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| Rhianna in yellow at Met Gala |
Back in April, the Internet exploded into collective euphoria. Beyoncé became the first black woman to headline Coachella and asserted herself as the greatest living performer on the planet. Yes, there was a Destiny’s Child reunion and a heart-warming moment on stage with her sister Solange, but what caught our attention was the high-voltage production and the fact it was all yellow.
Everything from the Balmain hoodie on Bey to the costumes of her 200 or so backing singers, dancers and brass-band players was in bright, vibrant, see-it-from-a-mile-away yellow. What could be a better colour to resonate with a performance that addressed gender and racial inequalities, as well as the #MeToo movement? In more literal terms, it created a visual metaphor of the ‘Beyhive’, with Beyoncé at its centre as queen bee.
Now, you may have heard that ‘Gen Z yellow’ is the new black — and by that I mean the new millennial pink. Trend forecasters coined the term last year and it’s been circulating the fashion periphery ever since.
But what is it and where did it come from?
Gen Z yellow ‘refers to a spectrum of bright yellow shades, ranging from banana to buttercup,’ says Sara Maggioni, director of retail and buying at trend forecaster WGSN. She believes yellow is a ‘bright, attention-grabbing colour that makes the perfect Insta-bait’ and that the innate positivity of it resonates with a generation growing up in tumultuous times. There’s also the fact it’s the colour of Snapchat, Gen Z’s favourite social media platform.
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