Chanel bets on Kendrick Lamar, but why?
When a century-old French fashion house meets an artist who is shaping global urban culture. Chanel has just announced a new collaboration that is already causing a stir: Kendrick Lamar becomes the new face of the house.
A symbolic and strategic choice
The appointment of American rapper Kendrick Lamar as Chanel ambassador marks an assertive shift towards a more contemporary and transatlantic culture. Winner of 22 Grammy Awards and a Pulitzer Prize in 2018, the artist is establishing himself as a major figure on the global music and intellectual scene. For Chanel, it’s a clear way of speaking to a new generation, without denying its roots in prestige and artistic excellence.
The campaign, centered on the new Chanel Eyewear line, was photographed by Karim Sadli and will be unveiled in the coming days. The aesthetic promises to be pure, sharp and faithful to the house’s visual identity, while opening up to a more urban imagination.
A collaboration that didn’t come out of nowhere
This collaboration is the logical follow-up to Chanel’s first collaboration with pgLang, a company co-founded by Kendrick Lamar. In 2023, the latter created a poetic short film for the presentation of the Haute Couture Spring-Summer 2024 collection, with an original soundtrack by the artist.
The film, entitled The Button, starred Margaret Qualley, Naomi Campbell and Anna Mouglalis, and already reflected a dialogue between fashion, cinema and music. A vision shared by Chanel in its editorial projects such as Les Rendez-vous littéraires rue Cambon.
Chanel, Kendrick Lamar and cultural influence
With this appointment, Chanel has shifted the focus of luxury away from the usual European canons and into new territories of expression. Kendrick Lamar, followed by nearly 20 million fans on Instagram, embodies commitment, artistic elevation and social awareness – three axes that Chanel increasingly values in its communications.
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