Rihanna and A$AP Rocky Unite at Puma: Rapper to Spearhead F1 Creative Direction
It’s officially a family affair at Puma for Rihanna and A$AP Rocky. Today, the company announced its long-term creative partnership with the rapper where he takes on the role as creative director for the brand’s F1 partnership.
Rihanna, meanwhile, is back at Puma. The surprise deal was first revealed in the middle of Paris Fashion Week in March, and last month, she launched the Fenty x Puma Avanti sneaker — marking the debut collection since her first partnership with Puma ended in 2018.
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For partner A$AP Rocky, he will focus on the intersection of motorsport and streetwear, developing bespoke capsules that will influence Puma’s seasonal design directions as well as bringing a fresh perspective to the growing F1 audience.
In May, Puma unveiled an exclusive deal with Formula 1 for the 2024 season and beyond.
Next year, Puma will be the the official supplier at Formula 1 races, granting the brand the right to produce F1 branded apparel, footwear and accessories. The Herzogenaurach, Germany-based, multinational activewear company will also equip Formula 1 sports officials on track and create Formula 1 fanwear that targets the sport’s different audiences with new lifestyle and motorsport collections.
With A$AP Rocky as creative director, Puma plans to adopt an incubator-style approach, termed “in the lab,” for creative exploration. For instance, during the rest of this year, he will influence Puma’s visuals and video content. In addition, Rocky will drop an extremely limited Puma x F1 collection, which will provide a sneak peak into a series of capsule collections for 2024.
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In May, Rocky will then focus his creative attention on several Grand Prix races beginning in Miami. He will also curate activations at each of these F1 races and serve as the creative director for all of the marketing efforts surrounding these collections.
“Working with brands as iconic as Puma, and as innovative as F1, has been truly inspiring,” A$AP Rocky said in a statement. “When the world sees what were doing, I believe a shift will happen with how brands approach taking risks and working with diverse creatives.”
By 2025, A$AP Rocky aims to integrate himself more deeply into the overall creative design process for all Puma x F1 products, ranging from racewear and fanwear to fashion. He will continue his involvement in marketing, intending to bring innovative changes to the category through unique product design and concepts.
Maria Valdes, Puma’s chief product officer, added, “He’s incredibly talented, deeply thoughtful and invested in our brand. He will showcase his vision with elevated F1 race capsules globally, which attract new audiences and undoubtedly disrupt the track.”
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