If you have a copy of March’s Cosmopolitan issue, you’ll see Jamaican supermodel Nell Robinson in a fashion story gracing not one, not two but all of seven pages in the magazine. Pulse’s star model shows off denim trends in the issue and comes away from her usual sexy image. You can read more about this accomplishment or simply pick up a copy of Cosmo.
Last night was the first Annual Reggae Academy Awards held at the National Indoor Sports Centre and our reggae stars came out in full high fashion. Stay tuned for pics of the fashion, our fave songstress fashionista here at FOS, Miss Cherine Anderson, was dazzling in her usual high-fashion designer gear.
Speaking of hot, Queen Ifrica is a sight to behold in this dazzling red number with yellow and green flower detailing to complete her rasta colours. Truly gorgeous!
Update: Thanks to my FOS readers who tells me Queen Ifrica’s dress was made by Imani of the House of Tafari. Thanks guys, y’all have my back! And great work Imani!
Don a Bob tee today! (February 6th) Celebrate the life of the most famed Jamaican reggae artist, who is mostly responsible for putting Jamaica and our reggae music on the map and made everyone fall in love with us in the first place. Bob Marley would have been 63 years old today had he not succumbed to cancer in 1981. He is still the most successful, most respected and most well known Rastafari ambassador and reggae artist to date. Jamaica is synonymous to some with Bob Marley and well…herbal remedies…
Bob has a song for almost every topic in the book, you can find at least one in his arsenal to perk you up and put you in a great mood…so be like me and don a Bob tee! Or at least wear some Red, Green and Gold, the Rastafarian colours, if there’s no Bob in your closet (which is such a crime!)
Happy Bob Day from Irie Diva and the Fashion Over Style.net team.
Ok, FOS is definitely not a gossip site so you’ll find no juice here on the girl. What I want to know is what you think about the look of this, one of our newest female sensations coming out of the dancehall. She is most popularly known as the girl that was rumoured to be the cause of the split between Beenie Man and wife of less than a year, D’Angel. According to local tabloidXxtra, she is a “a full-figured statuesque model” who got the name “Barbee” because she ”was very fashionable and liked to dress up in high heels, little skirts and wear big curly hair when she was only 10.” Apparently, she is quite the tall one, hence the “statuesque” and the derriere is out of this world! With all that junk in the trunk, she keeps it tight and I can’t hate on her body, she’s looking good…to me anyway, people keep referring to her as “baby giant” then again I’ve never seen her in person. What I can’t stand is the hair! I guess she didn’t leave the big curly hair behind when she went through puberty. To match the heavy blonde weaves she keeps in rotation, homegirl is never without a heavy layer of bubble gum pinks on her face and is more than likely what landed her on Chester Francis-Jackson’s (for the Jamaica Gleaner) 2007 “Who’s Not” list, and I quote “Girl, no amount of weaves or hair dye will change your race!” Ouch! But I must agree. I wasn’t a fan of Beyonce’s weaves and same goes for Miss Barbee and the worl’ a hair! Get it together girlie….
Anyway any press is good press so here’s some publicity Miss Barbee…hit me up so we can talk about your style!
FOS loyals…What do you think?
Loading …
Images from the Jamaicastar.com and Barbee’s Myspace page
Cherine Anderson has been conquering the entertainment industry genre by genre, with major movie roles under her belt like the role of Tanya in Dancehall Queen and Serena in One Love, singles doing well on the music charts and colabs with artistes like Paul McCartney of the Beatles and Wyclef Jean not to mention having written songs for herself and the likes of Maxi Priest. She is a well-rounded and highly-accomplished talent that begun her theatrical background touring with the world-renowned Ashe Performing Arts Ensemble based here in Jamaica.
Cherine refers to her style of music as dancehall soul, a fusion of street meets sweet. It is a reflection of her upbringing in East Kingston, Jamaica combined with new exposures, living in far-away places like Vermont and Los Angeles in the USA and the exotic Tokyo, Japan for a year. She refers to dancehall as the foundation of her music mixed in with her early church background. A sweet and eclectic mix of music, I often viewed Cherine’s fashion sense similarly, rugged but sweet. It is rooted in our dancehall culture, skewed to her international prowesses plus mixing her own smoothness in. Cherine was gracious enough to speak with me recently about her very unique sense of style.
Irie Diva: Tell me about your style, do you keep up with the latest trends?Cherine: I find that I like to mix retro with new. Having lived in Japan, which is very fashion forward, I was able to mix vintage styles with new trends and make them my own. My style is one that people can definitely identify with and achieve. I like when people can see my outfit and envision themselves wearing it like “yeah I can take that skinny jeans and mix it with a tank, throw in some bangles” basically mix and match to create their own look.Irie Diva: Do you dress yourself for your appearances?Cherine: I mostly dressed myself in the early stages of my career. Now there are stylists that I work with for some events like my most recent video shoot for “You and Me Against the World” I was happy to work with Anatolli Smith who had me styled in John Galliano of Christian Dior fame, Balenciaga shoes, custom made jewelly and some hot vintage pieces. I think working with a stylist definitely has its benefits because there are two sets of eyes looking out for the right looks and that makes you feel even more confident in your clothes.Irie Diva: Ok, so tell me what you’re thinking when you’re dressing yourself to say…go on stage.Cherine: To go on stage I’m considering many things. Definitely I want to be comfortable because I work the stage and I mean really work it so I want to make sure I am comfortable, not constipated (we both LOL!) Comfort still involves heels because I’m only 5′3 so I need my heels and definitely something that still looks good when I sweat because I may be sweating under the heat of the stage lights. White looks good on stage as well, bright colours and I’m into the glittery/shiny pieces (you know I love her now)Irie Diva: What about a TV appearance?Cherine: For TV now, you have to do all your tests, the piece has to look good standing and sitting because you know on TV you’ll be under alot of scrutiny and the clip can get played over and over again! I like to wear a colour that complements my complexion well, like I just recently learned that turquoise works well with me. I was so afraid to try colours before, you would see me mostly in earth tones but I went to London for the premiere of One Love and I went to a boutique, they gave me this pink dress….you would have NEVER caught me in a pink dress, I was not the girly girl but this one was fantastic and since then I am all for colours. When it comes to TV appearances I will take risks and try new things that may seem over the top because on TV they might look good even though you wouldn’t necessarily wear it on the road.Irie Diva: and on a date?Cherine: (giggling) well on a date it depends on where but as long as I am comfortable.Irie Diva: ok tell me about some of your favorite designersCherine: Girl!!! you want the list?!?! (we laugh out loud again) I am a HUGE fan of Christian Dior, love love love his designs. Herve Leger and those bandage dresses! Even if you haven’t been to the gym (uhm…to wear Herve Leger dresses you better have a body like Cherine’s!) in a little while those dresses will certainly pull you right into shape and flatter every curve on a woman’s body. I love boutique shopping really, nothing like getting a one of a kind piece and I love getting custom made pieces as well. Shoes! I’m obsessed with shoes, I love Miu Miu and Balenciaga shoes. I love bangles as well, I pile them on thick in bright, bold colours, I’m known to make noise when I’m at radio interviews with them. In Jamaica, I find that Bottoms Up is my favorite store to shop because it gives me that Melrose feel. They stay current, carry a wide variety and now have some higher end pieces that I like.Irie Diva: Do you have any one favorite item that you absolutely love?Cherine: Right now I love duffel bags, I have them in every different colour and I love my bangles. I went through a stage where I was feeling the wooden bangles, and then it was the bright colours, now its the metallics.Irie Diva: What was your first major fashion indulgence, something that you “spent nuff money on” [nuff=alot]Cherine: has to be shoes, I’m 5′3 so I definitely appreciate a good pair of heels.Irie Diva: Who’s style did you admire mostly when you were growing up?Cherine: There’s so many, I’m such a TV junkie! I would watch hours and hours of TV, even now I do when I can. Grace Jones and Iman, I admired alot, they were bold, confident black women and they made it seem achievable. I could identify with them and pull from their style. I also love Naomi Campbell and Lauryn Hill.Irie Diva: What do you think is important when thinking about one’s style and image?Cherine: I think your style should be a true reflection of who you are. It starts from within, loving yourself and knowing you’re worthy boosts your confidence and makes you unafraid to try new things. You should feel like a million dollars when styling yourself. I’m not afraid to push the boundaries. I want people to see my style and be able to appreciate it. I’d love to make Jamaica even more relevant on the world stage through my music and even my style.
Cherine recently wrapped a tour opening for Wyclef Jean on the world stage and hinted to me about a remix with a major female pop star that she’s just done. Hmmmm…..could it be Beyonce? Rihanna? Miss Janet J? Ok… so I have no idea, I’m really just guessing here but it sounds exciting! She’s equally excited about her latest video “You and Me against the World.” It’s a very high fashion video and I anxiously await its release as well. It was really fun speaking with Cherine, she’s a great actress, great singer and has great style. She was really pleasant, chatting with me as we giggled about shoes and bags. I’ve always admired her sense of style and thought I’d shine some light on it for you to enjoy as well, hope you do! Check out one of Cherine’s vids below or link with her at myspace.com/cherineanderson
Tifa is a fresh face on the dancehall scene where more and more ladies have been on the fast rise recently, giving the men of dancehall some company at the top. She has a few dancehall singles currently burning up airwaves and she’s quite busy these days shooting videos and promoting her new singles. She began singing, dancing, acting; performing in general from a very early age and toured many international cities extensively as a part of the Ashe Performing Arts Ensemble based here in Jamaica. She’s known to many as "the girl with the bruk foot" because her leg’s didn’t quite come out like the rest of us but that didn’t hinder this active performer’s abilities at all. Currently she’s working on her debut album, "Sex, Love and Lies" to be released in european and Japan markets. I asked Tifa recently where she shops because her style is always fresh and she told me she really didn’t shop much in Jamaica, so I took her to a hot new store in Mall Plaza HWT to dive deeper into her style.
Irie Diva: Describe your style for meTifa: Well, I’m really a tom boy at heart, love flats and sneakers, jeans jeans jeans, I have probably 40 pairs of just plain blue jeans no patterns or anything, love jeans! I went through the sneakers obsession as well I had every pair of Jordans, all the Nike, everything. You won’t really catch me in stilettos but I’m more androgynous now, I’ll wear thick heels or wedges, love 60’s inspired clothes, love ruffle sleeves and tights, love metallics, love lime green, yellow, gold, black, love punk rock looks, anything that most girls wouldn’t go for, I love! I love looking different.
Irie Diva: So do you keep up with fashion trends?Tifa: Not really, "mi jus wear wah mi like" anything that fits my body and looks different.Irie Diva: Where do you love to shop?Tifa: I love shopping in the Village in New York and I love Philly, no tax! I buy alot of jeans, love Seven jeans, Diesel, True Religion, love Guess. I don’t really shop much for sneakers anymore, they don’t make them nice again. I love Coach and D&G sneakers but sometimes I don’t bother cus you know is a one wear, you get pictured with it you can’t really wear it again.Irie Diva: Tell me how you like to dress when you’re going all out, like for stageTifa: Well I highlight nice features I have like I’ll wear alot of low cut tops or shorts to show off the sexy but I dont’ do too much at once like if I’m low cut I’ll wear pants or if I’m in shorts or skirt I wear a fuller top. Its like sexy meets….is like a sexed up Aaliyah look, you remember she was kinda tom boy first "mi nuh so full inna di ting" [she's not quite as tom boy with her style] I like to match up everything and I try to keep my make up light, I guess I don’t really need much, I’ve been blessed with nice features so I’ll just wear maybe a little glitter to make my eyes pop and keep it light unless its for film.
Tifa has just wrapped the video for "Dem Gyal Sittn" which is a rhythm by popular producer Suku of Ward 21 and features a number of our hot dancehall ladies. She’s quite excited about it, letting on that the video had a high budget and will be quite different from our norm, featuring Japanese animation. Dem Gyal Sittn has been getting alot of airplay here and overseas, keep posted for the video soon.
Tifa was quite the trooper as we rummaged through the racks of Alexxya in Mall Plaza (Constant Spring Rd. St. Andrew) to find some hot picks. The assistant matched the outfits with some shoes from the store and a blushing Tifa exclaimed "that’s too girly" when he picked out some gold jewelled stilettos. She was up for it tho and picked out her own pair which were quite cute! Here are Tifa’s picks from Alexxya and check out her latest video "No Tinky Winky" below. I am just loving that gold ruffled dress! Are you feeling it?
Thanks much to Alexxya for accomodating us! Check them out in the Mall Plaza (876)968-3330
Toolbox:
When you visit Jamaican shops, pick up some hand painted earrings and gucci sunglasses . Whether its shoes, jewellery or bags, you’ll find all sorts of items cheaper than you imagined! With a wide selection of watches, you’re bound to find a watch that you’ll love. You can even purchase a telescope for at least 50% less than the regular price!
I have to take a breather from fashion reporting for a minute and bring to your attention Miss Alicia Key’s American Music Awards performance recently that was very much a reggae performance, we taking over the world y’all! It took some dancehall music to bring Miss Keys out and dancing! You may have already seen this, it’s not brand new but was unavailable for somewhile on youtube due to copyright infringements, so watch it quickly before it gets pulled again. She brought out Junior Reid, Chakka Demus and Pliers (where’d she dig them up) and Beenie Man who did snippets of their own songs inbetween her hit single No One. The performance was great and (to get back to some fashion here) lets talk about Alicia in that all-in-one! I heard one opinion that wasn’t feeling her outfit because it made her look hippy. Sadly, that person doesn’t understand the beauty of gorgeous curves. Work it Alicia, you were fabulous. She has come full circle in the style game and gets fiercer with each appearance.
Hey people. I have an interview coming up with one of our fabulous ladies hot in the Jamaican music biz right now and so as a prelude I thought I’d chat a little about some other fabulous Caribbean people in music. Sean Paul’s video “watch dem roll” is hot! The song is hot, the video is hot, he is hot! I’m hearing alot of “its the same ol’ Sean Paul, nothing but dance moves” but hey, it works! And the ladies are loving it…I’m quite sure the men are loving it too with the abundance of “healthy body girls” in the vid rolling it around. Its a good distraction since we all know Sean Paul can but only willy bounce to save his life and nothing more. I have to comment on his current hair cut tho. It irks me so! I must say the long braids with the shaved sides are not cool for me yet I wouldn’t tell him to switch it up…how weird is that? I think as much as I’m not feeling it, its edgy and different and so it works for him. Kudos to you on the single for the upcoming album Sean.
Cheese on Breadhas done a fabulous pictorial of Rihanna since she debuted on the int’l music scene to now, called “the Evolution of Rihanna” quite befitting when you think of what her style was like when she began and the bombshell, trendsetter she is now! One of the commenters on the post said she hasn’t yet done a concert in Barbados? What’s up with that Rih Rih? Show your home town some love! I hope they meant in recent times…she is a fabulous chica tho…and at 19 she has so much ahead of her if she continues along her current path.
Thats its for lunch break people check back later for what to wear under your clothes and stay tuned for the fabulousness of the interview to come!
Ok, FOS is definitely not a gossip site so you’ll find no juice here on the girl. What I want to know is what you think about the look of this, one of our newest female sensations coming out of the dancehall. She is most popularly known as the girl that was rumoured to be the cause of the split between Beenie Man and wife of less than a year, D’Angel. According to local tabloid
then again I’ve never seen her in person. What I can’t stand is the hair! I guess she didn’t leave the big curly hair behind when she went through puberty. To match the heavy blonde weaves she keeps in rotation, homegirl is never without a heavy layer of bubble gum pinks on her face and is more than likely what landed her on Chester Francis-Jackson’s (for the Jamaica Gleaner) 2007 “
Loading …
