Williams highlights diversity in Adidas campaign
Pharrell Williams took inspiration from different cultures when designing his latest line for Adidas.
The musician has enjoyed a long-standing partnership with the sportswear label, having first worked with Adidas in 2014 and going on to release upward of a dozen collaborative projects. And sharing the details of his latest offering, Solar Hu, Pharrell explained how this line is different from all the rest.
“This one was culturally influenced,” he told reporters. “The core of what it is we do visually, beyond the clothes, is we try to tap into different stories of people that I admire, or take inspiration from. A lot of the people in our campaigns were of Sudanese, Senegalese and Kenyan descent because we wanted to highlight some of the beautiful skin complexion that’s often seen there. We’re using our platform to illustrate the beauty that is in the diversity of other colours.”
The 45-year-old believes Adidas differs from the majority of other brands today, who will only stand with ethnic stories “in ways they felt were palatable.”
Aside from his work with Adidas, which will see him release a limited-edition range of reworked track jackets with the Ethical Fashion Initiative next year, Pharrell is also working on an upcoming collaboration with Chanel — a capsule of ready-to-wear and accessories scheduled to go on sale in March. And as well as championing both designer clothing and streetwear, the Happy hitmaker says that his fashion vision comes from the same place as his music.
“It all originates from the same taste palette. There’s an eccentricity, I think, to my taste,” he considered. “That’s how I am across all senses. What I learn in one artistic discipline, I may be able to transcribe into another. What I learn in music, I might be influenced by and be able to transform and transpose it into something that is visual.”