THE LAW OF THE FUCKING LAND, BITCH.
Super informal blog post just to update you guys on some loose thoughts given this new information:
To begin with my point of view: this is heartbreaking for many reasons. On the one hand, I personally think that Law Roach's taste is unparalleled, both in his work as well as what we've seen publicly about him as a person. On that same hand, index finger: Law Roach made the bundles-outfit hair symbiosis a respected thing of the high fashion world (will unpack the significance momentarily), middle finger: Law Roach knows his way around color, ring finger: Law Roach is, and always has been, here for the peoples, pinky: Law Roach understands the FUCK out of some eyewear and lastly, thumb: Law Roach always knows when and why as well as for whom, which is the most important aspect of being a stylist. On the other hand...fuck the other hand.
Index Finger: Law Roach is a weave expert. A bundleologist. He really brought a knowledge of hair experimentation and versatility to the high fashion world in a way that was new, fresh, and unexpected. The idea of changing your hairstyle in major ways on a look-to-look basis is something we didn't really see as a common high fashion thing to do before Law made his high fashion fantasies, well, the law. By major hair change, I mean like Zendaya's many bespoke wigs paired uniquely to each Law look. For my Black girls: we think "duh" when it comes to this, but these high fashion white people were floored. Think: have you ever noticed how your white friends simply do not do their hair? It isn't just because straight hair requires less maintenance, I mean I have seen too many white girls who just allow their buildup to become a styling agent (ew). It's because the maintenance required for our hair isn't deemed as natural, it's always "excessive" when we want to slay a lacefront, or try a new creative protective style, and "unkempt" when we want to wear our various curls and coils out of the many protective hairstyles that help us keep our hair healthy. This horrible loop has nothing to do with the material, the wig/weave/braid/loc slayage: the problem is how people see the material: like a bad polyester, they don't want it anywhere near them. The thing is: Black hair isn't polyester, and Law Roach reminds us of that every time he creates glamour and excellence with a loud ass wig to match. Hair as a fantasy is a mainstay in Black culture that comes from necessity: look at Black hair shows, and literally any ball ever. The craziest thing is that Law isn't honoring Black hair in a way that, you know, you'd see in an i-D headline about "new young creatives" disrupting something (all shade), he is just doing what needs to be done in a way that now is respected, and even expected on red carpets everywhere.
Law is literally responsible for Ariana's ponytail reaching the level of iconoclast that it has...need I say more. The wigs give, give give. Let's look:
Middle Finger: Law Roach is the color man because his point of view isn't solely based on an "I am a rainbow" or "I am solemn and only in all black/neutrals" - he is mindful, and has produced a lot of looks for celebrities both in real life and on the red carpet that embody all sides of the spectrum. Like...what he did for Céline Dion? Miss MARY?! Everyone shut up.
Ring Finger: Some Law Roach history that I randomly know from frantically Googling Mother while watching season 24 of ANTM: He became the people's princess via paparazzi attention in 2009, when Kanye dropped what we can only assume were many racks at a store he ran in Chicago called Deliciously Vintage. Paps became a fan, much like we would after seeing what Law did with Zendaya. It's known that Law came up truly based on his laurels: he had to fight to get Zendaya, and fight to get her in the clothes she needed to be wearing. Yes, Zendaya is gorgeous and personable, but no one would have ever known, had Law not orchestrated her street style appearance that would underscore a lot of her parasocial It Girl status at fashion shows. I love Law because he's been there as a guy who loves clothes, and knows how to use them to construct glamour; he wasn't a super intern, he wasn't an industry darling, everything he has, he has found a way to get for himself, and he is one of the baddest in the game.
Pinky Finger: This one speaks for itself. Law is in the hottest love affair with sunglasses, eyeglasses, just shit that covers your eyes in general, on both himself and his clients. Examples:
Thumb: Law Roach isn't that girl for the reasons I just explained. You can have point of view, you can have talent, you can truly have it all but what makes you a good stylist is being able to listen. The celebrity transformations that have some to govern pop culture as of late aren't only interesting to look at because they're extreme, they're interesting because they present us with: what if that celebrity's image completely changed, but their work remained the same? This speculation is fun and imaginative, and is what sets Law Roach apart from other stylists: he brings that fantasy to celebrities' real lives, not as a means to give their images a 180 degree makeover, but to use fantasy as a means to enhance what is already there. Take Céline Dion for example: she's a gay icon, one of the greatest white female vocalists of all time. She didn't need a makeover, but the way Law flipped and reversed it made us feel like such a drastic, glamorous change was only natural. This effect, I believe, is the mark of an amazing stylist and tastemaker, listening enough to bring the fantasy into reality.
In Closing: Law Roach calls himself an image architect for a reason - because that is what he does, all fax, no printer, full stop. Everyone talking about the Zendaya video...can it! Popular speculation from the Internet Fashion People (not the smart ones, the ones with Telfar bags🤢) seems to be that Law is retiring because of this apparent snub at the Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2023 show, along with the fact that Z is now signing a contract with LV, which people seem to think means that she won't need a stylist anymore. The first part, meh, I mean I understand why the cheap n' nasty gossip blogs are all over that. The LV contract speculation truly makes no sense to me because Law styled Zendaya through her contract with Valentino, and also styled her in the LV look she wore to the show y'all are so heated about. So the whole "she won't be needing Law anymore..." that's not the argument we're having, and even if it were, Law wouldn't be needing her anymore. (It's not even like that they both love each other and I just wanted to push the "shade" button)
The thing about celebrity stylists is that everyone truly ignores them if they aren't super interns turned It Girls like Zoe or Sevigny. We think they don't matter, but the idea of the publicity team, namely the celebrity stylist, is integral to our contemporary idea of celebrity. I'd get into it, but I suggest you read Deluxe: How Luxury Lost Its Luster by Dana Thomas, she has a great chapter towards the end called "Stars In Their Eyes" all about 1950's Hollywood and the social advent of the celebrity stylist to carry the American film industry through financial hardship via sparkly duds. Essentially, the celebrity stylist not only secured a future for cinema, they created the contemporary notion we have for a celebrity: fashionable, airbrushed, wind-swept, gorgeous. Law is responsible for that and more, so we will put some respect on his name, whatever bullshit drama y'all want to drum up aside.