What's the difference between Lil' Wayne's totally masculine, many leopard skin pants and those totally feminine, printed leggings? Trick question: nothing at all! Lil' Wayne has been officially confirmed to have worn these leggings generally geared toward females during a recent performance of his overrated, over-played song "How To Love". I'm not faulting Lil' Wayne for being a male who wears leggings. I do, however, fault Lil' Wayne for using every opportunity to deride his male opponents as feminine as a negative (because I guess he thinks femininity is a bad thing?) – when, in fact, he's wearing clothing designed for women. For all I care, Lil' Wayne could cross-dress, but I just want him to be consistent with his rhetoric.
(Left) MTV Video Music Awards 2011 (Right) Tripp NYC leggings, 2011.
Lady Gaga is so well-known for her absurdity, that people often forget that she is a really great contemporary fashionista. The following dress is beyond beautiful, with the shoes really pulling the outfit together. My eyes, however, keep being drawn into her totally fresh sunglasses. I think that GaGa should take breaks from her eccentricity more often.
Check out the following video (it's short, I promise). G-Dragon shows how to flawlessly pull off the urban chic look, with semi-skinny jeans, a long sleeved shirt, and a fitted cap. His leather backpack is beautiful and, despite its simplicity, I cannot get my mind off of his polka-dotted shirt. Props for the leather backpack, too: it's totally cute.
I adore androgyny, and the following outfit pulls it off in a deliciously tame manner. The straw hat and button-collar add to a certain laid-back feel, with the mutlicolor, faded jacket completing the look. It if weren't for them (and the belt!), the navy blue pants, navy blue tie, and blue oxford shirt would be ridiculously bland. I wish I could ask her where she picked up the hat.
Let me conclude today by condemning a man who has been generally fresh in the past. Karl Otto Lagerfeld, best known for his work with both Chanel and Fendi, said this a few weeks ago:
"You have beautiful, intelligent children and they give you stability and credibility in the eyes of others…You're also lucky because they are very beautiful. It would have been difficult to have an ugly daughter."
Freshness is not about one's physical aesthetic traits; it's about a style, demeanor, and a certain intellect. My Fresh Friday segments may have judged peoples' clothing, hair, panache, etc. – but notice that I have never criticized one's inherent physical qualities. (In fact, I've oftendefendedthem.) It wasn't too long ago when being overweight and pale was conventionally viewed as being "pretty", while today the opposite is true. The concept of societal beauty norms is so arbitrary (and classist, too) that I try my best not to give into it. If Karl Lagerfeld really believes what he says, then he is a pathetic, shallow individual. Also notice that he switched from the gender neutral term "children" to the female-specific term "daughter", when discussing an ugly child. Until he releases an apology, Karl Lagerfeld is hereby banned from any future Fresh Fridays. Sorry, Karl: being a total sexist pig has its consequences.
