FENTY Release 6-20 No1 by Lea Colombo (10).jpg

Rihanna’s Fenty luxury brand brightens spirits today June 11, with “Release 6-20”, the first of three separate drops across June. Lensed by London-based, South Africa born photographer Lea Colombo, the campaign’s focus is models, artists and musicians who “embody the bright spark energy of the release.”

They include Amrit, Assa Baradji, Coucou Chloe, Daniel Gonzalez, Lilan Barru, and Mao Xiaoxing./ Art direction by Jean-Baptiste Talbourdet and Lolita Jacobs; casting direction from Samuel Ellis Scheinman. Video direction by Julien Pujol and Roberto Colombo.

“In a time where fighting for global freedoms takes center stage, this release speaks to a generation that is a different kind of creative, and a different kind of rebellious,” says Fenty’s press release. The collection honors “decades of youth aesthetics and styles that emerged during periods of steep social change, each act of the month-long release celebrates a different facet of youth, expressed through varied style cues.”

The collection is long on psychedelic, tie-dye prints, baggy rave silhouettes, grunge hoodies and asymmetric dresses. The campaign will continue into July.

A master at staging the drop in the midst of a global health pandemic and an explosion of racial justice protests since the killing of George Floyd on May 25, Rihanna has directly voiced the collection with core messaging from her personal and Fenty Instagram accounts.

“Fenty as a brand was created to elevate beauty, power, and freedom,” its first post began, announcing donations to Movement for Black Lives and Color of Change. “At this very moment racists are attempting to rip those values away from black people and we will not stand by and let that happen. We are too powerful, creative, and resilient.” Its follow-up post wasn’t an apology, but a reminder that “this is not a day off … this is a day to #PullUp”: “We are not staying silent and we are not standing by. The fight against racial inequality, injustice, and straight-up racism doesn’t stop with financial donations and words of support.”

“As with every release and especially now, FENTY celebrates freedom, diversity, unity and solidarity,” states the label’s press release. Shop the collection at FENTY.com.