by Introduction: The Moment Lingerie Fashion Changed
For decades, lingerie fashion operated within a very narrow visual language. Runways were dominated by a specific aesthetic: tall, extremely thin models, symmetrical beauty standards, and an idea of sensuality that catered largely to the male gaze. Major lingerie spectacles—particularly those in Western fashion capitals—often celebrated fantasy, but rarely diversity. Bodies that existed outside of rigid beauty norms were rarely invited into the conversation.
Then came a moment that felt less like a fashion launch and more like a cultural shift.
When Rihanna introduced her lingerie brand Savage X Fenty in 2018, she did more than launch another celebrity-backed fashion label. She presented an alternative vision of intimacy, sexuality, and representation. By the time the first Savage X Fenty Show debuted in 2019 as a televised spectacle, it became clear that this was not simply about selling bras and underwear. It was about rewriting the rules of who gets to be seen as desirable.
The shows—released through Amazon’s streaming platform—became global cultural events. They fused dance, music, performance art, and fashion while showcasing bodies of different sizes, abilities, ethnicities, gender identities, and life stages.
What made the moment historic was not merely the presence of diverse models. Diversity in fashion had been promised before. What was different was the scale, the visibility, and the narrative framing. Savage X Fenty reframed lingerie from a spectacle of exclusion to a celebration of bodily autonomy and confidence.
Within a few years, the shows would influence not only the lingerie industry but broader conversations about body positivity, representation, and the cultural politics of beauty.
Understanding their impact requires examining how lingerie historically shaped body expectations—and how Savage X Fenty disrupted that narrative.
The Historical Lingerie Runway and the Idealized Body
Before Savage X Fenty entered the cultural landscape, lingerie fashion shows largely revolved around an idealized version of femininity.
For years, the most widely recognized lingerie spectacle was the annual fashion show produced by Victoria’s Secret. Broadcast internationally, it featured supermodels wearing elaborate wings, crystal-encrusted lingerie, and towering heels. The show created global icons and shaped mainstream ideas of what lingerie—and by extension, sexuality—should look like.
However, the representation within these shows was highly controlled. Models typically shared similar body types: tall, slender, toned, and conventionally symmetrical. Diversity in race slowly improved over time, but body diversity remained limited.
This visual narrative had cultural consequences.
Research in psychology and media studies has consistently shown that repeated exposure to narrow beauty standards contributes to body dissatisfaction among viewers, particularly young women. Lingerie campaigns, which frame bodies in intimate contexts, can intensify these effects.
The lingerie runway therefore functioned as more than a fashion event—it became a cultural script about desirability. The message was subtle but powerful: only certain bodies were worthy of celebration.
By the late 2010s, cultural attitudes were beginning to shift. Movements advocating body positivity, inclusivity, and gender diversity were gaining visibility across social media and activism circles.
Yet mainstream fashion had been slow to translate these conversations into meaningful structural change.
Savage X Fenty would challenge that hesitation.
Rihanna’s Vision: Inclusivity as Creative Direction
From the beginning, Rihanna framed Savage X Fenty as an inclusive brand.
In interviews, she consistently emphasized that lingerie should make people feel confident, not excluded. During the brand’s early promotional campaigns, she stated that she wanted customers to see themselves reflected in the designs and the imagery.
Unlike many celebrity brands, where inclusivity is primarily a marketing message, Savage X Fenty embedded representation into its operational structure.
The brand launched with an unusually broad size range and emphasized models across various body types in its campaigns. But the most visible expression of this philosophy came through the annual Savage X Fenty shows.
Rather than presenting models as distant icons, the shows treated them as performers and personalities. Runway walking was replaced with choreography, storytelling, and artistic staging.
Participants included:
- Plus-size models
- Disabled performers
- Transgender and nonbinary models
- Dancers of diverse cultural backgrounds
- Pregnant performers
- Established celebrities and emerging talent
This blending of identities created a radically different visual experience. Instead of reinforcing one “ideal” body, the shows suggested that sensuality itself could exist in many forms.
For audiences accustomed to traditional lingerie spectacles, the contrast was striking.
The Savage X Fenty Show: Fashion as Cultural Performance
The first Savage X Fenty show in 2019 immediately signaled that this was not a conventional runway event.
The production resembled a hybrid between a concert, a theatrical performance, and a fashion presentation. Music artists performed live while dancers and models moved through choreographed scenes inspired by different aesthetic worlds.
The cast included performers of various body types, ethnicities, and gender identities, each presented with equal visual prominence.
The show also featured major cultural figures such as Lizzo, whose own career has centered themes of body confidence and self-acceptance.
Critics and viewers alike noted that the show redefined how lingerie could be presented. Rather than framing models as static objects, the choreography emphasized movement, strength, and personality.
This shift was significant.
In traditional lingerie presentations, bodies are often positioned as passive objects for visual consumption. Savage X Fenty reframed them as active participants in artistic expression.
This subtle narrative change had psychological implications. When bodies are portrayed as dynamic rather than decorative, audiences may perceive them as more relatable and human.
The result was a viewing experience that felt celebratory rather than aspirational in the conventional sense.
Representation Beyond Size: Gender, Disability, and Identity
One of the most transformative aspects of the Savage X Fenty shows was their expansive approach to representation.
While many fashion brands have begun incorporating plus-size models, Rihanna’s productions went further by including identities often absent from lingerie campaigns.
Transgender models, nonbinary performers, and disabled dancers appeared alongside celebrities and traditional fashion models.
Activist and model Indya Moore, known for work in the television series Pose, participated in the shows and represented a growing movement toward gender-inclusive fashion spaces.
These casting choices carried cultural significance.
Historically, lingerie advertising has reinforced binary notions of gender and sexuality. The imagery typically assumes a heterosexual female consumer performing femininity within strict aesthetic boundaries.
Savage X Fenty challenged this assumption by presenting lingerie as clothing that could belong to anyone seeking self-expression.
The inclusion of disabled performers was equally notable. Fashion runways rarely accommodate mobility aids or alternative body structures, often due to staging logistics and aesthetic expectations.
By integrating performers with disabilities into choreographed segments, the shows subtly normalized bodily difference rather than treating it as exceptional.
Such moments signaled that inclusivity was not simply symbolic—it was embedded into the visual language of the production.
The Psychological Power of Seeing Diverse Bodies
Representation is not merely symbolic; it can influence how individuals perceive themselves.
Psychologists studying media representation have long emphasized the concept of mirror imagery—the idea that people develop self-perceptions partly through the images reflected back at them in culture.
When media repeatedly highlights only certain body types, individuals who fall outside those standards may experience invisibility or exclusion.
Savage X Fenty altered that dynamic by presenting multiple forms of beauty simultaneously.
A viewer could see athletic bodies, fuller figures, pregnant performers, individuals with visible scars or stretch marks, and different gender expressions.
Instead of presenting diversity as a special category, the show framed it as the norm.
This shift has emotional consequences.
When audiences see bodies resembling their own in contexts associated with glamour, sexuality, and celebration, it can challenge internalized hierarchies of beauty.
Importantly, Savage X Fenty did not frame these bodies through narratives of “overcoming” or “inspiration.” They were simply presented as confident, stylish participants in a cultural event.
This difference marks a shift from representation as charity to representation as equality.
Global Resonance and Cross-Cultural Influence
The impact of Savage X Fenty extended beyond the United States.
Because the shows were distributed globally through streaming platforms, audiences from Europe, Africa, Asia, and Latin America experienced the spectacle simultaneously.
This global visibility mattered because beauty standards are increasingly shaped by international media flows.
In many countries, Western fashion imagery has historically promoted Eurocentric beauty ideals. By presenting a more diverse cast, Savage X Fenty subtly challenged those narratives.
Models and performers from various cultural backgrounds appeared without being framed as exotic or peripheral.
Instead, diversity was presented as integral to contemporary fashion.
This global framing resonated particularly with younger audiences who increasingly expect brands to reflect multicultural realities.
Industry Ripple Effects
The success of Savage X Fenty forced the lingerie industry to reconsider its approach to representation.
Brands that had long relied on narrow beauty ideals began introducing more inclusive marketing campaigns.
In 2019, shortly after the cultural rise of Savage X Fenty, the annual fashion show produced by Victoria’s Secret was cancelled. While many factors contributed to the decision—including changing consumer behavior and public criticism—the timing underscored the shifting cultural landscape.
Consumers were increasingly skeptical of brands that promoted exclusivity as glamour.
Savage X Fenty demonstrated that inclusivity could also be aspirational—and commercially successful.
Other lingerie brands began expanding size ranges, casting more diverse models, and rethinking advertising imagery.
Performance, Music, and Cultural Hybridization
Another distinctive element of the Savage X Fenty shows was their blending of fashion with music and dance.
Rather than separating runway presentation from entertainment, the shows integrated them.
Performances by artists like Rosalía and Bad Bunny highlighted global musical influences and reinforced the show’s multicultural energy.
In the context of body representation, the inclusion of dancers and performers from diverse movement traditions expanded how bodies were perceived.
Instead of walking in a straight line down a runway, performers jumped, spun, stretched, and expressed emotion through choreography.
The result was a celebration of bodies as instruments of creativity.
Expanding Notions of Desire and Confidence
Savage X Fenty shows redefined not just which bodies are visible, but which bodies are considered desirable and confident. Traditional lingerie campaigns often implied that confidence and sexual appeal were inherently linked to a narrow physical ideal, which inadvertently excluded millions of potential consumers. By presenting a spectrum of body types, genders, and abilities in commanding, confident roles, the shows suggested that desire is not a fixed standard but a personal and performative quality. This reframing has deeper cultural implications: it challenges the notion that confidence is only for those who fit societal beauty molds, instead promoting an understanding that self-assuredness comes from agency and self-expression. The emotional impact on viewers is substantial, particularly for young people navigating self-image in the age of social media. Seeing a pregnant model gracefully perform in lingerie or a plus-size performer owning the stage disrupts internalized hierarchies of beauty and provides a powerful mirror image: sensuality and self-esteem are accessible to all bodies, not just the conventionally celebrated ones.
Influence on Global Body Positivity Movements
While Savage X Fenty is rooted in American fashion culture, its influence resonates globally. Streaming the shows internationally allowed audiences across continents—from Europe to Asia, Africa, and Latin America—to witness a radically inclusive approach to lingerie and body representation. This exposure challenges Eurocentric and Westernized beauty norms that have dominated global media for decades. For instance, young women in countries where traditional advertising emphasized thinness and light skin could see performers of diverse ethnicities and sizes confidently occupying the same space of glamour. Similarly, transgender and nonbinary performers modeled clothing that defied conventional gender norms, offering representation that had previously been absent from mainstream fashion globally. By broadcasting inclusivity as aspirational rather than exceptional, Savage X Fenty contributes to a cross-cultural dialogue about body positivity, encouraging brands and creators worldwide to reconsider who gets visibility, who is celebrated, and what bodies are deemed worthy of being photographed, danced, and adored.
Redefining the Relationship Between Fashion and Social Responsibility
Savage X Fenty also shifted expectations regarding the social responsibility of fashion brands. While inclusivity is often marketed as a trend, Rihanna’s brand treats it as a creative and ethical imperative. By actively hiring models across size ranges, gender identities, and abilities, the brand demonstrates that representation is not an optional stylistic choice but a foundational element of production. This approach encourages other fashion houses to integrate social awareness into their business strategies, proving that commercial success and cultural responsibility are not mutually exclusive. The show’s storytelling, blending choreography, music, and narrative, further emphasizes that representation is meaningful when paired with visibility and artistic prominence. Audiences respond not only to the images of diverse bodies but also to the context in which they are celebrated, suggesting that thoughtful production choices can amplify the social impact of fashion campaigns. As other brands follow suit, the industry gradually moves toward a landscape where inclusivity is expected rather than optional.
Inspiring Long-Term Cultural Change
The long-term significance of Savage X Fenty lies in its potential to inspire systemic cultural change. By normalizing visibility for bodies historically excluded from fashion, the shows challenge the entrenched hierarchy of beauty standards that has shaped media, advertising, and self-perception for decades. Viewers begin to internalize that sensuality, style, and desirability are not privileges reserved for a select few but are attainable by anyone who claims them. This normalization encourages a broader re-evaluation of cultural values around body image, beauty, and confidence. Beyond the runway, the shows spark conversations in workplaces, schools, and homes about acceptance, representation, and equity. They also influence the next generation of designers, performers, and marketers to prioritize inclusivity in both aesthetic and ethical dimensions. In this way, Savage X Fenty serves as a model not just for fashion innovation but for social progress, demonstrating that when diversity is celebrated visibly, artfully, and unapologetically, it has the power to reshape cultural narratives around bodies for years to come.
Empowering Audiences Through Representation and Visibility
One of the most profound impacts of Savage X Fenty is its ability to empower audiences simply through visibility. Representation in fashion is not only about who appears on stage but also about how these bodies are framed, celebrated, and normalized. By showcasing performers of all sizes, gender identities, abilities, and cultural backgrounds in central roles, the shows convey a powerful message: everyone deserves to be seen, admired, and celebrated. This visibility has a ripple effect on viewers’ self-perception, helping to counter internalized shame or insecurity linked to societal beauty standards. Moreover, by presenting bodies in motion—dancing, interacting, performing—the shows emphasize functionality, vitality, and expression rather than static perfection. This dynamic presentation fosters a psychological connection with audiences, who can imagine themselves inhabiting these spaces of confidence and creativity. For many, witnessing such unapologetic diversity on a global platform validates their experiences and identities, reinforcing that empowerment is not aspirational—it is attainable, inherent, and deserving of celebration. In this way, Savage X Fenty functions as more than fashion; it becomes a participatory cultural dialogue about self-worth, agency, and belonging.
Conclusion: The Future of Body Representation in Fashion
The cultural impact of Savage X Fenty will likely extend far beyond lingerie.
By transforming a traditionally exclusive fashion spectacle into a platform for diversity and performance, Rihanna introduced a new model of representation—one that blends artistry, commerce, and social awareness.
The shows proved that audiences are eager to see bodies that reflect real human diversity, not just aspirational fantasy.
Perhaps the most powerful aspect of the productions is their emotional resonance. They remind viewers that confidence does not belong to a single body type, gender identity, or cultural background.
It belongs to anyone willing to claim it.
If the future of fashion embraces this philosophy, the legacy of Savage X Fenty may extend beyond the runway—helping to build a cultural landscape where representation is not revolutionary, but simply expected.
Sources: Vogue, Business of Fashion, The New York Times, Harper’s Bazaar, The Guardian, Forbes
