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Given that Pharrell was officially confirmed as Louis Vuitton's new men's creative director on February 14, Valentine's Day, these two well-known names are made for each other.
First off, Pharrell is as culturally relevant as he is unburdened by baggage. Rarely are celebrities as spotless as Pharrell. The lyrics for 2013's "Blurred Lines" that Pharrell and others co-wrote were probably the cause of the most controversial the 49-year-old singer has ever been.
Additionally, we've all agreed that Pharrell is well-known enough to survive on his name alone, and Louis Vuitton probably appreciates the fact that he has a wealth of prior fashion experience.
Pharrell's influence on fashion also far predates that of his contemporaries: his friendship with NIGO, the creator of BAPE, in the early 2000s helped the Japanese brand gain international recognition, introducing Ye and Cudi to BAPE in the process, and led to the creation of Billionaire Boys Club in 2003, one of the first musically founded fashion brands to successfully shape the streetwear hype machine.
Tyler the Creator is happy to acknowledge that Tyler the Creator's entire appearance is influenced by Pharrell's preppy shirt and short-short uniform, and the Cactus Plant Flea Market hats Pharrell invariably dons serve as a reminder that Cynthia Lu, the founder of CPFM, started out as his personal assistant.
Additionally, Pharrell was way ahead of the collaboration trend at the time: he secured a Reebok deal for his ICE CREAM skate brand in 2003 and created accessories for Louis Vuitton in 2004 (and again in 2008) before working with pretty much everyone he's ever admired, from Takashi Murakami and KAWS to Chanel, for whom he designed the brand's first ever streetwear-influenced collection.
Pharrell is self-taught, like Virgil Abloh. Because creative directors (Abloh was technically the artistic director) exist to direct the aesthetics of their respective companies, create connections between brands, and keep their properties on the cutting edge, neither men nor women ever positioned themselves as designers or were ever paid to design. Other team members make pattern sketches and take textile samples.
Pharrell has had many successful ventures in the past. Including Human Race, Billionaire Boys Club (with Nigo), his successful Adidas line, and more recently, his online auction site Joopiter. The point is that Pharrell has won the unwavering respect of his contemporaries and the general culture.
We can anticipate Pharrell to keep Louis Vuitton's cool and trendy image that it has developed over the past few years under Virgil's direction now that he is the men's creative director.
