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Fa fa fa fa fashion…
Music is often tribal and so is fashion.
Some aspects of the relationships between the two are highlighted very pleasingly in the later sections of The Music Is Black, A British Story, the exhibition with which the new V&A East Museum which runs until 3 January 2027.
Once upon a time major female performers were almost always ultra-glamorous, as represented here by one of Shirley Bassey’s strapless gold gowns. It screams showbiz royalty.
Music magazine covers
Several decades ago, young male performers were expected to appear neat and respectable, as we see in the mid-1960s shot of Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer in tidy suits and dickie bows. Ten years later the reggae superstars were in military fatigues and Rastafarian colours.
Bunny Wailer, Bob Marley, Peter Tosh c1965
This multisensory exhibition charts the impact of Black British music on the UK and around the world via more than 200 objects from the V&A’s collection and important loans. Specifically, it celebrates the sounds and looks of eight distinct Black British genres from 2-Tone, lovers rock and Brit funk to jungle, drum & bass, trip hop, UK garage and grime.
Janet Kay’s dress, early 1980s
These cults are neatly summed up with a single garment or outfit. For lovers rock, the romantic stream of British reggae, we have a simple black dress worn by Janet Kay, whose monster hit of 1979, Silly Games, defined the genre.
Pauline Black’s outfit for The Selecter
For 2-Tone, the curators borrowed a familiar outfit from Pauline Black, vocalist with The Selecter: a neat tailored masculine suit by Marc Griffith London worn with a checked button-down shirt by Fred Perry – classic Mod threads.
Outfits worn by Femi Williams of Young Disciples and Jay Kay of Jamiroquai
Reminding us of the geographical roots of all this music, Femi Williams of Brit funk trio Young Disciples wore a traditional cotton Ronko gown and cap from Sierra Leone in the early 1990s, while around the same time Jason Kay aka Jay Kay of the acid jazz funksters Jamiroquai wore a thick wool jacket by US outdoor brand Pendleton that featured Native American designs. How’s that for mixing up your influences?
Sade’s mid-1980s simple chic
In a later tableau, visitors of a certain vintage will remember Billy Ocean’s baggy linen outfit from the mid-1980s and from the same era the Levi’s and suede jacket pairing that Sade made look effortlessly cool. That woman had style.
Comme des Garcons outfit worn by Little Simz 2023
A little more contrived is the exaggerated jacket from Comme des Garçons worn by Little Simz in 2023 for a magazine photoshoot. A reminder of the ongoing domination of the music business by men comes in the form of the lime green suit Skin, lead singer of Skunk Anansie, wore to Glastonbury in 2022 with the words Clit Rock emblazoned on the back to remind everyone there are female performers.
Stage outfits for Mel & Kim (1987), Rowetta (2017) and Des’ree (1997)
The black & white and white & black complementary stage outfits worn by chirpy sisters Mel and Kim Appleby in 1987 contrast with the disturbing image of a stab vest decorated, if that is the word, with a hand-painted Union flag. Created by Banksy, it was worn by Stormzy at Glastonbury in 2019, the first time a Black British performer had topped the festival’s Pyramid Stage line up.
Stormzy’s stab vest, painted by Banksy 2019
Fashion can be frothy fun or a political placard and a lot of things in between. Many of the options are on show in this engrossing exhibition. Highly recommended from anyone interested in social, political, economic and religious history, music, fashion and culture.
The Music Is Black, A British Story runs until 3 January 2027. The V&A East Museum is located at 107 Carpenters Road, London E20 2AR, right next to the London College of Fashion.