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For his debut collection at Louis Vuitton, men's creative director and acclaimed musician PHARRELL pays tribute to his African heritage, and a long, collaborative history with the French house.

How did you approach your first collection and show for Louis Vuitton? 

In moments like this, when you've been chosen to do something, the sun is shining on you. The quintessential question that I ask myself all the time, and ask people I care about, is, "Hey, if the sun is shining on you, what would you do with the light?" When the sun shined on me for an opportunity like this, it changed my life across the board.

If I'm going to get this appointment, I'm going to use it to do two things: one, to share all my learnings as a perpetual student; and two, to share my love and appreciation. I'm choosing to shine a light back on this city, these people, all my friends here, who have kept me lifted all this time.

What is the premise of the collection? 

For me, LV means LVERS. If you appreciate Louis Vuitton, you’re a lover of the curation. You love the product but deeper than that, it’s a love for the culture that embodies a like-mindedness of taste. The humans who buy and wear Louis Vuitton have five modes: dandy, which is tailoring for business and events; comfort, which is what you wear at home and to the gas station; resort, for when you’re on the beach; sport, for activity and working out; and finally, the core staples of the House, which I’m going to iterate on every season. It’s thinking across the board of the demographic. Everything you want to do, we made something for you.

Why did you choose the Damier patterns as a key component in the collection?