{"id":763,"date":"2020-03-29T15:17:36","date_gmt":"2020-03-29T15:17:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/graziamagazine.com\/me\/?post_type=articles&p=763"},"modified":"2021-04-14T12:07:22","modified_gmt":"2021-04-14T12:07:22","slug":"the-secret-life-of-tory-burch","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/graziamagazine.com\/me\/articles\/the-secret-life-of-tory-burch\/","title":{"rendered":"THE SECRET LIFE OF TORY BURCH"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
TORY BURCH WITH Q-TIP AND LAURYN HILL AT THE OPENING OF HER FLAGSHIP IN PARIS IN 2015<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Picture the scene:\u00a0Grazia<\/em>\u00a0is enjoying a civilised afternoon tea at Claridge\u2019s with Tory Burch in 2017, ahead of the opening of her new London flagship. Unbeknown to guests at the private dinner that evening, Tory had flown in female rappers Salt-N-Pepa for an exclusive performance.<\/p>\n

As she\u2019s about to be whisked away by her then fianc\u00e9 \u2013 and now husband and CEO of the company that bears her name \u2013 Pierre-Yves Roussel, we wonder which artist living or dead she would have at her dream fashion party? \u201cTupac,\u201d she replies without hesitation, before disappearing off into the famous foyer, leaving us almost dropping our porcelain teacup.<\/p>\n

Two years later, Tory Burch is in the UAE for the launch of a limited-edition kaftan capsule collection and a pop-up at The Dubai Mall, before hosting an intimate dinner curated by chef Yannick All\u00e9no at One&Only The Palm, with guest list that includes Arizona Muse, Leomie Anderson, Sabine Socol, Mafalda, Karen Wazen, Nour Arida, and Leena Al Ghouti. But more importantly, we can finally continue our conversation.<\/p>\n

\n

“Rap music is something that has always inspired me”<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Care to explain, Tory? \u201cMusic is such a big part of my life and always has been,\u201d she offers. \u201cRap music is something that has always inspired me\u00a0<\/span>\u2013 the honesty and the raw nature of it. And when you think about them singing their life stories, that\u2019s something that\u2019s really inspiring. Tupac\u2019s lyrics just speak for themselves, and of his sheer talent. I just wish he\u2019d lived a little longer. Rap music in general is something I\u2019ve always loved, and it\u2019s funny because people are always surprised by that.\u201d<\/p>\n

And, according to Tory, they shouldn\u2019t be. She explains, \u201cGrowing up in the ’90 in New York, rap was such a big part of life, at least in the art world, and I always loved going to concerts. My grandma was a concert violinist, and my cousins are opera singers, and one was in a rock band. It\u2019s always been a part of the way I was raised. And for me, I gravitated towards rap because of the storytelling. I\u2019ve always been impressed with people that can create and write music. Music changes your life, it can change your mood and lead to so many kinds of inspiration.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s easy to see how her idyllic upbringing in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania had the fashion world fooled: \u201cI grew up on a farm, spent my childhood outdoors, and I grew up a complete tomboy, not at all into fashion. An avid sports fan, I spent my early childhood until college outside playing tennis and riding horses on a farm in the middle of nowhere. Even in college, people used to laugh when I wore a Grateful Dead T-shirt with an Herm\u00e8s scarf. They said I had my own unique style.\u201d In 2020, and with a billion-dollar lifestyle brand that spans apparel, accessories, home decor and sportswear quite literally to her name, no one\u2019s laughing now.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

\u201cThe perception is probably a lot different from reality,\u201d she teases when it comes to her public persona. \u201cIt\u2019s not about crafting any vision of who I am but probably about protecting some of my privacy, and finding that balance of what to preserve. Certainly family is a part of that, and a sense of humour isn\u2019t always translatable on social media, so hopefully I\u2019m more fun than people realise.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

Prince wearing our limited-edition\u00a0#ToryTunic<\/a>\u00a0in 2008\u00a0pic.twitter.com\/k3yXUjQfhv<\/a>\u2014 Tory Burch (@toryburch)\u00a0July 21, 2017<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Someone who understood Tory\u2019s more playful side from the very beginning was Prince. \u201cWe used to dress him,\u201d Tory remembers. \u201cHe wore our jewellery and our kaftan. He actually asked me to do his tour, but we just didn\u2019t have the capacity to do it as it was my second year in business. I\u2019ll never forget when he called me.I was taking a bath in the Beverly Hills Hotel and I got a call on my cell phone and he said, \u2018Hi Tory, it\u2019s Prince,\u2019 and I was like, \u2018Is this a joke?\u2019\u201d she laughs.<\/p>\n

And lest we forget the time she took Kanye West as her date to the Met Gala in 2011. \u201cThis was pre-Kim,\u201d she\u2019s quick to add. \u201cI took my father\u2019s tux and made it for him. It was extraordinary, and he looked amazing. My dad had the best style,\u201d she recalls fondly. \u201cHe should\u2019ve been a designer because he designed all of his clothing.\u201d<\/p>\n

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KANYE WEST WAS TORY’S DATE TO THE MET GALA IN 2011<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Kanye isn\u2019t the only rapper Tory has on speed-dial. When she tied the knot with Pierre-Yves in an intimate ceremony on her private estate in Antigua in 2018 \u2013 Tory jokes that she had to marry him so he would agree to be her CEO \u2013 Wyclef Jean from Fugees was their wedding singer. \u201cYeah, we\u2019re friends,\u201d she shrugs. \u201cI met him many years ago. I\u2019m obsessed with his music, and he probably played for three hours. It was the most extraordinary thing. Then he made a wedding mixtape for us; he took some of his songs and tweaked them a bit.\u201d<\/p>\n

The song she plays to feel empowered is Fugees\u2019\u00a0Ready or Not<\/em>, and it was rapper, record producer and Tory\u2019s \u201cgood friend\u201d Q-Tip from A Tribe Called Quest who introduced her to Fugees frontwoman Lauryn Hill, both of whom performed at the opening of her Paris flagship. \u201cLauryn Hill is amazing. I wouldn\u2019t say we\u2019re that close but, yes, I admire her strength. She\u2019s a mother, an activist \u2013 stylish, authentic, and original.<\/p>\n

\"\"
DIANA SPENCER WAS TORY’S MUSE FOR SS20<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Another strong woman who resonates with Tory is Diana, Princess of Wales, who she\u2019s chosen her muse for her Spring\/Summer 2020 collection \u2013 not for her succession of era-defining Eighties outfits but for her \u201cinnocence, strength and joy.\u201d Tory explains, \u201cShe was a style icon but her purpose-driven life and how she had a lot of substance, that was what was more interesting to me. She stood up for people, and that idea of humanity and inclusivity is something I hope I stand for as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

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