The fashion industry is full of mercurial, often mysterious figures, but over the past decade, Law Roach has become one of its most fun to watch. After making his name as the stylist of choice for Celine Dion, Ariana Grande, and “fashion soulmate” Zendaya, the self-designated (and trademarked) “image architect” stunned style watchers when, mere months after being honored as the first-ever Stylist of the Year by the Council of Fashion Designers of America in November 2022, Roach announced his retirement in March 2023.
“The politics, the lies, and false narratives finally got me!” he wrote in a since-deleted Instagram post, following a flurry of rumors that had cast him as a diva in an industry notoriously full of them. “You win … I’m out.”
Just over a year later, Roach admits he’s “the most unretired retired person” in a new profile with the New York Times. Since his announcement, he’s continued orchestrating looks for his top clients, including a trendsetting and headline-making array of looks for Zendaya’s successive “Dune” and “Challengers” press tours. Additionally, the Chicago native, who now calls Los Angeles home, has joined the judging panel of E! network’s new upcycled fashion competition, “OMG Fashun,” and will release his first book, “How to Build a Fashion Icon: Notes on Confidence From the World’s Only Image Architect,” in September.
Arguably, if anyone knows how to craft a modern-day icon, it’s Roach, who styled Zendaya’s transition from 13-year-old Disney tween through her current reign as seemingly unstoppable Hollywood A-lister. It’s a fact he says led to his divestment from often petty politics of celebrity styling.
“I felt like every time I came into a room, I still had to prove myself. I changed the trajectory of people’s careers, changed their visibility, but I still have to argue for what I think is the best look,” he told the Times. “And if the…
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