Rihanna Gives Powerful Tribute to André Talley With Red Coat

Rihanna donned an all-red outfit during the Super Bowl LVII halftime show as a nod to her late friend and fashion icon André Leon Talley.

Rihanna’s anticipated Super Bowl performance included some of her most iconic songs, a pregnancy reveal, and a choreographed dance on a raised platform.

Her outfit was monochrome red from head to toe, designed by Jahleel Weaver. She began her performance with a silk catsuit, a leather corset, and a flight suit layered over everything. She was able to unzip enough to show her baby bump with style. She also sported matching scarlet MM6 Maison Margiela x Salomon sneakers, red Fenty Beauty lipstick, and deep red nails.

She ended her performance with a red coat from Alaïa and matching gloves that she wore specifically as a form of paying tribute to André Leon Talley.

Talley was a close friend of Rihanna’s who passed away in January 2022. He was a fashion journalist and editor-at-large of Vogue Magazine. Talley was known for many iconic looks, one of them being the red Norma Kamali sleeping bag coat.

It’s clear that Rihanna’s red coat was a tribute to Talley’s red sleeping bag coat, and many on Twitter thought so too.

Oh! and I thought Rihanna’s dazzling red coat looked familiar… Some are saying she was offering a tribute to the late fashion icon Andre Leon Talley, who was one of her big admirers. pic.twitter.com/uEpKnOf4RM

— Deborah Roberts (@DebRobertsABC) February 13, 2023

Yeah Rihanna’s red coat was 100% a tribute to Andre Leon Talley, they were close too. I love her for this even more.

— Custom Tracksuit Designer 🖤✨ (@DesignedByRoch) February 13, 2023

Talley’s Instagram page acknowledged Rihanna’s outfit choice in a post that included him wearing the coat. The caption included the lines from Rihanna’s “Umbrella”: “‘When the sun shines, we’ll shine together. Told you I’ll be here forever…said I’ll always be your friend.'”

The two had a memorable interaction at the 2015 Met Gala when Rihanna wore the 55-pound custom Guo Pei dress. Talley stated, “You are so inspiring to so many people. You are going to inspire people in this dress.” The coat was a nod to their friendship after this interaction, where he called her gown his “proudest achievement”.

Talley’s Norma Kamali red sleeping bag coat, along with other pieces of his wardrobe, is currently being auctioned off at an estimated $500-$800 on February 15.

Fans can watch Rihanna’s Super Bowl performance down below.