Rihanna has just released news of the latest collection from her lingerie brand Savage X Fenty, and for the first time, the singer and entrepreneur has partnered with another designer, Adam Selman.
'Adam who?' You might ask. Well, while you may not be familiar with the name, you’ll almost certainly be familiar with his work.
Selman was the man behind the crystal-covered see-through gown Rihanna wore to accept her Style Icon award at the 2014 CFDA Awards.
The slinky dress was hand-embellished with more than 230,000 Swarovski crystals and is credited with, firstly, breaking the internet, and, secondly, sparking the celebrity trend for ‘naked’ dresses in the years that followed.
So who better to help design what might be Savage X Fenty’s sexiest collection yet?
Split into two themes, Down The Aisle and Locket Down, the 19-piece Xclusive range is fun and colourful.
Down The Aisle is all about the Eighties, featuring pastel shades, high cut briefs, ruffled edges and lots of bows, while Locket Down is unapologetically sexy, with vinyl bras in red and black, zip detailing and rose-shaped nipple pasties.
"When she started Savage, she wanted something different than what was in the market and she wanted it to be unapologetic," Selman told Vogue.
"I think that the history we have working together, I sort of take a very similar approach with my designing and I know how she likes to look at things."
The Texas-born designer studied at New York’s Pratt Institute and started out designing costumes for the likes of Britney Spears and Lady Gaga.
He began working with Rihanna on outfits for tours, music videos and the red carpet, later acting as right-hand man when the singer designed a collection for River Island in 2013.
Selman debuted his eponymous brand at New York Fashion Week in 2014 and started collaborating with sunglasses brand Le Specs shortly after, creating cats-eye sunglasses that were a huge hit with celebs like Gigi Hadid and Kendall Jenner, and sold out almost instantly.
Last year, the designer turned his attention to the lucrative athleisure market, launching Adam Selman Sport (A.S.S.).
The sportswear collection incorporates the knowledge Selman has accumulated from years of dressing performers for the stage, and designs are characteristically sexy, without ever sacrificing functionality.
He took a similar approach when working on the Savage X Fenty range.
"Having an activewear collection, I definitely think about how women move and how bodies move and the real function of clothes now," he told Vogue, noting how he believes lingerie is for the person wearing it.
"That’s a mentality I tried to bring to my activewear too. I really think it’s supposed to empower and embolden."
