If any man can pull off a designer crocodile murse, it’s Pharrell Williams. But can he convince dudes to shell out $3,600 for Chanel’s new-season “Gabrielle” bag?
Karl Lagerfeld thinks so. The father of high fashion has tapped the “Happy” singer for the bag’s new ad campaign — making Williams the first man to appear in a Chanel handbag ad in the brand’s 108-year existence.
Lagerfeld turned to Williams — along with Chanel-beloved celebs Kristen Stewart, Cara Delevingne and Caroline de Maigret — to help showcase the Gabrielle’s versatility. “[This bag can be worn in] many different circumstances . . . It’s not very feminine in the sense of being chichi,” he quipped to Women’s Wear Daily.
With this campaign, set to break on April 3, Chanel and Williams are taking their years-long flirtation to the next level. The musician has unofficially sported Chanel pieces for ages, from sunglasses to tweed jackets. He’s even had Chanel costume jewelry fancied up with real gemstones (“I’m flattered,” Lagerfeld reassured WWD).
Williams also wrote a song for and cameoed in Lagerfeld’s short film “Reincarnation,” which debuted at Chanel’s 2014 Métiers d’Art show in Salzburg, Austria.