface shoes, we already know what fashion looks like when people of color aren’t in the room.