Behind the scenes of A$AP Rocky's first AWGE fashion show

A$AP ROCKY'S AMERICAN SABOTAGE is a rather unusual name for a fashion show. Then again, when is A$AP Rocky regular?

Even presenting Rocky's very first fashion show was a wild ride. His livestream was hosted simultaneously on YouTube, Twitter/X and the website for AWGE, the mysterious collective Rocky oversees, and it didn't work properly on most of them.

But that’s showbiz. Everyone should expect shenanigans at their first parade.

And it's crazy that Rocky is just getting into the fashion show game. It's A$AP Rocky, remember, the one in many Bottega Veneta ads (both real and implied), endlessly excellent outfits, and two (or three?!) cool kids born by way of Rihanna.

Rocky's gifts will never be for sale, but his clothes certainly will be.

And indeed they were, in April. That's when Rocky launched AWGE's first ready-to-wear collection, replacing conventional products with conceptual shirts and $600 jeans. The usual? Rocky would never do it.

But this drop, still available on The AWGE online storewas just a taste of what was to come.

In front of a ragtag crowd that included Rihanna, Pusha T, Michle Lamy, LOEWE designer JW Anderson and LVMH scion Alexandre Arnault, Rocky's first fashion show was as much a performance as it was a clothing showcase.

Outside the venue that happened to be Karl Lagerfeld's home, a fitting selection, with all of today's rumors about Chanel, the AWGE assembled a group of animated “protesters”, holding signs reading ” DON’T BE DUMB,” the alleged title of the Rocky film. we were waiting for the next album.

It wasn't much more peaceful inside.

Once the show started, the music started blaring, including a song that would have been the audience's first taste. Do not be stupid.

The speed models were dressed in suits, some with shirts and ties, others with low-waisted skirts, billowing Miu Miu T-shirts, multi-layered tank tops and baggy jeans, their hair beaded with beaded or swept under a bright bandana.

Some even wore a faux flannel “shirt” around their jeans, with massive Rocky '12 vibes clustered atop Rocky's PUMA Inhale sneakers, which release in mid-July.

These are all clothes with a Rocky taste that Rocky himself imagined and brought to life with the help of three young designers: Bede Marchand, Joshua Jamal and Coucou Bebe, who previously created several custom pieces from their Coucou_Bebe75018 line for Rocky.

In other words, everyone was dressed like A$AP Rocky himself.

Well, a more theatrical version of Rocky, perhaps.

Our statement pieces made the distinction. In the middle of almost destroyed T-shirts and banners worn as dresses, a “wet” trompe l’oeil T-shirt floated in front the body, leaving the back bare.

A tight bodysuit was even sewn with receipts and a glove that gripped the model's neck.

Very Margiela, although Demna-era Vetements seems like a more apt comparison (remember Demna cut his teeth at Maison Martin). But instead of semi-subtle storytelling, blunt political messages dominated the day.

Katherine Hamnett-esque slogans including “AMERICAN SABOTAGE” and “POLITIC SATIRE” were big and responsible, adorning deconstructed bomber jackets and t-shirts printed with body armor. A model wore an NYPD sweatshirt.

Guests fanned themselves with small “NO WAR” signs handed out at the entrance.

“Harrisburg, Pennsylvania” was a recurring motif, perhaps a tribute to the city's importance in the American Civil War or the Underground Railroad.

This presumably completes a print of “1865”, the year America ratified the Thirteenth Amendment which ostensibly abolished slavery nationwide.

These are thematic threads that need to be delved into to understand Rocky's intention.

Is “American Sabotage,” sometimes printed on the face of President Bill Clinton, a summary of systemic inequality? Are the NYPD logo and gun-shaped cake more in reference to police brutality and gun violence? Does the constant use of camouflage and balaclavas call for ongoing international protests?

Rocky appeared after the show wearing a bomber jacket printed with his own photo, a tangible reminder that successful slogan clothing should be both statement and stylish. And the clothes were really very elegant.