Naomi Campbell and Anna Wintour Kick Off New York Fashion Week with a Spicy Exchange

New York Fashion Week is back — and it’s off to a hot start! This week, Harlem’s Fashion Row’s At the seventeenth Annual Fashion Show & Style Awards, Naomi Campbell gracefully responded to Anna Wintour’s comments concerning the supermodel’s legendary tardiness.

Themed “Night of Legends,” the Black-owned fashion agency and advocacy group brought together industry stalwarts to pay tribute to pioneers who broke and redefined fashion boundaries. That evening, Wintour, the longtime editor-in-chief of Vogue and global chief content officer at Condé Nast, was set to present Campbell with the HFR Icon of the Year Award. But the supermodel’s fashionably late arrival prompted a last-minute change of plans.

“I’m a very punctual person,” Wintour said on stage on the awards ceremony. “I’m honored to present an award tonight to someone who is often late.”

The Vogue veteran praised Campbell for being “bold, intelligent and completely, unapologetically herself” and “a godmother of fashion for generations of young models and designers,” she said. USA today AND Women’s casual clothing. Shortly after singing Campbell’s praises, Wintour reportedly had to depart the event to attend the U.S. Open. So when Campbell finally arrived, fellow honoree Samira Nasr, the primary black editor-in-chief of Harper’s Bazaar, presented the model with her award.

Featured Stories

Wasting no time, the model began her speech by responding to Wintour’s questionable comments.

“I have to tell the truth, I’ve always been uncompromisingly honest, right? Yes, Naomi is always late,” she said jokingly. “But I believe in my higher power, and I want to thank my higher power for allowing me to be here… I want to say this: Everything is going to work out the way it’s going to work out; it wasn’t my choice to have another woman (Anna Wintour). I would have preferred that, so thank you.”

In addition to being the guest of honor, this 12 months’s HFR fashion show shined a highlight on Campbell’s ongoing collaboration with Hugo Boss and her recent Naomi x Boss 2.0 capsule collection. And while the supermodel and fashion activist matched Wintour’s energy in her opening speech, she thanked the Vogue editor and other industry leaders in her speech.

“We still have to thank Anna Wintour because she took the time to come here and present me with an award even though I wasn’t here. So thank you… for supporting my career since 1987, for meeting a young black girl from South London at British Vogue and taking the risk to shoot me,” she added, in response to USA Today. “And thank you for your influence and your continued support in pushing fashion forward.”

Celebrating each the legacy and the longer term of fashion, HFR’s “Night of Legends” also honored Nasr, who received the “Editor of the Year” award from her close friend, actress Tracee Ellis Ross. Similarly, Teyana Taylor received the Virgil Abloh Award for her modern influence on culture and style, and costume designer and longtime Beyoncé collaborator Shiona Turni received the Stylist of the Year award. Following the awards, black brands including Aaron Potts’ A. Potts, LaTouché, and Nicole Benefield took center stage as they showcased their designs on the runway.

“I am deeply grateful for this recognition,” Campbell said, concluding her speech. “I don’t see this as a culmination. Rather, it’s a call to action. Yes, our industry has made progress, but we still have a long way to go.”