Queens of Music, Masters of Style
What does a photographer who is also a Halloween enthusiast who also sings in a ‘90s cover band do with her new studio while under quarantine?
Step 1: Resist. Deny. Barter. Pout.
Step 2: Engage in heavy nostalgia, watching re-runs of Boy Meets World and listening to a playlist of Billboard top 100 hits from 1993.
Step 3: Notice a proliferation of cheap wigs, vintage and thrift store shopping gems, and bags of items waiting to be donated.
Step 4: Lightbulb.
One part self-preservation, equal parts boredom and a love of female musicians and the clothes they inspire, this photo project came with strict guidelines: Pay homage to one female musician each year from 1970-2019 who appeared on the Billboard Hot 100 that year using only items already found in my Austin apartment.
1990: Janet Jackson
“Escapade” Reaches #1
Portraying a woman of color when you’re not one is tricky. The stakes are high with anyone on this list, but dressing like a hot-mess white lady while channelling Courtney Love is one thing; There is a higher risk of slipping into caricature when trying to pay tribute to a woman of a different race.
This a long, awkward way of apologizing for not having Whitney Houston on my list. I tried. I failed. But with Jackson’s “Rhythm Nation,” a socially conscious concept album that saw 8 singles, a record-breaking 7 of which reached the top 5, there existed a costume. One achieved using aluminum foil and bicycle gloves. But a costume nonetheless.
Nobody needs to hear my meager research on Jackson’s success, or her fashion influence. Except I did learn that her famous key earring was once a functional key to to cages in Encino, CA, where she and her brother took care of the family animals.
1991: Suzanne Vega
“Tom’s Diner” reaches #5
You think you don’t know Suzanne Vega or “Tom’s Diner.” (Specifically the DNA version that made it to the radio) But the list of artists who have sampled the catchy tune - Lil’ Kim, Drake, Aaliyah, Fall Out Boy, and David Guetta - would prove you likely wrong.
It was a full 15 years after hearing “Tom’s Diner” that I learned the name of the artist. It was another 10 years before I learned Vega was not gay, but rather, the song was written from a man’s perspective.
Style-wise - musically and in fashion - Vega has been referred to as “neo-folk,” “new waif” and “minimalist” at a time when sex and skin were ramping up in popularity. Shooting this was a nice break from the makeup onslaught.
Fun Fact: The diner Vega is singing about - actually known as Tom’s Restaurant - also served as the exterior for the diner in Seinfeld.
1992: Mariah Carey
“I’ll Be There” Reaches #1
How do I even start? Let’s rapid-fire facts about my all-time favorite vocalist, style icon, and hair idol.
Fact: Mariah Carey is among the strongest vocalists alive. Remember the impressive 4-octave range of Karen Carpenter? Yeah, Carey can hit 5, up there with the likes of Freddie Mercury and Axl Rose.
Fact: Carey is the only artist in history to have their first 5 singles reach No. 1. She also holds records for the most No. 1 singles by a solo artist, female songwriter, and female producer. She has 19 Billboard 100 singles and 5 Grammys to her name.
Fact: Roughly 75% of my closet includes clothes inspired by late ‘80s and early ‘90s Mariah Carey ensembles. High-waisted jeans, cropped tops, split maxi skirts and a whole hell of a lot of denim.
“She got 1988 Mariah Carey hair - very rare, mom jeans on her derriere.” Thank you, Macklemore. You’ve summed it up.
1993: Linda Perry
“What’s Up” (4 Non Blondes) Reaches #14
Choosing ‘90s artists was impossible. It was when I started listening to music, recording radio hits onto boom box tapes with the ferocity of someone who didn’t know I would one day have every song at my fingertips.
So why choose a band many consider a one-hit wonder? Because when I heard “What’s Up” at 9 years old, my heart stopped. Because I understood - in 4 minutes and 15 seconds stuck in the back of a station wagon - feminism for the first time, long before I knew the word itself.
Plus, there’s the style. Remember the early ‘90s? Remember the flannel, the hats, the crappy necklaces and general desire to be as sloppy as humanly possible? As a tween who hated dresses, I certainly did, and so did Linda Perry.
Fun Fact: Linda Perry composed and produced Top 100 songs for Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Pink, and Gwen Stefani.
1994: Courtney Love
“Doll Parts” (Hole) Reaches #4
Don’t hate me. I never actually listened to Hole. While my cousins were saving up for Doc Martens and babydoll dresses, I was off somewhere preoccupied with wondering if off-brand L.A. Gear light-up sneakers existed, and whether they would match my JNCOs (also off-brand).
I missed her music, but I always noticed the Courtney Love aesthetic and eventually gave it a shot. I remember in the later ‘90s roaming the halls of my middle school, beaming with pride over the tank top I had worn over my babydoll T-shirt, not realizing how much further one had to go to fully nail what I now know is called “kinderwhore” style.
OK, her music. Feminist. Lyrical. Surprisingly referential to classic literature. It’s time for me to give it a listen. Right after I’m done getting through Fiona Apple’s “Fetch the Bolt Cutters.”
1995: Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes
“Creep” and “Waterfalls” (TLC) Reach #1
At 10 years old, there was so much I didn’t understand about TLC’s lyrics - that to “creep” meant to be unfaithful in a respectful way, and that the 3 letters that took little Precious to his final resting place were H.I.V. But that didn’t stop my from learning -word for word- Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes’ rap breakdown in the bridge.
Along with Salt ‘N Pepa - noticeably absent from this list - TLC was almost solely responsible for my love of rap and R&B. I couldn’t jump on board with many male singers in those genres, but I couldn’t get enough of those 6 women, who still comprise the majority of my karaoke picks.
Style-wise, the group helped popularize (depending on the year) Tommy Hilfiger, overalls, men’s jeans and cropped tops with sweatpants. But I had to bust out the red satin PJs and harness all the Creep video vibes for this one.
1996: Gwen Stefani
“Don’t Speak” (No Doubt) Reaches #1
I distinctly recall 2 songs from my first middle school “boy-girl” dance: The Tootsie Roll (artist withheld to protect the ridiculous) and No Doubt’s “Don’t Speak.” Unfortunately, having reached the insane height of 5’8 at that point, I danced to the one that didn’t require a slow-dance partner.
But I remember thinking Gwen Stefani was the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen (because she is) and immediately becoming obsessed with the album Tragic Kingdom: The Orange County vibes oozing off its cover, the citrus imagery, the reminder of my own birthplace outside of Orlando, that red pleather dress.
I never did get that pleather dress, and the lack of ‘40s glam and peroxide in my home made the video version of Gwen Stefani impossible. But her 1997 sari-inspired ensemble at the Race to Erase MS Gala, plus this insane hairstyle people seemed to love, were a bit easier to nail.
1997: Robyn
“Do You Know (What It Takes)” and “Show Me Love” Reach #7
Yes, Robyn was on the scene in the late ‘90s with 2 Top 10 hits. Yes, I sat outside a D.C. arena in 2012 killing time before Coldplay went on because I didn’t think the opener was the same Robyn. Or that she was behind “Dancing On My Own.” I was somehow simultaneously early and late to the Robyn game.
Her influence on ‘90s music is inarguable: Her platinum success in Sweden and the U.S. has been credited with inspiring the careers of Mandy Moore and British star Billie Piper, and her refusal to sign with Jive led them to sign a different young singer of the time: a 15-year-old Britney Spears.
Style-wise, Robyn is impossible to capture. So I went with the track jacket featured on the album cover.
Fun Fact: The ‘90s had 2 hits called “Show Me Love.” One by Robyn, and one by a singer named Robin. This can make for an awkward karaoke experience.
1998: Melanie “Sporty Spice” Chisholm
“Too Much” (Spice Girls) Reaches #9
OK, I should have done the Spice Girls in 1997, when they had 4 Billboard hits, including the breakout hit “Wannabe.” But the ‘90s had too much good music. Ironically, given my love for her, Alanis Morissette didn’t make it on the list, and the absence of Fiona Apple is downright criminal.
So the Spice Girls squeaked by, a year after their peak. But you wouldn’t know it growing up in my house, where tear-away pictures of the group pulled from Tiger Beat took the place of wallpaper in my younger sister’s room until the early 2000s. We had videos. Playing cards. Scrunchies. Keychains. Pogs.
Scary, Sporty, Baby, Ginger, and Posh - Melanie Brown, Melanie Chisholm, Emma Bunton, Geri Halliwell, and Victoria Beckham - had 5 distinct styles, which made tween girls feel they could see themselves in at least one of them. I saw myself in only one, and I have the track pants to prove it.
1999: Jennifer Lopez
“If You Had My Love” Reaches #1
If you’re looking for Britney and Christina, you have to wait a decade. It’s not as if I didn’t love them. But their impact on style came later. Jennifer Lopez, on the other hand, tore it up the moment she decided to have a music career.
I knew Lopez as the star of Selena, still one of the best biopics ever made. After 2 more box office hits, she released On The 6, which was the soundtrack to every J.V. softball of my 8th grade year. And we all know the rest.
This outfit - This shirt made it through the late ‘90s, unlike the rest of the tie-back tops that were entirely inappropriate for an 8th-grader to wear. Bandanas became all the rage in my high school, though they came as pre-cut headpieces out of Claire’s Boutique, perfect for a girl growing out her bangs. But I never once looked as cool as J.Lo while wearing them.
