You have the Oscar’s, the Grammy’s, the Tony’s and then you have … the Fashion Awards. Hosted by the British Fashion Council (BFC), the Fashion Awards are where talent gets recognized, creativity is celebrated and glamour is encouraged in the London Albert Hall.
The industry’s best, as well as upcoming professionals, walked the red carpet with some of your favorite pop culture, film and TV icons. Awards were won all around for categories like Model of the Year, Designer of the Year and the Outstanding Achievement Award.
The ceremony started off with performances from Chloe and Halle Bailey, Debbie Harry and Wizkid. The awards themselves were made from recycled silver Pandora jewelry and were presented to the 2024 award winners by major stars and icons.
This wasn’t all without controversy, though — the 2024 Fashion Awards have been the talk of the town for more reasons than one.
The Red Carpet
Rihanna and A$AP Rocky were easily the most-standout red carpet looks of the night. Rihanna wore a luxurious blue FW2002 Christian Lacroix coat-dress piece, with a matching fur hat. The look was accessorized with a black bustier, black tights, heels and leather gloves along with her purse. A$AP Rocky wore Bottega Veneta and Pandora jewelry, the blue theme being consistent in both their outfits.
Ora’s look for the Fashion Awards was a loose-fitted suit from Primark, with her hair, makeup and overall aesthetic being quite reminiscent of grunge. She wore a double-breasted gray jacket over a striped shirt and a pink tie, paired with black pants. Ora completed the look with bleached hair, eyebrows and some chunky jewelry.
Of course, one of the stunners of the night was Alex Consani, internet sensation and now … “Model of the Year.” She wore an ivory white corseted dress, by Turkish-English fashion designer Dilara Findikoglu. The dress was a strapless corset bodice that falls into a micro asymmetrical skirt, with the tassels of the dress being a Union Jack draped over her shoulder.
The Winners
Despite what you’d think, the Fashion Awards aren’t all about the red carpet. This is where the best of the industry gets showcased and presented with awards to highlight their talent.
The most iconic winner of the night was, of course, Alex Consani. Consani won “Model of the Year” and became the first transgender model to ever achieve this. Some iconic winners of “Model of the Year” in the past have been Cara Delevigne, Naomi Campbell, Kaia Gerber and Adut Akech.
Jonathan Anderson won “Designer of the Year,” yet again, for his work on JW Anderson and Loewe. A$AP Rocky was this year’s “Cultural Innovator” award winner, along with Issa Rae winning the “Pandora Leader of Change” award.
The Controversy
There’s been a significant amount of buzz about this event online and in major fashion spaces. The other popular main contender for Consani’s “Model of the Year” award was Anok Yai. You may remember Yai as being the model scouted at Howard University’s homecoming event, or from her stunning blue diamond piece at the Met Gala.
Reportedly, this is the second year in a row in which she’d been seen as a front-runner for the award, only to ultimately not win it. While a lot of the internet has been divided, several people acknowledged that maybe both models deserved the win equally.
Yai took to social media to express her frustration, posting the infamous picture of Kanye West from the 2009 VMAs. The internet was quick to figure out that she may be making a point about being snubbed.
Shortly after, Yai took to X to say, “Alex, I love you and I’m so proud of you,” she wrote. “British Fashion Council, thank you but I don’t want it anymore.” This post was followed up with another, saying “If you have seen the effort that I’ve seen Alex put in; you would understand how proud I am of her. But Alex can be proud and I can be exhausted at the same time. It doesn’t take away how much love we have for each other.”
Consani is yet to respond to this discourse, but the internet has definitely cracked down on discussing who deserved the award, as well as whether or not the Yai’s posts were warranted.
Let us know what you think by tagging us @VALLEYmag on Instagram and X!
