Instagram: @lohokur A few evenings ago, I was invited to Loho Kur’s Bow-based studio by the man himself. Over half an hour, we discussed his roots, his self-inspired mythology and his ascent from leafy Feltham to the megalopolis of New York. The author and creator of Deviant by Loho , Kur is intuitively crafting a legacy, and what’s better, we’re here for the beginning. Here is the exclusive transcript of our conversation: Harry: So, let’s start off here. You've said, “I traded the monotony of spreadsheets for the canvas of creativity.” You've spent some time working as a software engineer and a technology consultant. While it seems you're breaking away from that monotonous corporate mindset, does your experience ever factor into your work? Even if it's something that you want to propel yourself away from?  Loho: I’m twenty-one now. I got that consultancy job when I was eighteen, it was a degree apprenticeship. It was cool. It was a very prestigious course, and it would have set me up for a lot, corporate-wise. But that's not the route that I thought I was for, if that makes sense. Yeah, I mean, I was always doing fashion. I was always creating things. Not even just fashion; I was always world-building. Harry: From what age did you start fashion? Loho: Fourteen. I started my first brand when I was fourteen, just printing t-shirts in a shed in my friend's garden, dip-dyeing t-shirts. Saved up some pocket money from my mum. I was skiving that whole week off school, but I managed to save around thirty pounds, bought like three t-shirts. And then from there, I just started experimenting. I would iron on our logos with printed paper, like print iron paper, that sort of stuff. So yeah, I started the brand stuff kind of early, and when I was eighteen working in Canary Wharf, it was cool, but it was very monotonous, very structured.  Harry: Even [in Bow], you have that beautiful London blend of modernity and that from the past; there’s a soul to it. Whereas I've always seen Canary Wharf, like it's amazing to look at, but it's soulless in a way. Would you say that you share that sentiment?  Loho: It was very soulless. It felt like just one big soulless university campus. I didn't really know the impact it would have on my headspace until I was in it. I found myself getting down just with the monotony of going in and not having that diversity and scenery my brain needed. I grew up in Feltham. It’s on the border of West London, and it's just filled with trees and horses; there’s nothing really there. It's just landscape and beautiful valleys, and meadows. I would come back to an almost Narnia-type world and then would have to go into a rigid, monotonous, black-and-white place.  Harry: And that's where ‘Felthoria’ was born from.  Loho: It's a feeling, like that feeling of being able to come back home to somewhere that you're familiar with. Somewhere that feels like home, something that gives you that euphoria.  Harry: I'm the same. I was raised on the coast of Liverpool on the beach, and that’s what it’s like for me. I think that everyone needs to go away from London every few months and for me, going home, going back to the beach, just being by the sea, I get that connection and that feeling. So, staying on this point, what I find quite inspiring is that despite having a brand that's only just over a year old, you've made it a mission to help others chase their dreams by consulting them on their brands. To quote you: “I've learned firsthand that chasing your own dreams is not just a cliché - it’s a necessity.” Can you tell me more about that, and have you had many creatives approach you?  Loho: I’ve had a few in the scene. I came up in the whole UK underground scene, underground rap, underground fashion. I met a lot of amazing people along the way, and there's so much talent in the underground. I don't even like using the word ‘underground’, I'll be real. I think it kind of diminishes the sheer gravity of people’s talent, but there’s so many people and there's so many ideas floating around and I was like, yo, I have to give help out in some way. Shout out to Teddy, he just left the studio now. We were speaking about what it means to build a brand. What does it mean to build a world around your brand? How do we make people feel the same way that we feel when we make the clothes? Harry: Do you consult on anything outside of fashion as well? Loho: I'm friends with a couple of music artists, rappers, and singers. So yes, when I'm in discussions with them, it's like, how do we build a brand around your sound? Like, okay, cool, there's a sound that people know you for, but then what's the world that they get transported to from that sound? I just feel like world-building is at the core of any sort of consultancy. Consultancy comes from me being a consultant at eighteen in the corporate world, and being able to translate that to fashion is cool.  Harry: That's really cool. You've sold hundreds of pieces, some that you designed in just four minutes,  followed by hundreds of pre-orders, initially in just 72 hours, which is incredible. It's quite obvious you've struck gold somewhere in the market as if everyone's been waiting for something like you to come along. What do you think caused your instant popularity?  Loho: I've never really seen myself as being like this popular thing or like an enigma that people have to figure out. I just like to kind of push the idea of what it means to have a story and a piece. So one of my first pieces is called ‘jeanz that deviate’. I was going through some tough times, my brother was ill. He was going through a lot of mental health things, and that really impacted me. It must’ve been in secondary school, going into college. It impacted my view of the world. I was sad a lot of the time because of what was going on. I grew to discover what mental health was, and I was able to take that, turn it and manifest that energy into creating a product, creating art, like wearable art. So, ‘jeanz that deviate’, have a big frown of stitches on the mouth with ‘x’ eyes and that wasn’t to be edgy. Harry: It’s as if you’re imprinting your feelings on the actual product. An emotional canvas.  Loho: What other way am I going to do it? I might as well just show it with a big red embroidery patch. Other kids my age were going through the same thing, probably. That's why, I guess, it became popular because it was so relatable. Here was a sixteen, seventeen-year-old selling his story to other sixteen, seventeen-year-olds, that they could relate to. Harry: I guess that's with any brand, you know, there isn’t just the aim to reflect the times but also to reflect the emotional response to the times. It’s as if a brand is a breathing entity itself. It goes through feelings, you know; there are darker collections, and there are lighter collections. But that’s interesting, how you literally imprint your emotion onto the product.  Loho: It's cool. I'm so thankful fashion allows that sort of expression, you know? I feel blessed that I'm able to do that through fashion. Then there was ‘jeanz that mediate’, the second iteration, so series two. ‘Jeanz that deviate’ had these horns on the side to show just the sheer gravity of how I was feeling. ‘Jeanz that mediate’ didn’t come with the horns. That pair, with its silver-infused, distressed denim backing, that pair offered you a choice. Now, you could put the horns on from your previous pair of ‘jeanz' on those pair of ‘jeanz’. But ‘jeanz that mediate’ was for you to make a decision. Are you still going to be in that state of melancholy that holds you down? Or are you going to work to alleviate those burdens? That's what I was doing at the time; I was in corporate and I was working. I was just alleviating all of that weight that was on my shoulders. That's where ‘ jeanz that alleviate ’ came in.  Harry: You're allowing the consumer to not just wear the 'jeanz' designed as they are, but you also allow them to go through that same experience, somewhat. By taking off and applying the horns, you let the 'jeanz' be a kind of medium through which they can apply their emotions in a way, would you say?  Loho: Yeah, it was literally kind of like an outlet of emotion. The enthusiasts - I don't like to call them consumers or fans, but the enthusiasts of the message. When 'jeanz that alleviate’ came, obviously it was my most viral product and it's crazy how the final piece in the trilogy was the one that blew up. I think that happened for a reason because of the symbolism behind ‘jeanz that alleviate.’ So you've deviated, then you mediate between whether are you going to change or not, and then all the burdens are alleviated.  Harry: Like you’ve had an outcome, a solution.  Loho: Yeah, a solution, and it all just flowed beautifully. I was twenty, so that series took about around three-ish years to put out that story. One thing I was talking to Teddy about today was, he was like: “Why don't you drop more?" He was coming from the idea of having more variation within the brand, and I said that if it takes me two, three, four, five, or ten years to tell the story of one piece, I’ll do it. I'm not here to flood the planet with products. Yeah, it's a business, but it's like art is at the root of it, you know? Harry: Have you trained anywhere, or are you entirely self-taught?  Loho: Entirely self-taught; I didn’t go to fashion school. I was just a kid with a dream. I watched YouTube videos of Virgil Abloh giving advice on the 3% rule, and I was like, you know what? I want to be like that. I grew up on the Internet, so as a kid, I always used to animate online.  Harry: Well I’ve seen you use it in your advertising as well. Loho: Yeah, so it all followed through. I grew up watching ASAP Bari, Luka Sabbat, Virgil Abloh, all those guys that formed that kind of scene, and I thought it'd be cool to have that in the UK, to be a part of something like that. So yeah, bringing people together, I love to be a part of that and trying to make that sixteen-year-old me happy, to fulfil his dream of being able to have like-minded people around him. Harry: That’s a really beautiful way to think about it. To quote you: “World-building throughout your brand is essential. Without a story to tell, it's hard to form a connection with the product and, ultimately, the brand vision.” This is something that I couldn't agree with more. Creating a brand is more than just the product, it's creating an aesthetic, an identity for the enthusiast, as you say, to fall in love with and to want to be a part of. How would you describe your brand vision, and are there any inspirations that contributed towards its creation?  Loho: I really like If Six Was Nine. That was the first brand that I fell in love with in terms of these pieces being so intricate. It's denim. If you wore one of those pieces, it's going to last you generations, you could pass that shit down to your kids and they could pass that shit down to their kids. That's world-building.  Harry: I've always thought that denim, above all materials, is the material of storytelling. It lasts, and it shows stories. If we were to take it into a broader context, we have a kitchen table at home, and it's just a rustic block of wood. My mum doesn't mind if it gets battered or dented or whatnot because it shows memories and tells a story. I feel like that's the same case with denim.  Loho: I can tell you, from my original pair of ‘jeanz that alleviate’ at home, the day I ripped the hem at the bottom. I know how I was feeling when I ripped it. I was pissed. Like, I was happy and that's my story being told. So yeah, that's world-building. Being able to select a fabric, select a canvas of expression and then run with it. For some people, it's wool, for some people, it’s knit; for me, it's denim. Harry: I can also admire your ability to make fashion playable, as we spoke about before. Beyond putting the clothes on, you've created a whole lore behind Deviant by Loho: ‘Felthoria.’ On Discord, those who follow your story can choose factions in ‘Felthoria,’ like it's a video game of sorts, each having its perks for buying from your brand. You've even asked that your enthusiasts help name your pieces, such as ‘Promise.’ Do you view Deviant by Loho as a brand, a journey, or more of a collective? Is this inclusive approval important to you? Do you think it sets you apart from other brands?  Loho: It’s the story told by Loho Kur; it’s actually a book. Did you see the profile picture on Instagram? Harry: A big metal book. Loho: It's a big metal book and in this book are all the pieces that I will release. There's going to be 1001 that I will do and after that, once the 1001st piece drops, I will get rid of the brand. I'll delete the brand because that’s the story.  Harry: How far along are you?  Loho: Right now, we've got like nine pieces out. So we've got a while to go. Harry: But it's exciting, isn't it? And all good things must end; the story must be finished.  Loho: That day will come. I grew up playing video games, I was so online as a kid; I used to be on Minecraft a lot. There was a game mode online called factions and it was intense bro like, you'd log off and then log back on and find out your shit has been raided, bro. Factions was like, real life bro, so why not bring that to high fashion? And who is going to tell you not to do that if it's your brand? Harry: So, going into the Deviant pieces, I feel they evoke this world of ‘Felthoria’, especially the piece ‘Western Nomad', which to me, when I looked at it, gave a perfect blend of, as you described before, underground, urban punk and then surprisingly that of a fantasy story. To me ‘ Western Nomad ' was as if the wearer had been on this quest and had been levelling up along the way and adding items to himself. From the chain mail on ‘ Divine ’ to the debossed grails of the Deviant shield. Tell me more about this image that you create with your pieces.  Loho: ‘Nomad’ is the idea of being able to take a piece, for example, taking a hoodie and wrapping it around your waist and calling it a half-skirt. Like reinventing pieces based on their pre-existing silhouette. So, yeah, ‘Western Nomad', he did travel through ‘Felthoira’ and collected these things and just put them on in a way that was armour to him. ‘Divine’, she found this skirt that was able to make her float and her chain mail just hung from her. ‘ Pilgrim ’, she travels through the Arctic, so she’s got these big snow boots. That was a styling series with ByBenét . All these different pieces come together and tell a story of what we do in real life, bro. We go into a wardrobe, find different pieces, put them on and base them on the story that we have online at the time. ‘Nomad’ is just an exaggeration of that, but it's everyday life, you know, that's what people do, just trying to show what people do, you know.  Harry: Brilliant. You once tweeted “I am Denim”, and I think from looking at your work that you've truly mastered its versatility, bringing what's essentially a working material into borderline haute couture. The other materials you use such as furs, leather, and metals, cohesively give this raw look connected to the wilderness, like what has been obtained along the way. The overall look is distressed, it's somewhat intentionally unfinished. Does that equate to an unfinished journey? What message are the materials telling? Loho: The materials are organic; they scream organic. They don’t scream ‘I’m going to shine in the sunlight at a certain angle’ and give a glare that looks uncanny. It screams, ‘I will absorb the sunlight and will absorb its essence.’ You know, I'm really into space. I love space. If I were to go back to uni, I'd study quantum physics bro. Entanglement theory, two particles being able to influence each other millions of years apart, millions of distance apart, I loved that type of thinking. So clothes should, in my opinion, reflect what we do organically. We absorb the sun, you know. We get vitamin D from that. It's so nice being able to see clothes that have been affected by the sunlight. I don't really want to see none of that synthetic stuff. Faux fur is cool though. At least none of our furry friends are getting abused. That's my opinion.  Harry: So you subscribe to this idea of storytelling in imperfection? In weathering? Loho: Yeah, weathering, erosion. If you look at this mat [indicating a craft mat on the table], it’s cut, there's erosion, and in this wood, there's erosion; it's not meant to be picture perfect. ‘Nomad’ isn’t picture perfect; it’s all over the place.  Harry: You've already had pop-ups in New York and Paris. How did they go and what did you learn from them? Any more to come?  Loho: I love Paris; it’s like my second home. I love New York as well. Most Deviants are from New York. I swear it's where the majority of my sales are coming from, so shout out New York. I love you, New York. It went beautifully. I met so many people out there, that I'm friends with to this day, and that I collaborate with to this day. They opened my eyes, like, I'm a London boy. Not even that; I'm a countryside London boy. I grew up in Feltham, like, it takes an hour and a bit to get into the city. I grew up around horses. You know, I had to walk through a horse field to get to school. So it’s being able to travel to a different city, speak to different people, coming from a small town.  Harry: Do you think that's part of the appeal for people from New York, would you say? Bringing London to them, especially this type of London that you evoke through your clothing. Loho: They appreciate it. I hope to make more cool stuff that they can appreciate.  Harry: Would you want to go anywhere else apart from Paris, New York and London? Loho: Tokyo for sure, that's a must. Harajuku denim. They appreciate craftsmanship, so it would be nice for them to see that. I do get a lot of people from Tokyo cop the brand, so it's cool to see that there. But like, I have to go there. They even just live very blissfully, from what I see. Harry: Last one, with the lore and aesthetic that you've built behind Deviant by Loho and with how runway shows are becoming more and more experimental and engaging, given the opportunity, would you want to go to this format? Loho: Of course. The runway will be under Loho Kur; again, Deviant is a story of which the pieces are told. But there will be elements of ‘Felthoria’ in this runway. I want to bring underground rap culture to it as well, fusing the two. But yeah, I have something planned. I won’t tell for now, but yeah, this year is definitely seeing some cool stuff. Runway, that’s my goal. Harry: Have you done anything kind of similar before, or has it purely been pop-ups?  Loho: I had a party at London Fashion Week and that was intentional because it was foreshadowing my runway. Getting people ready for it.

London’s underground music scene seems most of the time to be a battle of which one-syllabled band smokes more cigarettes than the other. Regardless, there’s a lot of talent around if you know where to look. A great example of talent in a pool of wannabes is Legss . After their EU tour in early 2024 with Hotel Lux , and continuous grinding in the studio pending the release of their new album, drummer Louis Grace sat down with me for a cup of tea.   I’d met Louis at a Kaeto  gig in Islington, so I wasn’t overly surprised when he sat down next to me in a colourful woollen jacket, t-shirt-button-up shirt combo and boots alongside his freshly highlighted hair, better dressed than everyone within a 5-mile radius. I also wasn’t surprised when he told me, “I’ve been playing in a band since I was 10 and learnt to play drums just so I could be in a band.” What did surprise me, however, was that he wasn’t smoking. His throat hurt, apparently.   Image: Maisy Banks Music is a very social career to aspire to, what with the constant touring, meetings and gigs, so it made perfect sense when he told me, “Meeting new people and talking with them is one of the nicest things”. Although when pressed about any potential upcoming tours, I was met with the response of, “We’ve been so focused on the new album” and, “There definitely will be a tour, we’re just waiting”. Although to fans this may seem frustrating, if previous  Legss  sets are anything to go by, it’ll be well worth the wait.  The 13 tracks on the new album were all recorded on the Isle of Wight, with Louis saying it’s “the most coherent body of work we’ve put together.” After a large gulp of English Breakfast, he adds that the album is “unconventional stuff met with an indie pop kinda attitude”. It seems almost certain that, according to Louis, journalists will “call it experimental rock,” although he doesn’t seem phased by his work being labelled as something he doesn’t perhaps resonate with. “It’s just opinion really, people will have different opinions on things they listen to.” Fans should be excited though, as I was told it’s also the most “diverse” work of Legss  to date, and that “it’s taken fucking ages to write, we’ve been experimenting with new instruments.”  “When I drive, I only listen to CDs, so when I listen to an album I really fucking listen to it,” was what I was told when pressing him about his album of the year, with passion and heat you could only expect from an artist. After toying with the idea, taking a few sips of tea, and chewing on his flapjack, he came out with When Man Fails You, an album released in 2015 by Yves Tumour.  Importantly, however, “before he commercialised his stuff”. However, due to the nearly impossible task of giving just one answer to album of the year, Pretty Penny Slur was also mentioned, a dark, grungy instrumental album released by Spresso  in 2024. Here’s to hoping, maybe even expecting, for Legss'  new album to feature on people’s 2025 album of the year.  Image: Maisy Banks With London’s music scene constantly changing, with bands struggling to come to terms with the dog-eat-dog nature of the business, one band seems to be riding the wave better than the rest. They have fans on the edge of their seats wondering what the next few years have in store for them, and if you have an ounce of sense, you’ll see what all the hype is about.  Listen here .

Doechii may have first arrived on our feeds as a self-recognised ‘TikTok rapper’, but anyone who still recognises her as such today deserves a reality check. Since the Floridian, 26, became the first female rapper signed to Top Dawg Entertainment in 2021, before Capitol Records swiftly came into the picture, Doechii has leapt to global stardom. As with most artists of her calibre, she has curated a visual ‘alter-ego’ with a wardrobe as daring and multifaceted as her music, a fusion of varsity prep and corporate sophistication. The vision of her Australian stylist, Sam Woolf (whose clientele includes Missy Elliott, Bebe Rexha, and French Montana, to name a few), Doechii’s fashion merges designer labels and streetwear elements with conceptual swagger. With merely two years in the industry spotlight, brands such as Thom Browne, Miu Miu and Louis Vuitton are providing the building blocks of her attention-stealing and experimental aesthetic, combining high-brow and nonchalant casualness, fearlessly.  And that is exactly the core of her ‘alter-ego’: fearlessness. The artist and Woolf dress with deliberate contradiction and meaningful expression that many cannot get enough of. If you aren’t familiar with the genre-breaking star or want to hear this writer’s say, I have chosen five of my favourite defining looks that speak to the artistry and spectrum of Doechii’s style.  Image: David Jaelin Willy Chavarria - Tiny Desk Concert - 2024 This was my introduction to Doechii, and I instantly recognised her not just as a musical phenomenon, but as an artist with a unique image. The Tiny Desk Concert has become a rite of passage for new rising artists, and performing shortly after her latest album release, she took the opportunity to declare her aesthetic intent. In Willy Chavarria, she wore a tucked white bomber jacket, contrasted over a khaki shirt and tie combination. This was paired with a pair of faded wide-leg trousers finished with patent-finished square-toe boots. The look reimagined a traditionally masculine ‘uniform’ silhouette, that of workwear and corporate apparel, and reclaimed it. As for the not-so-hidden face tape? Woolf explained, “She likes exposing something that’s meant to be hidden. She just thinks outside the box, and she likes being vulnerable, and she likes showing things that you’re not meant to show.” Also unhidden was the accents which honoured Black beauty rituals, such as her beaded braids, a trope of heritage that she carries across all of her appearances.  Instagram: @sam_woolf Miu Miu - Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival - 2024 Performing at Tyler, The Creator’s annual carnival, the ‘Anxiety’ singer strutted onstage in a risqué athletic Miu Miu ensemble of a fitted striped polo, apple green micro shorts, accompanied with deep patent oxblood heels and sheer knee-high hosiery. This visual and the power it commanded have been echoed through this era as the album artwork for her latest and most well-received album to date, Alligator Bites Never Heal . The outfit was a camp and contemporary refocus on retro sportswear, style over function, that leaned into the post-ironic brand design Miu Miu has adopted, where traditional women’s uniforms are remixed to reject passive femininity. Thinking back to fearlessness, the outfit becomes a performative contradiction: preppy yet rebellious and vintage yet modern, among other parallels. Through this, empowerment can be achieved, with any gazes received being called to attention on the rapper’s terms. Instagram: sam_woolf Schiaparelli - Paris Fashion Week FW25 - 2025 Now, this is where choosing starts to get tricky. During her first Paris Fashion Week in March, Doechii truly cemented herself as a style icon aside from her performative wardrobe, attending events in a plethora of incredible and drastically different looks. That said, this Schiaparelli ready-to-wear appearance stopped time. The dress was a plunging white halter gown, flowing from a snipping deep navy denim corset that provided a shaped structure. Accompanied was a pair of white pumps, the toe accented with gold hardware in the shape of a keyhole, and several sculptural gold Schiaparelli jewellery pieces. The silhouette reproduced the image of a statuesque Grecian muse, yet Doechii was far from a muse; instead, a mirror that reflected modern Black glamour. The dress itself plays as a visual thesis on contrast as much as Doechii and Woolf play with it themselves, more often than not with an unforgettable outcome. Image: Nasser Berzane Tom Ford - Paris Fashion Week FW25 - 2025 The second pick of her eventful Paris Fashion Week (and I stress the week was in fact her’s), Doechii attended Haider Ackerman’s debut at Tom Ford in a vastly different style. She wore a black satin or silk bodysuit wrapped in a black belt with gold hardware, matching black and gold stilettos, sheer black tights and a shimmering, voluminous jet-black fur jacket. With a cigarette in hand, accented in gold, thong-cut shapewear and exuding the overall tone of a Bond-esque femme fatale, the star offered a thrilling nostalgia trip to Tom Ford at Gucci and puffed the air of seduction that has become a staple at his eponymous label. I thoroughly believe it is respectful to pay tribute to a designer or house and their codes when attending an event, and it's safe to say Doechii knocked it out of the park. On a particularly definitive night for both Ford and Ackermann, the former having parted ways with his label in 2023, the homage exemplified that his legacy, especially worn by an icon in the making, will forever make a lasting impression.  Image: Kevin Winter Thom Browne - 67th Annual Grammy Awards - 2025 If there was a night that could have established Doechii as a certified phenomenon, it was the 67th Annual Grammy Awards. She accepted her three wins that night in custom Thom Browne, consisting of a grey short-sleeve bolero jacket, tucked cardigan with a shirt and tie. The bottom half at first appeared to be a grand hoop skirt akin to that of a Victorian gown, yet upon closer look, it was a pair of trousers that had been given a similar, structured treatment. In what was perhaps her most conceptually rich look, it epitomised the academic theme that she has integrated in many of her wardrobe choices of tailored suits paired with shorts, ties, shirts and long socks. Resonating the idea of studious charm and traditional power, she described to Vogue : “I did a lot of studying; studying myself and a student of hip-hop, which  you can see reflected in some of the academia looks.”  During one of her acceptance speeches, she affirmed, “I know that there is some Black girl out there watching me right now, and I want to tell you, you can do it. Anything is possible and I am a testimony.” It’s difficult to overstate the significance of this moment and outfit, not just through the lens of fashion, but culture. Doechii’s music and style speak to a variety of groups, both coded with Black originated genres such as hip-hop and motifs like her fascinator, constructed from her braids and her expression of Black dandyism. Another group that is encapsulated in her vestimentary choices are those who are LGBTQ+. Doechii’s predominantly androgynous use of menswear (or womenswear that is inspired by) amplifies the volume of her empowering message by dismantling gender norms and claiming her, and by extension her fans, right to fluidly reflect their bisexuality and pride in that identity.  We’re only witnessing the prologue of Doechii’s musical fame and stylistic evolution. “It just depends on where I am in my life. I’ll never pinpoint myself,” she told Dazed . “I’ll never lock myself down to one particular style. It’s not me. It never will be me.” Well, thank heavens for that.  There are countless other examples that I could go through, such as her vehement runway takeover at Dsquared2 FW25 or her jaw-dropping attendance at Le Grand Diner du Louvre in March, but if there’s anything I’ve learned from the new artist, it’s that her fashion is an instrument. An instrument to project her fearlessness. After all, her namesake was forged as an ode to self-belief and confidence after enduring years of childhood bullying. So whether her visual aesthetic extols Black history, queer futures, artistic authenticity or her own unapologetic selfhood, in my humble opinion, there could never be a limit to being ‘too fly’.

The rise of the Hip-Hop phenomenon Doechii has been nothing short of a marvel to witness. Seamlessly blending experimental rap with R&B, her 2024 album Alligator Bites Never Heal won the award for best rap album at the 2025 Grammy Awards ceremony. With her debut single release 'Girls' reaching audiences via SoundCloud in 2016, under the name Iamdoechii, and her debut album, Coven Music Session, Vol. 1, releasing in 2019, it wasn’t until the following two years that she began cementing herself as a voice of a generation. The 2020 EP release of Oh the Places You’ll Go to date has over 3,000,000 streams on Spotify, a particularly impressive feat considering the release was self-funded and released originally on SoundCloud. In 2021, Yucky Black Fruitcake , the most popular song of Oh The Places You’ll Go , reached TikTok virality, starting Doechii’s journey toward the icon we all know and love her as.   With more and more people accessing her music, with her virality only spiralling upwards, it was only natural that big-time record labels would be competing for the honour of representing such a talent. The Florida-born super talent ended up making Hip-Hop history, signing with both Capitol Records and Top Dawg Entertainment, with her being the first female rap artist to sign with Top Dawg. The attention didn’t stop there, of course, with Doechii collaborating with the likes of Thom Browne, Vivienne Westwood and Valentino, repping some stellar pieces across some of her most impressive live performances. But I’ll let Harry tell you all about that… Image: Leon Neal With a more than impressive number of incredible live performances to date, perhaps her best came recently with her appearance at Glastonbury Festival 2025. Tens upon tens of thousands of fans witnessed what will go down in rap history, as despite perhaps one of the biggest clashes in Glastonbury history (with Charli XCX playing at the same time), Hip-Hop's queen still put on a show that has people talking weeks later. With the current audience record at Glastonbury being held by Dolly Parton at an estimated 180,000, it wouldn't be ridiculous to believe Doechii can pull similar numbers in the not-too-distant future. Whether it be her lyrical genius, smooth flow, or bad-bitch energy, it’s clear she’s given fans a reason to fall in love. Collaborating with artists such as Tyler, The Creator, SZA, and Rico Nasty, she’s put the music scene on standby, with even the best realising there’s a legend in the making playing down our headphones. A striking mix of Lauryn Hill, Tyler, the Creator, and perhaps even Busta Rhymes, there’s something in her music for everyone. And although she has the world of music lapping up her every move, if there’s one thing we can expect, it's that she is nowhere near finished climbing. Records are there to be broken, legends are there to be collaborated with, and worlds are there to be conquered, and it would seem as though, little by little, the SHE / HER / STAR is well on her way to doing just that. Watch this space.

As we sat among fellow fashion enthusiasts, professionals and students surrounded by Lightroom’s resplendent projections, I could feel electricity in the air. Just a month after her debut show at Givenchy, Sarah Burton - one of fashion’s most talented yet discreet players - was taking the stage for her first public talk at Vogue Conversations , joined by the chief critic of British Vogue , Sarah Mower. I felt as if we were all about to be treated to a backstage pass into the mind behind one of the industry’s most elusive voices.  It’s odd to say this isn’t my first run-in with Burton. One October afternoon in 2022, after a seminar at the Old Royal Naval College, I happened upon the McQueen SS23 show, which had taken over the campus. I, of course, abandoned the rest of my itinerary to watch the models strut into a vast bubble that had been constructed, spotting a down-to-earth Sarah Burton being proudly hugged by a glistening, glamourised Naomi Campbell. I’ve always remembered that afternoon as the instance my eyes opened to writing for fashion, an industry I now wholeheartedly aspire to succeed in, thanks to Burton.  And there I was, 916 days later, with even more practice and drive, both of us having gone up in the world. Introducing Burton, 51, to the stage, British Vogue ’s deputy director, Laura Ingham, remarked how the former had influenced her while they both worked at Alexander McQueen: “Her process taught me that storytelling in fashion is about more than just visuals. It's about care, conviction, and the quiet unseen choices that make something truly powerful.” That very conviction is what has guided Burton for nearly three decades, from working as a design assistant in a crammed basement to the helm of one of the industry’s most treasured houses.  Instagram: @creativefacew Her story began in an art classroom at Manchester Polytechnic, where her teacher insisted she enrol at Central Saint Martins. One thing led to another, and she found herself there studying fashion design and print. Simon Ungless, her mentor at the storied institution, would eventually introduce her to his close friend, you know, just some guy called Lee Alexander McQueen. True to his brilliant idiosyncratic nature, when they first met in 1996, he asked Burton if she believed in UFOs. Thank God she did because the rest was history.  What followed was 27 years of loyalty to McQueen’s brand, starting with a placement year in his confined yet creatively catalytic basement studio in Hoxton Square, where no one could shy away. Burton recognises her luck in working in such close proximity to someone she repeatedly dubbed a ‘genius' because she learnt so much through his raw talent. It wasn’t long after graduating that she became his second-in-command, eventually being installed as head of womenswear in 2000 just as the brand was claiming its status as a cult label. “It was just an incredibly creative moment,” she reflected on the decade, groundbreaking in its focus on creativity, storytelling and pushing boundaries.  Losing Lee McQueen by suicide in 2010 was a tragedy that echoed throughout the industry, yet Sarah Burton took his position with grace, conserving his legacy while carving out her own identity as a designer in her own right. This couldn’t be clearer when the world discovered it was she who made the Princess of Wales’ renowned wedding dress in 2011, despite having to heavily deny it to even Anna Wintour - how brave!  She was announced as creative director of Givenchy last year, an instatement that gave both the sense of coming full circle and starting anew. At 19, she briefly worked at the house alongside McQueen, who held the reins between 1996 and 2001. An acclaimed career later, she has returned, ready to shape its next chapter. The ateliers at Givenchy had done impressive work for three seasons without a creative director, yet Burton arrived with the intent to bring it back to basics. Seeking inspiration in its archive, she received a gift that had been waiting for her for seventy-three years, yet it arrived just in time. During renovations at the original atelier, a small brown bag was found tucked within the walls, containing sketches and patterns from Hubert de Givenchy’s first collection in 1952. They were not as she had expected: “very clean, very ‘50s, very silhouette.” But they were the right starting point.  Image: Courtesy of Givenchy “I think when I first started at Givenchy, I suppose I thought, what does it represent? What is it?” Burton said. “So I always go back to the very beginning in whatever I do, I think you have to go backwards to go forwards.” With inspiration in mind, she decided to strip things back to Givenchy’s defining attribute: silhouette. “Whereas before I would embellish or work on top of it, I wanted to clean everything away so you actually saw the woman.”  The showroom at the house’s Parisian headquarters couldn’t have reflected this philosophy more. In the blindingly white sunlit salon, lucky attendees sat on stacks of archival files that spoke to Burton’s considerate retrospection of the collection. No gimmicks, no theatrics, the show invited intimacy by having gazes up close to the collection, not distracted by a spectacle that would be trying to amplify them. The clothes and the feeling that they evoke rightfully took precedence.  We were on a completely different planet from Givenchy’s last few years of garish branding. There was a look for every occasion a woman could find herself in. Hourglass tailoring sculpted the feminine form into a powerful silhouette, and the brand’s staple ‘little black dress’ received an update featuring a teeny Chantilly lace skirt. Sensual mesh dresses championed the body without apology, botanically embroidered satin garments were perfect for a more dressy occasion, and we even got a power trench, structured with a caped backing. Vulnerability was designed to be enjoyed; the bare back was exposed in evening gowns, while suiting had been cleanly slashed. Oversized accessories couldn’t help but draw attention, such as large billowing leather scarves, bauble-esque earrings and even a very fun top made of jewels that could’ve been plucked straight from a chandelier. “It’s things that were personal, things that felt treasured, and then exploding them so they felt a different size and proportion,” she explained to Elle . As she discussed her thoughts, it dawned on me that Burton was tailor-made for this house. She - perhaps slightly more than the wave of male designers being appointed to the world’s greatest houses - knows women. She knows how they move, what they want to feel and how they want to be seen. “It's not one woman, it's not a stereotype of what a woman is,” she described to Mower. “I learnt the fact that, you know, one day you want to feel more sexy, one day you want to feel powerful with a jacket on, and there's one day that you feel quite vulnerable. There are different emotions in a woman's life, and dressing women is an emotional thing, and I want there to be a sort of diversity in all these women that I dress and make them all feel their best possible selves.”  As the opposite sex, my thoughts can only go so far, yet it’s explicit that the collection embraces all of that complexity. Despite the vintage cues, the clothes felt current and emotionally nuanced. Burton has somehow managed to balance commerciality, creativity, heritage and comfort, all executed through quality craftsmanship and an honest take on femininity. Models of various ages and sizes reflected this as much, with Burton being attuned to how each of them felt in her clothes - a question I doubt models are asked often.  So, what’s the secret? She credits her accomplishments to staying true to herself, putting creativity first, and being open to contribution, but not to compromises. It’s a fitting ethos for an industry that, as she rightly says, thrives on outsiders. Burton’s work proves that you don’t have to be the loudest voice in the room to say something that matters. And clearly, what matters to her is not the look of a dress as a piece of fashion, but the look of the woman in it.

Burberry is as quintessentially British as crumpets, queuing, and longing for a warm day—until, inevitably, it’s far too warm . Their infamous check is everywhere - from the runway to the royal wardrobe to knock-off pieces in East London markets. Daniel Lee, the current creative director, remembers first spotting one as a child, in the form of a scrunchie on EastEnders . Now 39, and at the helm of the brand, he recognises that scrunchie as his first encounter with a symbol of ‘Britishness’. Under towering projections of the past collections and campaigns, I attended Vogue Conversations  at Lightroom to watch Lee’s discussion with Chioma Nnadi, head of editorial content at British Vogue . I knew little about Lee himself going in, yet I wasn’t expecting him to feel so familiar, as if he too was a student with a huge task ahead of him. This scale couldn’t be emphasised enough, taking the reins of this culturally significant, 170-year-old house in 2022 after an impactful tenure at Bottega Veneta. Since then, Lee has attempted to stitch together Burberry’s heritage with a contemporary energy while keeping it deeply rooted in the British experience, a juxtaposition - between high fashion and the everyday - that just feels right.  Listening to Lee speak, what struck me most was how emotionally invested he is. He spoke with a kind of boyish awe of great British talents such as Westwood and McQueen, heroes of his while studying at Central Saint Martins. He recalled watching John Galliano’s SS94 ‘Anna Karenina’ show for Givenchy on YouTube in between lessons - a shining example of storytelling and the art of inspiration in fashion. “I think, for me, it was really a kind of starting point of thinking that fashion doesn’t just need to be practical, you know, it's also about fantasy.” His admiration for these creative powerhouses shaped his fashion worldview, garnering him the talent to eventually land the role at Burberry. Yet despite his undeniable design prowess, Lee was quick to deflect the spotlight, consistently stressing that the industry is, above all, driven by people. “It's a few people making work and making decisions that they love and they believe in,” he told Nnadi. “Teamwork is super valuable and super important in our industry, so everything really does start with the team.” It’s refreshing to hear a designer so determined to lead with a sense of creative democracy - coached as much by his team as he directs them. In trying times such as these, it was moving to hear Lee speak with genuine affection about ‘Britishness’. He personally distinguishes the notion of ‘Britishness’ first and foremost with its people and their “variety of heritage, background and opinion,” adding that, “people have never been afraid to speak their mind and that informs great work and thinking.” He described having missed the classic bluntness and wit of British conversation during his years living abroad. He believes it is that very spirit that produces so much of our nation’s pioneering work across music, cinema, theatre, art and of course, fashion. After all, we were sitting just a stone’s throw away from Central Saint Martins, his alma mater, as he revealed that he met many of his current collaborators at the globally-renowned institution, not by coincidence, but tethered as a community.  Now running a national heirloom, that communal spirit now threads through everything he’s building at Burberry. The projections illuminating the room showcased a variety of the brand’s ambassadors: Lennon Gallagher, Rachel Weiss, Olivia Coleman and, yes, even Mary Berry. An unconventional cast for sure, but that’s exactly the point. “For us, who we choose to work with is never about the size of their following, or whether they’re considered ‘of the moment’ – it’s really about the calibre of their artistry, and the fact that they’re the best at what they do.” A reminder that cultural weight isn’t counted in likes, they’re appointed not to achieve ‘virality’, but a legacy. It’s with gratitude for the innately British sense of community that he’s been able to build Burberry’s own, from icons like Naomi Campbell and Liberty Ross, who first wore these garments, to a Londoner caught in the rain. Image: Courtesy of Burberry Burberry’s biannual show is London Fashion Week’s blockbuster event, having previously shown in Kennington Park, Highbury Fields, Victoria Park and the National Theatre. An outside venue on a February afternoon is a risk that would make any Brit think twice, yet Lee chose these locations as everyday, lived-in parts of the city, reiterating the brand’s intimacy with the people of London and all things natural. And let’s be honest, if any brand is weather-ready, it’s Burberry, founded on tents long before trends. When Nnadi asked if he could spare us some insight on his upcoming show, he hinted he would explore the idea of the British aristocrat. One could only imagine the territory he would set foot into. Fast forward a few weeks, and London Fashion Week FW25 was upon us. The scene? The Duveen Galleries at Tate Britain were draped in historic tapestries, and the floor was laid in brilliant blue. The casting alone turned heads: Jason Isaacs, Richard E Grant and Lesley Manville made their runway debut while Lauryn Hill, Ian Wright and Kim Cattrall showcased the best of Burberry from the audience. And what’s more, the collection rose to the occasion.  No more unrecognisable streetwear. No more late-night looks. I think for the first time, Daniel Lee has finally found his footing on his vision of Burberry: tradition for today. His inspiration was pulled straight from the eccentric formality and dinner party debauchery of Saltburn . “I really enjoyed the characters, and how the people lived in this old incredible mansion house, and dressed in a really eccentric way for dinner, and had crazy parties,” he told Vogue . “The whole thing was super-twisted. And this kind of bohemian spirit was the kind of energy that we wanted to portray in the show.”  His models were weekend escapees fleeing London for the countryside: “It’s that great Friday night exodus from London. Long rainy walks in the great outdoors to disconnect and day trips to grand stately homes.” While I can only wish for a manor to run back to, as a Londoner, it clicks. Sinead O’Connor’s ethereal ‘Troy’ sung overhead, ‘You will rise, you’ll return, the phoenix from the flame.’  How very apt for the house’s promising new chapter after years of financial strife.  In an autumnal palette of burgundy, forest green and walnut brown, models were wrapped in high-necked quilted coats, oversized velvet scarves, florally embroidered cropped trenches and fringed outerwear that brushed the calves like willow branches. Elsewhere, paisley dresses and velvet embossed suits hinted at a very British kind of decadence, boho but still refined.  I’ve never seen a collection so prepared for a Scottish winter at Balmoral. There were layers of shearling, leather parkas and ponchos of thick, twisted yarn (think the Dulux dog, but in a good way). The check is still there, don’t fret, but now tastefully peeked out from linings, cuffs and collars, more whisper than shout. The collection was like a stately home with wi-fi, demonstrating Burberry’s founding principles of what’s functional and what’s formal yet charmingly re-contextualised. Lee explained to the room, “I think when you work for a brand with such a beautiful past, it's an interesting start to look at the history, to look at the archive.” I, for one, am thankful he followed direction, preserving the house’s identity of luxury, craftsmanship and familiarity. “Ultimately, fashion is people. It starts with people, it ends with people.” The history of any brand isn’t just in its archive; it’s in the people who have worn, treasured and shaped it, but Burberry wins for celebrating them every step of the way.