Amanda Gorman’s Biden moment puts headband in spotlight
Poet Amanda Gorman’s fashion influence has grown exponentially since she spoke at Joe Biden’s inauguration in January, wearing a yellow Prada coat and red Prada headband.
This week, Lyst, the fashion search engine, revealed that searches for “red headbands” jumped 560% in the first quarter of 2021.
Gorman’s headband was swiftly picked up by fashion insiders. Vogue ran a feature of “24 joyful headbands” in January, writing that Gorman’s was “less a headpiece, but in the spirit of her incredible reading, more like a crown”.
The Prada design sold out in the days afterwards, even with its £310 price tag. It is now available on the brand’s website and similar designs are available from retailers ranging from Oliver Bonas to Amazon.
Headbands – or “power bands” as they are sometimes called – have been a fashion item for about two years. Associated with Sloanes – a young Princess Diana wore a velvet headband in the 80s – Carrie Symonds, Princess Beatrice and Cressida Bonas have worn them, as have influencers including Tamu McPherson. It was Gorman’s moment, however, that made their popularity peak.
In February, she addressed the heat around her headband on Instagram, after a New York Times story about the hair accessory. “At the inauguration, I truly wanted to continue the history of strong women in headbands,” she wrote in a caption. “It was my mom who suggested I wear it horizontal with my thick braids. I highly suggest a headband crown for anyone wanting to stand taller, straighter, and prouder.”
Gorman, 23, signed as a model to the high-profile agency IMG in January, and was the first poet ever to appear on the cover of Vogue in April. As with the inauguration, her mother helped to style her hair for the photoshoot, and in one of the two covers the poet wears another headband.
Gorman is unsure about her new role as a fashion icon and said so in her Vogue interview, revealing that she had turned down about $17m (£12m) worth of deals. “When I’m part of a campaign the entity isn’t my body. It’s my voice,” she said. However, her influence on style is now undeniable – based on headband sales alone.