Paris Fashion Week: Kanye West Opened The 2023 Balenciaga Show
Rapper Kanye West made a surprise runway debut at Balenciaga's Paris Fashion Week summer 2023 show.
The rapper's outfit matched Balenciaga's dystopian theme. The brand’s creative director explained that the set of the summer 2023 show is a metaphor for digging for the truth and being down to earth.
September came with the release of footage showing Kanye West previewing new songs he created with producer James Blake.
Kanye West Opened The Summer 2023 Balenciaga Show
Kanye West made his runway modeling debut, donning Balenciaga for the band's presentation at this year's Paris Fashion Week.
The rapper made his appearance - which wasn't announced before the show began, nor was he recognized during it - walking the runway in a black jacket and boxy pants combination.
The jacket was lined all over with bulky, zipped pouches and a label reading "SECURITY", while the trousers shone with a glossy sheen.
Kanye West's outfit matched the dystopian theme of the Balenciaga showcase, the catwalk itself a shallow puddle in a muddy scene modeled after a battlefield.
In a statement shared alongside the show (via Rain), the eponymous brand's creative director, Demna Gvasalia, wrote that he decided to stop explaining [her collections] and verbalizing [her designs], but to express a mood.
According to the creative director of Balenciaga, fashion is a visual art and all we need is for it to be seen through someone's eyes. At best, fashion shouldn't need a story to be sold to someone. Whether you like it or not. The setting of this show is a metaphor for seeking truth and being grounded.
Let everyone be everyone and make love, not war - was the message sent by Balenciaga's creative director of Georgian origin.
Kanye West & Balenciaga Have A History
Kanye West and Balenciaga have a history, with their ongoing partnership - Yeezy Gap Engineered By Balenciaga - launching its third collection in September.
Last April, a series of T-shirts commissioned by West and sold by Balenciaga, paying tribute to DMX, raised more than 1 million dollars for the late rapper's family.
September also came with the release of footage showing Kanye West previewing new songs he created with producer James Blake. Though they've never released music together, Blake has said for some time that he wants to work with West.
In 2015, for example, the producer said West would appear on the track "The Colour In Anything."
