On Tuesday 22 March, supermodel royalty Tyson Beckford made his highly awaited return to the Ralph Lauren runway. The fashion behemoth’s latest presentation wholly encompasses ideas of the American Dream; exploring themes of Americana and Old Money (well spent).
The Museum of Modern Art in New York plays host to the event. Amongst attendees is NYC’s newest mayor, Eric Adams alongside stars Lily Collins, Rachel Brosnahan, Jessica Chastain and fashion’s highly influential Anna Wintour.
On the catwalk, supermodel sisters Gigi and Bella Hadid walk the runway alongside Shalom Harlow and industry superstar, Tyson Beckford. Check out the full runway presentation below:
Straight out of Retirement
Earlier this month, Beckford came out of retirement to model for Beyonce’s IVY PARK. The “IVY HEART” campaign, an Adidas x IVY PARK collab, debuted on Valentine’s Day, 2022.
The catwalk veteran left the runway in 2008, but a phone call from the “Halo” songstress put him straight back into the modelling game. At 51 years young, Beckford’s still got it.
Beckford explains to Essence that coming out of retirement was a no-brainer when he got Beyoncé’s call.
“I was like, ‘The Queen needs her knight? I am there!'”
he says. “So it wasn’t even anything to think about. It was just, YES. Hell, yeah.”
Beckford’s call to the industry has come after 13 years away from the cameras.
“When I got this phone call, it was just like, ‘You want my old ass to shoot?’”
he says. “I always remain humbled by just being myself. So, for me, it was just humbling just to be thought of, to even come back.”
The model-turned-mogul also has a 2022 film coming up, “Singleholic”, co-starring Rotimi, Erica Ash and Adrian Martinez.
Beckford tells Essence earlier this year,
“I heard Ralph Lauren wants to honor me, as well… So, I want to take my flowers while I’m here. And it’s rare that we get them,”
he observes. “Usually, people don’t get their flowers until they’ve passed. So I’m very honored to be getting mine as I’m here, living, and breathing well.”
Return to Ralph
Tyson’s latest appearance at Ralph Lauren holds significant weight, given the current socio-political climate worldwide. We are living amongst times that constantly describe and demonstrate our shared state of racial divide, spanning across entire industries.
Until as recently as the 1980s, major fashion houses had no problem with displaying their indifference toward people of colour. During a time of necessary upheaval, Tyson Beckford and Karen Alexander begin to appear as de facto faces of the Ralph Lauren brand. Lauren’s choice to demonstrate a more inclusive runway acts as one of the first true examples of equality in the industry.
Beckford was the first black model to sign an exclusive contract with Ralph Lauren. It makes perfect sense to see him come full circle; returning to the label which first recognised his true potential.
To learn more about Tyson Beckford’s rise to male supermodel status, check out Tyson Beckford: Rise of the Supermodel on Amazon.
NYC is Back!
Amongst guests of the show is NYC mayor, Eric Adams. Afterwards, he shares to Instagram:
Incredible night at the @themuseumofmodernart to celebrate the groundbreaking work of @RalphLauren and to send a clear message: #NYCisBack!
SUPER NATURAL” – RISE OF THE SUPERMODEL – STARRING TYSON BECKFORD
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