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USA Today
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Beyoncé 'Cowboy Carter' tour is master class in fashion, cultural commentary: Here's why
Beyoncé 'Cowboy Carter' tour is master class in fashion, cultural commentary: Here's why Beyoncé Knowles-Carter performed the second night of her "Cowboy Carter" tour in Los Angeles, and once again, fashion took center stage. At SoFi Stadium on May 1, the 35-time Grammy winning singer brought high-fashion and cowboy couture to the stage. There was lots of western-glam with sparkly chaps, cowboy hats, boots and a piles of fringe. The megastar also used her wardrobe to send powerful messages. And while the entire show consisted of noteworthy looks, there were some standout outfits worth highlighting. Notable new looks during Night 2 In true Bey fashion, she brought even more looks to the stage for her second show. Most notably, Beyoncé wore a new outfit at the start of her song "Alliigator Tears." It featured a sparkly top, a black cowboy hat and knee-high cowboy boots. Toward the end of the show, fans also noted a new outfit as she sang her single "16 Carriages" and other songs. The new look was an all-Black get up with massive American flag cuffs at the bottom of each pant leg. 'America Has a Problem' outfit Outside of the new looks, Beyoncé continued to make a statement with her wardrobe. During one interlude, Beyoncé plays a news snippet where news commenter Megyn Kelly says, "Country music's been around for a long, long time. It goes right to the heart of America, and most Americans in red states have been loving and enjoying it long before 'Queen Bey' decided to stick her big toe into the lane." She intercuts this sound bite with various news clips along with videos of Black musicians from the past before a message that reads "despite noise, we sing." The interlude then goes into her 2022 song "America Has a Problem" and during this performance, Beyoncé, her 13-year old daughter Blue Ivy and the rest of the dancers wear white jumpsuits that have "America Has a Problem" written on them. Their outfits also appear to feature newspapers and lyrics to her other songs like "I'm that girl." The fashion choice emphasizes a powerful message about America. 'Bncntry' cap Another memorable look featured Beyoncé in denim shorts, thigh-high white boots, and a sparkly top. She paired the look that with a cap that read "bncntry." In other words, she's letting spectators and fans know she's "been country" rather than infiltrating a new space she hasn't already been a part of. Beyoncé's LED gown featuring 35,000 lights Beyoncé' lit up the stage with a LED gown as she sang "Daughter" both nights, and the dress has been one of the most striking looks yet. Created by designer Kunihiko Morinaga, who is behind the Japanese brand Anrealage, the standout gown features around 35,000 LED lights that change in sync with the song's progression. For the dress, Morinaga worked with Mplusplus, a Japanese design firm led by Minoru Fujimoto known for integrating LEDs into textiles. The firm developed a wireless control system to change the lights as Beyoncé performed. Beyoncé first kicked off her "Cowboy Carter" tour on April 28 in Los Angeles, the first of of 32 stadium shows. Fans from all over the world traveled to witness Beyoncé's first two Los Angeles shows, which were filled with family, politics, soaring vocals, incredible costumes and masterful dancing. The nine-city tour will span the U.S. and Europe with the grand finale taking place in Las Vegas on July 26. She's set to make history with her scheduled tour dates, including by playing the most dates at SoFi Stadium of any artist. Follow Caché McClay, the USA TODAY Network's Beyoncé Knowles-Carter reporter, on Instagram, TikTok and X as @cachemcclay.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
How Beyoncé's Anrealage LED Dress for ‘Cowboy Carter Tour' Was Created: 35,000 Lights, Japanese Architecture Inspiration and Extensive Rehearsals
Beyoncé debuted her 'Cowboy Carter Tour' on Monday in Los Angeles, lighting up the stage with an LED dress created by Kunihiko Morinaga, the designer behind the Japanese brand Anrealage. The dress, worn during her performance of 'Daughter,' features approximately 35,000 full-color LEDs that transform continuously to match the song's progression. Morinaga, who had previously collaborated with Beyoncé during the singer's 'Renaissance' era, was invited to create the one-of-a-kind dress after presenting Anrealage's fall 2025 collection during Paris Fashion Week in March. The collection featured a similar high-tech dress that inspired Beyoncé's styling team, led by Shiona Turini. More from WWD Beyoncé and Ulta Beauty Bring 'Cowboy Carter' Experience to Stores and Create Tour-inspired Beauty Looks Cécred Hits the Road With Beyoncé's Cowboy Carter Tour, Announces Pop-up Stores Across Seven Cities Johanna Ortiz Brings a Taste of Colombia to Paris With Pop-up at Le Bon Marché 'After accepting the offer, I, along with my team, traveled back and forth between Japan and Los Angeles to design and produce an original outfit. The result was a crinoline dress made with our signature 'Led Textile,' a flexible fabric capable of displaying shifting colors, patterns and graphics like a liquid crystal screen,' Morinaga told WWD via email. The designer collaborated with Mplusplus, a Japanese design firm led by Minoru Fujimoto that integrates LEDs into textiles. Mplusplus was responsible for developing a wireless control system to program the lights' choreography. 'To ensure visibility in a stadium setting, we enlarged the graphic elements of the LED design and made fine adjustments to brightness levels up until the final stages. Because synchronization between the dress lighting and the stage lighting was crucial, we conducted extensive rehearsals to perfect the interplay between them,' the designer said. View this post on Instagram A post shared by ANREALAGE (@anrealage_official) The entire production of the dress took about one-and-a-half months, including the rehearsals. 'Our team controlled the visuals in real time from offstage, syncing the design with the music as the performance unfolded,' Morinaga said. The fabric of the dress was inspired by traditional Japanese azekura storehouse architecture, combining breathability and moisture-wicking properties with a unique optical effect. 'It blocks light from the front while allowing RGB light from the back to shine through, enabling the textile itself to function as a screen,' the designer explained. View this post on Instagram A post shared by ANREALAGE (@anrealage_official) The result, as seen onstage, is a light show that begins with the dress in a red tartan pattern, transitions into a half-blue motif, and becomes entirely covered in vivid crimson sequins. The dress then morphs into a trompe-l'oeil black lace motif, followed by a dazzling gold sequin look. 'It eventually shifts into tricolor noise, evoking the American flag — red, white and blue — which then dissolves into monochrome noise. From there, stained glass motifs reminiscent of a cathedral appear and evolve rapidly, culminating in an explosion of light like bursting stars. Finally, the imagery fades into cosmic darkness, and light rains down once more as the dress reaches its climactic glow,' Morinaga said. 'It was a truly epic visual performance.' View this post on Instagram A post shared by ANREALAGE (@anrealage_official) Morinaga felt honored by seeing his creation onstage. 'At Paris Fashion Week, what we presented was a glimpse into the near future — but the moment Beyoncé wore it, it became the present. In that instant, it transcended fashion and became part of culture and history. Creating a one-of-a-kind garment that exists nowhere else in the world — that, to me, is the essence of fashion design. Beyoncé always reminds us of the true power of creation,' he said. The 'Cowboy Carter Tour' debuted at the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. The tour will feature 32 shows across nine cities in the U.S. and Europe, including Chicago, New Jersey, London, Paris, Houston, Las Vegas and more. View Gallery Launch Gallery: Beyoncé's Tour Outfits: From 'Cowboy Carter' to 'Dangerously in Love' and More Photos Best of WWD A Look Back at Prince William and Kate Middleton's Royal Wedding Beyoncé's Tour Outfits: From 'Cowboy Carter' to 'Dangerously in Love' and More Photos Savannah James' Style Through the Years: LeBron James' Wife's Fashion Evolution [PHOTOS]
