Recent CFDA Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award Winner Tommy Hilfiger joins American Idol in hopes of "prepping" the next generation of American Icons.
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| Source: WWD.com |
The news of American Fashion Designer Tommy Hilfiger joining Fox’s American Idol has already circulated the worlds of Fashion, Music, and Popular Culture 100 times over.
Hilfiger’s newly created role of Image Advisor on American Idol was announced the morning of March 8th, 2012 in Women’s Wear Daily. That evening Hilfiger sat down with New York Fashion Week’s creator Fern Mallis as part of her Fashion Icon events; where he discussed the fresh announcement as well as his journey from humble beginnings in Elmira, NY to becoming the International Fashion Icon that he is today. Curious as to how Idol's decision came to be and of Hilfiger’s plans of what he’s bringing to the show, I was in attendance.
Mallis began the conversation by sharing that she knew of Hilfiger joining Idol back in February when she was backstage with him at his Womenwear Runway Show, and he “whispered it” in her ear. She went on to joke that the announcement was supposed to be made the evening of her Fashion Icon event on the very stage she would be sharing with Hilfiger, but Women’s Wear Daily got it first.
Tommy Hilfiger has been called the “Peter Pan of Fashion” due to his never-ending kindness, openness, generosity and overall youthful spirit. This aesthetic was shining through as he walked onto the Kaufman Concert Hall Stage in New York City's Upper East Side; the venue for Mallis’ Fashion Icon events; wearing a slim cut gray suit, crisp white dress shirt, black and white striped tie, and a boyish smile that he flashed to the audience as he took his seat.
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| Source: WWD.com |
An obvious reason of why Hilfiger would be approached and accept the position of Image Advisor is his extreme love for music and Americana. One of his life mantras that he lives by is what he calls “F.A.M.E: Fashion, Art, Music, Entertainment.” These are what he believes make up the true spirit of Americans and he has heavily involved each of these factors in his business and life throughout the years.
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| Source: Tommy Hilfiger Facebook Page |
Throughout the evening Hilfiger showed that Idol would not only be benefiting from his style advice, but also from his determination and tendency to always push forward, which he credits to being an Aries. This work ethic and state of mind is what drove him to push through his trying times. Childhood dyslexia, bankruptcy, and public backlash due to false accusations of racism are just a few of the trials that he has triumphed over. He wants to bring these experiences and what he has learned from them to the finalists on Idol in hopes that he can aid them in creating their “full package” of talent, image, and business savvy.
As his sit down with Mallis drew to a close, it became clear to me (and I would hope everyone in the room) that Hilfiger will be bringing a tremendous amount of knowledge beyond fashion to the contestants he will be mentoring. His opportunity to convince the rest of America of this will happen on his debut episode, and I have no doubt that Hilfiger will once again make is mark on American culture.
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