Rihanna's Savage X Fenty NYFW show was everything that Victoria's Secret annual fashion show isn't.
Last Wednesday, a vast array of body types and ethnicities stormed the runway at the Garden of Eden themed event, making it evident that Rihanna - a multi-hyphenate if ever there was one - has created a lingerie line which is successfully championing inclusivity in an industry renowned for solely employing models who embody western ideals of beauty.
The show, which was live-streamed on Youtube, featured everyone from Bella and Gigi Hadid, to a very pregnant Slick Woods. Paloma Elsesser, the plus-sized model, who was unwittingly caught up in Revolve's "fat shaming" jumper scandal, also walked the runway.
The show was certainly an inclusive celebration of womanhood - and this was perhaps best embodied by the fact that Slick Woods reportedly went into labour while walking the catwalk.
Slick Woods, also known as Simone Thompson, is a 22-year-old model from Minnesota, who has modelled for the likes of Vogue, Calvin Klein and Marc Jacobs.
Earlier this year, she revealed on Instagram that she was expecting her first child with fellow model, Adonis Bosso. Now, she's taken to the social media platform once more to inform her 752,000 followers that not only did she give birth to a baby boy 14 hours after walking the Savage X Fenty show, but that she was actively in labour for the entire thing.
"A lewk, 14 hours of labour, and a king is born," she wrote. "This is the face of a WOMAN IN LABOR, we hold sh*t down most of us don’t even know how much we’re going through, I’m here to say I CAN DO WHATEVER THE F*CK I WANT WHENEVER THE F*CK I WANT AND SO CAN YOU. Thank you @qualityresusqueen and the Fenty family for taking such good care of us."
Rihanna's choice to include Woods in the show was highly praised on social media, with many sending their well-wishes to the new mother. "WOW! This is ICONIC!!!!," model Jourdan Dunn wrote in the comments. "Welcome to motherhood my love."
The official Instagram account for the Savage X Fenty intimates collection also congratulated the model, writing "YESSSS!! Things you did: THAT!"
"I don’t think I’ve ever seen another lingerie collection use very visibly pregnant models before! This fashion show is diverse in so many different ways," another individual corroborated on Twitter.
"Women should be wearing lingerie for their d**n selves," Rihanna told Vogue in a recent interview. "I can only hope to encourage confidence and strength by showing lingerie in another light. You don't have to stick to one personality with lingerie; it's fun to play around."
"You can be cute and playful one week and a black widow next week. You can take risks with lingerie. I want people to wear Savage x Fenty and think, 'I'm a bad b****. I want women to own their beauty."
All we can say is mission accomplished, Rihanna.
